The Greater Victoria Public Library allows patrons to check out passes to the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and the Royal B.C. Museum.
The dawn of the Internet spawned predictions of the demise of libraries, made irrelevant by technology that puts infinite amounts of information at almost everyone’s fingertips.
Researchers discovered a small molecule that inhibits an enzyme that degrades insulin.
Harvard researchers may have finally identified a chemical compound that could be used to study and treat diabetes after decades of searching. They have discovered a whole different method for maintaining insulin in the blood: by blocking the enzyme that breaks it down.
Continue reading… “Researchers discover new treatment for diabetes”
Scientists use low powered laser to grow teeth.
Scientists have used a low powered laser to activate and direct stem cells to grow teeth. It looks as if they did it right in the mouth (of a couple of species)! That’s a disruptive innovation compared to the way stem cells are typically grown and developed outside the body.
Continue reading… “Scientists discover way to regenerate teeth with lasers”
He Liangcai rides his home-made suitcase scooter.
A Chinese private entrepreneur, He Liangcai, recently obtained a patent for a product that turns a regular suitcase into a rechargeable scooter. According to patent documents China Real Time viewed, accessed via China’s intellectual property database, the suitcase is also equipped with a GPS navigator, a burglar alarm and a horn.
The app market continues to boom. According to the latest data from Distimo, via Ben Schachter at Macquarie Research, combined spending in Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play store, was up 83% year-over-year in April, hitting $1.4 billion.
Aero-X Hoverbike
The Aero-X Hoverbike might be just what you’re looking for if you have ever wanted to experience the feeling of flying, but don’t want to deal with the expense of a plane or helicopter, or spend the time getting licenses and certifications.
Continue reading… “Aero-X Hoverbike set to hit the market in 2017”
Binaudios
As part of the Thinking Digital Conference, artist Dominic Wilcox and creative technologist James Rutherford dreamt up Binaudios, an oversized public listening device which lets visitors experience the sounds of Newcastle, UK in a completely new way. (Video)
Smart clothes and accessories will let us share thoughts and sensations as well as words
Fabled mathematicians Edward O. Thorp and Claude Shannon, of MIT, walked into a Las Vegas casino in August 1961. They intended to try their luck at roulette, a game in which players bet on where a whirling ball will land after falling from an outer stationary track onto an inner spinning wheel. But they weren’t typical gamblers.
Continue reading… “Language will be transformed by wearable computers”
Futurist Thomas Frey: Imagine stepping out of the shower in the morning, and rather than reaching for a towel, a swarm of thousands of flying drones will surround you and begin to dry you off.
Electric cars and robotic cars are moving to the market hand-in-hand.
Google’s new experimental fleet of robotic cars are electric. That’s important because as one of the leaders of developing the software and artificial intelligence that will move autonomous cars through the streets, Google is now also helping set the path for the hardware of the future industry, and it’s skewing that path toward electric vehicles.
Continue reading… “Thanks to Google and Tesla, the first driverless cars will be electric”
Neural interfaces and prosthetics will do away with human disabilities.
The best way to predict the future is to invent it and that is exactly what Hugh Herr has done. At the age of 17, Herr was an accomplished mountaineer, but during an ice-climbing expedition he lost his way in a blizzard and was stranded on a mountainside for three days. By the time rescuers found him, both of his legs were frostbitten and had to be amputated below the knee. Once his scars healed, Herr spent months in rehab rooms trying out prosthetic legs, but he found them unacceptable: How could he climb with such clunky things? Surely, he thought, medical technologists could build replacement parts that wouldn’t slow him down.
Continue reading… “Cyborg technology could end human disability by 2064”
Have you ever wondered what you’re most likely to die from at any given time? Check out this data visualization posted to Reddit by UCanDoEat.
Continue reading… “Most common cause of death for Americans at every age”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.