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Feb 19, 2022

Two New Studies Just Outlined The Basics of Building an Interstellar Light Sail

Posted by in categories: particle physics, space travel

For centuries, people have dreamed of being driven at speed across the vast oceans of space by winds of light.

As whimsical as the idea sounds, nudging reflective sails slowly towards the speed of light using nothing more than the punch of photons might be our only plausible shot at reaching another star inside of a single human lifetime.

It’s also far easier said than done. Particles of light might be fast, but they don’t push very hard. If you make a sail light enough to feel the inertia of radiation, then the constant barrage of photons could inadvertently damage its material.

Feb 19, 2022

DeepMind Has Trained an AI to Control Nuclear Fusion

Posted by in categories: information science, nuclear energy, robotics/AI

The Google-backed AI firm taught a reinforcement learning algorithm to control the fiery plasma inside a tokamak nuclear fusion reactor.

Feb 19, 2022

Canaanite religion

Posted by in category: evolution

Study of the evolution of monotheism is instructive. Jolly Jehovah did not burst forth fully formed overnight. Prof Orly Goldwasser explains how Amen and Ra are “better” Gods than Set of Avaris, the first recorded monotheist deity in her 2006 paper on King Apophis. There is evidence of interchangeable identity between Set and Ba’al Hadad. “According to the Canaanite pantheon, known in Ugarit as ‘ilhm (=Elohim) or the children of El (cf. the Biblical “sons of God”), supposedly obtained by Philo of Byblos from Sanchuniathon of Berythus (Beirut) the creator was known as Elion (Biblical El Elyon = God most High), who was the father of the divinities, and in the Greek sources he was married to Beruth (Beirut = the city). This marriage of the divinity with the city would seem to have Biblical parallels too with the stories of the link between Melkart and Tyre; Yahweh and Jerusalem; Chemosh and Moab; Tanit and Baal Hammon in Carthage. El Elyon is mentioned as ‘God Most High’ occurs in Genesis 14.18−19 as the God whose priest was Melchizedek king of Salem.”


Canaanite religion is the name for the group of Ancient Semitic religions practiced by the Canaanites living in the ancient Levant from at least the early Bronze Age through the first centuries of the Common Era. Canaanite religion was polytheistic or monolatristic, worshiping one god while acknowledging the existence of others. The sources for Canaanite religion come either from literary sources written by the early Hebrews, or from archaeological discoveries. The Canaanite wrote on papyrus and.

Feb 19, 2022

Can a planet “think”? The bold idea gets new backing

Posted by in categories: alien life, climatology, evolution, sustainability

In a way, it could mean climate change is linked to an “immature technosphere”.

It’s called an epiphenomenon.

Continue reading “Can a planet ‘think’? The bold idea gets new backing” »

Feb 19, 2022

Tapping the Potential Within 100% Hydrogen-Powered Engines

Posted by in category: futurism

Feb 19, 2022

This AI Can Control the Sun-Hot Plasma in a Nuclear Fusion Reactor

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

But thankfully it did NOT involve 6 malevolent AI robot arms, NOR was it done in the middle of New York City by an oddly literally named Doctor Octavious. ☝️😉


Google’s DeepMind can dynamically adjust the magnetic fields inside a tokamak.

Feb 19, 2022

Elon Musk’s Boring Company has submitted a proposal for a 6.2-mile underground transit system in Miami

Posted by in categories: Elon Musk, sustainability, transportation

Elon Musk’s The Boring Company has submitted a proposal to construct a 6.2-mile underground transit system in Miami, Insider can reveal.

The North Miami Beach Loop would ferry Tesla vehicles between seven stations along State Road 826, between the Golden Glades Transit Center and Sunny Isles Beach at Newport Pier, according to the proposal, seen by Insider.

The Boring Company estimated that the loop would initially be able to carry more than 7,500 passengers per hour, and could be scaled to carry more than 15,000 per hour.

Feb 19, 2022

Tesla announces it has produced 1 million next-gen 4680 battery cells

Posted by in categories: sustainability, transportation

Tesla has announced that it has produced 1 million of its next-generation 4,680 battery cell at its pilot factory in California.

The announcement comes as Tesla is expected to start deliveries of its new Model Y equipped with its 4,680 cell and structural battery pack.

In 2020, Tesla unveiled its new 4,680 battery cell, a new tabless cylindrical cell in a much bigger format that the company claimed produces six times the power and five times the energy capacity while significantly reducing the cost.

Feb 19, 2022

Elon Musk’s SpaceX to split its private stock 10-for-1

Posted by in categories: Elon Musk, space travel

Elon Musk’s SpaceX is splitting the value of its common stock 10-for-1, CNBC has learned, with the company’s valuation having soared to more than $100 billion.

The split means that for each share of SpaceX stock owned as of Thursday, a holder now has 10 shares after the conversion. With SpaceX valued at $560 a share during its most recent sale, the split reduces SpaceX’s common stock to $56 a share, according to a company-wide email obtained by CNBC.

“The split has no impact on the overall valuation of the company or on the overall value of your SpaceX holdings,” the email said.

Feb 19, 2022

Exercise boosts the brain — and mental health

Posted by in categories: health, neuroscience

Working out buffs up the body — and perhaps the mind, too.