Category Archives: Futurism

In Brief Toyota is developing a device that would allow objects to turn invisible, or at least transparent. The Japanese car maker recently received a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for a device meant to improve the visibility of drivers. For Better (In)Visibility

From cloaking devices that conceal spaceships, to Harry Potters hand-me-down disappearing blanket, or even the One Ring and its power to conceal its wearer, invisibility is a staple in science fiction and fiction in general. Scientists have been hard at work, however, to bring such a technology into reality. Joining the research and development of cloaking technology is Japanese car manufacturer Toyota.

The company recently acquired a patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for Apparatuses and methods for making an object appear transparent, which Toyota filed last June 17. Seems exciting, especially since its a car maker working on an invisibility tech or cloaking device. It actually is interesting, but not because its meant to turn Toyotas cars invisible well, at least not all of them.

The patent describes a cloaking device designed to turn vehicles A-pillars to the left and right of the cars dashboard invisible, improving road visibility for the driver. Seems ironic that a cloaking technology would improve visibility, right? Toyota thinks that its the way to go, especially since A-pillars have become rather large following crash-safety standards. The wider they are, the more they end up obscuring a drivers vision.

According to Toyota, such a technology is already possible like the Rochester Cloakbut it would require video cameras and other expensive equipment for it to work in cars. This cloaking device, on the other hand, would be a less expensive solution. It would use mirrors to bend visible light around the A-pillars to allow the driver to see through them. This would give drivers a wider view of the road and their surroundings. It also benefits pedestrians, as drivers would see them better.

Light from an object on an object-side of the cloaking device [i.e., facing the road] is directed around an article [the A-pillars] ]within the cloaking region and forms an image on an image-side of the cloaking device [i.e., facing the drivers seat] such the article appears transparent to an observer looking towards the object, according to a description of the device in the patent.

Making things invisible is all about manipulating light. The other invisibility technologies currently being developed do the same thing, albeit using different methods or materials. For instance, researchers from the Max Planck Institute are working on mimicking the biology of moths eyes to turn lenses and glass invisible. Meanwhile, a group from the University of California, San Diego is controlling how light reflects on objects using a thin carpet cloak made form Teflon and ceramic particles.

All of these studies bring us closer to a working invisibility cloak, or at least a technology which allows us to see through objects by making them bend light like Toyotas device. We will have to wait and see.

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Toyota Just Patented a Cloaking Device - Futurism

In BriefPhysicist have learned how to use light to create quantumstates that flow from one point to another. This puts us one stepcloser to living in a world with quantum computers. From Light to Super-Proton

Five years ago, Martin Weitz and his team accomplished what other physicists had thought impossible: they created a photonic Bose-Einstein condensate, a completely new source of light.

A photonic Bose-Einstein condensate is when individual photons are collected together in a single location, cooled, and brought together to create what is known as a super-photon. Recently,Weitz of theInstitute of Applied Physics at Germanys University of Bonn set out to conduct an experiment with a newly made one.

In this new experiment, Weitz and his team were able to create wells that allowed super-photons toflow from one well to the next, an achievement that could one day lead to much-anticipated quantum computing.

The team accomplished this task by bouncing a laser between two mirrors, moving the light through a pigment between the mirrors thatcooled the light and turned it into a super-photon.Before introducing the laser light, a polymer was mixed in with the cooling pigment used to cool the light.Using this polymer allowed Weitz to influence the experiments refractive index using heat; increasing the temperature would let longer light wavelengths travel back and forth between the two mirrors.

By inducing different temperature patterns, Weitzs team was able to induce apseudo-warping effect in the polymer, creatingwells at certain points that had a different refractive index than the polymer as a whole. The team then found that the super-photon would flow into the wells, just as a liquid might flow into a hollow space.

The special thing is that we have built a kind of optical well in various forms, into which the Bose-Einstein condensate was able to flow, Weitz said in a press release. With the help of various temperature patterns, we were able to create different optical dents.

Following the creation of the photonic Bose-Einstein condensate, Weitz team of researchers observed the behavior of two adjacent optical wells. By adjusting the temperatures of the polymer, the light in both wells came to have similar energy levels, thereby allowing the created super-photon to move from one to the other.

According to Weitz, thisinnovation could be the precursor for quantum circuits, which are expected to play a large role in the future of quantum computers and communication.

The work done by Weitz and his group could also lead to better developed lasers, such as ones used for welding or drilling.

Computing applications of this technology arent expected for quite a while, but some believe the first true quantum computers may debut as early as next year. It was only in July that two Swedish PhD studentsbroke a quantum computing record, nudging use slightly closer to such a reality.

