IdeaFeed | Big Think

Using "Holograms" In Medical School Lectures

Kecia Lynn — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:01:30 -0400

What's the Latest Development? London-based junior doctors Kapil Sugand and Pedro Campos have created a system that displays 3D animated images of body parts on a large scale, giving medical students a whole new way to absorb information during a lecture. The system works through a type of ...

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Getting Wi-Fi To Rural Areas Via Balloon

Kecia Lynn — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:32:19 -0400

What's the Latest Development? Last weekend, as part of its Project Loon, Google launched 30 balloons, which together helped provide basic broadband-like Internet access to 50 or so testers in the Christchurch area of New Zealand. The balloons hover about 12 miles above the Earth -- well out of ...

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From Pakistan With Love: Online Qu'ran Instruction

Kecia Lynn — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:00:00 -0400

What's the Latest Development? Pakistani parents living abroad who want their children to have the benefit of religious instruction -- ideally without any potential radical influences included -- have the option of paying a teacher via one of hundreds of online sites based in their home country ...

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A Reality "Show" Airing Entirely On Social Media

Kecia Lynn — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:30:00 -0400

What's the Latest Development? Going live this week is what may be the world's first reality show that won't air on TV: @SummerBreak follows a group of Los Angeles-area teens as they enjoy their last summer before attending college in the fall. The eight-week series will consist entirely of a ...

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French Archivists Say No To Proposed "Right To Be Forgotten"

Kecia Lynn — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:00:00 -0400

What's the Latest Development? Amid calls in the European Union for more detailed online privacy laws, the Association of French Archivists is pushing back with a petition of their own claiming that allowing individuals to remove personal data from the Internet "could complicate the collection ...

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Why Iran's Election Is an Opportunity for Fresh Nuclear Negotiations

Orion Jones — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 18:34:18 -0400

What's the Latest Development? The election of moderate Iranian presidential candidate Hassan Rohani represents an opportunity for the West to engage Iran with fresh negotiations over its nuclear energy program, which is feared to shroud more nefarious intentions. "Rohani has called for an end ...

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The NSA and the Rise of the Cyber-Industrial Complex

Orion Jones — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 17:57:43 -0400

What's the Latest Development? Edward Snowden, the whistleblower who went public with the NSA's clandestine data mining operation, forms part of an increasing crossover between government and private cybersecurity organizations. "As a result of the leaks, politicians are likely to debate the ...

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China to Relocate 250 Million Peasants to Megacities

Orion Jones — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:55:01 -0400

What's the Latest Development? A massive urban development program, in which the Chinese government aims to relocate 250 million peasant farmers to burgeoning urban centers, is set to begin in earnest this fall. "The government, often by fiat, is replacing small rural homes with high-rises ...

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How Will the World Care for Its Rapidly Aging Population?

Orion Jones — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:45:00 -0400

What's the Latest Development? The population boom of the modern era--there are about seven billion people today living on the planet, up from two billion in 1920--has resulted in an aging world population. By 2025, the world will have almost 800 million people over the age of 65. About 556 ...

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How to Power the Growing Planet without Destroying It

Orion Jones — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:29:15 -0400

What's the Latest Development? The world faces a difficult task in brining energy to poor and growing populations while mitigating the effects of climate change, which is why creating innovative and renewable energy programs must be a global priority. While market solutions are often thought ...

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