The World’s First Functional Laser Weapon is Ready to Protect You

The age of the laser weapon is finally here:

https://futurism.com/the-worlds-first-functional-laser-weapon-is-ready-to-protect-you/

The Era of Human Gene Editing Is Here—What Happens Next Is Critical

Genetic engineering is upon us:

https://singularityhub.com/2017/07/31/the-era-of-human-gene-editing-is-here-what-happens-next-is-critical/

The First Major U.S. Bill on Self-Driving Cars Just Got House Committee Approval

Good, it's happening:

https://futurism.com/the-first-major-u-s-bill-on-self-driving-cars-just-got-house-committee-approval/

Fisticuffs Over the Route to a Clean-Energy Future

Maybe going completely solar and wind is going to be a lot harder than anticipated? The article doesn't take into account technological advancement, though:

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/06/20/business/energy-environment/renewable-energy-national-academy-matt-jacobson.html

China's Greening of the Vast Kubuqi Desert is a Model for Land Restoration Projects Everywhere

I hate that it's China, of all countries, that's leading the way, but they get it:

http://time.com/4851013/china-greening-kubuqi-desert-land-restoration/?xid=newsletter-brief

AI Is Inventing Languages Humans Can’t Understand. Should We Stop It?

This is fascinating...and more than a little creepy:

https://flipboard.com/@flipboard/-ai-is-inventing-languages-humans-cant-u/f-df264acd3d%2Ffastcodesign.com

Neuroreality: The New Reality is Coming. And It’s a Brain Computer Interface.

Sounds good, although I would like my VR experience to be physical too, not just mental. VR is an opportunity to get good exercise and physical training that regular computer games don't give you:

https://futurism.com/neuroreality-the-new-reality-is-coming-and-its-a-brain-computer-interface/

How Robots Are Getting Better at Making Sense of the World

https://singularityhub.com/2017/07/26/how-robots-are-getting-better-at-making-sense-of-the-world/

This 3-D Printed Invention Earns Three Thumbs Up

This is when prosthetics gets interesting: when they're designed to go BEYOND human capabilities, rather than just mitigate disability:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/this-3-d-printed-invention-earns-three-thumbs-up_us_5977cda2e4b0e201d579581b

When Will AI Be Better Than Humans at Everything? 352 AI Experts Answer

This is probably the best prognostication for A.I. achievement as we're likely to get:

https://singularityhub.com/2017/07/25/when-will-ai-be-better-than-humans-at-everything-352-ai-experts-answer/

It doesn't look good for a rapid technological singularity...but then the prognosticators in 2015 thought A.I. wouldn't beat the game Go until 2027...only to have it occur in 2016, and this year A.I. beat the best human player.

Geothermal: Iceland Aims to Revolutionize Renewable Energy

Expensive but otherwise quite viable:

http://time.com/4844086/geothermal-energy-iceland-deep-drilling-project/

Is anyone home? A way to find out if AI has become self-aware

The ACT is a test that is the opposite of the Turing test, designed to detect consciousness, not see if it can be emulated:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/is-anyone-home-a-way-to-find-out-if-ai-has-become-self-aware

This U.S. City Now Requires Solar Panels on all New Homes

Nice trend!

https://futurism.com/this-u-s-city-now-requires-solar-panels-on-all-new-homes/

New 3D Computer Chip Uses Nanotech to Boost Processing Power

Stacking chips (of the non-Pringles variety) has arrived:

https://www.livescience.com/59855-3d-computer-chip-boosts-processing-power.html

Alphabet’s X announces Glass Enterprise Edition, a hands-free device for hands-on workers

Making a better glasshole:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/alphabets-x-announces-glass-enterprise-edition-a-hands-free-device-for-hands-on-workers

How Batteries Could Revolutionize Renewable Energy

I'm doing my part...

http://time.com/4756648/batteries-clean-energy-renewables/

Drinking coffee associated with lower risk of death from all causes, study finds

I don't particularly like coffee, and I don't like the idea of being addicted to it, but at least it supposedly works with decaf too:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/drinking-coffee-associated-with-lower-risk-of-death-from-all-causes-study-finds

