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Archive for the ‘biological’ category: Page 18

Oct 3, 2023

Physicists who built ultrafast ‘attosecond’ lasers win Nobel Prize

Posted by in categories: biological, chemistry, particle physics, quantum physics

This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to three physicists — Pierre Agostini at Ohio State University, US, Ferenc Krausz at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching, Germany, and Anne L’Huillier at Lund University, Sweden — for their research into attosecond pulses of light.

Attosecond physics allows scientists to look at the very smallest particles at the very shortest timescales (an attosecond is one-quintillionth of a second, or one-billionth of a nanosecond). The winners all developed experiments to be able to produce these ultrafast laser pulses, which can be used to probe our world at the smallest scales and have applications across chemistry, biology and physics.

The prize was announced this morning by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, in Stockholm, Sweden. The winners share a prize of 11 million Swedish kroner (US$1 million).

Oct 3, 2023

How Microbes Could Aid the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Life

Posted by in category: biological

Microbes have survived the ravages of time, withstood inhospitable conditions and shaped Earth uniquely, prompting research into the plausibility that microbial life might exist beyond our planet.

Oct 2, 2023

11 Best Biological Age Tests for 2024

Posted by in categories: biological, life extension

Do you use biological age tests to quantify your fitness goals? I updated this piece with the latest products (there are a ton) and found a few discount codes too.


Update 10/2/2023: This post has been updated since we originally published it. I evaluated additional top biological age tests for 2024, removed companies that are no longer offering tests, and updated the post to reflect the most recent pricing. The post has been cleaned up and links were made current.

According to TikTok, I’m either 46-years-old, 37-years-old, or 29-years-old. As a 34-year-old woman, that’s, ahem, less than ideal.

Continue reading “11 Best Biological Age Tests for 2024” »

Oct 2, 2023

‘We are just getting started’: the plastic-eating bacteria that could change the world

Posted by in categories: biological, sustainability

How do we feel about this Lifeboat?


The long read: When a microbe was found munching on a plastic bottle in a rubbish dump, it promised a recycling revolution. Now scientists are attempting to turbocharge those powers in a bid to solve our waste crisis. But will it work?

Sep 30, 2023

These Adorable Jellyfish Show Learning Doesn’t Even Require a Brain

Posted by in categories: biological, neuroscience

Tiny, brainless jellyfish just did something that on the surface may seem impossible: the adorable creatures showed evidence of learning.

Even with just 1,000 neurons active at a time and no central brain, Caribbean box jellyfish (Tripedalia cystophora) can learn from experience, researchers argue in a new paper published September 22 in the journal Current Biology. The results aren’t surprising, say several scientists not involved in the project, but are a reminder for people to think more broadly about learning.

“If you’re an animal and have to navigate the world, you have to learn cues and consequences. Otherwise you’re dead, and you can’t reproduce,” says Christie Sahley, a… More.

Continue reading “These Adorable Jellyfish Show Learning Doesn’t Even Require a Brain” »

Sep 29, 2023

Individuals prone to antisocial behavior age faster, study finds

Posted by in categories: biological, life extension

An analysis of data from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development study, a large longitudinal study in New Zealand, showed that participants with a history of antisocial behavior had a significantly faster pace of biological aging. When these individuals reached the calendar age of 45, they were on average 4.3 years older biologically compared to those who had lower levels of antisocial behavior. The study was published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

Antisocial behavior refers to actions that consistently violate social norms, disregard the rights of others, and often involve a lack of empathy or remorse. It involves behaviors such as deceitfulness, aggression, theft, violence, lying, and other behaviors that are harmful, manipulative, or exploitative towards others.

Antisocial behavior is typically associated with youth. This type of behavior starts between the ages of 8 and 14, peaks between 15 and 19, and usually becomes less frequent between the ages of 20 and 29. Although it becomes less common with age, it seems to have a lasting negative impact on health. Studies have shown that individuals who exhibit antisocial behaviors in their youth tend to have worse health outcomes as adults compared to their peers.

Sep 29, 2023

AI models are powerful, but are they biologically plausible?

Posted by in categories: biological, neuroscience, robotics/AI

About six years ago, scientists discovered a new type of more powerful neural network model known as a transformer. These models can achieve unprecedented performance, such as by generating text from prompts with near-human-like accuracy. A transformer underlies AI systems such as ChatGPT and Bard, for example. While incredibly effective, transformers are also mysterious: Unlike with other -inspired neural network models, it hasn’t been clear how to build them using biological components.

Now, researchers from MIT, the MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab, and Harvard Medical School have produced a hypothesis that may explain how a transformer could be built using biological elements in the brain. They suggest that a biological network composed of neurons and other called astrocytes could perform the same core computation as a transformer.

Sep 29, 2023

The Future of Digital Immortality [Documentary]

Posted by in categories: biological, education, life extension, Ray Kurzweil, robotics/AI, singularity

This video covers digital immortality, its required technologies, processes of uploading a mind, its potential impact on society, and more. Watch this next video about the world in 2200: https://bit.ly/3htaWEr.
🎁 5 Free ChatGPT Prompts To Become a Superhuman: https://bit.ly/3Oka9FM
🤖 AI for Business Leaders (Udacity Program): https://bit.ly/3Qjxkmu.
☕ My Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/futurebusinesstech.
➡️ Official Discord Server: https://discord.gg/R8cYEWpCzK

CHAPTERS
00:00 Required Technologies.
01:42 The Processes of Uploading a Mind.
03:32 Positive Impacts On Society.
05:34 When Will It Become Possible?
05:53 Is Digital Immortality Potentially Dangerous?

Continue reading “The Future of Digital Immortality [Documentary]” »

Sep 28, 2023

Free will: Can neuroscience reveal if your choices are yours to make?

Posted by in categories: biological, genetics, neuroscience

Philosophers have wrestled with the question of whether we are truly free to decide on our actions for centuries. Now, insights from genetics, neuroscience and evolutionary biology are shedding fresh light on the issue.

By Clare Wilson

Sep 25, 2023

LLNL and Meta engineers develop 3D-printed material with potential for more lifelike wearables

Posted by in categories: biological, wearables

Engineers and chemists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and Meta have developed a new kind of 3D-printed material capable of replicating characteristics of biological tissue, an advancement that could impact the future of “augmented humanity.”

In a paper recently published in the journal Matter, LLNL and Meta researchers describe a framework for creating a “one-pot” 3D-printable resin in which light is used to pattern smooth gradients in stiffness to approximate gradients found in biology, such as where bone meets muscle.

The framework addresses a key challenge in developing more lifelike wearables: “mechanical mismatch.” Whereas natural tissues are soft, electronic devices are usually made of rigid materials and it can be difficult and time-consuming to assemble such devices using traditional means.

Continue reading “LLNL and Meta engineers develop 3D-printed material with potential for more lifelike wearables” »

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