Its currently a race to see who gets us to that point first, but its only a matter of time before we figure out how to create the right machines capable of handling quantum circuits. When we do, whole new aspects of our universe may become open to us, as our computer systems inevitably become faster and more powerful.

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Physicists Have Made Exotic Quantum States From Light - Futurism

In Brief A bitcoin trader with a reputation for accurate predictions now claims the cryptocurrency will be worth $15,000 before the end of 2017. Masterluc expects the value to continue to increase until 2019, at which point it will top out somewhere between $40,000 and $110,000.

Late last week, the price of bitcoin rose beyond $3,500, and it currently sits slightly above$4,200. While some are skeptical of this steady increase in value, according to an expert observer,itwont be endingany time soon.

Veteran trader masterluc predicts that bitcoin will be worth $15,000 before the end of the year. He believe the cryptocurrencys current bull run will then continue into 2019, at which point its price will top out somewhere between $40,000 and $110,000.

Masterluc has historically been adept at predicting bitcoins future value. He was able to accurately predict in March 2013 that the crypto would enter into a bear market in November 2013, and then in May 2015, he made a prediction that proved to be just slightly off point,missing the start of the cryptos current surge by just two months.

Masterluc isnt the only pundit expectingbitcoin to go from strength to strength. Earlier this month, Goldman Sachs analyst Sheba Jafari predicted that the currency could reach $4,800, having previously forecast a highof $3,691 as recently as July.

Bitcoin is on a roll at the moment, and predicting when this run will start to drop off is no easy task. Masterluc has a history of being right in his predictions, and many experts agree that the uptick will continue for at least a little while longer, which could have some major ramifications for traditional currency.

Disclosure: Several members of the Futurism team, including the editors of this piece, are personal investors in a number of cryptocurrency markets. Their personal investment perspectives have no impact on editorial content.

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Get Ready. Renowned Bitcoin Trader Says the Currency Will Hit $15000 in 2017. - Futurism

In BriefResearchers from UCLA have found a way to successfullyreactivate stem cells in dormant hair follicles to promote hairgrowth in mice. Through this research, they've developed two drugsthat could help millions of people worldwide treat conditions thatlead to abnormal hair growth and retention. External Problem. Internal Solution.

Researchers have already explored ways to use stem cells totreat everything from diabetes toaging, and now, ateam from UCLAthinks they could potentially offer some relief for people suffering from baldness.

During their study, which has beenpublished in Nature, the researchers noticedthat stem cells found in hair follicles undergo a different metabolic process than normal skin cells. After turning glucose into a molecule known as pyruvate, these hair follicle cells then do one of two things: send the pyruvateto the cells mitochondria to be used as energy or convert it into another metabolite known as lactate.

Based on these findings, the researchers decided to see if inactive hair follicles behaved differently depending on the path of the pyruvate.

To that end, the UCLA team compared mice that had been genetically engineered so that they wouldnt produce lactate with mice that had been engineered to produce more lactate than normal. Obstructing lactate production stopped the stem cells in the follicles from being activated, while more hair growth was observed on the animals who were producing more of the metabolite.

No one knew that increasing or decreasing the lactate would have an effect on hair follicle stem cells, co-lead on the study and professor of molecular, cell, and developmental biology William Lowry explained in a UCLA press release. Once we saw how altering lactate production in the mice influenced hair growth, it led us to look for potential drugs that could be applied to the skin and have the same effect.

Based on their study, the researchers were able to discovertwo different drugs that could potentially help humans jumpstart the stem cells in their hair follicles to increase lactate production.

The first is called RCGD423, and it works by establishing a JAK/STAT signalling pathway between the exterior of a cell and its nucleus. This puts the stems cells in an active state and contributes to lactate production, encouraging hair growth.

The other drug, UK5099, takes the opposite approach. It stops pyruvate from being converted into energy by the cells mitochondria, which leaves the molecules with no choice but to take the alternate path of creating lactate, which, in turn, promotes hair growth.

Both of the drugs have yet to be tested on humans, but hopes are high that if tests are successful, they could provide relief for the estimated 56 million people in the U.S. alonesuffering from a range of conditions that affect normal hair growth and retention, including alopecia, hormone imbalances, stress-related hair loss, and even old age.

However, as undoubtedly pleased as many of those people would be to stimulate their hair growth, the potential relevance of this research stretches far beyond hair loss. The new knowledge gained regarding stem cells, specifically their relation to the metabolism of the human body, provides a very promising basis for future study in other realms.

