Daily Archives: June 16, 2017

In BriefThis month has shown that Hawaii may be the U.S.'s mostforward-thinking state. Earlier in June, it became the first stateto formally accept the provisions of the Paris Climate Accord, andnow, the state congress has passed a bill that puts Hawaii on thepath to universal basic income. Eyes on the Future

Innovation and forward-thinking may beHawaiis two biggest exports in 2017. Earlier this month, the state earned the distinction of being the first in the U.S.to formally accept the provisions of the Paris Climate Agreement after President Donald Trump decided to withdraw the nation from it, and now, Hawaii is taking the lead in embracing yet another innovative idea: universal basic income (UBI).

Today, Hawaii state representative Chris Lee wrote a Reddit post aboutHouse Concurrent Resolution 89, a bill he says he introduced in order to start a conversation about our future. According to Lee, After much work and with the help of a few key colleagues, it passed both houses of the State Legislature unanimously.

Lee also mentioned the development via Twitter:

The bill has two major provisions. First, it declares that all families in Hawaii are entitled to basic financial security. As far as Im told, its the first time any state has made such a pronouncement, wrote Lee. The second provision establishes a number of government offices to analyze our states economy and find ways to ensure all families have basic financial security, including an evaluation of different forms of a full or partial universal basic income.

The congressman thanked redditors in his post, as he said the site became his first resource in considering UBI, and added a Reddit-standard TL;DR at the end: The State of Hawaii is going to begin evaluating universal basic income.

Under a UBI program, every citizen is granted a fixed income thats not dependent on their status in life. Despite the current focus on the concept, itactuallyisnt particularlynew. In fact, former U.S. President Richard Nixon actually floated the idea back in 1969.

However, the benefits of such a program havebecome more appealing in light of recent technological advances, specifically, the adoption ofautomated systems that could result in widespread unemployment.

Proponents of UBI have highlighted how it would be an improvement on existing social welfare programswhile mitigating the effects of the joblessness expected to follow automation. Critics think that UBI would encourage a more lax attitudeabout workand argue thatfunding such a system would be difficult, if not impossible.

Existing pilot programs, however, seem to indicate otherwise.

Hawaii may be the first U.S.state to pass any sort of UBI-positive legislation, but several countries around the globe are already testing the system. Finland began its two-year UBI pilotin 2016, and Germany has one as well. Canada plans to start trialsin Prince Edward Island (PEI) and Ontario, while India is currently debating the merits of UBI. Several private UBI endeavorsare also in the works, including one that uses blockchain and cryptocurrency.

Of course, the implementation of any major UBI program requires a great deal of political will. As Lee wrote, Planning for the future isnt politically sexy and wont win anyone an election []. But if we do it properly, we will all be much better off for it in the long run.

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Hawaii Becomes the First State to Pass a Bill in Support of Universal Basic Income - Futurism

In BriefAsgardia wants to be the world's first independent nation inspace. To do this, its would-be citizens are already working onratifying a constitution and coming up with their own government.Now, they plan to launch their first satellite into space. A City Beyond the Skies

Anon-profit organizationunder the leadership of Igor Ashurbeyli, wants to put more than a human or two into space they want to forman entire nation beyond Earth.Their plan is to create the worlds first space nation called Asgardia, named after a city in the skies in Norse mythology.

Asgardia, which sounds like something out of not just myth, but science fiction lore has been busy recruiting citizens: to date, 205,563 earthlings have signed up to become Asgardians. The group has even drafted a constitution, which is now in the process of being ratified. While theyre still seeking UN approval, Asgardia is already planning to launch their first presence in space. The Asgardia-1, a tiny CubeSat satellite being built by Indiana-based company NearSpace Launch, is capable of storing 512 GB of private data in space.

The first presence of the Asgardian nation, we can now say, will be in space this year, Jeffrey Manber, CEO of satellite company NanoRacks, said during a June 13 press briefing in Hong Kong. He added that Asgardia-1 may turn out to be the most important and lasting [idea] that were working with. Asgardia-1 would be launched aboard a NASA-funded mission.

Due to the legal considerations oflaunching a satellite into space, Asgardia-1 would be launched with the help of funding from several undisclosed organizations, but potentially including Ashurbeylis Aerospace International Research. The legal, political, and ethical concerns whilevalid are just one ofthe many issues Asgardia must hurdle overto make their dream a reality. First and foremost, perhaps, isthe challenge of actually putting togethera large enough spacecraft.

Well start small and eventually people will be going there, and working, and having their own rules and regulations This facility will become an independent nation, Asgardia founding member Ram Jakhu previously told Business Insider. Assuming it does get to space, the nations new members would still have to learn to cope with the many challenges ofliving in spacefor any stretch of time, let alone a permanent arrangement. As astronauts would probably tell you, humankind isnt built to live in space which is why visits to the International Space Station are limited to a certain period.

Critics of the plan have been quick to call it absurd,and many expect the project will fizzle out quickly from a lack of funding, manpower, and the required expertise to pull it off. Asgardians arent discouraged by the naysayers, though:Anyone who tries out-of-the-box things is initially ridiculed, Jakhu said. Everything thats amazing starts with a crazy idea. After a while, science fiction becomes science fact, and this is an idea which is just being initiated.

More:
The World's First "Space Nation" Will Attempt a Launch This Summer - Futurism

In Brief Researchers from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology have developed a paint that can generate hydrogen fuel from moist air and sunlight. The team expects the technology to be ready for commercial use in five years. Powerful Paint

Powering homes using clean energy is becoming easier thanks to a growing number of innovative technologies and initiatives. Some government programs help homeowners with the financial burden of equipping their residences with energy-generating solar panels, and Elon Musks Tesla has developed roofing tiles that double as solar panels to give solar power generation an aesthetic boost. Now, a new innovation out of Australia is poised to make clean energy even more appealing.

A team of researchers from theRoyal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) has developed a paint that can be used togenerate clean energy. The paint combines the titanium oxide already used in many wall paints with a new compound: synthetic molybdenum-sulphide. The latter acts a lot like the silica gel packaged with many consumer products to keep them free from damage by absorbing moisture.

According to a report on RMITs website, the material absorbssolar energy as well as moisture from the surrounding air. It can then split the water into hydrogen and oxygen, collecting the hydrogen for use in fuel cells or to power a vehicle. [T]he simple addition of the new material can convert a brick wall into energy harvesting and fuel production real estate, explained lead researcher Dr. Torben Daeneke.

Though the paint isnt expected to be commercially viable within the next five years, Daeneke told Inverse he believes the end product will be cheap to produce. He also claims the paint would be effective in a variety of climates, from damp environments to hot and dry ones near large bodies of water: Any place that has water vapor in the air, even remote areas far from water, can produce fuel.

The paint could be used to cover areas that wouldnt get enough sunlight to justify the placement of solar panels, maximizing the capability of any property to generate clean energy. Any surface that could be painted a fence, a shed, a doghouse could be transformed into an energy-producing structure.

When this new material finally makes its way to consumers, itll join the ever-growing list of innovative technologies that are moving humanity away from fossil fuels and toward a future of clean, renewable sources of energy.

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A New Solar Paint Lets You Transform Your Entire House Into a Source of Clean Energy - Futurism