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An interesting and important twist for researchers studying the replication of the brain and thought processes in computers.


Researchers have discovered that the human brain suppresses the sensory effects of the heartbeat. They believe that this mechanism prevents internal sensations from interfering with the brain’s perception of the external world. This mechanism could also have something to do with anxiety disorders.

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Neurosurgeons using lasers to treat brain cancer have discovered that the technique breaks down the blood-brain barrier, a finding that could lead to new treatment options for patients with the deadly disease.

The blood-brain barrier is sort of a natural “security system” that shields the brain from toxins in the blood but also blocks potentially helpful drugs such as those used in chemotherapy.

“We were able to show that this blood-brain barrier is broken down for about four weeks after you do this laser therapy,” said Dr. Eric Leuthardt, a professor of neurosurgery at Washington University in St. Louis. “So not only are you killing the tumor, you are actually opening up a window of opportunity to deliver various drugs and chemicals and therapies that could otherwise not get there.”

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Wonder what kind of insurance they have?


http://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/art…ads-give-china-a-grim-edge-in-driverless-cars

Transport safety advances the same way physicist Max Planck saw science progressing: one funeral at a time.

That’s bad news for the people of China, whose roads are some of the world’s most dangerous. But it’s an advantage for the slew of Chinese companies racing to overtake Silicon Valley and Detroit in developing self-driving vehicles.

The Guinness Book of World records, a record of the extraordinary (and often insane) stunts people will pull for notoriety, and now the book has its first virtual reality entry. Watch as Derek Westerman swaps reality for Tilt Brush inside the HTC Vive and stays there for 25 hours straight.

It’s a desire within most of us, to do something extraordinary in life. Most of us are content to achieve this by parent children, going bungee jumping or backpacking around Europe. But there are a group of people for whom only documented proof of their unique abilities or achievements is enough – they’re the record breakers, as documented since 1955 by the world famous Guinness World Records.

Derek Westerman from Super Deluxe, a YouTube collective dedicated to making “Funny and smart videos from funny and smart weirdos who are probably a lot like you”, now joins that dubious collective. As of April 7th, he holds the Guinness World Record for the longest continuous virtual reality session, and he did it all whilst immersed ‘in’ a single application over a 25 hour period.

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LOS ANGELES Some of the richest, smartest and most powerful humans have an important message for the rest of us as they convened this week to discuss pressing global issues: the robots are coming.

At the Milken Institute’s Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, at least four panels so far have focused on technology taking over markets to mining — and most importantly, jobs.

“Most of the benefits we see from automation is about higher quality and fewer errors, but in many cases it does reduce labor,” Michael Chui, a partner at the McKinsey Global Institute, said on Tuesday during a panel on “Is Any Job Truly Safe?”

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