The Best-Designed Cars Of 2015

Mercedes-Benz F 015 Concept: This groundbreaking concept bravely explores how vehicles as we know them today may be transformed by the coming age of "automobility." The concept demonstrates the importance of designing holistically for a new category of vehicles made possible with the emergence of an autonomous vehicle fleet. Unique affordances for communicating intent to pedestrians, interior privacy, new interior configurations, and new ways to work with digital content all make this design particularly noteworthy. — Danny Stillion, executive design director at IDEO CHRISTIE HEMM KLOK/WIRED

Wired: Behold the Best-Designed Cars of 2015

THE AUTO INDUSTRY is in a transitional era. Consumers expect their cars to do everything their smartphones do, so automakers are adding more and more features to keep us coddled and connected even as they take the first steps toward the day robots do the driving. This presents an increasingly tricky challenge: Incorporating sophisticated infotainment systems and apps, complex semi-autonomous technology, and myriad other features without making the car confusing, overwhelming, or distracting.

Meanwhile, exterior design is ever more homogeneous. Fuel economy requirements demand efficient aerodynamics, and because everyone must adhere to the laws of physics, it’s hard to design a car that’s both sleek and original. Safety standards—another set of rules and regulations everyone must follow—also make it hard to stand out.

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Editor: My personal favourite is the Mazda RX-Vision Concept.

Apple Ad-Blocking Software Is Scareing Publishers

The Guardian: A proxy war: Apple ad-blocking software scares publishers but rival Google is target

Apps that prevent ads making it to the screens of mobile phones topped the charts this year. What will the consequences be in 2016?

When Apple revealed that its new operating system for mobile phones, iOS 9, would feature what the company called “content-blocking Safari extensions”, no one really blinked.

Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive, didn’t even detail the feature on stage at the lavish launch for iOS 9 in July.

Instead, details of the content-blocking extensions were buried in technical documents, and an in-depth explanation was given only on the fifth day of Apple’s worldwide developer conference in San Francisco.

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Editor: For Publishers .... ad-blockers have devastated their revenues.

The Growing Global Economic Cost Of Illiteracy

The Guardian: Illiteracy will cost global economy $1.2tn in 2015

Report by the World Literacy Foundation says almost 800m people worldwide who can’t read or write are ‘trapped in a cycle of poverty’

Illiteracy is “a worldwide crisis” that will cost the global economy $1.2tn (£760bn) this year, the World Literacy Foundation (WLF) has warned. More than 796 million people are either completely illiterate, meaning they can’t read or write, or functionally illiterate, meaning they can’t perform basic tasks such as reading a medicine label, the WLF said in a report released on Monday (pdf).

People in rich and poor countries are “trapped in a cycle of poverty with limited opportunities for employment or income generation” because of illiteracy, the report said.

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CSN Editor: One of the greatest gifts that a person can receive is being taught how to read and write.

Four New Elements Are Added To The Periodic Table

The Guardian: Periodic table's seventh row finally filled as four new elements are added

Discovery of four super-heavy chemical elements by scientists in Russia, America and Japan has been verified by experts and formally added to table

Four new elements have been added to the periodic table, finally completing the table’s seventh row and rendering science textbooks around the world instantly out of date.

The elements, discovered by scientists in Japan, Russia and America, are the first to be added to the table since 2011, when elements 114 and 116 were added.

The four were verified on 30 December by the US-based International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, the global organisation that governs chemical nomenclature, terminology and measurement.

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CSN Editor: Time to update the science books.

How Much Time Will YOU Spend Working, Sleeping And Having Sex In Your Lifetime?

The tool predicts how much time you'll spend doing tedious chores before you die, as well as more pleasureable activities and was created by WatchShop.com in Reading. To begin, users have to specify which sex they are, before using a slider bar to specify how long they spend doing a task each week. These include commuting, sleeping, showering, having sex, drinking, exercising, cleaning and even talking about the weather. Once all the sections have been completed, or the option 'None of your business, that's private' is selected, users will see a screen telling them how they'll spend their days if they continue their current habits (pictured).

