NASA Launches Experiment in Space With Michael J. Fox Foundation
*By Conor White*
As an actor in the 1980s, Michael J. Fox journeyed to an imagined future ー and in 2018, his real-life project is launching into space.
On Thursday, a Cygnus NASA spacecraft will deliver more than 800 pounds of experiments to the International Space Station on behalf of the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, an organization the actor founded in 2000, roughly nine years after he was diagnosed with the disease.
"They're going to be trying to grow crystals out of this protein that seems to be connected to Parkinson's disease," explained Sarah Lewin, an associate editor at Space.com.
"Basically, the reason they want to do that is the proteins are really small and hard to figure what's going on with them, if you grow a crystal, you can learn more about their structure," she added Wednesday in an interview on Cheddar.
Due to gravity, the crystals are exponentially more difficult to grow on Earth. That isn't as much of an issue in space.
Astronauts will also be receiving a "refabricator" ー essentially, a 3D printer with a special talent.
"This is a device that can take used plastic bags and old food packaging on the space station and melt down the plastic and 3D print it into tools and things like that," Lewin said.
With NASA planning missions to Mars, astronauts won't be able to receive tools ー so it's imperative the 3D device is tested and works correctly long before then. And, of course, there's the cost to consider.
"It's really expensive to send things up to the Space Station so if you can just make it there, it's much better," Lewin said.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/nasa-prepares-to-launch-experiments-to-iss).
Nestlé has dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate. The company announced on Monday that the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found that Freixe violated Nestlé’s code of conduct. He had been CEO for a year. Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive, will replace him. Chairman Paul Bulcke stated that the decision was necessary to uphold the company’s values and governance. Navratil began his career with Nestlé in 2001 and has held various roles, including CEO of Nestlé's Nespresso division since 2024.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
