heartland robotics

Solid Energy touts lithium metal electrodes to safely boost lithium ion battery energy density by up to 40% and could lower costs by half to about $130 per kilowatt hour

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A new MIT spinoff company, SolidEnergy says it has materials that can increase the amount of energy that lithium-ion batteries store by 30 percent or more and lower costs enough to make electric vehicles affordable. SolidEnergy replaces the graphite electrode used in conventional lithium-ion batteries with a high-energy lithium-metal one. That’s been tried before, but …

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Organovo prints fully cellular 3D liver tissue

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For the first time, human liver tissues have been generated that are truly three-dimensional, being up to 500 microns in thickness in the smallest dimension, and consisting of multiple cell types arranged in defined spatial patterns that reproduce key elements of native tissue architecture. The tissues, fabricated using Organovo’s proprietary NovoGen™ bioprinting platform, are highly …

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New atomic-layer electrodeposition method yields surprising results

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A new method for creating very thin layers of materials at the atomic scale, reported in the latest issue of the journal Science, could “unlock an important new technology” for creating nanomaterials, according to nanomaterials expert Dr. Jay A. Switzer of Missouri University of Science and Technology in the journal. This illustration depicts how atomic-layer …

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Improved Understanding of Rydberg atoms could lead to scalable quantum information systems

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Physicists at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching near Munich, have now gained fundamental insights into a particular kind of atomic ensemble – a so-called Rydberg gas – that might play a role in the future design of a quantum computer. They observed how “super atoms” formed in the gas and ordered …

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Max Planck Institute develops neural event-triggered functional magnetic resonance imaging

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Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics have now developed a novel multimodal methodology called “neural event-triggered functional magnetic resonance imaging” (NET-fMRI) and presented the very first results obtained using it in experiments with both anesthetized and awake, behaving monkeys. The new methodology uses multiple-contact electrodes in combination with functional magnetic resonance imaging …

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Dynamically evolving the design of metals in response to stress like aircraft wing that get stronger

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Cars that change color at the push of a button; metals that strengthen with use; buildings that harness energy from the wind … research into designing structural materials that are both responsive and functional is shifting such ideas from the realm of fantasy to reality. Associate Professor Christopher Hutchinson of the Department of Materials Engineering …

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Human enhancement and the future of work

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The Royal Society looks at Human enhancement and the future of work. The project explored potential enhancements arising from advances in science and engineering that are likely to impact on the future of work. Here is the 72 page workshop report What is meant by Human Enhancement (for this report) The term ‘human enhancement’ encompasses …

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Election Winners are Computationally Driven Campaigns and Permanently Embedded Field Operations

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The US has efficient computational driven electoral campaigns. The US just needs efficient computationally driven government. 1. CNN described the superior Democratic political organization. Obama organizers were deeply embedded in small towns and big cities for years, focusing their persuasion efforts on person-to-person contact. The more nuanced data they collected, often with handwritten notes attached, …

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All twenty Canadian Nuclear Reactors are Operating

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World Nuclear News – All twenty of Canada’s nuclear power reactors are on line now that Point Lepreau has been reconnected to the grid after refurbishment. The reactor unit in the province of New Brunswick is in the final stages of commissioning after a troubled overhaul. It was grid-synchonised on 23 October, said owner NB …

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Electricity, Cement, Rail and other Measures of Chinas Economy

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Looking at electricity, rail freight volume and bank loan growth as alternatives economic indicators to check against GDP growth in China. Nextbigfuture looked at electricity growth measures before. If you liked this article, please give it a quick review on ycombinator or StumbleUpon. Thanks Brian WangBrian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular …

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Environmental OK for laser enrichment plant

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World Nuclear News – The NRC has now issued its final technical Safety Evaluation Report (SER) and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed GE laser uranium enrichment plant. The GLE plant would use a laser-based process to enrich uranium up to 8% uranium-235 by weight (although nuclear power reactors normally require 3%-5% enriched uranium), …

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