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- Magic of the Future or Just Another Green Mirage?
- A Second Look at Life Expectancy: What the 1918 Flu Tells Us About the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Take the Extra Minute: Listen to Your Adrenaline
- Laying Track in the Cloud: Why AI is the Railroad Mania of Our Time
- The Age of Re-Engineering: How Science Is Rewriting the Limits of Human Life
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Category Archives: Technology
Magic of the Future or Just Another Green Mirage?
In response to my recent piece on a civilization poisoned by progress, a reader commented: “Just as we’ve had better energy options, like sodium ion batteries, there’s been fossil fuels alternatives that are far more sustainable. Just algae tech alone … Continue reading
Posted in Science, Technology
Tagged algae, energy, environment, food, kelp, plastic, pollution, public health, recycling, science
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Laying Track in the Cloud: Why AI is the Railroad Mania of Our Time
Two centuries ago, the world was intoxicated by the smell of burning coal and the screech of iron wheels. It was the dawn of the railroad era. A blinding convergence of new technology and aggressive westward expansion that forged the … Continue reading
Posted in Economy, Science, Technology
Tagged AI, artificial intelligence, economy, future, gold rush, innovation, railroads
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Beyond Plastic: Rediscovering the Materials That Served Humanity for Millennia
When I recently wrote about our civilization quietly poisoning itself with microplastics, one reader asked a perfectly reasonable question: “If not plastic, then what?” It’s the right question. We’ve become so accustomed to plastic that many people can’t imagine life … Continue reading
Posted in Science, Society, Technology
Tagged cast iron, ceramics, chemistry, cookware, glass, history, microplastics, nanoplastics, plastic, pollution, public health, science, silicone, steel, technology
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Why Leave Earth? (An Earth Day Reflection on Going Beyond It)
This Earth Day, while we celebrate the only home we’ve ever known, it might seem strange to talk about leaving it, but after my recent post on the Artemis II mission, a reader asked a question that stopped me in … Continue reading
Posted in Science, Technology
Tagged Artemis II, Earth, Earth Day, exploration, International Space Station, Mars, Moon, NASA, science, space
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Riding the Invisible Currents of Gravity
After exploring why gravity doesn’t “turn off” and why astronauts in low Earth orbit are really just falling forever, we can finally follow that idea to its natural conclusion: what happens when you keep falling all the way to the … Continue reading
Posted in Science, Technology
Tagged Artemis II, Christina Koch, Earth, equi-gravis, falling, free-return trajectory, gravity, Jeremy Hansen, Lagrange points, Mars, Moon, orbital mechanics, physics, Reid Wiseman, rocketry, science, space travel, three-body problem, translunar trajectory, Victor Glover, weightlessness
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The Quiet Evolution: Adapting to an AI World
I’ve recently been invited to participate in a transformation initiative at work. At a large company, opportunities like this don’t come from raising your hand. They come from being tapped on the shoulder. Senior leadership looks across the organization and … Continue reading
Posted in Leadership, Technology
Tagged AI, artificial intelligence, future, innovation, leadership, technology, work
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I’ve Seen This Boom Before: A Guide to Corporate Gold Rushes
Howdy, partner! Listen close, ‘cause it’s Talk Like a Grizzled Prospector Day. It’s a durn fine chance to look at these fancy-pants modern gold rushes through the dusty eyes of old-timers, back when a rusty pick, a sturdy shovel and … Continue reading
“Shatterproof”, My Glass!
When Gorilla Glass Meets the Rock of Reality It was a day like any other, if your “any other” involves crawling through tight spaces in service of search and rescue. (Yes, that again. It’s kind of my thing.) On April … Continue reading
Posted in Humor, Technology
Tagged Corning, Gorilla Glass, gravity, Murphy's Law, physics, smartphone
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