Futurism – Lifeboat News: The Blog

May 7
2019

This “Peeling” Tectonic Plate Could Cause Catastrophic Earthquakes

The edge of a tectonic plate, one of the massive shelves of crust that carry the continents and ocean’s floor, is splitting right down the middle.

Scientists started to study the plate, located off the coast of Portugal, after it caused an unexpected earthquake and tsunami in 1969. They now suspect that they’re witnessing the birth of a new subduction zone, according to National Geographic, which is the point at which two plates collide and grind against each other, causing powerful earthquakes.

May 7
2019

Drug-resistant tuberculosis reversed in lab

About 1.5 million people died of tuberculosis (TB) in 2017, making it the most lethal infectious disease worldwide. A growing rise in drug-resistant TB is a major obstacle to successfully treating the illness.

Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Umea University in Sweden have found a compound that prevents and even reverses resistance to isoniazid, the most widely used antibiotic for treating tuberculosis.

The research, published the week of May 6 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was conducted in bacteria growing in the lab, setting the stage for future studies in animals and people.

May 7
2019

The chemicals in sunscreen seep into your bloodstream after just one day, FDA says

Study authors say the results don’t mean consumers should stop using sunscreen, but noted that more research needs to be done.

May 7
2019

Sharing what’s new in Android Q

Android Q introduces a bunch of new features, while putting protections in place to provide even more transparency and control over your data.

May 7
2019

World’s largest honey bee makes rare hallucinogenic honey

Harvesters scale tall cliffs to collect this rare honey from Himalayan giant honeybees.

May 7
2019

MIT uses radiation to read closed books

Circa 2016

Terahertz imaging can scan pages that would be too fragile to touch.

May 7
2019

Just what does a postdoctoral theoretical physicist do all day?

Coffee… mostly, I drink coffee.

A kindergartener once asked me, “why don’t you wear science clothes?” I gathered that she meant a lab coat. Then there is the utter surprise my neighbors show when I tell them—yes—I am on my way to work wearing sandals, shorts and a t-shirt. Take a moment and do a google image search of “scientist”. You have to scroll through several pages before you see a person not wearing a lab coat. So if I don’t wear a lab coat while staring into a beaker as if the colorful liquid inside contained a part of my soul, what do I do all day?

May 6
2019

Microsoft Patented an Xbox Controller With a Braille Display

The live haptic feedback reads off on-screen text for people who can’t make it out.

May 6
2019

Ancient hallucinogens found in 1,000-year-old shamanic pouch

The ritual container, made of three fox snouts, contains the earliest known evidence of ayahuasca preparation.

May 6
2019

Point of the spear: MG EZS brings the cheap Chinese EV to Europe and Australia

MG is bringing what should be a very affordable, practical electric crossover to the market in the new EZS. The company’s first EV will rock a 45.5-kWh battery powering a 110-kW (147-hp) electric powertrain and giving it a range “up to 428 km” (266 mi).