Lifeboat Foundation

The largest conference on aging in the biopharmaceutical industry is set to take place 28 August – 1 September 2023 on-site in Copenhagen and online.

Longevity. Technology: The United Nations report that the proportion of people aged over 65 now outnumber children younger than 5. This substantial surge in the elderly populace presents a formidable healthcare challenge for societies across the globe, and it is evident that comprehensive and transformative approaches aimed at mitigating age-related illnesses and vulnerabilities will play a pivotal role in addressing the health and socioeconomic obstacles associated with an aging society. Once again this year, ARDD – now in its tenth year – is set to feature some of the most foremost experts in longevity, who will impart their latest insights on the process of aging and how we target the aging process to maximise lifespan and healthspan.

At ARDD, leaders in the aging and longevity field will describe the latest progress in the molecular, cellular and organismal basis of aging and the search for interventions, making it one of the must-attend events in the longevity space.

The Japanese electronics giant Sony has announced its first steps into quantum computing by joining other investment groups in a £42m venture in the UK quantum computing firm Quantum Motion. The move by the investment arm of Sony aims to boost the company’s expertise in silicon quantum chip development as well as to assist in a potential quantum computer roll-out onto the Japanese market.

Quantum Motion was founded in 2017 by scientists from University College London and the University of Oxford. It already raised a total of £20m via “seed investment” in 2017 and a “series A” investment in 2020. Quantum Motion uses qubits based on standard silicon chip technology and can therefore exploit the same manufacturing processes that mass-produces chips such as those found in smartphones.

A full-scale quantum computer, when built, is likely to require a million logical qubits to perform quantum-based calculations, with each logical qubit needing thousands of physical qubits to allow for robust error checking. Such demands will, however, require a huge amount of associated hardware if they are to be achieved. Quantum Motion claims that its technology could tackle this problem because it develops scalable arrays of qubits based on CMOS silicon technology to achieve high-density qubits.

Positive results from the ADAURA Phase III trial showed AstraZeneca’s Tagrisso (osimertinib) demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in overall survival (OS), compared to placebo in the adjuvant treatment of patients with early-stage (IB, II and IIIA) epidermal growth factor receptor-mutated (EGFRm) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after complete tumour resection with curative intent.

These results will be presented today in an oral presentation during the Plenary Session at the 2023 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting (abstract #LBA3) and have been simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Tagrisso reduced the risk of death by 51% compared to placebo in both the primary analysis population (Stages II-IIIA) (21% data maturity, OS hazard ratio

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of 0.49; 95.03% confidence interval [CI] 0.33−0.73; p=0.0004), and in the overall trial population (Stages IB-IIIA) (18% data maturity, OS HR of 0.49; 95.03% CI 0.34−0.70; p0.0001).

“Apple today unveiled Apple Vision Pro, a revolutionary spatial computer that seamlessly blends digital content with the physical world, while allowing users to stay present and connected to others. Vision Pro creates an infinite canvas for apps that scales beyond the boundaries of a traditional display and introduces a fully three-dimensional user interface controlled by the most natural and intuitive inputs possible — a user’s eyes, hands, and voice.”

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CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA Apple today unveiled Apple Vision Pro, a revolutionary spatial computer that seamlessly blends digital content with the physical world, while allowing users to stay present and connected to others. Vision Pro creates an infinite canvas for apps that scales beyond the boundaries of a traditional display and introduces a fully three-dimensional user interface controlled by the most natural and intuitive inputs possible — a user’s eyes, hands, and voice. Featuring visionOS, the world’s first spatial operating system, Vision Pro lets users interact with digital content in a way that feels like it is physically present in their space. The breakthrough design of Vision Pro features an ultra-high-resolution display system that packs 23 million pixels across two displays, and custom Apple silicon in a unique dual-chip design to ensure every experience feels like it’s taking place in front of the user’s eyes in real time.

“Today marks the beginning of a new era for computing,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “Just as the Mac introduced us to personal computing, and iPhone introduced us to mobile computing, Apple Vision Pro introduces us to spatial computing. Built upon decades of Apple innovation, Vision Pro is years ahead and unlike anything created before — with a revolutionary new input system and thousands of groundbreaking innovations. It unlocks incredible experiences for our users and exciting new opportunities for our developers.”

Continue reading “Introducing Apple Vision Pro: Apple’s first spatial computer” »

What does the future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) look like and how will it impact democracy and society?

This question was explored by Prof. Yoshua Bengio, pioneer AI developer and Turing Award winner, and Prof. Yuval Noah Harari, bestselling author and historian – in a live discussion moderated by political journalist Vassy Kapelos.

Continue reading “Artificial Intelligence, Democracy, & the Future of Civilization” »

While there are many things that negatively affect bees, Hu says exposure to pesticides prevents them from feeding and sustaining the colony.

“The pesticides may prevent the bees from being able to do the daily functions of the hive,” Hu said. “So, for example, they might get lost on their way to finding food, or they might not be able to remember where the sites that they found food were and not be able to communicate to the other bees where the food was.”

At 11 years old, Hu found that tea polyphenols and caffeine could repair the honeybee’s learning and memory. Polyphenols are compounds that stimulate the brain. Hu is now 13 years old.

I have always loved SXSW. Check out what they have if you are near Austin. This is what you are missing.

Disney debuted a new robot prototype at SXSW 2023 this week in Austin, Texas.

Continue reading “Disney Robot Debuts at SXSW” »

Legitimately awesome paper wherein Arulkumaran et al. assemble DNA nanotubes and use them to build artificial ‘cytoskeletons’ inside of giant unilamellar vesicles. They go on to make a variety of fun variations on this theme and eventually build artificial ‘tissues’ made up of these synthetic cell-like vesicles and an ‘extracellular matrix’ that is also made of DNA nanotubes. I find this paper impressive due to how performs precise engineering at the nanoscale and builds up layers of complexity until macroscale specimens are created in a fashion reminiscent of biological systems, yet unique in its own way. #biotechnology #nanotechnology #cellbiology #bioengineering

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Building synthetic protocells and prototissues hinges on the formation of biomimetic skeletal frameworks. Here, the authors harness simplicity to create complexity by assembling DNA subunits into structural frameworks which support membrane-based protocells and prototissues.

Ampullary cancer is a rare type of gastrointestinal cancer with symptoms so similar to pancreatic cancer that it is sometimes mistaken for the disease. The definitive way to confirm an ampullary cancer diagnosis is by removing a tissue sample from the tumor, then analyzing it in the lab.

To learn more about this uncommon disease that accounts for only 1% of all gastrointestinal cancers, we spoke with Michael Overman, M.D., who treats patients in MD Anderson’s Gastrointestinal Cancer Center.