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Mar 16, 2019

Japan to back int’l efforts to regulate AI-equipped ‘killer robots’

Posted by in categories: government, policy, robotics/AI

Japan is hoping to play a lead role in crafting international rules on what has been called lethal autonomous weapons systems or LAWS.


Japan is planning to give its backing to international efforts to regulate the development of lethal weapons controlled by artificial intelligence at a UN conference in Geneva late this month, government sources said Saturday.

It would mark a departure from Japan’s current policy. The government was already opposed to the development of so-called killer robots that could kill without human involvement. But it had called for careful discussions when it comes to rules so as to make sure that commercial development of AI would not be hampered.

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Mar 16, 2019

Finding the right “dose” for solar geoengineering

Posted by in category: engineering

Leaving aside my opinion of Steven Pinker, a straight guy who has no clue about how he affects others, mmmm k I’ll give him this one.

Just saying.

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Mar 16, 2019

Study highlights danger of vitamin B12 deficiency

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, health

Using roundworms, one of Earth’s simplest animals, Rice University bioscientists have found the first direct link between a diet with too little vitamin B12 and an increased risk of infection by two potentially deadly pathogens.

Despite their simplicity, 1-millimeter-long nematodes called Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) share an important limitation with humans: They cannot make B12 and must get all they need from their . In a study published today in PLOS Genetics, researchers from the lab of Rice biochemist and cancer researcher Natasha Kirienko describe how a B12-deficient diet harms C. elegans’ health at a cellular level, reducing the worms’ ability to metabolize branched-chain amino acids (BCAA). The research showed that the reduced ability to break down BCAAs led to a toxic buildup of partially metabolized BCAA byproducts that damaged mitochondrial health.

Researchers studied the health of two populations of worms, one with a diet sufficient in B12 and another that got too little B12 from its diet. Like the second population of worms, at least 10 percent of U.S. adults get too little B12 in their diet, a risk that increases with age.

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Mar 16, 2019

The first woman to fly commercial to space describes what it’s like to see Earth from 55 miles up

Posted by in categories: futurism, space

Beth Moses will use her flight to craft future astronaut training.

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Mar 16, 2019

Self-driving cars begin transporting groceries to Texas homes

Posted by in categories: robotics/AI, transportation

First, there came self-checkout.

Now, it’s self-driving cars to make the delivery.

Two Kroger markets in Houston are rolling out a self-driving car program, in which orders can be placed online and delivered right to your home without a driver.

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Mar 16, 2019

Pancreatic cancer: Two-hit treatment approach shows promise

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

Autophagy inhibitors could be more potent against pancreatic cancer by first applying a drug that makes the cancer cells dependent on autophagy for energy.

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Mar 16, 2019

Paralyzed Patients Can Now Control Android Tablets With Their Minds

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

Signals from the electrical cacophony within groups of neurons inside the motor cortex were passed on to a computer running custom software for decoding.

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Mar 16, 2019

Pain Control in a Post-Opioid World — Prof. Peter McNaughton FMedSci — IdeaXme — Ira Pastor

Posted by in categories: aging, biotech/medical, business, chemistry, futurism, genetics, health, innovation, life extension, neuroscience

Mar 16, 2019

Tesla model Y first ride

Posted by in categories: sustainability, transportation

Taking Tesla’s new Model Y for a test ride.

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Mar 16, 2019

A disturbing side-by-side look at how much fat, sugar, produce, and grains we eat each day — versus how much we should

Posted by in category: food

The world has more than enough food to eat, but unfortunately, it’s not the right kind. This chart shows what we should be eating, versus the reality.

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