Our Weird and Wonderful Future

Media "Balance" Misreports Climate Change Impact

2010-03-23T03:22:00.003-05:00

The mass media is blowing their responsibility to accurate reporting. (Image Source)

"Reporters need to learn that, if they wish to discuss 'both sides' of the climate issue, the scientifically legitimate "other side" is that, if anything, global climate disruption is likely to be significantly worse than has been suggested in scientific consensus estimates to date."
- Prof. William Freudenburg, University of Colorado at Boulder

A recent symposium on "Understanding Climate Change" at the 2010 Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)" discussed how even though the evidence for anthropogenic climate change (AAC) has become stronger and has scientific consensus, it remains controversial among the public and policy makers. The symposium highlighted the influence of the fossil fuel industry, conservative think tanks and others.

Presentations from the speakers can be found here

Further discussion and more links to informative background can be found here.

Climate Change Impact Worse Than You Thought

2010-03-23T03:14:00.002-05:00

Here is an outstanding, up to date summary of the best scientific understanding of the climate with links to more in-depth discussion and source publications. The author, Dr. Joseph Romm is a physicist and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. His blog Climate Progress is one of the best sources for climate change information.

"In 2009, the scientific literature caught up with what top climate scientists have been saying privately for a few years now: Many of the predicted impacts of human-caused climate change are occurring much faster than anybody expected — particularly ice melt, everywhere you look on the planet. If we stay anywhere near our current emissions path, we are facing incalculable catastrophes by century’s end, including rapid sea level rise, massive wildfires, widespread Dust-Bowlification, large oceanic dead zones, and 9F warming — much of which could be all but irreversible for centuries. And that’s not the worst-case scenario! The consequences for human health and well being would be extreme."

The following article in the same blog is also the best summary I've found regarding the specific impacts of climate change we can expect, especially if little or no action is taken: An Introduction to Global Warming Impacts

UAVs for Police Surveillance and Arrest

2010-03-02T21:34:00.001-05:00

A helicopter UAV equipped with infra-red cameras has been used for the first time in the UK to make an arrest. Thermal imaging transmitted to the officer operating the UAV enabled police to find a suspected car thief hiding in bushes in a thick fog. The UAV was originally designed for military reconnaissance but has been used in the UK for two years for search and rescue and to "crack down on anti-social behaviour". The drones are near silent and can hover or "perch" for hours.

The UK already has more CCTV per capita than any other country, and now these mobile platforms are adding to its reputation as the "surveillance state".

Weaponizing Mozart

2010-03-02T21:29:00.003-05:00

Bringing the fictional authoritarian police behavior of "A Clockwork Orange" to reality, classical music is being used increasingly in Great Britain as a tool for social control and a deterrent to "bad behaviour". A school district "subjects" badly behaving children to hours of Mozart in "special detention" isolations. Unsurprisingly, some of these youth now find classical music unbearable. Recorded classical music is blared through speakers at bus stops, outside stores, train stations and elsewhere to drive away loitering youth. Apparently it works. Detentions are down, graffiti is reduced, and naughty youth flee because classical music now is "repugnant" instead of providing an intellectual and emotional opportunity to experience one of humanity's greatest arts.

Read About it.

The Science of Avatar

2009-12-25T22:45:00.002-05:00

A professor of astrophysics blogging as "Copernicus" has graded Cameron on the science of the movie "AVATAR".

As a professor of physics who has worked on SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) programs and exoplanetology, Copernicus's detailed essay gives AVATAR a "B" for astrobiology (scale of the alien ecosystem), an A+ for astronomy (choice of star system and setting), an "A" for astrophysics (atmospheric features), but a marginal "fail" on physics due to the floating mountains. However, in an update Copernicus revises his physics grade with a explanation for the floating mountains based on the superconducting properties of "unobtainium", a mineral figuring prominently in the movie.

Additional sources on the science of AVATAR are the pandorapedia and A Confidential Report on the Biological and Social History of Pandora.

In other words, even a hardened scientist skeptic (like me) can find a lot to like in this movie!

Here, sniff this: Oxytocin Accelerators

2009-03-30T11:43:00.000-05:00

Oxytocin is a naturally occurring human hormone produced in the hypothalamus where it acts as a neurotransmitter. Oxytocin receptors are expressed by neurons in many parts of the brain and spinal cord, including the amygdala, ventromedial hypothalamus, septum and brainstem.

Oxytocin is known by many women as the drug (called "Pitocin") they were given to induce labor. Indeed, it has significant physical effects related to birth and maternal bonding. It is also known as the "tend and befriend" hormone. Studied since the 1990's, some recent research suggests that oxytocin has numerous psychological effects on those exposed to it.

What psychological effects? Consider these:

Trust
Bonding
Fear Reduction
Empathy
Intimacy
Sexual Receptiveness
Generosity

Time Magazine quoted Tom Insel, the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, who said, ""Somehow, the peptide increases trust, or alters the way individuals see each other."

Oxytocin is produced normally in response to various emotional states, in such situations as hugging or touching, and it is produced prodigiously in both men and women during orgasm.

Proving once again that "the street finds its own use for technology" (Wm. Gibson, Neuromancer), you can now buy small spray bottles of oxytocin "accelerators" online from a number of sources (google it yourself). The idea is to spray it directly into the nose or mouth, or where it can be deeply inhaled. (It has no effect when ingested.)

Scents, aromas, perfumes, incense, and more have long been used in human society to create moods, induce relaxation, and otherwise influence behavior. It appears we are now entering a new stage where bio-engineered products may be employed for the same purposes. There are many other hormones that may just as important as oxytocin in influencing mood and behavior.

The next time you walk into a business meeting, what aerosol hormones will be in the air? How will casinos use oxytocin and other hormones? Will you use it with your spouse? On a date?

Researchers remain skeptical of the use of oxytocin for the notion of "paradise engineering". That's their job as scientists.

Resources and Further Reading
Nature (Vol. 435, No. 7042, pages 673–676) June 2, 2005

Public Library of Science journal PLoS ONE (Vol. 2, No. 11) Nov. 7, 2007

About Oxytocin

Monitor on Psychology, Volume 39, No. 2 February 2008
.

The Story of the Transgenic Goats (continued)

2009-03-22T16:31:00.003-05:00

A while ago I wrote about some wonderful transgenic goats that produce spider silk stronger than steel. (Original post here).

The company that produced the goats, Nexia Biotechnologies, was concentrating on developing materials for space elevators. Needless to say, the market today is somewhat limited and before long the goats found themselves without much of a future.

The world is smaller than you think. At a recent Air Force Office of Scientific Research program review I attended, I met the program manager who provided some of the resources (genes, funding, whatever) that went into making the goats in the first place. He told me a story of learning that the goats were homeless - in Canada - and then sending a small team over to take custody of the goats and bring them to the US.

US law requires live animals brought into the country to be branded with the country of origin, so the team branded the goats with a big letter C. They were promptly arrested.

It is illegal in Canada to brand animals, where it is considered cruel.

How the team and the goats got out of jail and over the border I don't know. But I can report that the transgenic goats are now happily living at the University of Montana where they being studied. Stay tuned for further adventures!

Ominous Dark Energy

2008-12-17T21:49:00.004-05:00

When theories are in trouble, scientists get creative. A great example of this is the current struggle with "dark energy". Today I was amused by an article in the Washington Post, "Mysterious 'Dark Energy' Not as Ominous as Thought".

Consider how the piece starts:

New observations offer evidence that astronomers are not simply imagining that there is a mysterious essence they call "dark energy" that is causing the universe to expand at an ever-accelerating pace.

After discussing some recent findings and a rather bizarre claim that dark energy is a "force that permeates empty space and ... has precisely the opposite effect of gravity", we find the most wonderful quote I have heard from an astrophysicist (read the article for his name):

"Even nothing, even empty space, weighs something [!!!!], and because in our universe we've got a lot of nothing, it has a major effect on our evolution and causes space itself to accelerate", said Prof. xyz, an astrophysicist at Princeton University.

I want whatever he is having for lunch.

Astutely, the author then states, "What remains unclear is what dark energy is, exactly"

Another prominent physicist gives us this cogent response:

We've discovered this incredible dark energy; we don't understand what the hell it is."

The article concludes that we should be reassured that what will not happen "apparently", is:

"... the cosmic apocalypyse that scientists call the big rip. That would occur if dark energy was strong enough to rend asunder all the stars, planets, moons, rocks, dust and even atomic nuclei, as well as any and all innocent bystanders."

I love physics and physicists. They are touched and it is wonderful.

[Still confused about "dark matter"]

Updated Biography Online

2008-02-22T13:46:00.001-05:00

Just a brief note to announce my updated biographical site is online and can be found at http://davidatkinson.is.dreaming.org/

Amazing Robotic Exoskeleton

2007-12-06T11:47:00.000-05:00

A robotic exoskeleton that reflects every body movement of the wearer, with gentleness or force, and smooth as can be. This is a real advance, if they can get it off the tether (which is there for power and safety).

"The human is a machine that functions only within the limitations of
flesh and bone...

Robotic exoskeleton mimics everything [Rex] wants to do...

If you step out of it, it becomes a humanoid [autonomous] robot. If you step into it, it becomes teleoperated and you become a superhero."

VIDEO

Add a protective shell, with all the networking and comm gear you need ...

...and you have the warrior of the future...

... but who says a human has to be inside?

Such a machine could be teleoperated (like a UAV) from thousands of miles away, providing complete safety to the human soldier.

The future? Machines fighting machines... until the batteries wear out

Direct Neural Interface - Brain to Speech Synthesis

2007-11-17T00:18:00.000-05:00

In what may be a breakthrough, a research team at Boston University has been recording the neural firing in the speech areas of the brain belonging to Mr. Eric Ramsey. Mr. Ramsey is unable to speak. He has been paralyzed but conscious for the past eight years, following a car accident.

