Author Archives: d3ftonic

Wireless Power Transfer Here At Last

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A new way of transmitting electricity wirelessly has been discovered by U.S. researchers. It could pave the way for the wireless charging of portable electronic devices, rendering power cords obsolete in the process.

Devised by physicists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in Boston, the new technology is detailed today in the U.S. journal Science.

At the turn of the 20th century, famed physicist and inventor Nikola Tesla devoted considerable effort towards achieving large scale wireless power transfer. Success proved elusive, however, and the demand for such schemes declined.

Now, the revolution in consumer technology has re-ignited the interest of researchers.

cosmos

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Truth And Science

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A (1842-Word) consideration.

What is truth? How do we recognize it? Truth is a concept with which we are all pretty familiar. It is an undercurrent in every conversation and interaction we have with one another. Yet few of us ever give it much conscious thought except when we believe it is absent or in doubt. It’s one of those intangibles that, when it does come up, we typically speak of only in absolutes. A statement can be either true or false, and that is all…

...indeed, the human brain is an incredibly malleable organ when it comes to recognizing truth. Some philosophers have argued that this is because pursuing truth is an adaptation. We have been naturally selected to be curious about the world and gather knowledge from our experiences in it. Through millennia of trial and error, we have obtained the capacity to reason in ways that would not only help us survive, but would also help us to prosper.

seedmag

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Faster-Healing Artificial Skin

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In work that has implications for those with severe burns, researchers have demonstrated in mice a new way to encourage skin regeneration.

Artificial skin that slowly releases a stem-cell-attracting protein could improve the healing process for patients with severe burns and for diabetics with foot ulcers. Preliminary studies combining a commonly used skin substitute with a growth factor have demonstrated faster healing in mice. The animals even appear to have regenerated new tissue, rather than scar tissue.

technology review

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Hope For Insomniacs As Scientists Unlock Secrets Of Deep Slumber

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Scientists may have discovered a way of triggering deep sleep in people suffering from chronic insomnia.

A study has found a way of stimulating the brain so that sleep-deprived people can feel the full restorative powers of an eight-hour period of slumber.

The researchers have developed an electronic device that stimulates the brain with harmless magnetic pulses which cross into the nerves that control a type of deep sleep called “slow-wave activity”.

independent.co.uk

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U.N. Security Council Holds Climate Debate

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The U.N. Security Council held a groundbreaking debate Tuesday on the impact of climate change on conflicts, brushing aside objections from developing countries that global warming is not an issue of international peace and security.

Britain holds the council presidency this month and organized an open meeting to highlight what its foreign secretary, Margaret Beckett, said was the “security imperative” to tackle climate change because it can exacerbate problems that cause conflicts and threatens the entire planet.

cnn

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Revolution, Flashmobs, And Brain Chips. A Grim Vision Of The Future

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The MoD predicts more use of chemical weapons. Photograph: Paul J Richards/EPA

Information chips implanted in the brain. Electromagnetic pulse weapons. The middle classes becoming revolutionary, taking on the role of Marx’s proletariat. The population of countries in the Middle East increasing by 132%, while Europe’s drops as fertility falls. “Flashmobs” – groups rapidly mobilised by criminal gangs or terrorists groups.

This is the world in 30 years’ time envisaged by a Ministry of Defence team responsible for painting a picture of the “future strategic context” likely to face Britain’s armed forces. It includes an “analysis of the key risks and shocks”. Rear Admiral Chris Parry, head of the MoD’s Development, Concepts & Doctrine Centre which drew up the report, describes the assessments as “probability-based, rather than predictive”.

guardian.co.uk

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Flying Wind Farms

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Power generation: If people object to wind farms cluttering up the countryside, one answer might be to put them in the air.

Flyind Wind Generators

If it ever seems windy where you live, be thankful you do not live 10km up in the air. At that height, the jet-stream winds blow stronger and more constantly than ground level winds, carrying up to a hundred times more energy.

So, just as oil companies are drilling deeper and in more remote locations in search of new reserves, pioneer wind-power engineers are looking higher in the sky for new sources of energy. Conventional turbines will not take them there—the highest to date is just over 200 meters tall. So they are trying to invent a whole new technology for harvesting wind: electricity generators that fly.

Economist.com

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Biotechs Try to Take Corn Out of Ethanol

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The ethanol craze is putting the squeeze on corn supplies and causing food prices to rise. Mexicans took to the streets last year to protest increased tortilla prices. The cost of chicken and beef in the United States ticked up because feed is more expensive.

That’s where biotechnology comes in.

Scientists are engineering microscopic bugs to extract fuel from a variety of non-corn sources, including the human urinary tract, a Russian fungus and the plant responsible for tequila.

physorg

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