George Dvorsky

This Could Be the First Animal to Live Entirely Inside a Computer

Animals are exceptionally complicated things. So complicated, in fact, that we’ve never actually built one ourselves. But the day is fast approaching when we’ll be able to create digital versions of organisms on a computer — from the way they move right through to their behaviors. Here’s how we’ll do it. I spoke to neuroscientist…

For the first time ever, biologists have regenerated an organ in a living animal. They did so by manipulating a single protein in elderly mice that makes their bodies rebuild their thymuses, an organ of the immune system. It’s the first time an organ has been repaired with a chemical trigger and not via stem…

German Fisherman Discovers The World’s Oldest Message In A Bottle

What at first appeared to be a normal, discarded beer bottle caught in a fisherman’s net has turned out to be a record-breaking discovery — a proverbial message in a bottle dating back to May 17th, 1913. The bottle contained a Danish postcard with two German stamps on it. The card had a polite message…

This Parasite Can Hijack A Plant’s Reproductive System

Researchers in the UK have unlocked the mystery behind a freaky bacterial pathogen that hijacks a plant’s reproductive capacities — a nefarious process that essentially converts hosts into the living dead. Top image: The top row shows a normal Arabidopsis plant — flowers and all. The bottom row shows a parasitized “zombie plant,” one that…

Japanese Robots In Danger Of Being Replaced By Human Workers

At a time when virtually everyone’s afraid of losing their jobs to robots, one prominent Japanese company is charting a counter-intuitive and radically different course to the future — one in which skilled human workers are poised to make a comeback. Back in the day, master craftsmen in Japan were called “Kami-sama,” which translated literally…

Any Guesses As To What These Bizarro Goggles Are Used For?

We’ll give you a hint: They were developed by NASA. They’re space eye-wash goggles. The ESA explains: Imagine you are an astronaut on the International Space Station and a fleck of dust gets in your eye or you accidentally splash chilli sauce or something even worse in there. Where do you get the water from…

What’s That Strange Light Emanating From The Martian Surface?

Remember that awesome image of the Kimberley Waypoint we showed you yesterday? Well, some astute observers noticed an artificial light glowing on the surface. And that’s certainly what it looks like — but there’s a very reasonable explanation. I contacted Ken Kramer from Universe Today to get an explanation. “That tiny little blip is likely…

Alcohol May Have Different Pair-Bonding Effects On Males And Females

Alcohol is often referred to as a social lubricant, but its effects on pair bonding have not been fully explored. But a new experiment performed on prairie voles — a socially monogamous mammal — suggests that alcohol may cause males to be more drawn to strangers, while the opposite holds true for females. Obviously, humans…

New Implant Helps Paralyzed Patients Regain Partial Use Of Their Legs

After receiving an implant that electrically stimulates the spinal cord, four paraplegic men can now voluntarily move their previously paralyzed legs. It’s a breakthrough that’s poised to revolutionize the treatment of paralysis. Researchers working to treat damage-induced paralysis have made a number of advances over the past several years, but this latest breakthrough is one…

Watch the U.S. Navy Blow Shit Up With Its Futuristic Railgun

Gamers and scifi enthusiasts are familiar with the much-vaunted railgun — an electrically powered projectile launcher capable of propelling objects at speeds reaching Mach 7. We’ve seen the Navy’s railgun in action before — but we’ve never actually seen it destroy stuff. Until now. Navy officials have been busy at work testing the railguns to…

Athlete Struck By Potentially Hacked Aerial Drone

An athlete competing at an Australian triathlon was sent to hospital after an aerial camera drone suddenly swooped down and smashed into her. The operator of the UAV claims someone nearby “channel hopped” the device — wresting control away from him. The camera drone was hovering above athletes competing in Geraldton’s Endure Batavia Triathlon when…

This Robot Is A Crash Test Dummy For HAZMAT Suits

Introducing Porton Man, the UK Ministry of Defence’s answer to the Pentagon’s Petman. And like the U.S. version, this robot will be subjected to a series of unpleasant scenarios, including chemical and biological contamination. So you don’t have to. Indeed, the point of the £1.1 million (USD $1.8 million) robotic mannequin is to test light-weight…

The Most Incredible Footage Of A Live Oarfish We’ve Ever Seen

During a recent Shedd Adventures trip to Baja, vacationers caught a glimpse of a rare oarfish making its way through shallow waters. Simply put, their video is our best glimpse of these elusive creatures to date. Apparently they witnessed not one, but two of these oarfish swimming in the waters. As far as I know…

Harrowing Photos Capture Tense Encounter Between Baby Baboon And Lion

While on a game drive in northern Botswana, a married couple witnessed a dramatic scene involving a troop of baboons fleeing from a pack of lions. What they saw next was completely unexpected — and showed the surprising tenderness that can be exhibited by even the most ferocious of animals. All photos courtesy Evan Schiller.…

The ESA’s Latest Rocket Launch Would Make Any Visual FX Team Jealous

Who needs fancy special effects when you’ve got real life? Arianespace just released an exhilarating onboard camera view of the recent Soyuz ST-A rocket launch carrying the the Sentinel-1A satellite into orbit. Watch the whole thing from start to finish. Highlights of this launch include the Soyuz first stage separation (boosters B, V, G, and…

This Is How The Private Sector Will Put A Lander On The Moon

In an effort to win the $20 million Google Lunar X-Prize, Astrobotic and Masten have been busy at work developing a free-flying moon lander. Watch this video of the XOMBIE rocket as it uses an onboard hazard avoidance system to execute a perfect landing. Indeed, NASA’s free-flying Morpheus lander is not the only game in…

Hong Kong’s PleXus Tower Looks Like Something Right Out Of Tron

Check out these conceptual designs for Hong Kong’s proposed PleXus Tower — a segmented structure that will integrate directly with the city’s transportation infrastructure. Given its undeniable Tron-like aesthetic, we’ll be sure to bring our lightcycles. The tower is designed to fit into the banks of West Hong Kong Harbor where its distributed pods will…

The First-Ever Cyborg Games Are Set For 2016

The Paralympic Games are great, but what the technology-assisted athletes of the future really need is an event to call their own. Introducing Cybathlon 2016 — a championship for robot-assisted parathletes. The competition, which is being organized on behalf of the Swiss National Competence Center of Research in Robotics (NCCR Robotics), will be held at…

These Mesmerizing GIFs Look Like They Come From An Alternate Reality

Inspired by physics and math, French engineering student Hugo Germain has created some of the oddest GIFs we’ve seen in quite some time — from incoming asteroids that can change direction to gravity-defying coils. Germain says his GIFs are a way to get people interested in subjects typically considered too inaccessible. His animations demonstrate such…

10 Shocking Ways the Second World War Could Have Ended Differently

Decisions during wartime are monumental things. Each move and countermove has the potential to change the course of history. Here are ten shocking ways the Second World War could have unfolded differently than it did. Listed in rough chronological order. 1. Germany Invades Britain Instead of the Soviet Union Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union…