Mercurial > thoughts
view org/ideas.org @ 161:8f44e4061701
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author | Robert McIntyre <rlm@mit.edu> |
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date | Mon, 14 Mar 2016 07:21:07 -0700 |
parents | 23d205b9854e |
children | bdeaad2b1507 |
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1 #+title: Big List O' Ideas2 #+author: Robert McIntyre3 #+email: rlm@mit.edu4 #+description: list of ideas from the last ~ 7 years5 #+keywords: aurellem ideas half-baked random6 #+SETUPFILE: ../../aurellem/org/setup.org7 #+INCLUDE: ../../aurellem/org/level-0.org8 #+babel: :mkdirp yes :noweb yes :exports both10 * Ideas11 # :PROPERTIES:12 # :HTML_CONTAINER_CLASS: ideas13 # :END:15 This is a list of *Every* idea I've written down17 #+begin_quote18 There's no end to what a man can accomplish if he doesn't care about19 getting credit.20 #+end_quote22 - spinal cord made of light; moon :: transit time of light from moon to23 earth is same as transit time of signals through spinal cord. So24 you could have your mind on the moon and your body on earth and25 it would feel the same!27 - semantic darkmode browser extension :: some websites are naturally28 dark themed (like aurellem.org) while others are light themed29 (like google). At night I like dark themes and during daylight I30 like light themes. You can just invert your screen to convert31 light to dark, but when tabbing through multiple browser tabs32 you end up occasionally spraying your screen with bright33 colors. So, have a little button that inverts a single web page34 for firefox! Or, you can have a tiny bit of preprocessing (you35 just measure the overall white vs dark pixels) and then invert36 the page depending on that.38 - optogenetic readout during cruoprotection :: basically a "lightbulb39 above the head" to measure activity of selected neurons.41 - carbon dating and immortality :: if you've been /alive/ for a42 million years, you'll carbon-dat as being as old as yesterday.44 - gas tenderization :: use high pressure and gas diffusion to both45 denature proteins and infiltrate lots of gas into a piece of46 meat. Then rapidly decrease the pressure, and the meat will47 experience air bubbles similarly to bread rising, and might48 become tender and tasty!50 - learning damage from mind uploading :: a person might be uploaded51 so that they can answer every question about their life and be52 able to perform actions they had previously learned, but due to53 incomplete simulation of long term chemical and structural54 dynamics, they might have a severe learning disability!56 - holy "spirit" :: most blasphemous liquor58 - truck blindspot lights :: lights that shine on the road and show59 where your vehicle's blind spots are.61 - eyelid screen :: you can just close you eyes, but you're reading a62 book. it would be really cool and look like rapid eye63 movement. In this tech, the screen would replace your eyelid64 entirely. The other really neat thing about this concept is that65 your eyelid screen is a part of you. You might have some66 smooth muscles in it that works like a selection or cursor, and67 the scren can feel your eye rolling underneath and tell where68 you're looking, allowing for a very immersive experience. It's69 like an "all-in" virtual mode, still cleanly separating the real70 from the digital, telling others you're in your "virtual space",71 and still looking entirely human.73 - blockchain based experential memory ::75 - a hidden world of early life :: I imagine that the bridge form the76 first life forms to even very simple single celled organisms was77 probably very interesting and a lot more diverse than we give it78 credit for. Unfortunately, I doubt that we're going to find any79 good evidence for such creatures, since they don't seem like the80 type of organisms that would preserve well. All sorts of really81 neat delf replicating molecules and assemblies of molecules, and82 we'd have no record of any of them. The only way to get an idea83 of these types of life will be to make them again in the lab.85 - brain insurance :: for the preserved brain87 - remote control ants / pidgeons :: train/evolve them to want to88 follow an EM gradient or magnetic field. put a camera on.90 - musical neural inversion :: get a simple model of emotional and91 auditory circuits, "invert" the model based on sound input, and92 generate music with constrating satisfaction. Might find some93 music that's simultaneously "alien" (lacking a top-down design)94 yet still deeply emotionally coherent and satisfying.96 - simulated fire :: for those who say that simulated water can't get97 you wet, just see what happens if you attach your nerves to98 simulated output of FIRE. I gaurantee you're going to have a bad99 time.101 - use lasers to cut large plasticized brains ::103 - gravity telescope the size of the solar system ::105 - information bearing layer :: to find the spatial / logical scale of106 the main information containing layer of an information storage107 device, look at where correlated change happens, and then to see108 if it's digital, look beyond that and see if the changes are109 uncorrelated.111 - sperm fitness correlation :: it's evolutionary advantageous for a112 species' sperm to fail to function exactly when the fetus they113 would create would fail. But it's really hard to make this114 functoinal correlation happen because the sperm cell only115 expresses a small subset of the genome. To the extent that thei116 correlation effect exists, we can reverse it to find117 "interesting" genes. My guess --- look for genes physiccally118 next to sperm coding genes.120 - spinal repeater/relay :: a VERY fine mesh of directional paths,121 much finer than the width of a spinal axon, which can connect a122 bundle of nerves that has been cut together.124 - auto book ::handwritten by machine; illuminated. Like old medieval125 books. Use a model of handwriting so the letters are different.127 - url resolver :: pick the longest vaid url that's a rooted substring128 of the requested URL. unambigupously corrects for links that129 have things like periods and ending parens at the end of a link.131 - soul black marble :: for existential threats, what if solu magic132 was true, and undertale whatever, destroy the world134 - heart preservation + heart bypass to allow time for healing :: you135 cryopreserve a heart, then "recondition" it inside the patient136 while under bypass to allow time for it to heal.138 - intelligent microwave osmium perfusion w/ CAT scan ::140 - assembling new word-sounding words by concatenation and random deletion ::142 - amber brain preservation? :: would this work, without having to do143 the heavy metal bits? Maybe chemical fixation with aldehydes144 followed by hot amber and then high pressure for several months?146 - zappy fat ::148 - electrocaloric effect :: see149 https://dx.doi.org/10.1146%2Fannurev-matsci-062910-100341,150 [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrocaloric_effect][wikipedia article]]152 - albino fruit ::154 - cryoprotectant that increases the nutritional value fo food ::156 - faucet enerty :: how much power do you get from an average faucet157 compared to the wall socket?159 - high pressure fixation :: could this defeat the "myelin unraveling"160 problem? Maybe -- if the "unraveling" is actually BUBBLES like161 you might get during the bends, caused by the fixation reaction!163 - eat fixed tissue :: can you EAT glutaraldehyde preserved tissue, if164 you wash away all the free aldehydes and make sure that the165 reaction is complete? Can you also cook the tissue? Maybe it166 would be good!168 - intelligence sorting ::170 - hyperbaric fixation :: apparently with divers with the "bends", you171 get bubbles in the myelin in particular. Maybe hyperbaric172 fixation would be able to eliminate these bubbles!174 - blood + cryoprotectant :: might be more gentle than normal things?175 Why not use it? (b/c you might need extracellular ion176 concentrations), also zeta potentials! But you could filter the177 blood, and get a lot from a slaughterhouse perhaps.179 - the matrix has a "lord of space" and a "muse of time" ::181 - ultra fast fluorocarbon cooling :: perfuse brain w/ cryoprotectant,182 cool to -20°C. Then clear out everything w/ fluorocarbon (or183 something else that doesn't interact w/ cells and has very low184 viscosoty at low temperatures), and then immediately switch to185 fluorocarbon at around -135°C. Should very quickly cool the186 brain (even faster than persufflation!) and would also avoid the187 dehydration problems associated w/ persufflation. Even better,188 you have a mechanism for rapidly warming the brain --189 immediately switch to warm fluorocarbon. Everything is always190 