The team claims that they can correctly identify the sound that Mr. Ramsey is "imagining" about 80% of the time. Now that they have trained their computer algorithm to this level, the research will now move towards translating these "imagined" sounds, the "thoughts" of Mr. Ramsey, directly into speech. This will involve providing Mr. Ramsey with real-time feedback so that he may learn to adjust has ability to "think out loud".

If it works, it will be a major advance for neuroscience. However, it has not come as a complete surprise. Researchers have been progressively improving at decoding primitive vocabulary for some time.

The wireless electrode probe, which is surgically implanted just six-millimeters below the surface of his brain, records pulses from 41 surrounding neurons involved in speech generation. Although the technique is invasive it may offer hope for many paralyzed people to speak. Certainly, we would like to hear the words of Dr. Hawking once again.

More Information
Neural Signals, Inc. - Cutting Edge Assistive Technology

Home Auto-Fabrication is Here

2007-11-01T04:36:00.000-05:00

A fabber is an automated system that can create three-dimensional objects from raw materials. They have been common in the electronics industry for many years -- the electronics of many devices are far to small and delicate to be handled by humans. Now, you may soon have one on your desk or "in your kitchen", according to these inventors. Technically, this device is called an "additive fabber", last discussed in this blog in 2005 "Additive Fabbers: Build it yourself from raw materials", and a related topic on molecular fabrication in 2006 "Timeline for Molecular Manufacturing"

"You can't put chocolate in an industrial fabber or you'll void your warranty" says one of the inventors in this short video, "but with this, why not use chocolate if you want?". Think of it like printing, but instead of a document or picture, you send a model / description of an object (a cell phone, a bottle, whatever) to the device. Then "go get a cup of coffee" say the inventors and when you come back, voila' presto chango there is your object.

The plans for the device will be posted free on the internet. The video is interesting but only shows it making a cup out of some gluey plastic substance. Still, major progress in low-cost home fabbers! Believe it or not, this is the future. You will one day have a personal fabricator.

Medical Science versus Wishful Thinking

2007-10-29T10:47:00.000-05:00

The "art of healing" has been an honored skill in virtually all human cultures for recorded history and before then. Artifacts and specimen skulls from South America show that the ancients removed sections of an injured person's skull to relieve pressure (e.g., arising from a concussion) that might otherwise have been deadly. The practices of healing matured over human history largely isolated from one another, separated by oceans and deep cultural divides. Perhaps only in the past one hundred years or so has western ("Evidence-based") medicine recognized some of the possible benefits of treatments employed in other cultures. The major influence of other medical cultures has been in the use of novel herbs and other materials as potions, rubs, and most recently, a source of modern pharmaceutical compounds.

Here is where evidence-based medicine and the others part company. Through careful scientific investigation (the never ending cycle of conjecture, theory, hypothesis, test and revision to theory) the biological and medical sciences have been able to understand and isolate the bio-active molecules found in natural healing herbs. An early and excellent example is Salicylate, a compound found in certain willow trees. Hippocrates of Cos (460-377 B.C.) noted that chewing leaves of willow (Salix) reduced pain, although its use in folk medicine was well known elsewhere, such as Egypt. Today, as a result of science, we have aspirin - the most widely consumed pharmaceutical in the world. I have no doubt there are many other such valuable bio-active materials yet to be discovered or refined from Earth's rich biosphere.

Unlike evidence-based medicine, alternative practices such as homeopathy, chi manipulation, ayurveda,chiropractice and to a certain extent osteopathy have not matured in the rigorous environment of scientific investigation. The theories, models and explanations of these practices are rooted more in historical narrative or magical thinking than in biology. In simple terms, the touted benefits of treatments in these disciplines are unproven. Many times the claims made by "alternative" medicine are not testable by scientific methods. Unless you believe in anecdotes, "revealed truth" or truths told by some "trusted" authority, there is no rational reason yet to believe in any of the benefits of these disciplines.

The Bottom Line

Looking towards our common future and the great hopes we all have for medicine, it is wishful thinking to imagine some grand merger of evidence-based and alternative medicine. There are always lessons to be learned, but they must be learned in the harsh light of excellent scientific method; there is no other way to establish what actually works and what does not. No miracle cures will suddenly emerge from alternative medicine; if there is valuable knowledge, it will be incrementally added to evidenced-based medicine using well-established scientific methods.

My friend and colleague, Dr. Steven Salzberg, authors an excellent blog called "Genomics, Evolution, and Pseudoscience" in which he shines the harsh light of science on alternative medicine and other ideas that while popular, cannot stand careful rational scrutiny.

The Danger of Robotic Weapons Systems

2007-10-24T10:23:00.000-05:00

Robotic weapon systems are dangerous in several ways. The obvious way is as a threat to life and limb. A recent major "accident" with a robotic weapon (described below) is the occasion and inspiration for this blog entry. There are two more significant threats, neither of which is as easy to avoid as a buggy system (and fixing a buggy system is not easy).

The threats I'm concerned with are:

readiness

2. The "ethical distance" that is introduced when autonomous systems are used; a human in many cases is no long required to make a decision to kill

First, more about the recent accident:

Robot Cannon Kills 9, Wounds 14

We're not used to thinking of them this way. But many advanced military weapons are essentially robotic -- picking targets out automatically, slewing into position, and waiting only for a human to pull the trigger. Most of the time. Once in a while, though, these machines start firing mysteriously on their own. The South African National Defence Force "is probing whether a software glitch led to an antiaircraft cannon malfunction that killed nine soldiers and seriously injured 14 others during a shooting exercise on Friday."

Autonomous Robotic Weapons

Are we only a few steps from "Skynet"? A "character" (liberally speaking) in the Terminator series of movies, Skynet was the product of a tightly integrated autonomous defense system which became "sentient" (I won't define that for you) and then (reasonably) determined that humans were a threat to its own existence.

No, we are more than a few steps. Nevertheless, weapon systems are becoming not only more automated (the capability to execute complex instructions) but more autonomous (the ability to independently determine when to perform a course of action).

As an expert in autonomous systems, I am very concerned about the accelerating trend to arm robotic systems. A good example is the unmanned combat autonomous vehicle, or UCAV, an emerging aircraft system beyond the high capability UAVs such as GlobalHawk.
UCAVs are the product of three converging technologies:

Normally I would applaud #3, but the increasing pace of technology development leaves us little time to think of the consequences of our actions. Fortunately with respect to UCAVs, this discussion is underway within and outside the military. Important issues include the "level of autonomy" (degree to which human intervention is required) for capability, weapon release authority, and de-confliction with other platforms.

Consider the question of "how much" autonomy to give to a robotic system for weapon release in a given type of war zone (e.g, rear of the front line vs. active areas of combat with the enemy). This is more or less equivalent to giving human soldiers "rules of engagement", or simply, when to shoot and when not to shoot. The maturity of deployable autonomous systems is at a level now where there is no technical reason why such systems could not choose their own target and destroy it without human intervention. For example, see Lockheed's "Low Cost Autonomous Attack System". Classified as a "smart munition", Lockheed says of it, "Target aimpoint and warhead mode [based on type of target] are automatically determined." This weapon system autonomously finds and attacks targets once release by a weapons system such as an aircraft, rocket or missile. No human tells the LOCAAS what to hit. Humans just release the weapon in the locality of the enemy.

The greatest danger is of course deadly friendly fire. (A good, but somewhat dated military overview of the issues surrounding autonomous weapons can be found here.)

The Ethical Distance From Killing

Consider the case of a modern cruise missile. A person in the chain of command makes a decision to launch the weapon at a primary target. The ethical responsibility lies with that person. Such weapons have the capability to be "reprogrammed" in flight, that is, told to halt the attack on the primary target and to proceed to attack a secondary target at certain coordinates. This could be done by someone else in a different chain-of-command. Now the original person who launched the missile is no longer responsible; the person who made the re-targeting decision is responsible.

Now let us suppose that the re-targeting is done automatically by systems on-board the missile. For example, on arrival in the target area the missile does not detect the artillery that was its primary target. The missile is pre-programmed to "loiter" in the area and look for a valid target. A tank is detected by the missile which then proceeds to destroy it. (This technology exists and may already be deployed.) Who now has the ethical responsibility for making the decision to kill the people in the tank? The person who originally launched the missile, but has no idea of what it actually attacked? The programmers of the "search and destroy" automation on-board the missile? The military program manager who decided to develop and deploy such systems? It is very easy to see how the responsibility for the decision to kill, in particular, has been blurred by the use of an autonomous weapons system. By taking away that clear responsibility, are we making it easier to kill?

I think the answer is yes, because no decision actually needs to be made. Consider the case of a robotic "sentry" which is deployed to guard a particular area, i.e., deny use of the area to the enemy. The DMZ in Korea provides a real-world example of such an area, where "enemy troops" (e.g., from North Korea) entering the DMZ could signal an invasion. A robot sentry recently developed by Samsung (Ref 1, Ref 2, Ref 3 - translated to English with video) has the ability to automatically detect a person at a distance of 4 kilometers in the daytime, 2 kilometers at night, in a 180 degree radius. A person in camo or only partially visible (hiding) can be detected, even in inclimate weather. Once detected, an audible warning is sounded, although just how audible at 4 kilometers is open to question. Reportedly, the robot has the ability to use voice recognition to detect "surrender" (again, one wonders). The robot then makes a decision to use its 5.5mm machine gun to take down the target. The visual recognition system of this robot reportedly has the ability to detect the "shedding of blood" to determine whether additional shots are required for a kill. No humans, other than the enemy combatant, are involved.

South Korea is beginning the deployment of this system, and other countries are also interested.

The "ethical distance" in the case of the robot sentry is enormous because nobody actually makes a decision to kill. After all, there is no enemy in the "exclusion zone", only the possibility of an enemy, who "should" be killed, at some time in the future.

On reflection, I suppose that this type of weapon is not all that different from land mines with respect to the ethical issues (and long-lasting land mines give rise to even more ethical issues). However, the methodical combination of technologies in an autonomous robotic system – the decision to kill and individual – especially worries me.

