Kurzweil TED Talk on the expansion of the neocortex

http://www.ted.com/talks/ray_kurzweil_get_ready_for_hybrid_thinking

Printed robot parts self-assemble when heated

http://www.kurzweilai.net/self-assembling-printable-robotic-components?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=554a4574ea-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-554a4574ea-281903081

Today's 3-cylinder engines output as much power as V8s from the 1970s

http://time.com/money/2795469/3-cylinder-engine-fuel-efficiency-horsepower/

Robot Velociraptor Runs Faster Than Usain Bolt

Faster and stronger and more enduring...I have to laugh at those who point to today's limits as if there won't be continuing and dramatic improvements.

http://www.iflscience.com/technology/robot-velociraptor-runs-faster-usain-bolt

U.S. Residential Solar Just Beat Commercial Installations For the First Time

http://www.nationofchange.org/us-residential-solar-just-beat-commercial-installations-first-time-1401641611

Scientists Report Finding Reliable Way to Teleport Data

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/30/science/scientists-report-finding-reliable-way-to-teleport-data.html?_r=0

SpaceX Unveils Dragon V2 Spaceship, a Manned Space Taxi for Astronauts

http://news.yahoo.com/spacex-unveils-dragon-v2-spaceship-manned-space-taxi-053345005.html?soc_src=mediacontentstory

More on the Skype translator (with video)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/28/microsoft-skype-translator_n_5405904.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

Skype Translator Will Be Able to Interpret Calls in Real Time

Universal translator, here we come!

http://time.com/121983/skype-translator-microsoft/

Google’s New Car Doesn’t Have a Steering Wheel

http://time.com/121680/google-self-driving-car-autonomous-vehicle-advanced-prototype/

Glasses-free 3D projector

Closing in on truly realistic 3D images without glasses, which needs different eye focusing for different distances, and the ability to change viewing angle to reveal or hide objects behind other objects:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/glasses-free-3d-projector?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=836712646c-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-836712646c-281903081

Researchers Reveal Smallest, Fastest Nanomotor Yet

http://www.iflscience.com/technology/researchers-reveal-smallest-fastest-nanomotor-yet

It's microtechnology, not nanotechnology, but it's still an important step in the right direction.

Aerofex hoverbike could be yours by 2017

http://www.cnet.com/news/aerofex-hoverbike-headed-for-market-in-2017/

The answer to America's power needs: Solar roads

http://theweek.com/article/index/261385/the-answer-to-americas-power-needs-solar-roads

The Organic Battery From Japan That Could Spawn The Next Tesla

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/organic-battery-japan-could-spawn-130000304.html?soc_src=mediacontentstory

and

http://www.cnet.com/news/japanese-company-promises-revolutionary-new-electric-vehicle-battery/

World’s Largest Solar Array Set to Crank Out 290 Megawatts of Sunshine Power

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/world-s-largest-solar-array-set-to-crank-out-290-megawatts-of-sunshine-power/

Parrot camera drone

http://www.cnet.com/videos/parrot-bebop-drone/

Camera drones are getting smaller and more powerful. How long before they're virtually undetectable and ubiquitous? David Brin's Transparent Society keeps getting closer....

'Killer robots' to be debated at UN

For anyone who still doubts they're coming:

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-27343076

85TB of data can now fit onto a single cassette tape

http://news.yahoo.com/sony-figured-cram-185tb-data-onto-single-cassette-014537232.html

How futuristically retro. Like an antimatter-powered carburetor.

Astronomers create first realistic virtual universe

http://www.kurzweilai.net/astronomers-create-first-realistic-virtual-universe?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=b61671a8d4-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-b61671a8d4-281903081

Another blow against the creationists....

Scientists create the first life form with 'alien' DNA

http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/7/5691744/scientists-create-life-form-with-alien-dna-six-letters

First Solar Wins Contract to Build 43 Megawatts for CA

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-06/first-solar-wins-contract-to-build-43-megawatts-for-edf.html?cmpid=yhoo

Predictions for disruptive future technologies

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/matt-hunckler/revolutionary-technology_b_5257025.html

Human Brain Microchip Uses 9,000 Times Less Power Than a PC

http://www.livescience.com/45304-human-brain-microchip-9000-times-faster-than-pc.html

I think they meant to say less power, not faster....