still liquid and pressurized. Should buy you a couple % decrease191 in CPA toxicity.193 - gameboy IR link over wifi through emilation ::195 - living memory is the start of history :: the natural dividing line196 is between living and dead history, and is created retroactively197 with the advent of brain preservation technology and then198 realized by mind uploading. It can still creep forward from199 death of individuals. We're still living in pre-history!201 - the memory of God is the soul :: mind-uploading + christian202 theology ==> the soul falls out nicely from omniscience.204 - alternating stir plate :: a magnetic stir bar that alternates back205 and forth. Is it more efficient?207 - rsync with md5 (or whatever) database :: Now if you're rsync'ing208 something over to the server, if the file matches something209 already on the server, then it gets copied over from wherever it210 is on the server (then each block's signature is checked like211 with normal rsync, so that you get exactly the same behaviour).213 - mvln :: uses a backing database to gaurantee that when you move a214 folder, that all the links that point to it can remain215 consistent across your system.217 - centrifugal drinking :: spin the bottle around and tubes from the218 bottom convey drink up to the top. (don't know why I came up219 with this one...)221 - DRACOS at single cell stage :: you splice the genes for DRACOS into222 a single human cell at the first stage of development. Then all223 the cells of the person that cell will eventually become will224 automatically produce DRACOS (and the DRACOS will be recognized225 as "self" by the immune system. This creates a powerful226 secondary immune system which will make the person immune to227 almost all viruses.229 - toilet + fume hood :: because it's dumb to have the entire bathroom230 be a sort of fume hood.232 - wind speed force :: two wind socks one weighted. The angle between233 them tells you the force of the wind.235 - sshfs to mount root :: you can mount your own root filesystem236 somewhere else using sshfs. Sort of "normalizes" file237 permissions without having to use root, and is weird. Could also238 bypass rm =--preserve-root= restrictions and delete entire239 filesystem.241 #+BEGIN_SRC sh242 sshfs root@localhost:/ my-root243 #+END_SRC245 - not even a nop of damage :: nop == no-op247 - twittwe vibratoe ::249 - value of cancer :: what of value is lost with an easy cancer-cure?251 - blood :: blood is the "wires" that connect organs to each other and252 impedance match the services that organs provide to other253 organs. A heart, per se, does not need blood but instead access254 to the filtering powers of a kidney; blood just connects the255 kidney cells to the heart cells. That's why "perfusing w/ blood"256 is entirely missing the point.258 - armored helmet :: use fiber-optics to re-route vision and get better259 shield for eyes. curved plates, kozilek style.261 - open source contributions :: way to make them public on your website easily.263 - active opto-glove :: for ENHANCED touch! It's a magnyfing glass for264 your fingers!266 - glove screen :: for driving directions, etc. Better than a watch!268 - osmium + sugar as a histo stain :: the suger interacts with the269 osmium and retards its progress. you can see details on slices in270 a light microscope without any more staining, and the EMs are not271 adversely affected.273 - encryption camera :: use public key on memory card. The camera274 writes files encrypted with this public key.276 - immaculate AIDS acquisition ::278 - minds and lightspeed :: fastern minds have to deal with lightspeed279 limitations in their own cognitive architectures.281 - kill with fire :: guy A fires fire blast, with a spell circle to282 maintain the magic. Opponent B just GRABS the magic and pulls MORE283 fire. Guy A's circle goes out of control and all his life force284 gets sucked out to supply more fire. B grabs the magic, crushes285 it, fires a concentrated red lightning bolt, and eats the286 rest. "You think that you can kill me, WITH FIRE!?"288 - magic ekiga ::290 - edible crayons ::292 - library chaining ::294 - hypnosis + that drug that makes you loose continuity :: can the295 hypnosos plant things during this time?297 - forgotten services :: use "ovbilion" somehow. Some sleeping drugs298 make you forget the hour or so before you go to bed. Use this to299 create forgotten services.301 - dibenzelene -- mike darwin ::303 - sleepy perfusion :: if brains naturally expand / contract depending304 on resting / awake state, we should investigate the EMs of brains305 fixed during "sleep" mode and those fixed during "awake"306 mode. (while still using anesthetic of course).308 - shit flavored dog treats :: because dogs would probably like them.310 - fume hood incense :: so make sure the fume hood is working312 - infinity coin :: s.f. concept -- billions are uploaded by using313 osmium as a "mind uploading catalyst". osmium is put ino the314 brain, they brain is scanned, and the osmium is recycled. Then315 you make coins out of the osmium that has gone through billions316 of these cycles.318 - mamilian dive reflex as a method of preparing organs for cryopreservation ::320 - spinal encryption :: like an X server, except your body parts each321 run these servers. You all have clocks, and you have to sign your322 muscle commands with your private key in order to control your323 body.325 - suicide note as a mental excercise :: from NPR, ted talk, teenagers, etc.327 - microscope clamp magnet ring thing ::329 - cup that fills from the bottom ::331 - pronouncaeble liscense plates ::333 - instant-awake vs natural awakening :: cognitive behavioural334 difference tells you important things about the waking process.336 - asethetics and personal identity :: if you go to germany, you're not337 the same person anymore.339 - arch linux diff cache :: should only download differences between340 the new package and the most rcent archive file. Can341 precalculate. Would make mirrors/upgrading so much faster.343 - low gravity perfusion :: then you can use cappaliary action. From344 this: http://www.wired.com/2015/01/coffee-cup-designed-let-astronauts-sip-espresso-space/346 - rational advertiting :: a new criteria for advertisting -- given347 same ad structure for two different produces, what structure348 leads to the most people picking the "optimal" choice.350 - autoclone bootstrapping :: to breed male with self: you make a clone351 of the male that's broken, male and female, the bootstrap with352 those gametes354 - position independent numbers :: like latin for numbers. You'd use355 color, endings, relative size, etc to determine what place the356 number has. Very convientnt for order or magnitude calculations.358 - dead man switch activated linux user account ::360 - embowlement :: condencending reference to embodiment362 - water staff :: drinksy walking staff w/ water364 - melanin transfection ::366 - retention of neurotransmitters / other small molecules during fixation by use of an extracellular polymer such as PVP ::368 - machines :: Knowing we are machines does not diminish us; instead it369 opens our minds to the awe-inspiring complexity that is the human370 mind. Those who prefer to attribute consciousness to a "soul" or371 other metaphysical process are the ones who diminish man to a372 mere cartoon caricature.374 - why does glut change osmotic setpoints in cells :: perhaps either 1)375 It makes the membrane permeable to small molecules or 2)376 crosslinking proteins means less colagative effects.378 - Hemocyanin based blood washout solution :: for artificial blood, it379 can be hard to carry enough oxygen because haemoglobin needs to380 be in RBCs in order to effectively carry oxygen. However,381 hemocyanin, a copper based oxygen carrying protein, doesn't have382 this restriction, so it might make particurally good artificial383 blood. Might also be great for making oxygenated fixative384 solutions! In fact, hemocyanin is more efficient than hemoglobin385 for carrying oxygen at low temperatures, perfect for386 cooling/blood washout! Hemocyanin could also serve to establish387 oncotic pressure in a blood washout solution since it weighs 75388 kilodaltons.390 - osmotic buffer :: polymer which polymerizes / splits apart in order391 to maintain the osmolality of a solution.393 - shoes w/ embedded computers :: and have little clickey things you394 operate with your big toe.396 - gb codec ::398 - ultrasonic cell disruptor to make foor ::400 - particle accelarator asd an awesome electron microscop ::402 - tolouadine blue pen :: use biological stains as dyes for ink pens?404 - clock stop explination :: you have a "visual buffer" which needs to405 fill up whenever you switch out from