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2018 Predictions Review, 2019 Predictions, Drinkable Brain Juice, Dating Africa, Dinosaur Noses, Cuteness Aggression, Dimensional Bubble, New Horizons Snowman, Asimov Predicts, And Much More…
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DISCLAIMER, DISCLAIMER, DISCLAIMER!!!
It’s a brand new year,
A mere babe in the chronological woods
And with a new year come new hopes,
Which are usually old hopes, dusted off, ironed out and given a bit of polish
In the hope that in the new year the old hopes will finally be realized
And with each new year, that sense of hopefulness is often framed by a winter landscapes
And a twinge of uncertainty
With these first cold shuffling steps into the unknown future
It is can be comforting to trace your steps ahead and plan for what’s to come
And as with any forward looking plan,
to do so successfully you must do that thing that you can only do whilst looking forward…
Predict how the future will unfold!
So on the following episode, we will do just that, prognosticate the path of science yet to come…
Right here on This Week in Science
Coming up next!
Predictions from 2018 – How did we do?
KIRSTEN
“- Climate was on everybody’s mind this year, and although there was much to get depressed about, efforts for positive action were apparent.
– The Hunter therapy was successful in that there werent any negative responses , but there wasn’t a reliable positive response either.There was movement in the CRISPR CART field that is very promising: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180306115721.htm. And, afaik, there aren’t any results for the Chinese HPV trial, but we know what other unsanctioned tests have been successful.
– Juno is still going strong, the first data from TESS became available in December of last year, so we should be hearing lots more from TESS in the coming year, INSIGHT landed without a ticker tape prade from little green men, China’s Chang’e 4 launched in December to attempt a landing on the far side of the moon THAT IS HAPPENING TOMORROW, no Indian lander… yet, and we are tantalkizingly close to imaging the event horizon of our Milky Way’s black hole.
– Self-driving cars and accidents were up, AND AI started to make some scary gains
– I’m still waiting for the microbial mind control, but I think we learned that it might actually be possible.
– As exciting as Physics was this past year, I don’t think that we really broke the mold… just reinforced it, really.
– There were a couple of snybio advancements, but it wasn’t a game-changer kind of year.
– And, we got one live show in last year. I hope we do another in 2019!”
JUSTIN
??? There were lots of words spoken here, but nothing written down.
BLAIR
“-Sperm: the new time-release capsule for your down-under, will begin clinical trials for cancer treatment!
NO
-We will discover a new kind of cephalopod!
NO
-Tardigrades will be discovered out in space, proving them to be the original alien.
NO
-Coffee will be proven good, and then bad, and then good again.
Kindof?
Coffee helps teams work together
…and reduces risk of type 2 diabetes
But climate change is creating new stress for the bean, and people are split on how to fix it…
-2018 will be the warmest year on record…
NO, 4th hottest
-White nose syndrome treatment will begin in the wild, saving some of the world’s bat populations!
Not yet, but a contender arrived! UV light!
-A scientists will run for congress in 2018 AND WIN.
YAS! 7! 3 engineers, 2 medical experts, a biochemist, and a software engineer!
-I will spend another amazing year on TWIS, and will once again find myself astounded at what a coffee shop interview for an internship in late 2011 became…
YES 🙂
-TWIS will cross another state off our live show map!
No :(”
Alright, what do we think will happen in 2019?
JUSTIN
“1) 2019 will bring waves of news about synthetic biological circuits…
While at first only used in convenient applications to allow biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to quickly offer a smorgasbord of revolutionary products and cures…
Synthetic biological circuits will eventually replace all conventional electronics allowing everyone to remain completely unplugged all the time as the devices run on enzymes and not electricity.
However you will have to share your lunch with your phone…
2) A solar system will be discovered made up entirely of black holes,
Complete with an anchoring super massive black hole where the sun would be, smaller orbiting black holes and even moon like satellites, though much bigger than a moon, in orbit around those….
