In 2012, the US Navy initiated the SSL Technology Maturation (SSL-TM) program, in which industry teams led by BAE Systems, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon, among others, competed to develop a shipboard laser with a beam power of 100 kW to 150 kW by 2016. Boosting beam power further—to something like 200 kW or 300 kW—could …
Today, Lawrence Livermore National Lab (LLNL) and IBM announced the development of a new Scale-up Synaptic Supercomputer (NS16e) that highly integrates 16 TrueNorth Chips in a 4×4 array to deliver 16 million neurons and 256 million synapses. LLNL will also receive an end-to-end software ecosystem that consists of a simulator; a programming language; an integrated …
Echo Voyager, Boeing’s latest unmanned undersea vehicle (UUV), can operate autonomously for months at a time thanks to a hybrid rechargeable power system and modular payload bay. The 51-foot-long vehicle is the latest innovation in Boeing’s UUV family, joining the 32-foot Echo Seeker and the 18-foot Echo Ranger. The size of the new Echo Voyager …
The $13 billion USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) aircraft carrier is the most expensive and most advanced warship ever built. It will be commissioned this summer. The ship can hold 4,500 people and weighs 90,000 tons. The CVN-78 is the lead ship in the Ford class of aircraft carriers, replacing some of the U.S. Navy’s …
DeepMind, a London-based “neuroscience-inspired AI company” bought by Google in January 2014, has launched DeepMind Health. Working with leading kidney experts at the Royal Free Hospital in London, DeepMind Health has produced a mobile phone app called “Streams.” It is designed to present “timely information that helps nurses and doctors detect cases of acute kidney …
For the first time, scientists at Newcastle University have identified that the activity of a key metabolic enzyme found in the batteries of human skin cells declines with age. A study, published online in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, has found that the activity of mitochondrial complex II significantly decreases in older skin. This discovery …
A new manned fighter will be defined in an era when unmanned air vehicles (UAV) are ubiquitous and unmanned combat air vehicles (UCAV) are a reality. UCAVs will not replace manned aircraft but will influence the design of the next fighters by relieving them of some missions, such as suppression/destruction of enemy air defenses or …
Nearly 300,000 deaths over the next 15 years would be prevented by reducing air pollution, which can lead to heart attacks, lung cancer or other respiratory illnesses, a study in the peer-reviewed British journal Nature Climate Change said. “Many people view climate change as a future problem, but our analysis shows that reducing emissions that …
Russian warship Pyotr Veliky – Peter the Great – will be fitted with new-generation hypersonic 3M22 missiles in a 2019-2022 upgrade for the Russian Navy’s only operational nuclear-powered cruiser, the world’s largest nuclear-propelled military vessel that is not an aircraft carrier, a shipbuilding industry source told TASS on Friday. “The Pyotr Veliky will start repairs …
John Wick 2 is the sequel to the surprise action hit that starred Keanu Reeves as a skilled assassin who kills most of the Russian mafia in New York City. A handful of the co-stars from the first film, including John Leguizamo, Ian McShane, Bridget Moynihan, and Lance Reddick of Fringe and The Wire, would …
A new type of engine combines the speed of rockets with the gas mileage of jets in a single package. Led by aerospace and mechanical engineer John Bossard at BSRD LLC, the team has built and tested a rocket engine of Bossard’s design that he calls a “turborocket.” The RTR turborocket could also be used …