Category Archives: Transhuman News

Dreams of the future reveal more about the mind of the dreamer than the future itself.

This subreddit focuses on the futurist visions of eras past. However posts may also contain contemporary art with a retrofuturist theme.

Futurism was born out of humanity's reaction to a sudden thrust into technological revolution. To the many that witnessed the rapid change, it seemed technological utopia was fast approaching. This unbridled optimism caused the collective imagination to run wild.

Although many of these visions seem almost comical now - the spirit in which they were created is part of the reason you are currently looking into a glowing rectangle with unlimited, instant access to the sum of all human knowledge.

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1. Futurist visions from eras past.

2. Contemporary art with a retrofuturist theme.

3. Discussion threads related to retrofuturism.

Related Subreddits:

r/ImaginaryTechnology - Sci-Fi and Fantasy art featuring robots, cyborgs, mechanisms and spaceships.

r/FuturePorn - A subreddit for futuristic concept designs.

r/WorldOfTomorrow - Present day predictions of what the future might hold.

r/ImaginaryHistory - If the infinite multi-verse theory turns out to be true, all of this actually exists.

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RetroFuturism: For the fantastic, delusional dreams of our ...

In Brief Instead of just being regional, why not go international? That's the idea behind ET3's tube transportation concept, which it calls the "mag-lev limo." It would be capable of traveling from New York to Beijing in 2 hours. International and Global

Transportation of the future is being developedtoday: autonomous electric vehicles, flying cars, and thefuturistic pods that make up the Hyperloop are just a few notable examples. Theres another ideavying to be the next generation of public transportation, and while it might look something like the Hyperloop,this tube transport companys CEO Daryl Oster explains why its different:

ET3: we call it a mag-lev limo, where its a car-sized vehicle that operates in a network of tubes much [like] cars on a freeway, Oster told TechRepublic at the 2017 Smart Cincy Summit. But, it would be international and global in scope.

Our vision is being able to travel from, say, here in Cincinnati to the Taj Mahal in under three hours for 50 bucks, Oster added. Essentially, its a network of tubes that serve as a freeway whichcan be accessed viavarious points along its many routes.

While the ET3 is still in the concept phase, the Hyperloop has already moved further along the innovation highway. Since the idea was first pitched by serial entrepreneur and innovator Elon Musk in 2012, there are now two notable companies developing their own Hyperloop in the United States to Dubai.

One of these is Hyperloop One, which hasalready finished its test track in Nevada, as well as established plans for its future transport system in the U.S. Hyperloop One also hopes to develop a Hyperloop network in Dubai, with pods capable of traveling on roads. Meanwhile, Hyperloop Technologies Inc. (HTI) plans to connect all of Europeby way of a tube transportation network.

All of these move us closer to what Transit X CEO Mike Stanley calledthe impossible dream of making car-free cities within five years, as he toldTechRepublic.Maybe not exactly car-free: itll be more like a future with flying cars, autonomous cars, and tube cars but thats still pretty cool.

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A New Tube Transport System Could Get You From New York to Beijing in 2 Hours - Futurism

In Brief

Early adopters of Bitcoin, the novel currency sweeping the globe, have plenty to celebrate this year. The cryptocurrency has grown in value by 85 percent in 2017. It has enjoyed steady growth, topping $1,700 for the first time ever today. This is the latest milestone for the digital currency, however back in March, Bitcoin surpassed the value of gold for the first time in its history. And, there are no indications of it slowing down.

The previous success of the currency has been tied to the uncertainty in markets after the results of the 2016 US elections. However, that explanation cant continue its potency for thatlong. Even more, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) still has to rule on whether or not they will reverse a previous decision to reject a high profile exchange-traded fund (ETF), so the reasons behind the currencys burgeoning strength remain unclear.

Last month, Japanese policymakers made Bitcoin a legal method of payment. This was followed closely by an announcement that Russia would consider adopting Bitcoin (among other cryptocurrencies) in 2018. However, not all countries are readily willing to consider legitimizing Bitcoin. China, for example, has recently decided to restrict its trade.

Even with some minor hiccups, Bitcoin is set to revolutionize the way that we pay. Its footing keeps getting stronger as it continues to be the top-performing currency since the start of the decade, save for 2014.

