Lab Notes - Organs, Heal Thyselves!:
"As we reach middle age, our body starts to fail us. Brittle bones are more susceptible to breaking. Torn muscle is much slower to mend. Organs like the liver can become diseased and stop regenerating themselves. Can our body's natural self-repair mechanisms be reset though? UC Berkeley bioengineer Irina Conboy thinks so. She and her colleagues are developing an injectable nanomaterial that could potentially spur aged organs to heal themselves again."
Via A4M
Friday, November 11, 2005
A4M - Important DNA Repair Mechanism Linked To Premature Aging Yields
A4M - Important DNA Repair Mechanism Linked To Premature Aging Yields:
"A team of scientists led by Priscilla Cooper, a senior staff scientist in the Life Sciences Division of the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, has discovered new players in the first steps of transcription-coupled repair (TCR), an essential but still mysterious mechanism of DNA repair."
"A team of scientists led by Priscilla Cooper, a senior staff scientist in the Life Sciences Division of the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, has discovered new players in the first steps of transcription-coupled repair (TCR), an essential but still mysterious mechanism of DNA repair."
Economist - Duet in the offing
Economist - Duet in the offing:
"FOR years, EMI and Warner Music, the two smallest recorded-music majors, have been circling each other, talking in private and public about merging. Last year Sony united its music business with Bertelsmann's in a 50/50 joint-venture, creating a firm that rivals Universal Music, the biggest. The next merger will surely be EMI and Warner Music. Both companies, of roughly equal size, are desperate to be the one that takes over the other. The music industry is waiting to see which of them has the nerve to pounce first."
"FOR years, EMI and Warner Music, the two smallest recorded-music majors, have been circling each other, talking in private and public about merging. Last year Sony united its music business with Bertelsmann's in a 50/50 joint-venture, creating a firm that rivals Universal Music, the biggest. The next merger will surely be EMI and Warner Music. Both companies, of roughly equal size, are desperate to be the one that takes over the other. The music industry is waiting to see which of them has the nerve to pounce first."
Thursday, November 10, 2005
Genetic Crossroads Newsletter - Jose Canseco And Human Genetic Engineering: Will He Be Right Again?
Genetic Crossroads Newsletter - Jose Canseco And Human Genetic Engineering: Will He Be Right Again?:
"Canseco argued that gene doping 'is definitely the next big step in evolution.' Genetic enhancement, he said, 'goes way beyond sports. Imagine an army of a million individuals who can out-think, out-use the environment in the sense of less food, more reaction time, better vision, better physical reaction…(T)he human race…is going to evolve and no one's gonna stop it.'"
"Canseco argued that gene doping 'is definitely the next big step in evolution.' Genetic enhancement, he said, 'goes way beyond sports. Imagine an army of a million individuals who can out-think, out-use the environment in the sense of less food, more reaction time, better vision, better physical reaction…(T)he human race…is going to evolve and no one's gonna stop it.'"
Genetics and Society - Trial aims to measure social effects of choosing babies' sex
Genetics and Society - Trial aims to measure social effects of choosing babies' sex:
"US doctors have launched a clinical trial to assess the effects of allowing couples to select whether they will have a boy or a girl."
"US doctors have launched a clinical trial to assess the effects of allowing couples to select whether they will have a boy or a girl."
BusinessWeek - Linux Answers Phone Makers' Call
BusinessWeek - Linux Answers Phone Makers' Call:
"In 2001, four Motorola (MOT) engineers in Beijing faced a daunting challenge. They were developing a mobile phone with a touch screen and a stylus that would let users update calendars and write messages. But it also needed to recognize Chinese characters -- a task that existing software on similar handsets couldn't handle."
"In 2001, four Motorola (MOT) engineers in Beijing faced a daunting challenge. They were developing a mobile phone with a touch screen and a stylus that would let users update calendars and write messages. But it also needed to recognize Chinese characters -- a task that existing software on similar handsets couldn't handle."
infolink.com.au - Tests confirm Eco-Cement's strength and sustainability
infolink.com.au - Tests confirm Eco-Cement's strength and sustainability
"TecEco, a small organisation on the verge of revolutionising the way concrete is manufactured and used in construction, has released its own mud brick cement that not only is proving stronger, but more sustainable than traditional cements."
LINKS: TecEco
"TecEco, a small organisation on the verge of revolutionising the way concrete is manufactured and used in construction, has released its own mud brick cement that not only is proving stronger, but more sustainable than traditional cements."
LINKS: TecEco
NASA - Lunar Lawn Mower
NASA - Lunar Lawn Mower:
"Scientists and engineers figuring out how to return astronauts to the moon, set up habitats, and mine lunar soil to produce anything from building materials to rocket fuels have been scratching their heads over what to do about moondust. It's everywhere! The powdery grit gets into everything, jamming seals and abrading spacesuit fabric. It also readily picks up electrostatic charge, so it floats or levitates off the lunar surface and sticks to faceplates and camera lenses. It might even be toxic."
