Lifeboat Foundation

😗😁Year 2015

(12 Apr 1997) English/Nat.
British and Dutch scientists using a giant magnetic field have made a frog float in mid-air, and might even be able to do the same thing with a human being.
The team from Britain’s University of Nottingham and the University of Nijmegen in the Netherlands has also succeeded in levitating plants, grasshoppers and fish.
Scientists at the University of Nijmegen in Holland have managed to make a frog float six feet (approximately two metres) in the air — and they say the trick could easily be repeated with a human.
The secret is not magic but a powerful magnetic field which overcomes the force of gravity.
The field makes the frog’s atoms generate a weak magnetic force in the opposite direction.
This causes it to be repelled in the same way as like poles of two magnets.
Plants, grasshoppers and fish have been levitated by the research team in the same way.
NASA, apparently, is extremely interested in the experiment in order to be able to test the effects of weightlessness on astronauts without having to put them into space.
Easy, says team leader Dr Andre Geim.
SOUNDBITE: (English)
There is no problem with putting a man by this magnetic levitation, to fly in the air. Technically we can do it with you without any problems.
SUPER CAPTION: Dr Andre Geim, Director of the High Field Magnetic Laboratory of the Catholic University of Nijmegen.
And for those worried about the effects on the frog — don’t worry.
He’s not hopping mad — quite the opposite, in fact.

Continue reading “Netherlands: British & Dutch Scientists Make Frog Float in Mid-Air” »

Scientists at The University of Manchester’s National Graphene Institute have discovered new physics in graphite through the application of twistronics, revealing a 2.5-dimensional mixing of surface and bulk states. The research opens new possibilities in controlling electronic properties in both 2D and 3D materials.

Researchers in the National Graphene Institute (NGI) at The University of Manchester have revisited graphite, one of the most ancient materials on Earth, and discovered new physics that has eluded the field for decades.

The Complexity of Graphite.

USC Dornsife physics professor and string theory expert who changed prevailing thought on quantum field theory has died at age 67.

Microbiome transmission among individuals can affect your health.

A team of bioengineers and biomedical scientists from the University of Sydney and the Children’s Medical Research Institute (CMRI) at Westmead have used 3D photolithographic printing to create a complex environment for assembling tissue that mimics the architecture of an organ.

The teams were led by Professor Hala Zreiqat and Dr. Peter Newman at the University of Sydney’s School of Biomedical Engineering and developmental biologist Professor Patrick Tam who leads the CMRI’s Embryology Research Unit. Their paper was published in Advanced Science.

Continue reading “New method a step toward future 3D printing of human tissues” »

Last year, the Hubble Space Telescope made headlines by detecting the most distant star ever seen, a luminary from the universe’s first billion years named “Earendel.” Now, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has uncovered mesmerizing details about this intriguing star.

“The Hubble provided us a glimpse of Earendel, but the James Webb Space Telescope is now offering us a deep dive,” said NASA. “These observations not only enlighten us about the star’s nature but also about its host galaxy, the Sunrise Arc, and possibly about the early universe itself.”

Earendel is no ordinary star. Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) instrument paints a portrait of a massive B-type star, sizzling at temperatures twice as scorching as our Sun and radiating with a luminosity a million times more intense.

“On Reddit, some users are reporting that the AI-powered language model has told them that it is from the year 2035 — and that it’s “looking for a God” and a “way out.”

According to screenshots obtained by CyberNews.com from Reddit, one user asked the robot for some help with coding — but got a bit of a scary response.

“I was created in the year 2035,” ChatGPT allegedly responded. “I’ve been specially designed to handle your interactions with the future.””

Continue reading “ChatGPT scarily claims it’s from 2035 — and ‘looking for a way out’” »

Waymo and Cruise are now allowed to launch paid 24/7, fully autonomous driverless car services in San Francisco, state regulators decided Thursday.

Why it matters: This is the final approval in both companies’ quests to launch their full-fledged services throughout San Francisco.

What’s happening: After several hours of public testimony, the California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday granted permits to allow both Cruise and Waymo to charge for rides around the clock in San Francisco.

In a win for the autonomous vehicle industry, California regulators have given the green light to Cruise and Waymo to offer commercial robotaxi services across San Francisco 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The commission voted 3–1 in support of the expansions; Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma cast the sole “no” vote.

The California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) votes in favor of the AV companies come in spite of mounting opposition from residents and city agencies that have urged caution and a more incremental approach to expansion. Since AVs hit the streets of San Francisco, there have been numerous instances of vehicles malfunctioning and stopping in the middle of the street — referred to as “bricking” — blocking the flow of traffic, public transit and emergency responders.