I think weve only just begun to understand the critical role metabolism plays in hair growth and stem cells in general, noted Aimee Flores, first author of the study and a predoctoral trainee in Lowrys lab. Im looking forward to the potential application of these new findings for hair loss and beyond.

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We Just Figured out How to Activate Stem Cells to Treat Baldness - Futurism

In BriefSouth Australia has announced plans to construct the world'slargest single-tower solar thermal power plant in Port Augusta. Theplant will use technology developed by SolarReserve to store energyin molten salt, giving it the ability to operate 24 hours a day. Sun and Salt

The government of South Australia has announced plans to construct the worlds largest single-tower solar thermal power plant in Port Augusta. California-based solar tech company SolarReserve will be responsible for both the build and upkeep of the facility.

The Aurora Solar Energy Project is based on plans that weredeveloped as part of the Rice Solar Energy Project in California, which stalled as a result of changes to tax credits related to renewable energy.

Once built, arrays of heliostats will focus solar energy onto a central tower, which uses molten salt technology to store that energy as heat. These molten salts will provide 1,100 megawatts of energy storage capacity, which equates to eight hours of full load storage. This will allow the facility to generate electricity during the night as well as during the day when sunlight is shining down.

Aurora is projected to have an output of 150 megawatts and an ability to generate 495 gigawatt hours of electricity each year. The station will be able to service 90,000 homes and is expected to be able to cater to around five percent of South Australias total energy needs. Construction on the $650 million plantwill begin next year, with the expectation that Aurora will be producing electricity by 2020.

The Aurora Solar Energy Project wont be the first major renewable energy project for South Australia. In July, the local government inked a deal with Tesla to install a Powerpack system that will work alongside the Hornsdale Wind Farm.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been very clear about the potential for solar to help the U.S. meet its own energy needs,assertingthat the entire nation could be powered by an area measuring 25,600 square kilometers (10,000 square miles) filled with solar panels.

Despite these claims and the assertions of other experts, however, U.S. President Donald Trump appears determined to try to revive the coal industry.

That hasnt slowed the adoption of renewable energy in other parts of the world, though. Morocco is currently building the worlds largest traditional solar plant, Chinas massive floating solar power plant just went online, and Indias record-holding solar farm can power 150,000 homes.

Despite a lack of federal support, individual states and cities within the U.S. are committing to fossil fuel alternatives as well just this month, Orlando, Florida, became the fortieth city in the country to make a commitment to completely transition to renewables within the next several decades.

A primary contributor to this increased adoption is cost. For a long time, a mainargument against renewable energy sources has been their high cost when compared to fossil fuels.

Now, the solar panels that weve become accustomed to seeing atop residential homes have dropped in price significantly, and building a new commercial solar plant is also cheaper than building a plant thats powered by fossil fuels. Experts are predicting that solar energy will actually be cheaper than coalwithin the next four years.

This increased affordability will no doubt lead to the creation of more projects like the one in Port Augusta, and that will go a long way toward helping the world meet the goals of the Paris Agreement and stem the damage weve done to the planet through the use of fossil fuels.

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Engineers Are Building the World's Largest Single-Tower Solar Thermal Plant - Futurism

In Brief Tesla's putting a "Tiny House" on tour today in Australia, as it unveiled a project that would demonstrate its solar roof panels and Powerwall home energy storage batteries. Tesla wants to demonstrate how a sustainable energy home could work.

Australia enjoys a healthy does of sunshine for most of the yearin fact, it has the highest average solar radiation persquare meter than any other continent on Earth, according to the Australian Renewable Energy Agency. This makes the Land Down Under an ideal place for solar energy farms and home solar products.

However, while public demand for renewables are up, the Australian government has kept energy prices low to maintain reliance on coal. This has created a troublesome energy situation throughout most of the continent. Realizing, perhaps, that Australia needs to be more at home with solar energy, Tesla decided to put up what it calls the Tesla Tiny House and its going to tour some of the major cities in the continent.

Tesla is hitting the road across Australia in a tiny house powered by 100% renewable energy, the company says on its website, as well as in a press release after launching the Tiny House on Sunday. Pulled by a Model X, the house features a Tesla mobile design studio so visitors can check out and learn how to set up their own Tesla solar and energy storage system.

The Tiny House is powered by solar energy using a six-panel 2kW solar system attached to a Powerwall battery, where energy can be stored throughout the day and night, Tesla said, according to Electrek. This energy cycle can be controlled and monitored through the Tesla mobile app. Oh, and its also built from locally sourced timber thats chemical free, just to complete that sustainable touch. In short, its a renewable ecosystem on wheels.

