Markus Hatzenbichler and Klaus Stadlmann with their micro-printer.
A group of engineers at the Vienna Institute of Technology, claims they’ve created not only the world’s smallest 3-D printer, but also one that’s so light and inexpensive that it could conceivably pave the way for truly domestic 3-D printing. Lost an earring or a cuff-link? Print one out. That’s the future, and it might not be far off at all.
Gliese 581 and its exoplanets are only 20 light years away.
One of our own solar system’s closest neighboring stars and a regular point of exoplanetary interest, the red dwarf Gliese 581, can finally claim the title of owning the first confirmed potentially-habitable expolanet. French researchers running complex computer models have demonstrated that the planet Gliese 581d–once thought too cold to sustain life–indeed could possess the proper ingredients to sustain liquid water and an atmosphere.
Continue reading… “First Potentially Habitable Exoplanet Found”
Expanding our thinking about the notion of
corporate-run community libraries
Futurist Thomas Frey: Consider the following scenario. Two years from now in November, you find yourself walking into a voting booth to decide on the fate of your local library. The issue you will be deciding affects you directly because it has to do with the management of your local library. You will be voting on one of four choices for the operational management of your library. The choices you have to pick from include Microsoft, Google, Apple, or your current city-run operation.
Heavy alcohol consumption makes it more difficult to build new memories.
Binge drinking not only makes you forget what you did the night before but also the day before that – and the day before that, a study suggests. Researchers have found that a big night out destroys long term memory even in young adults.
Obesity ‘master switch’ found.
A gene linked to diabetes and cholesterol has been found by scientists. It is a “master switch” that controls other genes found in fat in the body, and say it should help in the search for treatments for obesity-related diseases.
Sales tax is a a system that is now on the verge of collapse
Futurist Thomas Frey: As a general rule, extreme levels of complexity take a significant toll on society. The price we pay for complexity is far greater than the money involved. With upwards of 90,000 separate taxing districts in the U.S. sales tax has become an overly complicated system deeply entrenched in the fabric of society, but woefully out of touch with the times.
Matt Drudge
The No. 1 source of referral traffic to major news sites in the United States is Google. Google provides approximately 30% of the traffic to these sites.
Continue reading… “Matt Drudge – Most Powerful Man on the Web”
The results of the tests might also be of interest to companies offering life-insurance policies or medical coverage.
A controversial blood test that can show how fast someone is aging – and offers the tantalizing possibility of estimating how long they have left to live – is to go on sale to the general public in Britain later this year.
Continue reading… “Controversial $615 Test That Tells You How Long You Will Live”
Futurist Thomas Frey: Consider the following scenario. Over the next few years, several major cities in the U.S. will begin to impose a ban on all new residential and commercial construction. With populations declining in numerous metro areas, they will worry openly about becoming the next Detroit with abandoned neighborhoods signaling a rapid decline in property values.
The Joe and Rika Mansueto Library
The University of Chicago will be opening a new library tomorrow that will use a massive automated retrieval system, turning the whole library experience on it’s head. The Joe and Rika Mansueto Library is designed to accommodate the way people study and research today — online. The structure’s large spaces are made for computer work and have no traditional bookshelves. (pics and video)
Continue reading… “University of Chicago to Open Library of the Future”
Green Bank Telescope
In rural West Virginia, a massive radio telescope has begun listening for signs of alien life on 86 possible Earth-like planets, US astronomers said Friday.
Continue reading… “Astonomers Begin Search for Alien Life on 86 Planets”
Experimenting Our Way to Success – Reinventing Publishing Models
Futurist Thomas Frey: Amazon revolutionized book reading in 2007 when it introduced its Kindle book reader. Within the past three years, the explosive sale of book readers has caused a massive surge in the sale of e-books, already outpacing the sale of hardcover books, with a prediction by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos that they will outsell paperbacks within the next year.
Continue reading… “The Fall of Book Publishing: The Rise of New E-Book Business Models”