Thoughts about the future, world, and technology

"Artist’s impression of Dragonfly soaring over the dunes of Saturn’s moon Titan. NASA has authorized the mission team to proceed on development toward a July 2028 launch date. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben" (ScitechDaily, NASA’s Dragonfly: SpaceX To Launch Daring Mission to Saturn’s Moon Titan) The Dragonfly is one of the most daring missions in history. The AI-controlled quadcopter will be launched to Saturn's moon Titan, and there. That probe will research the distant moon. Its atmosphere. And its hydrocarbon lakes. The Dragonfly itself is an interesting concept. If the image above really portrays a Dragonfly. That probe is like a quadcopter. And it seems to have four Kamov-type propellers that give it higher speed than traditional propellers.  In those propellers, the system tilts the rotor's edge against each other. And that makes it possible to aim the thrust. Those propellers give that system extremely good maneuverability.  Those propellers are s...

"A recent study shows tungsten disilicide’s potential in efficient heat-to-electricity conversion, promising advances in thermoelectric technology. Credit: SciTechDaily.com"  (ScitechDaily, Clean Energy Breakthrough Turns Waste Heat Into Usable Electricity) "Researchers have demonstrated a new method for converting heat to electricity using tungsten disilicide, showing potential for more efficient thermoelectric devices that could revolutionize energy efficiency in various applications." (ScitechDaily, Clean Energy Breakthrough Turns Waste Heat Into Usable Electricity) "Thermoelectric materials, which convert heat into electricity, play a crucial role in capturing waste heat and transforming it into usable power. These materials are particularly beneficial in industries and vehicles where engines produce significant waste heat, enhancing energy efficiency by generating additional electricity. They also hold promise for portable power applications, such as remot...

"In the Sensing With Independent Micro-Swimmers (SWIM) concept, illustrated here, dozens of small robots would descend through the icy shell of a distant moon via a cryobot – depicted at left – to the ocean below. The project has received funding from the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech" (ScitechDaily, Could NASA’s Tiny Robots Discover Life on Europa?) The most impressive mission for drones or independently operating miniature submarines will be the search for life from Jupiter's moon Europa. The thing is that also two other large moons, Ganymede and Callisto could have similar oceans under their icy surfaces.  And the third Galilean moon, Io has sulfur volcanoes that are also interesting geological objects. But the main object for that mission could be Europa, the icy moon with icy geysers. The probe can slip the small submarine into those geysers and maybe they can reach the ocean under that icy surface. The done can communicate with ...

The moonbase can involve cabin modules that have life support systems. The problem in the moonbase is radiation and micrometeorites. Also, solar wind or plasma flow from the sun can cause problems in the cabins. When high-energy plasma impacts the moonbase it causes radiation and electric pikes. And that's why there should be some kind of magnetic system like high-power electric magnets. That can pull that plasma away from the moon base.  In many models, there can also be a liquid hydrogen layer between manned module and space. The liquid hydrogen layer that is between the sun and the crew can absorb radiation effectively. Below the hydrogen layer can be space that denies hydrogen flow into the manned module. The hydrogen shell can be like a vault or "Chernobyl" nuclear site's sarcophagus around the manned modules. That structure's purpose is to protect the crew against the cosmic radiation.  But the moon concrete is the key element in the building site. Moon mine...

Ukrainian military used drones successfully against the Russian targets. The sea drones have shown their capacity to strike against the Russian navy.  Those attack drones are transformed jet scooters and fast boats equipped with warheads. Those systems are shown their power, and the thing is that those systems are a very big threat in the wrong hands. The small, fast boats equipped with heavy anti-tank weapons and internal warheads are hard to see. And they are quite hard targets to defenders. Things like hydrofoils that travel in very low depth make it possible for those systems can come to target from unexpected directions. That thing makes those systems dangerous in the wrong hands. It's possible to transform almost any speedboat in the world into a killer drone. The naval bases' security must re-estimate.  The hydrofoil technology can make, at least drone submarines more effective.  Once I saw a diagram of a miniature submarine equipped with hydrofoils. The name ...

Above Candela P-12, (Image: Candela) The new "flying hydrofoils" like the Swedish "Candela" can rise high above waves. That technology allows for a decrease in energy use and pollution. Electric hydrofoils use so-called passive hydrofoil technology. There the speed of the craft raises the hull above the sea on the wings, which are similar used in aircraft.  Interesting visions this kind of craft can also operate using air propellers or even jet engines. Jet engines give those hydrofoils incredible speed. Those flying hydrofoils of high-lifting hydrofoils can use even rocket engines to give power. And that makes them interesting and an alternative for many missions.  However, there is a possibility to make a hybrid hydrofoil. That connects wing-in-ground WIG technology with regular aircraft and hydrofoils. The variable wing geometry (VWG) makes it possible to create wings that can turn under the aircraft. The aircraft can operate as a hydrofoil, WIG aircraft. And as ...

