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Category Archives: Transhuman News

Scientists propose 'cortical modem' implant to give you Terminator vision

Posted: February 18, 2015 at 12:40 am

US military research agency DARPA forsees a tiny implant that could restore sight loss or give you a heads-up display without a helmet or glasses.

With just a bit of dabbling in your DNA, scientists could plug a heads-up display directly into your brain. Sergey Nivens/Shutterstock

Forget HoloLens, forget smart glasses and forget augmented reality -- scientists have proposed a "cortical modem" that plugs into your DNA and your visual cortex to cure sight loss and show a heads-up display in front of your very eyes.

The cortical modem concept is the brainchild of DARPA, the US Defense Research Projects Agency. Originally founded in 1958 in response to the launch of Sputnik, DARPA is the US military's research and development agency. It's perhaps best known outside of military circles for the development of ARPANET, an early packet switching network that formed a precursor to the Internet.

The cortical modem concept was presented by DARPA's Phillip Alvelda at a recent pow-wow in Silicon Valley, at which innovators, investors and other big brains were introduced to the agency's Biological Technologies Office (BTO), a blue-sky-thinking initiative announced last year.

During the event, transhumanist publication H+ reports that DARPA was described onstage as a "friendly, but somewhat crazy, rich uncle".

That crazy, rich -- or crazy rich -- uncle foresees the device providing a heads-up display or augmented reality projection appearing in your natural vision with no helmet or smart glasses or anything at all in front of your eyes. Like the Terminator. Or Robocop. Or something less shoot-y.

The short-term plan is for a tiny device about the size of two coins that would give you a heads-up display somewhere around the level of an LED alarm clock. It could cost just $10.

The cortical modem is rooted in the field of optogenetics, which involves studying and even controlling specified cells within living tissue by shining light on them. Light-responsive proteins can be added to the brains of living beings, allowing scientists to turn neurons on or off with never-before-seen precision. They can then study neurological activity -- at the same event presenting real-time visual maps of mouse thoughts -- and potentially even control that activity, perhaps one day correcting neurological disorders.

The cortical modem could do just that, restoring sight to someone with sight loss. Optogenetics is still a relatively young field of study, however, and has yet to be tested in humans -- it would require fiddling around with the DNA in a subject's neurons, which, let's face it, isn't the sort of project you dive into on a Friday afternoon.

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"Mort(e)," Highly Original Post-Apocalyptic Read

Posted: at 12:40 am

Robert Repinos Mort(e) is a post apocalyptic war novel starring a cast of uplifted cats, dogs, pigs, and of course, giant ants, who, led by their omniscient queen, start an interspecies war to eradicate the human scourge from the planet.

That sounds totally ridiculous, like George Orwells Animal Farm crossed with a 1950s mutated insect movie. In Repinos capable hands, though, Mort(e) is entertaining and intelligent science fiction that can be read as an adventure fantasy, but goes much deeper than that.

Mort(e) is a housecat transformed into a sentient animal with self-awareness, speech, intelligence and hands. What he doesnt know, but comes to realize, is that this transformation is part of a centuries-old plan by the ant queen Hymenoptera to uplift animals into sentience to help the ants exterminate the human species. While the humans scatter across the planet under the ants onslaught, Mort(e) joins a division called the Red Sphinx and builds a reputation as a fearsome fighter under the command of the dangerous bobcat, Culdesac.

The Red Sphinx spends their time fighting the human menace while also investigating EMSAH, a human biological menace that causes animals to go crazy. Mort(e) follows Red Sphinxs mission, but his real motive is to find his pre-transformation friend, a dog named Sheba.

His dedication to Sheba is the heart of the novel. Once a small band of remaining humans contact Mort(e) with word of a prophecy, a vision for a lasting peace, the truth about EMSAH, and news of Sheba, Mort(e) has to make some difficult choices.

A novel about warlike giant ants is pretty clear case of good versus evil, but Reino resists that. He bravely explores the grievances of the queen ant, and imagines what her alien personality would encumber. It turns out shes been nursing a grudge for a long time, and the grudge has a cost.

She had been on the warpath for so many centuries now, absorbing and spitting out the hatred of thousands of generations of her people, that she sometimes wondered if she would have the opportunity to appreciate the beauty and purity she would one day bestow upon the earth.

Mort(e) is a terrific adventure and war fantasy set in a future where the planet has risen to overthrow the humans. Repino provides plenty of chases, battles, and descriptions of a desolated human landscape. Along the way, though, the animals have to wonder whether they are becoming the very thing they have sought to overthrow.

