Quadruple stranded DNA seen in human cells for the first time
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF All of life was created using just two strands of DNA with 4 nucleotides, so what could we achieve with four stranded DNA that has 8 nucleotides? Interested in the Exponential Future? Join our XPotential Community, future proof yourself with courses from our XPotential Academy, connect, watch a keynote,...
Doctors treating Covid-19 patients use Microsoft Hololens to keep them and their teams safe
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF During Covid-19 there’s been a huge shortage of PPE and doctors on the front line have been at the greatest risk of catching the disease, mixed reality technologies significantly reduce the risks. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my...
UK startup’s new method drastically reduces the cost of clean meat
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Clean meat, real meat that is produced in the same way animals produce meat but outside the animal, will revolutionise food production – if the costs are right. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. It’s thought that lab...
University nabs multi-million pound to create next gen reconfigurable electronics
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF When electronic systems are manufactured today they’re fixed forever, but in the future they’ll be able to re-configure themselves opening up millions of new use cases. Interested in the future and want to experience even more?! eXplore More and connect with Matthew. The University of Southampton in the...
A decade after the first person was cured of HIV, another is in remission
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The HIV and AIDS epidemics have claimed the lives of millions of people, and now there may be a cure, but there’s a big catch. News has emerged from the UK that a man has been in remission from HIV for a year and...
Creative AI’s have learnt how to create their own video games
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF AI is getting increasingly capable at creating quality synthetic content, and that includes books, scripts, and worlds. Today we have AI’s building other AI’s and fake news stories, and AI’s that write their own code, and doing a better job of it than the...
RNA breakthrough makes it possible to cure Cystic Fibrosis with an inhaler
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF A revolutionary new way to deliver mRNA into the body in aerosol form makes genetically editing faulty genes easier than ever before. Recent there have been some almost miraculous medical breakthroughs, from treating patients with inherited genetic diseases with in vivo gene therapy treatments...
Scientists use electro-charged nanoparticles to create liquid mirrors
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Being able to apply new properties to glass, such as liquid mirrors, could help companies reduce their air conditioning bill and help homeowners improve their privacy. Researchers from Imperial College London in the UK have developed a new material that can turn a transparent surface into a...
Semi-synthetic cells could revolutionise everything from sensors to healthcare
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The ability to create semi-synthetic cells that have both organic and inorganic properties opens up a whole world of new use cases that span everything from biotech to new forms of manufacturing. The more we study natural biological cells, the more we learn about...
New stem cell therapy freezes Multiple Sclerosis in its tracks
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Multiple Sclerosis is a debilitating disease that affects hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, but new therapies and treatments are bringing new hope to the people affected by it. A new multiple sclerosis treatment that “resets” the human immune system has been found to “freeze”...
New heat resistant material shatters records
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As we push the boundaries and create new, more powerful nuclear reactors, and faster vehicles, protecting them from thermal harm becomes increasingly important, this breakthrough could mean more powerful reactors and faster hypersonic vehicles A team of researchers in the UK have discovered that...
The ultimate bioweapon, scientists have developed an Extinction Gene
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Scientists now have the knowledge and the tools they need to create, and deliver, Doomsday genes which can selectively target and exterminate entire species. Here’s a question that occurs only to madmen and geneticists… How do you get a gene that kills a species...
Scientists lay out plans to build an artificial human genome by 2036
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF When scientists can create artificial genomes they will be able to create new designer organisms, and humans, with entirely new, engineered properties and abilities. Scientists have put forward plans for a follow up to the Human Genome Project (HGP) with a proposal to create...
Stephen Hawking says creating AI is the biggest event of our civilisation
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Artificial intelligence can do great good, or great evil. Speaking at the launch of the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence (CFI), a new artificial intelligence (AI) think tank based in Cambridge, that aims to help shape how AI is developed, used and...
Day of reckoning as UK scientists eliminate HIV from “Patient X”
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF A British man could become the first person in the world to be cured of HIV using a new therapy designed by a team of scientists from five UK universities. Around the world there are thousands of researchers and scientists trying to find a cure...
Researchers build a wirelessly powered drone that can fly forever
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Now drones never need to “sleep” again. Quadcopter drones are great for all kind of things from filming to delivering small, sometimes dubious, packages but every drone, irrespective of whether it’s a hobbyists DJI drone or a US military MQ-9 Reaper, is limited by...