"Brookhaven scientists used their new ultrafast pair distribution function (uf-PDF) technique to explore the transition of a quantum material to a previously undiscovered material phase. The above schematic shows how the absorption of a laser photon initiates a small change that propagates through the material over time, rather than instantaneously changing the whole material. Credit: Jack Griffiths/Brookhaven National Laboratory" (ScitechDaily, Atomic ‘GPS’: Quantum Material Transitions Captured in First-Ever Atomic Movies) In some old models, the quantum computer is two opposite hard disks. There would be the quantum points that the system puts oppositely. Then it shares information between those quantum points or quantum dots. And drives it to the other layer.  New metamaterials and magnetic bubbles are revolutionizing data storage and computing. Before the computer can drive information into qubit, it must store it. In the same way, binary computers must store data before...

"Visualization of the bridge recombinase mechanism highlighting the donor and target binding loops. Credit: Visual Science" (ScitechDaily, A “Word Processor” for Genes – Scientists Unveil Fundamentally New Mechanism for Biological Programming) Maybe, quite soon we can use the DNA as a data store.  “The bridge RNA system is a fundamentally new mechanism for biological programming,” said Dr. Patrick Hsu, senior author of the study and an Arc Institute Core Investigator and University of California, Berkeley Assistant Professor of Bioengineering. “Bridge recombination can universally modify genetic material through sequence-specific insertion, excision, inversion, and more, enabling a word processor for the living genome beyond CRISPR.” "The bridge recombination system hails from insertion sequence 110 (IS110) elements, one of countless types of transposable elements – or “jumping genes” – that cut and paste themselves to move within and between microbial genomes. Transposa...

Above: https://futurism.com/neoscope/robot-human-brain-cells The use of cloned brain cells is a new thing in robotics. Chinese researchers used cloned brain cells to make computers or control units for robots. These kinds of systems are new and fundamental tools. The ability to use human neurons as a computer opens an interesting and, at the same time, terrifying thing.  It makes it possible to create robots and computers with the same intelligence level as humans. This kind of technology is the thing that can revolutionize robotics. And it can escalate into many other things. The Neuralink-type neuro-implanted microchips and these kinds of tools bring those kinds of robots into reality. Cloned brains can installed on a robot body using a microchip, that connects to the computer that controls the robot body with living brain tissue. The system can be put into the occipital nerve.  "A team of Chinese scientists used stem cells to build the brain and paired it with a comput...

""The new laser leans against a block of titanium-sapphire. For scale, both sit atop a quarter. Credit: Yang et al., Nature" (ScitechDaily, Stanford Engineers a Pocket-Sized Titanium-Sapphire Super Laser) The pocket-size titanium-sapphire lasers can revolutionize laser technology. This kind of solid and high-quality lasers can make a revolution in laser, drone, and quantum technology.  One way to create a powerful laser is to use modular technology. In that system, the modular laser uses multiple independently operating lasers. And the system focuses those laser rays into one point. There are various ways to make that kind of system. If lasers are in the drone swarms, those drones can point all of their rays into one point. Another way is to make a cylinder, and in the middle of the cylinder is a laser ray. Then,  other lasers send their laser rays into that laser ray.  In Star Wars movies the fictional Death Star uses that kind of laser system. And that technology can a...

Smart glasses are an interesting tool. That can replace even mobile telephones. There are a couple of things in those kinds of systems that limit their use. The battery lifetime is always limited in lightweight systems. Maybe, the smart glasses communicate with the internet using mobile telephones as the gates. The smart glasses can use the camera, which allows it to read texts.  And then, that system can send text to a central server, which can read or store it. That allows users to give commands to those systems using written texts.  The camera can have IR and UV options. And those systems allow the smart glasses to see in the dark. The system can project the map to the front of the people's eyes, and the smart glasses can integrate with other systems like surveillance cameras.  Also, smart glasses can connect with drones. And in the military world, operators can use those glasses with cameras. The glasses are connected to cameras. That is in the place of laser pointers...

