Over at Al fin, theres an article about 'grassoline' the direct conversion of biomass cellulose to hydrocarbon fuel. This is second generation bio-fuels coming to the fore, which is much better than the corporate- welfare- scam corn to ethanol production we see today.
Over at Gizmag, there is an article about IBM creating a demonstrable racetrack memory, which would have no moving parts. Such memory systems are speculated to be able to have 100 times as much information density as well as being much much faster. Imagine 500000 songs or 3500 movies on your mp3 player!
As someone who has personally dealt with a friend in the advanced stages of Parkinson's related dementia, I find this news from MIT interesting:
Reprogrammed Stem Cells Work on Parkinson's:A study in rodents suggests that skin cells can be transformed into neurons to treat neurodegeneration.
Parkinson's is thought to occur due to genetic susceptibility and exposure to environmental toxins. Rates first became highly noticeable after the start of the industrial revolution.
The disease itself causes tremors and interferes with motor control, and many times causes dementia, a decreasing of cognitive ability due to neuron death in the brain.
Time to get new cookbooks!: Scientists Flesh Out Plans to Grow ( and Sell) Test Tube MeatWired reports that vat meat might be available within 10 years at cost competitive rates.
My take is that this is good. Greenhouse emissions from ruminant flatulence will be reduced ( as well as other sources....but they're secondary to cow farts) , space and energy requirements will be reduced, and the whole ethical issue becomes moot. As well, this is just the start of the technology. Given scaling and advancements, the cost will most likely come down substantially over time.
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