NASA JPL is targeting an interstellar mission to launch by 2069 to Alpha Centauri. A 2016 funding bill called upon NASA to investigate methods of interstellar travel that could reach at least 10 percent of the speed of light by 2069. It also requested a mission to Alpha Centauri, the closest star system to our …
Our solar system now is tied for most number of planets around a single star, with the recent discovery of an eighth planet circling Kepler-90, a Sun-like star 2,545 light-years from Earth. The planet was discovered in data from NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope. The newly-discovered Kepler-90i – a sizzling hot, rocky planet that orbits its …
The University of Maryland has created the largest quantum simulation using 53 trapped-ion qubits. It is the largest quantum simulation ever performed with high- efficiency single-shot measurements of individual qubits. This provides access to arbitrary many-body correlators that carry information that is difficult or impossible to model classically. This experimental platform can be extended to …
For many years, the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) has tracked the costs associated with DNA sequencing performed at the sequencing centers funded by the Institute. This information has served as an important benchmark for assessing improvements in DNA sequencing technologies and for establishing the DNA sequencing capacity of the NHGRI Genome Sequencing Program …
In 2014, Nextbigfuture predicted Tiger Moms as being the driver of early adoption of genetic intelligence enhancement and the lifting of the One child policy in China. China’s One child policy was being lifted just as embryo selection based upon intelligence for invitro fertilized (IVF) babies becomes possible and we are on the cusp of …
DroNc-Seq — a technology that merges single-nucleus RNA sequencing with microfluidics — brings new scale to gene expression studies in complex tissues. Last year Broad researchers described a single-nucleus RNA sequencing method called sNuc-Seq. This system enabled researchers to study the gene expression profiles of difficult-to-isolate cell types as well as cells from archived tissues. …
Singapore researchers have a new generalized method of producing anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. The anodes are made from metal oxide nanosheets, which are ultrathin, two-dimensional materials with excellent electrochemical and mechanical properties. This will enable more durable and longer lasting lithium-ion batteries. These nanosheets (image on right) are 50,000 times thinner than a sheet …
Lockheed Martin has received a $12.9 million U.S. Defense Department contract for the Squad X Experimentation program for dismounted infantry combat systems. The contract will go toward design and testing for prototypes of equipment for combined-arms squads. Work will be conducted in Grand Prairie, Texas and other locations throughout the U.S. and should finish by …
DARPA announced a new research program called Assured Autonomy that aims to advance the ways computing systems can learn and evolve to better manage variations in the environment and enhance the predictability of autonomous systems like driverless vehicles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The assurance approaches today are predicated on the assumption that the systems, …
Recently the University of California, Berkeley welcomed about 300 people—scientists, CEOs, farmers, regulators, conservationists, and interested citizens to discuss CRISPR-CAS9 genetic modification. Agricultural Genetic modifications of the past were to commodity crops like corn and soy to improve their pest resistance or boost yields. It was a convenience item for farmers and a profit center …
DARPA announced the first programs under its new Disruptioneering effort, which pushes for faster identification and exploration of bold and risky ideas with the goal of accelerating scientific discovery. Under the new concept, DSO program managers intend to develop small programs of $5 million or less in total funding on an expedited timeline, with an …