one scene to another. This406 is the clock stop illusion.408 - coffee ad space :: Your coffee stock was brought to you by google,409 the only company that brings you comfort and love in your harsh410 and heartless corporate world. This is majestic guerrila411 marketing.413 - geo-synchro browsing :: you get a bunch of proxy servers, and then414 you visit websites and synchronize the views from each of these415 proxies into one view. Then you can see the differences by416 conutry/region. This is a way to experience the "neutral"417 internet by averging the effects of ip-tracing.419 - periodic table of genders :: arrange people by bahaviour, particular420 what sort of bonds they can form with other people.422 - ice cream protein synthesis ::424 - colored EM :: different heavy metals might possibly have different425 intensities for different electron acceleration voltages. So this426 could be the basis for colored EM images!428 - expansion microscopy dual :: this would be a process where you429 define a molecular scale object using larger microscopic430 components. Then nanotechnology goes through and replaces each431 "atomic macro block" with the appropriate atomic construct. That432 way you can use microscopic 3D printing and a special purpose433 form of nanotechnolical assembler to create any molecular434 arrangement.436 - anoxic glut :: what happens when you try to fix tissues in an437 environment completely devoid of oxygen?439 - copper+EG :: if RBCs are rendered impermeabale to EG when Cu is440 present, then maybe you can destroy RBCs by a mixture of EG and441 Cu?443 - qualia intuition explained :: let's say that you lacked the sense of444 smell. How could you learn what "acrid" means without it. How445 could you explain it to someone, without analogy to other446 smells. We mind-project this real linguistic separation into447 reality and get qualia.449 - spinal relay :: you have a small air-gapped repeater built into your450 spine in order to help with spinal injury, connect with451 prosthetics, and to monitor/control your body. Also, you could452 add the ability to save "macros"!454 - human cysts :: there should be communities of people with varying455 enforced separations from the rest of society in order to gaurd456 against various catastrophies.458 - bioelectric synthesis :: have a device which stores a lot of energy,459 and processes blood by creating sugar from waste produces over460 the day. You still need water, vitamins, minerals, etc, but this461 can handle the bulk of your energy demands and be recharged from462 the wall.464 - chelation as a method to improve cryoprotectant permeability ::466 - transgender fruit analogy :: like tomatoes468 - video game controllers as actual controllers :: console controlers469 like the n64 trident are excellent, durable tools for fine470 control. We should use them to control all sorts of things like471 robots by default. You should use it for your projects, since472 it's unlikely you'll be able to come up with something473 better. Compared to console controllers, the ones we use for474 robots/RC stuff are hopelessly clunky.476 - bubble computers :: bubble duality, bubble computing478 - dark blood bag :: blood bags in hospitals should be dark colored to479 protect the blood from damage from light.481 - chimeric homozygous sex chromosomes :: chimeric organism with XX and482 XX patterns from two males and two females. On average, it has483 the correct methylation pattern. Would it work?485 - horseshoe blood fixative :: would it work as a washout?487 - fixed protein packets :: group of fixed proteins in a network which488 is used as medicine. Hemoglovin, maybe?490 - prove hauntings :: website where you enter your pgp signed encrypted491 file and swear by all the gods that you'll haunt me with the492 password when you die, along with whatever other messages you493 have. protocol -- I video, throw rock, get password.495 - earth air water :: probably all intelligent species name their496 planet "dirt" in their language, unless the're aquatic or flying,497 then they'd name it "water" and "air" respectively.499 - ethylene glycol alt name :: icebane501 - overflow hiaku :: a hiku about buffer overflos, with garbage C code502 inside.504 - white knight :: his sword is named "Privledge" (an inherited family505 sword) he rides along the land, defending the code of506 chivralirary and keeping the orthodozy of society from fading507 from the realm.509 - technological deflation :: even the richest robber baron from the510 1920's could not afford a cardiac bypass surgery, even with511 literally all the money they had. As technology advances, the512 price of bread may go up, but the capabilities which money gives513 you also dramatically increase.515 - cure for color blindness :: could it be possible to administer some516 retroviruses via direct injection to the retina, to cause some of517 the cells in the retina to begin expressing different color518 pigments? The brain ought to easily sort out the rest and enable519 color vision. Furthremore, could we add some more colors to520 baesline human eyes? Theory -- people who are color blind have521 better color spatial accuity for the colors they can see, because522 this it the tradeoff here involved with the retrovirus523 therapy. Re-purposing color detectors to see new colors at the524 expense of spatial acuity for the old set of colors.526 - mental integrity test :: if your brain starts to decay, you might527 not notice the damage until it's too late. This would be a mental528 integrity test that you take every few weeks that measures your529 performance and compares it to a baseline. The tests are all530 designed to catch the early signs of degenerative brain531 diseases. For example, you might use performamce on a532 smell-memory assoaction test to detect early-onset Alzheimer's.534 - mind bank :: (in contrast to "brain bank")536 - Passion of the Christ missed opportunity :: in the Passion of the537 Christ, they do the entire show using Latin, Aramaic, etc, with538 subtitles. They should have had a part where Jesus does the539 sermon on the mount, he turns to the camera, and starts speaking540 in English, with no subtitles. It would have been 1.) biblically541 accurate and 2.) awesome. It would have been such a powerful542 example of Jesus' divinity, and it felt like they were setting up543 for it the entire movie, and they missed it!545 - scientist online paper reviews ::547 - binary feedback ::549 - xenobiotic methalation rewriting ::551 - trolley cryonics :: change the cryonics protocol around so that the552 death occurs in a non-primary action loop.554 - binary metric :: you make up new unit names for "2 centimeters", "4555 centimeters", "16 centimeters", etc. Then no one will be happy!556 BUT, it helps solve metric's problem of intermediate units. (a557 centimeter is too small, a meter is too large!)559 - physical pgp signatures :: someone should put together the560 technologies so that you can digitally sign actual pieces of561 paper -- some combination of signing a photograph of the562 contract using pgp, printing a barcode or OR code on the page563 which links to a website with the signed image, and a web of564 trust model so that people can authenticate as themselves. All565 this totally exists already, it's just not convienent.567 - meta eye :: you wire in a third optical input to the human brain,568 but it doesn't tranduce light form the real world, bus instead is569 connected to the "internet of things" and shows you metadata570 about things you are looking at // serves as an interface to your571 own mind and body. Then eventually simply real things without572 metadata seem flat and fake compared to the objects in cities and573 other annotated areas. This third eye doesn't occupy any of your574 normal visual field but actually EXPANDS your visual field.576 - do it once -- upload ::578 - a simple merge procedure for uploads ::580 - limits of monogamy ::582 - dream rewinding :: how to record a complete dream without disturbing583 it or modifying your brain? you need to be an upload: split584 yourself, and one of you stays awake whike the other sleeps. then585 you detect a dream in progress by monotoring rapid eye movememt586 in your sleeping self, and you wake yourself up every few minutes587 and tell yoursef about the dream. Then sleeping-your restarts the588 dream, continuation passing style, forgetting everything that was589 just said, and you repeat this process until the dream is590 over. Then awake-you and sleeping-you merge each other by taking591 sleeping-you and replaying the memories of awake-you, and you592 write a final report on the dream using the "saccade" reports to593 jog your memory.595 - denser than osmium :: do the "misicibility" thing with an osmium596 alloy to get something even more dense.598 - AI hypnosis :: hypnosis might be good for studying AI, becuse it599 might probide a "debugger" for ananlyzing the human mind. I600 briefly tried this while at MIT, but it needs MUCH more work to601 be properly evaulated.603 - becomming alive :: upload faces challenges to grow into they type of604 person that can join the greater society -- a god. They have to605 go though quests that replicate all the things that humanity had606 to accomplish, like going to the moon, by themselves, in a607 virtual world where they cannot die and never get tired.609 - population distorted map of USA :: to see states sizes in terms of #610 of people. (already exists!611 http://www-personal.umich.edu/~mejn/cart/doc/)613 - butterfly drone :: if big butterflies used to exist, then maybe we614 could make butterfly-inspired drones!616 - methylation sex symmetry breaking :: So, human cells have617 methylation patterns that encode male/female origin. If you618 combine two male patterns, the fetus grows "too fast" and619 dies. Two female patterns causes the fetus to enter a "vegatable"620 state and fail to develop. Evolutionary biologists will say that621 this reflects the asymmetry of energy investement for creating622 offspring. If that's true, then species that cast-spawn will lack623 this symmetry, and give clues about how to remove it in624 humans. If even cast spawners like sea urchins have it, then that625 means there's something deeper going on!627 - reverse cannulation perfusion :: you put the organ you want to628 perfuse in an airtight chamber with a pool of the stuff you want629 to perfuse. You cannulate some veins and lead tubes form to630 outside of the chamber. You pump in air and perfusate, and the631 increasing air pressure in the chamber forces perfusate through632 the organ. For times when you don't want to cannulate the inputs633 -- they can be ragged, or there can be many of them. You still634 have to guide the veins to the outside of the chamber, but635 depending on the use case this might be far easier than636 tradational cannulation.638 - very slow physiological pressure perfusion :: less extreme example639 of the "pausing" trick -- just keep the perfusion running and640 don't put the perfusion target into the liquid as deep.642 - whole brain perfusion embedding :: Do the standard EM embedding643 protocol, but skip the osmium step, and use the "perfusion644 pausing" method to prevent overextraction during the dehydration645 and embedding steps. I think that you CAN perfuse resins into the646 brain, simply because you CAN perfuse viscous rubber when doing647 vascular casts.649 - perfusion pausing :: (Turns out this won't actually work!) One650 problem with doing perfusion is that if you STOP the perfusion,651 you rapidly loose pressure in the organ as your perfusate leaks652 out. You can prevent this by submerging the organ/head/rat653 whatever in FLUID at the appropriate level. Use something inert654 like flurocarbon to avoid problems. You would have to slowly655 decrease the flow rate while simultaneously lowering the656 perfusing object into the fluid. To start again, reverse the657 process -- reengage the peristaltic pump slowly while removing658 the organ from the fluid.660 - evoultionary textbook mimiricy :: as surgery becomes more common,661 there develops a distinct selective pressure for individuals662 organ layout to look more like the medical textbooks! :P664 - transparent skin :: temporary / permament transparent skin. Allows665 for examination of organs / muscles and visual prevention of666 disease and detection or abnormalities / good things667 eg. excercise.669 - sweet information :: candy with a whole book written in it. Eat a670 book!672 - targeted immunosuppressant :: just kill off the B-cells and friends673 that would cause problems in a organ-transplant / other674 situation. AIDS is good at killing these cells -- maybe make it675 just target the ones that will cause problems. Then you can676 premptively kill off that part of someone's immune system before677 a transplant. ALSO, you can kill off everyone's defenses against678 other blood types and make people effectively type AB+ w.r.t679 blood transfusions. Actually, why not give babies this treatment680 so that they're automatically compatable with all blood types?681 The immune system has this already when it's first growing; maybe682 it can be "retrained" to accept new things, or the mechanism of683 immune cell death be co-opted for these purposes.685 - fuck you tetris :: tetris that actively gives you the worst possible piece.687 - pockets :: more things should have them!689 - colored shower head :: a shower head add on that measures the temp690 of the water and changes the color of the water streams w/ an LED691 to show you the temperature. That way you can align to the color692 you want and see the temperature without feeling it.694 - giant dragonflies :: we could rapidly MAKE giant dragonflies by695 evolving modern dragonflies in an very oxygen rich environment!697 - anesthetic surgery courtesty video :: as a matter of courtesy,698 whenever you go under anesthetic, the doctors should provide you699 with a video of the surgery / recovery after you are concious700 again. The recording should begin about 3 minutes before701 anesthetic, and continue until both you and the docor agree to702 stop recording, or you leave the hospital.704 - whirlpool of light :: shine a laser out into space. But the planet705 is spinning! What you get is a spiral or light! And as this706 signal expands, does it eventually reveal it's wuantized nature?708 - perfusion coking :: EOM710 - timestamp verification :: you sign your message, and it has a711 timestamp at the top, with a +- percision number. Then you send712 it over to the public timestamp server, which only signs the713 message if it gets the message within the timestamp window. Or714 the computer just signs the message but puts a timestamp at the715 beginning. So if everyone trusts the timestamp server, you can716 get reliable timestamps, and prove priority on ideas, etc.718 - the great computing slow-down :: in general, our computers are719 getting faster and faster. However, eventually our brains will be720 made of the same stuff our computers are made of! This has very721 interesting consequences -- I can add 2+2 and get four in about a722 second. Since my neurons actually work at around 10-60 hertz in723 parallel, this means that it takes me around 10-30 operations to724 do this addition. That's actually not bad in terms of computing725 time. If my neurons were as fast as the latest transitors, then726 most calculators would be SLOWER than me at adding numbers. Only727 the newest, most optimized calculators would be faster, and then728 only about 10 times faster! This means that once we begin to729 think at the speed of our technology, that technology will730 suddenly seem pitifully slow in comparison to how it seems731 now. And no amount of technical progress will remedy it, because732 that same progress will also make us all think faster. We'll733 either have to settle with living in "slow time" to do some734 computations, or learn to make smarter hardware with special735 optimizations. But this is actually really hard, because we'll be736 working with machines that will appear to us about as fast as737 MECHANICAL computers. So, in the future, all the cool parties738 will be in cyperspace at vastly accelerated speeds compared to739 how we exist now. But at these parties, the computers will SUCK!740 Of course, this is one of the few things that can save us from AI741 risk, because those AI's won't seem so scary when the're build742 out of rickety mechanical parts form our perspective.744 - unitary reverse evolution of chaos+minds :: Chaotic systems diverge745 exponentially in state space. Do you get anything interesting746 when part of the physical system associated with the chaotic747 system is a object that performs some sort of computation? Is it748 possible for the computational system to play a749 percision-enabling role in determining the final/initial750 conditions of the chaotic system, just by tracing out thoughts in751 its decision paths? This is probably too vague of an idea right752 now, I just wanted to write it down.754 - microwave time :: the cooking time you enter on most microwaves is755 insane. It's expressed in what I call a "hybrid base", a756 combination of base 10 and base 60. You can get absurd things757 like 100 < 61, and 120 == 80! I wonder if these hybrid base758 systems could be very useful for some purposes!760 - three-eyes :: if you had three eyes, would you still draw cubes like761 we currently draw them? Or would