Watson finds pro and con arguments for any controversial topic

Could this be the first steps toward a cyberocracy that makes better decisions for societies than humans do...like driverless cars will make the roads safer than human drivers?

http://www.kurzweilai.net/introducing-a-new-feature-of-ibms-watson-the-debater?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=46c8d8958b-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-46c8d8958b-281903081

Young blood reverses aging in older animals

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/05/science/young-blood-may-hold-key-to-reversing-aging.html?_r=0

http://hsci.harvard.edu/news/functioning-aged-brains-and-muscles-mice-made-younger

Google's self-driving cars are tackling city-street driving

http://www.kurzweilai.net/the-self-driving-car-masters-city-street-driving?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=7eed3a9a58-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-7eed3a9a58-281903081

Graphene may have bad environmental effects

http://ucrtoday.ucr.edu/22044

Is the movie Transcendence plausible?

http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2014/04/transcendence_science_can_we_really_upload_johnny_depp_s_brain.html

The 2070 time frame for whole brain emulation seems to ignore the Law of Accelerating Returns (assuming it holds), and I understand we have supercomputers right now that may be able to handle a human brain (even if the software and brain understanding issues lag behind).

Hawking, Tegmark, Russel and Wilczek on the lack of A.I. planning

Not much of an article, but notable for its writers and what they believe is coming:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stephen-hawking/artificial-intelligence_b_5174265.html

Unfortunately, graphene is brittle

http://www.livescience.com/45216-graphene-weak-link-discovered.html?cmpid=557212

How a synapse stays stable when its proteins are renewed

http://www.mpg.de/8125352/synapses-stability

This may not sound interesting, but if we are to eventually replace our vulnerable protein human brains with tougher, more resilient materials, this process may hold the answer to how to do so without destroying the original person and having a materially superior copy live on in his/her stead.

Blood of world's oldest woman hints at limits of life

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn25458?cmpid=NLC%7CNSNS%7C2014-2404-GLOBAL&utm_medium=NLC&utm_source=NSNS&#.U17DLfldVvB

I hope we get beyond fixing biology by moving to a non-protein-based platform.

Cloaked nanodevices can survive the body's immune system

http://wyss.harvard.edu/viewpressrelease/150/cloaked-dna-nanodevices-survive-pilot-mission

Google invests millions to lease affordable solar panels to homeowners

http://www.nationofchange.org/google-invests-millions-lease-affordable-solar-panels-american-homeowners-1398693651

U.S. Solar Capacity up 418% Since 2010, Koch Bros Demand Tax on Sun

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/04/24/1294444/-U-S-Solar-Capacity-up-418-Since-2010-Koch-Bros-Demand-Tax-on-Sun?detail=email#

New technique captures up to 80% of sun's energy

http://www.mainstreet.com/article/smart-spending/technology/solar-technology-marriage-changing-energy-world?page=1

Teabaggers are pro-solar power???

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2014/04/oklahoma_sb_1456_why_the_tea_party_is_fighting_for_solar_power.html?wpisrc=burger_bar

Gecko-like adhesive now sticks to anything

http://www.kurzweilai.net/gecko-like-adhesives-now-work-on-real-world-surfaces?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=2b9967aae5-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-2b9967aae5-281903081

How to destroy the world with nanotechnology

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0dYPnui3rM

25 Amazing Facts About Solar

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/04/20/25-amazing-facts-about-solar.aspx

Scientists discover first Earth-sized planet that could support life

http://news.yahoo.com/found-first-earth-size-planet-could-support-life-181057158.html?soc_src=mediacontentstory

Nanoelectronic circuits that operate more than 10,000 times faster than current microprocessors

http://www.kurzweilai.net/nanoelectronic-circuits-that-operate-more-than-10000-times-faster-than-current-microprocessors?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=90d98e883e-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-90d98e883e-281903081

Graphene, the wonder material

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/04/13/bend-it-charge-it-dunk-it-graphene-the-material-of-tomorrow/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

US Navy 'game-changer': converting seawater into fuel

http://news.yahoo.com/us-navy-game-changer-converting-seawater-fuel-150544958.html?soc_src=mediacontentstory

30-second battery recharge (for cell phones, at least)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/07/charger-30-seconds_n_5105173.html

The government's identification of the gap between research and production in nanotech

http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=6051

Eric Drexler TED talk on nanotechnology

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylOCEmlnyHk&feature=c4-overview&list=UU_qqMD08PFrDfPREoBEL6IQ

I've talked with Drexler. He's soft-spoken and not very dynamic, but there's some valuable info in this talk.

