A team of colleagues at an institution
in Paris were able to implant new memories in mice as they slept. To
achieve this amazing feat, they monitored the neurons in the mice whose
job when firing off was to remember and understand certain locations
from the previous day. While the mice were in a maze, the team used
electrodes to track the activity of these "place cells", and later that
night used another electrode to associate that location with a reward.
The following day the lab mice ran straight to the place it felt would
offer a reward of some kind. I'm
curious how this will play out in the long run. Sure, changing what
mice seem to know is not that unethical, but what about altering human
memory? Luckily, noone would be affected unless they voluntarily chose
to, and some good can come out of it as well- think about erasing
harmful recollections of traumatic events- but the safety of the
practice can only exist for so long until someone uses it for bad. So,
implications for humans when the time comes somewhere down the road?
Monumental.
A
solution to dirty drinking water when you're out and about is here, and
it's cooler than you might imagine. No, the tech doesn't require
separate equipment or heavier bottles, and won't even slow the flow of
water. All you need to do is scoop up any liquid and start drinking.
That's it. The bottle has an integrated filtering mechanism that
operates once you sip. The obviously first demographic who will find use
from this is avid hikers. While they're walking, they may want to
extinguish their thirst and taste some of the local lake. Now that can
be done bacteria-free. Overseas, this has tremendous opportunity to
enter the homes of impoverished families whose only source of water is
infested with yucky pathogens.
In
the near future, Disneyland might create a theme park that exists in
virtual reality. Rides could be digitized to the point where it's
impossible to distinguish a virtual roller coaster from the real thing.
Imagineering lead Bei Yang helped bring this idea to life hoping it
would eliminate the problem of long-distance fans missing out on the
action, and also keep the actual park running at the same time. "Yes,
with VR you can replace some of the experiences at the park, but
ultimately we see the park as something that is different", mentioned
Yang. He thinks the team can invent a new outlet for Disneyland
adventures, while keeping the old one intact by introducing all-new
features for the youngsters. It's a magical time indeed.
A
research team at TSRI experimenting with a new class of drugs may have
discovered an unprecedented way to treat senescence in aging bodies. The
drugs are quercetin and dasatinib and fall under "senolytics", the name
for a category of drugs that can kill senescent cells that stopped
dividing a while ago. The outcome is a healthier body devoid of cells
that accumulate over time. In addition, the drugs could also increase
exercise capacity in the lab mice, and in older mice delayed age-related
symptoms while improving cardiovascular function. More testing needs to
be done before human trials begin and side effects are likely to take
place, but I can already smell the sweet victory of these drugs and
their impact on our health in the ensuing years.
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