Out-of-this-World Holidays – Commercial Space Flight

Most of us would love to be able to explore the far reaching corners of space, and shed some light on the mysteries of the universe. This dream of jumping into a space taxi and taking a trip to the moon is shared by Virgin Galactic, which has put together a team of rocket scientists, engineers and designers in order to ensure the possibility of this happening in the near future. The company believes that everybody should have the opportunity to explore space, and have set out to make this happen.

shutterstock_108317453 — Steve Mann / Shutterstock.com

Founded in 2004, Virgin Galactic has had several setbacks during testing; including one which resulted in the unfortunate death of a test pilot. Recently they have made a giant leap forward in their research, however, with a successful solo glide test of their second VSS Unity. Designed to be the first private airline into the vast unknown, the vessel was launched along with its carrier aircraft White Knight Two from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California. VSS Unity was piloted by Mark Stucky and Dave Mackay, who were flying light and slow. After separating from the carrier the aircraft was able to glide back to the runway from an altitude of 50,000 feet, reaching a maximum speed of Mach 0.6 during the descent.

The vessel’s performance went extremely well and researchers are pleased with the results. The company’s representatives have stated that this is only the first of many glide flights from which they intend to collect and analyse data, in order to determine how the VSS Unity will be able to perform in a variety of real-world flight conditions. After an extensive amount of observation and calculation, Virgin Galactic plan to move on to the rocket powered phase of their test flight program.

An outspoken supporter of the work being done by Virgin Galactic, Stephen Hawking plans to be one of its first passengers. While safety is always the most important part of any program which needs to be taken into consideration, the company does have to move quickly if it is going to become the first to privatize space travel as there are several others that have similar missions. These include: Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which aims at making life multi-planetary, Blue Origin, which plans to be able to have humanity at the edge of space in as little as a year from now, and Bigelow Aerospace that is already drafting their design for a commercial space station. The race into space has certainly taken on a new meaning, and we all look forward to experiencing the results.

Changes to Traditions – Technology at Christmas

Advances in technology have changed the way that we do most things in the world, including celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Some of these changes are obvious and others might not be as noticeable, but do limit the stresses normally surrounding the season. For most people Christmas used to be filled with non-stop running around: buying gifts, wrapping and delivering them, decorating the house, purchasing the groceries and preparing the meal. Most of our time was spent stuck in a queue in one place or another. By the time we got around to relaxing and enjoying the season, we would have to be back at work and regular life.

The internet has changed the way we shop for everything, especially the large amount of presents that we normally buy. We can order most of them from the comfort of our living rooms, and many online companies will even help you plan your Christmas ideas from earlier in the year. Groceries are delivered directly to the house and gifts wrapped and dropped off at the click of a mouse, virtually eliminating the need to wait for long periods in lengthy lines.
Another Christmas tradition that used to be extremely hectic was the buying and mailing of cards. Most of these end up in the bin when the celebrations are over, and there is at least one person that you forget about sending to until the last minute. The internet has made it possible to send ecards, which can be personalized and saves on both paper and effort. Last minute sending is possible, and the time saved avoiding the post office lines can be spent warming up with a glass of spiced cider.

One of the best parts about decorating your house is arriving home to see the lights blinking, after following Rudolph’s bright red, nose down the street. Unfortunately, this used to be enjoyed exclusively by your neighbors, as the lights would never be blinking until you got inside and turned them on yourself. The invention of smartphones with apps that can turn on your Christmas lights, before you reach your driveway, has made it possible to actually enjoy the fruits of your decorative labor.

For most people Christmas is a time for family, and everybody would end up crammed into grandma’s house for the majority of the season. Even though we all love sleeping on the living room floor with cousins that we only see once a year, with families now scattered across the world this is not always an option. Skype, and social media, have made it possible for us to see and celebrate with loved ones over long distances. It is a great way to feel closer to home, when we have no choice but to be far away. Partaking in the festive drinks via your laptop and seeing hundreds of Facebook photos, means that Christmas is always spent close to loved ones. Perhaps as close as you really want to be.

Bioprinting – The Future of Organ Donations

The idea of being able to make functional human organs, instead of waiting for uncertain donations, is not a new one. The demand for organs has always been higher than the supply, and there is the additional obstacle of the receiver’s body rejecting it even when a perfect match has been found. Research has facilitated the beginning of the production of useable organs, which still needs to be refined before functionality will be possible. This would solve two major problems currently involved with organ transplant: the lack of available organs and the possibility of rejection, as each is custom made from the patient’s own cells.

Bioprinting is the name given to this process, and is basically the 3D printing of human tissue. It begins with creating an ink from living human cells, and layering them together to form the tissue. Most bioprinting is currently undertaken by independent laboratories, under carefully monitored conditions. This means that those who would be using the organs do not have the actual facilities to make them. The Queensland University of Technology and the Metro North Hospital and Health Service have formed a partnership in order to change this. This collaboration has set out to establish a ‘biofabrication institute,’ which will be able to undertake all the steps needed to print the patient’s tissue and use it in one place.