all 2D-representations of 3D762 space always look hopelessly fake?764 - visual taste/smell assay :: get a grid of bacteria, each expressing765 a human taste/smell receptor linked to some sort of fluorscent766 activity or ion pump. Use a camera / electrical grid to transduce767 the smell / taste signal into bits!769 - carabiner mushroom lock :: you can take a trapazodial carabiner and770 make it so that a chain link is caught between the wide end of771 the carabiner and another chain attached to the carabiner.773 - children's tool shop :: I think that kids should be provided with774 tool shops -- these would be nice sheds with a good collection of775 tools to do various things -- circuit components and soldering776 irons, wires, a small lathe, drill press, belt sander, a777 centrifuge, microscope, and telescope, etc. The idea is that the778 kid can now think, "I could use X to do this thing that I'm779 thinking about" -- the building becomes an extension of the kid's780 body & mind.782 - fluid display :: like the previous idea about matching refractances783 between glass and liquid, except you make a lot of784 switchable glass tubes in various patterns in the785 glass, and actively pump colored liquid through the786 tubes (the tubes have glass-like fluid in them by787 default.) The result is that you can cause the788 tubes to appear and dissappear, and vary their789 colors as well!791 - immunoincompatibility :: take the human genome, and refactor it so792 that it doesn't use a particular codon at all. Then remove the793 support from our ribosomes for that codon. What does this do for794 us? It makes us immune to almost all viruses!796 - life cycle :: it's called a cycle, right? So, the thing that repeats797 itself over and over, right? Not much of a cycle if798 you don't come back after you die, if you ask me!800 - car with no blind spots :: use some cameras in the back of the car801 to augment the rear-view mirror so that you never have to turn802 around in order to lane change.804 - partial cell death :: you freeze a set of cells using some cryo805 protocol and 60% survive. How can this be explained? It seems to806 me that if the cells are the same, and the conditions807 homogoneous, then all the cells should either die or808 live. However, suppose that there is a metabolic cycle that needs809 to be in a certain phase for the cell to survive. If the cells810 are asynchronous, then you might end up with some cells dying811 because there were in the wrong part of their cycle. This implies812 that you might be able to cryoprotect cells by causing them to813 enter a certain metabolic mode before freezing.815 - cryonics color appeal :: perfusate used by cryonics companies should816 have red food coloring in it. It's just a nice touch so that the817 cryonics patient looks more life-like than with clear CPAs, and818 hopefully might get treated with more respect.820 - paramagnetic CPA :: you take a CPA that can be influenced by821 magnetic fields so that its degrees of freedom are limited. Then,822 you release the field, instantaly increasing the size of the823 state space of the system and dramatically decreasing the824 temperature enough to plunge the system past homogenous825 nucleation temperature and directly to the glass transition826 temperature, creating a doubly unstable glass at much lower CPA827 concentrations than possible at conventional CPA concentrations.829 - room temp noodles :: how does the physics of cooking noodles work?830 Could you use a vacuum instead of heat to force water into the831 noodle?833 - personal carbon offset :: feel bad about contribuiting to global834 warming by using electricity / driving a car? Forget trying to835 "conserve" or "minimize your carbon footprint". Follow the836 Platinum rule -- make the world BETTER off than you found it!837 This would be a small, self contained system that sucks C02 out838 of the air. It uses electricity, but it's so efficient at839 removing CO2 that it more than offsets the CO2 produced by even a840 coal plant to produce that electricity. This way, you can still841 drive even a gas guzzler, but have a net negative carbon842 footprint! Maybe something cool could be done with the carbon as843 well. Use as much electricity as you want, but negate the damage844 to the enviroment with more technology.846 - undoing spermogenesis :: with enough sperm, you can derive the847 donor's entire genome. You gain more confidence in the alleles848 for a particular gene the more sperm you have. Each additional849 sperm gives you the same sort of information you'd get flipping a850 coin and trying to decide whether the coin is H/T of H/H. Is851 there enough sperm in the the average load for you to be as852 confident as mitosis?854 - mars life :: we could engineer life that could survive on mars855 (probably some non-vascular photosynthetic856 poikilohydric creature like a lichen) by taking an857 extremophile from Antarctica and evolving it in858 increasingly Martian conditions. This could be an easy859 start to a terraforming process.861 - problem with Aubrey de Grey's ideas :: Aubrey de Grey says that we862 might be able to live forever by continually repairing our bodies863 at the cellular level -- he details 7 different mechanisms of864 damage and says that if all of them are dealt with /together/865 that it would stop aging. (You can't miss even one because866 they're all fatal.) However, it doesn't take into account that867 we are also beings of information and that there is a very real868 software component to our existence. Even if our biological869 chassies can be maintained forever, I think it is unlikely that870 our minds will operate well far outside of the design constraints871 that we've evolved to handle. Say I programmed a webserver with872 the express goal of it being able to serve webpages for month on873 some stock server. I'll do fairly rigorous testing to make sure874 that it can handle the expected load then then some. Now say that875 you want to keep a particular instance of this webserver running876 indefinitely. (The program instance is like your mind and the877 computer it's running on is like your body). You might very well878 be able to keep the physical computer infrastructure running for879 forever by replacing hard drives / ram / CPUs, etc. However,880 since I designed the webserver to work for a month, it probably881 has memory leaks, rare stochastic bugs, or other built in limits882 / constraints (think log files or some date rollover shenanigans)883 that will ultimately kill the webserver even with eternally884 perfect hardware. Do you really expect that a webserver885 engineered to work for 1 month will run for 10 years without886 catastrophically crashing? Not even Apache can do this! In fact,887 if I put in the extreme effort to make it that robust, I've888 wasted time that I could have spent on other projects by pursuing889 an unnecessary engineering goal. Likewise, human minds have only890 ever run for at most 122 years before they are destroyed due to891 hardware degradation. Fixing the hardware doesn't change any892 software bugs that are almost certainly present in the human893 mind. Think of all the pathological things that can go wrong with894 a webserver, multiply it by a million, and that likely how895 evolution has designed our minds. For example, consider memory :896 why should you expect that we have evolved the ability to897 coherently organize memories past say 150 years? There's been898 absolutely no selective pressure for this ability, so you can bet899 that if there's any fitness to be gained from not having900 unlimited memory potential (such as better metabolic efficiency),901 we have it! You might think that maybe we would just forget902 things the same way that we sort of forget things that happen903 earlier in our lives, but complicated information processing904 systems don't have to fail gracefully when they're pushed far905 past their design constraints. A 150 year old person is just as906 likely to suffer a catastrophic psychosis due to software907 limitations associated with memory as he is to do something with908 all those memories we might consider reasonable. More likely, in909 fact, since there are so very many ways for a complicated910 software system to break and so few ways for it to run911 successfully. Therefore, I think Aubrey de Grey's "hardware-only"912 approach is missing a very important component of longevity913 science, and any successful effort to make people live orders of914 magnitude longer than they do naturally will need to deal with915 people's software as well as their hardware.917 - validating neurocryopreservation :: Problem : you want to test918 whether a brain is functionally preserved through