A new smartphone based DNA test identifies and tracks disease in real time
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Being able to identify pathogens and disease at the DNA level in real time has huge advantages – especially during a pandemic. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. The current Coronavirus pandemic, Covid-19, is showing just how beneficial...
Scientists just discovered how to jump start consciousness in monkeys
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Consciousness is still one of the world’s greatest unsolved mysteries, and scientists are getting closer to unravelling its secrets. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. The source of consciousness has always been a mystery – arguably the ultimate...
Forget lockdown HIT, these mice got totally ripped with gene therapy
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Of course ethically there will never be any substitute for real exercise, but new gene therapies are pushing our thinking and could benefit people who can’t exercise. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. The current Coronavirus pandemic, Covid-19,...
World first as scientists link biological and artificial neurons together in a network
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As digital computing platforms become more advanced and our ability to embed technology into humans improves the next step is to link them both together. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Over the past couple of years there...
A new prototype Covid-19 vaccine works by literally hacking your DNA
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF A new vaccine that hijacks your DNA in order to create Coronavirus-like particles to build resistance is a revolutionary idea. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Thanks to the emergence of Coronavirus, Covid-19, there’s been the equivalent of...
A revolutionary $100 kit can now detect any pathogens in under an hour
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Figuring out if you’re ill or not is the easy part, but figuring out what disease you have is difficult until now. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. The combination of the cameras, microphones, and sensors in smartphones...
World first after Chinese scientists use CRISPR gene editing to erase fearful memories from rats
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Up until now it’s only been possible to modify memories using optogentics, by using gene editing scientists have changed the game. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Ah, memories, they can be some of our best assets or...
DNA printers get ready to move from printing sentences to paragraphs
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As more companies develop their own synthetic DNA products this new innovation will lower costs and increase the speed of manufacturing new genetic products. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. In a time when our ability to create...
Researchers are sequencing and tracking Covid-19’s global progress in real time
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The ability to genetically sequence Covid-19 in real time means governments can slow its spread and and create vaccines faster. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. As the deadly new coronavirus pandemic, COVID-19, permeates the planet, scientists are...
New tests prove Covid-19 virus wasn’t made by humans in a lab
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As our mastery of synthetic biology improves so too does our ability to create new types of artificial bio-weaponry, and it’s freaking governments out. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. A decade or so ago the mere thought...
World first after scientists create artificial cells that react to their environment
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As humanity’s understanding of nature and the code of life, DNA, improves we’re closing in on being able to create synthetic lifeforms with amazing properties. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Cells are the basic unit of life,...
A revolutionary new type of Covid-19 vaccine is being developed
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Today there are no vaccines for Covid-19 and complete vaccines will take at least 12 to 18 months to materialise, so scientists are turning to alternative approaches. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. As the coronavirus pandemic, COVID-19,...
Sweat sensor for wearables opens up a treasure trove of healthcare data
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Sweat sensors aren’t sexy but they can open up a treasure trove of health information that can help keep you feeling at the top of your game. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Sweat might make you smell...
German scientists just created the world’s first self-replicating synthetic cells
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As our ability to make fully synthetic DNA and genomes accelerates inevitably scientists will want to cross the next step – making living, alien organisms that replicate. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. The creation of life is...
Scientists unveil a brand new smart contact lens that tracks health and detects disease
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Smart contact lenses are seen as the next must have gadgets, and now more and more of them are starting to appear. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. All of a sudden the number of smart contact lenses...
Stanford developed a gene editing tool that identifies and de-bugs faulty genes
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As the technology of the future increasingly looks like it will be biological based we’ll need more “biological debuggers” like this one that can debug it. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. This is a good example of...
Brain implant helps a blind woman regain her sight and play computer games
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As our knowledge of the human brain improves in the future we might not need eyes to see, as well as having new ways to “cure” blindness. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Historically if you were blind...
Genetically engineered male moths programmed to kill off females released into the wild
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Genetic engineering is the ultimate Pandora’s Box, and the lid’s coming off as companies discover new ways to control and kill pests in the wild. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Let’s play a game… what’s the most...
Next gen wearable monitors your blood and the environment to improve your health
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Today’s wearables don’t monitor many of your vital signs or the environment, and now researchers have found a way to close that gap. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Let’s face it, you’re wearable sucks. If it’s anything...
Scientists have created artificial memories in mice for the first time
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As your understanding of the brain and neuroscience improves memory is increasingly looking as editable as a Microsoft Word document. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Over the past number of years I’ve reported on a wide variety...