This renewable ecosystem is what Tesla hopes to build into homes throughout Australia, where over two million households already have rooftop solar. While Tesla has yet to offer rooftop solar installations, it has already partnered with a local home builder to include the Powerwall as a standard feature. Establishing solar as a standardcould provide a sustainable source of clean energy, and would greatly lessen dependence on coal-generated electricity.

Teslas also working on large-scale energy projects in Australia, building a Powerpack system for a wind farm in South Australia which would be the worlds largest and most powerful lithium-ion battery storage system. Teslas also installing Powerpacks in various sites in New South Wales.

The Tesla Tiny House, which is parked at the Melbournes Federation Square until 15 August, will soon begin a tour of eastern Australian cities, with the option for Australians to actually book it to visit their town.

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Tesla Just Made A Futuristic Tiny House - Futurism

In BriefPaul DeLorean, nephew of the maker of the iconic car from theBack to the Future series, is developing a flying car through hiscompany DeLorean Aerospace. The EV would boast one of the longestranges of any proposed VTOL vehicle: 120 miles on a single charge. Paging Doc Brown

DeLorean cars have become a staple of 80s pop culturethanks to their starring role in Robert Zemeckiss iconic Back to the Future trilogy. Now, a new generation of the DeLorean family is looking to put the brand back into the spotlight by giving new meaning to a line kooky inventor Doc Brown delivers at the end of the first film:Where were going, we dont need roads.

In a recentWired profile, Paul DeLorean, nephew of the original carmaker and current CEO and chief designer of DeLorean Aerospace, revealed that his company is joining the likes of Uber, Airbus, Kitty Hawk, and a few others in attempting to build a flying car.

DeLorean says the company is working ona two-seat, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) vehicle meant for personal transport and that will eventually be capable of autonomous flight. We are moving forward on a full-size, piloted prototype which will carry two passengers and is designed to operate, fully electric, for a range of [193 kilometers (120 miles)], he explained to Wired.

Other flying cars in development are only expected to have ranges of around 40 to 80 kilometers (25 to 50 miles), so DeLoreans targetis well above the norm.

As for design specifics, the DeLorean DR-7 aircraft sports two sets of wings, one at the vehicles front and the other at its back, with another pair of winglets under the hind wings. The vehicles takeoff and forward propulsion rely on a pair of fans, which are powered by electricity and mounted along its center. The fans swivel after takeoff to push the vehicle forward.

In all, the aircraft is about 6 meters (20 feet) long, with a wingspan of about 5.6 meters (18.5 feet). To help the aircraft fit into a (large) garage, the wings are capable of folding against the vehicles sides.

Whether they be of the self-driving or flying variety, the cars of the future need to surmount regulatory hurdles before well see any kind of widespread adoption. The use of traditional vehicles and aircraft is currently regulated by numerous laws, and the advanced capabilities of autonomous or flying vehicles are presenting lawmakers with a slew of unprecedented questions.

Along with the need to upgrade our laws to govern this next step in the evolution of personal transport, we also need to upgrade our infrastructure. Electricity is emerging as the energy source of choice for this next generation of vehicles, yet much of the world lacks the infrastructure necessary to meetthe refueling needs of a fleet of electric vehicles (EVs).

We still have some time to wait before we can hopeto see these flying vehicles in action, as experts dont expect the first models to be ready for another five to 15 years, but we are well on our way to a future in which roads wont be the only places we see cars.

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DeLorean Aerospace Is Working on a Flying Car With a Range of 120 Miles - Futurism

In BriefEven if the Dragon 2 wont be taking the most precious cargo(i.e. humans) to the Red Planet, SpaceX is expected to have acargo-only version of the craft for future resupply missions. Recycling the Dragon

Minutes ago, as SpaceXs Dragon took off atop the Falcon 9 toward the ISS, an era ended. Concurrently, another was ushered in as smoke (dont worry, it was the good kind) engulfed Launchpad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This is the same Pad that will be the center point for the Falcon Heavy, crewed flights, and potentially even the future Interplanetary Transport System.

Todays launch which brought more than 6,400 pounds of supplies, equipment, and science experiments to the Expedition 52 crew was the first for SpaceX in more than a month. While it may just sound like another resupply mission for Elon Musks spaceflight company, it truly marked a shift in focus.

