U.S. life expectancy peaked in 2014 and has been declining since then due to an increase in middle-aged deaths from drug overdoses, alcohol, suicide, obesity, and smoking.
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2756187
After many years of consistent failure, science might have found a medical benefit of taking fish oil pills. “Vascepa” pills have curbed heart attacks in clinical trials.
https://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/blockbuster-sight-amarin-s-vascepa-scores-unanimous-nod-from-fda-committee
Using data from an electrocardiogram, an AI can predict a person’s one-year odds of dying better than a human doctor.
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2222907-ai-can-predict-if-youll-die-soon-but-weve-no-idea-how-it-works/
Doctors in Baltimore have been putting hospital trauma victims into suspended animation as part of ongoing experiments to see if it can prolong their lives long enough to get lifesaving surgeries.
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2224004-exclusive-humans-placed-in-suspended-animation-for-the-first-time/
Preimplantation genetic diagnosis done on a round of ten human embryos could, at best, allow the selection of a child whose IQ was 3 points higher and whose height was 3 cm greater than average. This makes clear how much we have yet to learn about human genetics, and how little the first generation of genetically engineered humans will change things.
https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0092867419312103
All Earthly DNA and RNA is made of five nucleic acids (G, A, T, C, U), but there are at least one million alternative nucleic acids that have different molecular structures but similar chemical properties. (Though I suspect we evolved to use the nucleic acids that were the most stable and least energy-intensive to make.)
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.jcim.9b00632
No one knows how big the largest possible element is. The low estimate is one with an atomic weight of 126, and the high estimate is that there is no maximum size at all.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extended_periodic_table
Carefully latticed polymer materials are incredibly strong. A team of engineers used a 3D plastic printer to make a Rubik’s Cube-sized block of the material, and it was bulletproof.
https://news.rice.edu/2019/11/13/theoretical-tubulanes-inspire-ultrahard-polymers/
The cost of synthesizing graphene, a carbon-based material with amazing properties, dropped by more than an order of magnitude during the 2010s, and further reductions are coming. Cheap graphene could be as impactful as aluminum or plastic.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/336242197_Path_towards_graphene_commercialization_from_lab_to_market
Another five U.S. Navy sailors have come forth saying they witnessed the famous encounter between a fighter jet and a UFO off California in 2004.
https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/research/a29771548/navy-ufo-witnesses-tell-truth/
Here are roundups of failed Christian doomsday predictions:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unfulfilled_Christian_religious_predictions
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Predictions_and_claims_for_the_Second_Coming_of_Christ
Singularity University is in big trouble: Its CEO just quit, and 60 of its staff are being laid off.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-12/silicon-valley-s-singularity-university-is-cutting-staff-ceo-exits
Go champion Lee Sedol has retired from the sport, partly blaming lingering demoralization after losing so badly to the AlphaGo machine.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7730899/Machines-defeated-says-grandmaster-retires-Chinese-strategy-game.html
A neural network solved Newton’s “Three Body Problem” in under a second, beating any other computer by a wide margin.
https://www.livescience.com/ai-solves-three-body-problem-fast.html
Machine learning has identified big chunks of Shakespeare’s plays that were probably written by a fellow playwright, John Fletcher. The latter might have written almost half of Henry VIII.
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/614742/machine-learning-has-revealed-exactly-how-much-of-a-shakespeare-play-was-written-by-someone/
What is a group of robot animals called? A herd, pack, or a murder?
https://youtu.be/G6fMV1UPzkg
Motorola has released a flip phone with a folding inner screen.
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-50414612
GM’s President predicts that mass adoption of electric cars in the U.S. will start by 2030.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/25/perspectives/gm-electric-cars/index.html
Elon Musk has unveiled a stealth-fighter-looking Tesla “Cybertruck.”
https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/22/cars/tesla-cybertruck-electric-pickup-truck/index.html
For a long time, I’ve been meaning to read The Size of Nations, which uses mathematical modeling to explain why today’s countries are as big as they are. Well, at least I’ve read this excellent critique of that book, which raises the interesting argument that economies of scale don’t keep growing as a nation’s size and population grow, and that in fact, it might start suffering from diseconomies of scale past a certain size and diversity level.
https://www.independent.org/publications/tir/article.asp?id=550
“Betz’ Law” says that no wind turbine can capture more than 59.3% of the kinetic energy of the wind blowing through it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betz%27s_law
The effects of an EMP attack have been exaggerated.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/world-wont-end-danger-emp-attack-more-fantasy-fact-94681
The Russian military has a gigantic “air cannon” that they use to see how well their tanks can withstand nuclear bomb shockwaves. Even better, they’ve put footage of some of the experiments on YouTube:
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/31033/this-is-how-the-russian-military-tests-if-its-vehicles-can-stand-up-to-a-nuclear-blast
Russian troops have taken control of the Sirrin Air Base in northern Syria following the evacuation of U.S. troops. Syria’s government never gave U.S. troops permission to be in their country, but Russia’s troops were invited in.
https://www.rt.com/news/473504-russia-secures-us-base-syria/
Examples of almost all of the world’s best tanks (the M1 Abrams, Leopard 2, and T-90) have been destroyed in the Syrian Civil War, reminding us that, in spite of their heavy armor and sophistication, they are still vulnerable.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/russia-thought-its-tanks-were-unstoppable-and-then-syria-happened-94481
Russia is struggling to make reliable bullets. Russian guns like the AK-47 are actually almost as accurate as more expensive Western counterparts, but perform worse on the battlefield thanks to bad ammunition and being fired by poorly-trained soldiers.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/russias-military-has-not-addressed-its-ammunition-problem-92706
Here’s a review of the “Sierra 3 BDX,” a “smart scope” that crunches data from a pocket-sized rangefinder to tell you how to aim your rifle. The farther away the target is, the higher it will tell you to aim to compensate for bullet drop. Technology like this and guided bullets will someday turn any soldier into a sniper.
https://youtu.be/kzZpNot2FfQ
On a related note, the shoulder-fired Carl Gustav rocket launcher can now fire guided munitions out to ranges of 2 km. The test videos are impressive, and even though the weapon isn’t meant to be used like this, it could snipe humans.
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/30786/guided-rounds-will-turn-the-beloved-carl-gustaf-recoilless-rifle-into-a-precision-weapon
The skeleton of one of Napoleon’s favorite generals was dug up in Russia. He died during the 1812 invasion.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-50329041
It’s the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Leyte Gulf–the biggest naval clash ever.
https://www.navalgazing.net/Leyte-Gulf-75