Mount Thor: The mountain with Earth's longest vertical drop
QUICK FACTS
Name: Mount Thor
Location: Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada
Coordinates: 66.53333154734997, -65.31666661096878
Why it's incredible: Mount Thor is home to Earth's largest vertical drop.
Mount Thor is a remote mountain in Canada with the largest vertical drop in the world. The mountain is just under 5,500 feet (1,675 meters) tall — but its most striking feature is its west face, which is so steep that it actually curves back on itself.
An object falling from the top of Mount Thor's western cliff would plummet 4,100 feet (1,250 m) before hitting anything. If a human were to jump off the summit and not deploy a parachute, they would remain in the air for a terrifying 26 seconds.
Mount Thor's west face has an average angle of 105 degrees, which means that the mountain has an overhang of 15 degrees. The western face is, as a Facebook post put it, "steeper than vertical" — making the mountain look like it was cleaved unevenly in half.
Mount Thor is named after the Norse god of thunder. It is located on Baffin Island, the largest island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago.
Related: Savonoski Crater: The mysterious, perfectly round hole in Alaska that scientists can't explain
MORE INCREDIBLE PLACES
—Mount Washington: Home to 'the world's worst weather' with record wind speeds of 231 mph
—North America's 'broken heart': The billion-year-old scar from when the continent nearly ripped apart
—Mount Roraima: The 'lost world' isolated for millions of years that Indigenous people call the 'house of the gods'
The mountain sits on the eastern edge of the Canadian Shield, a massive geological formation with rocks that are at least 1 billion years old. But the peak belongs to the Arctic Cordillera mountain range, which stretches from Ellesmere Island to Labrador.
Mount Thor is made of solid granite that formed between 3.5 billion and 570 million years ago. The mountain was carved over millennia by glaciers, whose repeated advance and retreat between 18,000 and 1,500 years ago eroded the west face into the C-shape we see today.
Despite its remote location, Mount Thor is a popular destination for rock climbers. American astrophysicist Lyman Spitzer and his mountaineering partner Donald Morton made the first recorded ascent of Mount Thor in 1965, but the first ascent of the mountain's west face wasn't until 1985 — and that took 33 days.
Discover more incredible places, where we highlight the fantastic history and science behind some of the most dramatic landscapes on Earth.
Solve the daily Crossword
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Want to protect your brain as you age? Science says to start with this routine
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. If you're trying to stay healthy into your 60s and beyond, there's good news. A new study suggests you don't need extreme workouts or complicated diets to support your brain. Just a consistent routine and a bit of support, like coaching or regular social connection, can go a long way The research, published in JAMA, followed more than 2,000 adults aged 60 to 79 who were at risk of dementia and cognitive decline. Over the course of two years, participants were encouraged to move more, stay socially connected, and manage their heart health. They were also advised to eat well using the brain-friendly MIND diet. This diet emphasizes leafy greens, berries, nuts, whole grains, and fish while limiting red meat and processed foods.. One group followed a structured program with coaching and regular check-ins. The other group was given the same advice but had to make the changes on their own. A little structure made a big difference At the end of the study, both groups showed improvements. However, those who received structured support experienced greater gains in memory, focus, and processing speed. This support included regular coaching, group activities, goal-setting, and check-ins that helped keep participants motivated and accountable. The benefits were especially noticeable in people who had lower cognitive scores at the start. This suggests that healthy habits do matter, but it is the routine and accountability, having someone or something to help you stay on track, that makes those habits stick and leads to better results. For readers, this does not mean you need a personal coach or expensive program. Simple ways to create support include joining a local walking or exercise group, setting reminders or using apps to track your goals, partnering with a friend or family member for regular check-ins, or signing up for community classes or social clubs that focus on wellness. What this means for you The takeaway? You don't need to overhaul your lifestyle overnight. Building a simple structure, like joining a walking group or using an app to track your goals, can make it easier to follow through and see the benefits. And if you're looking to get started, moving a little more each day is a great first step. Whether that means walking with a friend or heading out for a short jog, our expert-tested list of the best running shoes can help you find the right pair. More from Tom's Guide Forget hour-long workouts — new study says this 5-minute routine improves your strength and mental health Hate sit-ups? Study shows this is the only activity you need to strengthen your core This mobility test takes just seconds — and it could predict how well you'll age
