A Gushee Response; Pragmatically Arguing Against Life; AI Weapon Dreamin'; Subway Plugs; Recreating Faces; Self-Administered, Brain-Controlled Drugs; and Deep Diving Anti-Tumor Bacteria

Religious Liberty

On David Gushee’s Dishonesty mereorthodoxy

I could quote multiple lines, but this one will suffice, to begin. In talking about those awful backwards bigots (that he used to hang out with), Gushee writes, “(Religious conservatives) are organizing legal defense efforts under the guise of religious liberty, and interpreting their plight as religious persecution.”

This is another response to Mr. Gushee, mentioned by Tim Challies today.

Abortion

The Pragmatic Case for Legal Abortion abort73

When you think about it, this is a brilliant way to argue. It allows you to have your cake and eat it too—condemning abortion on moral grounds while supporting abortion on pragmatic grounds. I can picture this person sidling up to an abortion opponent and gently proclaiming, “Look, I want to eliminate abortion as much as you do, but this isn’t the way to do it. Outlawing abortion doesn’t work.”

Weapons

The US government seriously wants to weaponize artificial intelligence quartz

In a report pdf that dreams of new ways to destroy adversaries and protect American assets in equal portions, the DOD’s science research division cements the idea that artificial intelligence and autonomous robotic systems will be a crucial part of the nation’s ongoing defense strategy.

Tech

New York City's giant inflatable ‘plugs’ could keep subway tunnels from flooding businessinsider

The plugs, developed by the US Department of Homeland Security and engineering firm ILC Dover ilcdover, work like balloons that keep water from entering the tunnels. If the city knows that another serious hurricane is coming, officials can shut down at-risk stations and inflate the plugs (which can also stop gas and smoke in the event of a terrorist attack).

DNA

How DNA left at crime scenes could help 'recreate' faces of criminals after gene breakthrough telegraph.co.uk

Previous studies have suggested [facial structures] are controlled by genes, but this one is the first to shed light on how variants contribute to the range of different forms we see.

Medical

Israeli scientists use nanobots and thoughts to control when drugs are administered timesofisrael

Researchers at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya herzliyaconference.org and Bar-Ilan University in Ramat Gan biu.ac.il have built the nanobots to which medication is attached and then are injected into the body. The nanobots have a “gate” that opens or closes — thereby controlling drug release — depending on brain activity.

Weird magnetic bacteria could be key in targeting and destroying tumours sciencealert

"These legions of nanorobotic agents were actually composed of more than 100 million flagellated bacteria - and therefore self-propelled - and loaded with drugs that moved by taking the most direct path between the drug's injection point and the area of the body to cure," explains lead researcher Sylvain Martel polymtl.ca, from Polytechnique Montréal.

Other...

Go Behind the Scenes of a Deconstructed Burger in Slow Motion industrytap v