Lifeboat News: The Blog – Safeguarding Humanity

Get the latest international news and world events from around the world.

Dec 11
2023

EU declares aim to become ‘quantum valley’ of the world

Q-day (the day when quantum computers will successfully actually break the internet) may be some time away yet. However, that does not mean that companies — and states — shouldn’t hop on the qubit bandwagon now so as not to be left behind in the race for a technology that could potentially alter how we think about life, the Universe, and well… everything.

Spurred on by a discourse that more and more revolves around the concept of “digital sovereignty,” 11 EU member states this week signed the European Declaration on Quantum Technologies.

The signatories have agreed to align, coordinate, engage, support, monitor, and all those other international collaboration verbs, on various parts of the budding quantum technology ecosystem. They include France, Belgium, Croatia, Greece, Finland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Malta, Estonia, and Spain. However, the coalition is still missing some quantum frontrunners, such as the Netherlands, Ireland, and Germany, who reportedly opted out due to the short time frame.

Dec 11
2023

A Rare ‘Ring Of Fire’ Around Betelgeuse As Year’s Best ‘Shooting Stars’ Fall: The Night Sky This Week

Each Monday, I pick out the northern hemisphere’s celestial highlights (mid-northern latitudes) for the week ahead.

Dec 11
2023

Breakthrough in pancreatic cancer treatment: Inhibiting specific enzymes slows tumor progression

Study demonstrates that inhibiting stromal class I histone deacetylases (HDACs) can effectively slow down pancreatic cancer progression, shedding light on a new therapeutic approach targeting the tumor microenvironment.

Dec 11
2023

Novel liquid biopsy of lymph fluid could guide precision treatment for head and neck cancer

Lymphatic fluid from surgical drains, which is usually tossed in the trash, is a treasure in the hands of University of Pittsburgh and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis researchers who found that this liquid could inform more precise treatments for patients with head and neck cancer caused by human papillomavirus (HPV).

The new study, published in Clinical Cancer Research, shows for the first time that HPV DNA in lymphatic fluid collected after surgery is a powerful biomarker that could predict risk of cancer recurrence and help clinicians decide whether to ramp up adjuvant therapies or safely de-escalate treatment for patients with HPV-positive head and neck cancer.

“Over the last decade, there has been emerging interest in liquid biopsy to pick up cancer recurrences after treatment,” said senior author José P. Zevallos, M.D., M.P.H., professor and Eugene N. Myers, chair of the Department of Otolaryngology at the Pitt School of Medicine and UPMC Hillman Cancer Center. “Our goal was to bring liquid biopsy into the curative pathway for head and neck cancer so that we can use it not just to find recurrences but also to help make treatment decisions.”

Dec 11
2023

Microsoft Partners With Labor Unions On AI Training As Job Loss Worries Mount

The partnership comes amid an increase in labor unions across industries seeking protection from the rising use of AI.

Dec 11
2023

Zaha Hadid Architects references migratory birds for Zhuhai Jinwan Civic Art Centre

Four angular wings with steel canopies form Zhuhai Jinwan Civic Art Centre, which British studio Zaha Hadid Architects has completed on an artificial lake in China.

Located within the ZhongXin Lake in Zhuhai, the centre is characterised by its sweeping roofscape, which Zaha Hadid Architects modelled on the chevron-shaped flight formations of migratory birds in southern China.

Inside, Zhuhai Jinwan Civic Art Centre contains three distinct cultural venues – a science centre, an art museum and a performing arts centre.

Dec 11
2023

The Difference Between Robotic Process Automation, Machine Learning, and Artificial Intelligence

It’s easy to get robotic process automation (RPA), machine learning (ML), and artificial intelligence (AI) mixed up—especially when people use them interchan…

Dec 11
2023

SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy: Plans to Increase Launch Rate and Compete for Defense Contracts

SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy is set to increase its liftoff rate significantly over the next few years, potentially launching up to 100 times per year by 2025, and competing for defense contracts against United Launch Alliance.

Questions to inspire discussion.

How many times does SpaceX plan to launch per year by 2025?
—SpaceX plans to potentially launch up to 100 times per year by 2025.

Dec 11
2023

SpaceX’s Revolutionary Plans for Starship in 2024 Will Transform Space Travel

SpaceX’s ambitious plans for Starship in 2024 will revolutionize space travel and set the groundwork for critical missions such as Artemis in the foreseeable future.

Questions to inspire discussion.

What are the plans for Starship in 2024?
—Starship version 2 is set to surpass its current iteration with additional engines and larger fuel reservoirs, with testing and operational exploits expected in 2024.

Dec 11
2023

New conductive, cotton-based fiber developed for smart textiles

A single strand of fiber developed at Washington State University has the flexibility of cotton and the electric conductivity of a polymer, called polyaniline.

The newly developed material showed good potential for wearable e-textiles. The WSU researchers tested the fibers with a system that powered an LED light and another that sensed ammonia gas, detailing their findings in the journal Carbohydrate Polymers.

“We have one fiber in two sections: one section is the conventional cotton: flexible and strong enough for everyday use, and the other side is the conductive material,” said Hang Liu, WSU textile researcher and the study’s corresponding author. “The cotton can support the conductive material which can provide the needed function.”