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“Certainly,” says Christof Koch, Ph.D., a neuroscientist and prominent figure in the field of consciousness studies. “Any complex system, whether evolved on Earth or elsewhere, could be conscious.” What that consciousness might look like is another matter entirely. Could aliens exhibit empathy, self-awareness, love, hate, or fear?

To answer these questions, consider panpsychism, an ancient cosmic theory that suggests consciousness could be a ubiquitous feature of the universe, akin to gravity or charge. This idea, dating back to ancient Greek philosophers like Thales and Plato, has seen a resurgence in the 21st century as mainstream scientific approaches struggle to fully explain consciousness.

Quantum is huge. Because quantum computing allows us to step beyond the current limitations of digital systems, it paves the way for a new era of computing machines with previously unthinkable power. Without recounting another simplified explanation of how quantum gets its power at length, we can reference the double-slit experiment and perhaps the spinning coin explanation.

A coin sat on a desk is either heads or tails, rather like the 1s and 0s that express the on or off values in binary code. Quantum theorists would prefer we think of the coin above the desk, spinning in the air. In this state, the coin is both heads and tails at the same time. This is because, at the quantum level, both values exist until we make an observation of its state at any given point in time. We could further increase the number of positions possible (literally known as quantum superposition) by altering the angle of view we take on the coin, which is somewhat similar to how we work with qubits in quantum mechanics.

So then, Schrödinger’s cat is both alive and dead at the same time and the dummies guide to quantum entanglement is out there on the web if needed. What matters most now is how we will make practical use of quantum computing and where it will be applied for best advantage.

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Technology has shaped our civilization as it grew down the centuries, and since the industrial revolution, each new generation seems defined by some new technological revolution… So what will the next revolution be?

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Bacteria defend themselves from viral infection using diverse immune systems, many of which sense and target foreign nucleic acids. Defense-associated reverse transcriptase (DRT) systems provide an intriguing counterpoint to this immune strategy by instead leveraging DNA synthesis, but the identities and functions of their DNA products remain largely unknown. Here we show that DRT2 systems execute an unprecedented immunity mechanism that involves de novo gene synthesis via rolling-circle reverse transcription of a non-coding RNA (ncRNA). Unbiased profiling of RT-associated RNA and DNA ligands in DRT2-expressing cells revealed that reverse transcription generates concatenated cDNA repeats through programmed template jumping on the ncRNA. The presence of phage then triggers second-strand cDNA synthesis, leading to the production of long double-stranded DNA. Remarkably, this DNA product is efficiently transcribed, generating messenger RNAs that encode a stop codon-less, never-ending ORF (neo) whose translation causes potent growth arrest. Phylogenetic analyses and screening of diverse DRT2 homologs further revealed broad conservation of rolling-circle reverse transcription and Neo protein function. Our work highlights an elegant expansion of genome coding potential through RNA-templated gene creation, and challenges conventional paradigms of genetic information encoded along the one-dimensional axis of genomic DNA.

One-Sentence Summary Bacterial reverse transcriptases synthesize extrachromosomal genes via rolling-circle amplification to confer potent antiviral immunity.

Columbia University has filed a patent application related to this work. S.H.S. is a co-founder and scientific advisor to Dahlia Biosciences, a scientific advisor to CrisprBits and Prime Medicine, and an equity holder in Dahlia Biosciences and CrisprBits.

University of California, Irvine scientists recently discovered a one-dimensional nanoscale material whose color changes as temperature changes. The team’s results appeared in Advanced Materials (“Sensitive Thermochromic Behavior of InSeI, a Highly Anisotropic and Tubular 1D van der Waals Crystal”).

“We found that we can make really small and sensitive thermometers,” said Maxx Arguilla, UC Irvine professor of chemistry whose research group led the study. “It’s one of the most applied and translatable works to come out of our lab.”

Arguilla likened the thermometers to “nanoscale mood rings,” referring to the jewelry that changes color depending on the wearer’s body temperature. But instead of simply taking a qualitative temperature reading, the changes in the color of these materials “can be calibrated and used to optically take temperature readings at the nanoscale,” Arguilla said.

Philosopher and cognitive scientist David Chalmers explores virtual reality and its implication for our understanding of existence. Chalmers examines the simulation hypothesis, challenging conventional views of reality and suggesting that virtual worlds might be as real and meaningful as the physical world. This is a thought-provoking lecture at MindFest, held at Florida Atlantic University, CENTER FOR THE FUTURE MIND, spearheaded by Susan Schneider.

TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 — Intro.
01:34 — Overview.
11:55 — David’s Central Thesis.
15:55 — Biosim vs. Pure Sim.
18:11 — Imperfect vs. Perfect Simulation.
26:38 — Are Simulations Illusions?
31:29 — It-From-Bit Hypothesis.
36:06 — What Is The Metaverse?
43:58 — Meaning In A Virtual World.
51:49 — Q\&A
01:06:43 — Outro.