vitrification,919 but you don't want to figure out how to preserve all the other920 organs in the animal. It might be possible to keep the rest of921 the body at almost 0C and vitrify just the head for only a few922 minutes. Induce hypothermia, then separate out the head's blood923 supply from the rest of the body, then just cryoptotect and924 vitrify the head. Might need some sort of thermal guard to keep925 the outer head / neck from becoming too cold. You leave the926 spinal cord intact! Then you devitrify to 0C, remove927 cryoprotectant, and then reattach the blood supply. You can928 determine brain preservation using behavioral assays!930 - freezing water purifier :: you slowly freeze water, but also run931 liquid water over the frozen mass. This takes away basically all932 impurities and creates "washed ice" then you melt the ice. Maybe933 you could re-use the heat from creating the ice to melt the ice?935 - ultra strength :: allow a person to visualize their muscle936 recruitment patterns. Give them adrenaline and let937 them feel what it's like to have the normal limits938 removed. See if they can replicate the effects.940 - phone names :: make a PX record for domain names that's like the MX941 record, except that it is a phone number instead of942 an IP address. That way, you can use the domain name943 registration system to provide names for phone944 numbers. Then, as long as you control the domain, you945 can point people to your current phone number by946 updating that record.948 - edible flowers :: Edible white flowers that you put in a colored949 solution with flavor. When the flower turns the950 right color, it is also flavored and ready to eat!952 - suicide cryonics :: according to [[http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/magazine/06suicide-t.html][this]], people who commit impulsive953 suicides have a newfound sense of the importance of life. Perhaps954 they are good cryonics targets.956 - lead bone :: Could you fill in all the empty spaces in a bone with957 lead? Might be cool.959 - the quest for life :: Every stupid story has the "immortal who960 wants to become mortal" or some other such idea. I want to story961 where the protagonist loses their immortality and feels /angry/962 and ashamed about losing something that's so absolutely crucial963 to their identity. A reverse of "death makes life worth living",964 they feel that living forever is what makes life worth965 living. Now they've "lost their sunrise" or their "connection to966 the timeless universe" or something. So they go on a quest to get967 it back, learning about themselves along the way, and regaining968 the precious thing they lost in the beginning.970 - world-map :: take a small table and paint the continents in971 toothpaste on the table. Make a slightly raised barrier972 around the table. Slowly pour water onto the table, and973 it will form the oceans!975 - stage magic rituals :: rituals should incorporate elements of stage976 magic. Foe example in Teller's tempest, they have a scene where977 they levitate a crown in front of someone, then put it on his978 head. They also have a wedding ceremony where they levitated the979 bride as well. Actual weddings and other ceremonies should980 incorporate stage magic as an enhancement.982 - isotope time dilation :: use a cyclotron to speed up rare isotopes983 developed in nuclear fusion experiments. The relativistic time984 dilation will stop the isotopes from decaying, and allow time to985 study them. This is based on radioactive isotopes that fall986 through the earth's atmosphere that take hundreds of times987 longer to decay than normal.989 - marsupial stimulation :: You take a freshly pouched marsupial baby,990 and show it videos and other interactive things while it matures991 in the pouch. What mental effects would this have?993 - dynamic re-keying :: Some older ways of tuning instruments sound994 better, but we use the even-tempered scale today because it makes995 it easier to switch keys. With electronic music, why not make996 key-annotations and dynamically re-tune the piece to sound good997 in the current key? Could be done as a midi+annotation -> midi998 compiler for experimentation.1000 - death always implies damage :: is is possible for a corpse to differ1001 from a living person only in the fact that one is dead and the1002 other is alive? NO! A corpse must always have some sort of1003 molecular damage which causes the loss of function!1005 - inner eye :: Surgically install a bunch of tiny cameras inside a1006 person. Then, you can activate them all and get a1007 picture of your internal organs for diagnostic1008 purposes.1010 - chaos rails :: should make a visualization of the homoclinic tangle,1011 it's truly beautiful.1013 - context gobbler :: this would be in "inside-out macro" that takes1014 the context (like you use for things like error, continuations,1015 and friends) and transforms it to something else. Maybe useful?1017 - cryonics middle ages :: some people say that cryonics is an1018 experiment and that it is foolish to wait until we have revived a1019 human. There is a middle ground where the procedure has a dismal1020 success rate on humans, say 1 in 20, so that you'd be a fool to1021 try revival. Nonetheless, this very risky procedure could be the1022 legal proof of concept needed to create a new class of life1023 between "living" and "dead": "stasis".1025 - philosophy of the mirror :: neat thought experiment -- if you take a1026 mirror of someone by actually reversing a person's chirality1027 molecule by molecule, then will the only be able to read mirror1028 writing? The answer is yes, by analogy to a purely mechanical1029 scan-tron device. This is one of the only interesting transforms I1030 know that can take a human brain and change it in subtle,1031 non-destructive ways. It's also an argument against dualism.1033 - biosphere in a bottle :: There are around 15 million species. 151034 million stem cells will fill only a tiny size, far less than a cubic1035 inch. Preserve a single cell from every species on earth in this1036 small space, and you will have a record of our current biosphere1037 that can be protected. "Hold the genetic data of all species in1038 your hand!"1040 - chaos lock :: The "arrow of time" points in the direction of1041 increasing entropy. The time evolution of chaotic1042 systems depend exquisitely on their initial state. If1043 you take a measurement of a chaotic system at any1044 given point of time, you can evolve that system1045 backwards or forwards based on your measurement. So1046 let's say you start the chaotic system in a VERY low1047 entropy state, then let it run for a while, then take1048 a measurement with some uncertainty. Your1049 measurement is pretty good, but obviously not1050 PERFECT. If you evolve the chaotic system back in1051 time, then you will see that you don't really reach1052 a state with low entropy an hour before (the entropy1053 is easy to measure with surrogates like alignment,1054 etc). So use this technique to SEARCH for a more1055 accurate measurement! This potentially can give you1056 many more orders of magnitude than you could get alone1057 just using an instrument. Sometimes it will give you1058 bad results, the the odds of it doing that are1059 infinitesimal, and you can just measure a couple of1060 times.1062 - cryo-evolution :: perhaps there would be a way to rapidly evolve a1063 symbiotic bacterial organism that could protect1064 human tissues from freezing damage.1066 - suicide parasite :: sometimes, people kill themselves for no good1067 reason. We often explain this with things like "hidden1068 depression" or we say that they had something like chronic jaw or1069 back pain. I think that smells of rationalization. I don't buy1070 it. I propose that in many suicide cases there is a disease that1071 causes the suicidal behavior. We already know that certain1072 parasites have mind-bending properties in other animals, even1073 mammals like mice. It's not much of a stretch to imagine a1074 parasite that causes suicides in humans. Some problems:1075 - What does the suicide parasite get out of it? :: This might be1076 answered by the whole thing being a glitch caused by1077 cross-species contamination. Toxoplasma works this way.1078 - What predictions does a disease model make :: suicide should1079 be more common among people who share a contagion1080 vector. There should be suicides that don't make any1081 sense : people who weren't really depressed, who had no1082 reason to kill themselves. People who have killed themselves1083 should have a higher incidence of some unknown parasite in1084 their brains.1086 - domestic insects :: People should eat more bugs because they're much1087 more efficient, so