A possible concise summary is:
The text is about how cosmic rays, high-energy radiation from space, can cause random errors in computers and electronics by flipping bits of information. It gives examples of how cosmic rays affected the Belgian elections, a video game, a passenger plane, and a Mars rover. It also explains how cosmic rays are detected, where they come from, and how they vary with the sun's activity and the earth's location. It ends with a remark that cosmic rays could change our lives in unexpected ways.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. Scientists in South Korea achieved a nuclear fusion reaction at 100 million°C for 30 seconds in 2022.
2. The core of the Sun has a temperature of 15 million degrees kelvins.
3. Cosmic rays are high-energy radiation from space that can cause bit flips in computer memory and electronics.
4. Victor Hess discovered cosmic rays in 1911 by using an electroscope on a balloon flight.
5. A cosmic ray caused a voting error in the Belgian elections of 2003, giving Maria Winda Vogel 4096 extra votes.
6. A cosmic ray caused a glitch in Super Mario 64 that allowed the player to jump to a higher floor.
7. A cosmic ray caused a malfunction in the Airbus A330 flight control unit, making the plane dive and injure 119 people in 2008.
8. The Perseverance rover has a radiation-resistant computer system to prevent failures from cosmic rays on Mars.
9. Cosmic rays can affect the genetic code and the diversity of life on Earth.