Monthly Archives: June 2017

In Brief Researchers from the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne have managed to break a 100-year-old fundamental law in physics. The breakthrough could influence any technology that relies on resonant system to store information. Breaking Limits

Researchers working at the cole Polytechnique Fdrale de Lausanne (EPFL) have successfully challenged a fundamental law thats limited the physics of storing electromagnetic energy for the past 100 years. This breakthrough, which the researchers have published in the journal Science, frees up physicists and engineers to develop technologies that rely on resonant and wave-guiding systems.

First formulated in 1914, the fundamental principle known as the Lorentz reciprocity posits an inversely proportional relationship between the length of time a wave could be stored to the bandwidth (or the range of frequencies transmitted in a given signal) of resonant or wave-guiding systems. For a resonator to store energy for a longer time, it has to decrease its bandwidth. In other words, limited bandwidth translates to limited data.

The researchers managed to find a work around to the 100-year-old limitation by developing a hybrid resonant/wave-guiding system using a magno-optic material. When a magnetic field is applied, it can contain the wave for a longer period of time, while also maintaining a large bandwidth.

The researchers broke the time-bandwidth restriction by a factor of 1,000 butthey think it may be possible that theres no limit to how high it could go. It was a moment of revelation when we discovered that these new structures did not feature any time-bandwidth restriction at all. These systems are unlike what we have all been accustomed to for decades, and possibly hundreds of years said lead author Kosmas Tsakmakidis in a press release. Their superior wave-storage capacity performance could really be an enabler for a range of exciting applications in diverse contemporary and more traditional fields of research.

By breaking the restriction, the EPFL research will have a major impact on wide range of engineering and physics applications. The reported breakthrough is completely fundamental were giving researchers a new tool. And the number of applications is limited only by ones imagination, Tsakmakidis explained.

These applications could also extend to telecommunications, optical detection systems, and broadband energy harvesting, the press release noted. Essentially, any technology that uses waves to store information now has accessto a wider bandwidth. That could be anything from on-chip spectroscopy, light harvesting and energy storage using broadband to broadband optical camouflaging such asan invisibility cloak.

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Researchers Break a 100-Year-Old Fundamental Limitation of Physics - Futurism

In Brief Today, SpaceX sent Bulgaria's first telecommunications satellite into space using a Falcon 9 that's already been launched before. This is the first of two launches scheduled for the SpaceX weekend doubleheader. Ready for Launch

After being postponed from its originally scheduled Monday launch, Bulgarias first-ever telecommunications satellite is now in orbit. The launch was a success thanks to SpaceXs Falcon 9 reusable rocket, which blasted off to space on Fridayfrom the Launch Complex of NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

This marks the first part of SpaceXs first-ever weekend doubleheader, as Elon Musks venture space company has scheduled two launches just about 48 hours apart. The launch appeared to go off without a hitch,as this photo taken by a Twitter user John Kraus shows.

Image credit: John Kraus/Twitter

For his part, SpaceX CEO and founder Elon Musk seemed satisfied with todays launch, if his tweets wereany indication. What may have been even more exciting thanwatching the Falcon 9 lift off was following its descent backtoEarth as it attempted to landon one of SpaceXs barge platforms. The rocket made a solid thud as it hit the surface of the Of Course I Still Love You droneship, which is stationed somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean.

Musk expected the landing wouldnt be too gentle, adding that the Falcon 9 was going to experience its highest ever reentry force and heat in todays launch, he posted on a tweet before the launch. Good chance rocket booster doesnt make it back.

Fortunately, it was able to make it in one piece although it may havehit the surface of the platform a little to hard.

The good news was thatthe crush core, asMusk explained in a reply on the same thread as his initial tweet, would take only a couple of hours to replace:

So, despite a little bumpy landing, overall Fridays launch was deemed a success. But the excitement is far fromover:Sunday will usher in part two of this weekends doubleheader, whena payload of 10 satellites for telecommunication company Iridium is expected to launch from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

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SpaceX's Weekend Doubleheader Off to Great Start With Successful Opening - Futurism

Futurism only supports companiesthat we trust. Disconnect is one of those companies. We may collect a share of the sales from the items featured on this page.Learn about Disconnect here. Privacy in the Age of Information

Once upon a time, the internet felt like a private and obscure place. But the reality of todays cyber climate is that every move we make is traceable and, in case you werent aware, that data is a desirable commodity. Whether its for innocuous advertisement purposes or for hacking crimes, all of our clicks are watched and collected.

This is an issue that has recently been brought to the forefront of conversations, as the Federal Trade Commission recentlyruled to letproviders sell users informationas long as there is some mention of it in the contract and the user can opt outa condition thats not very helpful, as the average internet user is often unaware of their rights or the current regulations.

In reaction, more and more people are talking about virtual private networks, or VPNs.

A VPN is a software tool used to create privacy on the web. It gives people the freedom to click without being tracked by creating an encrypted and secure network connection between the users device and the server.

