Lifeboat Foundation

WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF

There is nothing on Earth like the human brain, even today’s AI doesn’t come close, but now researchers have created an Artificial Synapse that’s 200 million times faster than a human synapse, and one day it will revolutionise AI and computing.

Continue reading “Supercomputer on a fingernail, artificial synapse ushers in new AI revolution” »

The Salt A microscope that clips on to your phone’s camera can detect bacteria, such as salmonella or E. coli, even in tiny amounts. But the technology can’t yet distinguish between good and bad bacteria.

New algorithms show how very simple robots can be made to work together as a group.

• By Ben Rollins, Quanta Magazine on February 18, 2018

Wow!

Mount Sinabung spews volcanic ash as it erupts in Karo, North Sumatra, Indonesia on Feb. 19, 2018. The volcano on the Indonesian island of Sumatra has shot billowing columns of ash more than 16,000 feet into the atmosphere. Sinabung is one of the most active volcanos in Indonesia. It erupted in 2010 and has killed 17 people in eruptions in 2014 and another nine people in 2016.

Longevity don’t lead to demographic crisis.

Explains why the improvement of health is not a danger.

As counterintuitive as it may seem, population sizes don’t go up as the world gets healthier. They go down. Here’s why.

Researchers have unlocked the genetic code behind some of the brightest and most vibrant colours in nature. The paper, published in the journal PNAS, is the first study of the genetics of structural colour — as seen in butterfly wings and peacock feathers — and paves the way for genetic research in a variety of structurally coloured organisms.

The study is a collaboration between the University of Cambridge and Dutch company Hoekmine BV and shows how genetics can change the colour, and appearance, of certain types of brightly-coloured bacteria. The results open up the possibility of harvesting these bacteria for the large-scale manufacturing of nanostructured materials: biodegradable, non-toxic paints could be ‘grown’ and not made, for example.

Flavobacterium is a type of bacteria that packs together in colonies that produce striking metallic colours, which come not from pigments, but from their internal structure, which reflects light at certain wavelengths. Scientists are still puzzled as to how these intricate structures are genetically engineered by nature, however.

Scientists have designed a test they believe is the first of its kind. Using blood and urine samples, the test correctly identified autism in children.

The new approach could one day allow people to screen themselves for the risks that could lead to heart disease.

The experiment was held near the isolated Israeli township of Mitzpe Ramon, whose surroundings resemble the Martian environment in its geology, aridity, appearance and desolation, the ministry said.

The participants were investigating various fields relevant to a future Mars mission, including satellite communications, the psychological affects of isolation, radiation measurements and search ing for life signs in soil.

Participant Guy Ron, a nuclear physics professor from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, said the project was not only intended to look for new approaches in designing a future mission to the Red Planet, but to increase public interest.

Continue reading “Israeli scientists complete a mock mission to Mars” »