Impact Lab – Page 101 – A Laboratory of the Future Human Experience

Unlocking the Secrets of Ancient Roman Concrete: A Self-Healing Formula for Modern Strength

October 27, 2024

Ancient Roman structures built with concrete have withstood centuries, inspiring researchers to uncover the secret behind their resilience. Unlike today’s Portland cement-based concrete, Roman concrete is known for its incredible durability and even a self-healing ability. This strength has led scientists to seek ways to replicate it, hoping to craft stronger, more sustainable materials for modern use.

Portland cement, developed in the 19th century, is the basis of today’s concrete, but it lacks the robustness of Roman concrete and has a high environmental cost due to its complex production process. Engineers are now exploring concrete alternatives that reduce or eliminate the use of traditional cement.

Robots

Robot-Powered “Spitball Printing” Aims to Revolutionize Sustainable Construction

October 27, 2024

A new “spitball-throwing” robot, developed by a team at ETH Zurich led by Lauren Vasey, could reshape sustainable building practices. This technology, known as impact printing, shoots out a clay-based material at high speed, allowing for quick construction without the need for cement or curing time—a leap forward in reducing construction’s carbon footprint.

The building sector faces mounting pressure to curb CO2 emissions, especially from materials like concrete, which is slow to 3D-print and heavily dependent on cement. “The building sector needs to dramatically decrease our CO2 emissions from new construction and move towards more circular supply chains,” Vasey explained in a video introduction to the technology.

New Discoveries

Record-Breaking Prime Number Discovered: 41 Million Digits Long

October 27, 2024

An amateur researcher and former Nvidia employee, Luke Durant, has uncovered the world’s largest known prime number: 2**136,279,841 – 1, surpassing the previous record-holder (2**82,589,933 – 1) by over 16 million digits.

Prime numbers, indivisible by any other number except 1 and themselves, are considered the “atoms of integers” in mathematics, with smaller examples being 2, 3, 5, and 7. Though primes extend to infinity, finding them becomes increasingly complex as the numbers grow larger. Durant’s discovery was made using the Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search (GIMPS), a free software program designed specifically for identifying large prime numbers. The search for this new prime involved thousands of GPUs operating across 24 data centers in 17 countries—a setup that marks a new era in prime discovery, as past large primes were found primarily with personal computers.

Science & Technology News

KAIST Unveils WalkON Suit F1: A Wearable Robot for Paralyzed Individuals with Self-Walking Assistance

October 26, 2024

Researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have developed an advanced wearable robot, the WalkON Suit F1, designed to provide greater independence for individuals with paraplegia. Announced on October 24, this new version allows users to put on the suit directly from their wheelchairs without needing help from others.

The WalkON Suit series, under development since 2015, targets individuals with the most severe form of paralysis, classified as ASIA Impairment Scale – A (complete paralysis). Unlike other rehabilitation and strength-assisting robots in use, the WalkON Suit F1 is designed specifically to aid independent mobility for people with paraplegia.

Space

Deep Blue Aerospace’s 2027 Suborbital Flight Sells Out in Minutes, Paving the Way for Affordable Space Tourism

October 26, 2024

Jiangsu-based tech startup Deep Blue Aerospace has unveiled plans to send its first passengers on a 12-minute suborbital space journey in 2027, promising at least five minutes of weightlessness before returning to Earth. Tickets for this pioneering trip sold out within 20 minutes during a live-streamed event on e-commerce giant Taobao, sparking significant excitement among China’s emerging space tourism community. The company plans to release additional tickets next month to meet the high demand.

Unlike full orbital flights, this suborbital experience will reach outer space without completing an orbit, allowing travelers to experience weightlessness while keeping the journey relatively short. Deep Blue Aerospace has acknowledged the “complexity and risks” associated with rocket technology and aims to conduct dozens of tests over the next two years to ensure safety and reliability before its commercial launch in 2027.

Health

Apple’s New Health App for Prediabetes: Testing a Future of Personalized Glucose Management

October 26, 2024

Apple is quietly developing a health app designed to support individuals with prediabetes in making healthier dietary and lifestyle choices. According to recent reports, this experimental app was tested earlier this year with select employees, aiming to help users better understand how specific foods impact their blood sugar levels, potentially preventing the onset of Type 2 diabetes.

While it may not be available to the public yet, this app could eventually integrate with Apple’s ongoing work on a noninvasive glucose monitoring system, which has been under development for more than a decade. In the near future, the app could be compatible with wearable glucose sensors, including a possible sensor for the Apple Watch, as well as with existing blood glucose monitors on the market.

Space

Aetherflux’s Bold Vision: Bringing Space-Based Solar Power to Earth

October 25, 2024

The European Space Agency (ESA) has long explored space-based solar power as a potential energy solution, theorizing that solar collection in space—where sunlight is over 10 times more intense than on Earth’s surface—could eventually meet one-third of the EU’s energy needs. ESA’s studies, however, concluded that creating the necessary infrastructure would be astronomically expensive, requiring a geostationary satellite network positioned 36,000 kilometers above Earth and costing hundreds of billions of dollars.