Daily Mail: How much time will YOU spend working, sleeping and having sex in your lifetime? Quiz analyses your habits to reveal all

* Interactive tool calculates how much time - based on an average lifespan of 83 - a user will devote to tedious tasks
* These include the time spent on cleaning and commuting, as well as pleasures such as sleeping and having sex
* Company collected data from 1,300 people who have taken the quiz to reveal the nation's habits in 2015
* This revealed men slept more than women, but had less sex - three days in 2015 compared to four

It is often said that no-one on their deathbed ever wishes they had spent more time at the office.

Now there's an interactive tool that predicts how much time you'll spend commuting, cleaning and doing other chores before you die.

It then compares these tedious tasks to more enjoyable activities, such as the amount of hours you may spend sleeping, drinking and having sex to reveal how you'll spend the rest of your life.

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CSN Editor: Hmmmm .... too close to home.

Advances In Astronomy Will Help Find Other Worlds

The first super-Earth identified as a rocky exoplanet

BBC: Advance in astronomy 'can help find other worlds'

The pull of gravity on a distant star can now be measured more accurately, shedding light on other worlds, say astronomers.

The method makes it possible to study even the faintest of stars.

"Our technique can tell you how big and bright is the star, and if a planet around it is the right size and temperature to have water oceans, and maybe life," said Prof Jaymie Matthews.
The findings appear in the journal, Science Advances.

Surface gravity is the intensity of the force that pulls everything on the surface of a star or celestial body towards the centre.

It is usually calculated by measuring a star's light or brightness - but this only works well for the closest, brightest stars.

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CSN Editor: It is only a question of time that we will be able to not only determine how many planets may be revolving around a distant star .... but to also be able to determine what are the  gases/climate/conditions on these distant planets.

2015: The Year in Science and Technology

VOA: A Look Back at 2015: The Year in Science and Technology

Scientists and technology experts were busy in 2015.

From fighting climate change, to space exploration and developing drones, here is a look back at some of the science stories we covered at VOA Learning English.

Climate change agreement reached

Most recently, representatives from nearly 200 nations gathered in Paris to fight climate change.

Almost every country agreed to limit a rise in global temperatures. They agreed that the world should not get any warmer than 2 degrees Celsius above what it was in the mid-1700s. The agreement says 1.5 degrees is an even better target.

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CSN Editor: Whether you agree with it or not .... an international agreement to combat climate change is the big story for 2015.

A Robot That Looks And Acts Human

Prof Nadia Thalmann (left) posing beside Nadine, a life-like social robot capable of autonomously expressing emotions and gestures. Credit: Image courtesy of Nanyang Technological University

Science Daily: Prof Nadia Thalmann (left) posing beside Nadine, a life-like social robot capable of autonomously expressing emotions and gestures.

Say hello to Nadine, a "receptionist" at Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore). She is friendly, and will greet you back. Next time you meet her, she will remember your name and your previous conversation with her.

She looks almost like a human being, with soft skin and flowing brunette hair. She smiles when greeting you, looks at you in the eye when talking, and can also shake hands with you. And she is a humanoid.

Unlike conventional robots, Nadine has her own personality, mood and emotions. She can be happy or sad, depending on the conversation. She also has a good memory, and can recognise the people she has met, and remembers what the person had said before.

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CSN Editor: This is the first generation .... one can only imagine what "she" will look like 10 years from now.

World GDP rankings in 2031

Next Big Future: World GDP rankings in 2031

Currently on a nominal exchange rate basis countries are ranked as follows

1. USA $18 trillion
2. China $11.4 trillion
3. Japan $4.1 trillion
4. Germany $3.3 trillion
5. UK $3.0 trillion
6. France $2.4 trillion
7. India $2.1 trillion
8. Italy $1.8 trillion
9. Brazil $1.8 trillion
10. Canada $1.56 trillion
11. South Korea $1.39 trillion

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CSN Editor: The full CEBR report is here .... World Economic League Table 2016 Highlights (CEBR)

Q-Carbon, A Product That Is Harder Than Diamonds

(Credit: clearviewstock/Shutterstock)

Discover Magazine: Q-carbon Puts Diamonds in Second Place

Long ago, ancient scientists attempted to master the craft of alchemy, or the mythical process of turning lead into gold. Alchemy has since been proven to be a hopeless task, but modern scientists have successfully unlocked the secrets to an even more stunning transformation: turning carbon, the basic building block of life, into diamonds.