The ultimate goal is to be able to produce organs which are transplantable, and having all the experts working in one place will significantly increase the rate of progression. There are three main steps that need to be taken in order to produce an end result: scanning, making a 3D model and engineering human tissue. Opening in 2017, the institute will be located at the Herston Health Precinct and will be able to do all three. It will also contain learning centres and an innovation hub. Bringing together the most knowledgeable persons in the field is essential in producing the best results for patients.

The cost of a transplant would also decrease over time, as the organ is unlikely to be rejected by the body. This means that there will be much less aftercare needed, and the use of antibiotics and metallic implants practically eliminated. The 3D printing of organs is just the beginning, as engineers are hoping to progress to 3D printing of bones and customized prosthetics. The specifics also mean that drugs can be tailored to each patient’s needs. Bioprinting continues to be a source of hope for many, as the need for organs increases daily, and the creation of the institute has given a new lease on life to those that continue waiting.

Limited Time Left on Earth – Stephen Hawking’s Prediction for Humanity

Even though scientists have considered the possibility of humans being able to live on another planet, most of our space exploration to this point has been to satisfy our immense curiosity. Is it possible, however, that the survival of our species will rely on us finding a home outside of Earth? World renowned, and greatly respected, scientist Stephen Hawking has recently expressed this exact concern. He has publicly stated that humanity will be unable to continue living on this ‘fragile’ planet for more than another 1000 years.

Hawking, who made this announcement at the Oxford Union, said that his conclusion was based on several contributing factors. These include: overpopulation, a growing resistance to antibiotics which will possibly cause worldwide pandemics, habitat destruction and what seems to be our most unnecessary human compulsion – war. Nuclear and autonomous weapons are sources of widespread, uncontrollable destruction, and even the creators of many new weapons are unaware of the full extent of the damage that their designs may have on the Earth.

shutterstock_381199540 — Koca Vehbi / Shutterstock.com

As an intelligent species we have also taken steps towards creating artificial lifeforms, in our own image. The consequence of this to humanity has been predicted in many science fiction films and books, and is now becoming a high possibility. This is the fact that our artificial intelligence is so advanced that they may turn on the humans that created them. If this ever happened, due to their combined intellect, strength and longevity, robots would be a force that humans would be unable to control after letting loose on the earth.

The reasons that the scientist based his beliefs on are not just those controlled by humanity, but also a factor outside of our planet. This would be a possible result of actually making contact with extra-terrestrial beings. We have no idea whether they will be friend or foe, and how destructive they might be to our species and planet once we have approached them. Hawking’s scientific opinion is that they will be either the best thing, or the worst that has ever happened to us. Many other scientists also share the view that any alien species that is able to communicate with us may either surpass us in intellect, and therefore uninterested in us for more than experimental purposes, or may be violent and determined to attack Earth rather than befriend those on it.

Based on his certainty that our planet will soon be inhabitable, Hawking has taken steps towards finding humanity a future possible home. He advises ‘remember to look up at the stars, and not down at your feet,’ and is one of the major investors in the Breakthrough Starshot program currently exploring our nearest star system. Stephen also urges us to continue to enjoy our life on earth as ‘2016 is a great time to be alive.’ Even though there are many that disagree with his thoughts about the future of mankind on the planet, it would be hard not to agree with his belief that we are certainly living in an exciting era.

Devastation to Determination – Using Storms for Energy

Increasing technology not only provides us with ways of doing things that we were previously unable to do, but also gives us the ability to turn natural, unavoidable disasters into a source of clean energy. Taking into considering the typhoons which plague his country Japanese engineer, Atsushi Shimizu, and his team have designed a wind turbine that is capable of harvesting energy from the power that they generate.

These large storms are created in regions of low atmospheric pressure, with winds which can exceed 85 mph. Japan has been using European designed wind turbines which have been proven to be incapable of withstanding the force behind the typhoons, and many of them are destroyed by the winds. Shimizu’s eggbeater shaped turbine has been specifically designed to withstand these conditions with two vital changes to the traditional design.

The first thing needed was to ensure that the machine would be able to handle Japan’s unpredictable wind patterns, which the team was able to do by installing an omnidirectional vertical axis. The Magnus effect, which is the sideways force that causes a spinning object to deviate from a straight path, was also added to the design. This combination significantly increases the level of control extended over the turbines blades, and the centre rod can be tightened to adjust their speed ensuring that they won’t be able to spin out of control during a storm.

Shimizu has estimated that the kinetic energy produced by a single typhoon would be able to power his country for about 50 years, if they were able to harvest it. Turning a natural disaster into a source of energy is an amazing opportunity, and would be the solution to the energy problem that Japan now faces. The country’s plan had been for 60% of their energy supply to be from nuclear power by 2100. However, a tsunami which hit them in 2011 caused three nuclear meltdowns, and resulted in the reconsideration of this energy source.

Japan is currently importing about 80% of its energy, and there is also a significant increase in its usage of solar power. Shimizu is convinced that the large amount of wind power available in the country would be significantly more beneficial once harvested. His team has installed their first prototype in Okinawa and are currently waiting for a typhoon to test its power. With at least six typhoons hitting the country in the past year it is safe to say that the wait won’t be long, and the engineer is likely to see his dream of changing the country’s future with a single turbine coming true sooner rather than later.