Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
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A group of researchers developed a tool capable of detecting errors in the way applications such as Adobe Acrobat or Microsoft Word process JavaScript code, which has allowed finding a total of 134 security flaws, of which 33 have already received a CVE tracking key.

The tool is called “Cooper”, in reference to the technique known as “Cooperative Mutation” it employees. Xu Peng, a software development specialist and co-author of the tool, explains that tools like the ones mentioned accept information from scripting languages; for example, Acrobat allows JavaScript to manipulate PDF files.

This requires the PDF to define native PDF objects and parse the JavaScript code. Native objects are processed by Acrobat modules and a built-in JavaScript engine handles the scripts, while a “binding layer” does the translation.

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Microsoft warns of “cryware” malware that steals information and exfiltrate data directly from non-custodial cryptocurrency wallets.

Microsoft is warning of an emerging threat targeting internet-connected cryptocurrency wallets, signaling a departure in the use of digital coins in cyberattacks.

The tech giant dubbed the new threat “cryware,” with the attacks resulting in the irreversible theft of virtual currencies by means of fraudulent transfers to an adversary-controlled wallet.

“Cryware are information stealers that collect and exfiltrate data directly from non-custodial cryptocurrency wallets, also known as hot wallets,” Berman Enconado and Laurie Kirk of the Microsoft 365 Defender Research Team said in a new report.

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Researchers at the Stevens Institute of Technology used a customized BlueROV2 robot to explore a busy harbor at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in New York. | Source: Stevens Institute of Technology.

Underwater environments can be particularly challenging for autonomous robots. Things are constantly moving and changing, and robots need to figure out where they are without relying on GPS data.

Researchers at the Stevens Institute of Technology have created a robot that is able to successfully navigate a crowded marina underwater. The robot is able to map its environment, track its own location and plan a safe route through a complex environment in real-time, simultaneously.

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Massachusetts health officials on Wednesday confirmed a single case of monkeypox virus infection in an adult male who health officials said recently traveled to Canada.

The Department of Public Health said monkeypox is a rare but potentially serious viral illness that typically begins with flu-like symptoms and swelling of the lymph nodes. It progresses to a rash on the face and body, with most infections lasting two to four weeks.

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True stories of indefatigable researchers, heroic engineers, and champions of, neuroscience who are finally turning the corner in the effort to understand, heal, and improve the human brain.

Al has a hard time walking up the stairs to his home’s second floor these days, so he lives on the first. In a lounge chair, surrounded by pictures of his family and the homes he built, he slowly, carefully crosses one knee at the ankle like he’s in a business meeting. His legs are thin and pale and papery. His face, too, has taken on a gauntness since the photo of his daughter’s wedding, mounted on the wall right in front of him, was taken back in 2009. Al lunges forward as if he might stand. But then, when he tries to say hello, all that comes out is a guttural moan. When Al, who is sixty-eight, was diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) in 2012, he was not guaranteed even this. The disease, caused by degeneration of cells in areas of the brain associated with movement, balance, and thinking, often results in death in about seven years. It has no known cause and no cure.

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In a few months, a daring clinical trial may fundamentally lower heart attack risk in the most vulnerable people. If all goes well, it will just take one shot.

It’s no ordinary shot. The trial, led by Verve Therapeutics, a biotechnology company based in Massachusetts, will be one of the first to test genetic base editors directly inside the human body. A variant of the gene editing tool CRISPR-Cas9, base editors soared to stardom when first introduced for their efficiency at replacing single genetic letters without breaking delicate DNA strands. Because it’s safer than the classic version of CRISPR, the new tool ignited hope that it could be used for treating genetic diseases.

Verve’s CEO, Dr. Sekar Kathiresan, took note. A cardiologist at Harvard University, Kathiresan wondered if base editing could help solve one of the main killers of our time: heart attacks. It seemed the perfect test case. We know one major cause of heart attacks—high cholesterol levels, particularly a version called LDL-C (Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol). We also know several major genes that control its level. And—most importantly—we know the DNA letter swap that can, in theory, drastically lower LDL-C and in turn throttle the risk of heart attacks.

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