Despite these daunting challenges, one tech entrepreneur, Baiju Bhatt, believes he’s found a more feasible path forward. Bhatt, co-founder of the Robinhood trading app, launched a new venture called Aetherflux after stepping down from Robinhood’s CEO role in 2020. His goal: make space-based solar power affordable and practical, with plans to begin beaming solar energy down to Earth in as little as a year.

AI

Navigating the AI Data Dilemma: Appen’s Report on Data Challenges in Generative AI

October 25, 2024

A new report from AI data provider Appen highlights that companies are increasingly facing challenges in sourcing and managing the high-quality data essential for powering AI systems. Appen’s 2024 State of AI report, surveying over 500 U.S. IT decision-makers, reveals a 17% increase in generative AI adoption over the past year. However, organizations now confront significant hurdles in data preparation and quality, with a 10% rise in bottlenecks related to data sourcing, cleaning, and labeling.

“As AI models take on more complex and specialized tasks, their data needs also shift,” said Si Chen, Head of Strategy at Appen, in an interview with VentureBeat. “Companies are realizing that it’s no longer enough to have lots of data. For optimal model performance, data must be high-quality, meaning accurate, diverse, well-labeled, and tailored to specific AI applications.”

Science & Technology News

SpinLaunch: Revolutionizing Satellite Launches with Kinetic Energy

October 23, 2024

A California-based company, SpinLaunch, is turning heads with its groundbreaking satellite launch system, capturing the imagination of space enthusiasts and even Punkin Chunkin fans. SpinLaunch’s innovative approach uses a massive rotating arm to hurl satellites into low Earth orbit, eliminating the need for traditional rocket fuel and relying solely on electricity.

The company has already achieved multiple successful test launches. “This is not a rocket, and clearly our ability to perform this many tests within 11 months, all functioning as planned, really showcases the power of our technology,” said Jonathan Yaney, founder and CEO of SpinLaunch, in a 2022 interview with Space.com after the company’s 10th successful test launch. SpinLaunch aims to deploy satellite constellations into orbits below 600 miles by 2026.

Health

New Therapy Offers Hope for Insulin-Free Type 2 Diabetes Treatment

October 23, 2024

A groundbreaking treatment for Type 2 diabetes may eliminate the need for insulin injections, offering new hope for patients. In a recent clinical trial, 86% of participants were able to stop using insulin after just a few weeks of therapy. The promising results were presented at the United European Gastroenterology’s annual conference.

The innovative treatment combines an existing drug, semaglutide, with a novel procedure known as re-cellularization via electroporation therapy (ReCET). Semaglutide, a medication used to mimic the effects of the GLP-1 hormone, helps regulate blood sugar levels in Type 2 diabetes patients. ReCET, performed via endoscopy, delivers small electrical pulses to the stomach’s mucosal lining, improving the body’s sensitivity to naturally-occurring insulin.

Climate Change

The Great Green Wall: Africa’s Bold Initiative to Combat Desertification and Climate Change

October 23, 2024

In the heart of Africa, an ambitious and visionary project is underway to tackle the pressing challenges of desertification, climate change, and biodiversity loss. This initiative, known as the Great Green Wall, aims to plant an 8,000-kilometer-long and 15-kilometer-wide wall of trees across the continent, stretching from Senegal in the west to Djibouti in the east. Beyond reforestation, the Great Green Wall is a symbol of hope and resilience for Africa, with a mission to restore degraded land, sequester carbon, and create green jobs.

Conceived in 2007 by the African Union, the project addresses the threat of the expanding Sahara Desert, which has swallowed fertile land and displaced communities across the Sahel region. The initiative aims to restore 100 million hectares of degraded land, capture 250 million tons of carbon, and create 10 million jobs by 2030. Through planting trees, shrubs, and grasses, the project seeks to reverse land degradation and desertification in one of the poorest and most vulnerable regions of the world.

AI

Beam Unveils World’s First AI-Driven Autonomous Underwater Vehicle for Offshore Inspections

October 22, 2024

Deep technology company Beam has launched the world’s first AI-powered autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV), revolutionizing underwater inspections by improving efficiency and reducing costs in sectors like offshore wind energy. The AUV operates autonomously to perform complex underwater inspections, enhancing the speed and accuracy of offshore surveys.

Beam’s innovative AUV has already been successfully deployed at the Seagreen wind farm, Scotland’s largest offshore site, a joint venture between SSE Renewables, TotalEnergies, and PTTEP. Brian Allen, CEO of Beam, said, “Automation can revolutionize how we carry out inspection and maintenance of offshore wind farms, helping to reduce both costs and timelines.”