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Stem cell discovery could transform the treatment of type 1 diabetes. Bill Condie reports.

A micrograph of a section through the human pancreas shows the central purple “Langerhans islets”, which contain the cells that produce hormones including insulin. The surrounding exocrine tissue produces digestive enzymes. Credit: STEVE GSCHMEISSNER /Getty Images.

Scientists have for the first time created insulin-producing cells in the laboratory, a discovery that could transform the way we treat diabetes.

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A new patent filed by Apple could offer a glimpse into the future of MacBook design, and it would be a much less tactile experience. The patent for a “Configurable Force-Sensitive Input Structure for Electronic Devices” was filed in September 2014 and was made available to the public last week. It describes a haptic-powered touch keyboard for devices like laptops. Such a device wouldn’t have any physical key switches, just a touch-sensitive layer with virtual keys.

The system would essentially consist of a large metal contact layer with the ability to sense not just touches, but the amount of force applied — 3D Touch, basically. The user would tap a key, which is really just a configurable area of the surface, and they get a haptic jolt to simulate pressing a key. The array of keys on the virtual keyboard would be marked by a light guide shining up from underneath.

Apple files patents on plenty of things that never see the light of day, but this seems like something it might want to use. Of course, that assumes it can get anywhere close to a real typing experience in terms of speed and accuracy. The company is constantly trying to slim down its MacBooks, to the point that it went all-in with USB Type-C on the latest MacBook Air. The keyboard is one of the thickest single components of the device now. If the physical keys could be done away with, the computer could approach tablet levels of thinness.

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FDA approves the world’s smallest artificial cardiac pacemaker.

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Mercedes S Class Driverless Car Is Here 2015 Commercial Self Driving Mercedes S Class W222. As the inventor of the automobile, Mercedes-Benz natural assumes a pioneering role where autonomous driving is concerned. The declared aim is to develop the automobile further, from a self-moving (“automobile”) vehicle to an independent (“autonomous”) vehicle. In its research and development activities, Mercedes-Benz goes well beyond purely technical realisation of automated driving and anticipates various scenarios.

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A microchip that filters out unwanted radiation with the help of graphene has been developed by scientists from the EPFL and tested by researchers of the University of Geneva (UNIGE). The invention could be used in future devices to transmit wireless data ten times faster.

EPFL and UNIGE scientists have developed a microchip using graphene that could help wireless telecommunications share data at a rate that is ten times faster than currently possible. The results are published today in Nature Communications.

“Our graphene based microchip is an essential building block for faster wireless telecommunications in frequency bands that current mobile devices cannot access,” says EPFL scientist Michele Tamagnone.

Space hotels could become a thing in just a few years.

The breakthrough could change gadgets for good.

The applications for a bendable lens are endless.

We’d already heard rumors that James Cameron had found three sequels a little limiting for his Avatar follow-ups, and on stage at CinemaCon today he made it official. The filmmaker announced that no less than four new sequels to his 3D epic are in the works, with the first hitting theaters in 2018.

The filmmaker discussed the many ways in which he is expanding the world — a theme park with Disney in in the works, and his company has signed a deal with Dark Horse Comics for graphic novel spin-offs — but the movies themselves are obviously the biggest component. The Avatar sequels have been a moving target since he first announced he was working on them, and Cameron has since assembled what amounts to a screenwriting superteam to break the story for the various films. As it stands, the second film in the series will be coming out in the holiday season of 2018, with the subsequent films arriving in 2020, 2022, and 2023.

“It’s going to be a true epic saga that’s told in this rich and complex world,” Cameron assured the theater owners, while also taking the moment on stage to voice his support for exclusive theatrical windows for movie releases — a hot topic at this year’s show thanks to the recent emergence of Sean Parker’s The Screening Room initiative, which would allow audiences to rent first-run movies from their living room. As Cameron framed it, technology threatening movie theaters was nothing new. “There’s always been some kind of threat to the theater-going experience,” he said, “but we’ve always answered that threat in the same way. By being great, and showmanship.”

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