Impact Lab – Page 257 – A Laboratory of the Future Human Experience

Tesla

Tesla now can produce cars with just a few massive parts with MIT’s innovative 3D-printed metal

October 17, 2022

“Take Materials Science 101. You won’t regret it.”

Newly 3D printed metal could be used by Tesla to produce all-electric vehicles with just a few massive parts, thanks to two MIT students.

Announced very recently, the new sort of steel was created by MIT undergraduates and their graduate student mentor in Germany, not for the construction of the cars but for the die-casting molds that stamp them out in just a few distinct pieces.

MIT junior Ian Chen and Kyle Markland managed to produce a 3D-printable steel alloy inspired by a manufacturing approach called Giga-casting, popularized by carmaker Tesla and used to assemble the all-electric Model Y.

Chen and Markland’s project is inspired by Gregory Olson, the Thermo-Calc Professor of Practice at MIT, who teaches Computational Materials Design.

Olson is a world-renowned expert in computational materials science, which employs computer modeling and simulation to understand and design new materials. His methodology was used by Apple to develop the Apple Watch, and it piqued the interest of Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

Space

Lynk to Launch World’s First Cellular 5G From Space Payload

October 17, 2022

First of its kind payload will transmit Cellular 5G from Space

Lynk Global, (Lynk), the world’s leading satellite-direct-to-standard-phone telecoms company, will fly the world’s first 5G cellular base station in space in a first-of-its-kind demonstration. This test will demonstrate the ability to send a 5G signal from space to standard mobile devices on Earth. The test has been funded by an undisclosed partner.

Charles Miller, CEO and co-founder of Lynk, said “Lynk’s fast development cycle, combined with our unique patented and proven technology to connect satellites in orbit to standard mobile phones on Earth, allows Lynk to quickly build and test the world’s most advanced cellular technologies in space.”

Lynk is the only company in the world to demonstrate satellite-direct-to-standard-mobile-phone technology. Earlier this month, Lynk received the world’s first satellite-direct-to-phone commercial license from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Lynk has also patented the ability to connect to existing standard 5G devices on Earth, with no change to the 5G device, in 55 countries. The 5G payload will launch in December 2022 on Lynk’s second commercial satellite.

AI

Smart helmet for firefighters uses sensors and AI to rescue victims faster

October 16, 2022

By Oceane Duboust

Researchers in Scotland have developed a helmet that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help firefighters find and rescue victims faster.

The team, from the newly opened National Robotarium in Edinburgh, designed the device using sensors, thermal cameras and radar technology.

The equipment aims to help firefighters navigate in a smoke-filled environment, map their surroundings and ultimately rescue victims more quickly.

“Firefighters are heroes. Everyone knows that. But what we are doing is (…) we also want them to have this superhero ability: see through smoke, see through darkness and have this ability to find effective solutions for search and rescue,” said Chris Xiaoxuan Lu, Lecturer in Cyber-Physical Systems at the School of Informatics of the University of Edinburgh.

“It will definitely improve the safety for firefighters from multiple dimensions. We already talk about victim searching. We also talk about navigation together with all the sensor units,” he added.

Alternative Transportation

Wisk Aero’s latest flying taxi has four seats and can fly itself

October 16, 2022

It calls the four-passenger craft a ‘candidate for FAA certification.’

By S. Dent

Wisk Aero has unveiled its 6th-generation semi-autonomous air taxi, calling it the “first-ever candidate for type certification by the FAA of an autonomous eVTOL.” The design looks like a substantially updated version of the “Cora” air taxi we first saw fly and hover in New Zealand back in 2018. However, the company didn’t show any flight or detail the certification progress.

According to Wisk, the four-seat aircraft can cruise between 110 and 120 knots (138 MPH) at a height of 2,500 to 4,000 feet above ground level. It’s a VTOL (vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft with a 12-propeller design, featuring tilting propulsion units in front and fixed units aft for lift. It offers up to 90 miles of range and has improved control and efficient energy management over previous versions, according to the press release.

