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Jun 2, 2017

Waymo working on self-driving trucks

Posted by in categories: robotics/AI, transportation

N” Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) self-driving car unit Waymo is working on developing self-driving trucks, the company said on Thursday.

Waymo, which is looking to expand its self-driving car efforts, expects autonomous vehicles to be able to take over longer distance trucking in the coming years, while allowing human drivers to handle local pickup and delivery routes.

“We’re taking our eight years of experience in building self-driving hardware and software and conducting a technical exploration into how our technology can integrate into a truck,” a Waymo spokesperson said in a statement.

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Jun 2, 2017

Scientists detect Einstein gravitational waves for a third time

Posted by in categories: cosmology, physics

N” Scientists have for a third time detected ripples in space from black holes that crashed together billions of light years from Earth, a discovery that confirms a new technique for observing cataclysmic events in the universe, research published on Thursday shows.

Such vibrations, known as gravitational waves, were predicted by Albert Einstein more than 100 years ago and were detected for the first time in September 2015. They are triggered by massive celestial objects that crash and merge, setting off ripples through space and across time.

The latest detection occurred on Jan. 4, 2017. Twin lasers in Louisiana and Washington picked up the faint vibrations of two black holes that were 20 and 30 times more massive than the sun, respectively, before they spiraled toward each other and merged into a larger black hole.

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Jun 2, 2017

Video shows maiden flight of cyborg dragonfly

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, cyborgs, robotics/AI

Over the past few years, a variety of cyborg animals have been unleashed, as scientists kit out cockroaches, locusts and even turtles with electronic accoutrements. Back in January, researchers from Charles Stark Draper Laboratory and Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) outlined plans to fit dragonflies with tiny electronic backpacks, allowing them to be controlled remotely. In a new video, their cyborg dragonflies have taken flight for the first time.

The animal kingdom is fertile inspirational ground for new technology, but it’s difficult to properly mimic the speed and manoeuvrability of a dragonfly, or the complicated olfactory system of a locust. Rather than designing robots and sensors from scratch, scientists have developed ways to take advantage of the hard work nature has already done, by equipping live insects with electronic systems.

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Jun 1, 2017

Hardt Global Mobility

Posted by in category: transportation

Hardt is redefining global mobility with on-demand high-speed transportation for everyone. We are Europe’s leading company developing a system like hyperloop to bring you anywhere at anytime.

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Jun 1, 2017

Could Aliens Be Hibernating Through The Worst Time in The Universe?

Posted by in categories: alien life, existential risks, robotics/AI

As the Fermi paradox states, the Universe is a vast, unknowable space, filled with trillions upon trillions of potentially habitable planets, so… where are all the aliens?

In the latest attempt to solve this conundrum, a trio of researchers have suggested that advanced alien civilisations have gone into self-imposed ‘hibernation’ — waiting for a future where the Universe is far colder than it is now, which would facilitate the kind of processing power we could only ever dream about.

A new paper written by Oxford neuroscientist and AI expert, Anders Sandberg and Stuart Armstrong, together with Milan Ćirković from the Astronomical Observatory of Belgrade, Serbia, argues that civilisations far more advanced than us could have conceivably explored a big chunk of the Universe already, and are now waiting for a better time to be alive.

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Jun 1, 2017

Introducing: Asteroid Day LIVE Speakers

Posted by in category: space

You can watch the entire 24-hour broadcast right here: http://asteroidday.org/live | View the full schedule, here.

Asteroid Day LIVE Speakers from Luxembourg

Time is running fast! There’s officially only one month left until Asteroid Day 2017 and our live broadcast programme is taking clear forms. The schedule is set, the outline drafted, a studio set being built and most of the speakers confirmed. Here’s our rundown of whom you can expect during the 6 hours live from Luxembourg on June 30th from 12 – 6 PM (Berlin time / UTC+2). This line-up in addition to the many guests and speakers over the course of the 24-hour-live-broadcast during the other programme slots by our partners at ESA, JAXA, NASA, the University of Arizona and many others.

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Jun 1, 2017

Dutch testing tube unveiled by Hyperloop transport system

Posted by in categories: futurism, transportation

A Dutch tech startup and a construction company on Thursday unveiled a Hyperloop test facility, a steel tube that will be used to help develop the futuristic high-speed transportation system.

It is a first step toward developing the system in the Netherlands, a key European transportation transport hub, and beyond.

“It’s our goal to let it be available for the daily commuter,” said Tim Houter, CEO of Hardt Global Mobility, which is working on the project with construction company BAM. He described the concept as “a sort of on-demand, high-speed transportation system for everyone.”

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Jun 1, 2017

The Rolls-Royce Sweptail

Posted by in category: transportation

This $13M Rolls-Royce could be the most expensive new car ever built.

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Jun 1, 2017

If Donald J. Trump decides to leave the Paris Climate Accord it will be a huge deal

Posted by in category: climatology

This is why.

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Jun 1, 2017

Esther Perel: Sex, Stability, and Self-Fulfillment

Posted by in categories: philosophy, sex

Therapist and author Esther Perel explores our ‘existential aloneness’ in this film. Much as technology continues to open new doors for connection, the rapid cultural changes of the past 100 years allow us to choose the sort of life we wish to live. We make our most important connections by choice instead of having them mandated to us by tradition. But as is the case with technology, sometimes it isn’t clear if we are primed to use these new opportunities to build more fulfilling lives or simply to frustrate ourselves, building a world where more people feel alone.

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