Lifeboat Foundation

Life is shaped by choices. The fundamental debate is whether to live life for learning or for pleasure. This weekend, my existential tension boiled down to a simple question: why am I writing my next book and my next scientific paper rather than having fun in the sun?

After some contemplation, I came up with the realization that learning is pleasure. But there is another benefit to writing. Most people will live in the future and I wish to communicate my thoughts to those who will be born long after I am gone. I weigh my priorities in life based on the number of people who might benefit from my actions.

There are currently 8.1 billion people on Earth, about 7% of the total number of humans who have ever lived since the Big Bang, 117 billion. Based on the star count from the Gaia sky survey, the number of stars in the Milky-Way galaxy is comparable to this total value within a factor of a few. This implies that for the foreseeable future, Milky-Way stars could be named after each person who ever lived on Earth.

Semiconductors are the foundation of all modern electronics. Now, researchers at Linköping University, Sweden, have developed a new method where organic semiconductors can become more conductive with the help of air as a dopant. The study, published in the journal Nature, is a significant step towards future cheap and sustainable organic semiconductors.

The paradigm shift of artificial superintelligence (ASI) is imminent, promising unprecedented possibilities and profound perils for society.

O.o!!! The universe sure interesting because it so complex like a Euclidean hall of mirrors. Much of the universe is still misunderstood because much of what is known is still being understood like the holographic universe which seems to explain most everything but still doesn’t explain what is outside the universe.

Most models for the overall shape and geometry of the Universe—including some exotic ones—are compatible with the latest cosmic observations.

The future of prescribed medication lies in a personalized approach.

Structures could have applications in future electronic devices.

The search for the origin of life on earth goes on.

Simulations of the crust of early Earth show that cycles of pressure caused by geysers or tidal forces could have generated cell-like structures and even very simple proteins.

By Michael Le Page

Continue reading “Protocells on early Earth may have been formed by squeezing geysers” »

Most alcohol enters the bloodstream via the mucous membrane layer of the stomach and the intestines. These days, the consequences of this are undisputed: even small amounts of alcohol impair people’s ability to concentrate and to react, increasing the risk of accidents.

New research is challenging the scientific status quo on the limits of the nuclear chart in hot stellar environments where temperatures reach billions of degrees Celsius.

The nuclear chart is a way to map out different kinds of atomic nuclei based on their number of protons and neutrons, and the “drip lines” can be viewed as the boundaries or edges of this map. Researchers from the University of Surrey and the University of Zagreb have found that these drip lines, which define the maximum number of protons and neutrons within a nucleus, change dynamically with temperature.

The findings challenge the view that drip lines and the number of bound nuclei are not sensitive to the temperature.