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This is today’s edition download, Our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the tech world.
Why are sounds and smells as important to cities as sights?
When David Howes thinks of his hometown of Montreal, he thinks of the harmonious tones of carillon bells and the scent of wood-fired pretzels. But he was met with blank stares when he stopped at the local tourist office and asked where they would recommend visitors go to smell, taste and listen to the city.
“They only know the things to see, not the other sensory attractions of the city, sound cues and olfactory cues,” says Howes, director of the Concordia University Center for Sensory Studies, central to the growing field of what is often called “sensory urbanism.”
Researchers around the world like Howes are investigating how non-visual information defines a city’s character and influences its livability. Using a variety of methods, from low-tech audio walks and scent maps to data scraping, wearable devices and virtual reality, they are battling what they see as a limiting visual bias in urban planning. Read the full story.
—Jennifer Hattam
These scientists want to capture more carbon with CRISPR crops
News: Plants are the original carbon capture factories, and a new research program aims to make them more effective using gene editing. The Innovative Genomics Institute, a research group founded by CRISPR co-inventor Jennifer Doudna, has announced a new program to use a revolutionary gene-editing tool in agricultural crops to increase carbon storage capabilities.
How it would work: One of the primary goals would be to fine-tune photosynthesis so that plants can grow faster. By changing the enzymes involved, researchers can cut off the energy-consuming side reactions, some of which release carbon dioxide. The researchers also hope they can find ways to store more carbon in the soil, for example by promoting larger, deeper root systems.
bigger picture: Getting these techniques to work will be a major challenge, but the research is part of scientists’ growing efforts to find ways to vacuum carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere to slow climate change. Read the full story.
—Casey Crownhart
must read
I scoured the internet for today’s most entertaining/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.
1 Crypto market in free fall
With the huge amount of money at stake, the volatility of crypto now seems less exciting and more alarming. (New York Magazine)
+ Bitcoin price slumped to an 18-month low. (Bloomberg $)
+ Even the most optimistic investors go crazy. (motherboard)
+ Crypto companies are also making massive layoffs. (Boundary)
+ El Salvador lost nearly half of its Bitcoin investment. (crushable)
+ It’s okay to give up on the crypto revolution. (MIT Technology Review)
2 Big Tech agreed to reveal more about disinformation
At a country level, it’s something tech companies have resisted before. (FT $)
+ The EU threatens them with fines for failing to deal with deep frauds. (Reuters)
3 What does studying strokes teach us about addiction? 
A particular neural network in the brain may be the key to quitting smoking. (NYT $)
4 Long fight to take illegal, non-consensual videos offline
Survivors fought to have the footage removed from Pornhub. (New Yorker $)
+ Deepfake porn is ruining women’s lives. (MIT Technology Review)
5 SpaceX gets approval to launch Starship rocket from Texas 
But it needs to take strict measures to protect the environment. (WP $)
+ This newborn star has a sibling. (physics)
+ Our Milky Way maps have received a major update. (Nature)
6 Indian authorities are big fans of facial recognition
Privacy advocates disagree with claims that the police are only used to spy on criminals. (motherboard)
+ Here’s how to stop AI from recognizing your face in selfies. (MIT Technology Review)
7 We need to change the way we warn beachgoers about deadly currents
Static warning signs not working. There may be systems that warn of changing conditions. (Hakai Magazine)
+ There is a global movement dedicated to raising awareness about rip currents. (Guard)
8 People are increasingly afraid of being canceled
Psychiatrists wonder if there is a new manifestation of OCD centered around the fear of social destruction. (slate)
9 Electric car designs are getting more creative
Some are getting more luxurious, while others can only accommodate two passengers. (Guard)
+ This startup wants to pack more energy into EV batteries. (MIT Technology Review)
What does drinking alcohol mean in Metaverse? 
Beverage brands are building virtual bars – but the drink isn’t a drop. (WSJ $)
Word of the Day
“Older people go online for a few things. For the younger generation, the internet is ‘things’.”
— Payton Iheme, head of public policy at dating app Bumble, New York Times how different generations use technology and what this means for potential risks.
big story
Lunik: Inside the CIA’s audacious plan to steal a Soviet satellite
January 2021
In late October 1959, a Mexican spy named Eduardo Diaz Silveti infiltrated the US Embassy in Mexico City. Silveti, 30, tall and straight-talking, with slicked back hair, had learned to spy for the Mexican secret police. During the Cold War, the capital was so overrun by Communist spies that the CIA enlisted the help of Mexican secret services in their fight against the Soviet Union.
Winston Scott, 49, was the first secretary of the US Embassy. This was his cover; He was also the CIA’s most respected spy in Latin America. Secrets was a trading stock for the silver-haired Alabaman: He arrived in Mexico City in 1956 and transformed the CIA station into one of the most successful counter-espionage operations in the world.
According to the Mexican, he had summoned Silveti to his office and offered him a top-secret assignment that was “extremely necessary for the United States.” If they get it wrong, Scott warned that “World War III could begin”. They would devise a plan to steal a Soviet satellite for a few hours so that American experts could work on it. Read the full story.
—Jeff Maysh
We can still have beautiful things
A place for comfort, fun and distraction in these strange times. (Any ideas?Write meortweet me.)
+ This is rumination 40 years of E.T. it is thought provoking.
+ Love it or hate it, texture of fluffy food so much fun (thanks Charlotte!)
+ A perfect joke for all cat feeders outside.
+ A heartwarming story of how beekeeping helps psychiatric patients in Greece.
+ this Photograph of the Martian landscape taken by Perseverance Wonderful.
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