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Apr 25, 2016
LISTEN LIVE @ 11:30 am ET: NASA to Discuss Solar Electric Propulsion
Posted by Sean Brazell in categories: futurism, space travel
NASA will hold a teleconference press briefing on Thursday, April 21, to detail its latest advancements in solar electric propulsion for deep-space missions. The briefing will begin at 11:30 a.m. EDT (1530 GMT) on NASA’s News Audio page, and will be embedded below if possible once it goes live. (Note: The window below will play NASA TV until the briefing time.)
From NASA:
“Tuesday’s award of a contract to Aerojet Rocketdyne, Inc. for the design and development of an advanced electric propulsion system is the latest SEP milestone. A new electric propulsion system could significantly advance the nation’s commercial space capabilities, and enable future deep space missions, including NASA’s Journey to Mars.”
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Apr 25, 2016
Adelaide AI pioneer says Terminator-like takeover unlikely
Posted by Amnon H. Eden in categories: existential risks, robotics/AI, singularity
Apparently, Rodney Brooks, AI pioneer (@MIT CS & AI Lab; iRobot), is skeptical about artificial superintelligence:
“The difference between science fiction robots and real-life creations was the concept of robots being able to learn and teach themselves independently. A person can generalise, but we don’t have that kind of generalisation in any of these AI learning systems. So relax is my message.”
Or is he? This article by ABC Australia was focused on the same unfortunate meme, the unlikely Terminator which nobody has ever seriously suggested is realistic: “The Terminator series of movies foretold the future of humans and robots with Skynet becoming self-aware and launching its own nuclear war. But Professor Brooks said that was just science fiction.”
Continue reading “Adelaide AI pioneer says Terminator-like takeover unlikely” »
Apr 25, 2016
The Importance of Hope
Posted by Steven Curley in categories: biological, health, homo sapiens, life extension
I learn useful life lessons from each patient I meet. Some are positive messages, reminding me of the importance of maintaining balance between family, work, and leisure activities, but more frequently I witness examples of the remarkable resilience of the human spirit when facing the reality and risks of a major surgical procedure and a diagnosis of cancer. Rarely, patients and their family members utter remorseful or simply sad remarks when they are faced with a grim prognosis and the emotions associated with an onrushing date with mortality. These comments invariably involve an inventory of regrets in life, including, “I should have spent more time with my kids,” “I wish I had told my father (or mother, brother, sister, child, or some other person) that I loved them before they died,” and “I have spent my entire life working, I never took time for anything else.” I wince when I hear these openly expressed remonstrations, I recognize that I am hearing painful and heartfelt truths. Not a week goes by that I am not reminded that I do not one day want to look back at my life with a long list of regrets, should have dones, and what ifs.
I was blessed to meet a great teacher in the guise of a patient early in my academic career. He came to my clinic in my first year after completing a Fellowship in Surgical Oncology, my first year as an Assistant Professor of Surgery. My patient was a 69 year-old Baptist Minister from a small town in Mississippi. He was referred to me by his medical oncologist who called me and said, “I don’t think there is anything you can do for him, but he needs to hear that from you because he doesn’t believe me.” This tall, imposing man had colon cancer that had metastasized (spread) to his liver. The malignant tumor in his colon was removed the year before I met him, and he had received chemotherapy to treat several large tumors found in his liver. The chemotherapy had not worked and the tumors grew. At the point I met him, the medical oncologist told him he would live no more than 6 months, and because he was an avid fisherman when not preaching or helping others in his community , the doctor suggested that he go out and enjoy his remaining time by getting in as much fishing as possible. I learned two invaluable lessons from this patient and his family. First, never deny or dismiss hope from a patient or their family, even when from a medical perspective the situation seems hopeless and the patient is incurable. Second, quoting the minister directly, “Some doctors think of themselves as gods with a small ‘g’, but not one of you is God”.
Apr 25, 2016
Thinking Outside the Brain – Why We Need to Build a Decentralized Exocortex
Posted by Klaus Baldauf in categories: information science, neuroscience, Ray Kurzweil
What the bleep is an exocortex and why should we care?
Continue reading “Thinking Outside the Brain – Why We Need to Build a Decentralized Exocortex” »
Apr 25, 2016
Holographic Wormhole Drive: Breakthrough in “Warp Drive” Faster than light (FTL) Spaceship Design
Posted by Andreas Matt in category: space travel
Older…thoughts?
Faster than light (FTL) space travel — the stuff of Science Fiction? Recent models require a Jupiter size negative mass-energy to operate. Now R. Amoroso has solved this problem in a radical new approach called the “Holographic Wormhole Drive”. — PR11498381.
Apr 25, 2016
The Opposing Leaders of the Transhumanist Movement Got Salty in a Debate
Posted by Zoltan Istvan in category: transhumanism
Apr 25, 2016
“Smart Homes?” Not Until They’re Less Dependent On The Internet — By Jared Newman | Fast Company
Posted by Odette Bohr Dienel in categories: big data, business, computing, innovation, internet
“Buying into a smart home ecosystem is sort of like selecting a holy grail in the Temple of the Sun. Choose poorly, and everything crumbles.”
Apr 24, 2016
Gene Editing Made Easier, Thanks to Carbon Nanotubes
Posted by Shailesh Prasad in categories: bioengineering, biotech/medical, genetics, nanotechnology
In a new study, researchers detail the culturing and transfecting of cells with genetic material on an array of carbon nanotubes, which appears to overcome the limitations of other gene editing technologies.
Gene editing techniques hold great promise. They allow targeted and specific edits of genes, and have nearly limitless possibilities in the field of medicine.
Which is not to say that they are perfect. These techniques still have a range of limitations, from precision to toxicity. But a new study shows that can be changed.
Continue reading “Gene Editing Made Easier, Thanks to Carbon Nanotubes” »
Apr 24, 2016
Molecular mechanical computer design 100 billion times more energy efficient than best conventional computer
Posted by Klaus Baldauf in categories: energy, supercomputing
Ralph Merkle, Robert Freitas and others have a theoretical design for a molecular mechanical computer that would be 100 billion times more energy efficient than the most energy efficient conventional green supercomputer. Removing the need for gears, clutches, switches, springs makes the design easier to build.
Existing designs for mechanical computing can be vastly improved upon in terms of the number of parts required to implement a complete computational system. Only two types of parts are required: Links, and rotary joints. Links are simply stiff, beam-like structures. Rotary joints are joints that allow rotational movement in a single plane.
Simple logic and conditional routing can be accomplished using only links and rotary joints, which are solidly connected at all times. No gears, clutches, switches, springs, or any other mechanisms are required. An actual system does not require linear slides.
