L0 series Maglev: The fastest train in the world

                                                                                                                                                                    Whenever there is a conversation about fast trains, the name of Japan automatically pops up. High-speed trains and Japan have become synonymous with each other so much so, seven were set by Japanese vehicles and yes that includes the top three slots! Trains are Japan’s lifeline as the country actually relies on them to run. This is a big reason why Japanese locomotive technology is the most sophisticated in the world creating higher efficiency, high-speed trains as a perpetual project. 

 Now again, another one of Japanese train prototypes, L0 Maglev, has broken all high-speed records topping 374.69 mph during operation tests breaking its own record of 374.69 mph set just days earlier. The reason these trains can reach such high speeds is the reduced friction between cars and tracks. The train practically travels on a small cushion of air (hence ‘maglev’ from magnetic levitation) produced by a current created by using both permanent and electro-magnets. The magnets act as propulsion as well and with negligible friction this train attains super speeds. 

Honda’s HondaJet HA-420 Ready To Begin Deliveries In 2015

  

Honda began to study small sized business jets in the late 1980s, using engines from other manufacturers. The Honda SHM-1/MH01 turboprop tested laminar flow wings,^[5] and the Honda MH02 was fabricated and assembled at Mississippi State University's Raspet Flight Research Laboratory in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The MH02 was a prototype using carbon fiber/epoxy composite materials.^[6] Flight testing on the MH02 continued through 1996, after which the aircraft was shipped to Japan.

Designer Michimasa Fujino sketched the HondaJet in 1997, and the concept was locked in 1999. Testing in the Boeingwindtunnel indicated a valid concept in 1999.^[5][7]

A proof-of-concept (but not production-ready) version of HondaJet first flew on 3 December 2003 at Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, North Carolina, USA.^[8]Honda approved commercial development of the HondaJet in 2004.^[9] The HondaJet made its world debut on 28 July 2005, at EAA AirVenture (Oshkosh Airshow).^[10] Honda announced on 25 July 2006 at Oshkosh Airshow that it would commercialize the HondaJet.^[11]

The production aircraft are built at Piedmont Triad Airport. Construction of the factory began in 2007 and was completed in late 2011.^[12][13] The first FAA-conforming^{[clarification needed]} (built to Federal Aviation Administration rules) HondaJet achieved its first flight on 20 December 2010.^[14] First flight of the production HondaJet occurred on 27 June 2014,^[15][16][17] and the plane was flown and shown at Oshkosh Airshow on 28 July 2014.^[18][19][20] Four HondaJets have testflown 2,500 hours as of 2015.^[21]

HondaJet got "Provisional FAA Certification" in March 2015, enabling continued production^[2][22][23] and demonstration flights, but not customer delivery.^[24][25] The factory assembly line is at full capacity at 12 planes,^[23] however 20 planes were in production by May 2015.^[26]

With the engine factory having achieved certification in March 2015,^[23][27] the aircraft's certification was targeted to be in the first quarter of 2015.^[28][29] HondaJet toured Japan and Europe in 2015.^[26]

Elusive New Pentaquark Particle Discovered After 50-Year Hunt

After 50 years, the hunt is over.

Scientists at the Large Hadron Collider, the world's largest atom smasher, have found proof of the existence of the pentaquark, an elusive subatomic particle that was first proposed to exist more than 50 years ago.

"The pentaquark is not just any new particle," Guy Wilkinson, a spokesperson for the LHC experiment that discovered the pentaquark, said in a statement.

    "It represents a way to aggregate quarks, namely the fundamental constituents of ordinary protons and neutrons, in a pattern that has never been observed before in over 50 years of experimental searches. Studying its properties may allow us to understand better how ordinary matter, the protons and neutrons from which we're all made, is constituted." [See Photos of the World's Largest Atom Smasher (Large Hadron Collider)]

     The new discovery validates a long-held notion about the nature of matter. In 1964, physicist Murray Gell-Mann proposed that a group of particles known as baryons, which include protons and neutrons, are actually made up of three even tinier charged subatomic particles known as quarks. Meanwhile, the theory went, another group of particles called mesons were composed of quarks and their antimatter partners, antiquarks.

