Science & Technology News – Page 79

What comes next after the International Space Station ends

August 1, 2021

By Miriam Kramer

NASA is at risk of losing a foothold in orbit after the end of the International Space Station.

Why it matters: Without an operating base in space, the agency’s plan to shift from being a sole provider of services in orbit to becoming a customer of companies operating there is in jeopardy.

NASA is hoping that instead of running its own space station, it will have the option to send its astronauts to privately run space stations in orbit by the time the ISS ends.

Driving the news: NASA this month put out a final call asking for companies to submit their ideas for space stations they could build and operate where astronauts could visit and perform experiments.

Those space stations would need to be up and running by the time the ISS comes to an end by 2030 or earlier.
NASA will award money to the companies chosen for certain milestones, but the agency isn’t going to fully fund the development of these space stations, according to the request for proposals.

Blockchain, Science & Technology News

India launches world’s largest blockchain diploma verification system

August 1, 2021

By Sam Cooling

Amid widespread diploma forgery, and driven by the intense competition in India’s job market, the Maharashtra state government has announced the launch of a new blockchain verification system to ensure transparency for genuine qualifications.

The new system will be the world’s largest educational blockchain system, and the Maharashtra State Board of Skill Development (MSBSD) has taken the active decision to overrule the nationwide ban on crypto technologies in order to deliver the progressive project.

“In the last 10 years, there has been a rampant increase in forgery of government-issued documents which have caused huge financial and reputational losses to the stakeholders involved,” said the Chair of the MSBSD as he announced the new system.

AI, Science & Technology News

How AI can take optimised healthcare resource utilisation to the next level

July 31, 2021

Healthcare facilities are looking to artificial intelligence to optimise operational performance at a time when rising demand for their services is stretching resources and limiting the patient experience.

Improving operational efficiency has emerged as a priority for healthcare facilities as they seek predictive ways to manage and allocate resources at a time of ever-increasing demand for their services.

Many of them are now turning to AI as a key enabler of a more progressive approach, helping them to plan their logistical responses based on the latest data – and maintain their focus on delivering end-to-end patient care of the highest quality.

Electric Vehicles, Science & Technology News

BMW reveals E-scooter and electrified cargo bicycle concepts

July 31, 2021

By Shane McGlaun

BMW reveals E-scooter and electrified cargo bicycle concepts

Companies around the world are conducting lots of research into the future of mobility in cities. Research is being conducted by traditional automakers and by new startups looking at alternate methods of transportation. BMW Group Research has revealed two mobility concepts for the city with an e-scooter concept called Clever Commute and an electrified bicycle called Dynamic Cargo.

The electrified bicycle is a three-wheel design and has a compartment between the two small rear wheels for storing cargo. Dynamic Cargo is a compact cargo bike concept promising high agility, flexible usage options, and increased year-round suitability. It has a loading platform with attachments for transporting loads and/or children for leisure activities.

Medical Breakthrough, Science & Technology News

Regeneron’s latest genetics discovery hooks AstraZeneca — now all-in on developing small molecules for obesity

July 31, 2021

By John Carroll
Editor & Founder
Just weeks after its widely lauded genetics research arm tagged a promising new target for obesity, Regeneron has signed up an industry heavyweight to collaborate with on developing new drugs that can potentially act as a game-changer in what has proven to be a tough field for developers.

The Regeneron Genetics Center published a paper in Science at the beginning of this month highlighting how their work sequencing the genomes of 650,000 people highlighted how people with at least 1 inactive copy of the GPR75 gene weighed on average 12 pounds less than the rest of the population with a 54% reduction in risk of obesity.

3D Printer, Science & Technology News

Nanotech-built armor could replace Kevlar, steel for soldier protection

July 31, 2021

Recent laboratory experiments using novel 3D printing approaches with nanotechnology yielded a lattice structure that stopped projectiles better than Kevlar or steel at a much lighter weight. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

A recent breakthrough by Army-funded researchers may lead to a new material that could yield lightweight body armor, blast shields and more for future soldiers.

Testing at the Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies, is an Army-sponsored research center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, showed a polymer patterned in a “lattice-like” structure using nanotechnologies could withstand more force than Kevlar or steel.

