Breakthrough Thinking, Business, Current Events, Economy, Historical Perspectives, Money Talk

Crowdtilt Launches To Become The “Kickstarter For Any Group”

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Kickstarter has spawned a whole new generation of funding potential.

Inherently, we like doing things in groups, as it makes our experiences more social. It’s not about what we’re doing so much as who we’re doing it with that makes our experiences enjoyable. Group messaging took off two years ago, overrunning SXSW, as a better way to keep groups of people engaged; Kickstarter has grown like a week thanks to the power of the crowd lending legs to fledgling projects that need quick capital to get off the ground.

A new startup launching today called Crowdtilt is taking a page out of Kickstarter’s book, riffing on “crowdfunding,” but instead choosing to call itself “groupfunding” or a “Kickstarter for groups of friends.”

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Analysis, Animals, Big Problems, Breakthrough Thinking, Crazy Stuff, Education, Entertainment, Historical Perspectives

Scientist Catches Bear-Eating Snake in the Act

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22.6-foot reticulated python, shot by Kekek Aduanan (in hat) on June 9, 1970. Photo by Thomas N. Headland

Earlier this week a team of scientists from several universities and the US Geological Survey released a study documenting the dramatically declining numbers of small and medium-size mammals in Florida – including raccoons, opossums, white-tailed deer, bobcats, rabbits and foxes. These population drops all occur in the same areas where pythons and other large, non-native snakes have taken up residence after escaping from one stop or another in the wildlife trade supply chain.

Anyone who’s even heard only the most basic facts about constrictor snakes knows that they’re formidable predators and take down prey by grasping it in their powerful jaws, coiling their bodies around it, and squeezing until it suffocates. Devouring bunnies and possums isn’t even the half of it, though. These big snakes aren’t shy about going after much larger, more dangerous game, too. Like men. And bears…

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Analysis, Current Events, Education, Global Warming, Globalism

Over past four years, new vehicles became 14% more fuel-efficient in U.S.A.

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Another step ahead.

After what seemed like an eternity of mostly stagnation, average fuel economy for new vehicles has been going up in the United States. Researchers at the University of Michigan have conducted a study showing that for current model year vehicles, fuel economy is 14% higher than just four years ago, which might not sound like much, but it’s much better than what we’ve got in the recent past.

The study concludes that average fuel economy…

Continue reading… “Over past four years, new vehicles became 14% more fuel-efficient in U.S.A.”

Analysis, Breakthrough Thinking, Business, Latest Trend, New Viewpoints, People Making a Difference, Science & Technology News

Dismantling of our Power Industry Infrastructure

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Photo of me demonstrating an unuual thermoelectric generator
with NY Times Correspondent Matthew Wald

Futurist Thomas Frey: On Wednesday I was invited to speak on a panel at the 2012 National Electricity Forum, an event sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, in Washington DC.

Continue reading… “Dismantling of our Power Industry Infrastructure”

Analysis, Animals, Brain, Health & Fitness, Medical Breakthrough, Science & Technology News

Skin cancer drug reverses Alzheimer’s in mice

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Skin cancer drug reverses Alzheimer’s in mice, is there hope for humans?

A laboratory study indicates that a drug commonly used to fight skin cancer could start to reverse Alzheimer’s disease in a matter of hours. Researchers have described the discovery as an “unprecedented finding” that holds out “the potential promise of a therapy for Alzheimer’s”.

Analysis, Food, Historical Perspectives

The top ten instant noodles in the world

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Not all instant noodles are the same.

The noodle is a type of food, made from any of a variety of dough, which is rolled flat and cut into long thin ribbons, strips, waves, helices, tubes, strings, shells, or other various shapes, sometimes folded. They are usually cooked in a mixture of boiling water and/or oil, but are often pan fried or deep fried. Depending upon the type, noodles may be dried or refrigerated before cooking.

The top ten list is after the jump..

Continue reading… “The top ten instant noodles in the world”

Current Events, Entertainment, Historical Perspectives, Latest News

New Kickstarter record set as double fine game hits $400K in 8 hours, $1M in a day

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Breakthrough project.

If you played PC games in the 90s, chances are you played some of Tim Schafer’s work. He worked on the Monkey Island Series and Day of the Tentacle, later going on to create such classics as Grim Fandango and Psychonauts. He recently took to Kickstarter to try and score some funding for a new point-and-click adventure game, as most publishers would consider the genre more or less untouchable these days.

He figured there were enough people out there who wanted a new adventure game that they could scrape together $400,000. That was last night. They hit their goal in 8 hours, and are likely to break a million dollars before the end of the day. In fact, just since I started this post, I’ve had to adjust the headline to reflect an additional $50,000 $70,000 $100,000 that has been pledged…

Continue reading… “New Kickstarter record set as double fine game hits $400K in 8 hours, $1M in a day”

Analysis, Brain, Breakthrough Thinking, Education, Historical Perspectives, New Discoveries

Memory strengthened by stimulating key site in brain

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UCLA neuroscientists have demonstrated that they can strengthen memory in
human patients by stimulating a critical junction in the brain.

Ever gone to the movies and forgotten where you parked the car? New UCLA research may one day help you improve your memory.

UCLA neuroscientists have demonstrated that they can strengthen memory in human patients by stimulating a critical junction in the brain. Published in the Feb. 9 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine, the finding could lead to a new method for boosting memory in patients with early Alzheimer’s disease…

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Art, Breakthrough Thinking, Health & Fitness, Historical Perspectives, Latest News, New Viewpoints

3D Printing For Fun And Medical Applications

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3D printing goes medical.

3d printing continues to take us boldly into the brave new world of the 21st century, and not surprisingly medical applications are at the top of the innovation ladder, since replacement parts are always in demand.

Recently, an entire mandible was created in a 3d printer by mixing titanium with the printing compound, and an elderly woman got a new lease on life thanks to the 3d printing of this replacement part. Here’s the scoop…

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Analysis, Globalism, Historical Perspectives, Science & Technology News

Amasia – the next supercontinent

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A prediction of the future supercontinent, Amasia.

The Earth has been covered by supercontinents, giant combinations of continents, many times in its past, and it will be again one day in the distant future. The next predicted supercontinent, dubbed Amasia, may form when the Americas and Asia both drift northward to merge, closing off the Arctic Ocean, researchers suggest. (video)

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