The Japanese adoption of the currency could be a considerable boon toward it hitting the mainstream. Experts are expecting retailers in more than 260,000 stores across the country tobe accepting Bitcoin. The ease afforded by the currency being international could make it a favorite for travelers as well.

The future of Bitcoin may not be entirely clear. But, if this upward trend continues, it will be difficult for policymakers to deny its rightful place in the pantheon of finance.

Excerpt from:
Bitcoin Prices Continue to Surge, Regularly Breaking Records - Futurism

The Power of Thought

Meditation,in its most basic sense, is clearing your mind of all thoughtor at least, trying to. The practice is used in cultures around the globe for both religious and secular purposes. While it may be best known for its spiritual uses, it is this latter purpose that has recently ignited a firestorm of interest, as scientific research seems to indicate that meditation changes your brain on a fundamental, biological level.

Dr. Robert Puff, a licensed clinical psychologist, notes in Psychology Todaythatdescriptions of meditation techniques date back at least some 3,000 years, to Indian scriptures written inapproximately 1000 BCE. However, the practice itself appears to be far, far older. Some evidence suggests that individuals were describing the practice as long as 5,000 years ago. Unfortunately, the exact date of its inception is lost to the annals of time, but we do know that it wasnt until the 6th century BCE that it truly started its global spread. And it wasnt until the 20th century that mainstream scientists started researching the impact that it has on the human bodyspecifically, the impact it has on the human brain.

To date, a host of medical uses have been found for meditation. The most obvious use is,perhaps, stress management and reduction, which is supported by a plethora of scientific evidence. Ina study published in Clinical Psychology Review,researchers at Boston University and Harvard Medical School found that the technique helps alleviateanxiety and allows individuals to better cope with stressfulsituations.

Along these same lines, a 2011 study by Dr. Fadel Zeidan, assistant professor of neurobiology and anatomy at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, found that meditation helps individuals cope with, and better tolerate, physical pain. This work was published in theJournal of Neuroscience.But this is just the start of the research that has been conducted in relation tomeditation.

In a 2015 study published inFrontiers in Psychology, researchers from UCLA found that individuals who meditate over extended periods have more gray matter volume in their brains than those that do not. The work looked at individuals who been meditating for an average of 20 years, and the impact was pronounced. As study author Florian Kurth notes:

We expected rather small and distinct effects located in some of the regions that had previously been associated with meditating. Instead, what we actually observed was a widespread effect of meditation that encompassed regions throughout the entire brain.

Other studies support these findings. A 2011study inProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, which was conducted by Yale University, discovered that meditation decreases activity in the default mode network (DMN) in the brain. In the paper, the team noted that this reveals the actual biological impact of meditation and helps bring to light a unique understanding of possible neural mechanisms of meditation.

And still, the evidence does not end.

Sara Lazar, a neuroscientist at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, recently conducted work which found that individuals who meditate ultimately have more gray matter in the frontal cortex and, most notably, that this gray matter is preserved in spite of aging. The significance is overwhelming. As Lazar asserts in an interview with the Washington Post, Its well-documented that our cortex shrinks as we get older its harder to figure things out and remember things. But in this one region of the prefrontal cortex, 50-year-old meditators had the same amount of gray matter as 25-year-olds.

In other words, as a result of transformations in the brain, individual who meditate have a better chance of retaining their memory function in old age. And it doesnt take much for individuals to reap the benefits. Lazarstates that, in her study, the average meditation time was just 27 minutes a day and results were obtained just 8 weeks after the individuals started the practice. So, how can you reap the benefits?

Scientists assert that using proprioceptive input (also know asdeep touch pressure (DTP))to ground your body is helpful when attempting to reach a meditative state. Research has shown that this kind of pressure results in a reduction in cortisol levels and an increase in serotonin production, decreasing yourheart rate and blood pressure.

Thus, the relaxed physical state that comes from peroprioceptive input can make it easier to achieve a calm mental state thats conducive to meditation, and one of the most effective ways to get this proprioceptive input isby using a weighted blanket.

