Impact Lab – Page 628 – A Laboratory of the Future Human Experience

Big Problems, Climate Change, Environment, Weather

2 gonzo ideas for slowing down a hurricane that might actually work

October 11, 2018

Scientists are looking into ways to weaken hurricanes early on.

Hurricane Michael is expected to bring life-threatening winds and storm surge to Florida’s Gulf Coast.

As heavy winds from Hurricane Michael begin to lash Florida’s Gulf Coast, forecasters are urging residents of the panhandle, Big Bend, and Nature Coast to prepare for life-threatening storm surge and flooding.

With so much potential devastation, one may wonder whether anything can be done to stop Michael in its tracks.

It’s quite a daunting challenge, given that the average hurricane’s wind energy equals about half of the world’s electricity production in a year. The energy it releases as it forms clouds is 200 times the world’s annual electricity use.

Continue reading… “2 gonzo ideas for slowing down a hurricane that might actually work”

Bitcoin, Blockchain, Crypto-Technology, Money Talk

Five things that must happen for blockchain to see widespread adoption, according to Deloitte

October 10, 2018

Blockchain is touted as a technology that will revolutionize the finance sector.

Slow transaction speeds and a lack of standardization threaten to restrict growth.

Deloitte has highlighted five hurdles that the technology must overcome to hasten widespread adoption.

Continue reading… “Five things that must happen for blockchain to see widespread adoption, according to Deloitte”

Brain, brain hacking, brain-computer interfaces, Breakthrough Thinking

Scientists have connected the brains of 3 people, enabling them to share thoughts

October 10, 2018

Are you thinking what I’m thinking?

Neuroscientists have successfully hooked up a three-way brain connection to allow three people share their thoughts – and in this case, play a Tetris-style game. The team thinks this wild experiment could be scaled up to connect whole networks of people, and yes, it’s as weird as it sounds.

It works through a combination of electroencephalograms (EEGs), for recording the electrical impulses that indicate brain activity, and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), where neurons are stimulated using magnetic fields

The researchers behind the new system have dubbed it BrainNet, and say it could eventually be used to connect many different minds together, even across the web.

Continue reading… “Scientists have connected the brains of 3 people, enabling them to share thoughts”

Current Events, government, Military, Science & Technology News

North, South Korea begin removing landmines along fortified border

October 10, 2018

SEOUL (Reuters) – Troops from North and South Korea began removing some landmines along their heavily fortified border on Monday, the South’s defense ministry said, in a pact to reduce tension and build trust on the divided peninsula.

Project details were agreed during last month’s summit in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, between its leader, Kim Jong Un, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

In a statement, the ministry said the two sides agreed to remove all landmines in the so-called Joint Security Area (JSA) in Panmunjom within the next 20 days, with military engineers performing the hazardous task on the South Korean side.

There was no immediate confirmation from North Korea that its troops had begun the process.

Continue reading… “North, South Korea begin removing landmines along fortified border”

Automation, Housing, Robots

Watch this humanoid robot install drywall

October 12, 2018

The HRP-5P is a humanoid robot from Japan’s Advanced Industrial Science and Technology institute that can perform common construction tasks including — as we see above — install drywall.

HRP-5P — maybe we can call it Herb? — uses environmental measurement, object detection and motion planning to perform various tasks. In this video we see it use small hooks to grab the wallboard and slide it off onto the floor. Then, with a bit of maneuvering, it’s able to place the board against the joists and drill them in place.

Continue reading… “Watch this humanoid robot install drywall”

Advertising, Housing, Latest Trend

The next industry to be disrupted by technology: real estate

October 9, 2018

Eric Wu, founder and chief executive of Opendoor, a startup company that flips homes, at its San Francisco headquarters.

Many venture capitalists have homed in on real estate as a big opportunity for tech startups because parts of the industry — like pricing, mortgages and building management — have been slow to adopt software that could make business more efficient.

SAN FRANCISCO — Opendoor, a startup that flips homes, attracted attention in June when it announced it had raised $325 million from a long list of venture capitalists. The financing valued the 4-year-old company at more than $2 billion.

