Sarah Boothman, PhD

"... IBM also hopped on the checkout conveyor belt to help develop a universal barcode system that could be used in any grocery store. Through their efforts, the Universal Product Code (UPC) was invented and is still in use today. The first UPC was scanned (on a pack of Wrigley’s chewing gum) in 1974, and by 1989, over half of all grocery sales used UPC scanning. 

So how exactly do these barcodes and scanners work?"

"Science has uncovered a new color. No, we’re not talking about a new shade with a name like “violet indulgence” or “likeable sand” in the hardware store paint aisle; it’s a color that has never been seen with human eyes. It’s called “olo” and has been described as an intensely saturated blue-green. Researchers at UC Berkeley, leaning into the fantastical spirit of this endeavor, developed a technique named “Oz” to uncover the new hue. But no wizards or witches were needed in this endeavor - just science."

"The drugs even got a highlight during SuperBowl LIX via an ad from the telehealth company Hims & Hers. This near-constant exposure begs the question: what exactly are GLP-1 agonists and how do they work?"