Alternative Energies Update

Australia using concentrated solar power to provide energy and desalination to address energy and water shortages:

http://www.sciencealert.com.au/opinions/20091203-18907.html

Cybernetics Update

Robot controlled by thought--essentially technological telepathy or telecontrol:

http://www.physorg.com/news157703000.html

Potential: a completely paralyzed person may eventually be given full physical function by operating a cybernetic suit or a remote robot.

Genetic Engineering Update

Stem cell breakthrough allows the creation of muscle cells to potentially replace damaged or missing muscle:

http://www.physorg.com/news157655456.html

Alternative Energies Update

Microbes used to turn electricity into methane:

http://www.physorg.com/news157651388.html

They could be an efficient and carbon-neutral way to store electricity generated by wind and solar power.

Nanotechnology Update

Using DNA to create an assembly line for highly accurate manufacturing at the molecular level:

http://www.physorg.com/news157642260.html

Alternative Energies Update

Generating energy from kinetic motion is now a piezoelectric cake (sorry) at the nanoscale:

http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2009/326/2

Alternative Energies Update

Laser technology is close to achieving the necessary power to allow practical fusion power to become a reality:

http://www.technologyreview.com/energy/22347/

Nanotechnology Update

Not really a nanotech update, but printing electronics is a manufacturing procedure that could bring a wave of new, unique devices over the next few years:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16831-innovation-a-licence-to-print-gadgets.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nhttp://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16831-innovation-a-licence-to-print-gadgets.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-newssref=online-news

"Wallpaper with changing designs, bulbless lamps that shed light from their shades, mediaeval-looking scrolls that unroll to become flexible full-colour displays… These are just a few of the new devices the approaching era of printed electronics could bring."

Computing Update

A new chip simulates the learning abilities of the human brain:

http://www.technologyreview.com/computing/22339/?a=f

"The current prototype can operate about 100,000 times faster than a real human brain."

Artificial Intelligence Update

This is an old Hans Moravec article from 1997 on when computer hardware will match the human brain, but it's interesting to note that we're still following the Law of Accelerating Returns (Moore's Law):

http://www.transhumanist.com/volume1/moravec.htm

Artificial Intelligence Update

This article doesn't directly address artificial intelligence, but it does mention something startling:

Robotics Update

An assessment of the upcoming challenges for robotics technology:

http://www.livescience.com/technology/090318-robot-madness-future-robots.html

Robotics Update

New nanotube-based material could form the basis of robotic muscles that function similar to biological muscles only with far greater capability (once they increase the density):

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16806-robots-could-flex-muscles-that-are-stronger-than-steel.html

"Baughman and colleagues have developed a technique to make ribbons of tangled nanotubes that expand in width by 220% when a voltage is applied and then return to their normal size once it is removed. The process takes only milliseconds."

"The tangled nanotubes are constructed into a film that can be described as an aerogel, meaning it contains more air than anything else. Each cubic centimetre weighs only 1.5 milligrams and, given the film's thinness, a single gram would cover 30 square metres."

"It is extremely stiff and strong in the "long" direction – that in which the nanotubes are aligned – but is as stretchy as rubber across its width. It also maintains its properties over an extreme range of temperatures: from -196 °C, at which temperature nitrogen is liquid, to 1538 °C, above the melting point of iron."

Alternative Energies Update

Interesting techniques for storing solar energy at night or wind energy when the wind doesn't blow:

http://www.ecogeek.org/content/view/2612/80/

Nanotechnology Update

"Trapping nanoparticles in cages made of DNA could finally allow them to self-assemble into transistors, metamaterials and even tiny robots":

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126994.800-dna-cages-guide-nanoparticle-selfassembly.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news

Computing Update

New non-volatile memristor chip could become 10x faster than transistor-based chips, continuing Moore's Law into the future:

http://www.physorg.com/news156526733.html

Robotics Update

Not exactly realistic yet, but this Japanese robot designed for the fashion industry is closing in on the goal:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7946780.stm

(The video may "stick" and need refreshing.)

Computing Update

Researchers develop a "brain on a chip," which currently functions like a small version of the human brain:

http://www.physorg.com/news156440026.html

"...the system runs 100,000 times faster than the biological equivalent and 10 million times faster than a software simulation. We can simulate a day in one second..."

"Meier points out that neural computing, with its low-power demands and tolerance of faults, may make it possible to reduce components to molecular size. “We may then be able to make computing devices which are radically different and have amazing performance which, at some point, may approach the performance of the human brain - or even go beyond it!”"

Robotics Update

Image-recognition software and an infrared camera allow a robot to follow people through different environments, responding to gesture commands:

http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/editors/23132/

(Be sure to view the video.)

Robotics Update

Image-recognition software and an infrared camera allow a robot to follow people through different environments, responding to gesture commands:

http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/editors/23132/

(Be sure to view the video.)

Genetic Engineering Update

New machine allows for the alteration of 50 genes at a time, instead of the usual one, thus greatly speeding up (days instead of months) the genetic engineering of bacteria to produce useful products:

http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/22299/

Alternative Energies Update

A new prototype capacitor stores power as densely as a supercapacitor, but delivers it at speeds comparable with electrostatic capacitors:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16768-atomic-construction-yields-punchier-power-store.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news

"The resulting capacitor can deliver energy at a speed typical of electrostatic capacitors, at a rate that would allow a single kilogram to deliver one megawatt of power – enough to power 10,000 100-watt light bulbs. It can also store energy as densely as a supercapacitor, with 1 kg holding 2500 joules.

"Our primary target [for this technology] is as part of a hybrid battery-capacitor system for electric cars," says Rubloff. "But there are many [potential] small scale applications, [including] better electrical storage systems for cellphones or laptops.""

Alternative Energies Update

New "nanoball" batteries charge 100 times faster than regular batteries:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126994.700-nanoball-batteries-could-recharge-car-in-minutes.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news

Artificial Intelligence Update

A new program can give clear, computed answers to factual questions on a broad range of topics:

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/03/08/wolfram-alpha-computes-answers-to-factual-questions-this-is-going-to-be-big/

Computing Update

The next generation in user interfaces:

http://singularityhub.com/2009/03/04/the-next-generation-in-human-computer-interfaces-awesome-videos/

Robotics Update

A robotic Trauma Pod capable of remote and autonomous operation is being developed to act as surgeon and nurses on the battlefield:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126982.600-er-20-robots-team-up-for-surgery.html

Cybernetics Update

Another step in the development of a true bionic eye:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7919645.stm

Artificial Intelligence Update

Supercomputer AI now capable of winning against professional Go players:

http://www.hpcwire.com/offthewire/Dutch-Supercomputer-Establishes-New-Go-Record-40540917.html?viewAll=y

"After the victory of IBM's Deep Blue against Garry Kasparov, the game of Go has
replaced chess as a test bed for research in artificial intelligence (AI). Go is
one of the last board games where the strongest humans are still able to easily
win against AI."

Genetic Engineering Update

This isn't actually genetic engineering so much as selective breeding of embryos, but it appears designer babies are now a reality:

http://singularityhub.com/2009/02/25/designer-babies-like-it-or-not-here-they-come/

Artificial Intelligence Update

Microsoft plans to roll out an affordable artificially intelligent digital personal assistant within a few years:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/02/technology/business-computing/02compute.html?_r=2&ref=technology

Alternative Energies Update

Milestone: First Solar thin film solar panels drop below $1 per watt:

http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/research/4306443.html

Materials may have to change as we scale up solar power. If the oil industry uses "black gold," the solar industry may end up using "fool's gold." Seriously, actual fool's gold.