technology

‘Simplified’ IVF procedure could cost just $256

"A simplified lab can slash the cost of in-vitro fertilisation treatment to around 200 euros ($256), offering hope to millions of infertile couples in the developing world, a conference heard on Monday. The cost would be just 10 to 15 percent of western-style IVF programmes, according to the Belgian team behind the project. Their approach uses a scaled-down version of the typical IVF lab, using a simple two-tube system to replace special carbon dioxide (CO2) incubators, medical gas and air purification systems in which to culture the embryo in a lab dish. So far 12 healthy 'low-cost' babies have been born." Continue reading →

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Read more about the article The Next Big Thing in Cardiology

The Next Big Thing in Cardiology

"The innovative procedure allows for the installation of an artificial heart valve by means of a catheter. The catheter is inserted into an artery that is accessed through a small incision in either the patient's groin or chest. It is then snaked through the artery until it reaches the heart and delivers the attached artificial valve for implantation. TAVR not only avoids the need to open the chest wall, it can also minimize complications associated with general anesthesia, since TAVR can be performed under local anesthesia. What was a six-hour open-heart operation plus two weeks in the hospital is reduced to about a two-hour procedure." Continue reading →

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Archaeologists excited by discovery of eight ‘startlingly well-preserved’ Bronze Age boats

"The vessels, all deliberately sunk more than 3,000 years ago, are the largest group of bronze age boats ever found in the same UK site and most are startlingly well preserved. One is covered inside and out with decorative carving described by conservator Ian Panter as looking 'as if they’d been playing noughts and crosses all over it'. Another has handles carved from the oak tree trunk for lifting it out of the water. One still floated after 3,000 years and one has traces of fires lit on the wide flat deck on which the catch was evidently cooked. They were preserved by the waterlogged silt in the bed of a long-dried-up creek which buried them deep below the ground." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingArchaeologists excited by discovery of eight ‘startlingly well-preserved’ Bronze Age boats

‘Rookie mistake’ in Cryptocat chat app makes cracking a snap

"Developers of the Cryptocat application for encrypting communications of activists and journalists have apologized for a critical programming flaw that made it trivial for third parties to decipher group chats. The precise amount of time the vulnerability was active is in dispute, with Cryptocat developers putting it at seven months and a security researcher saying it was closer to 19 months. As a result, activists, journalists, or others who relied on Cryptocat to protect their group chats from government or industry snoops got little more protection than is typically available in standard chat programs." Continue reading →

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How China Spawned a Bitcoin Industry in Three Months (and Why it Might be Doomed)

"Techweb reports that China’s bitcoin scene now has everything from professional bitcoin investment services to customized bitcoin mining chip manufacturing. And indeed, wherever we looked, it seems services have sprung up, or grown significantly in popularity. For example, where the West has Mt. Gox, China now has a variety of its own platforms including btcchina, btctrade, FXBTC, and Bter (among others). And while some of those have been around for quite a while, their popularity over the past few months has skyrocketed. The big question mark surrounding all of this, of course, is what China’s government will ultimately say about the all-digital currency." Continue reading →

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U.S. bill would deny visas to known hackers

"A group of lawmakers proposed legislation Thursday that would deny US entry and freeze the assets of foreign nationals involved in hacking or cybercrimes targeting the United States. The Cyber Economic Espionage Accountability Act calls US authorities 'to bring more economic espionage criminal cases against offending foreign actors,' the lawmakers said in a statement. The bill would also ban foreigners participating in cyber crimes from getting visas to enter the United States. If they are US residents, their visa would be revoked and their financial assets frozen under the proposal." Continue reading →

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Robert P. Murphy: The Economics of Bitcoin

"Some critics (who are often proponents of hard money such as gold) object that Bitcoin is in a perpetual 'bubble' because it has no 'intrinsic value.' Yet these critics often seem to overlook just how much the exchange value of gold and silver is (and was) due to their use as media of exchange. Thus, if Bitcoin is currently in a bubble, then, by the same token, gold bullion in the year 1900 (say) was also in a massive bubble because it was trading for a far higher exchange value than could be explained merely by its industrial and ornamental uses." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRobert P. Murphy: The Economics of Bitcoin

Robert P. Murphy: The Economics of Bitcoin

"Some critics (who are often proponents of hard money such as gold) object that Bitcoin is in a perpetual 'bubble' because it has no 'intrinsic value.' Yet these critics often seem to overlook just how much the exchange value of gold and silver is (and was) due to their use as media of exchange. Thus, if Bitcoin is currently in a bubble, then, by the same token, gold bullion in the year 1900 (say) was also in a massive bubble because it was trading for a far higher exchange value than could be explained merely by its industrial and ornamental uses." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRobert P. Murphy: The Economics of Bitcoin

Robert P. Murphy: The Economics of Bitcoin

"Some critics (who are often proponents of hard money such as gold) object that Bitcoin is in a perpetual 'bubble' because it has no 'intrinsic value.' Yet these critics often seem to overlook just how much the exchange value of gold and silver is (and was) due to their use as media of exchange. Thus, if Bitcoin is currently in a bubble, then, by the same token, gold bullion in the year 1900 (say) was also in a massive bubble because it was trading for a far higher exchange value than could be explained merely by its industrial and ornamental uses." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRobert P. Murphy: The Economics of Bitcoin

Robert P. Murphy: The Economics of Bitcoin

"Some critics (who are often proponents of hard money such as gold) object that Bitcoin is in a perpetual 'bubble' because it has no 'intrinsic value.' Yet these critics often seem to overlook just how much the exchange value of gold and silver is (and was) due to their use as media of exchange. Thus, if Bitcoin is currently in a bubble, then, by the same token, gold bullion in the year 1900 (say) was also in a massive bubble because it was trading for a far higher exchange value than could be explained merely by its industrial and ornamental uses." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRobert P. Murphy: The Economics of Bitcoin