Batteries

Researchers fabricate miniaturized bionic ocean-battery

October 16, 2022

The structure comparison of the marine microbial ecosystems and the miniaturized bionic ocean-battery. Both systems possess same physical structure (water column layer and sediment layer) and same ecological structure (primary producers, primary degraders, and ultimate consumers). The marine microbial ecosystems are huge with the average depth exceeding 4000 m, while the miniaturized bionic ocean-battery was compacted in a vessel with a depth of 5 cm, thus accelerating the electron flow by shortening the electron transfer distance. In marine microbial ecosystems, especially in anaerobic sediments, the highly diversified microbial species and their complex interactions make the electron flow dispersed to various microbially mediated biogeochemical processes, i.e., elemental cycles. In contrast, the miniaturized bionic ocean-battery fabricated using the synthetic community only contains four microbial species connected by the specific energy carriers. This simplified structure targetedly directs electrons towards the only target, i.e., electrical current.

By Zhang Nannan

The researchers from the Institute of Microbiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a miniaturized bionic ocean-battery, a bio-solar cell that converts light into electricity, by mimicking the basic ecological structure of marine microbial ecosystems. This study was published in Nature Communications.

Oceans cover about 70% of the Earth’s surface area. From the perspective of energy, marine ecosystems are a huge solar energy bioconversion system in which microorganisms dominate the energy conversion processes.

Energy conversion in marine ecosystems begins with photosynthesis. Photosynthetic microorganisms, called primary producers, located in the euphotic zone of water column, absorb solar energy and convert photons into electrons that are used to fix carbon dioxide into organic matter. The organic matter is partly consumed by plankton living in the water column and partly deposited into the marine sediments where facultative anaerobic or strictly anaerobic microorganisms mineralize the complex organic matter to carbon dioxide through successive oxidation.

Alternative Transportation

SkyDrive Unveils SD-05 Flying Car Design, Aiming to Begin Air Taxi Service in 2025

October 15, 2022

TOYOTA, Japan, Sept. 30, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — SkyDrive Inc. has unveiled the design of its commercial model flying car — the SkyDrive SD-05.

SkyDrive is planning to use the SD-05, currently in development, to launch air taxi service in the Osaka Bay area during the world exposition scheduled for 2025 in Osaka, Japan.

“This is another big step towards the realization of flying cars and sky roads,” said Takumi Yamamoto, SkyDrive design director. “Two years have passed since the announcement of the SD-03, which successfully completed its public manned flight test in August 2020, and we are very happy to be able to announce its successor, the SD-05.”

Headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, SkyDrive is a leading developer and manufacturer of flying cars (*1) and cargo drones in Japan.

Stem cells

Scientists Create Mini-Brain Organoids Using Stem Cells

October 15, 2022

By Joseph Henry

Scientists have developed miniature organs similar to the human brain.

The so-called organoids are all lab-grown and these models are said to be an important part of discovering more findings in neuroscience such as mental disorders and their development.

Medicine

Robot pill could help replace insulin injections for diabetics

October 15, 2022

A robotic pill could replace the need for diabetics to regularly inject themselves with insulin

By Mark Waghorn

A robot pill that delivers insulin directly to the gut could replace multiple painful injections for people with diabetes.

It can also deliver antibiotics – offering hope of battling superbugs with oral medications.

For patients and physicians, taking treatments by mouth is most desirable. Swallowing is safer, more convenient and less invasive.

But they drugs often cannot withstand stomach acids before unleashing their payloads for the intended effects. The degradation makes them less effective.

The capsule, called RoboCap, could revolutionise therapy. In a swine model, it increased permeability for insulin more than tenfold.

Similar results were seen for vancomycin – an antibiotic that is usually delivered intravenously.

Lead author Dr Giovanni Traverso, of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US, said: ‘Peptides and proteins are important drugs.

‘But the degradative environment of the gastrointestinal tract and poor absorption has limited the ability to deliver these drugs orally.’