Neural stem cells steered by electric fields can repair brain damage

Do you think this would work on Trump?

http://www.kurzweilai.net/neural-stem-cells-steered-by-electric-fields-can-repair-brain-damage

Why Business Leaders Need to Read More Science Fiction

I would really like this job:

https://hbr.org/2017/07/why-business-leaders-need-to-read-more-science-fiction?mc_cid=ae5d6cf268&mc_eid=c4215c6c8c

A New 3D Printed Bionic Hand Could Help Two Million Worldwide

It's the 3D printing part that's most impressive:

https://futurism.com/a-new-3d-printed-bionic-hand-could-help-two-million-worldwide/

Scientists May Have Just Created the Most Absorbent Solar Cell Ever

This is rather huge:

https://futurism.com/scientists-may-have-just-created-the-most-absorbent-solar-cell-ever/

We Worked Out What It Would Take to Wipe Out All Life on a Planet—and It’s Good News for Alien Hunters

Life will go on...

https://singularityhub.com/2017/07/17/we-worked-out-what-it-would-take-to-wipe-out-all-life-on-a-planet-and-its-good-news-for-alien-hunters/

So if Mars ever had life...it may very well still have it.

Elon Musk Says Artificial Intelligence Is the ‘Greatest Risk We Face as a Civilization’

I just have this sneaking suspicion that Elon Musk is nowhere near as knowledgeable about certain subjects that people assume he's an expert in than he actually is:

http://fortune.com/2017/07/15/elon-musk-artificial-intelligence-2/

Jefferies gives IBM Watson a Wall Street reality check

This is disappointing:

https://techcrunch.com/2017/07/13/jefferies-gives-ibm-watson-a-wall-street-reality-check/

Skim the Water in Your Own Hovering Speedboat

Yes, please:

https://futurism.com/videos/skim-the-water-in-your-own-hovering-speedboat/

Artificial Intelligence: it will kill us

A.I. superior to humans is already here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrNs0M77Pd4

Some enlightening stuff.

New Discovery Brings Us One Step Closer to Growing Replacement Organs

https://futurism.com/new-discovery-brings-us-one-step-closer-to-growing-replacement-organs/

This Tough Robot Is Capable of Running and Climbing Stairs

https://futurism.com/videos/this-tough-robot-is-capable-of-running-and-climbing-stairs/

How to turn audio clips into realistic lip-synced video

There's still the slightest bit of the uncanny valley there...but you might not even notice it if you weren't looking for it:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/how-to-turn-audio-clips-into-realistic-lip-synced-video

Researcher Demonstrates How to Suck Carbon from the Air, Make Stuff from It

Here's some reason for hope in reversing climate change:

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/540706/researcher-demonstrates-how-to-suck-carbon-from-the-air-make-stuff-from-it/

"They calculate that given an area less than 10 percent of the size of the Sahara Desert, the method could remove enough carbon dioxide to make global atmospheric levels return to preindustrial levels within 10 years, even if we keep emitting the greenhouse gas at a high rate during that period."

But there are some problems with the process:

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/531346/can-sucking-co2-out-of-the-atmosphere-really-work/

The Trouble with Transporters

These are the consequences I've always enjoyed presenting to fans of teleportation and mind uploading:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQHBAdShgYI&app=desktop

Scientists Just Teleported a Photon from Earth to Orbit for the First Time

https://futurism.com/scientists-just-teleported-a-photon-from-earth-to-orbit-for-the-first-time/

Inside the startup that wants to mine asteroids and transform space travel forever

How to get more of certain valuable resources than we know what to do with:

http://www.wired.co.uk/article/asteroid-space-mining-phoenix-mars-chris-lewicki-planetary-resources

This Mini Wind Turbine Can Power Your Home in a Gentle Breeze

A quiet home windmill for a quarter the price of solar?

