Techonomy – Facebook founder launches Jumo a social network for charities

Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes has launched his much-buzzed-about social network, Jumo. Hughes, who left Facebook (Facebook) in 2007 to become the Obama campaign’s director of online organizing, soft-launched Jumo last March. Jumo was designed to let users find, follow and support the causes important to them, and with 3,500 organizations on board at launch, would-be …

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Super High Mileage Cars and Electric Vehicles

The Chevy Volt officially goes on sale in December, though pre-orders began this summer. Initially they’re only available in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California, Texas, Washington, D.C., and Michigan. The Volt range extending generator runs on gas and GM is hitting hard on that feature to help lure customers from Nissan’s new Leaf vehicles …

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Robotic vision expert Eugenio Culurciello interviewed by Sander Olson

Here is the Eugenio Culurciello interview. Dr. Culurciello is an associate professor of engineering at Yale University. Dr. Culurviello has developed a low power FPGA chip that is specifically designed for robotic vision. The aim of Dr. Culurciello’s research is to create a robotic vision system that is equivalent to human vision. The system should …

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Reviewing my predictions from 2006

For Space I predicted Solar sails in space 2006-2010. Solar sail by 2010 is clearly correct. Japanese solar sail was deployed and flew in space this year. IKAROS was the world’s first spacecraft designed to use solar sailing propulsion to be successfully launched China second largest economy in straight currency conversion measures 2013-2015 China passed …

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Nanodiamond qubits and a path to large scale quantum computer systems

Arxiv – Enhancement of the zero phonon line emission from a single NV-center in a nanodiamond via coupling to a photonic crystal cavity Using a nanomanipulation technique a nanodiamond with a single nitrogen vacancy center is placed directly on the surface of a gallium phosphide photonic crystal cavity. A Purcell-enhancement of the fluorescence emission at …

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Nuclear Power should close the fuel cycle and energy return on fossil fuels has a large economic impact

1. Carey King at the University of Texas at Austin tries to make a case that is common at Peak Oil websites – lower energy return on fossil fuels causes economic recessions. The worst recessions of the last 65 years were preceded by declines in energy quality for oil, natural gas, and coal. Energy quality …

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Stem Cells in Injured Mice Give them larger and stronger muscles for Life

Singularity Hub reports that stem cells can be used to give injured mice larger muscles for life. Young mice with injured legs were given donor muscle stem cells from other young mice. Those injuries not only healed, but muscle mass increased 50% and muscle volume increased by an incredible 170%! Performance tests show the muscles …

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IEEE Spectrum tries to hold Ray Kurzweil to a high prediction standard but does not apply that standard to themselves

IEEE Spectrum tries to hold Ray Kurzweil to a high prediction standard but does not apply that standard to themselves. Every year IEEE Spectrum tries to pick Technology winners and losers. IEEE Spectrum says Rays clearest and most successful predictions often lack originality or profundity. And most of his predictions come with so many loopholes …

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Asian nuclear energy boom

1. Wall Street Journal – 10 countries in Asia have nuclear energy development plans. New Delhi forecasts India will spend $175 billion to increase nuclear energy production 13-fold by 2030. China, India and Vietnam combined will build about 115,000 megawatts of nuclear generating capacity, investing more than half a trillion dollars over the next 15 …

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Wikileaks reveals China ready for reunified Korea and ready to abandon North Korea

In highly sensitive discussions in February this year, the-then South Korean vice-foreign minister, Chun Yung-woo, told a US ambassador, Kathleen Stephens, that younger generation Chinese Communist party leaders no longer regarded North Korea as a useful or reliable ally and would not risk renewed armed conflict on the peninsula • South Korea’s vice-foreign minister said …

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