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Jun 22, 2019

An AI “Vaccine” Can Block Adversarial Attacks

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, cybercrime/malcode, information science, robotics/AI

For as smart as artificial intelligence systems seem to get, they’re still easily confused by hackers who launch so-called adversarial attacks — cyberattacks that trick algorithms into misinterpreting their training data, sometimes to disastrous ends.

In order to bolster AI’s defenses from these dangerous hacks, scientists at the Australian research agency CSIRO say in a press release they’ve created a sort of AI “vaccine” that trains algorithms on weak adversaries so they’re better prepared for the real thing — not entirely unlike how vaccines expose our immune systems to inert viruses so they can fight off infections in the future.

Jun 22, 2019

Rock-Eating Shipworm Discovered in Philippines

Posted by in category: food

An international research team led by Northeastern University marine biologists has discovered a new genus and species of shipworm burrowing into the bedrock of the Abatan River on the Philippine Island of Bohol.

Jun 22, 2019

What big ideas will shape U.S. science over the next decade? Here are some contenders

Posted by in category: science

National Science Foundation asks public to weigh in on contest.

Jun 22, 2019

Stressing about aging damages your brain, shortens your life

Posted by in categories: life extension, neuroscience

We’re discovering that simply worrying about aging can, in itself, lead to undue stress and premature aging, as a result. It can also shorten lifespan. In this video, author Ashton Applewhite explains.

Jun 22, 2019

Is the universe a hologram?

Posted by in categories: holograms, physics, space

Are you — is every person you’ve ever loved, every incredible sight you’ve ever witnessed — part of a hologram? Some scientists think so.

They argue that all the information in the universe may be stored on some sort of two-dimensional object. In this video, NASA astronomer Michelle Thaller delves into frontier science — an unchartered territory that may require a new level of physics to better understand.

Jun 22, 2019

Buzz Aldrin reminds world that he took first space selfie

Posted by in category: space

First selfie in space.

Jun 21, 2019

Ultra-thin “e-tattoo” uses two sensors for better monitoring of the heart

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, health

We’ve already heard about flexible so-called “electronic tattoos,” which are a more comfortable and longer-wearing alternative to the rigid electrodes traditionally used to monitor cardiac patients’ hearts. A new one is claimed to be more accurate than others, however, as it tracks heart health in two ways.

Jun 21, 2019

22 thoughts on “Sonoluminescence”

Posted by in category: futurism

Sonoluminescence is one of those strange phenomenon that many would never encounter outside an academic environment. For those who have never heard of it, Sonoluminescence is when tiny bubbles suspended in a liquid emit light while being vibrated at certain frequencies. We were pleased to see that some plans are out there on how to build your own device to produce it.

[via io9].

Jun 21, 2019

New e-tattoo enables accurate, uninterrupted heart monitoring for days

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, health, wearables

The future of medicine is not fixing what is broken, it’s preventing things from getting broken in the first place.


The leading cause of death in Texas is heart disease, according to the National Center for Health Statistics, accounting for more than 45,000 deaths statewide in 2017. A new wearable technology made from stretchy, lightweight material could make heart health monitoring easier and more accurate than existing electrocardiograph machines—a technology that has changed little in almost a century.

Developed by engineers at The University of Texas at Austin and led by Nanshu Lu in the Cockrell School of Engineering, this is the latest incarnation of Lu’s electronic tattoo technology, a graphene-based that can be placed on the skin to measure a variety of body responses, from electrical to biomechanical signals.

Continue reading “New e-tattoo enables accurate, uninterrupted heart monitoring for days” »

Jun 21, 2019

A new drug target for chemically induced Parkinson’s disease

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, food, neuroscience

More than three decades ago, scientists discovered that a chemical found in a synthetic opioid, MPTP, induced the onset of a form of Parkinson’s disease. In a new study led by scientists from the School of Veterinary Medicine, researchers found that an enzyme in the body can metabolize compounds formed in the brain from alkaloids present in certain foods and tobacco into MPTP-like chemicals, triggering a neurodegenerative condition in mice.

The researchers, led by Narayan Avadhani and Mrittika Chattopadhyay, suggest that the enzyme, mitochondrial CYP2D6, presents a potentially powerful new target for Parkinson’s treatment.

“Over the past two or three decades, researchers have tried inhibiting the process by which they believed MPTP was metabolized, with mixed success,” says Avadhani. “We believe that mitochondrial CYP2D6 is the more direct drug target, which might prove better in treating idiopathic Parkinson’s disease.”