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Latest Articles: Science/Tech
Monkeys should be able to speak if human brain in control: study
Post Date: 2016-12-11 01:37:25 by Tatarewicz
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WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- Monkeys have the vocal tracts to produce human speech sounds, but what they lack is a speech-ready brain, a new study has found. The study, conducted by researchers from the U.S. and Europe and published this week in the U.S. journal Science Advances, used X-ray video to see within the mouth and throat of macaque monkeys induced to vocalize, eat food, or make facial expressions. The scientists then used these data to build a computer model of a monkey vocal tract, allowing them to answer the question "what would monkey speech sound like, if a human brain were in control?" The results showed that monkeys could easily produce many different ...
Another fatal Tesla crash reportedly on Autopilot emerges, Model S hits a streetsweeper truck – caught on dashcam
Post Date: 2016-12-05 17:38:56 by Artisan
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New reports are coming out of China today claiming that the first fatality in a Tesla Model S on Autopilot was not the widely-covered crash in Florida in May 2016 that resulted in the death of Joshua Brown, but actually an accident in China in January 2016. The accident was under investigation for the first half of the year, but the family of the victim reportedly sued ‘Tesla China’ back in July and now details of the crash are coming to light in the Chinese media. A video of the accident was captured by the dashcam of the Tesla Model S driver, a 23-year man borrowing his dad’s car according to a report (Chinese). He was driving on the highway reportedly in the Hong Kong ...
It took thousands of years, but we finally have a digital sundial
Post Date: 2016-12-05 06:37:34 by Tatarewicz
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ScienceAlert... From around 1500 BCE, right up to the 14th century, many of our ancestors figured out the time using a sundial - you know, those triangular devices that cast a shadow on a dial below, revealing what hour it was. They might not be as accurate as the clocks we have today, but sundials still work based on the simple premise of the Sun's predictable shift in position as our planet spins. And now a French engineer has finally brought the device into the digital age, creating a 3D-printed sundial that displays the time in '80s-style digital-style numbers. Okay, so it's not technically digital. But as Earth spins on its axis and the position of the Sun shifts in our ...
Apple reportedly to fly drones to beat Google Maps
Post Date: 2016-12-04 02:44:57 by Tatarewicz
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WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 (Xinhua) -- Apple is reportedly planning to use drones and new indoor navigation features to improve is maps app, aiming to compete with longtime leader Google, Bloomberg News quoted sources familiar with the matter as saying. The tech giant has been assembling a team of experts in robots and data-collection who will use drones to quickly capture and update map information, a major upgrade to its existing fleet of camera-and-sensor ladened minivans, one of the sources told Bloomberg News. The drones will allow Apple to examine and monitor roads, street signs and construction areas. The data collected would be send to the Apple teams that rapidly update Apple Maps to ...
My Unhappy Life as a Climate Heretic
Post Date: 2016-12-03 20:38:47 by Ada
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My research was attacked by thought police in journalism, activist groups funded by billionaires and even the White House. Much to my surprise, I showed up in the WikiLeaks releases before the election. In a 2014 email, a staffer at the Center for American Progress, founded by John Podesta in 2003, took credit for a campaign to have me eliminated as a writer for Nate Silver’s FiveThirtyEight website. In the email, the editor of the think tank’s climate blog bragged to one of its billionaire donors, Tom Steyer: “I think it’s fair [to] say that, without Climate Progress, Pielke would still be writing on climate change for 538.” WikiLeaks provides a window into a ...
Sleep mode: Your brain dozes off even while you’re awake, study finds
Post Date: 2016-12-03 03:01:00 by Tatarewicz
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RT... One moment you’re alert and paying attention, the next you’ve somehow zoned out and missed something key. New research says this might be a result of parts of the brain switching off even while you’re awake. Researchers from Stanford University have discovered that, even during waking hours, parts of our brains fall asleep and wake back up all the time. This is similar to the big ebbs and flows in activity that take place during sleep but on a much smaller scale, with only small portions of the brain switching off for a few seconds at a time. Essentially, we all go through a daily cycle of alertness and tiredness based on whether neurons in our brain are switched on ...
