Category Archives: Transhuman News

The Kennedy/Marshall Company

Not to be a downer, but we're all going to die. Most likely, somewhere between age 76 and 81 (that is, if you live in the US). And sure, while seven or eight decades isn't too shabby, we'd all agree it'd be much nicer to have twice as much time to tick items off the ol' bucket list.

Luckily, there's recently been a surge in the number of promising research efforts and tech initiatives dedicated to not only dramatically extending our lifespans, but also prolonging health and agility well into our twilight years -- so even when we do get close to the end, we're not hobbled and miserable. Unfortunately, none of them suggeststhe secret is whiskey in your coffee every morning.

No matter how many green smoothies you drink to stay healthy, there's nothing you can do to keep yourself from getting older. Simple aging is the biggest factor causing many of the diseases that ultimately do us in -- from cancer, to heart disease, to diabetes. That stark reality is what's behind the race to develop drugs and supplements that can basically "trick" the body into thinking it's younger than it is, and thus reduce the risk for disease.

According to Bloomberg, pharmaceutical giant Novartis is currently pursuing a handful of drugs that can restore specific physiological functions that typically diminish with age. For example, one would potentially reverse muscle "wasting," another would reverse aging cartilage in joints that causes pain and limited mobility, and another is designed to restore what are known as "hair cells" in the ear canal, which die off over time, leading to hearing loss.

There are also a handful of startups developing so-called "supplements" that aren't hyping themselves up as a cure for aging, but claim they can make you feel younger.The best-known of the bunch is Elysium Health, co-founded by a renowned MIT scientist and backed by six Nobel Prize-winning scientists. Its product, a daily dose of pills it calls Basis, is packed with a combination of naturally occurring compounds and antioxidants associated with longevity, which it claims can restore muscle tissue, improve brain function, and increase energy levels.

However, since the FDA doesn't technically consider aging a "disease" and the company isn't touting Basis as an anti-aging drug (or even claiming it will help explicitly extend your life in any way), it doesn't need to be evaluated by the FDA and doesn't require a prescription -- much in the same way vitamins don't. All you need to get in on the action is $50 and a shipping address, and you can get your very own beautifully branded "fountain of youth" capsules, no questions asked.

There haven't been enough long-term human trials on people taking Elysium's product to truly understand how effective it is. But the fact that an MIT biologist and several other big-shots in the science world are staking their reputations on it is at least somewhat encouraging. However, there are many other burgeoning anti-aging treatments that -- while far more complex than simply popping a pill -- may soon make it easy to turn back time.

Some of the most promising recent research on aging suggests that we may soon be able to reprogram our genome in a way that can reverse the damage time inflicts on our bodies on a more comprehensive scale,rather than by targeting individual areas like joints or ear hair cells, or even inducing suicidal tendencies among troublesome, elderly cells. The idea is based on the discovery that by manipulating a select four genes, you can essentially reprogram cells to revert to an embryonic-like state, thereby stripping them of the marks of age that render them less efficient and cause our bodies to weaken.

In a paper published late last year, scientists at the Salk Institute revealed they were able to genetically engineer mice so that those four genes could be turned on when the mice were exposed to a certain chemical. After six weeks of having the genes turned on, the mice not only ended up looking younger, but they eventually lived 30% longer than mice who hadn't received the treatment. Notably, the researchers made clear that we're still a ways off from initiating human trials for this sort of thing, but the findings are nonetheless a huge deal in the anti-aging community. As Harvard geneticist David Sinclair-- one of the world's leading anti-aging scientists --told Scientific American, the study is the first glimmer of hope that humans could live for centuries. And that's coming from a guy whopreviously said he thinks we'll be living to age 150 by the year 2100.