The paper, recently published in the scientific journal, Nature Materials, showed that the nanotechnology-built material prevented objects from tearing through and was “more efficient” at stopping penetration than traditional materials.

The “fiber computer” cloth has already accurately tracked user activity solely on body temperature readings.

3D Printer, Science & Technology News

3D-printed liver models will help surgeons ‘rehearse’ cancer surgeries

July 30, 2021

The technique can be used to create accurate models of patients’ organs complete with imitation cancerous tumours and imitation blood.

By Jason Goodyer

Cancer, Science & Technology News

New cancer treatments can be tested in artificial cells on tiny chips the size of a postage stamp

July 30, 2021

The pipes imprinted on microfluidic chips are about the size of a human hair, and in many ways are like miniaturizing a chemical manufacturing plant. (Katherine Elvira), Author provided

Healthcare, Science & Technology News

The Robot Will See You Now: Health-Care Chatbots Boom but Still Can’t Replace Doctors

July 29, 2021

Scout’s job is just to ask questions. A lot of them.

How long have you had a fever? Are you feeling short of breath? When you bend your neck forward, is there pain that is so severe it makes you want to cry?

If so, Scout might recommend a trip to the emergency room. Scout is usually overly cautious about these things. It kind of has to be, as a robot.

Scout is a conversational chatbot made by health tech company Gyant and used by Intermountain Healthcare in Utah to tell patients what they should do when they feel sick. It may suggest getting some good rest, or setting up a doctor’s appointment or, oftentimes, making a trip to the ER or an urgent-care facility.

Driverless cars, Science & Technology News

Lyft travels to the future with new self-driving cars coming to Austin

July 29, 2021

Experimentation and innovation are driving this technology.

By John Egan

The Lyft ride-hailing service is traveling into a new era in Austin.

Starting next year, Lyft customers in certain parts of Austin will be able to hire a self-driving car as part of a new partnership with automaker Ford and Argo AI, a provider of technology for self-driving vehicles.

“This collaboration marks the first time all the pieces of the autonomous vehicle puzzle have come together this way,“ Lyft co-founder and CEO Logan Green says in a July 21 news release. “Each company brings the scale, knowledge, and capability in their area of expertise that is necessary to make autonomous ride-hailing a business reality.”

The initiative will roll out later this year in Miami, with self-driving Lyft cars coming to Austin sometime next year. Washington, D.C., is also on the road map. A so-called “safety driver” will ride in each of the cars along with the Lyft passengers.

The three companies behind the effort hope to add at least 1,000 self-driving cars to the Lyft network over the next five years in various U.S. markets, including Austin.

AI, Science & Technology News

New Artificial Intelligence Technology Can Spot Shipwrecks From Ocean Surface And Air

July 29, 2021

By Dipayan Mitra

Scientists have developed a new artificial intelligence technology that can spot shipwrecks from the ocean surface and also from the air.

The University of Texas collaborated with the United State Navy’s underwater archeology branch to develop this new artificial intelligence software capable of detecting shipwrecks with an accuracy rate of 92%.

The newly developed computer model is now ready to be deployed in order to identify unmapped shipwrecks on the coasts of the United States and Puerto Rico. The artificial intelligence algorithm was fed with images of shipwrecks and underwater topology to enable it to recognize unknown wrecks.

The platform uses images from publicly available databases of pictures collected from various parts of the globe and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s database of shipwrecks. It also uses lidar and sonar-based imageries of the seafloor to carry out its operations more accurately.

Green Friendly, Science & Technology News

This Solar-Powered Robot Is Basically a Beach Cleaning Roomba

July 28, 2021

4ocean partners with Poralu Marine for a more effective way to clear up trash.

The plastic pollution crisis has no doubt devastated ocean ecosystems worldwide. With a continual rise in trash and litter on shorelines, 4ocean has partnered with Poralu Marine to create an effective and sustainable solution for beach cleanups.

The BeBot is essentially a solar-powered, beach cleaning robot specifically designed to recover any coastal plastic debris The electric-powered bot can clean up to 3,000 sqm of beach per hour, making it 20 to 30 times more efficient than cleaning the trash on the beach by hand. Easy to manoeuver and operate, the BeBot can be operated from 950 feet away.