Geoffrey Miller proposes a solution to Fermi’s Paradox: evolved life cannot overcome the inertia of fake fitness. Or to put it another way, the aliens are too busy taking drugs and playing video games to bother expanding beyond their own planet. Entertaining speculation, but I have a hard time accepting it. Especially considering it fails to account for manufactured intelligence.
Molecular Traffic Control System
Scientists at Delft University have discovered a way to use the motors of biological cells to sort flows of discreet molecules by their colour, using electrical charge to direct the molecules. This is another big step forward for the field of nanomachinery. I’m putting in a pre-order for my home fabricator as soon as someone gets a decent prototype sorted out.
Where There’s Muck, There’s Brass
The old English saying has a new ring of truth. A company in New Zealand has become the world’s first to make biodiesel from sewage pond algae. And best of all, the process helps purify the water even more than normal treatment methods.
Two DVDs Per Second
Technology researchers have debuted a chip that can convert optical fiber signals into computer data at astonishing speeds; up to 107 gigabits per second. Should make the filesharing lobby quite cheerful, at least…
New Column: Armchair Anarchist on SF Conventions
I have been a science fiction reader from the age of nine. It eventually became my staple literary diet over the years, after a teenage phase of reading RPG spin-off novels. But it was only comparatively recently that I discovered the science fiction community – the world of ‘fandom’. Once I started reading SF magazines, and writing articles for SF publications (such as this esteemed website) I realised there was a lot more to it than just reading novels in the isolation of my flat. Late last year, I decided that it was time I attended my first convention.
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