Making movies for the Oculus Rift

http://gizmodo.com/meet-the-crazy-camera-that-could-make-movies-for-the-oc-1557318674?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_facebook&utm_source=gizmodo_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

Ordered carbon-nanotube design may increase conductivity of solar cells by 100 million times

If the news stories about 3x efficiency here and 10x more energy there are impressive, surely 100 million times is astounding...but what it will result in I have no idea:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/ordered-carbon-nanotube-design-may-increase-conductivity-of-solar-cells-by-100-million-times?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=84111bdf01-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-84111bdf01-281903081

Using natural selection to create drugs cheaply

http://www.kurzweilai.net/the-bioretrosynthesis-solution-shifting-evolution-into-reverse-to-make-cheaper-drugs?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=f3c174328a-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-f3c174328a-281903081

Oculus Rift may be the new computer interface, not just a gaming device

http://time.com/39577/facebook-oculus-vr-inside-story/

And more on the coming of age of VR:

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2014/03/24/arts/video-games/oculus-rift-and-morpheus-take-games-to-a-new-dimension.html?from=technology

Honda partners a solar home with an electric vehicle

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/business/car-companies-take-expertise-in-battery-power-beyond-the-garage.html?partner=yahoofinance&_r=1

Quora question on why batteries haven't improved recently

http://www.quora.com/Batteries/Why-havent-there-been-improvements-to-battery-technology-recently

WiFi and Bluetooth communications...without the Internet or cell towers

http://www.cultofmac.com/271225/appreciated-ios-7-feature-will-change-world/

Infrared and ultraviolet vision...from contact lenses

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/20/night-vision-contact-lenses_n_4992829.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

Virtual reality technology gets a boost from Sony entering the game

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2014/03/18/introducing-project-morpheus/

Landmark Alzheimer's Study Pinpoints Protein That Protects Aging Brain

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/19/alzheimers-research_n_4995098.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

Volkswagen To Triple Battery Capacity With Lithium-Air Technology?

http://autos.yahoo.com/news/volkswagen-triple-battery-capacity-lithium-air-technology-110005389.html?soc_src=mediacontentstory

President's Budget Would Double Funding for BRAIN Initiative

Good!

http://www.livescience.com/43888-obama-budget-doubles-brain-funding.html

Google Reaps Tax Breaks in $1.4 Billion Clean Energy Bet

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-10/google-reaps-tax-breaks-in-1-4-billion-clean-energy-bet.html?cmpid=yhoo

IBM’s Supercomputer Watson Chef Uses Science to Throw Together Wild, Unexpected Recipes

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/ibms-supercomputer-chef-uses-science-to-throw-together-79220802823.html

Now You Can Walk Into A Best Buy And Get A Solar System For Your Home

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/03/12/3395101/best-buy-solar-system-leasing/#

Solar Industry Has Record Year in 2013

http://wallstcheatsheet.com/business/solar-industry-has-record-year-in-2013.html/?ref=YF

Supplement added to a standard diet improves health and prolongs life in mice

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-02/cp-sat022014.php

What the inside of driverless cars should look like

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-26433493

Can space elevators really work?

http://www.kurzweilai.net/can-space-elevators-really-work?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=c3ac475f88-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-c3ac475f88-281903081

"David quotes Arthur C. Clarke: “The space elevator will be built ten years after they stop laughing…and they have stopped laughing!”"

Ultra-thin capacitors could acclerate development of next-gen electronics

http://www.kurzweilai.net/ultra-thin-capacitors-could-acclerate-development-of-next-gen-electronics?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=c3ac475f88-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-c3ac475f88-281903081

"In addition, the new capacitor has a capacitance density of as high as ∼27.5 μF (microfarads) per square centimeter, which is approximately 2000 times higher than those of currently available commercial products."

Tesla takes the first step toward obliterating the utility companies

Yay, Elon!

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tesla-just-took-first-step-232131217.html

Number of verified planets almost doubles today

http://www.universetoday.com/109764/mega-discovery-715-alien-planets-confirmed-using-a-new-trick-on-old-kepler-data/

Kurzweil interview on machine intelligence and his work at Google

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/feb/22/robots-google-ray-kurzweil-terminator-singularity-artificial-intelligence

New wireless technology will enable unlimited number of devices to share the same spectrum simultaneously

Wow, really?

http://www.kurzweilai.net/new-wireless-tech-may-radically-transform-mobile-video-streaming?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=661f9aef81-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-661f9aef81-281903081

Artificial muscles from fishing line and thread are 100x stronger than equivalent human muscle

http://www.utdallas.edu/news/2014/2/21-28701_Researchers-Create-Powerful-Muscles-From-Fishing-L_story-wide.html

Kurzweil claims robots will be smarter than humans within 15 years

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/technology-science/technology/ray-kurzweil-robots-smarter-humans-3178027

'Tumour monorail' can lead cancers to their doom

This is just bizarre:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-26189827

3D printing moving to large scale

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/02/16/how-these-partners-are-working-to-make-gigantic-10.aspx

