The Daily Galaxy --Great Discoveries Channel: Sci, Space, Tech

New Tech: Will DNA Replace Silicon?

Today, most semiconductor chips are crafted from silicon, a relatively expensive material we commonly call "sand." But researchers at Duke University are designing logic chips from self-assembling DNA. The team hopes the process will provide a cheap, easy method of making chips, eventually eliminating the need for silicon semiconductor chips altogether.

The iPad Era: The Next Big Thing is Here

The iPad has been described as the biggest cultural phenomenon since The Beatles. As the most important launch in Apple's history -- bigger than the Mac, iPod or iPhone; the most important cultural phenomenon of this generation. 

John Doerr, the nation's leading venture capitalist writes: "It’s hard to imagine that once there was no Internet. Just 15 years ago there was no browser, no web point-and-click. It was 1994, and Steve Jobs had left Apple. Steve was making Toy Story, and object-oriented software for Next.

The rest of the 90’s were a ONCE-in-a-lifetime experience. Entrepreneurs created the Web, and great ventures – Netscape, Amazon, Ebay, Google, and others. And they changed our lives. Silicon Valley became the Florence of the New, Networked Economy. The advent of the iPad feels like deja-vu, like it’s happening all over again. Not once, but TWICE-in-a-lifetime."

Casey Kazan via TechCrunch

The "Death Beam" -The Original Weapon to End All War

Fast on the heels Flash Gordon, who made his first appearance to the world in a science-fiction comic strip published on January 7, 1934, the frontpage of The New York Times on July 11 blared TESLA, AT 78, BARES NEW 'DEATH BEAM.

Dr. Nicola Tesla, after his demonstration of wireless communication in 1893 and after being the victor in the "War of Currents," was world famous as America's greatest electrical engineer.

New Tech Dept: It's Here!

New Tech: A Moment of Zen

Comedian Stephen Fry Unpacks His New iPad

British comedian, Twitterholic, and master technophile, unboxes his new iPad video. In Time magazine, he describes the experience as similar "one's relationship with a person or an animal," rather than a gadget. Welcome to the new post PC  "Smartphone/iPad" world!

Project Orion : The Secret Story of the Atomic Spaceship (VIDEO)

World renowned physicist Freeman Dyson's son, George Dyson, tells the spellbinding story of Project Orion, a massive, nuclear-powered spacecraft the size of the Empire State building fueled by atomic bombs with the power to destroy half of Planet Earth. The mission was to take us to Saturn in five years. With an insider's perspective and a cache of documents -many still classified-photos and film, Dyson brings this dusty Atomic Age dream of the early 1960's to life.

The project lives today in limbo at NASA possibly to be activated should an asteroid arrive with our name on it.

Posted by Casey Kazan.

Project Orion Video

New Tech: Twitter Developing Censorship-Proof Technology (A Weekend Feature)

Twitter announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland that it is developing technology it hopes will prevent the Chinese and Iranian governments being able to censor its users.

Evan Williams, CEO and co-founder of Twitter, which has been credited with helping anti-government protesters in Iran to organise resistance, said software developers were working on "interesting hacks" to stop any blocking by foreign governments.

Williams expressed his admiration of Google for confronting China over censorship and cyberattacks on its service, but said Twitter was too small to take a similar stand.

"We are partially blocked in China and other places and we were in Iran as well. The most productive way to fight that is not by trying to engage China and other governments whose very being is against what we are about. I am hopeful there are technological ways around these barriers," he said.

Twitter has an advantage in evading government censors from operating as a network of internet and mobile applications, rather than as a single website. "Twitter is a network that is accessed in thousands of ways," Williams added.

Mr Williams was among executives of social networks, including MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn, who were challenged during a debate in Davos to make a statement against censorship. He gave the clearest account of how his company intended to resist surveillance.

Casey Kazan via ft.com

New Tech: NASA's Robotic Avatars

"If every habitable world in the universe is unique, and the precise chemical conditions of a planet helps shape the life that evolves there, then avatars could allow aliens to visit other worlds from the safety of their spaceship. Could it be that all the stories of alien encounters on Earth were really encounters with alien avatars? Maybe aliens don't actually look like grey humanoids with large eyes and no noses. Instead, that haunting image may simply be what we look like to them."

Astrobiology Magazine

The Great Race: Facebook Leaving Google in the Dust?

According to the latest industry data released this week, Facebook has surpassed Google as the most-visited Web site in the U.S. A seminal event? We think so...

As you can see in the long term trend shown in the graph below,, Facebook is now on target to meet or beat Google, and if that curve continues on its trajectory, Facebook will become number one by a huge margin, versus the squeaky 0.04% separation it currently has above Google's 7.03% share of average weekly market share.

