Important Innovations

Gentle Electric Pulse Boosts Memory University of Pennsylvania Innovation Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have demonstrated that gentle, imperceptible electric impulses passing through the brain improve memory and information retention. 15% Improvement In fact, the electric pulses increase memory and information retention up to 15%.  The electrical stimulation is precisely timed and targeted to the left side of the brain in the left lateral temporal cortex. Real-Time The Penn team developed a system to monitor the brain's activity real-time and trigger stimulation based on the activity.  The electrical pulses are unfelt and at a safe level. Exciting, Personalized Machine Learning Models Twenty five neurosurgical patients being treated for epilepsy participated in the study at clinical sites around the US.  The scientists developed patient-specific, personalized machine learning models. They programmed the stimulator to deliver pulses only when memory was p

Breakthrough Technologies Making Unrecyclable Packaging Recyclable Saving the Oceans 8 million tons of plastic enter the ocean every year  Yet the 3 biggest global cleanups deal with only 1/2% of that volume.  It's a plastic pollution crisis and there's an urgent need for innovative systemic solutions. World Economic Forum Incubator and Launch Pad The World Economic Forum and several other organizations have awarded $1million to 5 new recyclable and compostable packaging solutions to stop plastic from becoming waste.  It's an incubator program running into 2019, in collaboration with Think Beyond Plastics, to make these innovations marketable at scale. Making Unrecyclable Packaging Recyclable Here are 2 winners in the Unrecyclable to Recyclable packaging category: The University of Pittsburg:   The Pitt team applies nano-engineering to create a recyclable material that can replace very complex, multi-layered packaging that is unrecyclable.  This mirrors the way

DARPA's Biostasis Program Aims "To Slow Life to Save Life" Source:  DARPA Bistasis Biostatis The program is to buy extra time for soldiers' battlefield injuries as they await medical care.  DARPA, the Pentagon's Advanced Research Projects Agency, is working to develop treatments that slow down the body's biochemical reactions, tipping it into a slowed or suspended state until medical help arrives.  For those critically injured, time is a matter of life and death. Biological Suspended State This program is inspired by nature.  Wood frogs and microscopic creatures called "water bears" can survive extreme radiation, dehydration and freezing.  They do so by entering a state called cryptobiosis.  All metabolic processes appear to have stopped but the organism is still alive. Long Term Research This DARPA program is just getting started.  They're beginning at the cell and tissue level.  Then they'll scale up to the whole organism.  I

Reliably Controlling Drones thru Mobile Network Voice Channels German scientists have developed a new way to control drones.  They're using mobile network voice channels which are virtually everywhere and very reliable.  Current practice is to use cellular data channels, which often fail resulting in loss of contact and control of the drone.  The scientists say connecting to a drone through voice channels on mobile networks is as easy as making a phone call. Expanding Drone Deployments This is a very important and ingenious development by scientists at the Fraunhofer Heinrich-Hertz Institute in Berlin.  Increased use of drones in cities for deliveries, transportation, search and rescue, etc. requires more dependable connections between the unmanned flying vehicles and operators.  Data channels have proven to be unreliable, frequently interrupted and drop out. Great Idea - Infrastructure is Already There What's so great about this innovation is the infrastructure is a

Potential Painkiller for Chronic Pain UCLA's Magnetic Pain Relief  Pain Relief by Magnetic Fields It's a breakthrough in "mechanoceuticals" that treat medical conditions by physically forcing cells back into a healthy state.  The UCLA painkiller technique uses magnetic fields to manipulate the microscopic activity of the human body to reduce pain.   This is early stage research but very promising.  It's important because chronic pain has been one of the biggest issues facing medicine for centuries.  Right now, opiates offers the best relief but they are highly addictive.  That's why this UCLA research breakthrough is of importance. No Drugs Just Magnetic Fields to Relieve the Pain No drugs are involved.  UCLA bioengineers are using magnetic fields to control and alleviate pain.  The magnetic painkiller controls proteins that mediate and deliver the pain signals that patients feel. UCLA Team Approach The team led by Prof. Dino DiCarlo has developed

Man-Made Island Idea Goes Back 5,000 Years Dubai Palm Island It's an idea that goes back to Britain 5000 years ago.  There is historic evidence that the inhabitants of the British Isles were building islands back then.  Some experts believe in the 21st century it may be the next grand idea by sea.  Organizations like the BBC are tracking the trend. Floating Cities Artificially built islands in the middle of the ocean are gaining growing interest and investment.  The founder of PayPal is in the process of building a floating city off French Polynesia that is sustainable and eco-friendly.  Other companies, startups, luxury home builders and even universities globally are looking into ocean born solutions to keep humans in habitable spaces going forward as Climate Change intensifies. Relentless Climate Change Impact on Earth, Ocean and Skies From Cape Cod to Wales and Japan, Climate Change is eroding land along coastlines. Sea levels and temperatures are rising, extreme

Massive Solar Panels on Lakes to Soak Up the Sun A number of nations including China are chasing this idea...placing massive solar panels on bodies of water to maximize absorption of solar energy and allow the solar panels to operate with greater efficiency. Chinese Solar Leadership:  Largest Floating Solar Farm China is leading the way in emerging solar technology.  It opened the world's largest floating solar farm in 2017. It's on top of a lake that formed after an abandoned coal mine collapsed.  The system's 166,000-panel array generates 40 megawatts of power which is enough to power 15,000 homes.  A larger solar farm in the same locale is opening.  That will generate 150 megawatts and power 94,000 homes.  Overall, China installed 2 times more gigawatts of solar capacity than the US last year. It contributes almost half of the world's total solar capacity. Benefits of Floating Solar Farms Floating the solar panels on water protects farmland and wildlife