Wind Powered Robotic Sculptures

2007-08-30T14:52:00.000-05:00

The artist, Theo Jansen, creates very lightweight kinetic sculptures, clearly based on a fine knowledge of mechanical engineering. They are beautiful and they move using wind power alone.

Theo Jansen:

"The walls between art and engineering exist only in our minds"

"Always, I strive to push the boundaries of what we know ... and what we think is possible at this time."

Please take a minute to look at this wonderful video. It makes me think anything is possible. The wind is everywhere on our planet. Let's make use of it.

More info on the artist and DVD at: http://strandbeest.com/shop/

Fiber Stronger Than Steel from Transgenic Goats

2007-08-06T15:31:00.000-05:00

A phrase from the future: Recombinant dragline spider silk from transgenic goats
[I couldn't make that line up if I tried]

...The company, Nexia Biotechnologies, is focused on fiber development and nano-scale fiber applications for spider silk.

After injecting spider genes into a goat, a silk-like material, dubbed BioSteel®, is extracted from the goat's milk. Because of its compatibility with the human body, BioSteel appears to have some remarkable real-life applications (artificial limbs, tendons and ligaments). It is stronger than steel with a breaking strength of 300,000 pounds per square inch.

Robot Walks On Water

2007-08-06T15:18:00.000-05:00

More progress in the technology of very small robots based on biomemetics:

" Researchers Yun Seong Song, a PhD student in mechanical engineering, and Metin Sitti, assistant professor in mechanical engineering, both from Carnegie Mellon University, have recently built a robot that mimics the water strider's natural abilities. The first water striding robot, with an appearance and design closely resembling its insect counterpart, doesn't ever break the surface tension of the water, and is highly maneuverable."

"Citation: Song, Yun Seong, and Sitti, Metin. "Surface-Tension-Driven Biologically Inspired Water Strider Robots: Theory and Experiments." IEEE Transactions on Robotics, Vol. 23, No. 3, June 2007. "

Reference: Robot Walks on Water

MetaMaterials: First Demonstration of an Invisibility Cloak

2007-08-06T15:11:00.000-05:00

A team from Duke University has successfully demonstrated the ability of a material - a "metamaterial" to warp specific wavelengths of light around an object.

"You cannot easily warp space, but you can achieve the same effect on electromagnetic fields using materials with the right response," Schurig continued. "The required materials are quite complex, but can be implemented using metamaterial technology.

While the properties of natural materials are determined by their chemistry, the properties of metamaterials depend instead on their physical structure. In the case of the new cloak, that structure consists of copper rings and wires patterned onto sheets of fiberglass composite that are traditionally used in computer circuit boards."

Invisibility Cloak Demo

Super Paper!

2007-08-06T15:08:00.000-05:00

If you want to see what the future will be like, watch what is happening in materials technology.

"Researchers have developed a remarkably simple way to convert ordinary graphite particles into very thin but superstrong sheets that are tougher than steel and as flexible as carbon fiber but can be made much more cheaply. The discovery could spawn entirely new types of materials for applications as diverse as protective coatings, electronic components, batteries, and fuel cells."

Reference: Its Super Paper! -- Berardelli 2007 (725): 2

RFID "Dust"

2007-07-15T14:23:00.000-05:00

Hitachi's new RFID chips (pictured on right, next to
a human hair) are 64 times smaller than their mu-chips (left)

Hitachi has developed a new “powder” type RFID chip measuring 0.05 x 0.05 mm — the smallest yet. Marketing of the device should begin within in 2 to 3 years.

At 5 microns thick, the RFID chips are easily embedded in sheets of paper. But since existing tags are already small enough to embed in paper, it leads one to wonder what new applications might be enabled.

Used in paper currency, for example, the chips could serve as a guarantee of authenticity. Gift certificates are another benign application. What about identification? Tracking?

With 128k ROM (not much memory, but enough) imagine how this stuff might be used. What if police dusted a crowd at a demonstration -- participants could be rounded up later. Sprinkle a little bit on hubby, then see if it shows up where it should not. Dust on hands, transferred during handshakes ...where would it go? Who would pick up the dust? The potential of RFID to shred our last bits of privacy is huge. And where needs be, it will happen.

Now what are you going to do about it? Gaining electronic control of yourself and your immediate surroundings is essential for creating and maintaining your personal privacy. The personal RFID firewall (see earlier post) is a good start.

References:
Fuji Sankei
Hitachi develops RFID power

Transhumanism

2007-07-15T14:15:00.000-05:00

"Transhuman" is one of those words that you find in almost every modern sci-fi story. Often, it refers to a "person" who is somehow "better" or "more advanced" than homo sapiens; in any event, certainly different. I have not really much thought about how transhumans might come about, or what beliefs might be attached to those advocating, looking forward to, or otherwise attracted to the idea of transhumanity.

Accelerating The Future

This web site is a good place to start. What struck me first was the definition in the introduction, repeated below. After reading this, I'd have to say that I am a "transhumanist" because I am certainly a "humanist" and also a believer in technology as a force for the social good as well as individual change.

From the page:

"Transhumanists advocate the improvement of human capacities through advanced technology. Not just technology as in gadgets you get from Best Buy, but technology in the grander sense of strategies for eliminating disease, providing cheap but high-quality products to the world's poorest, improving quality of life and social interconnectedness, and so on. Technology we don't notice because it's blended in with the fabric of the world, but would immediately take note of its absence if it became unavailable. (Ever tried to travel to another country on foot?) Technology needn't be expensive - indeed, if a technology is truly effective it will pay for itself many times over.

Transhumanists tend to take a longer-than-average view of technological progress, looking not just five or ten years into the future but twenty years, thirty years, and beyond. We realize that the longer you look forward, the more uncertain the predictions get, but one thing is quite certain: if a technology is physically possible and obviously useful, human (or transhuman!) ingenuity will see to it that it gets built eventually. As we gain ever greater control over the atomic structure of matter, our technological goals become increasingly ambitious, and their payoffs more and more generous."

Personal RFID Firewall

2007-05-11T12:07:00.000-05:00

Radio Frequency Identification Devices (RFID) and your privacy

RFID are those small tags you find inside CD cases, consumer product boxes, and other places. The ones you don't see are those that are extremely small and thin - smaller than a grain of rice, flat as a sheet of paper. RFID is in your passport, your company identification badge, concert tickets...and you don't know what personal data is stored there. And it can be quite a bit of data too. The problem? I can pass by you in a crowd and, without you knowing it, read the information on every tag you carry. The security on RFID tags is poor to non-existent.

ArsTechnica.com writes,

"Much of the information on these chips can be read without exotic equipment, assuming an attacker can get within several feet with a concealed RFID reader. Unfortunately, most tags give users no control over when they respond to queries, and they offer no notification, which means that sensitive data could be at risk in public places."

The RFID Guardian is essentially a firewall that can prevent or allow RFID queries, and can do so on a per-tag basis. It a personal, portable firewall that insulates you from RFID information theft. It is complex and still in development, but gives you the common firewall tools* you need to manage your own RFID security.

* I understand that "common firewall tools" means nothing to the average person and probably only a bit more to the technoscenti. That is a topic for another post!

Power with no wires

2007-05-04T07:57:00.000-05:00

For years I have been hoping for some method to "beam" power to all my gadgets and appliances. All those wires! And just remembering to charge my phones (yes, plural), gps, pda, computer etc. is a big enough hurdle for me (I also regularly run out of gas in my car, but that's another problem).

Now comes a novel technology based on the Faraday effect of electromagnetic induction. It uses position sensing technology to locate devices needing power, MEMs, and a thin copper plate to transmit the power. A 21 x 21cm size sheet of this, 1mm thick, can transmit enough energy to power a laptop. Imagine using this wallpaper, or carpeting, or on your ceiling... no more wires!

Read more here:

World Without Wires

Space Elevator: NASA Challange

2006-10-23T10:09:00.000-05:00

While a lot of attention is being paid to nanomanufacturing and biology breakthroughs, somehow the revolution in materials sciences has lost popular attention. Carbon nanotubes, one of the most significant materials inventions ever is quickly making its way out of laboratories and into production environments. This article illustrates the degree to which carbon nanotubes could change our lives. Consider: A Space Elevator. The stuff of sci-fi. But as we've seen many times, a sci-fi idea frequently leads to real inventions. The carbon nanotube "cable" or "ribbon" from Earth to space needs to be over 37,000 miles long. How massive is that! How strong? Now it may be more than a few years until space elevators show up (and they certainly will due to the peculiarities and economics of the space launch business), but you'll see carbon nanotubes (and similar materials) much sooner in everyday products.

Original Online Reference

"LAS CRUCES, N.M. On a windy expanse of the Chihuahua Desert, the gangly 22-pound contraption began to climb up a thin carbon-fiber belt hung from a crane.

Directed toward the craft from the ground was an array of 135 mirrors to concentrate the blinding New Mexico sunlight to an intensity equal to 300 suns. The beam shined on the climber's high-efficiency solar cells. With a muffled whirring, it rose 35 feet.

Only 37,500 miles to go.

The Space Elevator Reference

2006-10-02T08:02:00.000-05:00

"Climbers ascend a ribbon, 100,000 km long, strung between an anchor on Earth and a counterweight in space. Connecting Earth and space in a way never before possible, the space elevator will enable us to inexpensively and completely expand our society into space."

This site is a good spot to find ideas on the scientific, engineering, economic and policy challenges inherent in constructing a space elevator. Sounds exotic and farfetched, doesn't it? Yes it is. However, there are two major points to keep in mind:

The difficulty and cost to lift a significant amount of mass from the surface of the Earth to orbit is a major expense for space missions. All spacecraft designs are fundamentally limited by the amount of mass that can be lifted (by a given rocket) as well as the need to fit the spacecraft within the "fairing" (shell) of the "launcher's" (rocket) payload area. A space elevator or one of its variants (e.g., "space hook") could dramatically lower the cost of "Earth to orbit" as well as open up the constraints on spacecraft design.