New Tech: Will DNA Replace Silicon?

Today, most semiconductor chips are crafted from silicon, a relatively expensive material we commonly call "sand." But researchers at Duke University are designing logic chips from self-assembling DNA. The team hopes the process will provide a cheap, easy method of making chips, eventually eliminating the need for silicon semiconductor chips altogether.

The iPad Era: The Next Big Thing is Here

The iPad has been described as the biggest cultural phenomenon since The Beatles. As the most important launch in Apple's history -- bigger than the Mac, iPod or iPhone; the most important cultural phenomenon of this generation. 

John Doerr, the nation's leading venture capitalist writes: "It’s hard to imagine that once there was no Internet. Just 15 years ago there was no browser, no web point-and-click. It was 1994, and Steve Jobs had left Apple. Steve was making Toy Story, and object-oriented software for Next.

The rest of the 90’s were a ONCE-in-a-lifetime experience. Entrepreneurs created the Web, and great ventures – Netscape, Amazon, Ebay, Google, and others. And they changed our lives. Silicon Valley became the Florence of the New, Networked Economy. The advent of the iPad feels like deja-vu, like it’s happening all over again. Not once, but TWICE-in-a-lifetime."

Casey Kazan via TechCrunch

The "Death Beam" -The Original Weapon to End All War

Fast on the heels Flash Gordon, who made his first appearance to the world in a science-fiction comic strip published on January 7, 1934, the frontpage of The New York Times on July 11 blared TESLA, AT 78, BARES NEW 'DEATH BEAM.

Dr. Nicola Tesla, after his demonstration of wireless communication in 1893 and after being the victor in the "War of Currents," was world famous as America's greatest electrical engineer.

New Tech Dept: It's Here!

New Tech: A Moment of Zen

Comedian Stephen Fry Unpacks His New iPad

British comedian, Twitterholic, and master technophile, unboxes his new iPad video. In Time magazine, he describes the experience as similar "one's relationship with a person or an animal," rather than a gadget. Welcome to the new post PC  "Smartphone/iPad" world!

Project Orion : The Secret Story of the Atomic Spaceship (VIDEO)

World renowned physicist Freeman Dyson's son, George Dyson, tells the spellbinding story of Project Orion, a massive, nuclear-powered spacecraft the size of the Empire State building fueled by atomic bombs with the power to destroy half of Planet Earth. The mission was to take us to Saturn in five years. With an insider's perspective and a cache of documents -many still classified-photos and film, Dyson brings this dusty Atomic Age dream of the early 1960's to life.

The project lives today in limbo at NASA possibly to be activated should an asteroid arrive with our name on it.

Posted by Casey Kazan.

Project Orion Video

New Tech: Twitter Developing Censorship-Proof Technology (A Weekend Feature)

Twitter announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland that it is developing technology it hopes will prevent the Chinese and Iranian governments being able to censor its users.

Evan Williams, CEO and co-founder of Twitter, which has been credited with helping anti-government protesters in Iran to organise resistance, said software developers were working on "interesting hacks" to stop any blocking by foreign governments.

Williams expressed his admiration of Google for confronting China over censorship and cyberattacks on its service, but said Twitter was too small to take a similar stand.

"We are partially blocked in China and other places and we were in Iran as well. The most productive way to fight that is not by trying to engage China and other governments whose very being is against what we are about. I am hopeful there are technological ways around these barriers," he said.

Twitter has an advantage in evading government censors from operating as a network of internet and mobile applications, rather than as a single website. "Twitter is a network that is accessed in thousands of ways," Williams added.

Mr Williams was among executives of social networks, including MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn, who were challenged during a debate in Davos to make a statement against censorship. He gave the clearest account of how his company intended to resist surveillance.

Casey Kazan via ft.com

New Tech: NASA's Robotic Avatars

"If every habitable world in the universe is unique, and the precise chemical conditions of a planet helps shape the life that evolves there, then avatars could allow aliens to visit other worlds from the safety of their spaceship. Could it be that all the stories of alien encounters on Earth were really encounters with alien avatars? Maybe aliens don't actually look like grey humanoids with large eyes and no noses. Instead, that haunting image may simply be what we look like to them."

Astrobiology Magazine

The Great Race: Facebook Leaving Google in the Dust?

According to the latest industry data released this week, Facebook has surpassed Google as the most-visited Web site in the U.S. A seminal event? We think so...

As you can see in the long term trend shown in the graph below,, Facebook is now on target to meet or beat Google, and if that curve continues on its trajectory, Facebook will become number one by a huge margin, versus the squeaky 0.04% separation it currently has above Google's 7.03% share of average weekly market share.