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Jul 8, 2024

Beyond Borders: Applying Modern Conflict Laws as Framework for Outer Space Governance

Posted by in categories: energy, finance, governance, law, military, satellites, surveillance

Moreover, the concept of limitation, which dictates that the means and methods of warfare are not unlimited, can help prevent the escalation of conflicts in space by imposing restrictions on the use of certain weapons or tactics that could cause indiscriminate harm or result in long-term consequences for space exploration and utilization. Given a growing number of distinct weapons systems in orbit – from missile defense systems with kinetic anti-satellite capabilities, electronic warfare counter-space capabilities, and directed energy weapons to GPS jammers, space situational awareness, surveillance, and intelligence gathering capabilities – legal clarity rather than strategic ambiguity are crucial for ensuring the responsible and peaceful use of outer space.

Additionally, the principle of humanity underscores the importance of treating all individuals with dignity and respect, including astronauts, cosmonauts, and civilians who may be affected by conflicts in space. By upholding this principle, outer space law can ensure that human rights are protected and preserved, particularly in the profoundly challenging environment of outer space. Moreover, with civilians on the ground increasingly tethered to space technologies for communication, navigation, banking, leisure, and other essential services, the protection of their rights becomes a fundamental imperative.

The modern laws of armed conflict (LOAC) offer a valuable blueprint for developing a robust legal framework for governing activities in outer space. By integrating complementary principles of LOAC or international humanitarian law with the UN Charter into outer space law, policymakers can promote the peaceful and responsible use of outer space while mitigating the risks associated with potential conflicts in this increasingly contested domain.

Jul 8, 2024

Dark Side Of ‘The Next AI Trade’: Seizing Private Property For Transmission Lines

Posted by in categories: government, robotics/AI

According to Fox 45 Baltimore, the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project (MPRP) is a new plan to build a 70-mile 500,000-volt transmission line across three counties: Frederick, Baltimore, and Carroll. The line will connect a substation in southern Frederick County and supply the area with additional load capacity to handle surging power demand from AI data centers.

MPRP’s website explains that the new transmission lines will require the acquisition of private property through the use of an eminent domain, or government-mandated seizure to complete the construction.

“If PSEG and a property owner cannot agree on mutually acceptable value, PSEG may seek to use the power of eminent domain using the process set forth by the state of Maryland to acquire the necessary property rights,” the developer’s website states.

Jul 8, 2024

Scout Space selected for DARPA’s commercial tech initiative

Posted by in categories: government, military, robotics/AI, space

WASHINGTON — The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has selected the startup Scout Space to participate in the BRIDGES (Bringing Classified Innovation to Defense and Government Systems) consortium.

BRIDGES, launched by DARPA in 2023, aims to connect innovative small companies and nontraditional defense contractors with classified Department of Defense research and development efforts. The initiative seeks to bridge the gap between cutting-edge commercial technologies and classified defense needs, particularly in areas considered critical to maintaining U.S. military superiority.

Scout Space, based in Reston, Virginia, develops satellite flight software and space domain awareness sensors. The company announced July 8 it was selected by DARPA for its proposal outlining an approach to “advancing autonomous in-space threat response.”

Jul 8, 2024

Nine ventures join first SoCal-UK Space Accelerator

Posted by in categories: finance, space

TAMPA, Fla. — Mandala Space Ventures, a Californian venture studio and incubator, announced July 8 the nine United Kingdom-based startups participating in its UK Space Agency-funded accelerator program this fall.

The eight-week virtual course starts Sept. 3 and culminates with an in-person investor pitch day at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, California.

The SoCal-UK Space Accelerator creates a “transatlantic portal for great ideas from the U.K.,” said Mandala founder and CEO Leon Alkalai, helping prepare them for venture capital and access to the U.S. market.

Jul 8, 2024

How Quantum Computing Is Already Changing the World

Posted by in categories: computing, encryption, quantum physics, security

The power of quantum computing drives a desperate need for quantum encryption. This megatrend is creating a multi-billion-dollar security market.

Jul 8, 2024

Lab-grown human brain tissue used to control robot

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, robotics/AI

Scientists merged human brain-like tissue with a computer chip and taught tiny robots how to navigate obstacles and grasp items.⁠


Scientists take another step towards organoid ‘hybrid intelligence.’

Jul 8, 2024

Exoplanet’s Rotten Egg Smell Revealed by Webb Telescope

Posted by in category: alien life

“Sulfur is a vital element for building more complex molecules, and—like carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphate—scientists need to study it more to fully understand how planets are made and what they’re made of,” said Dr. Guangwei Fu.


How do exoplanets smell? This is what a recent study published in Nature hopes to address as a team of researchers investigated the atmosphere of HD 189,733 b, which is a “hot Jupiter” located approximately 64 light-years from Earth, discovering this unique exoplanet’s atmosphere contains hydrogen sulfide, which is a byproduct of sulfur and known for its rotten egg-like smell. This discovery holds the potential to help astronomers better understand the atmospheric composition of exoplanets and how these compositions can drive the interior processes of these exoplanets, as well.

Artist’s illustration of HD 189,733 b. (Credit: Roberto Molar Candanosa/Johns Hopkins Univeristy)

Continue reading “Exoplanet’s Rotten Egg Smell Revealed by Webb Telescope” »

Jul 8, 2024

Brain size riddle solved as humans exceed evolution trend

Posted by in categories: evolution, neuroscience, policy

The largest animals do not have proportionally bigger brains — with humans bucking this trend — a new study published in Nature Ecology and Evolution has revealed.

Researchers at the University of Reading and Durham University collected an enormous dataset of brain and body sizes from around 1,500…


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Continue reading “Brain size riddle solved as humans exceed evolution trend” »

Jul 8, 2024

Tesla’s Lathrop Facility Producing Profitable MegaPacks

Posted by in category: energy

The production of MegaPacks at the facility in Lathrop, California is highly profitable and the market for MegaPacks is expected to grow as the price of cells comes down Questions to inspire discussion How much power does the facility produce daily? —The facility produces a lot of power daily, with the output constantly changing.

Jul 8, 2024

T-cell Transfer Therapy

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

T-cell transfer therapy is a type of immunotherapy that makes your own immune cells better able to attack cancer. There are two main types of T-cell transfer therapy: tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (or TIL) therapy and CAR T-cell therapy. Both involve collecting your own immune cells, growing large numbers of these cells in the lab, and then giving the cells back to you through a needle in your vein. T-cell transfer therapy is also called adoptive cell therapy, adoptive immunotherapy, and immune cell therapy.

The process of growing your T cells in the lab can take 2 to 8 weeks. During this time, you may have treatment with chemotherapy and, maybe, radiation therapy to get rid of other immune cells. Reducing your immune cells helps the transferred T cells to be more effective. After these treatments, the T cells that were grown in the lab will be given back to you via a needle in your vein.

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