Continue reading… “The next industry to be disrupted by technology: real estate”

Internet, mobile technology, Travel

Delta CEO declares free in-flight Wi-Fi is coming

October 9, 2018

“We’re going to make it free,” said Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian, when speaking about his long-term vision for in-flight Wi-Fi during Skift Global Forum in New York City on Friday.

Bastian said free and faster Wi-Fi are things that his customers want. “I don’t know of anywhere else besides in an airplane that you can’t get free Wi-Fi.” He did not, however, specify when that might happen at Delta.

Continue reading… “Delta CEO declares free in-flight Wi-Fi is coming”

Batteries, Battery, Energy, Engineering, Environment

This new Lithium battery tech can simply suck up CO2 to power itself

October 8, 2018

We need this right now!

Everybody knows the world’s got a serious carbon dioxide problem, but an ingenious and potentially cost-effective way of dealing with our surplus CO2 could provide the means of tomorrow’s battery technology.

For years scientists have looked at ways of capturing carbon and storing it underground or even potentially in the ocean. But a new system might offer a powerful advantage over these efforts.

Continue reading… “This new Lithium battery tech can simply suck up CO2 to power itself”

Alternative Transportation, Aviation, new technology, Transportation

Flying taxi to travel from Boston to New York in 36 minutes

October 8, 2018

A private transportation company seeks to offer a new form of travel connecting Boston and New York in under an hour.

Boston-based Transcend Air Corporation is developing the Vy 400, a six-seat, vertical take-off and landing aircraft. “It takes off and lands straight up and down,” the company said of the aircraft’s design. “This means we don’t need runways and airports. We’re able to depart and arrive right in major city centers.”

The company says the prototype can travel more than 400 miles per hour – three times faster than traditional helicopters – cost less to operate and offers a quieter ride than a helicopter. Continue reading… “Flying taxi to travel from Boston to New York in 36 minutes”

Automation, Driverless vehicles, Electric Vehicles, Transportation

New Volvo Trucks autonomous semi is a cables tractor pod

October 8, 2018

Unlike any other autonomous semi trucks concepts out there – from Daimler Trucks, Tesla or California startup Thor – Volvo’s Vera has no driver’s cabin and looks like a flat Tesla S with space for just the powertrain and the battery pack.VOLVO

Volvo Trucks, the world’s second-biggest heavy-duty truck maker behind Daimler Trucks, unveiled Wednesday its first all-electric driverless freight truck, dubbed Vera.

Unlike any other semi trucks concepts out there – from Daimler Trucks, Tesla or California startup Thor – Volvo’s Vera has no driver’s cabin and looks like a semi-truck tractor pod or a flat Tesla S with space for just the drivetrain and the 300 kW lithium-ion battery pack that gives it a range of up to 187 miles (300 kilometers).

“It’s designed to be safe, it’s quiet and totally predictable, down to cost savings,” said Michael Karlsson, vice-president of Autonomous Solutions at Volvo Trucks. “Nothing similar to what you’ve seen from us before. In fact, it’s impossible to drive.”

Continue reading… “New Volvo Trucks autonomous semi is a cables tractor pod”

Science & Technology News

Ikea’s Space10 imagines the future of self-driving cars

October 7, 2018

Ideas on what to do with time not spent on driving

Space 10’s “Spaces on Wheels” concept project explores the future of autonomous vehicles. One of the ideas is a mobile cafe that lets you have coffee and socialize while you travel. SPACE10 & f°am Studio

If you weren’t stuck in gridlock, where might you be? And if you didn’t have to focus on driving, what else might you do? A new autonomous vehicle project by Space10—the Ikea future-forward R&D arm that brought us mealworm meatballs—and the creative agency f°am Studio are proposing answers to those questions.

Continue reading… “Ikea’s Space10 imagines the future of self-driving cars”

Automobiles, City Planning, Driverless cars, Transportation

Driverless cars could free up land for more housing

October 7, 2018

Look, no hands! Big car and technology companies such as BMW, Apple and Google are investing in driverless technology.

Widespread adoption of driverless cars would release thousands of acres of land for new housing and reduce the strain on transport infrastructure, according to research published today.

The report, centred on Edinburgh, suggests that congestion is costing the city more than £300 million a year in lost time and autonomous vehicles would help to trim that figure.

Continue reading… “Driverless cars could free up land for more housing”