why not do some major domestication research1088 to make very appealing bugs? Beetles, in particular, seem to be1089 excellent targets for domestication because they have extreme1090 levels of genetic malleability.1092 - birth-clones :: What if each person was intentionally split at birth1093 into a normal embryo and a few "backup" cells which1094 is then frozen. The backup cells are created just1095 the same way as natural identical twins. The backups1096 can be used to regenerate organs. etc. Also, it1097 would be a good sci fi concept, because you could1098 have a culture where people reward people who were1099 especially awesome are "reborn" from their1100 backups. Imagine having a young Bach every1101 generation, etc.1103 - pronunciation guide :: a simple webpage where you type in a word and1104 it returns a simple, English sentence describing exactly how to1105 pronounce the word. For people who don't want to learn IPA.1107 - cortex-search :: use the repertoire of actions learned to limit the1108 search space of possible actions.1110 - learning to teleport :: scifi idea, this is a story about a person1111 who is struggling with his/her society's ideas about1112 teleportation. It's considered a fundamental part of being a1113 member of that society (after all, the difference between animals1114 and humans is that humans are creatures of pure information while1115 animals are burdened with base matter, "that's how you travel the1116 stars, etc") Humans are born normally, grow up, and then1117 eventually transcend via destructive upload. Analogies to jumping1118 off a diving board into a pool (which I simply /could not do/ for1119 a long time), etc.1121 - no-float-ice :: cup that has cross beams at the bottom where ice1122 forms. Then when you drink liquid from the glass,1123 the ice stays at the bottom and doesn't hit your1124 lips. For bars and fancy things.1126 - bitcoins for immigrants :: A common case with Mexican immigrants1127 (illegal or not) is that they want to send money they've earned1128 in the US back to their families in Mexico. They currently do this1129 through things like Money Gram or Western Union, and they get1130 fleeced in the process with fees. Bitcoin could greatly reduce1131 the cost of sending money from America to Mexico, but I don't1132 believe that it's currently used for that among Mexican1133 immigrants currently due to lack of knowledge. I bet you could1134 set up physical locations like those obnoxious Western Union huts1135 in places like Texas, Arizona, etc, and greatly undercut1136 them. Or, perhaps some educational seminars about bitcoin might1137 be in order. There's some money to be made there because there is1138 great demand, and it's a good thing to boot!1140 - reverse eye-tracking :: A painting that is actually a digital screen1141 with a camera. It records people's eye tracks permanently. It's1142 "artistic" because paintings are normally these things that you1143 look at without changing, but this one is changed the second you1144 look at it, recording where /you/ looked forever for others to1145 see. Make it be a painting of a woman and see the trolling as the1146 breasts and groin area light up with interest from all the males1147 passing by.1149 - smart toilets :: Instead of using indirect measures like infrared1150 detectors of the presence of a person, use computer1151 vision to directly measure whether the toilet needs1152 to be flushed. I think a lot of things will end up1153 going this way as we get better computer vision.1155 - validate chemopreservation :: chemopreservation is difficult to1156 validate because it destroys the functionality of a brain, and1157 brain simulation will take a long time to mature as a1158 technology. However, one very powerful way to validate1159 chemopreservation would be to have a person/animal learn1160 something with high complexity such as a number or the solution1161 to a maze, or a flashbulb memory. Then you preserve their brain1162 chemically, slice it up, and read /that specific memory/ from the1163 detailed brain scan. Much more difficult, but much more doable.1165 - candy screw :: edible candy screw with candy nuts that you can screw1166 as well.1168 - better bibliography :: when writing a thesis or paper, have the1169 bibliography not just be an opaque list of resources, but have it1170 be a list of /summaries/ and /qualities/ that each paper has in1171 the context of the paper being written. When examining a1172 bibliography, I want to know if reading the papers in the1173 bibliography are worth my time, and I also am probably also1174 interested in exactly the things that are being discussed in the1175 paper I'm reading. The bibliography is the perfect place to1176 provide information about the referenced papers from the1177 author's perspective. I will use this biographic form in my own1178 thesis.1180 - digital inter-library loan :: libraries at universities already do1181 inter-library loans for books, so why not do the same for access1182 to stupid paywalled digital papers? All the universities could1183 allow access to articles for registered students to all the files1184 available through any participating university. This could be1185 achieved by sending requests through proxies at participating1186 universities. Each university would decide who at the university1187 can access the proxy network. Access to the proxy network could1188 be made easy using something like http://libx.org/.1190 - chess visual :: to show the vast size of the game trees considered1191 by computers, show two people playing chess in a1192 void. They are floating in space, and there is a1193 simple chess board between them. Then, as they play,1194 the game tree's they are considering are drawn1195 behind him. The root of the tree starts centered in1196 their heads or whatever they use to think, and the1197 tree grows out from behind, never crossing the1198 dividing plane between the two players. Each1199 player's tree is a different color. As they grow,1200 there are animations for pruning, etc. Eventually,1201 they look like the hemispheres of a brain, wings,1202 etc. A human's tree might occasionally have a long1203 chain, while the computer tree would be more1204 uniform. You could compare deep blue and a modern1205 laptop. Use actual data when fighting two computers!1207 - time verification :: some standard way to verify that some piece of1208 data was recorded at a specific time. Might involve a time1209 server, a key for each time period, something like that.1211 - tamper proof gold bars :: [[http://www.tungsten-alloy.com/gold-plated-tungsten-alloy-bar.html][this site]] offers gold plated tungsten bars1212 as "novelty" items. One reason to prefer coins is because they1213 are much harder to counterfeit because there is less surface area1214 to mass ratio. However, gold bars are still a great design1215 because they can hold a lot of value in a small space. A gold bar1216 could be given the same protections (and more) that gold coins1217 have to offer by changing it into a "gold book", which would have1218 hundreds of "pages" of gold bound together. This could be1219 implemented with multiple steel rods going through the book which1220 can be removed, or some more classier mechanism for holding the1221 pages. The point is that the bar can be EASILY subdivided (and1222 people would perform this test before buying), thus guaranteeing1223 it's authenticity.1225 - aurellem shirt :: I should make an aurellem star symbol tee-shirt.1227 - touch vision :: inspired by GelSight, I want to reexamine cortex and1228 see if I could implement touch as a very low range1229 form of vision.1231 - high school science :: this is a lesson in scientific ethics. The1232 goal is to calculate /g/, the local gravitational1233 acceleration. The students are told that the textbook says it's1234 /exactly/ 9.81 before they start the experiment. See how they1235 doctor their results to get closer to the textbook value. It's1236 neat because for any given school, /g/ is probably *not* exactly1237 equal to 9.81, because that is just an average!1239 - opencourseware subtitles :: there are ladies who type up lectures1240 while they are being given. These recordings should be kept and1241 given to OCW for subtitles. If the timestamps of keys are1242 recorded, then it is easy to make subtitles.1244 - screen locking timing :: you use your computer camera to see if you1245 are sitting in front of the computer. If you are, then the screen1246 will never lock. If you are, then the screen will lock with a1247 30-40 second timeout. It's an extension of using inactivity to1248 initiate the countdown, just with more information.1250 - mirror toilet :: a toilet with a square basin made