Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
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Blog – Page 4

Progress is rarely linear, and AI is no exception.

As academics, independent developers, and the biggest tech companies in the world drive us closer to artificial general intelligence — a still hypothetical form of intelligence that matches human capabilities — they’ve hit some roadblocks. Many emerging models are prone to hallucinating, misinformation, and simple errors.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai referred to this phase of AI as AJI, or “artificial jagged intelligence,” on a recent episode of Lex Fridman’s podcast.

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Sarin (isopropyl methyl fluorophosphonate) is an organophosphorus nerve agent regulated by the Convention on the Banning of Chemical Weapons. It can enter the body through the respiratory system, skin, or eyes, paralyzing the central nervous system by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase, which can lead to death. Therefore, rapid and sensitive detection of trace sarin is vital for safety and environmental protection.

Due to its high toxicity, sarin’s use is strictly controlled, leading researchers to use diethyl chlorophosphate (DCP) as a safer simulant. The common fluorescence detection method takes advantage of DCP’s strong electrophilicity, using recognition sites like hydroxyl oxime and imine for fluorescence quenching to identify the target.

However, this method is affected by photobleaching, acid, and other environmental factors, limiting its application.

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Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) deployment has risen rapidly in recent years. They are now used in a wide range of applications, from critical safety-of-life scenarios like nuclear power plant surveillance to entertainment and hobby applications…

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Advances in Quantum technologies offer a step improvement in phase noise performance compared to conventional oscillators. University of Birmingham (UoB) is developing a new class of ultra low phase noise optical lattice clock Quantum oscillator that can provide several orders of magnitude improvement in radar sensitivity against clutter.

To facilitate this enabling research, the Advanced Radar Network (ADRAN) facility funded by the EPSRC Quantum Technologies Hub is being set-up to enable comparative performance assessment of a radar systems with quantum oscillators as compared to conventional alternatives.

This may be shared as something else, but these guys just used quantum tech to “unstealth stealth”. I think that’s a pretty cool thing to accomplish.

Information about quantum enabled radar research in the Microwave Integrated Systems Laboratory (MISL) at the University of Birmingham.

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Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by macroscopic features such as cortical atrophy, narrowing of the gyri, widening of the sulci, and enlargement of the ventricles. At the cellular level, the pathological characteristics include the extracellular aggregation of β-amyloid (Aβ) forming senile plaques, and the intracellular accumulation of hyperphosphorylated tau proteins forming neurofibrillary tangles. AD leads to the progressive decline of cognitive, behavioral, and social abilities, with no effective treatment available currently. The pathophysiology of AD is complex, involving mechanisms such as immune dysregulation and lipid metabolism alterations. Immune cells, such as microglia, can identify and clear pathological aggregates like Aβ early in the disease.

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Robert Zubrin quite literally wrote the book on why humanity should go to Mars—so why has the renowned aerospace engineer soured on Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur leading the charge?

In an interview, the 73-year-old founder of the Mars Society delivered a blistering critique, accusing the world’s richest person of undermining the mission through divisive politics and a bleak vision of the Red Planet as an escape from Earth rather than a journey of hope.

“On one level, he’s absolutely instrumental in opening up this opportunity to get humans to Mars, both through the development of Starship and also the inspiration that has caused,” Zubrin told AFP, referring to Musk’s prototype rocket.

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Thanks to 7T fMRI, researchers from Paris Brain Institute and NeuroSpin, the CEA’s neuroimaging center, are exploring the neural substrate of visual imagery at very high resolution for the first time. Their results, published in Cortex, pave the way for a better understanding of this fascinating cognitive ability, which some of us entirely lack.

Visual imagery—the ability to mentally summon the image of a landscape, a person, or an object that is not directly observable—varies greatly in intensity from one individual to another. Some people can recall a detailed city map and walk through each street as if watching a movie. Thinking of a loved one, others may barely make out their silhouette and hair color.

Interestingly, about 4% of the population seems completely unable to visualize a scene on demand: this is known as aphantasia, a cognitive peculiarity known for over a century but only recently studied by scientists.

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