Image Wikipedia, Wernicke's area Which brain area should we observe? If we want to make the Brain-Computer Interface (BCI)? Maybe the best point would be the neural tracks that transport information to the facial and throat muscles from the sensorimotor brain lobe. The problem is that observing this kind of structure requires an extremely high accuracy. The complete BCI requires deep knowledge of the brain activity and its internal and external communication.  The key role in communication is in the Broca's and Wernicke areas. But what area should we observe, if we want to transmit thoughts to the computer? Natural selection is the brain lobe that produces speech. Transforming speech to text and driving it to the AI is simple. But if we want to take that text straight from the brain, we must realize that speech is a product of the cooperation of multiple different brain lobes. And that is the key problem that BCI sensor creators must solve.  The Neuralink chip observes the Bro...

The image above portrays the futuristic space suit. The artificial muscles and highly advanced technology make those systems extremely flexible. The system can use biologically cloned muscle cells. And highly advanced biological computers to control the suit. The claws on shoes can improve grip in difficult terrain. The intelligent brain-computer interface BCI systems communicate with those suits. The system can use cloned electric eel's cells to make electric   The exoskeleton is a wearable robot, that can turn a human into a cyborg with extremely strong muscles. The exoskeleton allows that person to raise even a car from the ground.  The exoskeletons can combined into space suits. That kind of AI-driven system can make it possible for a person to walk while sleeping. And that makes exoskeletons the basis for the new types of all-terrain suits. The exoskeletons are things. That makes it possible to create new types of transportation solutions.   "Researchers ha...

Image: (The WarZone,Strike On Russian Strategic Early Warning Radar Site Is A Big Deal) The purpose of those attacks could be to open Russian aerospace for Ukrainian drones. The attacks against those radars were attacks against the Russian early warning system. And it affects Russia's ability to see incoming intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM). These kinds of attacks cause worries because if the Russian military loses its ability to detect incoming nuclear missiles, that can increase the possibility of making false detections about incoming missiles. And that raises the risk of global nuclear warfare.  Image: (The WarZone,Strike On Russian Strategic Early Warning Radar Site Is A Big Deal) The primary purpose of those radar systems is to detect enemy missiles and aircraft. But those radars can also have a weapon role. If the radar's transmitting power is high enough, that system can form the EMP pulse that destroys the electronics in the target area. The EMP pulses can al...

There is suspicion that the Russian new satellite (Cosmos 2576) is an ASAT weapon. The mysterious satellite is in the same orbiter as a U.S. government probe. And there is suspicion that this Russian probe involves some kind of kill vehicle like kinetic energy weapons or even a nuclear warhead. The nuclear warhead is one of the most feared weapons in space. In too many scenarios, the nuclear attack begins with a nuclear explosion in space, whose purpose is to knock out electric systems by using the electromagnetic pulse (EMP).  The EMP pulse can destroy aircraft and computers and damage other electronics and electric networks. In some visions, the EMP weapon is hidden in the satellites, which can detonate at low orbiter. The EMP weapon can wait in the high orbiter, and when it takes order, it can transport the weapon to the lower orbiter. The spaceborne nuclear weapon can destroy many satellites. And this is the reason why those systems are prohibited.  One version of the spac...

  "A new paper argues that studying Venus, despite its inhospitable conditions, is crucial for understanding the potential for life on other planets and predicting Earth’s future. It outlines the similarities and differences between Earth and Venus, highlights the importance of understanding Venus’s atmospheric and geological conditions, and explains upcoming NASA missions aimed at gaining more insights. " (ScitechDaily, Scientists Turn to Venus in the Search for Alien Life) The research underscores the necessity of using Venus as a model to make accurate assumptions about life on distant planets and to contemplate the long-term fate of Earth. Credit: SciTechDaily.com" (ScitechDaily, Scientists Turn to Venus in the Search for Alien Life) Venus can be a more suitable harbor for extraterrestrial life than Mars.  There may be some primitive lifeforms on the planet Venus. Those lifeforms can hover in their sulphuric acid clouds. Or they can live in Venus...

"Artist’s impression of optoacoustic computing. Credit: Long Huy Da" (ScitechDaily, AI Efficiency Breakthrough: How Sound Waves Are Revolutionizing Optical Neural Networks) Acoustic wormholes and long-distance ion beams can be the next-generation tools.  Acoustic systems can revolutionize optical networks.  The acoustic beam means energy or particle beam, where energy travels in or between molecular-size structures. The term acoustic laser means the coherent soundwave that travels in the air. The reason why researchers are interested in acoustic systems is that those systems transmit cold energy. The acoustic systems can play molecule billiards. And researchers can use them to assemble nanomachines.  The U.S. military and police's LRAD (Long Range Acoustic Devices) are one example of acoustic lasers. In "acoustic lasers". The acoustic system pushes the soundwave into a very thin form. Some acoustic systems use diamonds to make powerful, highly accurate, and thin...