Lifeboat Foundation

Are you captivated by the enigma of consciousness? Intrigued by the complexities of the human mind? Or perhaps, you’re just a seeker, thirsty for knowledge that lies beyond conventional wisdom? As a futurist, evolutionary cyberneticist, and philosopher of mind, I invite you on a mind-bending, soul-stirring expedition with a just-released remastered version of my documentary film Consciousness: Evolution of the Mind (TV-PG). Watch it now in its entirety on YouTube (Ecstadelic Media channel)!

#consciousness #evolution #mind #documentary #film

Consciousness: Evolution of the Mind (2023 | Remastered)

Continue reading “Watch Consciousness: Evolution of the Mind (2023” »

In this study we aimed to detect epigenetic and genetic loci associated with PTSD in a homogeneous cohort of traumatized police officers. Both a genome-wide and hypothesis-driven replication approach did not result in DMPs between PTSD patients and trauma-exposed controls. GSE analysis on the top 100 DMPs showed, however, a plausible association of the dopaminergic neurogenesis pathway with PTSD. Furthermore, we observed one DMR located at the PAX8 gene suggesting consistent hypermethylation in PTSD patients. Genetic analyses yielded three CpG-SNPs significantly associated with PTSD. Of these, one CpG-SNP, located at the CACNA1C locus, was also significantly associated with PTSD in an independent replication sample of trauma-exposed children. Notably, this result shows that the Illumina 450K array is not restricted to epigenetic surveys but can provide informative genetic data as well.

Although our sample was small, it was highly homogenous as all participants were former or current police officers, and cases and controls were matched for sex, age, education, and years of police service. All participants reported multiple prior traumatic events, without significant group differences in reported types of traumatic experiences. PTSD patients fulfilled current diagnostic criteria for PTSD, while our trauma-exposed controls had minimal PTSD symptoms and did not report lifetime PTSD or other trauma-related psychiatric disorders. Thus our controls were apparently resilient to adverse mental health outcome of trauma. This study design, including extreme phenotypes following similar trauma load, was considered to favor detection of PTSD-associated loci, as also suggested by others [22]. Nevertheless, our genome-wide survey clearly remains limited in statistical power.

“Meet Kelvin Dafiaghor, a distinguished luminary in the fields of education and technology. As the Founder and Director of Ogba Educational Clinic in Nigeria, he has dedicated a decade to integrating AI and STEM education into African learning, particularly excelling in robotics and AI. His commitment extends globally, showcased by his participation in prestigious events like FINTECH Abu Dhabi in 2018 and a high-level conference in Morocco in 2019, where he advocated fervently for innovation and artificial intelligence as transformative forces in Africa. In 2021, he made a lasting impact at GISEC Dubai, emphasizing the role of AI in cybersecurity. Additionally, as the Regional Manager for Global STEM Initiative, he’s passionate about advancing STEM education worldwide. #gsiuganda #comingsoon Andrew Webb-Buffington KELVIN OGBA DAFIAGHORJosselin LavigneKasule RaphaelLorraine Tsitsi MajiriLily R. ASONGFACIvan Peter OtimKimani NyoikeGlobal STEM Initiative (GSI)RIIS LLC.

Every academic field has its superstars. But a rare few achieve superstardom not just by demonstrating individual excellence but also by consistently producing future superstars. A notable example of such a legendary doctoral advisor is the Princeton physicist John Archibald Wheeler. A dissertation was once written about his mentorship, and he advised Richard Feynman, Kip Thorne, Hugh Everett (who proposed the “many worlds” theory of quantum mechanics), and a host of others who could collectively staff a top-tier physics department. In ecology, there is Bob Paine, who discovered that certain “keystone species” have an outsize impact on the environment and started a lineage of influential ecologists. And in journalism, there is John McPhee, who has taught generations of accomplished journalists at Princeton since 1975.

Computer science has its own such figure: Manuel Blum, who won the 1995 Turing Award—the Nobel Prize of computer science. Blum’s métier is theoretical computer science, a field that often escapes the general public’s radar. But you certainly have come across one of Blum’s creations: the “Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart,” better known as the captcha—a test designed to distinguish humans from bots online.

D-ID, the Tel Aviv-based startup best known as the tech behind those viral videos of animated family photos, is bringing its AI video technology to a new mobile app, launching today. Originally available as a web platform, D-ID’s Creative Reality Studio allows users to upload a still image and script and then turn that into an AI-generated video. The technology can be used to create digital representations of themselves, historical figures, fictional characters, presenters or brand ambassadors.

Early use cases the company had been targeting involved corporate training and education, internal and external communication from companies, and product marketing and sales, TechCrunch previously reported.

Now available on mobile, users will download the D-ID app from the App Store or Google Play and then create an account or log in, if already registered. On the selection screen, you can either pick a premade “digital person” that D-ID provides or upload an image from your phone’s photo library. You’ll then enter the text you want the digital person to say, choosing from 119 languages, as well as pick between male and female voice options. You can also choose the tone of the speech — like cheerful, excited, friendly, hopeful, newscast, sad, shouting, terrified, unfriendly, whispering and others.

Recently, we partnered with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) to build a VR simulation that places medical students and staff in rare yet high-risk pediatric trauma situations where split-second decisions determine whether a patient lives or dies. Thanks to the immersive power of VR, we can replicate these training scenarios in true-to-life fashion, complete with paramedics rattling off symptoms, nurses and techs urging you to make a decision, and distraught parents praying for their child’s survival.

These visceral, interactive exercises up the stakes compared to traditional educational tools like non-VR simulations and mannequins. Powered by AiSolve and brought to life by the Hollywood VFX magic of BioflightVR, these virtual scenarios based on actual CHLA case studies let doctors and students practice and learn in realistic workplace conditions. Not only does this new innovation stand to significantly reduce the time and cost associated with mannequin-based training, it also better prepares people to respond in the real world.

Continue reading “VR’s Healthcare Revolution: Transforming Medical Training at CHLA” »

While Meta hasn’t reinvented the category, it’s nailed the execution. But culturally, is the timing right for smart glasses?

I’m a smart glasses skeptic. Not because the technology is impossible but because I’ve tested several pairs and even dove deep into the category for a two-part mini-documentary a while back. So when I say I was impressed by the $299 Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, it’s not just that mine came with rose-colored lenses.

To be clear, nothing about the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses is revolutionary. The Google Glass Explorer Edition first introduced us to modern-day smart glasses in 2013. Several other companies, big and small, have since jumped on the bandwagon, including Snap, … More.

Continue reading “The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses actually make the future look cool” »

Study finds that in worms, the HSN neuron uses multiple chemicals and connections to orchestrate egg-laying and locomotion over the course of several minutes.

A new MIT

MIT is an acronym for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It is a prestigious private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts that was founded in 1861. It is organized into five Schools: architecture and planning; engineering; humanities, arts, and social sciences; management; and science. MIT’s impact includes many scientific breakthroughs and technological advances. Their stated goal is to make a better world through education, research, and innovation.

The Georgia Institute of Technology course teaches engineering students to create art using brainwaves, either their own or someone else’s.

An uncanny course is being taught in the halls of the Georgia Institute of Technology. While the course, called Arts and Geometry, itself isn’t uncanny, it’s the distinct approach taken by the professor that is making waves, literally and figuratively.

The course teaches engineering students to create art using brainwaves, either their own or someone else’s. When the ions and neurons go about their business inside our brains, brainwaves are created in a pattern of electrical activity in the brain.