Global Breaking News - Monday, December 23, 2024
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[Misc] 2018 Reuters News - Mar 19 ~ Mar 23
최고관리자 | 18-03-16 21:59
Graphene brain implant could turn thoughts into speech
생각을 말로 표현할 수 있게 하는 그래핀 뇌 이식
A brain implant to decode complex speech signals could soon be a reality, thanks to wonder material graphene. A pan-European team of scientists is using graphene in a bid to give people with brain injury their voice back. "What we're trying to develop are neural interfaces, a new generation of neural interfaces based on graphene that are capable of reading or mapping brain activity, with the ultimate goal to restore communication and speech in patients with severe speech disabilities...So the idea is to be able to re-code the activity in the motor cortex related to articulation - to the speech - and being able to decode that signal and then send it to us, a speech synthesizer." Brain-computer interfaces already exist and can decode basic cortical signals to control robotic limbs. But current implants are bulky and can't process complex neural patterns, like those related to speech. Graphene, which is just one atom thick, could be the answer. "Graphene offers an easy integration with flexible technologies, so it can conformably cover the surface of the brain and at the very same time it can offer a very high signal to noise ratio. So we can read with high precision the very small signals that are produced in the brain." Testing in animals has so far managed to restore vocalization in mice. Interpreting much more complex human brain signals is the next hurdle, with clinical trials set to begin in three years.
Lego sales tumble for first time since 2004
레고, 2004년 이후 최초로 매출 폭락
It's been the building blocks of childhoods for decades. But a fall in sales at Lego for the first time in thirteen years, could be a sign the colorful bricks are now less popular at playtime. Excess inventories and tough U.S. and European markets drove sales at the Danish toymaker down 8 percent last year. In 2016 they increased by 6 and the year before by 25%. "I'm confident that we can then we can get back on the ground to get back on a growth curve over time. So it's more a matter of this period of supernatural growth have kind of come to an end, and we’ve had some years that will be more flat." The exception to that is China. Sales there were in the double digits. It's hoped demand in Asia and a push towards more sustainable materials this year and more digital collaboration could help revive sales. "A lot of what we do is actually also linking digital experience to physical toys. In this field between digital and physical I think Lego has a unique opportunity to play, and we have some really, really innovative solutions out there." And that in the age of digital demand could be vital to maintaining Lego's legacy. Last year the biggest U.S. toy store chain Toys 'R'Us went bankrupt - hitting fellow toymakers Hasbro and Mattel. The latter's sales dipped 11 percent in 2017.
Fresh beef in McDonald's burgers
맥도날드, 프리미엄 버거에 냉동육 사용하지 않을 것
No more frozen Quarter Pounders at McDonald's. The chain switched to fresh meat in its premium burgers at about 3,500 of its restaurants in the United States. And it plans to expand the offering to the majority of its 14,000 U.S. locations by May. Technomic's David Henkes. "It's not surprising. They've been testing it for a while now. And, obviously, they've had great success in fresh beef bringing in traffic and exciting their customer base. I think, when you look at the competitive set for fast-food burger, in a lot of cases where McDonald's is the leader, here, it seems, they're sort of the follower, right? Wendy's is a major chain. It has been going after McDonald's for some time now in their ads, because McDonald's has used frozen beef. A lot of the upscale fast food burger places, Shake Shack, MOOYAH Burger, Olive Smashburger, all of those used fresh beef, and, so, it's certainly where the industry is at." One concern, says Henkes, is that the change could potentially lengthen drive-through times and the speed of service. But, he adds, fresh beef cooks faster than frozen. Switching to fresh beef is the latest change that McDonald's has made in the past three years since it got a new CEO, Steve Easterbrook. It also nixed artificial preservatives from McNuggets, slimmed down Happy Meals, and added all-day breakfast.
Amazon's Jeff Bezos tops 2018 Forbes' billionaires list
아마존의 제프 베조스, 2018 포브스 선정 세계 최고 부호에 올라
Online retail giant Amazon and its CEO Jeff Bezos are in their prime as the self-made billionaire is crowned the richest man in the world by Forbes Magazine. Bezos tops the annual list of world's billionaires for the first time, with an estimated wealth of $112 billion dollars, dethroning Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates whose fortunes tally up to $90 billion. Gates was the richest person in the world 18 out of the last 24 years. The Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffett dropped to the third spot with a net worth of $84 billion while Europe's richest man Bernard Arnault, CEO of LVMH is ranked fourth with a fortune of $72 billion dollars. Rounding out the top five is Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg worth $71 billion after the social media network's stock price soared in the past year. Also ascending in the list is Alibaba's Jack Ma, who made top 20 for the first time. Alibaba reported a revenue increase of nearly 60 percent for 2017. However the fortunes of US President Donald Trump saw a significant dip this year, causing his spot on the list to drop from number 544 to 766. President Trump's wealth is estimated to be around $3 billion dollars. According to Forbes the 2,208 billionaires who made this year's list together own $9.1 trillion dollars, roughly four percent of all the money in the world.
World record-breaking e-bike launched globally
세계기록 깬 전기자전거, 전세계 동시 출시
Delfast says its e-bike takes electric transportation to the next-level. Last October the bike smashed the world record for the longest distance covered on a single charge, covering 368 kilometres without charge in 17 hours. It's about to be mass-produced, following a successful crowd funding campaign. "We did for the cycling industry the same what Elon Musk made in automobile industry. Before we came to the market, all bikes were 30 to 40 km on a single charge, range I mean. And we created bike with more than 300 km range on one charge." Ukrainian courier firm Delfast designed the e-bike because existing models couldn't meet the firm's needs. Their couriers regularly drive more than 100 kilometers a day. The firm is now promising prospective buyers a 379 kilometer range....although the bike isn't cheap. "Three thousand is pretty big price for the bike, I realize it. But it's more like professional bike. All other bikes cost like less than one thousand. You can buy e-bike for 600-700 dollars, but they all are more like toys, you know. You can drive to supermarket or to your work, but then you need to charge it. But for professional using, it's definitely not enough." Early Bird investors will receive their model in May, with most pre-orders coming from the U.S.
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