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
Cells: Hemostemix ACP-01 Provides the Scientific Basis for Improving the Longevity and Signal Uptake of Brain Computer Implants
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - July 31, 2025) - Hemostemix (TSXV: HEM) (OTCQB: HMTXF) (FSE: 2VF0) ("Hemostemix" or the "Company") is excited to highlight a groundbreaking research article published in Cells on June 29, 2025, by Fraser C. Henderson Sr. and Ms. Kelly Tuchman, exploring how a combination of the patient's own ACP-01 and NCP-01 (autologous blood-derived cell precursors) may support the long-term performance of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). Key Scientific Insights The Challenge with BCIs: Inflammation, scarring, and programmed cell death undermine performance over timeImplantable electrodes within the brain have enabled remarkable achievements—e.g., paralyzed individuals playing chess and blind individuals recognizing letters. However, these devices often fail between six months and one year. The longest BCI in use lasted seven years. Even then, issues like inflammation, scarring, and programmed cell death (apoptosis) undermine performance over time. Hemostemix's Innovative Cell-Based SolutionThe article proposes using two types of autologous (patient-derived) progenitor cells: Angiogenic Cell Precursors (ACP-01, VesCell™) and Neural Cell Precursors (NCP-01), delivered into the cerebrospinal fluid, to foster a healing cellular environment around the implant. ACP-01 (VesCell™) produces signals like IL-8, VEGF, and angiogenin. They attract natural killer (NK) cells that suppress inflammation, reduce tissue scarring, and support new blood vessel growth (angiogenesis). ACP-01potentiate healing through the expression of tissue regeneration factors CXCL8, VEGF, and angiogenin. They include CD34+ (blood stem cell). CXCL8 recruit endogenous CD34+, that circulate peripherally, to the site of implant. CXCL8 (interleukin-8) activate NF-κB, resulting in gene transcription and protein synthesis necessary for learning (memory formation and consolidation). NCP- 01express receptors like CXCR4, and migrate toward the BCI site. NCP help shift immune cells into a neuroprotective (M2) state. NCP differentiate into neurons and supporting glial cells that promote new synaptic connections and neural plasticity. Figure 1. Natural Killer (NK) cells recruited by angiogenic cell precursors (ACPs) suppress inflammation through the release of anti-inflammatory cytokines, dendritic cell and monocyte maturation, and lysis of auto-aggressive T cells. Created in BioRender. Tuchman, K. (2025) view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Figure 2. Angiogenic cell precursors (ACPs) potentiate healing through expression of tissue regeneration factors such as the chemokine interleukin-8 (CXCL8), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and angiogenin. In addition to the robust presence of CD34+ in ACPs, the expressed CXCL8 recruits peripheral CD34+ precursor cells, further supporting angiogenesis. Created by BioRender. Tuchman, K. (2025) view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Figure 3. Interleukin-8 (CXCL8) is expressed by angiogenic cell precursors (ACPs), and activatesthe canonical NF-κB pathway, resulting in gene transcription and protein synthesis necessary formemory formation and consolidation. Created in BioRender. Tuchman, K. (2025) view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Mechanism of Action Together, ACP and NCP support a cascade of beneficial molecular events: Activation of neurotrophic factors and NF-κB pathways that protect cells (anti-apoptosis). Promotion of synaptogenesis (formation of connections between neurons), neuritogenesis (growth of neural processes), to improve learning-related plasticity. As the patient's DNA-based engineered cellular environment, ACP and NCP home to the site of BCI, decrease inflammation, increase angiogenesis, increase neuro-protectiveness, promote new synaptic connections, and may dramatically extend both the lifespan of BCI, signal fidelity and learning. Why This Matters to Hemostemix Hemostemix's patented proprietary platform produces ACP-01 (angiogenic precursors) and NCP-01 (neural precursors) from a patient's own blood. This new research provides a scientific basis of how the combination of ACP-01+NCP-01 promises to overcome the major limitations in BCI implants. The findings align with Hemostemix's vision of licensing ACP-01 and NCP-01 to enhance BCI longevity and functionalities. Forward-Looking Perspective This research paves the way for: Licensing with BCI technology companies to combine autologous stem-cell support of BCI with cutting-edge patient-based angiogenic and neural interfaces. Rapid preclinical and clinical testing of ACP-01 + NCP-01 at BCI implant sites. "We imagine a world where the environment for BCI, the patient's brain, augmented by the patients' own stem cells, improves the longevity of the implants from months to a lifetime, improves signal fidelity to increase functional movement, and increases learning and memory retention," stated Dr. Fraser Henderson, lead author. "I want to thank Dr. Henderson and Ms. Tuchman for this very thorough exposition of the benefits of using one's own DNA structured as ACP & NCP to improve BCIs. Truly, this is incredible work. Coupled with our market analyses of the top three BCI