"Scientists and engineers figuring out how to return astronauts to the moon, set up habitats, and mine lunar soil to produce anything from building materials to rocket fuels have been scratching their heads over what to do about moondust. It's everywhere! The powdery grit gets into everything, jamming seals and abrading spacesuit fabric. It also readily picks up electrostatic charge, so it floats or levitates off the lunar surface and sticks to faceplates and camera lenses. It might even be toxic."
Popular Science - Neuro-Controlled Bionic Arm
Popular Science - Neuro-Controlled Bionic Arm:
"Welcome to the future of prosthetic limbs: true mind control. For the first time ever, an amputee need only think about a movement—picking up a glass, for instance—and the 12-pound Neuro-Controlled Bionic Arm dutifully coordinates the task. Electrodes intercept the limb's residual nerve firings and feed them to a computer embedded in the forearm, which then commands six motors to move the device's shoulder, elbow and hand in unison. Thanks to hand sensors, the wearer can even gauge pressure and fine-tune his grip."
"Welcome to the future of prosthetic limbs: true mind control. For the first time ever, an amputee need only think about a movement—picking up a glass, for instance—and the 12-pound Neuro-Controlled Bionic Arm dutifully coordinates the task. Electrodes intercept the limb's residual nerve firings and feed them to a computer embedded in the forearm, which then commands six motors to move the device's shoulder, elbow and hand in unison. Thanks to hand sensors, the wearer can even gauge pressure and fine-tune his grip."
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
1UP.com - Dreamcast 2.0
1UP.com - Dreamcast 2.0:
"Ever since the first details of the Xbox 360 hit the web, gamers have drawn comparisons to Sega's ill-fated (yet still highly regarded) Dreamcast console. There are the obvious examples - the timing of the launches or the color of the hardware - but then there are a lot of not so obvious ones, too. As part of our Xbox 360 countdown, we've put together a list of our favorites."
"Ever since the first details of the Xbox 360 hit the web, gamers have drawn comparisons to Sega's ill-fated (yet still highly regarded) Dreamcast console. There are the obvious examples - the timing of the launches or the color of the hardware - but then there are a lot of not so obvious ones, too. As part of our Xbox 360 countdown, we've put together a list of our favorites."
Techworld - xMax sparks low power wireless revolution
Techworld - xMax sparks low power wireless revolution:
"A little-known start-up has demonstrated wireless broadband 1000 times more efficient than WiMax – and claims the technique could also make wireless LANs that will run for years on watch batteries."
Via KurzweilAI.net
LINKS: xG Technology
"A little-known start-up has demonstrated wireless broadband 1000 times more efficient than WiMax – and claims the technique could also make wireless LANs that will run for years on watch batteries."
Via KurzweilAI.net
LINKS: xG Technology
Seattle Post-Intelligencer - Amazon creates artificial artificial intelligence
Seattle Post-Intelligencer - Amazon creates artificial artificial intelligence:
"Amazon.com has launched a new program called Amazon Mechanical Turk, through which a computer can ask humans to perform tasks that it can't do itself."
Via KurzweilAI.net
"Amazon.com has launched a new program called Amazon Mechanical Turk, through which a computer can ask humans to perform tasks that it can't do itself."
Via KurzweilAI.net
reveries magazine - Dtour Wine
reveries magazine - Dtour Wine:
"Screw tops and plastic corks — none of that for Daniel Johnnes, a 'wine writer and importer' who has seen the future of wine bottles and it is cardboard canisters, reports Dana Bowen in The New York Times. Really nicely designed cardboard canisters, mind you, and most definitely a far piece from cardboard boxes. 'People see boxed wine as trashy, so we're trying to break away from that image,' says Mr. Johnnes, who is also director for wine of the Dinex Group, which manages upscale restaurants run by chefs like Daniel Boulud of DB Bistro Moderne in midtown Manhattan."
LINKS: Dtour Wine
"Screw tops and plastic corks — none of that for Daniel Johnnes, a 'wine writer and importer' who has seen the future of wine bottles and it is cardboard canisters, reports Dana Bowen in The New York Times. Really nicely designed cardboard canisters, mind you, and most definitely a far piece from cardboard boxes. 'People see boxed wine as trashy, so we're trying to break away from that image,' says Mr. Johnnes, who is also director for wine of the Dinex Group, which manages upscale restaurants run by chefs like Daniel Boulud of DB Bistro Moderne in midtown Manhattan."
LINKS: Dtour Wine
vnunet - Gamers stage virtual funeral for dead player
vnunet - Gamers stage virtual funeral for dead player:
"Players of the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) World of Warcraft have held a virtual funeral service for a girl who died after a multi-day gaming binge."
Via Ypulse
"Players of the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) World of Warcraft have held a virtual funeral service for a girl who died after a multi-day gaming binge."
Via Ypulse
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Trend Central - TV Goes Broadband
Trend Central - TV Goes Broadband:
"Catering to the customization generation, users can now go online to access new as well as archived content, with the ability to watch like regular TV, one program after another, or TiVo style, by selecting programming and creating a playlist."
"Catering to the customization generation, users can now go online to access new as well as archived content, with the ability to watch like regular TV, one program after another, or TiVo style, by selecting programming and creating a playlist."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)