Lifeboat Foundation

What’s the risk of different human populations to develop a disease? To find out, a team led by Université de Montréal professor Guillaume Lettre created an international consortium to study the blood of hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.

In one of the largest studies of its kind, published today in Cell, close to 750,000 participants from five major populations—European, African, Hispanic, East Asian and South Asian—were tested to see the effect of genetic mutations on characteristics in their blood.

These characteristics include such things as hemoglobin concentration and platelet counts.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is one of the most powerful technologies ever developed, but it’s not nearly as new as you might think. In fact, it’s undergone several evolutions since its inception in the 1950s. The first generation of AI was ‘descriptive analytics,’ which answers the question, “What happened?” The second, ‘diagnostic analytics,’ addresses, “Why did it happen?” The third and current generation is ‘predictive analytics,’ which answers the question, “Based on what has already happened, what could happen in the future?”

While predictive analytics can be very helpful and save time for data scientists, it is still fully dependent on historic data. Data scientists are therefore left helpless when faced with new, unknown scenarios. In order to have true “artificial intelligence,” we need machines that can “think” on their own, especially when faced with an unfamiliar situation. We need AI that can not just analyze the data it is shown, but express a “gut feeling” when something doesn’t add up. In short, we need AI that can mimic human intuition. Thankfully, we have it.

This is an article from 2014, but it’s interesting — especially for why phishing emails are so lame. Money quote:

‘The answer is that the implausibility is a useful tool for the scammers. An entirely believable email would get millions of people falling for the bait – most of whom would catch on later when the scammers started requesting private banking details. This way, the fraudsters can avoid wasting their time on no-hopers, knowing that any replies they do receive are … See More.

Maybe your bank wants you to update your password; maybe a new Facebook friend wants to show you a funny web page. Maybe a Nigerian lawyer wants to pass on a legacy from a long-lost relative.

Continue reading “The psychology of phishing: why do we fall for terrible email scams?” »

Defense advanced research projects agency — DARPA.

DARPA and the U.S. Air Force (USAF) today announced successful completion of captive carry tests of two variants of the Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept (HAWC) and are ready to proceed to first free-flight testing within the calendar year. The joint Agency and Service effort seeks to develop and demonstrate critical technologies to enable an effective and affordable air-launched hypersonic cruise missile.

HAWC performers Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Technologies have each tested advanced air vehicle configurations that promise to achieve and sustain efficient hypersonic flight. Their upcoming flight tests will focus on hydrocarbon scramjet-powered propulsion and thermal management techniques to enable prolonged hypersonic cruise, in addition to affordable system designs and manufacturing approaches.

Continue reading “DARPA Completes Key Milestone on Hypersonics Air-breathing Weapons Program” »

Ira Pastor, ideaXme life sciences ambassador, interviews Mr. Evgeni Borisov, CEO and Co-founder of Vimana Global Inc.

Ira Pastor Comments:

Continue reading “Vimana: From Mythical Flying Chariots to Space Age Vehicles” »

Sleep has critical roles in health and regeneration, and one of those is clearing the brain of metabolic waste, according to researchers from the US and Denmark.

Now, as reported in the journal Nature Communications, they’ve discovered in mice that the time of day matters, suggesting the process is controlled by circadian rhythms.

“Our group has shown that just being awake or asleep drastically changes how well the brain can clear waste,” says lead author Lauren Hablitz from the University of Rochester Medical Centre.

A total of 5,726 participants had their memory tested. Out of the 24 substances that were assessed for improving memory, these are the 5 most promising nootropics.

The self-driving car could transform our ideas of space and time, enabling us to do more of the things we love and less of the ones we loathe. Here are some of the most fascinating potential uses.

A banner streak of wealth gains came to an end Thursday for the world’s richest technology billionaires.

The industry’s 10 wealthiest people had $44 billion erased from their collective net worths as U.S. equities tumbled the most in almost three months over investor concerns about frothy valuations.