Impact Lab – Page 344 – A Laboratory of the Future Human Experience

New technology gives smart cars ‘X-ray’ vision, detecting hidden pedestrians, cyclists

November 8, 2021

CP-enabled vehicle detects cyclist behind bus.

Australian researchers have developed disruptive technology allowing autonomous vehicles to track running pedestrians hidden behind buildings, and cyclists obscured by larger cars, trucks, and buses.

The autonomous vehicle uses game changing technology that allows it to “see” the world around it, including using X-ray style vision that penetrates through to pedestrians in blind spots and to detect cyclists obscured by fast-moving vehicles.

The iMOVE Cooperative Research Centre-funded project collaborating with the University of Sydney’s Australian Centre for Field Robotics and Australian connected vehicle solutions company Cohda Wireless has just released its new findings in a final report following three years of research and development.

The technology’s applications, which are being commercialized by Cohda, involve an emerging and promising technology for intelligent transportation systems (ITS) called cooperative or collective perception (CP).

Cancer

New Drug-Like Molecule Counteracts Epigenetic Drivers of Cancer

November 8, 2021

A decade ago, genome sequencing revealed a big surprise: about 50 percent of human cancers are linked to mutations in what are known as epigenetic regulators, which control the activity of genes.

In a new study in Cell Chemical Biology, a team of scientists led by Oliver Bell from USC and Stephen V. Frye from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill developed a new drug-like molecule that can counteract the effects of mutated epigenetic regulators, which are known to drive certain types of cancer including lymphoma.

Alternative Transportation

This High-Speed Hydrogen Fuel Cell Catamaran Is a Game-Changer for Public Transport

November 8, 2021

by Otilia Drăgan

High-speed ferries can be an excellent alternative for commuting in cities that have access to inland waterways. Still, the problem is that they also burn a lot of fuel, which is bad for the environment and costly. With this in mind, two Swedish companies have joined forces to develop a high-speed catamaran that is also emissions-free.

Beluga24 could become the world’s first zero-emissions, high-speed catamaran for public transportation. Green City Ferries AB, a Stockholm-based systems integrator for waterborne transportation, wants to revolutionize this mobility sector with an electric ferry that also boasts high performance and significantly reduced operating costs.

This is how the Beluga24 was born, designed by Teknicraft in New Zealand and Studio Sculli in Italy. Green City Ferries built this catamaran’s foil-assisted hull from carbon fiber, which is known to be lightweight yet very efficient. It’s meant to be a comfortable commuter, with enough space for 150 passengers and 28 bikes. By being smaller and lighter than standard ferries, it can reduce operating costs and enable more frequent trips.

Robots, Science & Technology News

Skyscraper Window Washing Robots Are Here to Take Over One of Our Most Terrifying Jobs

November 8, 2021

Window washers are the next in line to see their jobs replaced by robots.

ByAndrew Liszewski

Even if they’re not afraid of heights, it still takes someone with nerves of steel to work as a window washer, dangling a hundred floors above the ground with a squeegee in hand. A company called Skyline Robotics wants to make window washing much safer because instead of humans, the lift that’s lowered down the side of a building is staffed with robots instead.

According to Skyline Robotics, the window cleaning industry, including those towering structures dotting the skylines of major metropolises, is a lucrative business with over $40 billion in revenue every year. The problem is that 74% of trained window washers are over 40 years old, and there’s not enough young blood to replace them. It’s easy to see why that’s the case. As anyone who’s ever seen the local news reporting on a daring window washer rescue already knows. It’s a risky gig, even if it comes with amazing views. One possible solution? Enter the robots.

Blockchain

The United States will become the global crypto and blockchain leader

November 8, 2021

The United States is rapidly embracing decentralized finance, the cryptocurrency sector and the innovative industry of blockchain technology.

We have some great news coming out of the United States on the cryptocurrency industry this month with potentially more good news coming later this fall.

On Oct. 6, Gary Gensler, head of the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), confirmed during a House Committee on Financial Services hearing that the regulator will not ban cryptocurrency, potentially blazing the path for the world’s largest economy to become the global leader in the development of decentralized finance (DeFi) and blockchain technologies.

Gensler, who taught a class on cryptocurrency at MIT, also said that prohibiting cryptocurrency doesn’t fall under the SEC’s mandate and the only way to legally ban digital assets would be through Congress.

“It’s a matter of how we get this field within the investor consumer protection that we have and also working with bank regulators and others — how do we ensure that the Treasury Department has it within Anti-Money Laundering, tax compliance,” Gensler said. He also added:

Alternative Transportation, Science & Technology News

THIS AUTONOMOUS, ROBOTIC BOAT COULD TRANSFORM A CITY’S WATERWAYS

November 7, 2021

The Roboat is sailing now in the canals of Amsterdam, with visions for picking up waste and serving as temporary bridges or floating performance spaces.

