Space Flight

US Scientists Are Producing Rocket Fuel Using Microbes on Mars

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.

Continue reading… “US Scientists Are Producing Rocket Fuel Using Microbes on Mars”
Electric Vehicles

Segway introduces Apex H2 electric-hydrogen hybrid prototype

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.

Continue reading… “Segway introduces Apex H2 electric-hydrogen hybrid prototype”
3D Printer

3D printing technology aids hip joint implant repair

 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.

Continue reading… “3D printing technology aids hip joint implant repair”
Higher Education, Science & Technology News

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


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.

Continue reading… “College enrollment is lower now than it’s been at any time in the last half-century”
Robots

LionsBot Launches ‘King-Size’ Autonomous Cleaning Robot

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. 

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Batteries, Science & Technology News

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

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.

Continue reading… “Tesla’s prototype battery with 5 times more energy storage comes to life at Panasonic”
quantum computing

China’s New Quantum Computer Has 1 Million Times the Power of Google’s

And they say it’s the world’s fastest.

By  Brad Bergan

It appears a quantum computer rivalry is growing between the U.S. and China.

Physicists in China claim they’ve constructed two quantum computers with performance speeds that outrival competitors in the U.S., debuting a superconducting machine, in addition to an even speedier one that uses light photons to obtain unprecedented results, according to a recent study published in the peer-reviewed journals Physical Review Letters and Science Bulletin.

China has exaggerated the capabilities of its technology before, but such soft spins are usually tagged to defense tech, which means this new feat could be the real deal.

Continue reading… “China’s New Quantum Computer Has 1 Million Times the Power of Google’s”
Food

THE USDA JUST MADE ITS FIRST INVESTMENT IN LAB-GROWN MEAT

In its first investment into the lab-grown meat space, the USDA awarded $10 million to Tufts University to establish the National Institute for Cellular Agriculture.

by ANNA STAROSTINETSKAYA

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) just made its first investment in the lab-grown meat industry. The government agency will award $10 million over the course of five years to Tufts University to establish the National Institute for Cellular Agriculture, a flagship American cultivated protein research center. The project aims to create a more resilient food system by developing “outreach, extension, and education for the next generation of professionals” in the field of cellular agriculture—which revolves around the use of a small amount of animal cells to create real meat and other animal proteins, replacing the environmentally damaging practice of raising and slaughtering animals for food. 

“USDA’s historic funding for a National Institute for Cellular Agriculture is an important advancement for cultivated meat research and science,” Appropriations Committee Chair Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) said in a statement. “I am pleased that USDA’s leadership continues to recognize the important role these technologies can play in combating climate change and adding much needed resiliency to our food system.”

Continue reading… “THE USDA JUST MADE ITS FIRST INVESTMENT IN LAB-GROWN MEAT”
Aviation

UK’s Heathrow Airport to Begin Operating 200 MPH Electric Air Taxis by 2025

by Otilia Drăgan

UK’s Heathrow airport is gearing up to operate electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles. In just a few years, zero-emissions air taxis could become day-to-day reality. 

Vertical Aerospace believes it has more conditional pre-orders for its eVTOL than most companies in this industry, reaching up to 1,350 aircraft worth $5.4 billion. American Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, Avolon, Bristow Group, and Iberojet are some of its global customers. In addition, the company has now taken a significant step in the UK by teaming up with a hub airport. 

Vertical and Heathrow will begin working on the adequate framework for future eVTOL operations, from airport infrastructure and regulatory changes that need to be made to analyzing the potential impact on the surrounding communities and job opportunities. According to Vertical, some of the airlines operating at Heathrow are interested in supporting the development of eVTOL technology and bringing it to the public.

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Employment

Nearly 2 in 3 women who left the workforce during Covid plan to return—and most want to enter this field


By Jennifer Liu

Women have born the brunt of job loss and negative career impacts over the course of the pandemic, due to a host of factors such as carrying the weight of caregiving responsibilities, as well as their overrepresentation in in-person jobs vulnerable to disruption during the Covid-19 crisis.

As a result, nearly half of all women say the pandemic has negatively impacted their career path, according to a MetLife survey of 2,000 U.S. workers conducted in September. Nearly 1 in 5 women say they’ve been pushed out of the labor force altogether.

One encouraging sign is emerging, however, which could signal greater economic recovery: 2 in 3 women who’ve been forced out of work say they plan to return, according to MetLife.

At the same time, U.S. employers are facing a talent crunch as Americans quit their jobs at record rates throughout 2021, in search of roles better suited to their needs and interests. As such, employment experts say businesses must turn their attention toward what kind of work environment and solutions they can provide in order to hire and retain more working women.

Women are overwhelmingly looking for increased flexibility (78%) and career progression opportunities (73%) in their current or future employer, the MetLife report finds.

The majority of women also say that it’s important their current or future employer provides economic incentives; tailored benefits; upskilling programs; and diversity, equity and inclusion programs in order for them to feel well supported in the workplace.

Continue reading… “Nearly 2 in 3 women who left the workforce during Covid plan to return—and most want to enter this field”
Coding

Gartner: Citizen developers will soon outnumber professional coders 4 to 1

Spike in business-driven automation paves the way for citizen developer careers, Gartner says.

To meet a coming wave of hyper-automation, IT organizations need to do a better job of partnering with professionals outside of IT to automate business processes and data integration, according to research firm Gartner.

Instead of complaining about “shadow IT” efforts outside the control of the CIO, IT should engage with business unit developers to make sure they have what they need to get their work done.

This group includes “business technologists,” or trained, full-time developers who are embedded in a department like marketing. But it also includes “citizen developers” who know how to use no-code, low-code, or data management and analytics tools to automate processes for themselves and their teams. Gartner’s prediction: “By 2023, the number of active citizen developers at large enterprises will be at least four times the number of professional developers.”

IT organizations must break out of the mindset that the work done by these groups is trivial or insignificant, Wong said. “In fact, they are doing serious work. They create algorithms. They create user interfaces that make it easier for their teams to do their work,” he said. Often, they are creating new capabilities, not just making tweaks, he said. “They see the power of workflow and business logic.”

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AI

Fujitsu to offer AI-based personalised cancer treatment in Japan

Aichi Cancer Center and Fujitsu jointly developed new AI solution to support physicians in efficiently choosing medical treatment

Aichi Cancer Center and Fujitsu have announced the development of an artificial intelligence (AI) based solution able to select effective medical treatment from a wide range of drugs based on patients’ individual cancer types and various genomic variants.

The effectiveness of the new solution has been verified in clinical trials by physicians at Aichi Cancer Center.

With current cancer genomic medicine in Japan, treatment plans are considered based on the patients’ unique circumstances, including the type of cancer and the actionable genomic variants detected in cancer cells.

Continue reading… “Fujitsu to offer AI-based personalised cancer treatment in Japan”