A new, simple carbon-transforming technique that uses a laser to produce tiny diamond “seeds” is yielding even more sparkling results. Researchers, in a new study, used their method to create an entirely new phase of carbon that surpasses even diamonds in terms of hardness, and the new material could have a number of applications in medical and industrial fields.

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CSN Editor: The applications are endless.

Documentary: How Big Oil Conquered The World

A Flying Car In The Near Future?

Discover: One Small Step for Flying Cars

A drone’s flying test may help pave the way for flying cars. In early December, U.S. regulators gave their approval for unmanned hover tests of a miniature flying car model made by the company Terrafugia. Such testing would provide feedback for eventually building a full-size version of a flying car capable of hovering for vertical takeoff and landing.

Contrary to some more breathless news headlines, this does not mean the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has cleared a hover-capable flying car for flight tests in U.S. airspace. Instead, Terrafugia only received special permission to operate a “one-tenth scale TF-X vehicle” under the classification of a small Unmanned Aircraft System weighing less than 55 pounds. The small-scale model of the TF-X prototype—basically a small drone—will have to operate at altitudes below 400 feet and at speeds under 100 miles per hour. Still, it’s a crucial step on the road to creating a flying car with the likeness of the futuristic vehicles seen in science fiction films such as “Back to the Future,” “Blade Runner” or the “Star Wars” prequels.

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CSN Editor: I want one.

Has A Cure For PTSD Been Found?

DEA

PsyPost: PTSD-related study finds a single dose of MDMA helps conditioned fear go extinct

Researchers have discovered that MDMA — commonly known as ecstasy or molly — speeds up the extinction of the conditioned fear response in mice. The findings help explain why the psychedelic drug is of benefit to people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Clinical studies have found that using MDMA as an aid during psychotherapy resulted in long-lasting improvements in PTSD symptoms. But Matthew Young of Emory University and his colleagues wanted to understand the psychological mechanism behind these results.

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CSN Editor: A reader of this blog sent me this link a few days ago. I forgot his name (sorry about that), but I kept the link and I have only gotten the chance to read it now. Wow .... I hope this works. I know a lot of people who are suffering from PTSD, and it will be Godsend to the many soldiers and families who are suffering because of it.

This Video Shows Why Joss Whedon's Serenity Was A Unique, Genre-Bending Movie

CSN Editor: For Serenity out-takes see the video below.

Here Comes The Robot Cops

Tech Crunch: Meet Knightscope’s Crime-Fighting Robots

The robots might one day rise up and take over, but a Palo Alto startup called Knightscope has developed a fleet of crime-fighting machinery it hopes to keep us safe.

Knightscope’s K5 security bots resemble a mix between R2D2 and a Dalek from Doctor Who – and the system behind these bots is a bit Orwellian. The K5’s have broadcasting and sophisticated monitoring capabilities to keep public spaces in check as they rove through open areas, halls and corridors for suspicious activity.

The units upload what they see to a backend security network using 360-degree high-definition and low-light infrared cameras and a built-in microphone can be used to communicate with passersby. An audio event detection system can also pick up on activities like breaking glass and send an alert to the system as well.

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CSN Editor: Robocop it is not .... but they are getting there.

