Lifeboat Foundation

New research pinpoints the a-ha moment when information enters the human consciousness.

The ultimate goal of Breakthrough Starshot is to fly past and photograph any planets in Alpha Centauri.

Hamish Jolly, an ocean swimmer in Australia, wanted a wetsuit that would deter a curious shark from mistaking him for a potential source of nourishment. (Which, statistically, is rare, but certainly a fate worth avoiding.) Working with a team of scientists, he and his friends came up with a fresh approach — not a shark cage, not a suit of chain-mail, but a sleek suit that taps our growing understanding of shark vision.

Today’s most advanced weapons are already capable of “making decisions” using built-in smart sensors and tools.

However, while these weapons rely on some sort of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, they typically don’t have the ability to choose their own targets.

Continue reading “Russia is building an AI-powered missile that can think for itself” »

‘Jack! I’m flying!’ Almost, Rose, almost. 106 years later after the original and ill-fated ‘unsinkable’ cruise ship sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, a new version of the RMS Titanic is set to sail the seas in 2018.

Hyperloop One completed the first full-scale test of its hyperloop technology in a vacuum environment on May 12th, the company announced today. In the test, the company’s hyperloop vehicle — which uses magnetic levitation, or mag-lev, technology — pulled 2 Gs while reaching 70 miles per hour down the length of the company’s test track in Nevada.

Hyperloop One also shared images of its new pod with The Verge. The aerodynamic pod is 28 feet long and constructed of structural aluminum and carbon fiber. Using electromagnetic propulsion and mag-lev technology, it’s designed to carry both cargo and human passengers at near supersonic speeds, Hyperloop One says.

Continue reading “Hyperloop One had its first full-system test of ultrafast transportation system” »

The mystery of strange little glass baubles that show both remarkable strength and fragility has finally been solved.