To break this down a bit more, service providers are able to track our every move on the web, so are people who have access to public networks (AKA hackers) and the government. A VPN essentially scrambles our requests before sending them, which means that people who have access to our activity are unable to discern what were doing. Its basically like translating a transcript into a gibberish language that no one can decode, thus providing browsers with the reliable privacy theyre entitled to.

Security is the most alluring aspect of VPNs, but leading VPN providers like Disconnectoffer more than that. Disconnect, an app compatible with iOS, Android, Windows and Mac OS X, will block trackers from third parties that are harvesting data, but Disconnect goes a step farther by letting you know what tracking requests youre receiving, whether its social media, advertising, content, or analytics. It does this because not all tracking is dangerous or beneficial to block.

Some tracking helps to enhance your web experience and other tracking helps content providers keep track of their demographics if theyve stated so in their terms of use. A little tracking is respectful and useful, and Disconnect aims to bring transparency to both sides of the track.

The app will let you know what you cant see on the web, and in addition to giving you a sense of safety online, Disconnect will also increase your browsing speed. Trackers and malware puta huge strain on your device. By blocking tracking requests, Disconnect allows your web to process faster and, in return, it increases your battery life.

Moreover, while you might not often run into issues with this, Disconnect also unblocks locked content. Whether youre trying to watch Canadian Netflix and cant get to it because your location tag is routing you towards the United States Netflix, or whether youre searching for content that is blocked in the particular country youre browsing from, you wont have any trouble finding it with Disconnect.

For only $49 you can get a lifetime subscription to Disconnect so you can rest assured knowing that youre not being followed, your identity is private, and your webis operating at top speed.

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Why You Should Never Go on the Internet Without a VPN, and How You Can Get One - Futurism

CRISPR-Powered Viruses

Earlier this month, the annualCRISPR 2017 conferencewas held at Montana State University. Attendees were the first to hear about successes companies have had using CRISPR to engineer viruses to kill bacteria. One of the most exciting potential application for these viruses, called bacteriophages, would be killingbacteria that have becomeresistant to antibiotics. At least two of the companies aim to start clinical trials of these engineered viruses within 18 to 24 months.

The use of bacteriophages isnt new. In the past, they have been isolated in the wild and purified for use.Although bacteriophages are regarded as being safe and effective for use in humans, because they are found in the wild, research on them has been sluggish. New discoveries cant be patented, and furthermore, these discoveries can also betransient, because bacteria can, and often do, rapidly evolve.

However, usingCRISPR to engineer them is definitely innovative. It renders viruses uniquely lethal to the most dangerous bacteria in the world, and initial tests saved the lives of mice who were infected withantibiotic-resistant infections that would have ultimately killed them, explained conference speaker Rodolphe Barrangou, chief scientific officer of Locus Biosciences.

This ability has lead researchers from at least two companies to useCRISPR in an attempt to turnthe tables on antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Both companies cite treating bacterial infections linked to serious diseases as their primary goal. Eventually, they intend to engineer viruses that would allow them to do much more by taking a precision approach to the human microbiome as a whole. The idea would be to selectively remove any bacteria that occur naturally andhave been associatedwith various health conditions. This could be anything from autism to obesity and possibly even some forms of cancer.

Onecompany, Locus, is using CRISPR to send DNA that will create modified guide RNAs tofind pieces of the antibiotic-resistance gene. After the virus infects the bacterium and the guide RNA connects with the resistance gene, the bacterium produces a phage-killing enzyme called Cas3. This is the bacteriums usual response, only in this instance,it destroys its own antibiotic-resisting genetic sequence. Over time Cas3 destroys all of the DNA, and the bacterium dies.

Another company, Eligo Bioscience, is taking a slightly different approach. The team chose to insertthe DNA that creates guide RNAs (this time with the bacterial enzyme Cas9), which removes all genetic replication instructions. Cas9 then severs the DNA of the bacterium at a specific place, and that cut triggers the self-destruct mechanism in the bacterium.

The third approach, by Synthetic Genomics,involves creating supercharged phages thatcontain dozens of enzymes. Each enzyme offers its own unique set of benefits, including the ability to camouflage the phages from the human immune system by breaking down proteins or biofilms.

Despite these promising results thus far, there will be challenges to bringing successfulengineered phages to market. For example, there is a risk that phages could actually spread genes for antibiotic-resistance to non-resistant bacteria. Another potential issue is that it might take a very large number of phages to treat an infection, which in turn could trigger immune reactions that would sabotage the treatment.

Ideally, though, if clinical trials go well, engineered phages could provide humans with a powerful weapon in the fight against superbugs.A fight that has, thus far, included a variety of strategies. Whenever it happens, it wouldnt be soon enough:this past January, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported that a patient died from a superbug that was resistant to all 26 antibiotics available in the US.

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Scientists Modify Viruses with CRISPR to Kill Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria - Futurism