Portable Muon Beams, Sodium Batteries, and the Secret to Long Life (EP. 13)

Aloha internet — Lester Nare and Krishna Choudhary return with three extraordinary research stories: portable muon beams, sodium-ion batteries, and the secret to long life.

Summary
• Lawrence Berkeley’s compact muon beam technology and its applications in archaeology, volcanology, and security.
• UC San Diego + U Chicago’s solid-state sodium battery that rivals lithium in power but not in cost.
• Tongji University’s naked mole rat DNA study uncovering a genetic pathway for longer, healthier life.

Show Notes

Portable Muon Beam
Nature News Coverage (nature.com/articles/d41586-025-03245-8)
Physical Review Accelerators and Beams Paper (journals.aps.org/prab/abstract/10.1103/kxjr-h7…)
Sodium Ion Batteries
Science Daily Coverage (sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/10/251016223116…)
Joule Paper (2025) (doi.org/10.1016/j.joule.2025.102130)
Naked Mole Rats & Longevity
BBC Coverage (bbc.com/news/articles/cz7rxy21lxwo)
Science Journal Paper (science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adp5056)