Nanomotors controlled inside living human cells for the first time

Another important step:

http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/16/5417266/nanomotors-controlled-inside-living-human-cells-for-the-first-time

New speed record for big data

http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/43171.wss

The universe could be a simulation

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/16/opinion/sunday/is-the-universe-a-simulation.html?_r=0

Termite-inspired robots build complex structures

http://www.seas.harvard.edu/news/2014/02/robotic-construction-crew-needs-no-foreman

Order of magnitude improvement in fusion yield

https://www.llnl.gov/news/aroundthelab/2014/Feb/NR-14-02-06.html#.Uv1A1PldV8E

Research reveals white matter 'scaffold' of human brain

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-02/uosc-hob020614.php

The "Ubi" computer turns your house into a smart home

Still has a lot of features to add, but it's inexpensive and actually does turn your house into a smart home:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/ubi-ubiquitous-computer-beta-test-program-launched?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=8b405031de-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-8b405031de-281903081

Watson tasked with helping fix Africa's problems

The first steps to a cyberocracy!

http://www.kurzweilai.net/ibm-brings-watson-to-africa?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=98cb194be5-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-98cb194be5-281903081

Solar becomes increasingly cost effective and produces more jobs than coal and oil combined

http://www.nationofchange.org/need-jobs-us-solar-industry-provides-employment-more-people-coal-and-oil-combined-1391783404

and

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/02/06/jobs-in-solar-power-caught-fire-in-2013.aspx

Nanoscale control processor developed

Sounds like a major step forward:

http://www.mitre.org/news/press-releases/mitre-harvard-teams-ultra-tiny-nanocomputer-may-point-the-way-to-further

The first flexible, transparent, and conductive material

http://www.uh.edu/news-events/stories/2014/January/0129RenFoldable.php

New form of graphene allows electrons to behave like photons

Strange stuff:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/new-form-of-graphene-allows-electrons-to-behave-like-photons?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=536e708bb2-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-536e708bb2-281903081

Cybernetic hand that conveys a sense of touch

This is huge:

http://www.everydayhealth.com/news/amputee-feels-objects-first-time-decade/?xid=aol_eh-news_11_20140203_&aolcat=HLT&ncid=webmail23

It's a necessary step to get bionics that act just like the real thing.

Having to give the hand back, though, seems rather creepily like amputation to me....

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/02/02/bill-gates-backs-renewable-battery-startup.aspx

Is Google the real-world equivalent of Skynet?

http://gizmodo.com/googles-buying-an-ai-startup-called-deepmind-for-500m-1509664408

Renewable Energy Is Winning the Battle Versus Fossil Fuels

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/01/28/renewable-energy-is-winning-the-battle-versus-foss.aspx

Note from the president of Plug In America

Happy first newsletter of 2014!

The timeline of electric vehicles spans back to the 1800s. During the EV “golden age” (late 1890s and early 1900s) 38 percent of American automobiles were powered by electricity and “America became the country where electric cars had gained the most acceptance.” The period between 1920 and 1990 saw some small-scale electric car projects, but most progress was lost.

In the 1990s, driven by research programs like the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles and legislation such as California’s ZEV Mandate, we were introduced to vehicles by U.S. Electricar, Solectria and GM and Toyota which were faster and could go further than ever before. Some call this the “modern age”, but because development was purely research and legislative-based, and sales never reached critical mass, the term chosen by Wikipedia is very fitting. It was a “revival of interest.”

The “modern age” arguably began with a disaffected Tesla Motors developing the Roadster which began deliveries in 2008, and really solidified in late 2010/early 2011 with the start of Chevy Volt and Nissan LEAFs deliveries. Plug In America was founded on the hope that something would make this wave of vehicles different. That highway-speed electric cars would “stick” and become once more an indelible part of America’s transportation system. And that perhaps we could help.

How do we know this is an “age” at all, instead of merely another “revival?” Here are a couple of reasons:

Exponential Growth

We know, of course, that EVs are a great product. So just like in the old (but brilliant)shampoo commercial, we expected that early drivers would tell their friends. In fact, we’ve used an adage for a couple of years now—“It takes a driver to make a driver.” Seeing an exponential growth curve is a clue that drivers may be selling cars to other drivers. And now that we have three years of data, that’s just the curve we see in this chart (again from the very useful Luskin study to which we’ve referred several times already).

Just three simple numbers can convey this phenomenon. 17,000, 53,000, 96,000. Those are the rounded last three years of PEV sales. More on that last number in the 2013 summary below.

