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Technology

FOR READERS: Whiz-Bang tech

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Robotech Veritech

FOR READERS Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Hank T. Cannon: What kind of sci-fi tech makes you go “OOOOOOOOOOOH!!!”? For a long time, for me it was transforming vehicles. The Veritech’s from “Robotech,” the cars from the short-lived “Pole Position” cartoon, and of course “M.A.S.K.” among others. I think, from a nostalgia perspective, “Mighty Orbots” is my favorite of them all, if only because of the specific mention of matter manipulation tech in the transformation and unity process. Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works … Read more

World’s Biggest Plane to Launch Hypersonic Vehicles

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Talon A

Stratolaunch has found another use for the biggest airplane ever built. The company, which Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen established in 2011, originally planned to launch satellites using the aircraft, which has a wingspan of 385 feet (117 meters). But Allen died in October 2018 and Stratolaunch was sold last year, raising questions about the company’s future. Some of those questions have now been answered. Stratolaunch’s website now reveals that the company has reinvented itself as a builder, tester and operator of hypersonic vehicles — those that can travel at least five times the speed of sound, or Mach 5. “Our … Read more

WELCOME TO THE FUTURE: A New App Scans Your Face to Verify You Are a “Girl”

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fsacial scan woman - deposit photos

A new app designed exclusively for women is raising eyebrows for requiring users to send in pictures for their bio-metric gender verification software to get access. The app, called “giggle,” explains that the gender verification process “ensures that those within the platform are verified as girls.” Users are required to send in a “3D selfie” that examines their bone structure, a process that “ensures that those within the platform are verified as girls.” “It’s Bio-Science, not pseudo-science like phrenology,” the app claims. At the end of this explanation in the app’s FAQ, a message about trans women casually states “Unfortunately … Read more

U=(N/T)M*G: Immortal

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Quantum physics is weird. Actually, quantum anything is really damned baffling. I know we’re learning awesome stuff about the universe from the quantum sciences, but honestly, most of the science goes way above my head. I think I’ve got the gist of this, though. So, the Laws of Thermodynamics are a thing. Life and death all follow these Laws down to the last syllable in some form or another. Everything in the universe is ruled by these Laws on some level. Quantum particles aren’t any different. Sometimes we get a surprise, on the other hand. Like a particle that bends … Read more

U=(N/T)M*G: Decade

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Cool cats, we’ve entered a new decade and I’m on the edge of my seat about it. The 2010’s were a circus for me, personally and publicly and politically, a roller coaster of wildness I’m hoping won’t be repeated. It wasn’t all bad. I started my writing career and had a son, got married and got divorced, made friends and lost friends and rekindled my zest for life. The last decade was something to behold, a time to look back and shake my head in wonder that I manage to knuckle under, survive it mostly on nothing by spite. The … Read more

“Witch Marks” in Hidden UK Cave Can Now Be Seen – in 3D

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Creswell Crags - Image: © Creswell Crags Museum and Heritage Centre

Mysterious “witch marks” that were carved into a cavern’s walls centuries ago to ward off evil are getting a public viewing, thanks to 3D modeling and animation. The marks were discovered earlier this year in Creswell Crags, an enclosed limestone gorge in the United Kingdom that houses a cave used by humans during the Ice Age, Creswell Crags Museum & Heritage Centre representatives said in a statement. But humans were also using the cave during the medieval period, covering its walls and ceilings with so-called witch marks as a form of protection against evil spirits and witches. During a tour … Read more

Are Conscious Computers Impossible?

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Artificial Intelligence AI - pixabay

Many advanced artificial intelligence projects say they are working toward building a conscious machine, based on the idea that brain functions merely encode and process multisensory information. The assumption goes, then, that once brain functions are properly understood, it should be possible to program them into a computer. Microsoft recently announced that it would spend US$1 billion on a project to do just that. So far, though, attempts to build supercomputer brains have not even come close. A multi-billion-dollar European project that began in 2013 is now largely understood to have failed. That effort has shifted to look more like … Read more

FOR WRITERS: Tech in 2030

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tech - pixabay

FOR WRITERS Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer J. Scott Coatsworth: Get out your crystal balls and let’s jump ahead about 10 years. What does everyday tech look like in 2030? Writers: This is a writer chat – you are welcome to share your own book/link, as long as it fits the chat, but please do so as part of a discussion about the topic. Join the chat: FB: http://bit.ly/1MvPABV MeWe: http://bit.ly/2mjg8lf

In Today’s Robot News…

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Spot - Boston Dynamics

Boston Dynamics, the company that has chronicled its development of robots characterized by viewers as both entertaining and terrifying, has launched its 4-legged canine-like Spot robot. Writes Boston Dynamics: “Spot is an agile mobile robot that you can customize for a wide range of applications. The base platform provides rough-terrain mobility, 360 degree obstacle avoidance, and various levels of navigation, remote control and autonomy. You can customize Spot by adding specialized sensors, software and other payloads. Early customers are already testing Spot to monitor construction sites, provide remote inspection at gas, oil and power installations, and in public safety. Spot … Read more

Hackers Could Kill More People Than a Nuclear Weapon

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hacker - pixabay

People around the world may be worried about nuclear tensions rising, but I think they’re missing the fact that a major cyberattack could be just as damaging — and hackers are already laying the groundwork. With the U.S. and Russia pulling out of a key nuclear weapons pact — and beginning to develop new nuclear weapons — plus Iran tensions and North Korea again test-launching missiles, the global threat to civilization is high. Some fear a new nuclear arms race. That threat is serious — but another could be as serious, and is less visible to the public. So far, … Read more