The stunning part of this discovery? It will be spotted not by a cosmologist with a telescopic array, but by a cosmetologist with really good set of teeth…
3) In 2019 Time Travel is Discovered!
Not that we discover how to time travel in 2019 but that we uncover the ancient tomb of a woman who is verifiably and undeniably of this century.
Awkwardly, the discovery comes five years before Lisa Randall even conceives of a theory by which she might actually be able to build such a device…
4) Despite all of the evidence to the contrary thus far 2019 is the year we learn that ALL sharks are primarily vegetarians… they just eat a bit of fish on the side…
Pescetarians everywhere are emboldened by this news and there is a noticeable up-tick in shark tattoos on people who have never been at sea.”
BLAIR
“-Tardigrades in space! Either on Mars, or somewhere else. We will not be sure if it is from contamination, or if they started out there. Yet…
-Dinosaurs will be reclassified as warm-blooded
-A national state of emergency will be declared in regards to climate change. Just not in the US…
-Tesla semi-trucks will go to market and start popping up across the country.
-Spiders will do something, or be discovered doing something, crazy and unexpected.
-Humans will invent a new (or overblown) food allergy.
-A CGI (human) character will star in a film alongside real actors, and we won’t be able to tell the difference. -Foldable smartphones will hit the shelves, and be short-lived…
-TWIS will do an amazing live show somewhere NEW in the world, with a great audience.”
KIRSTEN
“- the Chinese mission to the moon will be successful, and stoke the fire of the race back to the moon and onto Mars for the US
– the Indian moon mission will also launch successfully… because I am an optimist, and it would suck for the mission to fail after so many delays..
– LIGO/VIRGO will discover many more black hole mergers from big ones to little ones.
– we will see a successful SpaceX test of its crew capsule and docking with the ISS
– stem cell therapy companies will make a lot of noise as the FDA regulations kick in and cause some growing pains for the treatment industry
– There will be a kerfuffle between China and the rest of the world regarding CRISPR use in humans
– mosquitos with gene drive to limit reproduction will be released in the wild, mass hysteria will ensue
– CO2 capture will see a major development, and excite more people about helping reduce our greenhouse gas emissions
– another great year for TWIS!”
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“Predictions 2019 from Ed Dyer
The Event Horizon Telescope will create the first actual detailed picture of the black hole at the center of the Milky Way.
Cell based vaccines will lead to a universal flue vaccine.
A genetically modified horse will be born that will be faster and stronger than its counterparts. Scientist in Argentina rewrote the genome of cloned horses and the first foals are expected in 2019.
The flow of pollutants into our rivers, lakes, and oceans will increase and record breaking algae blooms, and fish die-offs will occur.
Humans will become increasingly relent on AI computer models doing research, and AI technology in our homes. An AI will emerge that begins to act solely on its own, A first step towards World Robot Domination!
Rose colored glasses sales will plummet. Tin Foil hat sales will skyrocket.
Dr Obi-Wan Kiki, Jackson Skywalker, Imperial Princess Blair, save me TWIS team. Save me! Your my only hope!
-Ed Dyer”
Brain Cocktail Hour
Scientists at Yale created a drinkable chemical cocktail that reverses prion-related brain degeneration and restores memories in mice.
The 20,000 year pulse of African emigration
New data sheds light on the movements of early hominids.
Dinosaurs getting “nosey”
…and just like that, one of my predictions may have come true…
Cute aggression is a real thing
And it makes me wanna bite that puppy’s cute wittle face off!
An Expanding Bubble
According to string theorists, our universe is on the surface of an expanding bubble in an additional dimension, and so our 4 dimensions are an emergent property of that situation.
Ultima Snowman
The New Horizons mission successfully rendezvoused with Ultima Thule on New Years Day, and sent back an image of a reddish space snowman.
Asimov Predicted 2019
And, he did pretty well…
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