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"Mort(e)," Highly Original Post-Apocalyptic Read

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Florida pastor: VR technology can make church more immersive

Posted: at 12:40 am

Chuck Bednar for redOrbit.com @BednarChuck

Virtual reality cameras have been used in pornography, at sporting events and in many other ways, but one Florida church is looking at using the technology for a higher calling.

According to Gizmodo reports, Rev. Christopher Benek of the First Presbyterian Church of Ft. Lauderdale is exploring the use of devices like the Oculus Rift as a way to reach members of the congregation who live in remote areas or who cannot leave their homes due to health issues.

As the website points out, some places of worship allow their members to view services online, but Rev. Benek believes that adopting VR technology will make churches more accessible, more immersive, and more attractive to the general public.

Numerous persons and groups have developed churches in the virtual world, mainly Second Life, he said earlier this month in an interview with Hypergrid Business. I would venture to say that most have been less concerned with true evangelical success and more focused on what their technological exploratory experience may yield in the future.

A great asset to the church universal

Essentially, the reverend who is currently working on a Ph.D. in theology with a focus on the intersection of technological futurism and eschatology at Durham University in the UK thinks that most modern virtual churches are experiments, not significant faith-based outreach efforts. However, he believes that this will change as the technology becomes more widespread.

For those of us who tend to be more inclined to the developments of human technology, we are keeping abreast of the important advancements that are occurring in the virtual world, explained Rev. Benek, adding that devices such as Oculus Rift could be a great asset to the church universal, as it will enable the infirm, homebound, and potentially even the poor to participate from afar regardless of their personal mobility or lack of affordable transportation.

He added that there are several ways that churches and other religious groups could benefit from removing physical obstacles to worship. It would allow pastors and congregants to visit and pray with more people more often, he explained, and small worship groups would be able to meet on a more frequent basis, even when they are separated by considerable distances.

The way that we currently do care and discipleship will radically change as will our expectations as to what it means to participate in those aspects of the church, added Rev. Benek. In addition to the physical barriers that virtual reality can help overcome, the technology could help overcome language differences by allowing services to be seamlessly translated.

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CELESTIA IS GOING TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION! – Video

Posted: February 17, 2015 at 6:46 am


CELESTIA IS GOING TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION!
The princess of the day is going to SHPAACE! Want more news? Subscribe to keep up with current events going on in the Brony Community~ Source: http://www.equ...

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International Space Station Timelapse for Thu, 5th February 2015 UTC – Video

Posted: at 6:46 am


International Space Station Timelapse for Thu, 5th February 2015 UTC
This is a image taken from the live feed from the International Space Station.

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Silhouette World (WallPaper) Download – Video

Posted: at 6:46 am


Silhouette World (WallPaper) Download
Subscribe to the channel to get the new firsthand Download the latest software and the most powerful Li Our Channel facebook.com http://adf.ly/8594057/fb4 twitter.com http://adf.ly/8594057/twt17...

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Solar Liquid Power (SLP) – Video

Posted: at 6:46 am


Solar Liquid Power (SLP)
The video presents the official test of Solar Liquid Power "sized" (1.5 x 7 inches) for the Intended Space experiment of testing the effects of full spectrum light under microgravity...

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Kerbal Space Program Space Station Rendezvous 2 – Video

Posted: at 6:46 am


Kerbal Space Program Space Station Rendezvous 2
More laboratories. https://kerbalspaceprogram.com/

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Space Station Moon – Video

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Space Station Moon
Sorry, just watched "Star Wars" and that lead to this...

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Friday the 13th 'UFO' spotted near space station

Posted: at 6:46 am

Getting the UFO believers excited apparently doesn't take a lot these days particularly on a day already as creepy as Friday the 13th.

On Friday, the space watchers at UFO Sightings Daily shared their latest "discovery" a NASA video shot outside the International Space Station that appears to show a mysterious light appear and then disappear in the background.

The entire "sighting" happens in a flash, but slowed down becomes slightly more obvious (though not really).

The "Friday the 13th" sighting video was first posted by YouTube user Streetcap1on Thursday the 12th, poking holes in the otherwise scientifically sound proof of alien space spies.

Check out the video, as well as other recent alien and UFO sightings in the gallery above to see if you think a convincing case can be made.

More alien mysteries

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