BlackBerry poised to be at forefront of secure self-driving cars
Post Date: 2016-12-01 05:52:26 by Tatarewicz
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Globe & Mail... A timely acquisition six years ago is putting BlackBerry in the forefront of in-car infotainment systems and enabling development of secure autonomous vehicles. You may be using its product already, says Thomas Bloor, business development manager for BlackBerry QNX software systems. “We’re in a majority of IVI [in-vehicle infotainment] head units out there today; we’re in 60 million vehicles,” he said in a recent interview at the Los Angeles Auto Show. “We’re the predominant operating system in that marketplace today. It’s a nice place to be.” A pilot program in Canada will be sending autonomously driven vehicles onto Ontario ...
Stephen Hawking encourages China to build hadron collider
Post Date: 2016-12-01 01:11:31 by Tatarewicz
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People's Daily... Many renowned Chinese and foreign physicists have joined a discussion about whether China should build a next-generation large hadron collider. Britain physicist and cosmologist Stephen Hawking is encouraging China to do just that. “China has an incredible opportunity to become the world leader here — don’t waste it. A good example is to build the Great Collider that can lead high energy physics for the next fifty years,” Hawking wrote. Well-known mathematician Shing-Tung Yau is in favor of Hawking's suggestion, and proposed that China choose a place near Shanhai Pass in Qinhuandao, Hebei province as its building site. Meanwhile, Chen Ning ...
We now have scientific evidence for why you should never go to bed angry
Post Date: 2016-11-30 05:28:30 by Tatarewicz
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ScienceAlert... We're always told to 'never go to bed angry', but is this just a relationship cliché, or wise words to live by? According to new research, it may be the latter, because scientists have found that sleep actually consolidates bad memories, making you live with them for longer. Sleep's role in helping us consolidate our memories is vital in how we process and store useful information, but a new study shows that the same principle applies to negative thoughts – if we fall asleep with them, they can be harder to forget in the long term. "This study suggests that there is certain merit in this age-old advice: 'Do not go to bed ...
The stupidity of IQ Testing
Post Date: 2016-11-29 03:38:01 by Tatarewicz
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We all know that people differ mentally in a great many ways: some are reflective, others impulsive; some are sympathetic, others are sociopathic; some are creative, others seem never to have a witty or imaginative thought; some are sensible, others are flighty, fanatical, or prone to panic; and some are smart, whereas others cannot do a simple arithmetical calculation in their head or solve an elementary logical puzzle. So how do we measure the human intellect? Among educators and psychologists, the most common procedure is to conduct a test of reasoning ability that yields a result called an intelligence quotient, or IQ. Some people think IQ’s are terrifically important and that ...
SOURCE: Thomas Massie Being Considered For Trump Administration Post Published on November 28, 2016 in Politics
Post Date: 2016-11-28 21:31:21 by Ada
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A confidential source on the Trump transition team has told The Liberty Conservative that Rep. Thomas Massie, an award-winning, MIT-educated engineer, elected to Congress in 2012, is under consideration for the job of Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, a role commonly known as Science Advisor to the President. Massie currently serves as Chairman for the Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation in the House of Representatives. Massie’s office did not respond to our requests for comment. During his time at MIT, Massie invented a technology that enables people to interact with computers using their sense of touch, and leveraged that technology to found SensAble ...
Cyber Monday sale: All tech and science courses 50% off today only
Post Date: 2016-11-28 08:10:48 by Tatarewicz
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SCIENCEALERT It’s getting closer to the holiday season, so if you were planning on learning a new skill in 2016, like the basics of computer science, AI and deep learning, or how to become an ethical hacker, now’s a great time to get started. To celebrate Cyber Monday on November 28, we’re offering 50 percent off all ScienceAlert Academy courses purchased today – because you shouldn’t have to pay thousands (or even hundreds) of dollars to learn a new skill. All you have to do is use the code CYBER50 at the checkout. The code will work from 00:01am PST on Monday, November 28 (7:01pm Sydney time, 3:01am New York time, and 8:01am London time) for 24 hours. Check ...