As Amber Martin, an occupational therapistfrom Utica College, notes, peroprioceptive input is good for pretty much everyone and anyone. It can be very calming and organizing. By helping youreach a state of peaceful relaxation more quickly, Gravity Blanket makes it easier for you totake advantage of every valuable moment of meditation before you have to return to the busy world outside your mind.

Theres little debate in the science regarding the benefits of meditation. According to research published in theJournal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology,meditation has beenlinked to reduced feelings of depression, anxiety, and physical pain.

Other studies have explored connections betweenmeditation andimproved focus, lowered blood pressure, strengthened memory, reduced fatigue, andwell, the list goes on and on. Yet, reaching a meditative state generally takes a lot of work, and truly clearing your mind is far from easy. A weighted blanket is just one thing that can help you get there.

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Harvard Neuroscientist: Meditation Reduces Stress and Literally Changes Your Brain - Futurism

In Brief A world-renowned theoretical physicist and professor at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) has a theory about how the universe will end. Based on the current rate of expansion, he predicts we'll eventually be left alone in an "island universe" that will be swallowed up by black holes after our stars burn up their fuel. The Nature of Black Holes

A world-renowned theoretical physicist and professor at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) has a theory on how the world will end, and while its not with the same Big Bang that began it, the event will be no less dramatic.

Mathematical physicistRobbert Dijkgraaf is director and Leon Lery Professor at the IAS. His research is largely focused on how mathematics and particle physics intersect, and he has made important contributions to the study of string theory. He has also developed formulas that have contributed to a greater understanding of the nature of black holes. Its black holes, in fact, that Dijkgraaf believes hold the key to the end of the world as we know it or, more accurately, the end of the universe as we know it.

Dijkgraaf explained his theory that black holes will eat up everything else in the universein a video forBusiness Insider.

Dijkgraaf explained that physicists have discovered in recent years that not only is the universe expanding, but forces are pushing it apart. The forces exist within voids and seem to be accelerating the universes expansion. Eventually, theyll reach speeds so fast (faster than the speed of light, he theorizes) that the distant galaxies we may not even be aware of yet will fade away, then the galaxies closer to us, until were living in what Dijkgraaf calls something of an island universe.

The implications of such cosmic expansion are not insignificant. When the galaxy is left alone in this kind of empty universe, the stars will go out one by one because they will burn their fuel. And if all the stars are done burning their fuel, the only force thats left is the force of gravity, Dijkgraaf explains. And it will slowly pull them in, and the black holes will eat up everything else in the universe, and this will be it.

Its a very desolate future for the universe, he adds, And I think thats why many physicists were very hesitant to believe that this is actually the true future history of the universe. But it turns out, that the experiments are all pointing in that direction.

As doomsday prophecy as Dijkgraafs assertions may sound, even if the universe does ultimately reach this rather dark (literally and figuratively) end, the event will no doubt be a thing of great beauty, too.

The rest is here:
World-Renowned Physicist Explains How Our Universe Will End - Futurism

In Brief SpaceX is planning to re-launch a Falcon 9 rocket into space for its second trip in the space of five months. Reusable rockets are another step along the route to cheaper, faster, easier space travel that's accessible to everyone.

SpaceX has plans to re-launch a used Falcon 9 rocket booster. This will be the Falcon 9s second trip since its launch five months ago, on January 14. The re-launch will also signify the transition of reusable rockets from the realm of the historically notable into the routine business of space exploration.

SpaceX has re-launched a rocket before, but the previous re-launch took place about 12 months after the initial launch. The agency has since cut down the time it requires to re-launch and reassemble its rockets. Ultimately, SpaceX plans to re-launch within a 24-hour period.

More than speed is on the table here; the ability to reuse Falcon 9 rockets saves the company about 75 percent of the total costs of the rocket, $46.5 million of the $62 million total. The end goal will be faster, cheaper, easier space travel thats accessible to consumers and space agencies alike.

After the March re-launch, Elon Musk remarked at a news briefing, I hope people will start to think about it as a real goal to establish a civilization on Mars. Each successful re-launch gets us closer to this aim.

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SpaceX Is Cutting Its Turnaround Time for a Rocket Re-Launch in Half - Futurism