Secondly, with the invention of carbon nano-tubes and the recent demonstration of the ability to make significant, long cables of carbon nano-tubes, one of the major engineering challenges is coming within reach of a solution: making a strong enough cable. Space "tethers", kilometers in length (but made of other materials) have already been test-deployed in space.

Bottom line: The economic necessity is there. The technology is coming of age. Building a space elevator will be an enormously difficult effort, with substantial risk. When the technology is more mature, I think we'll see good return on investment arguments from commercial, national, and international interests.

http://www.spaceelevator.com/

A New Four-Way Biological Switch for Synthetic Biology

2006-09-15T22:57:00.000-05:00

Molecular switches are central to synthetic biology where they are often used to turn "on" or "off" the expression of certain genes, protein production, and other biological processes. This is definitely a technology to watch.

Nanoscientists Create Biological Switch from Spinach Molecule

"Nanoscientists have transformed a molecule of chlorophyll-a from spinach into a complex biological switch that has possible future applications for green energy, technology and medicine. [...]

The scientists used a scanning tunneling microscope to image chlorophyll-a and then injected it with a single electron to manipulate the molecule into four positions. [...]

The study also suggests a novel route for creating nanoscale logic circuits or mechanical switches for future medical, computer technology or green energy applications."

Things you can't find on Earth: Carbon Dioxide Sand Geyers!

2006-08-22T19:44:00.000-05:00

Solar heating vaporizes the frozen carbon dioxide at the the south pole of Mars. The geyers may shoot hundreds of feet into the air.

More information:
Ice Geysers Discovered on Mars

Disposable Camera = Homemade Taser

2006-08-22T19:33:00.000-05:00

Another example of "the street finds its own use for technology" (Wm. Gibson, Neuromancer

Timeline for Molecular Manufacturing

2006-05-27T04:09:00.000-05:00

Molecular nanotechnology is one of those achievements of human ingenuity that has the capacity - some say likelihood - to cause major disruptive social and economic change. The changes will come faster and be much more profound than the invention of the steam engine, flight, atomic power and even information technology. If you are alive today - and I assume you are because you are reading this - then you are very likely to live to see the dawn of practical, applied molecular nanotechnology. This web site offers a gentle introduction to the fundamentals you need to understand to make tech-literate decisions when the time comes.

Timeline for Molecular Manufacturing

From the page:

Overview:

Military and Medical Exoskeleton Research

2006-05-10T00:48:00.000-05:00

This post is the result of wondering what kind of robotic technology might be available for the next generation of space suit - one that can perform on planetary surfaces such as the Moon as well as in space. There were many "areas for improvement" with the original Apollo suits. Now, after many person-years of space flight we also know there are debilitating effects of micro-gravity on human bone and muscle tissue as well as other biological effects. These can't be discounted as we plan for long duration stays at a Lunar outpost. So thinking about strength and mobility in particular, is there useful technology to consider for inclusion in a next generation EVA suit? The answer is yes. Here is what I found:

Future Force Warrior

"FFW seeks to create a lightweight overwhelmingly lethal, fully integrated combat system including head to toe individual protection, ad-hoc networking, soldier worn power sources, and enhanced human performance. The program is aimed at providing unsurpassed individual and small team lethality, survivability, communications and responsiveness — a formidable warrior in an invincible team. FFW will be fully integrated with FCS and other Future Force platforms."

http://www.natick.army.mil/soldier/wsit/

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Jul2004/n07272004_2004072705.html

http://rangermade.us/store/catalog/Army_Technology.php

http://rangermade.us/graphics/2020prototype.jpg

Exoskeletons for Human Performance Augmentation

"The goal of the Exoskeletons for Human Performance Augmentation Program is to develop devices and machines that will increase the speed, strength, and endurance of soldiers in combat environments. Projects will lead to self-powered, controlled, and wearable exoskeletal devices and/or machines and demonstrations of their utility in military applications. Inclusion of exoskeleton technology into land-based operations could radically alter the current military doctrine though significant increases in the
doctrine though significant increases in the load-carrying and power deliver capacity of the individual soldier. This technology will extend the mission payload and/or mission range of the soldier and increase the lethality and survivability of ground troops for short-range missions and special operations. Currently the program is evaluating exoskeleton prototypes with the goal of determining the best applications for exoskeleton technology in the near and far terms."

http://www.darpa.mil/dso/thrust/matdev/ehpa.htm

http://www.darpa.mil/dso/personnel/main.htm

Stand-Alone Wearable Power Assist Suit

"So how does it work? Sensor pads taped to the major muscle groups calculate how much force you need to pick up a patient. As you lift, the sensors send data to a microcomputer that triggers the business end of the system: a bunch of concertina-like limb and body actuators powered by compressed air."

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn1072

http://www.fujipress.jp/finder/xslt.php?mode=present&inputfile=ROBOT001700050011.xml

Berkeley Lower Extremity Exoskeleton (BLEEX)

"The researchers point out that the human pilot does not need a joystick, button or special keyboard to "drive" the device. Rather, the machine is designed so that the pilot becomes an integral part of the exoskeleton, thus requiring no special training to use it. In the UC Berkeley experiments, the human pilot moved about a room wearing the 100-pound exoskeleton and a 70-pound backpack while feeling as if he were lugging a mere 5 pounds. The project, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, began in earnest in 2000."

http://bleex.me.berkeley.edu/bleex.htm

http://bleex.me.berkeley.edu/CV/BLEEX-Summary.pdf

http://bleex.me.berkeley.edu/

http://bleex.me.berkeley.edu/media.htm

http://bleex.me.berkeley.edu/CV/Bleex-part3.mpg

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/03/040304195437.htm

http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/03/03_exo.shtml

Yobotics: MIT Spin-Off: Robotic Powered Prosthetics

"The main reason for making this," Pratt explains, standing at the bottom of a small mock-up of a staircase in the company's spartan office, "was to prove we could do something super-human. I can do these" -- Pratt starts doing deep-knee bends using just his right leg -- "all day. With two of these knees, you'd be able to hike up mountains, or climb stairs, as long as your batteries hold out. We've done something super-human."

http://home.att.net/~kirsner/atlarge/082701.html

http://home.att.net/~kirsner/atlarge/yobotics.jpg

http://web.archive.org/web/20010913123027/digitalmass.boston.com/real_audio/roboknee.mpg

Other robotic exoskeleton projects

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~ferrisdp/NSF/research.htm

http://www-personal.umich.edu/%7Eferrisdp/UMHNL.html

http://robotics.eas.asu.edu/research.htm

http://www.eng.uci.edu/%7Edreinken/Biolab/biolab.htm

http://www.ri.cmu.edu/labs/lab_58.html

http://mechsys4.me.udel.edu/website/research/rehab/

http://www.media.mit.edu/research/ResearchPubWeb.pl?ID=1106

http://www.mems.rice.edu/%7Emahi/research.html

http://sanlab.kz.tsukuba.ac.jp/indexE.html

http://brl.ee.washington.edu/Research_Active/Exoskeleton/Exoskeleton_Index/htm

http://uwcreate.engr.wisc.edu/ResearchActivities.htm

http://www.ihmc.us/

http://www.ornl.gov/sci/engineering_science_technology/roboticsenergetics/humanamplifying.htm

http://www.ric.org/research/current_research.php

http://www.sarcos.com/

More News on Invisibility Shields

2006-05-03T13:49:00.000-05:00

The Guardian reports about a new materials technology that can be used to create "superlenses" that make light behave in a very unusual way. Without going into a lot of physics, essentially what happens is that the reflection from the lens "cancels out" the original light, making the object invisible. Unfortunately, there are no links to the primary research documents which describe the technology in more detail.

About a year ago Physical Review Letters published an article by Andrea Alu, Nader Engheta on the topic of the use of "plasmonic covers" to reduce the total scattering cross section of objects, in effect rendering them invisible.

Condensed Matter, abstract
cond-mat/0502336: Achieving Transparency with Plasmonic Coatings

There is not enough information in the Guardian article to judge whether the approaches to transparency are similar or not. It is definitely interesting to note that there are at least these two fairly mature theoretical research/engineering projects underway.

Who has not had a dream of having the power of invisibility? Such a power could be fun, useful, and dangerous. If it were invented, how would people use it? How would governments use it? Although the research is early stage and there are practical bugs for implementation, the science and general engineering are good and it is only a matter of time before such a device is demonstrated.

Here are additional references on the nanoplasmonic research:

Nature 28 February 2005: Engineers Devise Invisibility Shield

PDF:
Nanofocusing_in_Tapered_Plasmonic_Waveguides

Antimatter Propulsion

2006-04-30T19:45:00.000-05:00

New and Improved Antimatter Spaceship

A Good introduction to anti-matter propulsion
Here is a recent report from the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts on research into anti-matter propulsion systems. The article is not too technical for the average technology buff yet provides some good leads for those who want to study further.

Anti-Matter (or "Mirror-Matter") is more or less exactly the same as "ordinary matter" (the kind we are familiar with) except for the fact that the electrical charges are reversed. "Anti-electrons" carry a positive charge instead of a negative charge. For this reason, they are sometimes referred to as "Positrons".

When anti-matter and matter meet, they annihalate with a complete coversion of the matter into energy. This provides an extraordinary amount of power from very little mass. In contrast, nuclear weapons convert only a small percentage of mass into energy - in the neighborhood of three percent depending on the properties of the weapon. But we're not talking about weapons here. I only mentioned them as an example of mass to energy conversion that many people could comprehend intellectually.

Harnessed for propulsion, a matter/anti-matter reaction would provide incredible power. However, as you can imagine, there are a few problems to address first. One of these is the radiation given off by some matter/anti-matter reactions. High energy gamma rays penetrate matter, tear about molecules in cells and fragment matter they touch, causing that matter to become radioactive. No so healthy for people or the spacecraft they ride.

The NIAC research described in this article is studying whether a new anti-matter engine design (shown above), based on positrons, would produce gamma rays about 400 times less energy than previous designs. If the data looks promising, a number of significant advantages are within grasp.

