It’s Called Solar Retinopathy.

Is the End of Daily Insulin Injections for Diabetes Sufferers in Sight?

A new study reportedly shows that boosting the immune system can safely restore insulin production for up to a year—which might make it possible for those who suffer with diabetes to not require daily injections. Notably, these are Phase 1 trials, which are designed to look at safety, not long term effectiveness. So much research is still needed.

Yet, if the technique proves viable and effective, this could change the lives of millions of people around the world. According to the Center for Diseases Control, in the United States alone, 29.1 million people (or 9.3% of the population) have diabetes. That’s one out of every 11 people. 371 million people worldwide have this condition.

To break down the research, those afflicted with Type 1 diabetes do not have enough T-regs or ‘peacekeeping’ cells, which is ultimately what causes the disease. Researchers from Yale and University of California have just showed that T-regs can be removed from the body, increased by 1,500 in a lab setting, and then placed back into the bloodstream as a way of potentially restoring the body’s insulin production back to normal.

Find out more at: http://futurism.com/links/end-daily-insulin-injections-diabetes-sufferers-sight/

NASA just released more awesome space tourism posters

Pack your bags, we're moving to Jupiter.

Can we just take a moment to appreciate how incredible our Solar System is? Sure, pretty much everywhere other than our own planet is a deathtrap, with acid rain pouring down on Venus and storms three times the size of Earth swirling around Jupiter, but you don’t have to look too hard to find the unique beauty in our neighbouring planets and moons.

And with unique beauty comes… tourism! From the diamond-inspired cloud observatory of Venus to Jupiter’s aurorae-backed balloon ride, the design team from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have taken us back to the future with this new batch of retro space tourism posters.

The “Visions of the Future” series features seven original posters released this week, plus seven “Exoplanet Travel Bureau” posters that were published around this time last year. And these haven’t just been dreamt up by anyone - the designers behind the posters have been consulting with JPL scientists and engineers to come up with tourism scenarios that are as realistic as they are fantastical.

Titan Beyond the Rings

Meet Surena III: University of Tehran Unveils Its New Humanoid Robot

Researchers from the University of Tehran unveiled the new generation of their humanoid robot called Surena III. The robot stands 1.9 meters tall (6.2 feet) and weighs 98 kilograms (216 lb). It is also  equipped with numerous sensors that includes a Kinect-based 3D vision module, and is powered by 31 servomotors. Surena III is capable of walking up and down ramps and stairs, and along irregular surfaces up to a speed of .2m/s (about 8 inches a second).

So perhaps the robot won’t be running any marathons anytime soon, but it’s still pretty remarkable. Plus, the robot was designed for other purposes besides speed.

Read more at: http://futurism.com/links/meet-surena-iii-university-of-tehran-unveils-its-new-humanoid-robot/

Come watch this 

Japan’s Venus probe gets a second shot on December 7th

The world’s oldest known fossils have been found - and they’re 3.7 billion years old

They could push back evidence for life on Earth by 220 million years.

The oldest fossils ever discovered have been found in Greenland, and they appear to have preserved the earliest signs of life of Earth.

Dated to around 3.7 billion years ago, the fossils contain evidence of stromatolites - layers of sediment packed together by ancient, water-based bacterial colonies - and could push back the origins of life in the fossil record by 220 million years.

Read more… 

Solar System: From TED Talks to Data Releases

Let us lead you on a journey of our solar system. Here are some things to know this week:

1. NASA-Funded Research

It’s all just a click way with the launch of a new public access site, which reflects our ongoing commitment to provide public access to science data.

Start Exploring!

2.  Red Planet Reconnaissance 

One of the top places in our solar system to look for signs of past or current life is Mars. Through our robotic missions, we have been on and around Mars for 40 years. These orbiters, landers and rovers are paving the way for human exploration.

Meet the Mars robots

3. Three Moons and a Planet that Could Have Alien Life

In a presentation at TED Talks Live, our director of planetary science, Jim Green, discusses the best places to look for alien life in our solar system.

Watch the talk

4. Setting Free a Dragon

Tune in to NASA TV on Friday, Aug. 26 at 5:45 a.m. EDT for coverage of the release of the SpaceX Dragon CRS-9 cargo ship from the International Space Station.

Watch live

5. Anniversary Ring(s)

Aug. 26 marks 35 years since Voyager probe flew by Saturn, delighting scientists with rich data and images. Today, thanks to our Cassini spacecraft, we know much more about the ringed planet.

Learn more about Cassini’s mission to Saturn

Learn more about Voyager 2

Discover the full list of 10 things to know about our solar system this week HERE.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Vibrant winter stars over Lake Tahoe, a week ago. That’s Sirius’s bright reflection on the water! [3000x1633]

Source: http://i.imgur.com/ZnhiC8R.jpg

Disabled violinist uses thoughts to make music for the first time in 27 years

This is incredible.

Rosemary Johnson was a promising violinist and member of the Welsh National Opera Orchestra when she was involved in a devastating car crash 27 years ago. The accident left her in a coma for seven months, and the resulting brain damage has robbed her of most of her ability to talk and move.

But thanks to new software that reads people’s brain waves, Johnson has been able to compose music for the first time since 1988, and has had the chance to have it played to her in real time by a professional string quartet.

“It was really very moving,” Eduardo Miranda from the Interdisciplinary Centre for Computer Music Research at Plymouth University in the UK, told The Telegraph.