As a remedy for all the bad news out there, let us prescribe you a small dose of feel-good science. Each issue, we\u2019ll give you a rundown of the latest breakthroughs that aim to solve humanity\u2019s biggest problems. From burger-flipping robots to GM mosquitoes, here you\u2019ll find many reasons to feel hopeful for our future\u2026 <\/p>\n\n
Years to go: 25-20<\/span><\/h4>\n\n
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Cash boost for brain map project<\/h5>\n\n
Researchers planning to create a map describing the human brain in unprecedented detail have received a $126m (approximately \u00a3115m) grant from America\u2019s National Institutes of Health. The funding will be used to launch the Center for Multiomic Human Brain Cell Atlas, where researchers will work to better understand how human brains function and age. <\/p>\n\n
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Saving the planet saves cash<\/h5>\n\n
The world could save \u00a310tr by 2050 by switching from fossil fuels to renewable energy, a study involving decades of energy data carried out at the University of Oxford has found. Thanks to the soaring prices of natural gas and the falling costs of renewables, going green makes more economic sense than ever, the researchers say. <\/p>\n\n
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An AI that gets your jokes<\/h5>\n\n
Scientists at Kyoto University have created a chatbot with a sense of humour. Named Erica, the bot was trained using conversations recorded during more than 80 speed-dating sessions and is able to respond to human laughter cues. The scientists claim the so-called shared-laughter model could help us to create chatbots that can build empathy in whoever they\u2019re talking to.<\/p>\n\n
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Years to go: 20-10<\/span><\/h4>\n\n
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Malaria-free mozzies<\/h5>\n\n
Last year, malaria infected 241 million people and killed 627,000 in sub-Saharan Africa (mostly children under five) making it one of the world\u2019s most devastating diseases. It\u2019s transmitted by parasites that live in female mosquitoes\u2019 guts. To combat the spread of the disease, researchers at Imperial College London have edited the genes in Anopheles <\/em>gambiae, <\/em>the main malaria-carrying species of mosquito, to shorten its life and limit the time that parasites have to develop in their guts. <\/p>\n\n
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More VR, less anaesthetic<\/h5>\n\n
Patients undergoing hand surgery needed lower doses of sedatives when they immersed themselves in a relaxing virtual reality environment, a study carried out at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston has found. If it makes it into operating theatres, the finding could reduce the harm caused by unnecessary sedation, the researchers say. <\/p>\n\n
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Years to go: 10-0<\/span><\/h4>\n\n
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Virus-detecting mask<\/h5>\n\n
Researchers from Tongji University, China, have developed a face mask that can alert wearers if they have been exposed to airborne coronavirus or influenza particles within 10 minutes. A sensor built into the mask contains a synthetic chemical sensitive enough to detect trace amounts of virus in the air. Once it has detected a virus, the sensor then sends a message to the wearer\u2019s smartphone informing them of their potential exposure. <\/p>\n\n
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Flying without wings<\/h5>\n\n
Here\u2019s something that would liven up the daily commute: Japanese startup AERWINS\u2019s XTURISMO hoverbike. The futuristic runabout was recently unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show. It can reach speeds of up to 100km\/h (62mph) and can run for 40 minutes on a combination of battery and engine power. If you want one, you\u2019ll have to cough up an eye-watering \u00a3685,000, but the company is planning to release a smaller electric model for \u00a345,000 by 2025.<\/p>\n\n
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Robochef<\/h5>\n\n
It looks like fast food could soon be even faster. California-based tech company Miso Robotics has teamed up with US restaurant chains Wing Zone, Jack in the Box and Chipotle to trial its robot workers later this year. There\u2019s Flippy, a burger-flipping, French-fry-cooking bot; Sippy, a drink-dispensing bot; and Chippy, a tortilla-chip-making bot.<\/p>\n\n
As a remedy for all the bad news out there, let us prescribe you a small dose of feel-good science. Each issue, we\u2019ll give you a rundown of the latest breakthroughs that aim to solve humanity\u2019s biggest problems. 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Each issue, we\u2019ll give you a rundown of the latest breakthroughs that aim to solve humanity\u2019s biggest problems. From burger-flipping robots to GM mosquitoes, here you\u2019ll find many reasons to feel hopeful for our future\u2026","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18077"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18077"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18077\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18860,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18077\/revisions\/18860"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18349"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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