companies, shareholders can expect more news to follow, as Mr. Lawrence, Chief Commercialization Officer and I meet with potential partners," stated Thomas Smeenk, CEO. In Summary Dr. Henderson has outlined a new cell-based approach that may allow brain implants to work reliably for years. By delivering two types of the patient's blood-derived stem cell precursors—one that fights inflammation and boosts blood flow, the other that helps build new neuronal cells—this method could protect and improve the brain at the site of BCI implant. Hemostemix's ready-to-use cell products (ACP-01 and NCP-01) are a direct fit for this approach and could potentially transform how long and well brain-computer interfaces function. ABOUT HEMOSTEMIX Founded in 2003, Hemostemix is a stem-cell therapeutics company with patented technology to generate autologous angiogenic and neural cell precursors from patient blood. Its ACP-01 and NCP-01 cell lines aim to treat cardiovascular, neurological, and implant-related conditions. A winner of the World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer Award, the Company has developed, patented, is scaling and selling autologous (patient's own) blood-based stem cell therapy, VesCell™ (ACP-01). Hemostemix has completed seven clinical studies of 318 subjects and published its results in 11 peer reviewed publications. ACP-01 is safe, clinically relevant and statistically significant as a treatment for peripheral arterial disease, chronic limb threatening ischemia, non ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy, ischemic cardiomyopathy, congestive heart failure, and angina. Hemostemix completed its Phase II clinical trial for chronic limb threatening ischemia and published its results in the Journal of Biomedical Research & Environmental Science. As compared to a five year mortality rate of 60% in the CLTI patient population, UBC and U of T reported to the 41st meeting of vascular surgeons: 0% mortality, cessation of pain, wound healing in 83% of patients followed for up to 4.5 years, as a midpoint result. For more information, please visit For further information, please contact: Thomas Smeenk, President, CEO & Co-Founder: EM: tsmeenk@ / PH: 905-580-4170 Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined under the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-Looking Information: This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking information. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking information in relation to the publication in CELLS of the properties of ACP-01+NCP-01 and the improvement of brain computer interface (BCI) technologies. There can be no assurance that such forward-looking information will prove to be accurate. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information. This forward-looking information reflects Hemostemix's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to Hemostemix and on assumptions Hemostemix believes are reasonable. These assumptions include, but are not limited to: the underlying value of Hemostemix and its Common Shares; the successful resolution of any litigation that Hemostemix is pursuing or defending (the "Litigation"); the results of ACP-01 research, trials, studies and analyses, including the analysis being equivalent to or better than previous research, trials or studies; the receipt of all required regulatory approvals for research, trials or studies; the level of activity, market acceptance and market trends in the healthcare sector; the economy generally; consumer interest in Hemostemix's services and products; competition and Hemostemix's competitive advantages; and, Hemostemix obtaining satisfactory financing to fund Hemostemix's operations including any research, trials or studies, and any Litigation. Forward-looking information is Subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Hemostemix to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: the ability of Hemostemix to complete clinical trials, complete a satisfactory analyses and file the results of such analyses to gain regulatory approval of a phase II or phase III clinical trial of ACP-01; potential litigation Hemostemix may face; general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; general capital market conditions and market prices for securities; delay or failure to receive board or regulatory approvals; the actual results of future operations including the actual results of future research, trials or studies; competition; changes in legislation affecting Hemostemix; the timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; long-term capital requirements and future developments in Hemostemix's markets and the markets in which it expects to compete; lack of qualified, skilled labour or loss of key individuals; and risks related to the COVID-19 pandemic including various recommendations, orders and measures of governmental authorities to try to limit the pandemic, including travel restrictions, border closures, non-essential business closures service disruptions, quarantines, self-isolations, shelters-in-place and social distancing, disruptions to markets, disruptions to economic activity and financings, disruptions to supply chains and sales channels, and a deterioration of general economic conditions including a possible national or global recession or depression; the potential impact that the COVID-19 pandemic may have on Hemostemix which may include a decreased demand for the services that Hemostemix offers; and a deterioration of financial markets that could limit Hemostemix's ability to obtain external financing. A description of additional risk factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking information can be found in Hemostemix's disclosure documents on the SEDAR website at Although Hemostemix has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Readers are further cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking information contained in this news release represents the expectations of Hemostemix as of the date of this news release and, accordingly, it is Subject to change after such date. However, Hemostemix expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities law. To view the source version of this press release, please visit