      The theory was soon validated by experimental results, and Gell-Mann's work won the Nobel Prize in physics in 1969. But crunching the numbers in Gell-Mann's theory also led to the conclusion that other, more exotic particles could exist, such as the pentaquark: a group of four quarks and an antiquark. Over the past several decades, people have seen hints of pentaquarks in experimental data, but those all turned out to be false leads.

         In the current study, Wilkinson and his colleagues examined the decay of particles after collisions in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), a 17-mile-long (27 kilometers) underground ring beneath Geneva, Switzerland. The team studied how a particular baryon known as lambda B decayed into three other particles: a proton, a particle known as J-psi and a charged kaon.

Futuristic Exoskeleton Keeps Clumsy Robot from Falling Over

Like an angry ninja, a robot karate-chops a wooden plank, punches through drywall, smashes soda cans and kicks over a trash bin blocking its path in a new video from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The two-legged machine isn't really a troublemaker. In fact, it's not actually in control of its own actions. A researcher standing a few feet away from the bot keeps the machine's every move in check with the help of an exoskeleton — a sort of mechanical belt with armrests that the researcher wears around his waist and upper body.

Engineers at MIT developed the bipedal bot, which they call Hermes, with funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). And now, the researchers are developing the human-machine interface to make this technology more useful outside of the lab.

Also known as a balance-feedback interface, the researchers' exoskeleton translates the natural reflexes of the human body into a language that a machine can understand. Bestowing the robot with humanlike reflexes — for example, having it steady itself by rocking back on its heels after a punch — helps the bot stay upright instead of falling over.

Bipedal robots like Hermes are notoriously clumsy. A lengthy blooper reel from this year's DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC), in which a slew of two-legged bots struggled to complete a variety of tasks without tumbling over, is proof enough of that.  

But the balance-feedback interface developed at MIT could give bipedal bots the sturdiness they need to stay upright and, eventually, complete difficult tasks in the real world. The hope is that these so-called "humanoid" robots will one day be able to do work that's dangerous for humans — things like sifting through debris after an earthquake or putting out a fire, according to Joao Ramos, a doctorate student of mechanical engineering who is working on MIT's new human-machine interface. (He's also the one seen controlling Hermes in the video.)

Solar-Powered Plane Promoting Clean Technologies

    This project began with two Swiss explorers and entrepreneurs, Bertrand Piccard and Andre     Borschberg. They created a plane that can fly without a drop of fuel and are showcasing this feat to the world by doing a round-the-world flight.

The pilots are inspiring innovators who are incorporating renewable energies to a sector still rooted in fossil fuels. The organization is using the trip to promote clean energy to the United Nations upcoming climate conference.

The Solar Impulse 2 began its journey in Abu Dhabi on March 9th and made stopovers in Oman, India, Myanmar, China and Hawaii. The next leg of the journey will be piloted by Mr. Piccard who will fly from Kalaeloa, Hawaii to Phoenix, Arizona in early spring 2016. After Phoenix, the plane will fly over New York, cross the Atlantic and return to Abu Dhabi.

The plane itself can fly for five uninterrupted days and nights without using any fuel. This required some wildly innovative technologies. The plane is outfitted with the latest energy technology while simultaneously offering a rigorous decrease in energy consumption.

Solar Impulse 2 has approximately 17,000 photovoltaic cells, capable of powering the plane’s electric motors and charging its lithium-ion batteries. The batteries then sustain the plane during the night.

The plane itself isn’t expected to become the future of aviation, but rather a means to display the potential of solar power and inspire a new set of inventors and innovators to incorporate cleaner energy sources.

See the video given below:

VIDEO: Her Parents Noticed Something Strange Coming Out Of Their Baby Girl’s Neck. What Came Out? OMG!

One day, her parents noticed a swelling on her cheek and neck area. They assumed it was a swollen gland but took her to the doctor just to be safe. The doctor assumed her body would take care of a routine infection, and sent her home. When it still didn’t go away, they brought her in again. This time, they noticed something sticking out. It looked like a pimple at first, but with time it kept on growing and growing.