Another exciting area in the anti-aging quest also involves genetics, but not manipulating or engineering them. Rather, Craig Venter -- the man who sequenced the first complete human genome back in 2006 -- is on a mission to harness genetic sequencing to help us all proactively combat the diseases and ailments that haunt our individual futures. Essentially, he wants to amass a database of 1 million sequenced human genomes in order to cross-check and link variations in them to lethal conditions and anomalies to help doctors identify problems before they can become an issue, so people could theoretically bob and weave every potential disease and ultimately live longer than expected. What's tough is that unlike existing genetic tests from 23andMe and similar outfits that can detect mutations commonly associated with certain cancers, this is an exceedingly complex -- and wildly expensive -- undertaking. That's not to diminish its promise though. Venter's company Human Longevity, Inc.'sdatabase already boasts more than 10,000 sequenced genomes, and it has plans to rapidly scale to collecting 100,000 more per year.

There are reasons to believe this is also the sort of work Google's stealth anti-aging outfit Calico Labs is up to, but that remains a mystery.

As concerned as many of us are with keeping our bodies healthy in an attempt to make it to 150, there are just as many who are more concerned with simply looking the part. Just last year, scientists finally discovered the enzyme in our skin responsible for keeping it looking youthful, which has huge implications for forthcoming cosmetic anti-aging treatments. For one, it means that there may soon be anti-aging creams that can legitimately and dramatically counteract the signs of aging. It also opens up the possibility for tailor-made topical creams to patch up our unique skin and pigment types from wear and tear.

That's not to say that we've moved beyond the threat of snake oil peddlers, who have long lurked within the anti-aging industry. In fact, you don't have to dig too deep to find truly strange and likely too-good-to-be-true emerging fountain of youth trends swirling around Silicon Valley as "scientific" treatments. The most unsettling of the moment is something based on the idea of parabiosis, or essentially stitching oneself to a younger living organism to extend one's own life. Specifically, wealthy life-extension obsessives like Peter Thiel seem to be quite interested in the idea of injecting themselveswith the blood of much younger people, in hopes that it will rejuvenate their own earthly vessels. In fact, there's even a company recruiting "volunteers" that's willing to pay upwards of $8,000 for theirparticipationin a clinical trial that facilitates such transfusions. Any takers?

However, the trouble is much of the science has only ever been conducted in mice -- and more specifically, in mice whose circulatory systems were surgically connected.

Let's just hope they can figure out the drugs, and pills, and gene-sequencing stuff before it becomes normal to vampire blood from broke college kids.

Sign up here for our daily Thrillist email, and get your fix of the best in food/drink/fun.

Joe McGauley is a senior writer for Thrillist who's seen enough movies to know being immortal would actually suck.

Continue reading here:
The Tech Breakthroughs That Will Keep People Alive Past 150 - Thrillist

OneTrace is bringing the technology so many golfers experience on TV to life through the launch of their innovative tracking app, produced by mobile agency Nimbletank, in collaboration with OneFairway Ltd, helping golfers become better golfers.

The app helps golfers practice and perfect their swing by using the slow-motion features of the iPhone 6 to trace the ball, visualize shots, and analyse their movements. By showing head, body and club movement and creates composite HD imagery that is completely unique to the market. The app brings ProTracer graphics and feedback to golfers own shots imagery that all golfers know from TV, to their mobiles.

Nimbletank worked in collaboration with OneFairway Ltd to create a prototype. The app was tested on the course with amateur and professional golfers, at all times of the day, in various weather scenarios, both genders, left and right handers, all types of clubs across driving ranges and on golf courses. The experience is perfected by the use of robot navigation, which is originally used to detect unexploded landmines via UAV and here it is used to trace a golf ball.

David Skerrett, managing partner at Nimbletank, discusses how more sports brands should be engaging more with tech and embracing its power to engage audiences further: Technology represents a huge opportunity to connect with sports people both when playing but perhaps more importantly when they are not. The success of many sports is now dependent on the presence and opportunities they place and share online and through apps. Whether that be to drive interaction with your local club, organise your next game or to catch up on news and articles that interest, technology holds the key to enhancing and improving all touch points.