Safety

Radioactivity

Speed

Mass

Each of these provides significant motivation to the hunt for a viable anti-matter engine. Other significant challenges must be conquered as well:

Anti-matter is rare

Confinement

Each of these are subjects of research projects that are also underway.

Robot legs that could replace wheelchairs

2006-04-26T16:52:00.000-05:00

"A biped robot WL-16RIII carrying a student descends a flight of stairs during a demonstration at the campus of Waseda University in Tokyo on April 26, 2006."

A robot that demonstrates the ability to go up and down stairs while carrying a human passenger who controls the robot's speed and direction with a joystick. The vehicle is the product of a research program aiming to develop a wheelchair subsitute. However, robots planned for the next year or two are aimed at "enthusiasts" who might use the robot to play a version of polo. An automated wheelchair-substitute robot with mature technology is expected within five years. The team is also investigating alternatives to the joysticks, which may be hard for the elderly or disabled to use. The field of human-computer interaction research, including robotic control, is pursuing a multiplicity of options ranging from Segway-like "balance" control to direct neural interfaces.

Source:
Japanese researcher shows robot legs that could replace wheelchairs

NASA: Not A Technology Agency?

2006-04-17T02:42:00.000-05:00

NASA Watch: "An e-mail written by NASA Administrator Michael Griffin and obtained recently by The Plain Dealer comes right out and says that research centers, like Glenn, just don't fit the overall mission anymore: 'We are not, any longer, a technology agency to any significant extent. Wishing otherwise is nice, but irrelevant.'"

If this is so, then what reason does NASA have to exist? All major aerospace companies have robust technology programs - it is what makes them competitive, improves their products, and reduces risk while at the same time opening new opportunities.

What is it that NASA Centers can offer that "Industry" cannot? Is our only purpose to organize how best to spend large sums of taxpayer dollars? If we don't have anything technical to do -- if there is no engineering or technology that we (NASA) cannot strive to be the best -- to be ahead of industry -- then NASA should not exist. The NSF does a perfectly fine job of funding science, including very large projects.

9th Annual Robo-One Competition

2006-04-12T00:05:00.000-05:00

The Robo-One Competition pits home-made yet surprising sophisticated robots against one another in sumo wrestling, "pose down", and other categories of judging.

9th Robo-One rally

The RAYERD-X robot busts crazy transformer moves that really show off its versatility. It did very well in the demonstration judging but I'm not sure how well it did in the wrestling.

OMNIZERO.2

This mech is not only a mechanical marvel, but the "sumo" match with other robots shown on this page is very entertaining.

Biomemetic Solution for Bipedal Robot Locomotion

2006-04-05T22:01:00.000-05:00

Speedy Robot Legs It to Break Record

The significance of the "speedy robot" described in this article is not its speed, but how the robot attains systematic and reliable control over its attitude (position) and articulation of its limbs. Most walking robots (with the notable exception of many of the behavior based robots robots built by Robot Locomotion Group at MIT) use powerful computing, a multiplicity of sensors, and physics-based modeling software to monitor and control robotic motion. This team from Germany and Scotland are part of a new wing of robotics research which is inspired by "biomemetics". In plain speak, "copy nature's solutions". In building their walking robot they explicitly sought to develop a simple system, copying and infering as much as they could from nature's solution to bipedal locomotion. With just a few sensors, and a simple "neuronal" (aka "neural net") software program, their system rapidly adapts its control algorithm to achieve the target walking behavior. Multiple other groups have developed many-legged walking robots using similar techniques, but the research described in this article is one of the few applying biomemetics to bipedal locomotion.

The International Journal of Robotic Research (vol 25, issue 3)

Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience

Robot Locomotion Group, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Also cool videos for robot fans.

Walking at a Steady Speed

Learning to Walk Rapidly

Itokawa vs. ISS

2006-04-03T18:24:00.000-05:00

A picture of asteroid Itokawa (Wow!) taken by Japan's Hayabusa spacecraft which 'landed' on the asteroid twice. Shown next to the asteroid is the International Space Station, scaled correctly for size. (Historic Japanese Asteroid Data Amaze Researchers). Itokawa is a Near Earth Object (NEO), and among that group, an 'Earth crossing' asteroid. This means that Itokawa's orbit around the Sun intersects Earth's orbit. So what? Well, the short story is that such objects could HIT the Earth. The good news about Itokawa is that a collision is probably a million or more years away. The bad news is that asteroid distribution models suggest that we've only discovered about 10% to 15% of the NEOs - the Earth-crossing asteroids usually after they have zoomed right by Earth. I just bought the DVD 'Deep Impact'. My scientist friends scoff at the movie, suggesting it paints too rosy a picture of an actual asteroid impact in the ocean. Sorry, I started out 'gee whiz' and ended up on a downer. So cheer up. You should concentrate on driving safely and not worry about asteroids!"

star dust holiday

2006-03-31T01:34:00.000-05:00

star dust holiday

Erin is a volunteer in a NASA-sponsored bedrest study at the Cleveland Clinic. This is her blog, reporting on three full months of bedrest and as she says, "the craziness leading up to it and the who knows what afterward."

Please stop by and say hello!

Our Technological Future

2006-03-21T03:09:00.000-05:00

Our Technological Future

Very interesting blog with breaking news in the areas of nanotech, biotech and others that are all part of the "spike" - the point where the exponential progress in key sciences and technologies converge. We don't know when, but it will probably be in your lifetime. We don't know what will happen, but as this author puts it, "the implications are vast." I'm glad to find another explorer who is tracking our future!

FTL Travel

2006-03-13T21:55:00.000-05:00

"This artist's conception shows a fanciful spaceship approaching the speed of light."

Faster than light travel using worm holes was one of the topics discussed at Space Technology and Applications International Forum, Feb. 12-16 in ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.

Said one attendee, "We've got to think about everything possible that there is to think about."

That is sure how I feel some days. Other days, just the opposite!

NASA'S Predicament

2006-03-11T17:35:00.000-05:00

NASA'S Predicament - NYT (Subscription)

From the page:

ambitious goals

NASA needs some $3 billion more

deep cuts

This is the bottom of it, right? Money. But I think not. The real issue is whether NASA can pull off any of these things - the Shuttle, Space Station, much less the "vision for space exploration". Right now NASA, with small exceptions such as JPL, is dependent on aerospace contractors to get anything done. The health and well being of Lockheed-Martin and Boeing, Northrup and other major defense-aerospace contractors will decide the fate of NASA. Right now, they are getting rich off the Iraq war and my guess is that they see little reason to push the NASA cart along right now. The reality of this program is that it is all about positioning for "what comes next" - after Bush, after NASA Administrator Mike Griffin, after the War.

With NASA in internal upheaval, traditional roles are no longer sacrosanct and politics is playing a strong role in deciding what goes forward, and who gets to do it. That is the real predicament.

Two Stage to Orbit - Blackstar

2006-03-06T01:23:00.000-05:00

AWST STORY

A-ha! Aviation Week and Space Technology reveals information about a two stage to orbit spacecraft, called Blackstar, possibly operational during the 1990s. It may have been used for reconnaissance, satellite-insertion and, possible, weapons delivery. As a reminder, it was about this time, during the Reagon administration, that military payloads were pulled from the Shuttle.

According to the article, "The manned orbiter's primary military advantage would be surprise overflight". I remember sitting next to an Air Force senior officer on a commercial flight about this time, complaining about the mothballing of the "Blackbird" (notice the names). Why, I asked, would you every shelve the fastest, highest flying recon plane in the world? Surely satellites cannot do everything the Blackbird can. The reply was a wink and the comment, "you don't think we'd do that if we didn't have something better, do you?". Now, it all makes sense.

Those of us who live in Los Angeles are familiar with the double or triple sonic booms the Space Shuttle makes as it overflies LA on its way to a landing at Edwards Airforce Base (not very far from Groom Lake - a minute or less at these speeds). We had a triple sonic boom one time - but no shuttle was flying and the FAA claimed it had nothing on radar. It was soon "forgotten". Now we know.

I have been telling my colleagues on the Constellation Program (NASA's space systems to return to the Moon) that we should probably expect this to be an occasion to declassify some military technology, such as that for the "Aurora" spaceplane. Are Aurora and Blackstar the same? I don't know. In any event, I'll collect those bets now.

Quantum computer works best switched off

2006-02-23T17:29:00.000-05:00

Quantum computer

Journal reference: Nature (vol 439, p 949)

Researchers at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have built a non-running quantum computer that really works. Stay with me. Remember, this is quantum mechanics we're talking about. (A physicist colleague of mine once claimed quantum mechanics obeyed the "six beer rule": Once you've had six beers you think you understand it.)

The computer is based on routing a photon through a myriad set of mirrrors and optical devices, including a set that runs a database search "by changing the properties of the photon"

Apparently, Zeno's paradox is used (via repeated measurement) to stop the photon from actually "running" the program. Instead, it "flirts" with the program (you'll have to read the article on six beers and explain this to me).

The big advantage? "A non-running computer produces fewer errors." Now that's a claim that I find really hard to believe!

Quantum Gravity on eBay

2006-02-20T01:41:00.000-05:00

Funniest "sponsored link" on Google so far:

quantum gravity - Google Search: "Quantum Gravity
Looking for Quantum Gravity?
Find exactly what you want today
www.eBay.com"

Synthetic Reality

2006-01-30T01:59:00.000-05:00

A "Claytronic atom", or "catom", is a nano-scale object, covered with electromagnets capable of attaching the catom to other catoms. LEDs, and photo-sensors on the surface complete the picture (no pun intended). A suitably programmed ensemble of catoms could dynamically replicate just about any object - even a person. Some have called it "dynamic physical rendering". Whatever you call it, the technology is probably a decade off (famous last words).

Carnegie Mellon University researchers Seth Goldstein and Todd Mowry lead the small, DARPA and industry-backed research team that is investigating the engineering of these devices.

