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Dec 17, 2021

Goodbye 2021!

Posted by in category: futurism

Dec 17, 2021

A Bill Gates-Backed ‘Breakthrough’ Initiative Raised $65 Million for Reusable Rockets

Posted by in categories: innovation, space travel

Bill Gates’ multibillion-dollar clean-tech initiative Breakthrough Energy Ventures has completed a $65 million funding round for the reusable rocket developer called Stoke Space, according to a Wednesday press release.

So don’t look away, because you might miss the makings of humanity’s future.

Dec 17, 2021

Will the Emergence of Drones Mean the End of Crewed Aircraft?

Posted by in categories: drones, military

All good things come to an end.

Uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones, have proved to be something of a revolution in many aspects of our modern world. Among the most dramatic, in the field of combat.

The ability to project power at a distance without risking a human’s life is an incredibly technological feat. It could be so revolutionary, in fact (if some experts are to be believed), that it could put an end to more than a century of aerial dominance in warfare.

Continue reading “Will the Emergence of Drones Mean the End of Crewed Aircraft?” »

Dec 17, 2021

Boeing Says It’s Going to Build a New Airplane Model. In the Metaverse?

Posted by in categories: robotics/AI, transportation

Welcome to Web 3.0.

It’s happening.

Major human-focused industries are injecting virtual interactions into the very design of next-gen vehicles, as Boeing announced that its 3D engineering designs will have digital twins that speak to each other via “robots” that converse, while human mechanics at factories throughout the world will be linked via $3,500 HoloLens headsets developed by Microsoft itself, according to an initial report from Reuters.

Continue reading “Boeing Says It’s Going to Build a New Airplane Model. In the Metaverse?” »

Dec 17, 2021

A Man Accidentally Threw Out a Hard Drive Worth $357 Million in Bitcoin

Posted by in categories: bitcoin, computing, cryptocurrencies, transportation

And he’s been searching for it for a decade.

It’s a nightmare scenario that might become increasingly common in a world of digital currency. A man threw away an old PC hard drive while doing a quick spring clean of his home in Newport Wales, U.K., in 2013. Fast-forward almost a decade and he’s still desperately petitioning to be allowed to go through his local landfill.

The reason the man, 35-year-old IT engineer James Howells, wants to trawl through his local trash site is that the hard drive he threw out included a wallet with 7,500 Bitcoin.

Continue reading “A Man Accidentally Threw Out a Hard Drive Worth $357 Million in Bitcoin” »

Dec 17, 2021

Jamie Metzl: Lab Leak Theory | Lex Fridman Podcast #247

Posted by in categories: bioengineering, biotech/medical, cybercrime/malcode, genetics, government

Jamie Metzl is an author specializing in topics of genetic engineering, biotechnology, and geopolitics. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:
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EPISODE LINKS:
Jamie’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/JamieMetzl.
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Hacking Darwin (book): https://amzn.to/3lLqLsM

Continue reading “Jamie Metzl: Lab Leak Theory | Lex Fridman Podcast #247” »

Dec 17, 2021

You can now travel all the way from Portugal to Singapore

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

Reddit user htGoSEVe posted a map of the potential rail voyage, later updating his post to reflect the fact that sections of the journey — from Lisbon to Hendaye in France, and the Paris-Moscow Express, for example — have been paused during the pandemic.

Rail enthusiasts estimate that it would cost a little over £1,000 in tickets.

But fellow Reddit user Shevek99 commented to suggest that the journey could be made even longer and more ambitious by starting further east.

Dec 17, 2021

Drone Sails Into Category 4 Hurricane, Sends Back Incredible Video and Data

Posted by in categories: climatology, drones

HD video isn’t the only thing Saildrone captured. Data from the heart of the storm could help researchers, too.

Dec 17, 2021

Giving Bug-Like Bots a Boost: New Artificial Muscles Improve the Performance of Flying Microrobots

Posted by in categories: cyborgs, food, robotics/AI

A new fabrication technique produces low-voltage, power-dense artificial muscles that improve the performance of flying microrobots.

When it comes to robots, bigger isn’t always better. Someday, a swarm of insect-sized robots might pollinate a field of crops or search for survivors amid the rubble of a collapsed building.

MIT.

Dec 17, 2021

NASA Is Conducting An Environmental Assessment Of New SpaceX Proposal To Build A Starship Launch Site At Launch Complex-49 In Florida

Posted by in categories: government, space travel, sustainability

On December 15, NASA announced that SpaceX submitted a new proposal to build a Starship launch site at Launch Complex-49 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Previously, SpaceX officials mentioned plans to build a Starship launch tower at historic Launch Complex-39A, the launch site from where NASA Apollo astronauts lifted off atop Saturn V on a voyage to the Moon half a century ago. NASA and SpaceX are working to return humans to the lunar surface by 2025. SpaceX is developing a lunar-optimized Starship Human Landing System (HLS) to land astronauts on the moon as part of the Artemis program that aims to build a sustainable presence on our closest celestial neighbor.

The unbuilt Launch Complex-49 is an 175-acre land located north of Launch Pad-39B and Pad-39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center premises. The agency released a map of the region, pictured below, that outlines the locations of each launch site. “LC-49 has been a part of Kennedy’s master plan for several years,” said Tom Engler, Kennedy’s director of Center Planning and Development. “The Notice of Availability was updated in 2014.”

“Every new construction project, whether government or commercial, goes through a comprehensive environmental review process,” said Don Dankert, technical lead for the Kennedy Environmental Planning Office. “This ensures that we are able to identify potential environmental impacts and define any associated mitigations prior to project implementation.”