David Dean, chief executive officer of OneFairway predicts this year will be a high water mark for sporting innovation and is looking forward to seeing, a rise in real time, location based advertising that uses big data to perfect the timing and placement of relevant and wanted marketing in ways we haven't seen yet. This harmony of media, message, plus the context new media opportunities present to brands will ultimately add value to consumers lives and make advertising less noisy and more useful the holy grail.

Chris Minas, founder and chief executive officer at Nimbletank adds, Its the quantified self movement. We already can measure so many things about our life and our body. We believe this increasingly rich data from the abundance of sensors around us (not just wearables) can let people make more informed decisions through data and make a meaningful difference to both society and human longevity. Ultimately this can drive a happier and healthier life. I predict we will see new services that are voice driven, mobile, conversational, mixed reality and experiential launch to help unlock sports performance in almost unthinkable ways.

The app is available on the Apple App Store here, the first of its kind to innovate golfing experiences.

Nimbletank is a full service digital and mobile agency, working with clients such as Santander, BBC and Kobalt. In 2016, the agency was awarded Mobile Agency of the Year at The Drum Network Awards.

Originally posted here:
OneTrace brings sporting tech closer to the consumer with the launch of innovative golf tracking app - The Drum

(WXYZ) - When we get sick, it's common for us to reach for some medicine or maybe even have surgery to deal with disease or pain, but what if you could use your own healthy cells to fight back instead?

Right now, there's a procedure being performed in metro Detroit where healthy stem cells are stored so they can be reintroduced to your system and potentially have life changing or life saving benefits.

Dr. Michael Schenden is the first plastic surgeon in the US to perform the Forever Labs stem cell collection. He starts by harvesting her bone marrow to save those healthy stem cells.

"They should be available for many, many different medical applications is a wonderful thing," says Dr. Schenden.

The company behind this procedure is based in Ann Arbor and it's called Forever Labs.

We're told about 30 people have decided to store their stem cells this way. Sonja Michelsen is one of them. She had her daughter in her early 40s and felt like storing her own stem cells could pay off in the future.

"I want to be able to be here with her throughout her life," she says.

She knows there's no guarantee banking her stem cells will help her in the future, but she sees it as an investment that could pay off if her health takes a turn.

"To have that peace of mind that you do have something to use down the road .. is huge," she says.

Steven Clausnitzer is CEO of Forever Labs. He says by re-introducing your own healthy cells, you may be able to fight disease in the future.

"There are a number of ways people are already using these cells. Maybe the most promising .. orthopedic surgeons .. are reintroducing them into joints in lieu of surgery," he says.

Clausnitzer says there are about 500 clinical trials right now that are using stem cells that, one day, may be able to treat everything from osteoarthritis to multiple scleroses to cardiovascular disease.

This kind of stem cell banking is a 15 minute outpatient procedure. It starts with a local anesthetic in the lower back.

He says the number of your stem cells diminishes with age, as does their therapeutic quality.

"My stem cells were stored at 38. I'm going to turn 40 this year. I rest assured knowing I have my 38-year-old stem cells rendered biologically inert. They're no longer aging .. even as I do," says Clausnitzer.

Mark Katakowski is president of Forever Labs. He says his research showed him the rejuvenating and healing power of stem cells in animals. He believes it can have the same effect in humans.

He says the best time to store the stem cells is when you're young.

"There's a slower decline between 20 and 40 years-old and then it picks up. When you put them in the right place at the right time, they can actually improve recovery in a bunch of therapeutic applications," he says.

Katakowski says there's no limit as to how long they can be stored.

Should a person pass away, their stored stem cells would be destroyed unless arrangements have been made for them to be given to a family member.

At this point, the procedure is not FDA approved. The Forever Labs stem cell collection isn't covered by insurance. It costs around $3,500 to have the procedure done and $250 a year for storage.

The company says it plans to bring the first clinical trials for longevity to market in the next 7-10 years, once there is a large enough differential time between when our first clients stored their cells and can then reintroduce.

