Interstellar Visitor 3I/Atlas, Human Longevity Plateau, New No-Sort Plastic & Analog AI (EP. 7)

Hosted by Lester Nare and Krishna Choudhary, Episode 7 of From First Principles covers four stories at the frontier of science and technology. This week, we dive into new telescope data on the interstellar visitor 3i Atlas, explore a major longevity study that suggests life expectancy may have plateaued, unpack a breakthrough nickel catalyst that could enable no-sort plastic recycling, and look at Microsoft’s analog AI computer — a potential game-changer for energy efficiency and medical applications.

Summary
• Interstellar comet 3i Atlas imaged by Hubble, JWST, TESS, and ESA orbiters
• Longevity study shows human life expectancy may have plateaued post-1939 births
• Northwestern researchers develop a nickel catalyst for no-sort plastic recycling
• Microsoft unveils an analog optical AI computer with 100x GPU efficiency

Show Notes
• Space.com — 3I/Atlas Coverage (space.com/astronomy/comets/interstellar-comet-…)
• PNAS — Longevity Plateau Study (pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2519179122)
• Nature Chemistry — No-Sort Plastic Catalyst (nature.com/articles/s41557-025-01892-y)
• Nature — Analog AI (nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09430-z)