Spy agencies brief people in power. We brief you. Each week we bring you one story that matters, and a few that don’t!
Your Brief for March 6, 2025: The Gadget Master, stolen gold toilet, stem cell heart patches, reversing extinction and more!
News
Stolen Gold Toilet
Three English men are on trial for their alleged role in the 2019 theft of "America," an 18-karat gold, fully functional toilet stolen from Blenheim Palace. Created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, the satirical piece, valued at $6 million, was previously displayed at New York's Guggenheim Museum—where visitors could use it. Prosecutors claim five men broke into Blenheim Palace, the birthplace of Winston Churchill, through a window and made off with the 200-pound artwork in a matter of minutes. While one suspect has pleaded guilty, the other three deny involvement. It's presumed the toilet was melted down and sold.
Image Credit: Guggenheim
True Spies
The Gadget Master
Could you make it back?
During World War II, Britain had a unique asset in its fight against the Axis powers—a civil servant, officially posted to the Ministry of Supply, with a secret mission: to equip British agents and service members with the gadgets they needed to survive behind enemy lines.
Meet Charles Fraser-Smith. Missionary, agent, inventor. He fought WWII with ingenuity, crafting the real-life spy gadgets that later inspired one of Ian Fleming’s most beloved characters: ‘Q,’ the MI6 quartermaster.
Fraser-Smith’s silk handkerchief doubled as a miniaturized map of France, his suit jacket could conceal a tiny surgical saw sewn into the lining, and even his cigarette holder was a fully functioning telescope. He was the mastermind behind some of the most essential equipment used by British spies in the fight against the Nazis—proving that sometimes, a cigar is not just a cigar.
For agents in Britain’s Special Operations Executive (SOE), survival was often a long shot. But Fraser-Smith’s meticulously designed arsenal of covert tools gave them an edge. And nothing was left to chance.
What did these agents need to survive in hostile territory? What gadgets made the difference between escape and capture? Find out in this week’s podcast selection, ‘The Gadget Master.’
A unique team building experience designed with top trainers from CIA and MI6!
Bring your team to SPYSCAPE for a unique experience designed with top trainers from CIA and MI6. Everyone from junior staff to C-level execs will get actionable learnings to apply in the workplace. And they'll have fun!
Enjoying The Brief? Click below to share with your friends!
Art
Hidden Art Resurfaces
Where were priceless masterpieces hidden away for decades?
For over 40 years, artworks by Picasso, van Gogh, Pollock, and Warhol have been locked away in a cellar in Tehran, unseen by the public. Since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, only a tiny fraction of Iran's estimated $3 billion art collection has been displayed—until last year. The Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art has been slowly unveiling its long-hidden collection, most recently through the Eye to Eye exhibition, featuring works by Monet, Bacon, and Warhol! The decision to showcase this world-class archive offers a rare glimpse at pieces that might never have seen the light of day.
Image Credit: Shutterstock/Artography
Science
Stem Cell Heart Patches
Could lab-grown patches help mend damaged hearts?
Scientists at the University Medical Center Goettingen, Germany, have developed small heart muscle patches that could offer new hope for people with advanced heart failure. According to research published in Nature, early trials suggest the patches help support heart function and could become a future treatment option.
The patches, created using stem cells and grown in the lab, are stitched onto the surface of a patient’s heart through a small incision. The stem cells specialize into heart muscle cells. A recent trial in primates and one human patient has shown promising results. The first human recipient, a 46-year-old woman with severe heart failure, had the patch implanted in 2021. Her condition remained stable with no side effects until she later received a heart transplant. While a full clinical trial involving 15 patients is still underway, researchers believe the technology could eventually provide a new way to repair damaged hearts.
Image Credit: Eva Meyer-Besting/UMG
Host your birthday party at SPYSCAPE - NYC'S #1 rated Museum & Experience
Give your party guests an unforgettable experience designed to engage, entertain and inspire. Our dedicated staff will be on hand to help, and you'll even get your own special roped-off zone to celebrate.
Could a shaggy mouse bring back the woolly mammoth?
Scientists at de-extinction company Colossal Biosciences have genetically engineered a mouse with thick fur and fat deposits to mimic the cold tolerance of a woolly mammoth. The experiment, detailed in a yet-to-be-peer-reviewed study, demonstrates their ability to edit multiple genes to produce a single expressed trait. Further tests will determine whether the modifications are effective in cold environments.
Researchers targeted mouse genes linked to hair growth and cold adaptation, some of which have direct ties to the mammoth genome. The team used three distinct gene-editing techniques, shutting off specific genes like FGF-5, which regulates hair length, allowing the mice to grow long, shaggy fur.
Colossal, founded in 2021 by entrepreneur Ben Lamm and geneticist George Church, has ambitious plans to bring back extinct species, including the woolly mammoth, dodo, and Tasmanian tiger. The company is working to refine its genetic techniques before applying them to larger-scale de-extinction projects!
Image Credit: Colossal Biosciences
Photography
Wild Shots
Which wild moments stole the spotlight this year?
The 2025 World Nature Photography Awards showcased breathtaking moments from the wild. Among the standout winning shots are a polar bear playing with a stick in the Svalbard archipelago, a flower mantis perched on a mushroom, and a young olive ridley sea turtle embarking on its journey into the vast open ocean at Kasait, Timor Leste. Other winning images include a blue-spotted mudskipper soaring through the air in Australia, the Milky Way reflected in Montana's Hyalite Lake, and a dramatic showdown between two hippos in Zimbabwe. See all the winning shots here.
Image Credit: Daniel Flormann
Technology
Goodbye Skype
Is this Skype's final call?
Launched in 2003 by Nordic engineers, Skype revolutionized online communication, allowing people to make free voice and video calls worldwide. However, Skype's dominance faded as competition from FaceTime, WhatsApp, Zoom, and Slack intensified. Microsoft has announced that Skype, once the go-to video-calling platform, will officially be retired in May as the company shifts focus to its Teams service.
Acquired by Microsoft for $8.5 billion in 2011, Skype once had around 300 million monthly users at its peak in 2016. But by 2023, that number had dropped to 36 million. Originally named "Sky peer-to-peer," the service was later shortened to "Skyper" and finally to "Skype". After two decades of connecting people worldwide, Skype is signing off for good.
Image Credit: Shutterstock/Bangla press
The Brief is brought to you by NYC's #1 Museum & Experiences: Try brain-teasing challenges at SPYSCAPE or pulse-racing fun at SPYGAMES.