Driverless cars

Lyft plans ‘fully autonomous future’ as it starts driverless car rides to customers in Austin, Texas

October 15, 2022

Riders in Austin, Texas can now select an autonomous vehicle in the Lyft app to help them get around their city.

BY MARK ALLINSON

This marks the first time that a commercial autonomous service is available in Austin, Texas and marks the third city where Lyft riders can hail an autonomous ride along with Miami, Florida and Las Vegas, Nevada.

Most people’s first autonomous vehicle experience will be on a ride hailing network like Lyft. For riders in Austin, this new ride mode looks just like any other Lyft ride. Riders can hail an autonomous vehicle (a Ford self-driving car powered by Argo AI technology) directly in the Lyft app for the same price as a normal Lyft ride.

Riders will be able to control their ride without the assistance of a driver. When their vehicle arrives, the rider can unlock the doors, start their ride, and even contact customer support all from within the Lyft app.

At this time, a rider will also be accompanied by two safety operators, as Lyft says it prepares for a “fully autonomous future”.

Cancer

Wearable Sensor Promises More Efficient Early Cancer Drug Development

October 15, 2022

Posted on September 27th, 2022 by Lawrence Tabak, D.D.S., Ph.D.

Wearable electronic sensors hold tremendous promise for improving human health and wellness. That promise already runs the gamut from real-time monitoring of blood pressure and abnormal heart rhythms to measuring alcohol consumption and even administering vaccines.

Now a new study published in the journal Science Advances [1] demonstrates the promise of wearables also extends to the laboratory. A team of engineers has developed a flexible, adhesive strip that, at first glance, looks like a Band-Aid. But this “bandage” actually contains an ultra-sensitive, battery-operated sensor that’s activated when placed on the skin of mouse models used to study possible new cancer drugs.

This sensor is so sensitive that it can detect, in real time, changes in the size of a tumor down to one-hundredth of a millimeter. That’s about the thickness of the plastic cling wrap you likely have in your kitchen! The device beams those measures to a smartphone app, capturing changes in tumor growth minute by minute over time.

The goal is to determine much sooner—and with greater automation and precision—which potential drug candidates undergoing early testing in the lab best inhibit tumor growth and, consequently, should be studied further. In their studies in mouse models of cancer, researchers found the new sensor could detect differences between tumors treated with an active drug and those treated with a placebo within five hours. Those quick results also were validated using more traditional methods to confirm their accuracy.

Space Flight

HAL to advance India’s space race with launch of new cryogenic engine facility

October 15, 2022

By Anthony Wright

A new state-of-the-art cryogenic engine manufacturing facility is set to be inaugurated by the President of India, Droupadi Murmu in Bengaluru today (27^th September).

Commissioned by Indian aerospace company Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), the 4500m² Integrated Cryogenic Engine Manufacturing Facility (ICMF) will be used to manufacture and test cryogenic (CE20) and semi-cryogenic (SE2000) engines for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

The most widely used engines for launch vehicles designed to send rockets into space, cryogenic engines are highly complex and only a handful of countries are involved in their manufacture.

In 2014, India successfully flew the GSLV-D5 launch vehicle with a cryogenic engine built by ISRO, which led to it becoming just the sixth country to develop cryogenic engines.

ISRO and HAL signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in 2013 to enable HAL’s Aerospace Division to manufacture cryogenic engine modules.

Robots

Chipotle is moving its tortilla robot to a real restaurant | Engadget

October 13, 2022

Chipotle’s tortilla-making robot will soon help out in a restaurant you can visit. The chain has unveiled a slew of technology updates that include moving the Miso Robotics-made Chippy robot to a real restaurant. The machine will start cooking tortilla chips in a Fountain Valley, California location in October. Feedback from customers and workers will help the company decide on a national rollout.

Artificial intelligence will influence some human cooks, too. Chipotle is piloting a demand-based cooking system that uses AI to tell staff what and when to cook based on forecasts for how much they’ll need. In theory, this lightens the load for employees while making sure there’s enough freshly-cooked tacos and burritos when you show up for dinner. The pilot is underway at eight Orange County, California restaurants.