A Martian biosphere may not be hiding only in the deep subsurface.
But let’s not forget habitable niches in salts, ices, and caves!
Amid a maelstrom set off by a prominent AI researcher saying that some AI may already be achieving limited consciousness, one MIT AI researcher is saying the concept might not be so far-fetched.
Our story starts with Ilya Sutskever, head scientist at the Elon Musk cofounded research group OpenAI. On February 9, Sutskever tweeted that “it may be that today’s large neural networks are slightly conscious.”
In response, many others in the AI research space decried the OpenAI scientist’s claim, suggesting that it was harming machine learning’s reputation and amounted to little more than a “sales pitch” for OpenAI work.
Astronomers have been waiting decades for the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope, which promises to peer farther into space than ever before. But if humans want to actually reach our nearest stellar neighbor, they will need to wait quite a bit longer: a probe sent to Alpha Centauri with a rocket would need roughly 80,000 years to make the trip.
Igor Bargatin, Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, is trying to solve this futuristic problem with ideas taken from one of humanity’s oldest transportation technologies: the sail.
As part of the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative, he and his colleagues are designing the size, shape and materials for a sail pushed not by wind, but by light.
Astronomers have just found an absolute monster of a galaxy.
Lurking some 3 billion light-years away, Alcyoneus is a giant radio galaxy reaching 5 megaparsecs into space. That’s 16.3 million light-years long, and constitutes the largest known structure of galactic origin.
The discovery highlights our poor understanding of these colossi, and what drives their incredible growth. But it could provide a pathway to better understanding, not just of giant radio galaxies, but the intergalactic medium that drifts in the yawning voids of space.
After a year on the Red Planet, what can Perseverance teach us about Mars’ watery past and our potential future? Tune in to find out!
Speakers:
–Jennifer Trosper, Mars 2020 Project Manager, NASA/JPL
–Dr. Katie Stack Morgan, Deputy Project Scientist, Mars 2020, NASA/JPL
Continue reading “Roving with Perseverance: Findings from One Year on Mars (Live Public Talk)” »
Previously, aircraft ✈️ had to fly at 1,500 to 5,000 feet for airborne radars to detect illegal activity in our seas 🌊. With SeaVue Multi-Role, pilots can fly as… See more.
In some parts of the world, the sea is lawless, fraught with piracy, smuggling and illegal fishing.
To help navies and coastal authorities combat illegal activity, Raytheon Intelligence & Space has developed the SeaVue family of airborne radars, which detect small maritime targets such as illegal fishing vessels, go-fast boats and stateless ships—ships not registered to a country or government, on the high seas. RI&S engineers have added a new, upgraded radar to the family called SeaVue Multi-Role.
Continue reading “Monitoring the high seas at high altitude” »
He’s absolutely right about birth rates and its implications for our species. OVER population is a disproven concept as far as our near and near-far future goes.
Elon Musk is the charismatic co-founder of PayPal and Tesla, as well as the founder of SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company. He serves as CEO of Tesla and CEO/lead designer of SpaceX. Watch along as he explains why earth doesn’t have a lot of time left.
Continue reading “Elon Musk — People Don’t Realize What’s Coming!” »
Fun fact: If you laid the International Space Station out end-to-end on a football field… it would be really tough to play a game. 🙃
The International Space Station is 356 feet (109 meters) long, just about one yard shy of an American football field—including the end zones. Go deep on more space station fun facts this #SBLVI: https://go.nasa.gov/3swABkE