The craft used today will be the last new first-generation Dragon spacecraft to fly. In a NASA advisory meeting, Sam Scimemi, NASA Director for the ISS, discussed the upcoming SpaceX missions for 2017. He noted that all future CRS-1 launches from SpaceX will be conducted with reused capsules. After today, there are eight more contracted cargo missions through the first CRS program, which means eight more opportunities to reuse the Dragon 2.

Since SpaceX will no longer be making the Dragon 1 spacecraft, resources can be reallocated toward the Dragon 2. This craft is designed to transport up to seven humans to the ISS or, someday, the Red Planet as a part of the Red Dragon Mission.

However, this Martian destination may not be set in stone. Musk recently tweeted, saying:

There was a time that I thought the Dragon approach to landing Mars, where youve got a base heat shield and side-mounted thrusters, would be the right way to land on Mars. Now Im pretty confident that is not the right way and theres a far better approach.

Musks tweet hints that the Red Dragon mission could be pushed back, or even cancelled from the original 2018 date. Even if the Dragon 2 wont be taking the most precious cargo (i.e. humans) to the Red Planet, SpaceX is expected to have a cargo-only version of the craft for future resupply missions.

Suffice itto say, SpaceX fans have quite a bit to look forward to throughout the rest of the year, with the excitement (arguably) culminating in the maiden Falcon Heavy launch. The Dragon 1 that launched today will attempt to land on the LZ-1 pad, which is already being prepped for the dual booster landing of the Falcon Heavy this November. While the side boosters land on LZ-1, the core booster will attempt to touch down onSpaceXs drone shipOf Course I Still Love You.

If all goes well, the most powerful operational rocket in the world will restore the possibility of flying missions with crew to the Moon or Mars in the very near future.

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SpaceX Just Completed Another Launch, Marking the End of an Era - Futurism

Have you ever considered the logistics that go into assembling NASAs gargantuan rockets? Well, it all happens in theVehicle Assembly Building (VAB)at the Kennedy Space Center.

The VAB is the only building in existencethat assembled rockets that carried humans to the surface of another world. It was completed just three years before we set foot on the Moon.

The 2,664,883 cubic meter (129,428,000 cubic feet) buildingis one of the worlds largest buildings by volume, and it is the worlds largestone-story building. It was built in the early 1960s to house Saturn V rockets of the Apollo Program, and later it was used for Space Shuttle launch configuration. Now, its being prepped to support the SLSthe rocket that may carry the first humans to Mars.

Ultimately, this building is a critical part of NASAs plans to launch humans (and equipment) into the far reaches of our solar system. But dont start packing your bags to visit; no tours are open to the public. Since 2014, it has been referred to as one of therestricted areas of Americas Spaceport

Recently though, Futurism got a peek into the VAB, and some inside information from NASA experts on what the future holds for the historic site.

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An Exclusive Look Inside The Secretive Building Where NASA Makes Rockets - Futurism

In Brief University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed a device that connects to smartphones and serves as a mobile lab. The inexpensive and versatile device will bring medical access to areas that cannot support a traditional lab. Swiss Army Tech

The advent of the smart phone was a key development in the technological evolution of our species. What used to be relegated to entire rooms and even buildings can now fit snugly in our pockets giving each person the potential to access massive amounts of information from the palm of their hand. This evolution has not reached its apex, however, as continuing innovations are allowing for more and more capabilities for the technology. With the help of some researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, we can now even replace medical labs with technology optimized by a smart phone.

The relatively inexpensive system known as the spectral transmission-reflectance-intensity (TRI)-Analyzer costs only $550. The device uses light and spectral analyses to do many of the most common laboratory tests. Our TRI Analyzer is like the Swiss Army knife of biosensing, says Professor Brian Cunningham, the Donald Biggar Willett Professor of Engineering and director of the Micro + Nanotechnology Lab at Illinois.

Given the devices capabilities, it is able to adapt to perform a wide variety of tests without the need for a dedicated laboratory. Any test that utilizes a liquid that changes color or generates a light output (think fluorescent dyes) can be run on this device hooked up to a smartphone. Our Analyzer can scan many tests in a sequence by swiping the cartridge past the readout head, in a similar manner to the way magnetic strip credit cards are swiped, said Kenny Long, an MD/Ph.D. student and lead author of the research study.

Technology like this device will go a long way in bringing much needed medical access to areas that need it most. Coupling the inexpensive cost with mobility make this device an invaluable tool in serving the people living in underdeveloped regions all over the world. With the help of science and technology, we are taking the lab out of the hospital and, quite literally, putting it into the hands of people who now have the power to save and change lives.

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This New Device Turns Your Smartphone Into a Medical Lab - Futurism