Each of These Microscopic Glass Beads Stores an Image Encoded on a Strand of DNA Increasingly, civilization’s information is stored digitally, and that storage is abundant and growing. We don’t bother deleting those seven high-definition videos of the ceiling or 20 blurry photos of a table corner taken by our…
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This Week’s Awesome Tech Stories From Around the Web (Through June 19)
This Week’s Awesome Tech Stories From Around the Web (Through June 19) FUTURE OF WORK Kill the 5-Day Work Week Joe Pinsker | The Atlantic “People who work a four-day week generally report that they’re healthier, happier, and less crunched for time; their employers report that they’re more efficient and…
Statements on Pam Melroy’s Senate Confirmation as NASA Deputy Administrator
The following are statements from Pam Melroy and Administrator Bill Nelson on Thursday’s U.S. Senate confirmation of Melroy as deputy administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Source: NASA Breaking news Statements on Pam Melroy’s Senate Confirmation as NASA Deputy Administrator
Is It Time to Give Up on Consciousness as ‘the Ghost in the Machine’?
Is It Time to Give Up on Consciousness as ‘the Ghost in the Machine’? As individuals, we feel that we know what consciousness is because we experience it daily. It’s that intimate sense of personal awareness we carry around with us, and the accompanying feeling of ownership and control over our…
NASA Administrator Statement on China Crewed Launch
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson released the following statement Thursday regarding the China National Space Agency’s launch of the first crew to its Tiangong space station: Source: NASA Breaking news NASA Administrator Statement on China Crewed Launch
Burrowing soft robots break new ground
A bioinspired soft robot burrows through shallow dry sand with remarkable speed and maneuverability. Source: Science Mag: Burrowing soft robots break new ground
Controlling subterranean forces enables a fast, steerable, burrowing soft robot
Robotic navigation on land, through air, and in water is well researched; numerous robots have successfully demonstrated motion in these environments. However, one frontier for robotic locomotion remains largely unexplored—below ground. Subterranean navigation is simply hard to do, in part because the interaction forces of underground motion are higher than…
These Mice Were Born From Sperm That Spent Almost 6 Years in Space
These Mice Were Born From Sperm That Spent Almost 6 Years in Space As inconceivable as it still sounds, the wheels have been set in motion for humans to one day reach and colonize Mars. There’s already a detailed design for the first Martian city, SpaceX is building its first…
NASA Launches Mission Equity, Seeks Public Input to Broaden Access
NASA is launching Mission Equity, a comprehensive effort to assess expanding and modifying agency programs, procurements, grants, and policies, and examine what potential barriers and challenges exist for communities that are historically underrepresented and underserved. Source: NASA Breaking news NASA Launches Mission Equity, Seeks Public Input to Broaden Access
A Google AI Designed a Computer Chip as Well as a Human Engineer—But Much Faster
A Google AI Designed a Computer Chip as Well as a Human Engineer—But Much Faster AI has finally come full circle. A new suite of algorithms by Google Brain can now design computer chips—those specifically tailored for running AI software—that vastly outperform those designed by human experts. And the system…
Scientists in Spain Just Got a Step Closer to Building a Practical Quantum Repeater
Scientists in Spain Just Got a Step Closer to Building a Practical Quantum Repeater A quantum internet could play a key role in tying together many of the most promising applications for quantum technologies. The main impetus for quantum communication networks today is security, because a feature of messages encoded…
Why It Took 20 Years to ‘Finish’ the Human Genome—and Why There’s Still More to Do
Why It Took 20 Years to ‘Finish’ the Human Genome—and Why There’s Still More to Do The release of the draft human genome sequence in 2001 was a seismic moment in our understanding of the human genome, and paved the way for advances in our understanding of the genomic basis…