References

Synthetic Reality (CMU Group)

Programmable Matter (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Presentation at IC Fall 2004 (.pdf)

Ride a magnetic bubble

2006-01-19T04:57:00.000-05:00

Mini-Magnetosphere Plasma Propulsion

Create a magnetic bubble around your spacecraft and ride the solar wind to interstellar space. This is not Sci-Fi. The basics have been experimentally demonstrated in the laboratory. Downside - your cell phone won't work inside the bubble.

Scientists overjoyed: comet samples and aerogel story

2006-01-19T04:43:00.000-05:00

The Stardust return to Earth with comet and solar wind samples is fantastic! After the Genesis spacecraft had its "sporty landing" not long ago (the switch for the 'chutes was installed upside down), we have all been holding our breath for safe return of Stardust.

Aerogel: Solid Smoke

I work at JPL. Here is a "true story" (as well as I can recollect) about the aerogel used to capture the comet and solar wind samples: A janitor at JPL decided he'd like some of the aerogel. He pretended to be a scientist (yes, even our janitors have advanced degrees) and told the Stardust project office that he was going to give a lecture at a local school, and may he, please, borrow a piece of aerogel for show and tell? Of course, was the reply. There were hundreds of fragments left from the Stardust spacecraft engineering, each put in a nice little clear box with the Stardust logo on the lid. Aerogel is fragile and also sharp, so the boxes are a good idea. Time marched on and the sample was forgotten until our NASA administrator at the time, Dan Goldin, decided it was time that he learned about eBay. Lo and behold! NASA aerogel was for sale on eBay! The phones rang and rang down the whole management chain and everyone caught a bit of the legendary Goldin temper that night. The eBay ad was pulled and within a day or two the friendly janitor was tracked down, fired, and the sample retrieved.

I have a sample just like this that I use for teaching. You'll never see it on eBay, but if you ever get a chance to see aerogel - "solid smoke" - you will be truly amazed.

Transgenic Fluorescent Green Pigs

2006-01-14T18:41:00.001-05:00

They Glow in the Dark! Are Chickens Next?

These pigs, produced by a research group in Taiwan are more than the long sought reification of green ham in the children's book by Dr. Seuss, "Green Eggs and Ham". The are the result of research to develop a reliable method for gene transfer in the product of transgenic animals, widely used for research. Unlike other green pigs which are only partially green, these pigs are green throughout their bodies. DNA from jellyfish was joined with genetic material from normal pig embryos. The new strain of pigs will enable non-invasive testing for scientists studying gene expression in disease research.

Abstract:
Effective generation of transgenic pigs and mice by linker sperm-mediated gene transfer, BMC BioTechnology, Vol. 2.

Small Co-Axial Personal Helicopter

2006-01-14T16:52:00.000-05:00

GEN H-4

I live in Los Angeles. I could really use this!

This small helicopter is a kit requiring about 40 hrs to assemble (if you are "mechanically minded") according the sales literature from the U.S. distributor, Ace Craft USA. At a maximum speed of 55 mph and flying in a straight line I could get to my office at JPL in just a few minutes. A 5 gallon gas tank provides an average of 1 hour of flight time (depending on your weight). At a cost of USD$29,000 it is cheaper than one year of tuition at many US colleges (and putting it together probably includes many lessons-learned as well). They'll sell you one only if you are also willing to do "further testing along side the company." I don't think I'll be the first on block to own one, but I definitely look forward to personal air transport I can land in my back yard!

Zero Point Field

2005-12-30T19:49:00.000-05:00

I don't know if this is real or not, but it sure is fun!

Top Scientists Validating the Supernatural Universe » Quantum Biocommunication Technology: "the story of a group of frontier scientists who discovered that the Zero Point Field - an ocean of subatomic vibrations in the space between things - connects everything in the universe, much like the Force in Star Wars."

Which SciFi Character Are You?

2005-12-30T19:00:00.000-05:00

Jean-Luc Picard

Take the test! Here is what the site had to say about me:

"An accomplished diplomat who can virtually do no wrong, you sometimes know it is best to rely on the council of others while holding the reins.

There are some words which I have known since I was a schoolboy. "With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censored, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."

These words were uttered by Judge Aaron Satie -- as a wisdom, and warning. The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged."

http://www.tk421.net/character/

Your Brain!

2005-12-17T02:42:00.000-05:00

Lots of interesting posts in this blog. Highly recommended!

CogNews - Cognitive Science News For You, By You

Photo-Sensitive Protein As Genetic Switch

2005-11-27T03:04:00.000-05:00

In earlier posts on synthetic biology I mentioned the use of molecular sensors and switches to regulate the behavior of genetically engineered organisms. A team of graduate students at Voigt Lab at the University of California in San Francisco has demonstrated this with E.Coli engineered to include photosynthesizing blue-green algae genes. The bio-engineering involved is not necessarily state-of-the art, and this is a sign that the maturity of the technology and techniques demonstrated are advancing rapidly. The students produced the innovative bacterial images and a bacterial camera as part of MIT's intercollegiate Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition.

In the demonstration, the bacteria are arranged in an array and selectively exposed to a red-light image. The "bio-sensor" effectively delivers 100 mega-pixel resolution per square inch.

The researchers used the living film to create an image of the "‘flying spaghetti monster", a satirical critique of intelligent design (Image: Chris Voight)

The important part of the demonstration is not the fact that the researchers made a "biological camera". The importance of the result is the fact that such a switch need not activate a pigment. A wide variety of genes could be switched on and off, resulting in a great many possible responses (and these in turn could trigger other proteins and other effects). The implications are very significant for possible applications to nano-manufacturing, medicine, and other areas.

The work is described in the latest issue of Nature (vol 438, p 441), which is totally devoted to synthetic biology.

News from the Logic Free Zone

2005-11-26T01:32:00.000-05:00

Can someone please explain to me?

NASA Administrator Michael D. Griffin has said that terminating the shuttle program would be just as expensive as keeping it going. The shuttle routinely consumes more than 30 percent of NASA's budget.
- from the Washington Post 11/24/05 Bush's Space Plan in Danger

I thought I understood a bit of math, and budgeting, but this is beyond me.

Homemade Flamethrower

2005-11-24T16:35:00.000-05:00

Homemade Flamethrower

Somebody just had to do this, and now they have, and you can too. Please, if you are in California, do this by the beach OK? I don't want a wildfire in the mountains near my home, worse, burning down my home, because you read something in my blog. (Worse yet, burning down anybody's home - an entire neighborhood - a city - arghh!)

Knowledge is power. Use it carefully, please.

Fun with High Voltage: Make an EM Launcher

2005-10-15T23:10:00.000-05:00

While idling my evening away, I came across this fun item. Electromagnetic launchers are one of the more interesting applications arising from the generation of large magnetic "Eddy currents" using very high voltages. The technology has been around for a while, and ideas about such launchers permeate science fiction.

"Potential applications include the acceleration of gram-size particles for hypervelocity research and for use as reaction engines in space transport; high velocity artillery; stretcher-size tactical supply and medical evacuation vehicles; the launching of space cargo or nuclear waste in one-ton packets using off-peak electric power."
- ELECTROMAGNETIC GUNS, LAUNCHERS and REACTION ENGINES

In the article I found, "Disk Shooter", the experimenters create a 3 kilojoule pulse launcher capable of accelerating a small disk to a speed of 500 kph.

"The capacitor bank below charged to its full potential (3kilojoules) stores 15 times as much energy as a maximum power cardiac defibrillator discharge, and is CERTAIN not only to kill, but also to blow bits off from anyone who is to come into contact with it. "

" The capacitor bank is charged to a full 900V potential, and then the relay latch is released (everything is done remotely behind a Plexiglas shield located 10 meters from where the experiment is conducted) so that all the energy stored in the capacitors flows through the coil for a few microseconds. Because of the extremely short discharge times, currents of several tens of thousands of amperes are obtained, causing the coil to produce and enormously powerful increasing magnetic field, which, on passing through the disk, induces a current on it. Due to the turns ratio (16 turns coil - 1turn disk), the current through the disk is several times greater than that through the coil. This current loops around the disk and is called an Eddy current. Like any other current flow, this produces a magnetic field of opposite polarity to that of the coil, hence, the two repel. As the coil is fixed to the table, it pushes down on it (sometimes hard enough to make it bounce back up and knock things over!), and the disk is propelled upwards. By varying the charging voltage different firing speeds can be obtained."

I had been thinking of building a trebuchet, but this project might be a bit more fun. How many g's can a pumpkin take?

Personal Dirty Bomb Detector

2005-10-10T00:58:00.000-05:00

Visiting New York? Maybe you'd like to take along your own radioactivity detector. Yes, it is for real. $219 from www.redferret.net. I especially like the "short short" alarm.

Privacy or Censorship?

2005-09-20T03:21:00.000-05:00

A new device, which the creaters call a "Capture Resistant Environment", automatically detects and blinds cameras within a several meter effective zone.

Power-dressing man leaves trail of destruction

2005-09-20T03:08:00.000-05:00

But did his cell phone survive?

"SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian man built up a 40,000-volt charge of static electricity in his clothes as he walked, leaving a trail of scorched carpet and molten plastic and forcing firefighters to evacuate a building. ...."We tested his clothes with a static electricity field meter and measured a current of 40,000 volts, which is one step shy of spontaneous combustion, where his clothes would have self-ignited," Barton said."

Power-dressing man leaves trail of destruction

Teaching old algae new tricks

2005-08-23T03:48:00.000-05:00

It is not designer life, made of "Bioblocks" as I've described before. It is another great idea. Nano-technologists have long tried to build motors, flagella, and various means of providing mobility to nano-scale machines. A group of scientists decided to take an easier route - just borrow a life form that already does more or less what you want. A Harvard team team has developed a technique that enables algae to carry cargo for significant distances (at that scale). It is an interesting result.

For more info:

Bitty Beasts of Burden: Algae can carry cargo: Science News Online Aug. 20, 2005

How Many Artificial Intelligence Researchers Does It Take To Change A Lightbulb?