Variety of Models

Depending on who you ask, there are nine to thirteen new PEV models coming out this year. History shows that new models are often delayed, and never (in my recollection at least) come early, so some of these may be pushed back as always.

Diversity is important for any ecosystem, including the electric car industry. 2014 will be an exciting year because we will be welcoming:

• The BMW i3 with its REx option, which will offer a new combination of battery and auxiliary power
• Models from car companies who have so far stayed on the sidelines of the “modern age”. These include the aforementioned BMW i3 and i8, the Volkswagen e-Golf, the Kia Soul EV, and the Porsche Panamera Plug-In S-E (which has already started deliveries).
• Upscale versions of existing platforms. The Cadillac ELR and Infiniti Electric Sedan allow GM and Nissan to leverage their existing Volt and LEAF technologies and reach new customers.
• Hopefully a second model from Tesla Motors. The Model X may however, bedelayed until next year.
• Breakout sales of e-motorcycles

More Cars

There have been many predictions made lately. One of the most respected (and quoted) studies to come out recently was “10 Predictions for 2014”. In it, Navigant Research predicts 86% growth in worldwide electric car sales in 2014. If this is true in the United States (and the 3-year chart above seems to indicate this as well) we may be seeing two milestones in 2014. The first 15K sales month, and the doubling of all electric cars on the road by the end of the year.

So welcome to the modern age of electric vehicles. It’s so exciting to be witnessing this first-hand. We’re not quite back to 38% of cars (we’re still working on cracking 1%). But we’re headed in the right direction.

Thank you,

Richard Kelly
President

PS: The peak of the “golden age” was also the peak of lead-acid vehicle sales, the “revival of interest” in the ’90s coincided with the first NiMH cars, and the “modern age” began with the new lithium battery EVs. Referring to battery chemistry may be a bit geeky to some drivers who don't want to delve to that level of detail, but it remains a clear way to identify the different periods.

Plug-in Vehicle Roundup (December Plug-In Vehicle Sales and 2013 Summary)

First of all, let’s talk about December.

The biggest news is that Nissan sold an all-time record number of LEAFs, 2,529. Nissan recently announced that awaited production capacity has finally come on line. So we hope to see in 2014 what sales look like with less supply bottleneck. Pricing for 2014 LEAFs has been bumped up $180 for all trim levels.

The Cadillac ELR marked its first month in the charts, selling a few vehicles. This beauty has been called an “upscale Volt” and may represent GM’s first shot across Tesla Motors’ bow.

Looking back on all of 2013, it was really a great year. 96,000 vehicles is a breathtaking accomplishment and represents more vehicles sold in one year than were sold in the last 100 years.

The “real” cars made up the bulk (86%) of sales. The Chevy Volt was the winning model for 2014, with more than 23,094 sold. Nissan LEAF followed closely at 22,610, and the other models’ numbers start dropping off a bit after that.

In 2011 we heard critics say that low initial sales of PEVs signaled their doom. However many noticed that compared to initial conventional hybrid (eg. Prius) sales, adoption rates looked pretty good. The Luskin researchers did this apples-to-apples comparison as well and show that BEVs and PHEVs are actually doing a little better than conventional hybrids did at the same time in their introduction. And this is true even for BEVs and PHEVs individually. We all know how well hybrids are doing today, so this is likely just the beginning.

Military considering replacing troops on battlefield with robots

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/robots-replace-troops-battlefield-111500084.html?soc_src=mediacontentstory

Lithium ion batteries expanding to larger storage units

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/01/26/will-a-simple-battery-reshape-the-future-of-energy.aspx

Tapping more of the sun’s energy using heat as well as light

http://www.kurzweilai.net/tapping-more-of-the-suns-energy-using-heat-as-well-as-light?utm_source=KurzweilAI+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=85e37caa13-UA-946742-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6de721fb33-85e37caa13-281903081

The military's plans for robotics

http://breakingdefense.com/2014/01/bird-dogs-drones-terminators-swarms-the-race-towards-robotic-warfare/?ncid=webmail24

$1000 genome sequencing price barrier broken

WAY outpacing Moore's Law:

http://res.illumina.com/documents/products/datasheets/datasheet-hiseq-x-ten.pdf

Harvard creates inexpensive, organic carbon-based "quinone" molecules free flow battery

Great potential for storing energy for overnight use in homes with solar panels:

http://m.fool.com/investing/general/2014/01/14/harvard-research-team-has-breakthrough-on-battery?source=eogyholnk0000001

The movie "Her" emphasizes hidden technology

http://www.wired.com/design/2014/01/will-influential-ui-design-minority-report/

I already have a passive-aggressive relationship with Siri. A romantic relationship can't be far behind.