Lifeboat Foundation

An international team led by researchers at the RIKEN Cluster for Pioneering Research (CPR) has engineered a system for creating remote controlled cyborg cockroaches, equipped with a tiny wireless control module that is powered by a rechargeable battery attached to a solar cell. Despite the mechanic devices, ultrathin electronics and flexible materials allow the insects to move freely. These achievements, reported in the scientific journal npj Flexible Electronics on September 5, will help make the use of cyborg insects a practical reality.

Researchers have been trying to design cyborg insects—part insect, part machine—to help inspect hazardous areas or monitor the environment. However, for the use of cyborg insects to be practical, handlers must be able to control them remotely for long periods of time. This requires wireless control of their leg segments, powered by a tiny rechargeable battery. Keeping the battery adequately charged is fundamental—nobody wants a suddenly out-of-control team of cyborg cockroaches roaming around. While it’s possible to build docking stations for recharging the battery, the need to return and recharge could disrupt time-sensitive missions. Therefore, the best solution is to include an on-board solar cell that can continuously ensure that the battery stays charged.

All of this is easier said than done. To successfully integrate these devices into a cockroach that has limited surface area required the research team to develop a special backpack, ultrathin organic solar cell modules, and an adhesion system that keeps the machinery attached for long periods of time while also allowing natural movements.

Human space exploration has had its share of successes, with our probes going far into interstellar space. But humans themselves haven’t made it past the Moon yet. If we’re ever to find other Earth-like planets or alien civilizations we have to be able to traverse the immense span of space much quicker. One potential invention that could make this a reality is a theoretical space drive known as the “Bussard collector” or “Ramjet propulsion”. A recent physics paper published in the journal Acta Astronautica considers the feasibility of this technology.

The thrust from the jet would theoretically allow the ship to reach relativistic speeds, while carrying no onboard fuel. The concept is based on the presence of high-energy particles in space, with hydrogen especially existing in an ionized state that can be affected by magnetic fields.

But blueberry land and other parcels of rural Maine are being increasingly eyed for housing development, and Sweetland feels the wild blueberry sector is under pressure, especially when blueberry market prices drop.

He hopes that a new “crop” growing in tandem with berries could help boost the local industry and preserve farmland. That would be solar panels that have been installed across 11 acres of the land where Sweetland farms blueberries in Rockport, Maine.

The University of Maine is studying this example of dual-use agrivoltaics. The solar installation was developed by the Boston-based solar developer BlueWave, and it is owned by the company Navisun, which makes lease payments to the landowner. Sweetland tends, harvests and sells the blueberries, and shares profits with the landowner.

Just one big GUI mess.

When one of China’s biggest celebrities, Simon Gong —also known as Gong Jun—released a new music video in June 2022, it quickly attracted 15 million views on the country’s Twitter-like microblogging site Weibo. But the event also stood out for a different reason—one that only eagle-eyed fans might have noticed. The singer in the video was not Gong himself, but a digital replica created by Baidu, a “digital human” powered by artificial intelligence (AI). Likewise, the lyrics and melody were generated by AI, marking the recording as China’s first AI-generated content music video.

Deloitte defines digital humans as AI-powered virtual beings that can produce a whole range of human body language. In recent years, businesses focused on providing round-the-clock services, as well as the media and entertainment industry, are increasingly adopting this nascent technology, aiming to capture a growing market. And as digital humans increasingly populate other sectors like retail, health care, and finance, Emergen Research forecasts that the global market for digital humans will jump to about $530 billion in 2030, from $10 billion in 2020.

For hundreds of years, there was an immutable law of physics that was never challenged: that in any reaction occurring in the Universe, mass was conserved…

ABSTRACT breaks down mind-bending scientific research, future tech, new discoveries, and major breakthroughs. For centuries, rumors have circulated about an ancient kingdom called Cantre’r Gwaelod that…

AN UNDERWATER city of unique, upward-reaching rocks and chemical reactions has scientists wondering if they’ve found the answer to how life begins.

The Lost City Hydrothermal Field is situated in the depths of the Atlantic Ocean near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.

The Lost City is affixed on top of an underwater mountain and spreads out over 5,000 square feet.

The Great Pyramid of Cholula is actually an Aztec temple that was constructed over 2000 years ago. The complex is located in Cholula, Mexico.

The structure holds three records as the largest archaeological site of a pyramid and the largest pyramid in the world by volume. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, it is also the largest monument ever constructed anywhere in the world. It surpasses the largest Egyptian pyramid which is the Great Pyramid of Giza.