2005-07-30T18:33:00.000-05:00

At least 55:

The problem space group (5):

One to define the goal state.
One to define the operators.
One to describe the universal problem solver.
One to hack the production system.
One to indicate about how it is a model of human lightbulb changing
behaviour.

The logical formalism group (16):

One to figure out how to describe lightbulb changing in first order
logic.
One to figure out how to describe lightbulb changing in second order
logi.
One to show the inadequacy of FOL.
One to show that lightbulb logic is non-monotonic.
One to show that it isn't non-monotonic.
One to show how non-monotonic logic is incorporated in FOL.
One to determine the bindings for the variables.
One to show the completeness of the solution.
One to show the consistency of the solution.
One to show that the two just above are incoherent.
One to hack a theorem prover for lightbulb resolution.
One to suggest a parallel theory of lightbulb logic theorem proving.
One to show that the parallel theory isn't complete. ...ad infinitum
(or absurdum, as you will). ...
One to indicate how it is a description of human lightbulb changing
behaviour.
One to call the electrician.

The robotics group (10):

One to build a vision system to recognize the dead bulb.
One to build a vision system to locate a new bulb.
One to figure out how to grasp the lightbulb without breaking it.
One to figure out how to make a universal joint that will permit the
hand to rotate 360+ degrees.
One to figure out how to make the universal joint go the other way.
One to figure out the arm solutions that will get the arm to the socket.
One to organize the construction teams.
One to hack the planning system.
One to get Westinghouse to sponsor the research.
One to indicate about how the robot mimics human motor behaviour in
lightbulb changing.

The knowledge engineering group (6):

One to study electricians' changing lightbulbs.
One to arrange for the purchase of the lisp machines.
One to assure the customer that this is a hard problem and that great
accomplishments in theory will come from his support of this effort.
(The same one can arrange for the fleecing.)
One to study related research.
One to indicate about how it is a description of human lightbulb
changing behaviour.
One to call the lisp hackers.

The Lisp hackers (13):

One to bring up the chaos net.
One to adjust the microcode to properly reflect the group's political
beliefs.
One to fix the compiler.
One to make incompatible changes to the primitives.
One to provide the Coke.
One to rehack the Lisp editor/debugger.
One to rehack the window package.
Another to fix the compiler.
One to convert code to the non-upward compatible Lisp dialect.
Another to rehack the window package properly.
One to flame on BUG-LISPM.
Another to fix the microcode.
One to write the fifteen lines of code required to change the lightbulb.

The Psychological group (5):

One to build an apparatus which will time lightbulb changing performance.
One to gather and run subjects.
One to mathematically model the behaviour.
One to call the expert systems group.
One to adjust the resulting system, so that it drops the right number
of bulbs.

Thanks to Mel Montemerlo, NASA HQ, for sending this to me about 16 years ago. I just discovered it while rooting around my old files.

Robotics and Computer Science

2005-07-30T18:29:00.000-05:00

There is a more general view of robotics as the study of representing and reasoning about physical objects in a computer. This view is concerned with issues of languages and representations, and it is precisely in these areas, which traditionally are under the auspices of computer science, that significant breakthroughs will occur that will have as fundamental an effect on society as did the industrial revolution.

John E. Hopcroft
1986 Turing Award Winner

Synthetic Biology

2005-07-22T20:16:00.000-05:00

There is an interesting discussion on "biocomputing" at the online journal, Edge. One of the topics presented by J. Craig Venter is Synthetic Biology.

Synthetic Biology is an approach to understanding genetics and the basic components of cells (as well as their genesis). Essentially, the process involves building artificial chromosomes -- "cassettes" of five or more genes -- with the goal of creating artificial species from the unique sets of genes under study. These sets of genes may come from a wide variety of original species - the current databank of sequenced genes is about 8 million, with millions more being added yearly. What they "do" is another question and the subject of a great deal of scientific experimentation. Nevertheless, there are an enormous number we do understand and more knowledge is being gained.

By "reverse engineering" life, we now have the essential building blocks - the components - to build living things. We also have the tools. I don't think anyone would claim to know how to create life based on an understanding of biological first principles, but the opportunity to explore and to engineer living systems is available right now.

For example, a project at MIT (in collaboration with a few other places) is developing "Biobricks": standard biological components for use in synthetic biology. You can find these parts at Registry of Standard
Biological Parts. Each Biobrick has its own part number, serial number and even a "datasheet" on how it works. MIT offers freshman classes where the students build a piece of a genome that gets spliced into an e-coli "chassis". In couple of weeks, they can build modified e-coli that actually "do things", such as an oscillator that flashes slowly.

Genes from one species are routinely added to other species and successfully activated. One frequent use of the technique occurs in biology labs to study a biological process that may be unrelated to the gene being added. The added gene, along with appropriate molecular switches, serves as a unique new laboratory tool - a way to "instrument" biological processes. An example is the addition of the gene responsible for a firefly's light along with a molecular switch that is triggered by a biological process under study, e.g., the presence of a certain chemical. When the chemical is present, the gene causes the plant or animal or petrie dish to light up! I've grossly simplified the example, but the point is that synthetic biology is now routine, not only in high-tech bio labs but in freshman engineering courses as well.

What is synthetic biology good for? Venter is trying to create an alternative to photosynthesis where all the electrons from sunlight are converted directly into hydogen, including molecular switches to turn the process on or off. This is serious stuff - a totally new form of energy production - and the social and commercial implications are enormous.

A more controversial use of synthetic biology (and thus interesting to me) is the idea of adding a "cassette" of genes to the human genome -- essentially a 28th chromosome. The goal: modifying or adding attributes. Height, for example (by increasing the production of human growth hormone). You could call it "cosmetic genetics". Molecular switches would be attached to turn on or off the different attributes as needed. If human gamete cells were altered in such a fashion, the new genetic package could be inheritable. What kinds of attributes? I'll leave that for now as an exercise for the reader.

Additive Fabricators: Build it yourself from raw materials

2005-06-01T04:00:00.000-05:00

One of the major challenges of exploration and settlement of the Moon and deep space is the need to take everything you'll need with you. Right now, we don't have refineries, factories or foundries in space to create tools and gadgets - and to create such an in-space industrial infrastructure would require enormous lift capacity from Earth (cost prohibitive).

Explorers and settlers on Earth have not had this challenge (except perhaps with the exception of the South Pole research stations). These intrepid people knew that they would find abundant raw materials where they were going. What they needed to bring were the tools to turn those raw materials into useful goods, including more tools!

So how can we apply the same thinking to the settlement of space?

NASA, universities and many companies are looking at ways to use "in-situ" materials to bootstrap a Lunar or Martian colony.

One of the exciting tools that we may use to settle space will be the next generation of Additive Fabricators. These devices automatically make things from raw materials and digital descriptions of the object to be made. Such devices have been around for more than 10 years and are now used extensively in many areas, including design, prototyping, and creation of custom medical prosthetics.

In a space application of "fabbers", we could expect such devices to create, a variety of useful products, such as

Construction elements, such as posts, beams, and bricks, individually designed for mating to neighbors.
Conduits for plumbing, air management, and space radiators.
Fixtures and fittings, such as brackets, joints, etc.
Large vehicle elements, such as frame members and wheels, as well as replacement parts for complex vehicle systems, such as engines and brakes.
Hand tools, such as mallets and wrenches, as well as parts and fittings for power tools, including bases for heavy machinery.
Structural and functional elements of technology projects, such as solar power collectors, telescopes, transmitters, etc.

Before space fabricators become a widely deployed tool for space settlement, I suspect we'll see personal fabricators develop into mature technology here on Earth.

Collections of integrated fabricator tools, not yet miniturized to fit in your den, are already in world-wide deployment.

And don't forget, a fabricator that builds a fabricator is a self-replicating robot! The first such "robotic building blocks" have already been demonstrated. Windows Media Video 5.42MB, courtesy of Hod Lipson, Cornell University

Resources:

The Center for Bits and Atoms at MIT
Environmental Concerns
The "Fab Lab"
Molecular Nanotechnology
Molecular Manufacturing

From dream to robot

2005-05-31T02:29:00.000-05:00

As robots become easier to build - and easier to conceive - we should expect to see quite a wide variety. For example:

"Furman is a bipedal semi-humanoid stationary robot about 1.8 meters high (6'). It is covered in fur from head to knees, and has hairy legs. It appeared to me in a freakish dream, kicking karate style. I decided to make a version of the creature, full size."

It is easy to find all the parts you might need for your own project online. Here is an interesting new dextrous robotic hand that is now available:

Shadow Dextrous Hand

Applied genetic engineering and human evolution

2005-05-31T02:21:00.000-05:00

I've often wondered what the effects would be of our quest to understand and manipulate the human genome. Will we diverge into multiple sub-species?

Here is a thoughtful article that puts genetic engineering into perspective from the point of view of evolution.

Re: What effects might applied genetic science have on evolutionary mechanics?

Would You Like an Invisibility Shield?

2005-03-02T22:15:00.000-05:00

Who has not had a dream of having the power of invisibility? Such a power could be fun, useful, and dangerous. If it were invented, how would people use it? How would governments use it?

It is time to ask these questions because engineers have devised a new concept for such a shield. Although the concept is early stage and there are practical bugs for implementation, the science and general engineering are good and it is only a matter of time before such a device is demonstrated.

" The possibility of using plasmonic covers to drastically reduce the total scattering cross section of spherical and cylindrical objects is discussed. While it is intuitively expected that increasing the physical size of an object may lead to an increase in its overall scattering cross section, here we see how a proper design of these lossless metamaterial covers near their plasma resonance may induce a dramatic drop in the scattering cross section, making the object nearly invisible to an observer, a phenomenon with obvious applications for low observability and non invasive probe design. Physical insights into this phenomenon and some numerical results are provided."
- Alù A. & Engheta N. Preprint, Achieving transparency with plasmonic coatings (2005).

