Science & Technology

A new study has announced a major advance in the battle against cancer. Seth Augenstein reports: In a study published [May 14, 2012] in the journal Cancer Cell, four scientists from the Cancer Institute of New Jersey and the Institute for Advanced Study laid out their work involving a compound…

Cathy Hutchinson, who has been paralyzed for more than 15 years due to a stroke, recently directed “a robotic arm to pick up a bottle of coffee and bring it to her lips,” using only her mind—and some mind-bending new technology, the Associated Press reports. “The device, called BrainGate, bypasses…

Here’s a beautiful story about what a curious and creative mind can accomplish—even at a very young age. Excerpt from Popular Science: Late one night two years ago, Adam Munich found himself talking with two new acquaintances in a chatroom. One, a Pakistani guy, was complaining about rolling electricity blackouts…

[caption id="attachment_4133" align="alignright" width="300"] Image: SpaceX[/caption] “There is so much hope riding on that rocket.” That’s what Elon Musk, cofounder and CEO of SpaceX, said this morning after his company successfully launched its Falcon 9 rocket, now carrying supplies to the International Space Station. Musk was talking about the hopes…

When Staff Sgt. Jeremy Cooney, a Marine deployed in Afghanistan, returned home, he was greeted with a great surprise. Doctors originally said that his son, Michael, who is afflicted with cerebral palsy, “would never walk or do much of anything,” explains Jeremy's wife. “While daddy was away, he learned to…

Kurzweil reports that “Mouse lifespan was extended up to 24 percent with a single gene treatment in research at the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO), using gene therapy, a strategy never before employed to combat aging.” Mice treated at the age of one lived longer by 24% on average,…

Claire Lomas, a woman paralyzed from the chest down because of a horse riding accident, recently finished a marathon thanks to a bionic suit “designed by Israeli firm Argo Medical Technologies,” reports Time NewsFeed. Claire finished the marathon while being cheered on by her family—her husband, 13-month old daughter, and…

In a recent post, a reader commented: Even without a national healthcare plan the old person is taking a finite amount of time away from the possibility of the doctor working on a younger patient. Therefore rationing is inevitable in any system. Rationing has to take place. It is only…

Living in Colorado, out in the country, my route to civilization takes me up and over the shoulder of Dawson Butte. The road climbs steadily for about a mile and then descends on the other side into town. Because the road is beautifully scenic, bicyclists often ride the road, too. As I…

A few items from the benevolent news front: Helen Collins, an “80-year-old woman with no flying experience,” safely landed a plane as it was running out of gas after the pilot died. An airport official said, "She was remarkable on the radio... She kept her composure and sounded like she…