Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
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Elon Musk’s SpaceX plans to start launching satellites into orbit in 2019 to provide high-speed internet to Earth.

In November, the company outlined plans to put 4,425 satellites into space in a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) filing. But the document gave little detail on the timeline.

However on Wednesday, Patricia Cooper, SpaceX’s vice president of satellite government affairs, said later this year, the company will start testing the satellites themselves, launch one prototype before the end of the year and another during the “early months“ of 2018. Following that, SpaceX will begin its satellite launch campaign in 2019.

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Vomit.

It might be wise to look away now if you are eating or have a weak stomach, but scientists have discovered that ingesting bogies is good for teeth, and overall health.

Scientists at a number of universities including Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) say parents should not discourage their children from picking their noses because they contain ‘a rich reservoir of good bacteria.’

Eating snot can also prevent bacteria from sticking to teeth, according to the article published in the journal of the American Society for Microbiology.

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What are the bottlenecks in developing a rejuvenation biotechnology industry? LEAF takes a look at some of the main problems we are facing in creating that industry.

One of the most frequent questions we get from the general public is when will rejuvenation therapies arrive? Whilst young people can wait for a few more decades, those in middle age are much more concerned. According to statistics, new drug development takes 17 years on average, but the countdown only begins at the moment when the underlying mechanisms are investigated well enough – which cannot be said about the mechanisms of aging.

We have made great progress in understanding aging in the last decade thanks to the march of technology. One solution to an aging process is entering human clinical trials this year: a therapy to remove aged damaged cells to promote tissue repair and reduce chronic inflammation. This is of course fantastic news but progress is still too slow.

So what is holding back the pace of the research on aging and what we can do to foster progress?

Research on aging began a long time ago. Back in 1900s the pioneer immunologist Elie Metchnikoff, vice-president of Pasteur Institute in Paris, wrote: “Aging is a disease and it should be treated like any other”. His work helped to shape interest in aging as a manageable problem. The first attempts to extend healthy life in animals by evidence-based medical means were undertaken in the middle of the 20th century. The most remarkable progress however has been made in the last 20 years, when the field of genetics finally blossomed. But the solutions that might prevent or significantly postpone age-related diseases are not available yet. Some might think it was a conspiracy, but there is actually a much more simple explanation: there are many factors that are holding back progress.

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One of my essays is in this excellent new book. Also, many other writers I like are in here. Grab a copy: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XB4CT95?tag=lifeboatfound-20?tag=lifeboatfound-20 #transhumanism

How different will the future be from today? As different as we can imagine, and possibly stranger and more wonderful than we ever HAVE imagined. The key is turning our visions for the future into the future itself. And that begins with articulating our visions.

In this collection of essays compiled by the hosts of the popular internet radio series, The World Transformed, world-leading futurists, scientists, authors, artists and others share their visions for changes that are on their way, or that we can bring about, that will transform our world forever. Contributors include Ramez Naam, Brian Wang, PJ Manney, John Smart, J. Storrs Hall, Aubrey de Grey, James Hughes, Jim Elvidge, Alvis Brigis, David Brin, Dave Gobel, Paul Fernhout, Ben Goertzel, Getnet Aseffa, Zheng Cui, Wayne Radinsky, Giulio Prisco, Colin McInnes, Erika Lives, Will Brown, Yiqing Liang, Cosmo Harrigan, Tudor Boloni, Khannea Suntzu, Belle Black, Anyazelie M.

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Aubrey de Grey in this new interview with Vox.

We all grow old. We all die.

For Aubrey de Grey, a biogerontologist and chief science officer of the SENS Research Foundation, accepting these truths is, well, not good enough. He decided in his late twenties (he’s currently 54) that he “wanted to make a difference to humanity” and that battling age was the best way to do it. His life’s work is now a struggle against physics and biology, the twin collaborators in bodily decay.

“I understand it takes a certain amount of guts to aim high.” —Aubrey de Grey.

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Who says that cartoons are for kids?

Artificial intelligence (AI) kicks off the Microsoft Story Labs animated “Explanimators” series about big, important, cutting-edge areas of technology that remain mysterious (if not just plain confusing) to people who don’t have an engineering or computer science degree.

While artificial intelligence is increasingly all around us, helping people do more, save time and work smarter – let’s be honest – it’s tricky to wrap your head around how it works and where it’s headed.

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A robotic claw, one of several innovative tools developed at JPL for exploring icy, ocean worlds like Europa.

Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Want to go ice fishing on Jupiter’s moon Europa? There’s no promising you’ll catch anything, but a new set of robotic prototypes could help.

Since 2015, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, has been developing new technologies for use on future missions to ocean worlds. That includes a subsurface probe that could burrow through miles of ice, taking samples along the way; robotic arms that unfold to reach faraway objects; and a projectile launcher for even more distant samples.

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  • Researchers have discovered that a compound in the mucus found on the back of a frog can cause flu virus particles to explode.
  • If they can harness this compound, called urumin, they may be able to create a universal flu vaccine.

A compound in the mucus found on the oozy backs of a South Indian frog — known locally as a germ killer — can cause flu virus particles to explode. Researchers at Emory University have discovered that the compound, a peptide they’ve called urumin, is potent, yet precise, and capable of destroying an entire class of flu viruses while other cells and even other viruses emerge unscathed. Unlike other frog-based compounds, urumin is uniquely nontoxic, another unusual feature that makes it more promising from a therapeutic standpoint.

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  • Of the estimated 100,000 mushroom species on Earth, only about 80 glow. Scientists uncovered the explanation behind two of these glowing mushrooms.
  • Studying the mushrooms allowed researchers to make chemicals that glow various colors that may help us make more scientific breakthroughs.

Mushrooms are our favorite fungi. From savory dishes to surprising video game power-ups — we can’t seem to get enough of the little things. What’s more interesting, however, is the fact that mushrooms can be far more relevant to our own progress as a society than we imagined. The Neonothopanus gardneri and Neonothopanus nambi are two distinct species of glow-in-the-dark mushroom found in Brazil and Vietnam respectively, that have reshaped our perspective on bioluminescence permanently.

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