Lifeboat Foundation

Lifeboat is all about how advances in science & technology can be use to improve humanity and ensure folks are informed. I also see this story as an opportunity for others to learn to improve humanity through sharing & hearing from a man who has been successful, met amazing people, and seen amazing things & places; and now shares his most important lesson of life.

Tom Brokaw spoke about his battle with incurable blood cancer in an emotional interview on Today Monday morning and how it has made him appreciate life more and brought him closer to some new friends.

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Next time you go for a brain scan; you could actually see dissolvable electrodes.

Hmmm

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania in a study funded by the Defense Advance Research Projects Agency (DARPA) are developing implantable electrodes for brain monitoring that melt away at a predetermined rate. The devices could come in handy for monitoring and treating certain neurophysiological disorders such as Parkinson’s, depression and chronic pain.

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Hmmm; I see a bright future for this. No more surgeries by plastic surgeons? possibly?

Scientists at MIT, Massachusetts General Hospital, Living Proof, and Olivo Labs have developed a new material that can temporarily protect and tighten skin, and smooth wrinkles. With further development, it could also be used to deliver drugs to help treat skin conditions such as eczema and other types of dermatitis.

The material, a silicone-based polymer that could be applied on the skin as a thin, imperceptible coating, mimics the mechanical and elastic properties of healthy, youthful skin. In tests with human subjects, the researchers found that the material was able to reshape “eye bags” under the lower eyelids and also enhance skin hydration. This type of “second skin” could also be adapted to provide long-lasting ultraviolet protection, the researchers say.

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EPFL researchers have restored the ability of mice organs to regenerate and extend life by simply administering nicotinamide riboside (NR) to them.

NR has been shown in previous studies to be effective in boosting metabolism and treating a number of degenerative diseases. Now, an article by PhD student Hongbo Zhang published in Science also describes the restorative effects of NR on the functioning of stem cells for regenerating organs.

Continue reading “This vitamin stops the aging process in organs, say Swiss researchers” »

You Can “Feel” Your Fingers With This Bionic Arm

Researchers have built a bionic arm that allows patients to control and “feel” their individual fingers.

This is concerning in what is being proposed in the US for doctor report errors and it’s whole timing. Why now? I mean why wait to report on this when this has been known about for many decades plus mistakes today are actually a lot less than they were 2 decades ago thanks to medical records, and the self-monitor/ medicated drip devices, etc. My guess is this is part of a huge push by some to replace doctors and medical teams with more AI which in the US patients have been blocking AI to treat them due to their own distrust of AI.

Now, if US Laws are in place requiring doctors to publish, report, etc. their errors for the 1st time in the US it does help build case to the public and conditions the public to rethink their position on AI.

I am just not buying “the experts’” report stats given that he has no official records to back up his report especially detail records for the past 40 years showing doctors openly reporting any mistakes they made in the 70s, 80s or 90s when the equipment was poorer plus medical records in many situations were not always digital and could be easily lost in the 70s and 80s.

Continue reading “Medical error is third biggest cause of death in the US, say experts” »

Oxford Nanopore Technologies is changing the course of genomics through the development of their small and portable DNA sequencer, the MinION, which makes of nanopore technology.

The handheld, portable tricorder from Star Trek was essentially able to scan and record biological data from almost anything, and it could do it anytime and anywhere. Recent technology has been pulling the device out of science fiction and turning it into reality, but none have come close to getting genetic information with the same portability…except for British company Oxford Nanopore Technologies.

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Disney Research has designed a new 3D printer that utilizes light on photosensitive resin so that models can be printed out as whole objects instead of by the layer, cutting down 3D printing from hours down to just minutes.

Disney Research has patented its design for “a nearly instantaneous” 3D printer that uses light to cure resin selectively to produce an entire model out of a stereolithography (STL) file all at once. Notably, this significantly cuts down printing time. Or at least, it will if it makes it to market.

“Presently, 3D printing is extremely slow and time consuming. For example, it may take several hours to print a single 3D object even if the 3D object is relatively small (e.g., several inches in diameter and four to 12 inches tall),” the patent stated. It continues, “the 3D printing process that uses conventional 3D printers such as an FFF-based 3D printer is limited in its speed by the speed of the mechanism moving the print head to each new position on a print layer.”

Continue reading “Disney’s 3D Printer Produces Models Almost Instantaneously Using Light” »

I do love and believe in the benefits of 3D printing; however, as a technologist and concerned informed citizen I do worry about this technology getting the hands of drug lords, terrorists, and other criminals. With Medical 3D printing; illegal drug manufacturing can change overnight and expanded to new levels of mass production. Also, illegal weapon production can be enhanced as well with 3D printing.

At this point, law enforcement in 1st and 2nd world countries are going to face harder times than they ever have in the recent past and before. 3D Printing and AI are truly going to take an already difficult situation for government and their law enforcement teams extremely tough in the coming 3 to 5 years; and hope they and tech come together to figure out a good go forward plan to ensure right benefits are received and progress not slowed down while keeping everyone safe.

Materialise incorporates more than 25 years of 3D printing experience into a range of software solutions and 3D printing services, which together form the backbone of the 3D printing industry. Materialise’s open and flexible solutions enable players in a wide variety of industries, including healthcare, automotive, aerospace, art and design, and consumer goods, to build innovative 3D printing applications that aim to make the world a better and healthier place.

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