Chinese Robot Goes Rogue, Smashes Booth and Injures Visitor at Tech Fair in South China
Post Date: 2016-11-28 07:26:00 by Tatarewicz
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(People's Daily Online) A robot went out of control at the China Hi-Tech Fair 2016 in Shenzhen on Thursday, smashing a glass window and injuring a visitor. The robot that went violent is named “Fatty” and is designed for household use. This is the first time in China that a robot has injured a human being. Some Chinese netizens on Weibo said that they fear the incident signals the start of the "invasion" of robots. However, the event organizer said human error was responsible for the mishap. The operator of the robot hit the “forward” button instead of “reverse,” according to one of the fair’s organizers. This command sent the robot off ...
Brace yourself, the polar vortex is shifting
Post Date: 2016-11-27 03:25:43 by Tatarewicz
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ScienceAlert... Climate change has hit the Arctic worse than ever over the past few years, but that doesn't mean the Northern Hemisphere is going to be experiencing a mild winter this year. In fact, a new study shows that the polar vortex is shifting, and it's going to make winters on the east coast of the US and parts of Europe even longer, with exceptionally cold temperatures expected during March. The polar vortex is that lovely zone of cold air that swirls around the Arctic during winter. When parts of the vortex break apart and splinter off, it can cause unseasonably cold conditions in late-winter and early-spring in the Northern Hemisphere. This happened in early 2014 - as ...
Your dog remembers what you did: study
Post Date: 2016-11-26 01:21:49 by Tatarewicz
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WASHINGTON, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- Attention, dog owners: your dogs are paying attention and they'll remember what you did. We humans have a remarkable ability to remember and recall events from the past. Now, a new study out Wednesday presented evidence that dogs have that kind of "episodic memory" too. It found dogs can recall a person's complex actions even when they don't expect to have their memory tested, according to the study published in the U.S. journal Current Biology. "The results of our study can be considered as a further step to break down artificially erected barriers between non-human animals and humans," Claudia Fugazza of MTA-ELTE ...
Delete yourself from the internet by pressing this button
Post Date: 2016-11-25 15:20:33 by Southern Style
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Delete yourself from the internet by pressing this button by Juan Buis The internet can be a beautiful and horrible place at the same time, and it isn’t weird to sometimes feel like you want to leave — there’s wasn’t an easy way out, until now. Swedish developers Wille Dahlbo and Linus Unnebäck created Deseat.me, which offers a way to wipe your entire existence off the internet in a few clicks. When logging into the website with a Google account it scans for apps and services you’ve created an account for, and creates a list of them with easy delete links. Every account it finds gets paired with an easy delete link pointing to the unsubscribe page for that ...
Could moving walkways be the key to car-free cities of the future?
Post Date: 2016-11-25 04:45:05 by Tatarewicz
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LAUSANNE, Switzerland, Nov. 23 (UPI) -- Scientists in Switzerland are considering the future of the city, specifically a metropolis without cars. Without vehicles, how will people move quickly and efficiently throughout an urban center? One seemingly fanciful option is the moving walkway. In a new study, researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, or EPFL, considered the potential of moving walkways in the 21st century city, and how they might mix with more traditional forms of eco-friendly transport. According to EPFL scientists, their analysis revealed promising potential. Accelerating walkways can move people at speeds upwards of 10 miles per hour -- ...
Solar homes could get batteries from glowing dye
Post Date: 2016-11-25 04:41:06 by Tatarewicz
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A fluorescent dye called BODIPY could be an ideal material for stockpiling energy in rechargeable, liquid-based batteries that could one day power cars and homes, say researchers. BODIPY— short for boron-dipyrromethene — shines brightly in the dark under a black light. But the traits that facilitate energy storage are less visible. According to new research, the dye has unusual chemical properties that enable it to excel at two key tasks: storing electrons and participating in electron transfer. Batteries must perform these functions to save and deliver energy, and BODIPY is very good at them. In experiments, a BODIPY-based test battery operated efficiently and with longevity, ...
Tesla unveils sleek glass solar roof tiles
Post Date: 2016-11-25 04:35:56 by Tatarewicz
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LOS ANGELES, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- Tesla chief executive Elon Musk unveiled a new series of glass roof tiles with built-in solar panels in Los Angeles Friday night. The line of new solar paneled roofing, produced by solar power company SolarCity, is intended to become part of a personal alternative energy ecosystem made up of Tesla products including solar roofs, batteries and electric cars, the company said. Musk showed off the new solar paneled roof tiles, which come in several styles including smooth, textured and tuscan, by fitting them to several houses on the set of former ABC television series Desperate Housewives at Universal Studios Hollywood, according to the Los Angeles Times ...
