JQJO — Your world, one story at a time · Page 1296

Researchers report a cleaner way to recover rare earth elements from waste magnets, using flash joule heating and chlorine gas to vaporize unwanted metals and leave REEs behind as oxides or oxychlorides. The process, detailed in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, achieved over 90% purity and over 90% recovery. A life-cycle and techno‑economic analysis found energy use, greenhouse emissions, and operating costs drop by 87%, 84%, and 54% compared with hydrometallurgical extraction. Rice University’s James Tour says the approach could help the United States meet a growing need by tapping e‑waste.

Jane Goodall’s cause of death has been listed as cardiopulmonary arrest, according to a death certificate, after the 91-year-old died Oct. 1 while on a speaking tour in California. The Jane Goodall Institute earlier described her passing as “natural causes.” The certificate, published by TMZ, also notes she had epilepsy, without stating its role. Goodall, an ethologist and conservation advocate, was due to speak at UCLA on Oct. 3. Tributes have poured in, including Ellie Goulding crediting Goodall with shaping her environmentalism into a lifelong mission.

A Third Circuit panel grilled the Justice Department over Alina Habba’s status as U.S. attorney for New Jersey after a district court ruled her appointment violated the Federal Vacancies Reform Act. DOJ lawyer Henry Whitaker argued the attorney general can delegate authority and said Habba could serve until February, while conceding there’s no set expiration under delegation — and that he could not cite a similar sequence of moves. Defense counsel Abbe Lowell called the setup gerry-rigged. Related challenges are pending, and Habba blamed Congress for stalled confirmations.

Hulu has greenlit a reboot of Prison Break, set in the same world with new characters. Emily Browning stars as Cassidy, an ex-soldier turned corrections officer who takes a job at one of America’s deadliest prisons for someone she loves. The cast includes Drake Rodger, Lukas Gage, Clayton Cardenas, JR Bourne, Georgie Flores, and Myles Bullock. Elgin James writes, serves as showrunner, and directs the pilot; Dawn Olmstead, creator Paul Scheuring, Marty Adelstein, and Neal Moritz executive produce.

Google is reportedly recruiting a small group of Pixel Superfans to test unreleased phones, a rare move for a company that usually limits hardware trials to employees. Bloomberg says 15 non-employees will be chosen to provide feedback on a Pixel in development, under strict NDAs and camouflaging cases. Applicants must show deep Pixel knowledge and propose improvements. The effort comes as Google continues to battle leaks, with traceable sample devices meant to curb them. Selection timing is unconfirmed, but feedback would need to arrive for the Pixel 11, expected August 2026; a Pixel 10a is expected spring 2026.

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner of Maine apologized for Reddit posts from four years ago in which he described himself as moving from socialist to communist and used derogatory language about police, rural White Americans and tipping by Black people. In an Oct. 17 video, he said the comments came during a difficult period after military service in Iraq and Afghanistan, citing PTSD and depression, and said his views have changed. Platner said he largely stopped posting around 2020 or 2021 and highlighted past messages urging veterans to seek therapy. He was endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders.

As the U.S. government shutdown reaches day 20, the National Nuclear Security Administration will temporarily furlough about 1,400 staff—the first such layoffs since the agency was created in 2000—leaving fewer than 400 on duty, a spokesperson said. The Office of Secure Transportation can operate until 27 October. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the stockpile remains secure but modernization will slow. The Senate plans yet another vote to fund the government as 1.4 million federal workers go unpaid, amid partisan deadlock over healthcare funding and a Republican push to pay those still working.

Netflix and Chernin Entertainment have ordered Kennedy, an eight-episode drama about the influential Kennedy family, based on Fredrik Logevall’s book. Michael Fassbender will play patriarch Joseph Kennedy Sr., with Sam Shaw as showrunner. Set in the 1930s, Season 1 traces the ascent of Joe and Rose Kennedy and their nine children, including a rebellious Jack. Executive producers include Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping, Eric Roth, and Logevall, with Thomas Vinterberg directing.

Two Falcon 9 rockets lifted off from Florida and California on Sunday, adding 56 Starlink satellites and pushing SpaceX past 10,000 mass-produced spacecraft delivered to low-Earth orbit—10,006 by one expert’s count. “From Tintin to 10,000,” a launch director said as the California mission deployed 28 satellites that will climb from 160 to about 332 miles. SpaceX now has 8,664 functioning Starlink satellites, including 7,448 in operational orbit, and more than 7 million subscribers. The Florida launch also flew a Falcon 9 booster for a record 31st time.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described his reportedly tense meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump as “positive,” despite failing to secure Tomahawk missiles after Trump spoke with Vladimir Putin. Zelenskyy said Trump favors a freeze along the current front line and wants upcoming talks with Putin in Hungary to open a path to peace, though Kyiv has not been invited. He pressed for faster access to 25 Patriot systems and noted U.S. interest in energy projects, including an LNG terminal in Odesa. Zelenskyy criticized Budapest as a venue and questioned Putin’s territorial swap proposal.