It says its goal is that its clientele will be able to participate in the first longevity based human trials utilizing autologous stem cell treatments of healthy individuals.

To learn more about Forever Labs, go to: https://www.foreverlabs.co/

Originally posted here:
Can storing your stem cells be the key to fighting disease and living longer? - WXYZ

The Barely Human Fest featuring Adult., ESG, Black Marble and more

8 p.m. Friday through Sunday, Feb. 10-12.

El Club 4114 W. Vernor Highway, Detroit.

Tickets are $20 per night $50 for a three-day pass.

Visit elclubdetroit.com for full lineup and details.

Its been 20 years since Nicola Kuperus and Adam Lee Miller played their first show together, as Artificial Material, in Germany. They subsequently settled in Detroit and became Plasma Co. before switching to Adult., the name the world has known the electronic music duo and married couple under since 1998.

During that time Kuperus and Miller have released ?? albums along with plenty of standalone tracks, and theyve remixed songs for nearly two dozen acts including Pet Shop Boys and Death in Vegas. Their latest project, Detroit House Guests, comes out March 17; The duo first conceived the all-star collaboration in 2000 and finally made it a reality via a $40,000 Knight Foundation grant in 2014.

The realization of that dream will keep Adult. fueled throughout 2017, along with a number of high-profile appearances -- including this weekends home town appearance as part of the Barely Human Fest, which Adult. headlines on Saturday, Feb. 11...

Miller says that circumstances, notably moving to a new home in Detroit, have helped Adult. feel the passage of time its been together. Getting a new life set up and running, it can be extremely hilarious going through 20 years of music, he says by phone. Some of the (computer) files wont open; We have to convert them and go through all sorts of machinations. And theres a mountain of papers; We have notes that you dont know what the hell they mean. Eighteen years ago a C-sharp, F in the corner of a piece of paper made sense, but now...

Advertisement

Nevertheless, the couple is grateful for its longevity. I think we still feel very humble that we could still be a band after 20 years, Miller notes. Its not an easy thing to do. Kuperus adds that, Its not for us to judge, but it seems like our fans find that were continually continuing to be interesting and challenging and relevant -- thats the big challenge.

The Detroit House Guests was conceived as an aural equivalent to a visual artist residency, in which guests -- including Michael Gira of Swans and Angels of Light, Nitzer Ebb co-founder Douglas J. McCarthy and Light Asylums Shannon Funchess -- came to Adult.s home for three weeks each to make music together. We kind of morphed the visual art residency model into the idea of, Well, what would that look like with musicians? Kuperus explains. Its not really a common mode of music-making. For an artist its a great way to learn and experience something. And it let them spend some significant time on one city, which you dont really ever get to do as a touring artist.

Bringing someone into your home, even friends, for that length of time can be a risky proposition, but Miller says that the one thread everybody had was professionalism. Everybody was so unique and different. There was no requirement to write any songs; The (grant) was for collaboration, not a record. But everybody was like, This is in our blood. This is how we communicate with others, so (recording) was inevitable.

Kuperus says most of their Detroit House Guests didnt know anything about Detroit, and she and Miller made sure they were well informed during their stays with Adult. We did a plethora of things, Kuperus reports, anything from going to the Motown Museum to the Dequindre Cut or going and having dinner at Craft Work. Miller notes that it turned out to be a gift for us as well. We got to do a lot of things we had not had time to go and do yet; Living here 20 years, somehow you never make it to this or that. It was like we were always planning some sort of field trip.

If You Go:

The Barely Human Fest featuring Adult., ESG, Black Marble and more

8 p.m. Friday through Sunday, Feb. 10-12.

El Club 4114 W. Vernor Highway, Detroit.

Tickets are $20 per night $50 for a three-day pass.

Visit elclubdetroit.com for full lineup and details.

Go here to see the original:
Adult. at Barely Human Fest, 5 Things To Know - The Oakland Press