Hot To Spot A Psychopath

Like Patrick Bateman in American Psycho, (played by Christian Bale, pictured) psychopaths can be intelligent and charming, while hiding a lack of empathy. Now a self-confessed psychopath has shared how he generally behaves to gain the trust of others and then use them to his own advantage

Daily Mail: How to spot a psychopath: Expert reveals the traits to look out for in others and how to tell if YOU have the personality disorder

* Self-professed psychopath Jacob Wells posted his advice on Quora
* He described how he befriends people then uses them to his advantage
* Description matches psychopathic traits such as charm and manipulation

Like Patrick Bateman in American Psycho, psychopaths can be intelligent and charming, while hiding a lack of empathy.

So given their ability to manipulate others, how easy it is for you to spot one?

Self-professed psychopath Jacob Wells has revealed how he behaves in different situations and has listed questions that may help others identify whether they have any psychopathic traits - as well as recognise them in others.

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CSN Editor: Scary stuff here.

The Problem Of Space Debris Keeps On Growing

Daily Mail: See decades of space debris swarm the Earth in 60 seconds: Video reveals how the planet's orbit has become a 'junkyard'

* Video shows decades of debris ringing the planet in just one minute
* Earth's orbit is a spacecraft junkyard and has been steadily growing
* UCL researcher animates 20,000 pieces of junk amassing around Earth

It is difficult to keep track of just how much stuff we throw away each day, but imagine trying to capture that on a global scale, for almost sixty years, and in space.
A new video has achieved this staggering feat by visualising decades of space debris as it accumulates around the Earth.
Dr Stuart Grey, a lecturer at University College London, generated the visualisation which captures the accumulation from 1957 through to 2015.

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CSN Editor: Houston .... we have a problem.

There Is A Scientific Reason Why New Year's Eve Is Generally Terrible

The Independent: New Year’s Eve: The scientific reason why it is generally terrible

Those who plan to have a great time on New Year's Eve are likely to be the most miserable of all.

In the movies, New Year’s Eve is always full of excitement and intrigue, attractive people in sparkly outfits, and surprise kisses at midnight. So why does real-world New Year’s Eve always seem to consist of losing your friends in a crowded bar, standing in line forever for drinks, and waiting an hour in the cold for a ridiculously priced Uber?

Research done by a team of psychologists and economists on how we experience happiness actually offers an explanation. In a 1999 study called “The pursuit and assessment of happiness can be self-defeating,” Jonathan Schooler, now of the University of California Santa Barbara, Dan Ariely of Duke University and George Loewenstein of Carnegie Melon offer evidence that those who plan to have a great time on New Year's Eve are likely to be the most miserable of all.

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CSN Editor: Yup .... it always comes down to high expectations that never pan out.

High Expectations For Faraday Future's Car

Daily Mail: Faraday Future teases the ‘Tesla killer’: Mysterious Chinese-backed firm provides the first glimpse of its electric car

* Teaser video of vehicle driving around shows its wheel but not much else
* It will be revealed at Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Monday
* The company predicts a production model will hit the roads by 2020
* The firm is backed by 'China's Steve Jobs', multibillionaire Jia Yueting

Faraday Future has provided a glimpse of its top-secret electric car, billed the 'Tesla-killer', ahead of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) next week.

The secretive Chinese-backed company today posted a teaser video of vehicle driving around showing not much more than a wheel.

The car, which is set to be revealed at CES in Las Vegas on Monday, will be a concept vehicle with a production model set to hit the roads by 2020.

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CSN Editor: I am looking forward to this unveiling.

The 10 Most Expensive Cars In The World

Photo by Clément Bucco-Lechat. Source: wikipedia creative commons

Daddu: 10 Most Expensive Cars In The World

Some cars are designed just to get you from point A to point B. Some cars are designed to get you from point A to point B really fast. And then there are cars designed with such lavish style and breath-taking performance that point B doesn’t even matter anymore – just driving it is the point.

These cars fall into the latter category. They are built with a level of luxury that most of us will never even see in person, let alone get the chance to own. But we don’t all get to own a Rembrandt or Monet, either. That doesn’t stop us from enjoying a trip to the museum. And the cars on this list are more than just cars – they are triumphs of engineering, works of art on wheels.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the 10 most expensive cars in the world

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CSN Editor: Sighhhh .... I can only dream ....