Inverse Daily

Ford F-150 Lightning: Why a truck could save the planet (really!)

Plus: The latest photos of the new Tesla Roadster, a big bright galaxy, and the SafeMoon scoop.

by Nick Lucchesi

While I wonder what life might’ve been like with a Kanye West Rick and Morty episode, let me get you caught up on the latest science and technology news — plus a few other treats — from the crew at Inverse.

And if you’re looking for music to listen to while you read this daily dispatch, celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of Marvin Gaye’s album, What’s Going On. Here’s the title track on YouTube.

This is an adapted version of the Inverse Daily newsletter for May 21, 2021. Subscribe for free and earn rewards for reading every day in your inbox.

The Ford F-150 Lightning is the most important car ever — The debut of the new F-150 Lightning creates a transformational moment for electric cars. Jordan Golson has all the details in a feature story on the new truck:

In 2015, Ford made headlines as the first truck to transition to an all-aluminum for the body panels. Today, Ford announced an even bigger change. It would be the first of the big three truckmakers — General Motors, RAM, and Ford — to reveal its all-electric pickup, the F-150 Lightning.

Because this is the bestselling vehicle in America, it means Lightning will introduce electric cars to millions of potential new owners, many of whom have never considered buying an EV before. This is the Model T of the new millennium, a sea change moment for the entire industry, and that makes it the most important car since the invention of the production line — or maybe ever.

The F-150 Lightning is the next step in Ford’s transition to electrified cars. Last year, it released the Mustang Mach-E to critical acclaim. It even received the prestigious North American Utility Vehicle of the Year award. For 2021, the 117-year-old company is aiming higher, starting with the E-Transit, an electric version of its business-focused and ultra-popular panel van, which launched earlier this year. But ultimately, the F-150 Lightning is the real prize — and perhaps the biggest stage yet for electric automobiles.

Read Jordan’s full feature story here.

Go deeper:

Try this the next time you take mushrooms — A common kitchen staple could make psilocybin therapy more accessible. Here's what you need to know, from our health science staff writer Katie MacBride:

Study after study shows that psilocybin — a psychoactive compound in magic mushrooms — can rebalance the brain and may help treat psychiatric conditions like PTSD, anxiety, and depression. A study published in April went further: compared to the classic antidepressant Lexapro, psilocybin is a more effective antidepressant.

But with powerful drugs, there tend to be unwanted side effects. One of the most common for psilocybin seems to be nausea. Most psilocybin studies list feeling queasy as among the most common unwanted side effects participants experienced. Some participants report vomiting, too, but puking is less common than just feeling like you might barf. Importantly, the nausea wasn’t enough to ruin the experience, as these participants’ outcomes were ultimately positive.

Maybe the idea of puking — or just feeling like you need to puke — is enough to put you off the therapy. Of course, for those who have emetophobia, a fear of vomiting, or just a weak stomach, the aversion may be even more acute. There may be a trick to dramatically reduce any possible nausea, however: A common kitchen staple may be the thing that gets more people on board with psilocybin therapy.

Read the rest of Katie’s story.

Related 🍄 stories:

Stunning video of the new Tesla Roadster — The second-generation Tesla Roadster was on full display at the Peterson Automotive Museum, but the best may be still to come, writes senior staff writer Mike Brown:

It’s a key glimpse at a vehicle that’s remained elusive since its 2017 unveiling. While it was originally expected to launch in 2020, Musk described the vehicle in 2019 as “dessert” and suggested that more mass-market vehicles would take priority. The vehicle is now expected to enter production in 2022.

See the photos from Mike’s story here.

Related Tesla news:

Is SafeMoon a safe bet? — One of Elon “the Dogefather” Musk’s favorite coins, Dogecoin, might have some challengers: the SafeMoon token and the Shiba Inu coin. Jack Delahunty has the latest in his Crypto-Savvy column:

SafeMoon, which launched on March 8, 2021, on the Binance Smart Chain, has received plugs from rapper Lil Yachty, infamous Youtuber Jake Paul, and others. Its development team has made some bold promises (we’ll get into those below), and while SafeMoon has only been trading for just over two months, it’s appreciated more than the S&P 500 over the last decade.

Ethereum-based SHIB, which launched in August 2020 as a rival to DOGE, was dubbed (by some in the “#SHIBArmy”) the “Dogecoin Killer” and has also seen massive gains as of late.

There’s been an increasing amount of excitement surrounding the two digital assets. In fact, this week they surpassed Bitcoin on CoinMarketCap’s “most viewed cryptocurrencies” list, bumping the world's largest and most valuable coin to third place. This enthusiasm is also apparent in both of the coin’s growing market capitalizations, which combined comes to ~$10.5 billion.

Jack’s insight goes deep — keep reading in this story.

More from Crypto-Savvy:

A brain-hacking technique — In a new study in Science, researchers show how providing tactile feedback — essentially the sense of touch — can dramatically improve brain-controlled prosthetics. Card story editor Jenn Walter has the stunning gallery.

See the full gallery curated by Jenn.

A massive, super-bright galaxy — A large galaxy observed by ALMA with a distinct spiral structure like the Milky Way emerged at a time when it shouldn't have, shortly after the Big Bang. It’s the latest story from contributing writer Erika K. Carlson:

In a new study published Thursday in Science, two researchers describe what could be spiral arms in an unexpected place — a giant, extremely luminous galaxy about 12.4 billion years ago — offering a new puzzle for astronomers to ponder.

“This was before the peak of cosmic star formation and maybe the formation of galaxies, Takafumi Tsukui of the Graduate University of Advanced Studies in Japan and the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, told Carlson.

Keep reading this extra-bright story by Erika.

More space news:

That does it for today’s edition! Thanks y’all.

Happy birthday to an icon — Mr. T.

Eric Robert/Sygma/Getty Images
  • About the newsletter: Do you think it can be improved? Have a story idea? Want to share a story about how you met Mr. T? Send those thoughts and more to newsletter@inverse.com.
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  • Before we go, happy birthday (🎂) to these folks: Mr. T (69), Al Franken (70), Lisa Edelstein (55), Ronald Isley (80), Kayla Itsines (30). (Source: AP.)

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