New Russian weapon will paralyze combat drones
Post Date: 2016-11-25 04:31:46 by Tatarewicz
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UPI/RBTHL... A Russian defense company announced it has finished work on a new kind of weapon designed to disable swarms of mini combat drones. The weapon, produced by Russia's United Instrument Manufacturing Corporation, will fry the drones' radio-electric systems, according to sources, turning a drone into "a useless piece of iron and plastic." Drones, which armies began using as weapons about 10 years ago, have completely changed the situation on the battlefield, where the soldier is gradually being squeezed out as the main combat unit. Reconnaissance and attack, things that earlier were impossible to do without direct human involvement, can now be done by robots. ...
SpaceX wants to surround Earth with an internet service that's 200 times faster
Post Date: 2016-11-25 03:29:49 by Tatarewicz
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ScienceAlert... SpaceX, the aerospace company founded by the Mars-hungry tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, just made a big move to enshroud the planet in high-speed internet coverage. On November 15, the company filed a lengthy application with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to launch 4,425 satellites. (We first heard about the filing through the r/SpaceX community on Reddit.) That is a hell of a lot of satellites. According to a database compiled by the Union of Concerned Scientists, there are 1,419 active satellites currently orbiting Earth. There are estimates of roughly 2,600 satellites that no longer work floating in space, but even factoring those in, SpaceX’s planned ...
Thinning, retreat of West Antarctic Glacier began in 1940s
Post Date: 2016-11-24 08:57:53 by Ada
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Summary: The present thinning and retreat of Pine Island Glacier in West Antarctica is part of a climatically forced trend that was triggered in the 1940s, new research by an international team shows. FULL STORY In mid-October 2011, NASA scientists working in Antarctica discovered a massive crack across the Pine Island Glacier, a major ice stream that drains the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. Extending for 19 miles (30 kilometers), the crack was 260 feet (80 meters) wide and 195 feet (60 meters) deep. Eventually, the crack will extend all the way across the glacier, and calve a giant iceberg that will cover about 350 square miles (900 square kilometers). Credit: NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, ...
Patent applications near 3 million in 2015, spurred by Chinese innovations, UN reports
Post Date: 2016-11-24 02:26:49 by Tatarewicz
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UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- A new report by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on Wednesday found that spurred by Chinese innovations, the number of patent applications rose to 2.9 million in 2015, up nearly 8 percent from the previous year, Farhan Haq, the UN deputy spokesman, told reporters here. "The jump was powered by innovators in China who filed more than one million applications for the first time within a single year," Haq said. After China, innovators from the United States and Japan filed the most applications, he said. According to the report, Chinese innovators filed the most patent applications (1,010,406) in 2015, followed by those from ...
Earth’s surface ‘vaporized’ from asteroid impact that killed off dinosaurs – study
Post Date: 2016-11-24 01:06:48 by Tatarewicz
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RT... The asteroid that annihilated the dinosaurs and “reset the clock” for life on Earth could not have done the job without first liquefying the planet’s surface, a new study found. Lead researcher and geophysicist Sean Gulick spoke to RT. The scientific consensus has been for some time that about 66 million years ago, Earth changed forever. But exactly how is still being learned, and new research from the University of Texas at Austin goes as far as to alter “clues into the origin of life on earth,” Sean Gulick, a research professor at the Jackson School of Geosciences’ Institute for Geophysics, told RT’s Manila Chan. Not only was the sun blocked out ...
Programmers are having a huge discussion about the unethical and illegal things they’ve been asked to do
Post Date: 2016-11-21 10:23:44 by Ada
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Earlier this week, a post written by programmer and teacher Bill Sourour went viral. It's called "Code I’m Still Ashamed Of." In it he recounts a horrible story of being a young programmer who landed a job building a website for a pharmaceutical company. The whole post is worth a read, but the upshot is he was duped into helping the company skirt drug advertising laws in order to persuade young women to take a particular drug. He later found out the drug was known to worsen depression and at least one young woman committed suicide while taking it. He found out his sister was taking the drug and warned her off it. Decades later, he still feels guilty about it, he told ...
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