How shocked would you be if a feather suddenly grew out of your neck? Sounds crazy right ?  That is exactly what happened to be growing out of Mya’s neck. How in the world did she grow a feather? Are the GMOs causing genetic mutations and turning us into birds like the movie X-Men, or did she get bitten by a radioactive robin or something? We may never know, although if you watch the video you will find some respite in their reasonable explanation.

View the below video, Don’t forget to share your opinion. 

This Seems Like A Simple Pile Of Trash Right, But Look At It From The Front And It’s Mind Blowing

When the clip starts, you don’t notice anything out of the ordinary. It’s just another artist using tools to create a human figure, but as soon as the camera starts moving and rotates, what it reveals is incredibly surprising. To mention this type art is unique is definitely an understatement. We at All Viral Posts found out that the technique used by the artist here is called anamorphosis, and it refers to a distorted object that can’t be appreciated at first sight, it needs a specific perspective or device to observe the intended image.

Your Going to Love This Video:

This Device Can Show Where Patient’s Veins Are Located Could Be A Game-Changer – Genius

            The VeinViewer uses harmless, near-infrared  green light to show precisely where veins are located and take the guesswork out of the process.

          Designed by Memphis-based company Christie Medical Holdings, the device can find the veins and then project them onto the arm in real time as shown in the above picture. The special light can be either absorbed by the hemoglobin in the blood, or reflected back by the skin, and it finds veins up to 0.4 inches deep.

View the below video to find out how it works.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. The publication contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

Powerful DNA 'Editing' Has Arrived, Are We Ready for It?

CRISPR/Cas is a new technology that allows unprecedented control over the DNA code. It’s sparked a revolution in the fields of genetics and cell biology, becoming the scientific equivalent of a household name by raising hopes about new ways to cure diseases including cancer and to unlock the remaining mysteries of our cells.

The gene editing technique also raises concerns. Could the new tools allow parents to order “designer babies”? Could premature use in patients lead to unforeseen and potentially dangerous consequences? This potential for abuse or misuse led prominent scientists to call for a halt on some types of new research until ethical issues can be discussed – a voluntary ban that was swiftly ignored in some quarters.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              The moratorium is a positive step toward preserving the public’s trust and safety, while the promising new technology can be further studied.

Editing DNA to cure disease

While most human diseases are caused, at least partially, by mutations in our DNA, current therapies treat the symptoms of these mutations but not the genetic root cause. For example, cystic fibrosis, which causes the lungs to fill with excess mucus, is caused by a single DNA mutation. However, cystic fibrosis treatments focus on the symptoms – working to reduce mucus in the lungs and fight off infections – rather than correcting the mutation itself. That’s because making precise changes to the three-billion-letter DNA code remains a challenge even in a Petri dish, and it is unprecedented in living patients. (The only current example of gene therapy, called Glybera, does not involve modifying the patient’s DNA, and has been approved for limited use in Europe to treat patients with a digestive disorder.)

That all changed in 2012, when several research groups demonstrated that a DNA-cutting technology called CRISPR/Cas could operate on human DNA. Compared to previous, inefficient methods for editing DNA, CRISPR/Cas offers a shortcut. It acts like a pair of DNA scissors that cut where prompted by a special strand of RNA (a close chemical relative of DNA). Snipping DNA turns on the cell’s DNA repair process, which can be hijacked to either disable a gene – say, one that allows tumor cells to grow uncontrollably – or to fix a broken gene, such as the mutation that causes cystic fibrosis. The advantages of the Cas9 system over its predecessor genome-editing technologies – its high specificityand the ease of navigating to a specific DNA sequence with the “guide RNA” – have contributed to its rapid adoption in the scientific community.

The barrier to fixing the DNA of diseased cells appears to have evaporated.

