Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
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In late July, Bruce Jakosky and Christopher Edwards published a paper titled “Inventory of CO2 available for terraforming Mars,” which was sponsored by NASA. The paper analyzed the amount of volatiles, primarily carbon dioxide (CO2), on or in Mars currently, and concluded reasonably that there are not enough volatiles available on Mars to terraform it sufficiently for a person to not need a pressure suit. Jakosky is the principal investigator for MAVEN, the NASA Mars orbiter studying the planet’s atmosphere. He and his co-author wrote what is technically an accurate paper, in spite of what was an existing mild controversy over the amount of some volatiles in the soil and regolith of Mars.

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A handy guide to logical fallacies for life extensionists.

When debating life extension, or debating in general, it may happen that participants commit logical fallacies—that is, their arguments contain logically invalid reasoning. In practice, this often means that people incorrectly come to certain conclusions that do not actually follow from the premises; if they appear to follow, it’s indeed because fallacious reasoning was used.

Logical fallacies can be tough to spot, both for the people committing them and for the people listening; rejuvenation advocates would therefore benefit from familiarizing with common fallacies committed during debates about life extension so that they will both be able to detect them in other people’s arguments and avoid committing any themselves.

The following is a list of common logical fallacies that usually show up during life extension debates. It may be useful for your advocacy efforts, but bear in mind that the right way to go about rebutting fallacious reasoning is not simply pointing out “You committed a fallacy; your argument is invalid”; in fact, you’d better avoid mentioning the word “fallacy” altogether. What you are likely to get this way is simply a lot of eye-rolling; your message will probably not get across, and you will come across as an insufferable pedant, even if you’re right. I’ve personally met people who don’t seem to think that a logical fallacy in their reasoning is such a big deal. Debating with such people is probably a waste of time, but in general, people might be more receptive if you politely explain why their reasoning doesn’t work, providing different examples and avoiding a lecturing attitude at all costs.

Continue reading “The Life Extensionist’s Guide to Logical Fallacies” | >

Distant Dream (Poland), “Reverse” (feat. Stel Andre) from the album “It All Starts From Pieces” (2017), Instrumental Post rock | Post metal.

• Official Distant Dream band links
https://distantdream.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/distantdreammusic/

• Similar bands / Sounds like / Influences:
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Seeming Emptiness, Captains of Sea and War, Apoa, Microtonner, Exxasens, Russian Circles, Gray Souvenirs, Ι Αm Νo Ηero, Antethic, Callisto, Nyobe, Doomina, Leech, Then They Flew, Sioum, Moonlit Sailor, Nevermind the Name, If These Trees Could Talk, Servants of Silence, Líam, No Respect for Beauty, A Light In The Dark, Macáes, Loveless, This Will Destroy You, Oh Hiroshima, This Is Your Captain Speaking, Pray for Sound, Tuber, Calf, Quiet Pliz, Icaro, From Oceans To Autumn, Caspian, We.Own.The. Sky, Isis, Pelican, Red Sparowes, Cult of Luna, Cloudkicker, Minsk, Intronaut, Toundra, Envy, Jesu.

• Follow “Winter’s Dusk In Mistful Abyss” on facebook.

Continue reading “DISTANT DREAM — Reverse” | >

Last year, physicists at MIT, the University of Vienna, and elsewhere provided strong support for quantum entanglement, the seemingly far-out idea that two particles, no matter how distant from each other in space and time, can be inextricably linked, in a way that defies the rules of classical physics.

Take, for instance, two particles sitting on opposite edges of the universe. If they are truly entangled, then according to the theory of quantum mechanics their physical properties should be related in such a way that any measurement made on one particle should instantly convey information about any future measurement outcome of the other particle—correlations that Einstein skeptically saw as “spooky action at a distance.”

In the 1960s, the physicist John Bell calculated a theoretical limit beyond which such correlations must have a quantum, rather than a classical, explanation.

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It’s an unfortunate fact of life that as we get older, our cells gradually lose the ability to heal themselves. Thankfully, at least one aspect of that might be treatable in the near future, if new work from Georgia Tech pans out. Researchers have developed a hydrogel that holds muscle stem cells, and by injecting this near the site of a muscle injury they can get to work repairing it. The team says the technique could be effective at treating injuries in the elderly and people with muscular dystrophy.

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