Gizmodo
12 hours ago
- Gizmodo
This Week's ‘Strange New Worlds' Is a Little Too Cute for Its Own Good
Strange New Worlds loves being Star Trek. That's different from, say, Lower Decks, a series that loved being about Star Trek and the metatextual acknowledgement of that to the nerdiest of degrees. Strange New Worlds knows that it is Star Trek and enjoys that: its connection to the original, the warts-and-all embrace of episodic storytelling, its desire to poke and prod at itself endlessly, and its willingness to vacillate its tone from high drama to high camp on a dime. Sometimes, that can make for incredibly good fun. But sometimes, when it's just a little too much, the show can lose itself, not seeing the forest for the trees. Unfortunately, this week's episode leans a bit too much into the latter.'A Space Adventure Hour' is a Star Trek holodeck episode. Well, really, it's an extended excuse to do a Dixon Hill-esque riff and do a holodeck episode despite the fact that shipboard holodeck technology wasn't common in Star Trek until the time of The Next Generation, a century beyond when Strange New Worlds is set. 'A Space Adventure Hour' acquiesces to that—it frames La'an as its primary perspective and the person in charge of testing an experimental holodeck system aboard Enterprise because of her history with holographic battle simulators, seen in Discovery, and even Pike nods to the eventual existence of the Rec Room seen in Star Trek: The Animated Series. It ultimately concludes that the technology isn't there to be used aboard starships yet, setting the stage for its eventual refinement and arrival by the time of TNG. But that's all excuses. 'A Space Adventure Hour' exists because the Strange New World team thought, 'We're a Star Trek show, and you know what Star Trek does? Holodeck episodes.' And it is, for the most part, a perfectly fine one of those. 'A Space Adventure Hour' fits into the milieu of that Trek trope well enough and doesn't really add much along the way: La'an is tasked with testing the system's power draw while the Enterprise is at full operational capacity examining a dying neutron star; she does so by getting it to replicate a 1960s murder mystery whodunit inspired by a series of novels she read as a child, populating her cast of holographic characters with the likenesses of the main crew. It's a holodeck episode, so things go wrong, safety protocols go offline, and suddenly La'an finds out that to get out of the holodeck alive, she must solve a mystery designed specifically to challenge her. That's all stuff that we've seen from holodeck episodes before, from Dixon Hill stories like 'The Big Goodbye' to things like Voyager's 'The Killing Game' or, perhaps most inspirationally, Deep Space Nine's 'Our Man Bashir.' And 'A Space Adventure Hour' does a mostly decent job at hitting those beats, letting the regular cast loosen up and play very different characters from their usual selves, but it doesn't really build on the holodeck stories that come before it so much as it does just point at the expected beats of those stories, going through the motions. At least, until the climax of the murder mystery fizzles out with a 'twist' reveal—more on that later. So it's perhaps better than worse, then, that 'A Space Adventure Hour' isn't really about being a holodeck murder mystery. At least, it's not interested in being a particularly good one: what 'A Space Adventure Hour' is actually about is telling you that the original Star Trek, the show this show is a prequel to, is the greatest television show of all time, one that changed the whole world, and one that should've lasted forever and ever, and any plan to cancel it, or anything like it, is an act of profound hubris and misjudgment. Very funny for that message to come now, in Strange New World's third season, weeks after Paramount announced that it would conclude with a truncated fifth. But anyway! Strange New Worlds is not a particularly subtle TV show, but it's not telling you all this by literally just having characters in Star Trek turn to the camera and go, 'Star Trek is great!' Instead, it is a step removed: the titular 'Space Adventure Hour' and the key connecting conceit of La'an's murder mystery setting is a fictional 1960s sci-fi TV show called The Last Frontier, which has just been cancelled after its first season by a studio executive whose murder sets off the whole whodunnit. Anson Mount plays T.K. Bellows, the shy writer and Last Frontier creator who believes sci-fi shows are a social good and the future of the industry but longs for more, in the vein of a Gene Roddenberry. Rebecca Romijn plays Sunny