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Engineers from Caltech have discovered that Leonardo da Vinci’s understanding of gravity—though not wholly accurate—was centuries ahead of his time.

In an article published in the journal Leonardo, the researchers draw upon a fresh look at one of da Vinci’s notebooks to show that the famed polymath had devised experiments to demonstrate that gravity is a form of acceleration—and that he further modeled the to around 97 percent accuracy.

Da Vinci, who lived from 1,452 to 1,519, was well ahead of the curve in exploring these concepts. It wasn’t until 1,604 that Galileo Galilei would theorize that the distance covered by a falling object was proportional to the square of time elapsed and not until the late 17th century that Sir Isaac Newton would expand on that to develop a law of universal gravitation, describing how objects are attracted to one another. Da Vinci’s primary hurdle was being limited by the tools at his disposal. For example, he lacked a means of precisely measuring time as objects fell.

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If you ask it the right questions, ChatGPT represents an incredible resource and tool. And people noticed fast — within five days it gained over 1 million users, and now Microsoft is in talks for a potential $10 billion investment in the company.

As a reporter, the hype surrounding the AI tool intrigued me, and a colleague of mine said it’s journalism chops were convincing (though only if you didn’t squint too hard to notice articles were riddle with misinformation).

Knowing that ChatGPT’s database cut off in 2021, I asked it to write a stock market story about trading trends in 2020, and in less than one minute it spat out a 400-word story that mapped out S&P 500 moves, meme stocks, and shares that rallied during the early days of the pandemic.

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Researchers from The University of Queensland have discovered the active compound from an edible mushroom that boosts nerve growth and enhances memory.

Professor Frederic Meunier from the Queensland Brain Institute said the team had identified new active compounds from the mushroom, Hericium erinaceus. This type of edible mushroom, commonly known as the Lion’s Mane Mushroom, is native to North America, Europe, and Asia. It is commonly sought after for its unique flavor and texture, and it is also used in traditional Chinese medicine to boost the immune system and improve digestive health.

Researchers have discovered lion’s mane mushrooms improve brain cell growth and memory in pre-clinical trials.

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Science fiction films love to show off huge leaps in technology. The latest Avatar movie features autonomous, spider-like robots that can build a whole city within weeks. There are space ships that can carry frozen passengers lightyears away from Earth. In James Cameron’s imagination, we can download our memories and then upload them into newly baked bodies. All this wildly advanced tech is controlled through touch-activated, transparent, monochrome and often blue holograms. Just like a thousand other futuristic interfaces in Hollywood.

When we are shown a glimpse of the far future through science fiction films, there are omnipresent voice assistants, otherworldly wearables, and a whole lot of holograms. For whatever reason these holograms are almost always blue, floating above desks and visible to anyone who might stroll by. This formula for futuristic UI has always baffled me, because as cool as it looks, it doesn’t seem super practical. And yet, Hollywood seems to have an obsession with imagining future worlds washed in blue light.

Perhaps the Hollywood formula is inspired by one of the first holograms to grace the silver screen: Princess Leia telling Obi-Wan Kenobi that he is their only hope. Star Wars served as an inspiration for future sci-fi ventures, so it follows that other stories might emulate the original. The Avatar films have an obvious penchant for the color blue, and so the holograms that introduce us to the world of Pandora and the native Na’vi are, like Leia, made out of blue light.

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An international team of scientists has found a way to regenerate kidneys damaged by disease, restoring function and preventing kidney failure. The discovery could drastically improve treatments for complications stemming from diabetes and other diseases.

Diabetes causes many problems in the body, but one of the most prevalent is kidney disease. Extended periods of elevated blood sugar can damage nephrons, the tiny filtering units in the kidneys, which can lead to kidney dysfunction and eventually failure.

For the new study, researchers in Singapore and Germany investigated a potential culprit – a protein known as interleukin-11 (IL-11), which has been implicated in causing scarring to other organs in response to damage.

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Researchers have come up with a new way to use 3D printing to make a new superalloy.

A group of researchers has developed a new superalloy resistant to high temperatures. This could if ever brought into production, prove revolutionary for the future of turbines.

This would increase its efficiency and decrease waste heat.

Continue reading “Researchers may have just future-proofed turbines in the aerospace and energy industry” | >

FRIDA can create finger paintings based on human inputs, photographs, and music.

“AI is the future!” is a statement of the past now, as AI is no longer the future but our present. After ChatGPT shocked the whole world with its abilities, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University created an AI-powered robot that could create exceptional artwork on physical canvas with the help of simple text prompts, according to a press release.

The FRIDA robot (the Framework and Robotics Initiative for Developing Arts) can create unique paintings using photographs, human inputs, or even music. The final result is somewhat a resemblance to a basic finger painting.

Continue reading “AI-powered robotic arm collaborates with artists to create art” | >

A new literature review of papers on “common mycorrhizal networks” seems to indicate the science behind them is not as strong as once thought.

Akin to the Ents from “The Lord of the Rings,” there is an idea in modern botany that trees can “talk” to one another through a delicate web of fungus filaments that grows underground. The idea is so alluring that it has gained traction in popular culture and has even been termed the “wood-wide network.”

However, according to Justine Karst, associate professor from the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Agricultural, Life, and Environmental Sciences, it could all be nonsense.

Continue reading “Can trees talk to each other with fungal networks? Study raises doubts” | >