Greenflame

Jottings on science, religion, technology, pop culture, photography and faith from the Aotearoa New Zealand

Category: Science & Technology

  • Excess Embryos

    From Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly a story about the implications of the excess embryos produced in by technological processes such as IVF. There’s both a link to the video clip of the story as well as the transcript of the clip. See Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly . COVER STORY . Excess Embryos . July 4,…

  • Mind-enhancing drugs likely to be developed over next 20 years

    The New Zealand Herald : Technology and Science : Mind-enhancing drugs likely to be developed over next 20 years. “We are on the verge of developments which could possibly move us into a world where we could take a drug to help us learn, think faster, relax, sleep more efficiently or even subtly alter our…

  • Hi, I’m Bionic

    Nice piece here on a guy with a cochlear implant, Michael Chorost, and the positives of being cyborg. See: eastbayexpress.com | Culture | Hi, I’m Bionic | 2005-06-29 “When you become a cyborg, you’re no less human than you were before,” he says. “You’re differently human.” He’s written a book, Rebuilt : How Becoming Part…

  • “Blue Brain” project explores thought at molecular level

    IBM and The Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland will work together to develop a detailed digital model of the brain, focusing upon the neocortex. See: IBM News – United States 2005-06-06 “Blue Brain” project explores thought at molecular level.

  • Xenotransplantation public dialogue – animal-to-human transplants

    The Bioethics Council (Toi te Taiao) is currently looking for submissions and dialogue on the issue of xenotransplantation. From their web site, Xenotransplantation – animal-to-human transplantsIn recent years a new type of technology has hit the headlines – xenotransplantation. In human medicine, xenotransplantation means using living non-human animal cells, tissues or organs to treat humans.…

  • The world’s first cloned pet (cost $50,000)

    Shades of “RePet” from The 6th Day with this Guardian story. Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | The world’s first cloned pet (cost $50,000) A cat lover in Texas has become the world’s first owner of a cloned-to-order feline, paying $50,000 for a genetic duplicate of her dead pet.

  • U.N. Deadlocks on Cloning Ban

    Wired News: U.N. Deadlocks on Cloning Ban Tied up with this is the ongoing debate about is a “human life” different from a “human being”. Italy’s proposal asks member states to “prohibit any attempts at the creation of human life through cloning processes and any research intended to achieve that aim.” Human life tends to…

  • APOD Grabber

    RAILhead Design: APOD Grabber is a cool, little Mac OS X app that gives you the ability to quickly and easily view, browse, and download images from NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day web site. It also grabs information about the picture and allows you to set the Desktop background too. Found this excellent image…

  • McDonalds go for non-GE feed

    From the NZ Greenpeace web site: Greenpeace : McDonalds go for non-GE feed 21 April 2004, Auckland, New Zealand: Ronald McDonald being forcibly removed by management at the Queen Street McDonald’s after resigning as the company mascot, over GE feed used in McDonalds meat products. (C) FOTOPRESS/Geoff Dale. Click on image for larger (in-focus) picture.…

  • Robot helps elderly with personal care

    Recent article on the use of robots for the care of the elderly. Early work so far, working on supporting those with failing memories, but I remember seeing a video of Pearl (the robot in question) last year and it looked promising. Robot helps elderly with personal care. Video clips available at CMU/Pitt Nursebot Project.