Audio Cassettes are Making a Comeback

The demand for vinyl and audiocassettes - affectionately called "tape" back in the day - gives me a few insights:

1) Nostalgia sells really well, and extends into vintage technology (re: one generation behind).

2) With information practically overwhelming people online, the linear nature of vinyl, and even more so for cassettes, makes for a more focused information stream - it's a very relaxing mode of data appreciation.

3) There may be a backlash for the Internet that is happening with the younger generations. I hope it leads to an eventual renaissance in how people deal with the online world.

Article: http://www.techradar.com/news/break-out-that-old-tape-deck-cassettes-are-making-a-comeback

Science Fiction, the Spirit, and the Mechanical Flesh: Major Kusanagi and Ghost in the Shell

It seems that the idea of an encased human (brain, in this case) within another form is an obsession - it dates through the ages, from human souls trapped in animals, to empty armor, and now, in mechanical form.

Lately, the more interesting (for me) versions of these are Robotman from DC's Doom Patrol team, and Major Motoko Kusanagi from the manga/anime franchise Ghost in the Shell.

It is, I think, a major philosophical and spiritual concern. And as the time comes nearer when we may be able to transfer our consciousnesses to virtual storage without a break in the stream of thought, it seems that we all will need to ask ourselves: can we survive as ghosts in the machines?

And will this lead to questions of who is really human?

The Deadpool Conundrum: Telomeres and Cancer

Deadpool, the comic book character, was a man who had incredible healing abilities, but was disfigured because somehow, his body was also riddled with tumors or cancerous growths. Now, it seems that whoever wrote that into his power set was right on the scientific level: if your telomeres are too long, then you have a higher risk for cancer. In order to keep on going, people in the future may have to periodically subject themselves to gene therapy to adjust telomere sizes for an optimum lifespan without getting the cancer risk.

It's kinda like a built-in anti-obsolescence system. It makes you wonder if our instinctive knowledge of this mechanism in our bodies is the basis for how consumer technology is made.

Source: http://www.futuretimeline.net/blog/2017/01/13.htm

Hard or Soft? The new MetaMaterials.

Scientists have now developed a material that can be hard or soft, depending on the force, impact, or stress applied to the object. It reminds me of that Mythbuster episode that looked into mixtures that had a very high surface tension.

In any case, this sort of material would be very useful in safety measures and other similar applications.

Article: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170123214734.htm

In Russia, the civilian application of a railgun is to shoot supplies to the ISS. Granted, some movies, TV shows, and anime series have already used the idea (known as mass drivers), but now that it IS possible, it feels a bit uncomfortable.

Also, it sets up the whole "In Russia..." kind of joke.

Source: https://futurism.com/dasvidaniya-russia-successfully-tests-new-weapon-that-can-blow-away-any-type-of-armor/