In Amsterdam, autonomous, electric boats are navigating the city’s vast network of canals, ready to ferry passengers as a water taxi, collect trash as part of a waste management system, deliver packages, or even turn into a temporary bridge or floating stage. It’s a kind of dynamic infrastructure that can adapt to the needs of a city as they change, and help Amsterdam decongest its streets and better use its waterways.

The robotic boat, called Roboat, is a project from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) and Senseable City Laboratory, with the Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Metropolitan Solutions. A research project about six years in the making, two Roboats are now entering the water, ready for people to use them.

Space Flight

US Scientists Are Producing Rocket Fuel Using Microbes on Mars

November 7, 2021

Rocket engines departing Mars are currently planned to be fueled by methane and liquid oxygen (LOX).

While the bioproduction process would use three resources native to the Red Planet — carbon dioxide, sunlight, and frozen water — two microbes will be transported from Earth to Mars.

US researchers have developed a technique that would help astronomers develop Martian rocket fuel using microbes on the Red Planet. While the bioproduction process would use three resources native to the Red Planet — carbon dioxide, sunlight, and frozen water — two microbes will be transported from Earth to Mars.

The first is cyanobacteria (algae), which would take CO2 from the Martian atmosphere and use sunlight to create sugars, and second an engineered E. coli which will convert those sugars into a Mars-specific propellant for rockets and other propulsion devices, said a team led by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

The Martian propellant, which is called 2,3-butanediol, is currently in existence and can be created by E. coli, they explained in the paper, published in the journal Nature Communications. On Earth, it is used to make polymers for production of rubber.

Electric Vehicles

Segway introduces Apex H2 electric-hydrogen hybrid prototype

November 7, 2021

On track for a 2023 release date.

By: Dustin Wheelen Published by: Brian Potter

When Segway unveiled its Apex H2 electric-hydrogen hybrid concept in April, 2021, it attracted many a naysayer—including us. While a hydrogen-powered motorcycle still seems out of the realm of feasibility in this day and age, that isn’t stopping Ninebot from pushing the Segway Apex H2 project forward.

Of course, most sceptics labelled the concept vaporware based not only on the fuel source but also due to the fact that the brand only offered rendered images. Now, Segway presents the Apex H2 in the flesh with a new prototype that remains surprisingly faithful to the original design.

3D Printer

3D printing technology aids hip joint implant repair

November 5, 2021

By Cai Wenjun

Doctors from Shanghai No. 9 People’s Hospital created a 3D printing design and equipment for surgery and reconstruction to repair hip implants for long-term stability.

“A novel revision system for complex pelvic defects utilizing 3D-printed custom prosthesis” was published in the Journal of Orthopaedic Translation.

Total hip arthroplasty is one of the most successful surgeries of the 20th century. However, problems like loose implants, infections, fractures and deposition of implants can result in the need for repeated implant repair surgery.

Higher Education, Science & Technology News

College enrollment is lower now than it’s been at any time in the last half-century

November 5, 2021

Jesse James Oct 26th, 2021 3:31 pm

You know college—the hugely expensive four-to-six year investment of time and resources that many students spend their entire lifetimes paying off? Yeah for some reason more people are opting out of it.

College enrollment was supposed to bounce back this fall. Instead, more students opted out.

Nationwide, fewer students went back to school again this year, dragging undergraduate enrollment down another 3.2% from last year, according to a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center that’s based on early data from colleges. There were roughly 17.5 million students enrolled as of the last tally.

Robots

LionsBot Launches ‘King-Size’ Autonomous Cleaning Robot

November 5, 2021

By Alex McFarland

Singapore-headquartered smart robotics company LionsBot has released its first ‘king-sized’ autonomous cleaning robot for large commercial spaces. The scrubbing robot called Rex was designed with the aim to “empower the cleaning workforce and to keep them safe.”

Rex was engineered specifically for commercial and industrial settings like airports, warehouses, convention centres, and carparks. It is designed for ease of operation and accessibility, and it allows a single cleaner to handle multiple cleaning robots simultaneously through the LionsClean app. This frees up their time to focus on higher value tasks.

Batteries, Science & Technology News

Tesla’s prototype battery with 5 times more energy storage comes to life at Panasonic

November 4, 2021

The Japanese company revealed the prototype in an effort to fulfill Tesla’s future battery dreams.

By Sean Szymkowski

Tesla long promised big changes for its future batteries, and Panasonic hopes its latest prototype battery will deliver for the electric carmaker. On Monday, Automotive News reported on the Japanese company’s new prototype battery created specifically for Tesla. It promises fives times more energy storage, which may increase ranges significantly.

In addition to more energy, the battery will cost 50% less to produce and help boost battery production at Panasonic “100-fold,” by 2030, according to the report. These three elements could produce a game-changing battery pack for Tesla with a lower cost and more range at the core of EV adoption hurdles. Panasonic did not immediately return a request for comment and more information on the prototype battery. Tesla does not operate a public relations department to field requests for comment.