# s-esobio: we're not finding them 'cause they've vanished inside ...

<< What if we're not finding aliens because they've already vanished from this reality into virtual worlds? >>

@singularityhub. 18 Ago 2016 10:23

https://twitter.com/singularityhub/status/766369830043803649

<< Proposed by futurist John Smart, the theory suggests that technological civilizations — and the Fermi paradox assumes there would be many by now — don’t colonize outer space (and thus flood the cosmos with signatures we could easily find). Instead, they move toward inner space by building vast digital realities on computers much smaller than we can detect. >>

Aaron Frank. Why No Aliens?  Aug 18, 2016.

http://singularityhub.com/2016/08/18/why-no-aliens-they-live-in-video-game-universes-like-a-future-no-mans-sky/

# s-nano: self-assembly, also in nanotech

<< some nanomaterials can be coaxed into snapping themselves into desired formations-a process called self-assembly >>

AA << have just developed a way to direct the self-assembly of multiple molecular patterns within a single material, producing new nanoscale architectures.  >>

Smarter  self-assembly  opens  new  pathways  for  nanotechnology. August  8,  2016.

http://m.phys.org/news/2016-08-smarter-self-assembly-pathways-nanotechnology.html

A. Stein, G. Wright, et al. Selective directed self-assembly of coexisting morphologies using block copolymer blends. Nature Communications 7, Article number: 12366 (2016) doi:10.1038/ncomms12366

http://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms12366

# s-evol: closer to gorillas

<< Surprising  results  from  a  new  study  reveal the  heel bone  from  our  fossil relative  is  closer  related  to  gorillas. >>

<< The  new study  that  for  the  first  time  examined  the  internal  anatomy  of a  fossil  human  relative’s  heel  bone,  or  calcaneus,  shows  greater similarities  with  gorillas  than  chimpanzees >>

Wits  University. More  gorilla  than  chimp. 11  Aug 2016.

https://www.wits.ac.za/news/latest-news/research-news/2016/2016-08/more-gorilla-than-chimp.html

Angel Zeininger, Biren A. Patel, et al. Trabecular architecture in the StW 352 fossil hominin calcaneus. Journal of Human Evolution. Volume 97, Aug. 2016, Pages 145–158. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.05.009.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.05.009

# s-brain: gut feeling; brain and gut connected by neural networks

<< The study demonstrates that the immune system might be controlled using drugs originally designed to target the nervous system, such as antipsychotics. >>

Duke  University. Targeting  the  gut-brain  connection  can impact  immunity. Drugs  aimed  at  nervous  system  act  on  immune  system  as  well. Public Release 11-Aug-2016 

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-08/du-ttg080916.php

Xiou Cao, Alejandro Aballay. Neural Inhibition of Dopaminergic Signaling Enhances Immunity in a Cell-Non-autonomous Manner. Current Biology, August 2016 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2016.06.036

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2016.06.036

# s-ageing: the long (and slow) life of Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus) ...

<< Greenland  sharks  live  at  least  as  long  as 400  years,  and  they  reach  sexual  maturity at  the  age  of  about  150,  a  new  study reports.  The  results  place  Greenland sharks  as  the  longest-lived  vertebrates  on Earth.  The  Greenland  shark  (Somniosus microcephalus)  is  widely  distributed across  the  North  Atlantic,  with  adults reaching  lengths  of  400  to  500  centimeters (13  to  16  feet).  The  biology  of  the Greenland  shark  is  poorly  understood,  yet their  extremely  slow  growth  rates,  at  about 1  cm per  year,  hint  that  these  fish  benefit from  exceptional  longevity. >>

AAAS. Winner  of  the  longest-lived  vertebrate award  goes  to... Public release 11-Aug-2016

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-08/aaft-wot080816.php

Julius  Nielsen, Rasmus B. Hedeholm, et al.  Eye  lens  radiocarbon  reveals  centuries  of  longevity  in  the  Greenland  shark  (Somniosus microcephalus). Science. 12  Aug  2016: Vol.  353,  Issue  6300,  pp.  702-704 DOI:  10.1126/science.aaf1703.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.aaf1703

# s-brain: imprinting and recalling inside a single network of brain cells with thin beam of light (as if switching on a TV ) ...

<< a set of neurons trained to fire in unison could be reactivated as much as a day later if just one neuron in the network was stimulated. >>

AA <<  injected the mouse with a virus containing light-sensitive proteins engineered to reach specific brain cells. Once inside a cell, the proteins allowed researchers to remotely activate the neuron with light, as if switching on a TV >>

<< But then I saw the results and said "Holy moly, this whole thing is plastic". We're dealing with a plastic computer that's constantly learning and changing >>  Rafael Yuste.

Researchers Reprogram Network of Brain Cells in Mice With Thin Beam of Light. Neuroscience News. August 11, 2016

http://neurosciencenews.com/optogenetics-brain-plasticity-4832/

Luis Carrillo-Reid, Weijian Yang, et al. Imprinting and recalling cortical ensembles. Science.12 Aug 2016: Vol. 353,  Issue  6300,  pp.  691-694 DOI:  10.1126/science.aaf7560.

http://science.sciencemag.org/content/353/6300/691

# s-brain: growing mini human brains (3D midbrain-like organoids) ...

AA << developed a method to differentiate human pluripotent stem cells into a large multicellular organoid-like structure that contains distinct layers of neuronal cells expressing characteristic markers of human midbrain. >>

AA << detected electrically active and functionally mature mDA (midbrain dopaminergic) neurons and dopamine production in 3D midbrain-like organoids (MLOs). In contrast to human mDA neurons generated using 2D methods or MLOs generated from mouse embryonic stem cells, (AA) human MLOs produced neuromelanin-like granules that were structurally similar to those isolated from human substantia nigra tissues. >>

AA <<  MLOs bearing features of the human midbrain may provide a tractable in vitro system to study the human midbrain and its related diseases. >>

Junghyun Jo, Yixin Xiao, et al. Midbrain-like Organoids from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells Contain Functional Dopaminergic and Neuromelanin-Producing Neurons. Cell Stem Cell. Volume 19, Issue 2, p248–257, 4 August 2016. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.stem.2016.07.005

http://www.cell.com/cell-stem-cell/abstract/S1934-5909(16)30200-4

also:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/07/160730154504.htm

http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapore-scientists-grow-mini-brains