Additional References

Engineers devise invisibility shield

Nanofocusing in Tapered Plasmonic Waveguides

Quote of the Day

2005-03-02T21:59:00.000-05:00

I can't understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I'm frightened of the old ones.
-- John Cage

Home on Lagrange (The L5 Song)

2005-03-02T20:59:00.000-05:00

Oh, give me a locus where the gravitons focus
Where the three-body problem is solved,
Where the microwaves play down at three degrees K,
And the cold virus never evolved. (chorus)

We eat algea pie, our vacuum is high,
Our ball bearings are perfectly round.
Our horizon is curved, our warheads are MIRVed,
And a kilogram weighs half a pound. (chorus)

If we run out of space for our burgeoning race
No more Lebensraum left for the Mensch
When we're ready to start, we can take Mars apart,
If we just find a big enough wrench. (chorus)

I'm sick of this place, it's just McDonald's in space,
And living up here is a bore.
Tell the shiggies, "Don't cry," they can kiss me goodbye
'Cause I'm moving next week to L4! (chorus)

CHORUS: Home, home on LaGrange,
Where the space debris always collects,
We possess, so it seems, two of Man's greatest dreams:
Solar power and zero-gee sex.

--Home on Lagrange (The L5 Song)
© 1978 by William S. Higgins and Barry D. Gehm

Layers of information

2005-02-04T15:20:00.000-05:00

Slashdot: News for nerds, stuff that matters: "Secret Data: Steganography v Steganalysis
Security
Posted by CmdrTaco on Friday February 04, @01:11PM
from the fight-of-the-year dept.
gManZboy writes 'Two researchers in China has taken a look at the steganography vs. steganalysis arms race. Steganography (hiding data) has drawn more attention recently, as those concerned about information security have recognized that illicit use of the technique might become a threat (to companies or even states). Researchers have thus increased study of steganalysis, the detection of embedded information.'

( Read More... | 122 of 160 comments | developers.slashdot.org )"

Looking for some educational home projects for the kids?

2005-01-20T02:58:00.000-05:00

This group specializes in do-it-yourself scientific, industrial, and alternative energy projects.

Dangerous Laboratories

Why not go Nuclear fishing?

Here are some other great home project sites:

Omniscience Futureneering is lots of fun. Want to build your own X-ray system? Here's how!

OtherPower is a group of alternative energy enthusiasts who will show you how to build solar, wind, water and generator power systems. "It's EASY to make your own power source from SCRATCH!"

PowerLab Among lots of great projects, learn how to build a 20 kilojoule RailGun that uses Lorenz forces to fire a non magnetic projectile to hypersonic velocities!

While Mom and Dad are out, why not try generating hot plasmas using the microwave oven?

Androids: Here they come, ready or not!

2005-01-19T18:30:00.000-05:00

The field of robotics is a broad one, and great progress has been made in the development of robotic vehicles, aircraft, special purpose robots, space robots and many more types. They make a difference in our lives daily, whether you know it or not. But there is another kind coming that will definitely involve you on a daily basis. Soon.

They are Androids.

ASIMO Android, by Honda

Regardless of their ultimate utility, people are obsessed with robots that mimic the human form, i.e., "anthropomorphic" robots. The allure of creating a machine in our own image seems to be irresistible. Do we want them to take care of us? To be more powerful in many ways?

In the aftermath of World War II, the Japanese major cities had been devastated, the culture was under tremendous stress as the Japanese re-invented themselves, and life was generally really hard. In the 1950's, a comic strip began, staring Tetsuwan Atom, also known as "Astro Boy" or "Atom Boy". Tetsuwan Atom was a robot, built in the image of the deceased son of a scientist. He had many special powers and after a rough childhood he dedicated himself to adventure and battling threats to mankind.

Tetsuwan Atom

The android, Tetsuwan Atom, remains beloved by the Japanese. When I've talked to researchers at several of the top robotics labs in Japan, they frequently cite Tetsuwan Atom as an inspiration for their current work in robotics -- much of which involves anthropomorphic robots.

I'll write more on robots later. Today I stumbled across a web site that illustrates the importance of androids to many people from all walks of life:
Android World. This internationally popular site aggregates information on android projects world wide as well as provides other interesting information on the history of androids.

Dueling Physicists? Truth, Belief and Reality

2005-01-19T01:56:00.000-05:00

"I believe nothing to be true (clearly real) if it cannot be proved. Following Bohr's complementarity I would spot that belief and proof are in some way complementary: if you believe you don't need proof, and (arguably) if you have proof you don't need to believe."

- MARIA SPIROPULU, Physicist, currently at CERN

" To believe without knowing it cannot be proved (yet) is the essence of physics."

- LEON LEDERMAN, Physicist and Nobel Laureate; Director Emeritus, Fermilab

Asteroid Mining - There's Gold in Them Thar Hills!

2005-01-19T01:50:00.000-05:00

Eros is a typical stony asteroid. One of thousands easily reached by spacecraft launched from Earth. The NEAR spacecraft rendezvoused with Eros in 1998 and collected exceptional data.

How about this nugget:

In the 2,900 cubic kms of Eros, there is more aluminium, gold, silver, zinc and other base and precious metals than have ever been excavated in history or indeed, could ever be excavated from the upper layers of the Earth's crust. A cautious estimated suggests 20,000 million tons of aluminum along with similar amounts of gold, platinum and other rarer metals.

That is just in one asteroid and not a very large one at that. There are thousands of asteroids out there.

What is it worth? The gold alone is worth billions of dollars at today's prices (which would probably crash if you suddenly tried to sell all the gold on Eros at once!). The other metals such as platinum are even more expensive.

The technology to mine asteroids for the most part exists today. What is lacking are the financial resources to carry out such endeavors along with commercial entities willing to tackle the job.

We don't necessarily have to bring the metals back. Why not build factories right there to build products in space? You might work in such a factory someday.

Graphics
Credit: Home Run Pictures

Lunar Communities - Your Retirement Dream Location

2005-01-14T11:15:00.000-05:00

Easy mobility in low gravity, golf courses with kilometer long fairways, gorgeous views of the heavens - what more could you ask for in a retirement community? Well, lots actually. One day you will have the option of moving to the Moon.

NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate is working to make it happen with Project Constellation (this is what I am working on right now).

So are various private and public consortia. A good example is the Artemis project. The Artemis project is all about how to establish a permanent, self-supporting lunar community.

Antimatter Space Propulsion

2005-01-14T10:57:00.000-05:00

We've grown up in an era where rockets are packed with high explosive chemicals, released in a variety of controlled ways to create thrust. Recently, electric propulsion has also become a tool for interplanetary travel. But what about the future? Where is all the "Star Trek" technology we dreamed of? It should come as no surprise that many groups are already working on how to manipulate the enormous energies available in antimatter/matter reactions. Study up! You may need to install one of these babies in your ship someday.

Antimatter Space Propulsion at Penn State University

What is Bioart?

2005-01-14T10:41:00.000-05:00

This one surprised me, even though I should have expected it. Always remember that "The street finds its own use for technology" (William Gibson, Neuromancer
).

From BioTech Hobbyist Magazine

"CAE GRAND JURY

Monday June14 5:30pm

Ick: what is bioart? An overview of the biological projects of the Critical Art Ensemble (CAE)
and review of the relationship of biological art practices to more traditional scientific and bioethics research. This discussion will focus on the larger value of bio art to the research community and the politics of knowledge that surrounds these practices focusing on the risk posed to the entire research community with the potential indictment tomorrow of Steve Kutze and colleagues."

Blog for comments

Quote for the Day

2005-01-12T11:10:00.000-05:00

"Any descriptive proposition," he said, "which remains true longer will out-survive other propositions which do not survive so long. This switch from the survival of the creatures to the survival of ideas which are immanent in the creatures (in their anatomical forms and in their interrelationships) gives a totally new slant to evolutionary ethics and philosophy. Adaptation, purpose, homology, somatic change, and mutation all take on new meaning with this shift in theory."

- Gregory Bateson

http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/information/biography/abcde/bateson_gregory.html

http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/bateson04/bateson04_index.html

Artificial Muscles

2005-01-11T16:27:00.000-05:00

"An important possible eventual application of this research is artificial limbs that function like natural arms and legs – including the ability to move and manipulate objects -- both for amputees and robots"
- Dr. Ray H. Baughman, Robert A. Welch Professor of Chemistry and director of the UTD NanoTech Institute

Artificial Muscles

Synthetic Biology

2005-01-11T16:23:00.000-05:00

"Following in the footsteps of Lynn Conway's pioneering work on VLSI that allowed ordinary students to create their own processors, a group of MIT professors have almost completed doing the same thing using DNA, known as synthetic biology. While not all of the components of a basic computer are working yet, there is hope that some day ordinary students may be able to design living computers, producing everything from novel drugs to seeds that sprout into treehouses."
- Slashdot

Lynn Conway
VLSI
Designing DNA
Synthetic Biology

Thought for the day

2005-01-11T14:55:00.000-05:00

"The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn"
- Alvin Toffler

Bottles with zero volume. Frontier of boundry-fre...

2005-01-10T04:33:00.001-05:00

Bottles with zero volume. Frontier of boundry-free manifolds.

http://www.kleinbottle.com/

Watch out for the local kid who talks too much about nuclear physics:
http://www.dangerouslaboratories.org/radscout.html

Awake for the future

2005-01-10T04:33:00.000-05:00

Hi, this is my first post. I started this blog because we are all heading for a future that is mystifying, troubling, exhilarating, ... and even if you close your eyes and pretend otherwise it is still going to happen. And it will be very very different.

You can be awake, or asleep. In this blog I will post the odd bits of information, links to tools, and resources, and my own thoughts. May you find them useful.

Thanks for visiting. I realize as I'm writing this that the blog has not yet been published, so no one is actually viewing it yet, and in fact may never view it. In that case, maybe I'm the one that is asleep. Oh well, too philosophic for early in the morning. Here we go...