Lifeboat News: The Blog – Safeguarding Humanity

This Company Wants To Turn Your Car Into A Driverless Car

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in robotics/AI, transportation

Aug 30
2016

‘Drive.AI’ sells a kit to convert your beater. Also: it wants to put emoji on top of it.

Star in a Jar: Space-Age Fusion Machine Underway

Posted by Sean Brazell in energy

Aug 30
2016

U.S. Dept. of Energy announces major new initiative toward clean, safe and virtually limitless power.

This App Lets You Have Your Own Holographic Pet Dinosaur

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in augmented reality

Aug 30
2016

Actiongram was developed specifically for Microsoft’s Hololens, and it comes with a host of remarkable holograms…holograms that you can transport to the center of your living room.

Move over silicon: Machine learning boom means we need new chips

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in computing, robotics/AI

Aug 30
2016

The rise of artificial intelligence and impending end of Moore’s law means silicon chips are nearing the end of the line. Here are some alternatives.

Genetic Engineering Creates Piglets That Are Immune to Deadly Disease

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in bioengineering, biotech/medical, food, genetics, sustainability

Aug 30
2016

Researchers genetically modify piglets to be resistant to an incurable disease plaguing hog farms, Porcine Reproductive Respiratory Syndrome (PRSS). The researchers cut out a specific gene to cure the pigs.

Regenerative Bandage Heals Wounds 4x Faster

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in biotech/medical

Aug 30
2016

Scientists from Northwestern University have been able to create a heat-sensitive bandage that coaxes naturally-occurring stem cells to heal wounds faster.

Technology that allows wounds to heal faster is in great need, especially for those patients that are susceptible to complications from seemingly simple injuries. For diabetics, small bruises and cuts can be life-threatening. What if there was a way to speed up healing these wounds?

The answer may lie in this new bandage. Researchers from Northwestern University have developed a heat-responsive bandage that helps wounds heal faster.

Scientists Reprogram Brain With a Beam of Light –“Human Brain is Plastic, Not Hardwired”

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in computing, neuroscience

Aug 30
2016

Neurons that fire together wire together, say scientists at Columbia University, suggesting that the three-pound computer in our heads may be more malleable than we think. Their findings suggest that groups of activated neurons may form the basic building blocks of learning and memory.

Scientists Discover That We Can Control Gene Editing With Light

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in bioengineering, biotech/medical

Aug 30
2016

A team of researchers from MIT have developed a new technique on the genome-editing system known as CRISPR, which offers precise manipulation of when and where gene editing occurs.

Nanostructured Device Purifies Water With Light

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in biological, nanotechnology

Aug 30
2016

In many parts of the world, the only way to make germy water safe is by boiling, which consumes precious fuel, or by putting it out in the sun in a plastic bottle so ultraviolet rays will kill the microbes. But because UV rays carry only 4 percent of the sun’s total energy, the UV method takes six to 48 hours, limiting the amount of water people can disinfect this way.

Forget Self-Driving Cars. Let’s Make Self-Driving Living Rooms

Posted by Shailesh Prasad in habitats, robotics/AI, transportation

Aug 30
2016

The imminent arrival of the self-driving car will change how people move around city streets, but they could do so much more.

The Tridika is a conceptual driverless electric vehicle I created to change how we use cars in our ever-growing cities, where space is expensive and limited. Inspired by Thyssenkrupp’s Willy Wonka-esque Multi elevator, the Tridika works like a self-driving car you can literally park next to your apartment and use as an additional room.