Lifeboat Foundation

It’s an unfortunate fact of life that as we get older, our cells gradually lose the ability to heal themselves. Thankfully, at least one aspect of that might be treatable in the near future, if new work from Georgia Tech pans out. Researchers have developed a hydrogel that holds muscle stem cells, and by injecting this near the site of a muscle injury they can get to work repairing it. The team says the technique could be effective at treating injuries in the elderly and people with muscular dystrophy.

Alt-aviation wizard Burt Rutan set out to design a plane that could haul rockets to the edge of space. Then he persuaded Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen to build a dual-fuselage beast with a wingspan longer than a football field.

Author: Steven Levy BY Steven Levy

Stratolaunch has confirmed what most people have long speculated: it’s developing its own launch vehicles for its air-launch system, including a reusable space plane that could eventually carry people.

The Arctic permafrost really should stay frozen. In many places it’s been frozen for tens of thousands of years, locking away greenhouse gasses and ancient diseases.

Unfortunately, our planet’s changing climate is denting permafrosts around the world. And now NASA-funded research has confirmed that the expected gradual thawing of the Arctic permafrost is being dramatically sped up by a natural phenomenon known as thermokarst lakes.

Continue reading “Strange Lakes Are Speeding Up Arctic Permafrost Melt, And That’s Really Bad News” »

Just like the way that cellphones used to be only for the rich, soon the idea of taking a personal flying machine to work is going to be a part of everyday life. Don’t believe us? Here are six examples of personal flying cars and even a personal jetsuit that will help us commute.

Today, we would like to share with you the talk given by Kelsey Moody, CEO of Biotech Company Ichor, at the recent Ending Age-Related Diseases: Investment Prospects & Advances in Research conference in New York City. In this talk, Kelsey discusses Ichor’s protein engineering platform, how Ichor has used it, and Ichor’s plans for using it to discover new classes of drugs for age-related diseases.

Kelsey is a process-oriented biotechnology executive who has specialized in the study of aging and aging mechanisms for over a decade. Since 2013, he has successfully built Ichor Therapeutics from a living room start-up into a premier, vertically integrated contract research organization that focuses on preclinical research services for aging pathways. Proceeds from this work are used to self-fund R&D initiatives that constitute Ichor’s portfolio companies in enzyme therapy (Lysoclear, Inc.), small molecule drug discovery (Antoxerene, Inc.), and protein engineering (RecombiPure, Inc.) Kelsey has received graduate-level training in medicine, business, and laboratory research.

Ethiopia on Sunday inaugurated a power plant which converts waste into energy, next to a filthy open-air dump in Addis Ababa where a landslide last year killed more than 110 people.

Named Reppie, the facility is the first of its kind in Africa, according to the government and the British company Cambridge Industries behind the project, and will turn 1,400 tons of waste per day into energy.

Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome said at the ceremony that the country “has been investing extensively in hydro power, geothermal, wind energy and now biomass to boost the manufacturing sector with a supply of clean, renewable energy.”

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Valorize as pessoas pelo que elas sao.

: You’ve called Hans Rosling’s Factfulness “one of the most important books I’ve ever read.” What makes it so significant?

Gates: Hans believed the world was making remarkable progress, and he wanted everyone to know about it. Factfulness is his final effort to help people identify areas where things are getting better and spread that improvement. It explains more clearly than almost anything else I’ve read why it’s so difficult for people to perceive progress. He offers clear, actionable advice for how to overcome our innate biases and see the world more factfully. This is one of the most educational books I’ve ever read, and I think everyone can benefit from Hans’ insights.

If the world really is improving at a faster rate than people think, why does it matter whether people have incorrect notions about it?