Playing with fire

With the advance of this technique, the obstacles to altering genes in embryos are falling away, opening the door to so-called “designer babies” with altered appearance or intelligence. Ethicists have long feared the consequences of allowing parents to choose the traits of their babies. Further, there is a wide gap between our understanding of disease and the genes that might cause them. Even if we were capable of performing flawless genetic surgery, we don’t yet know how specific changes to the DNA will manifest in a living human. Finally, the editing of germ line cells such as embryos could permanently introduce altered DNA into the gene pool to be inherited by descendants.

And making cuts in one’s DNA is not without risks. Cas9 – the scissor protein – is known to cleave DNA at unintended or “off-target” sites in the genome. Were Cas9 to inappropriately chop an important gene and inactivate it, the therapy could cause cancer instead of curing it.

Take it slow

All the concerns around Cas9 triggered a very unusual event: a call from prominent scientists to halt some of this research. In March of 2015, a group of researchers and lawyers called for a voluntary pause on further using CRISPR technology in germ line cells until ethical guidelines could be decided.

Writing in the journal Science, the group – including two Nobel laureatesand the inventors of the CRISPR technology – noted that we don’t yet understand enough about the link between our health and our DNA sequence. Even if a perfectly accurate DNA-editing system existed – and Cas9 surely doesn’t yet qualify – it would still be premature to treat patients with genetic surgery. The authors disavowed genome editing only in specific cell types such as embryos, while encouraging the basic research that would put future therapeutic editing on a firmer foundation of evidence.

Pushing ahead

Despite this call for CRISPR/Cas research to be halted, a Chinese research group reported on their attempts at editing human embryos only two months later. Described in the journal Protein & Cell, the authors treated nonviable embryos to fix a gene mutation that causes a blood disease called β-thalassemia.

The study results proved the concerns of the Science group to be well-founded. The treatment killed nearly one in five embryos, and only half of the surviving cells had their DNA modified. Of the cells that were even modified, only a fraction had the disease mutation repaired. The study also revealed off-target DNA cutting and incomplete editing among all the cells of a single embryo. Obviously these kinds of errors are problematic in embryos meant to mature into fully grown human beings.

George Daley, a Harvard biologist and member of the group that called for the moratorium, concluded that “their study should be a stern warning to any practitioner who thinks the technology is ready for testing to eradicate disease genes."

In the enthusiasm and hype surrounding Cas9, it is easy to forget that the technology has been in wide use for barely three years.

Role of a moratorium

Despite the publication of the Protein & Cell study – whose experiments likely took place at least months earlier – the Science plea for a moratorium can already be considered a success. The request from such a respected group has brought visibility to the topic and put pressure on universities, regulatory boards and the editors of scientific journals to discourage such research. (As evidence of this pressure, the Chinese authors were rejected from at least two top science journals before getting their paper accepted.) And the response to the voluntary ban has thus far not included accusations of “stifling academic freedom,” possibly due to the scientific credibility of the organizers.

Recombinant DNA researcher Paul Berg organized the conference and later shared the Nobel Prize in chemistry. He also signed the call to slow CRISPR research.
Credit: National Library of Medicine

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While rare, the call for a moratorium on research for ethical reasons can be traced to an earlier controversy over DNA technology. In 1975, a group that came to be known as theAsilomar Conference called for caution with an emerging technology called recombinant DNA until its safety could be evaluated and ethical guidelines could be published. The similarity between the two approaches is no coincidence: several authors of the Science essay were also members of the Asilomar team.

The Asilomar guidelines are now widely viewedas having been a proportionate and responsible measure, placing the right emphasis on safety and ethics without hampering research progress. It turns out recombinant DNA technology was much less dangerous than originally feared; existing evidence already shows that we might not be so lucky with Cas9. Another important legacy of the Asilomar conference was the promotion of an open discussion involving experts as well as the general public. By heeding the lessons of caution and public engagement, hopefully the saga of CRISPR/Cas will unfold in a similarly responsible – yet exciting – way.

Jeff Bessen is PhD Candidate in Chemical Biology at Harvard University.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read theoriginal article. Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates — and become part of the discussion — on Facebook, Twitter and Google +. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published onLiveScience.