Science, Space, Health & Robotics News - Page 352
Scientists created a mouse that is also genetically human
Scientists have hit a new milestone in mixing human cells into animal embryos, as researchers have managed to create a human-mouse hybrid.
As reported by ScienceNews, and is something out of a science-fiction horror movie, researchers have reached a new milestone in the stem cell field by modifying human cell proteins and successfully adding them to mice embryos. This is the first time researchers were able to add a large amount of human cells to an animal. The scientists let the embryos develop for 17 days, and after that period of time, they observed that human cells spread throughout much of the mice embryo.
The human cells were found in the tissue that would form the heart, brain, and blood. Scientists noted that all mice that were given this treatment didn't have the same percentage of human cells found in tissues throughout the embryo, but on average, a mouse embryo contained up to 4% human cells. So why do this? Scientists believe that if they can get a firm understanding of stem cell research that one day they will be able to use pigs, for example, to grow human organs that could be used to save lives of people who need them. If you are interested in reading more about this subject, check out this link here.
Continue reading: Scientists created a mouse that is also genetically human (full post)
Razer gives free COVID-19 face masks in Singapore with vending machine
Razer has kicked off an interesting new pilot program in Singapore, where the gaming peripheral giant is offering a free COVID-19 fask mask... but it has some (green) strings attached to it. First, check out the #RazerForLife video:
Back when the COVID-19 pandemic first started spreading throughout the globe, many companies were quick off their feet in reacting to it and transitioning supply chains to making face masks and ventilators. Razer was one of those companies, and is now running a new pilot program that is will make one free surgical mask for every resident that is 16 years or older in Singapore.
It is a pilot program just for now, running between May 12 to June 2 with 20 vending machines spread throughout Singapore. Razer will have a full rollout throughout Singapore right as the local shelter-in-place orders are lifted.
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Elon Musk's Boring Company completes Las Vegas tunnels excavation
The Boring Company has just announced it has completed its excavation work under the streets of Las Vegas, finishing up on the second of two tunnels this week.
Elon Musk's not-so-boring Boring Company first began its work under the streets of Vegas in February 2020, just under a year after the Las Vegas Convention and Vistors Authority (LVCVA) announced the project. Now the "Convention Center Loop" is closer to completion than ever before.
The LVCVA is expecting to take around 4000 people per hour through the LVCC venue inside of Tesla autonomous vehicles, which will save a bunch of time. It takes around 15 minutes to walk across the LVCC, but just two minutes inside of the Boring Company's upcoming Loop.
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Check out this full-body anti-pandemic suit, perfect for coronavirus
OK -- let's face it... some people really want to socialize, and even when there's an on-going pandemic (like the novel coronavirus pandemic right now), socializing can be hard. Well, not anymore!
Thanks to the geniuses at Production Club, a newly-designed anti-pandemic suit has been created dubbed Micrashell. It is a full suit that feels like it's ripped out of movies and games, with the designers explaining that Micrashell was born as a "socially responsible solution to safely allow people to interact in close proximity".
The team continues, explaining Micrashell as being specifically designed to "satisfy the needs of nightlife, live events and entertainment industries, Micrashell is a virus-shielded, easy to control, fun to wear, disinfectable, fast to deploy personal protective equipment (PPE) that allows socializing without distancing". Alrighty then.
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Here's how NASA will protect us humans from alien viruses from Mars
Since the coronavirus pandemic everyone has been on high alert for viruses on Earth, but what about potential viruses on other planets?
What if there is another virus on Mars for example that has the same level of infectiousness as SARS-CoV-2, and NASA accidentally brings it back to Earth? Don't worry, the chances of that are extremely small, and NASA are already taking precautions to make sure that never happens in the first place. Firstly, for NASA to bring back a virus to Earth that would mean they have found alien microbe life. Secondly, any samples NASA brings back from the red planet immediately go into quarantine as if they have COVID-19 or Ebola.
In an interview with Stanford's Scott Hubbard, former director of NASA Ames and scientist specializing in planetary protection, "I have heard from some colleagues in the human spaceflight area that they can see how, in the current environment, the general public could become more concerned about bringing back some alien microbe, virus or contamination".
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AMD, Intel, NVIDIA, others rumored to soon pull out of Computex 2020
We all knew it was going to happen, and it now seems that we're not far from official announcements from all major companies that they're pulling out of Computex 2020.
According to a new report from DigiTimes, it seems that AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA will be pulling out of Computex 2020 because of the current COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. It won't just be the major players like AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA -- with MSI reportedly not attending Computex 2020 either.
Computex 2020 was originally slated for its usual late-May kick off, but was delayed until September 2020 because of coronavirus. It seems that companies are now opting in for a virtual event, versus an in-person event in Taiwan.
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President Trump says coronavirus will disappear without a vaccine
President Trump has been pretty head on with a coronavirus vaccine, where the US president recently said that we don't even need a vaccine for coronavirus as COVID-19 is just going to go away.
Trump said: "I just rely on what doctors say. I feel about vaccines like I feel about tests: this is going to go away without a vaccine. It's gonna go away, and we're not going to see it again, hopefully, after a period of time".
He did talk about the expected second wave of coronavirus in the coming months, with President Trump adding: "There are some viruses or flus that came and they went for a vaccine, and they never found the vaccine. And they've disappeared. They never showed up again. They die too, like everything else".
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This is how you pronounce Elon Musk's baby name: X Æ A-12
Elon Musk and his partner Grimes welcomed their new baby boy into the world on May 4, 2020 -- naming him X Æ A-12 -- but no one in the world knew how to pronounce it... until now.
Musk joined Joe Rogan on The Joe Rogan Experience, where they talked about Musk's new son -- X Æ A-12. Musk gave Rogan some advice on how to pronounce X Æ A-12, explaining: "X Ash A 12". The X in his name is just pronounce "X" while the A-12 is pronounced "A 12". Easy... I guess?
During the chat, Musk explained how he and Grimes came up with the name. He said that Grimes "mostly came up with the name". Grimes also tweeted out an explanation on the name, where she said:
Continue reading: This is how you pronounce Elon Musk's baby name: X Æ A-12 (full post)
Airbus will soon sniff passengers on planes for coronavirus, bombs
Can you imagine a future where a plane sniffs and smells you to make sure you're not sick, or carrying some kind of biological hazard or a bomb? Well, get ready -- because the future is about to smack you in the face, and then probably give you a sniff down.
Airbus has teamed with Koniku on developing a new air-scanning system that will -- in laymen's terms -- sniff out for viruses, bombs, and other threats. The partnership between the two companies "was originally focused on contactless and automated detection, tracking, and location of chemicals and explosives on-board aircraft and in airports".
But now with coronavirus floating around the world like a wrecking ball, the companies changed things up in order to "include the identification of biological hazards".
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SpaceX drops buttons and dials, Dragon spacecraft has touchscreens
SpaceX is performing some upgrades on its new Crew Dragon spacecraft, adding touchscreens so that astronauts going to the International Space Station receive some next-gen SpaceX innovation.
Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley will be the first astronauts to take off in the Dragon capsule, headed up to the International Space Station, and will now get to tweak and play around with a touchscreen versus buttons and dials of yesteryear.
In a recent press interview with NASA, Behnken explained: "It's probably a dream of every test pilot school student to have the opportunity to fly on a brand-new spaceship, and I'm lucky enough to get that opportunity with my good friend here".
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