October 2023 – Lifeboat News: The Blog https://lifeboat.com/blog Safeguarding Humanity Sun, 01 Oct 2023 05:24:25 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.3.1 How Many Microbes Does It Take to Make You Sick? https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/how-many-microbes-does-it-take-to-make-you-sick https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/how-many-microbes-does-it-take-to-make-you-sick#respond Sun, 01 Oct 2023 05:24:25 +0000 https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/how-many-microbes-does-it-take-to-make-you-sick

Exposure to a virus isn’t an all-or-nothing proposition. The concept of “infectious dose” suggests ways to keep ourselves safer from harm.

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ChatGPT update enables its AI to “see, hear, and speak,“ according to OpenAI https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/chatgpt-update-enables-its-ai-to-see-hear-and-speak-according-to-openai https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/chatgpt-update-enables-its-ai-to-see-hear-and-speak-according-to-openai#respond Sun, 01 Oct 2023 05:24:10 +0000 https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/chatgpt-update-enables-its-ai-to-see-hear-and-speak-according-to-openai

While ChatGPT and its associated AI models are clearly not human (despite the hype associated with its marketing), if the updates perform as shown, they potentially represent a significant expansion in capabilities for OpenAI’s computer assistant:

[📸: Getty Images]


On Monday, OpenAI announced a significant update to ChatGPT that enables its GPT-3.5 and GPT-4 AI models to analyze images and react to them as part of a text conversation. Also, the ChatGPT mobile app will add speech synthesis options that, when paired with its existing speech recognition features, will enable fully verbal conversations with the AI assistant, OpenAI says.

OpenAI says the new image recognition feature in ChatGPT lets users upload one or more images for conversation, using either the GPT-3.5 or GPT-4 models. In its promotional blog post, the company claims the feature can be used for a variety of everyday applications: from figuring out what’s for dinner by taking pictures of the fridge and pantry, to troubleshooting why your grill won’t start.

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Researchers take steps toward stopping the ‘conversation’ between cancerous tumors and nerves https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/researchers-take-steps-toward-stopping-the-conversation-between-cancerous-tumors-and-nerves https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/researchers-take-steps-toward-stopping-the-conversation-between-cancerous-tumors-and-nerves#respond Sun, 01 Oct 2023 05:23:58 +0000 https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/researchers-take-steps-toward-stopping-the-conversation-between-cancerous-tumors-and-nerves

Cancer tumors hijack the genetic program used by developing nerves. This is shown in a study published in the journal Frontiers in Genetics by researchers at Umeå University. In the long term, the results may open up new ways of treating cancer by limiting the tumor’s interaction with the nerves.

“We are still only early in the research, but this opens up exciting opportunities to fight cancer in the body in a completely new way,” says Sara Wilson, associate professor of neurobiology at the Department of Integrative Medical Biology at Umeå University.

In cancer, there is an interaction between tumors and nerves. You could say that the tumor talks to the . The researchers believe that by interpreting this “conversation,” it will later be possible to find ways to break it and thus slow down the cancer or reduce the risk of it spreading.

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NASA Validates Revolutionary Propulsion Design for Deep Space Missions https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/nasa-validates-revolutionary-propulsion-design-for-deep-space-missions https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/nasa-validates-revolutionary-propulsion-design-for-deep-space-missions#respond Sun, 01 Oct 2023 05:23:17 +0000 https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/nasa-validates-revolutionary-propulsion-design-for-deep-space-missions

By Ray Osorio As NASA takes its first steps toward establishing a long-term presence on the Moon’s surface, a team of propulsion development engineers at NASA have developed and tested NASA’s first full-scale rotating detonation rocket engine, or RDRE, an advanced rocket engine design that could significantly change how future propulsion systems are built.

The RDRE differs from a traditional rocket engine by generating thrust using a supersonic combustion phenomenon known as a detonation. This design produces more power while using less fuel than today’s propulsion systems and has the potential to power both human landers and interplanetary vehicles to deep space destinations, such as the Moon and Mars.

Engineers at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and primary collaborator IN Space LLC, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, are confirming data from RDRE hot fire tests conducted in 2022 at Marshall’s East Test Area. The engine was fired over a dozen times, totaling nearly 10 minutes in duration.

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China tested the first ever drone equipped with a rotary detonation engine — the propulsion system will open the way to the creation of hypersonic aircraft and missiles https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/china-tested-the-first-ever-drone-equipped-with-a-rotary-detonation-engine-the-propulsion-system-will-open-the-way-to-the-creation-of-hypersonic-aircraft-and-missiles https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/china-tested-the-first-ever-drone-equipped-with-a-rotary-detonation-engine-the-propulsion-system-will-open-the-way-to-the-creation-of-hypersonic-aircraft-and-missiles#respond Sun, 01 Oct 2023 05:22:44 +0000 https://lifeboat.com/blog/2023/10/china-tested-the-first-ever-drone-equipped-with-a-rotary-detonation-engine-the-propulsion-system-will-open-the-way-to-the-creation-of-hypersonic-aircraft-and-missiles

A private Chinese company, Thrust-to-Weight Ratio Engine, was able to test a rotary detonation engine on a drone. This is the first such test. Previously, only bench tests were conducted.

Here’s What We Know.

The rotary detonation engine will open the way to the development of hypersonic transport systems, including aircraft and missiles. Another feature of the propulsion system is reduced fuel consumption.

The company’s Thrust-to-Weight Ratio Engine was developed jointly with the Industrial Technology Research Institute of Chongqing University. It was named FB-1 Rotating Detonation Engine.

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