Lupino, a former model and starlet turned Hollywood producer who backs The Last Frontier because she believes in its potential, our stand-in for Lucille Ball. Paul Wesley is Last Frontier's leading man, Maxwell Saint, a pompous actor playing the ship's machismo-fueled captain, pulling off the most tortured William Shatner impersonation yet committed to screen. Seriously, the pauses are interminable. All the motivations for potential suspects in the executive's murder hinge on the fact that practically everyone involved in The Last Frontier believes in the show as a force for good, even beyond being great television. As more bodies begin to drop and finger-pointing pokes and prods at individual paranoias, as far as pretty much anyone in the holoprogram's cast is concerned, Last Frontier (and through its thin veneer, the original Trek) is unimpeachable. The climax of the murder mystery narrative is even paused so Celica Rose Gooding, playing talent agent Joni Gloss, can give that 'turn to camera and say how good this show is' speech to La'an, evangelizing over a dead body right in front of her that The Last Frontier can, and should be given the opportunity to, change television and the lives of the American people for good. Again: not a subtle show, but the remove from what it's actually saying to what it wants to say to its audience might as well be glass, to the point you're almost a little insulted that Strange New Worlds didn't commit fully and have a holoprogram about a fictional murder on the set of actual Star Trek. Which is odd because we do actually get to see Last Frontier for what it is—the episode is bookended by an extended scene from the faux-show as a cold open, and its credits close out over a 'blooper reel' behind the scenes. And despite what the rest of the episode goes on to do to evangelize its worth, as a parody of the original Star Trek, it's oddly mean. The sets are significantly cheaper-looking than much of what classic Trek ever did, and the script feels like an extended 'Spock's Brain' gag but somehow even more convoluted. The acting (Wesley's Saint is joined by Jess Bush/Chapel and Melissa Navia/Ortegas as actresses Adelaide Shaw and Lee Woods, respectively) is intentionally clunky and ham-fisted, right down to Wesley's exaggerated Shatnerisms. The show all these characters go on to laud as a huge hit and a cultural game changer isn't even close to the original Star Trek's quality; it just kind of sucks. Strange New Worlds has done a much better job of loving homages to the look and direction of Star Trek before—the 'Balance of Terror' homages in season one's 'A Quality of Mercy' remain one of the show's finest hours—so The Last Frontier ends up feeling less like the show being in on a joke and more like the show just laughing at what came before it. It's an especially odd contrast with what the rest of the episode wants to say. But once it's got that unsubtle message out regardless, 'A Space Adventure Hour' remembers that it's technically a holodeck episode and needs to wrap fast, which is where the aforementioned 'twist' comes in. La'an's murder mystery ultimately doesn't really matter, because the mystery plot was an entire misdirect: none of the holoprograms in its setting committed the crime, but instead a holographic rendering of Spock, who was inserted into the program to act as if the real Spock had come to help La'an out with her test. A murderer she never would've expected, she gasps as she figures it out, less because of her personal relationship to Spock but more because the possibility of him being the suspect is thrown from so far out of left field that it doesn't feel set up by the episode itself and more of a gotcha once 'A Space Adventure Hour' remembered that it needed to stop telling you that Star Trek is good and finish its original plot. It's made even more thorny by the fact that this revelation climaxes back aboard Enterprise in reality with La'an going to Spock's quarters to resume dance lessons with him (a thing we're reminded of this episode that he's kept up with her since 'Wedding Bell Blues') and recount her experiences testing the holodeck out and his role in the twist… culminating in the two revealing their romantic interest in each other, sealing it with a kiss. It feels like an odd choice, wherever Strange New Worlds takes this over the course of the rest of the season. Spock's barely moved on from his romance with Nurse Chapel, narratively speaking—a plot that was given a ton of build-up and then all fell apart relatively quickly once they got together. La'an herself was already given a will-they-won't-they romantic arc with a legacy Trek character last season with Kirk, even if it ended unrequited. Especially given how 'Wedding Bell Blues' already used its three-month timeskip to justify La'an immediately compartmentalizing her traumatic history with the Gorn, it feels bizarre to just thrust her into a second romantic arc so quickly, like these are the only two options available to her as a character. It's a peculiar end to a peculiar episode, one that never quite manages to extend its charms long enough to effectively communicate what it wants. Strange New Worlds has gotten by on its charms an awful lot over its past seasons, but perhaps it's becoming increasingly visible that those charms have a limit. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what's next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
