Menu

Blog

Page 9816

Mar 13, 2018

NASA building ‘HAMMER’ spacecraft to save Earth from cataclysmic asteroid impact

Posted by in categories: asteroid/comet impacts, existential risks, space travel

NASA has a plan to deal with potential asteroid impacts that sounds like it’s been taken straight from a science fiction film.

The space agency is building a spacecraft named HAMMER — which stands for Hypervelocity Asteroid Mitigation Mission for Emergency Response.

The plan is to blow any harmful looking asteroids out of the sky before they have a chance to hit out planet.

Continue reading “NASA building ‘HAMMER’ spacecraft to save Earth from cataclysmic asteroid impact” »

Mar 13, 2018

A startup is pitching a mind-uploading service that is “100 percent fatal”

Posted by in category: neuroscience

Nectome will preserve your brain, but you have to be euthanized first.

Read more

Mar 13, 2018

Bioquark Inc. — Outcomes Rocket Podcast — Ira Pastor

Posted by in categories: aging, bioengineering, biotech/medical, business, cryonics, disruptive technology, DNA, genetics, health, life extension

http://outcomesrocket.health/ira/

Mar 13, 2018

The world’s first blockchain-powered elections just happened in Sierra Leone

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, bitcoin, military

On Mar. 7, elections in Sierra Leone marked a global landmark: the world’s first ever blockchain-powered presidential elections.

As president Ernest Bai Koroma leaves office after serving two five-year terms, the maximum allowed constitutionally, Sierra Leoneans have had to pick from a pool of 16 candidates including the ruling party’s Samura Kamara, the erstwhile foreign minister, and Julius Maada Bio, former military head of state and candidate of the main opposition party.

Results released by Sierra Leone’s election commission (NEC) suggest a run-off between Bio and Kamara is likely with neither candidate securing the required 55% of votes so far. Sierra Leone’s new president will be tasked with a continued rebuilding given the country’s recent major disasters. In 2014, an Ebola outbreak led to nearly 4,000 deaths and GDP losses estimated at $1.4 billiona major loss for one of the world’s poorest countries. Last year Sierra Leone’s capital also suffered devastating flooding and mudslides believed to have claimed more than 1,000 lives.

Read more

Mar 13, 2018

Bioquark Inc. — Left At The Valley Podcast — Ira Pastor

Posted by in categories: aging, bioengineering, biotech/medical, DNA, futurism, genetics, health, life extension, philosophy, science

Mar 13, 2018

View on Nuclear Fusion: a Moment of Truth

Posted by in categories: nuclear energy, physics

Fusion technology promises an inexhaustible supply of clean, safe power. If it all sounds too good to be true, that’s because it is. For decades scientists struggled to recreate a working sun in their laboratories – little surprise perhaps as they were attempting to fuse atomic nuclei in a superheated soup. Commercial fusion remains a dream. Yet in recent years the impossible became merely improbable and then, it felt almost overnight, technically feasible. For the last decade there has been a flurry of interest –and not a little incredulity –about claims, often made by companies backed by billionaires and run by bold physicists, that market-ready fusion reactors were just around the corner.


Until recently the attractions and drawbacks of nuclear fusion reactors were largely theoretical. Within a decade this will not be the case.

Mon 12 Mar 2018 14.24 EDT Last modified on Mon 12 Mar 2018 19.15 EDT.

Continue reading “View on Nuclear Fusion: a Moment of Truth” »

Mar 13, 2018

Larry Page’s self-flying air taxis to take off in 3 years

Posted by in categories: mobile phones, transportation

Kitty Hawk, an aeronautics firm funded by Alphabet CEO and Google co-founder Larry Page, is inching closer to its plans of creating Uber for flights: it’s unveiled Cora, a fully electric self-flying air taxi that can cover 100 km (62 miles) on a single charge – and you’ll soon be able to hail one with your phone.

Cora has been in the works for a while now, and it’s just been cleared to begin tests in New Zealand. The goal is for Kitty Hawk to launch a fleet of its flying taxis within the next three years. You can Click on photo to start video.

” target=“_blank” rel=“nofollow noopener”>watch a clip of the vehicle in action here.

Continue reading “Larry Page’s self-flying air taxis to take off in 3 years” »

Mar 12, 2018

Human Skeletal Muscle Aging and Mutagenesis

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, genetics, life extension

An article I wrote:


Study based upon human skeletal muscle aging, mutagenesis, and the role of #satellite cells

“A more comprehensive understanding of the interplay of stem cell–intrinsic and extrinsic factors will set the stage for improving cell therapies capable of restoring tissue homeostasis and enhancing muscle repair in the aged.

Continue reading “Human Skeletal Muscle Aging and Mutagenesis” »

Mar 12, 2018

DNA tests can predict intelligence, scientists show for first time

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, education, genetics, neuroscience

I ntelligence could be measured with a swab of saliva, or drop of blood, after scientists showed for the first time that a person’s IQ can be predicted just by studying their DNA.

In the largest ever study looking at the genetic basis for intelligence, researchers at the University of Edinburgh and Harvard University discovered hundreds of new genes linked to brain power.

Previous studies have suggested that between 50 per cent and 75 per cent of intelligence is inherited, and the rest comes through upbringing, friendship groups and education. That figure was calculated by studying identical twins who share the same DNA, therefore any differences in IQ between them must be non-genetic.

Continue reading “DNA tests can predict intelligence, scientists show for first time” »

Mar 12, 2018

The Pitch-Black Exoplanet WASP-12b

Posted by in category: space

This artist’s impression shows the exoplanet WASP-12b — an alien world as black as fresh asphalt, orbiting a star like our Sun. Scientists were able to measure its albedo: the amount of light the planet reflects. The results showed that the planet is extremely dark at optical wavelengths.

Read more