https://singularityhub.com/2017/07/09/this-mini-wind-turbine-can-power-your-home-in-a-gentle-breeze

Doctor Octopus-esque robotic arm attachments will lend you an extra hand or two

I could definitely use one of these:

http://mashable.com/2017/07/05/robotic-arm-attachments/#aOqxub8kTiq0

Researchers create a 'battery-free' mobile phone

http://mashable.com/2017/07/08/battery-free-phone-research/#SNGNsSZhMaqh

Our Sexual Future With Robots

A detailed update on the current and near future state of sex robots:

http://responsiblerobotics.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/FRR-Consultation-Report-Our-Sexual-Future-with-robots_Final.pdf

If We Stopped Emitting Greenhouse Gases Right Now, Would We Stop Climate Change?

Well this is fucking depressing:

https://futurism.com/if-we-stopped-emitting-greenhouse-gases-right-now-would-we-stop-climate-change/

It seems only nanotech can get us back to the pre-industrial levels of C02.

Machine Reasoning Gets a Boost With This Simple New Algorithm

https://singularityhub.com/2017/07/06/machine-reasoning-gets-a-boost-with-this-simple-new-algorithm/

To improve AI, scientists may have to make it worse

Sometimes it's good to forget:

https://qz.com/1021796/our-brains-are-able-to-forget-in-a-way-that-robots-cant/?mc_cid=c51a88a313&mc_eid=c4215c6c8c

7 Ways Nanotechnology Could Combat Climate Change

This isn't thinking ahead very far at all:

https://nano-magazine.com/news/2017/6/29/7-ways-nanotechnology-could-combat-climate-change

Like what about creating self-replicating assemblers that convert atmospheric carbon to raw material for industry? According to Engines of Creation, such a system, fully implemented, would in just ten years remove as much carbon dioxide as has been dumped into our atmosphere since the start of the industrial revolution.

“Bad Science” Is Everywhere. What Can We Do to Stop Its Spread?

I've been fighting fake news from creationists for almost 40 years!

https://futurism.com/bad-science-everywhere-what-can-stop-spread/

Forget Flying Cars, the Future Is Driving Drones

Well, maybe...

https://singularityhub.com/2017/07/02/forget-flying-cars-the-future-is-driving-drones/

‘Mind reading’ technology identifies complex thoughts, using machine learning and fMRI

Another step on the path toward mind-reading technology:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/mind-reading-technology-identifies-complex-thoughts-using-machine-learning-and-fmri

I ask 100 information questions to four digital assistants. All of them fail at least half.

The current state of the most evident face of AI for the masses:

https://vlad.d2dx.com/the-great-assistant-skills-comparison-google-alexa-siri-and-cortana-head-off/

A Reality Check for IBM’s AI Ambitions

The hype and successes for Watson:

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/607965/a-reality-check-for-ibms-ai-ambitions/

Canada Is Building a 7 Megawatt-Hour Compressed Air Energy Storage Plant

Just imagine the pressures involved:

https://singularityhub.com/2017/07/01/canada-is-building-a-7-megawatt-hour-compressed-air-energy-storage-plant/

AI Just “Landed” a Boeing 737 for the First Time By Itself

Pilots' jobs are on the line:

http://bigthink.com/robby-berman/ai-just-landed-a-boeing-737-for-the-first-time-by-itself

Nanotech's Big Ideas: From Tumor Zappers to Space Elevators

Not much detail, but...

https://www.livescience.com/59661-future-of-nanotech-in-space-and-medicine.html

Ray Kurzweil: Our Brain Is a Blueprint for the Master Algorithm

This could simplify achieving true general A.I. much more quickly:

https://singularityhub.com/2017/06/30/ray-kurzweil-our-brain-is-a-blueprint-for-the-master-algorithm/

Here’s a First-Ever Look at the New Electric Vehicle That Charges in 9 Minutes

https://futurism.com/heres-a-first-ever-look-at-the-new-electric-vehicle-that-charges-in-9-minutes/