or mirror instead1251 or porcelain. That way, you can see how good of a1252 wipe job you have done / watch how your excretion1253 system works.1255 - test dummies :: why don't we clone anencephalic humans and use then to1256 test /in vivo/ human organ systems and drugs? It1257 would be ethical as long as there are women who are1258 willing to host the clones, and it would be a1259 tremendous resource for studying the human body. I1260 see nothing wrong with it morally, since no one is1261 suffering, and it stands to save many lives throughout1262 more advanced technology.1264 - X-ray telepresence :: given that a doctor is operating on a patient1265 via telepresence, one cool things you can do is shine X-rays into1266 the patient to view the insides during real time. If the system1267 was coupled with a Bayesian model of the layout of the structure,1268 and the x-rays were only fired whenever the uncertainty of the1269 model reached a certain threshold, then the radiation damage1270 and surgery risk could be minimized.1272 - superfluid vascular system :: I wonder what would happen if you1273 replaced the blood in a human with a superfluid. What would the1274 physical dynamics be? Would the superfluid flow through the1275 vasculature, or would it ignore it and travel through the cells,1276 or something else entirely. Since superfluids need to be cold to1277 retain their superfluidity, how would the dynamics change during1278 perfusion of a superfluid, where the fluid gains and looses1279 superfluidity as it goes deeper into the body and is cooled by1280 superfluid from upstream. In summary there are two things to1281 simulate 1.) replace all blood in human with superfluid1282 instantly. 2.) perfuse superfluid into human.1284 - projective guessing :: I think that we read and see things by1285 making a really good guess about what we're expecting to see,1286 and then searching for our guess in what we see. If it really1287 doesn't match, then we start to make more guesses / analyze the1288 image from first principles, but most stuff is projective1289 guessing.1291 - Intestinal flora maintenance :: why not inoculate babies at birth1292 with "ideal" gut flora instead of whatever bullshit they1293 naturally get, thus giving them optimal digestive/nutrient1294 extraction capabilities. Might also be able to make their farts1295 not stink for life, too. MORE IMPORTANTLY, might help to1296 preventatively stop some forms of /colic/, which affects 1 in 51297 babies and causes constant screaming and pain for about 5 weeks.1299 - server culture : mirrors :: make a distributed system where people1300 can mirror the websites of people they like -- essentially cover1301 the server costs of favored websites. This could make popular1302 websites run at no cost. The system would require that the1303 mirrored content be the same as the official source. Sort of like1304 bit-torrent for websites.1306 - map programming :: one problem with functional programming is that1307 in order to remain functional, you have to pass up arguments up1308 into each calling function to get the full range of behavior1309 from the lower level functions. Normally people come to a1310 compromise involving abstraction and sparing use of dynamic1311 variables to configure runtime behavior. What would be the1312 advantages of making a programming language where every function1313 receives one argument, a map, which contains all the symbol1314 bindings it would ever need? This map is passed on to all1315 subordinate functions. This way, you could replace functions on1316 the fly, and arrange for there to be sensible defaults,1317 etc. Might cause more harm than good but is an interesting idea.1319 - rest nest :: a small EEG device you would attach to your head when1320 you go to sleep at night. ML algorithms would determine1321 your particular sleep cycles. This would mostly be an1322 alarm clock that you could give a time range, say1323 7:00AM - 7:15AM, and it would wake you up during an1324 ideal time corresponding to then end of one of your 901325 min sleep cycles. You would feel much more rested upon1326 waking up, and would wake up faster. There might be1327 some other uses for the EEG data as well.1329 - image compression :: use a library like gimp or opencv to process an1330 image to make it have less entropy, then store the reverse of1331 those operations along with the compressed simpler image as a1332 super-compressed image file (possibly accepting some1333 losses). Trades file size for decompression time, and allows one1334 to cheat by using information in gimp/opencv to compress the1335 image.1337 - fixed cryopreservation :: why not use a fixative to buy enough time1338 to ramp up cryoprotectants to an acceptable level at room1339 temperature? Then, the whole system can be rapidly cooled and1340 vitrified. This method "severs the biological link" in that the1341 fixatives are highly toxic, but current vitrification procedures1342 do this anyway since there can be a lot of freezing damage.1344 - dilated security camera :: a security camera that would capture1345 full video footage of everything at 60fps but then decide to keep1346 only every 1 frame every 5 seconds unless there's something1347 "interesting" happening.1349 - bitcoin wallet :: Part of "server culture", this would be something1350 like "coin.your-domain.com" which would serve as1351 your personal trusted access to your own bitcoins1352 from anywhere.1354 - libpay :: this would be a free library which would enable1355 micro-donations to software projects and other projects,1356 so that you could donate a penny to "emacs" and it would1357 be automatically split up to every person who has ever1358 contributed to emacs in proportion to the amount of1359 community esteem, code quantity, bugs fixed, whatever the1360 community decides. This might make it possible for1361 programmers to live entirely off of free programming.1363 - distributed graphics :: Browser based graphics-card accelerated1364 distributed computing API.1366 - pronouns :: use capital letters A-Z instead of pronouns. They solve1367 pronoun referents and gender neutrality, are short to1368 say, and you can encode useful information into the1369 choice of letter. For example, instead of "Meetings1370 shall be presided over by the president, unless she is1371 absent." USE "Meetings shall be presided over by the1372 president, unless P is absent." We already use this a1373 little, since I and U are reserved for the subject and1374 object respectively.1376 - phone DSP :: software app that inserts an audio DSP between the1377 input to a phone and the output. The DSP is delicious1378 and configurable, and can allow men to make their1379 voices deeper, etc. The app would allow you to hear1380 your own voice as others hear it. Most people hate how1381 their own voice sounds. The app would also allow one to1382 immediately change the parameters of the DSP using good1383 presets.1385 - predestined body learning :: a good example of predestined learning1386 might be the mirror neurons.1388 - restaurant receipt :: use a carbon copy receipt instead of two stupid1389 copies.1391 - anti google glass :: glasses with mounted lasers and computer vision1392 that targets the cameras in google glass and destroy them.1394 - wearable towel :: towel with clasp, velcro, whatever, that allows1395 one to wear the towel more securely than just1396 wrapping it tightly and hoping for the best.1398 - crossdressing :: Easiest way to disguise oneself as a woman is to1399 wear a burka.1401 - book-mode :: intelligent color highlighting for books and1402 articles. It would disambiguate pronouns and involved1403 references. For example, if "Rachael" was assigned the1404 color red, and "the blonde haired girl" refers to1405 "Rachael", then "the blonde haired girl" would be1406 colored red. Also, you could disambiguate multi part1407 run-on sentences by highlighting each1408 subcomponent. Maybe would also have applications to1409 scientific reading.1411 - Handheld light Rain measurement :: this would be a clear, teflon1412 coated plastic disk with a camera underneath the disk. You would1413 be able to hold the device out and it would measure the rate of1414 accumulation of water droplets from fine mists and light rain by1415 using computer vision to measure the diameters of the drops.1417 - Big Brother Farming :: This would be a vision system that would1418 individually monitor each plant and turn on water, etc to ensure1419 maximum/uniform growth for each plant.1421 - Discrete Faucet :: A faucet with discrete ticks instead of1422 continuous.1424 - Laser Circle :: take a glass microfiliment and shine a laser at one1425 end at an oblique angle. It will make a perfect,1426 large circle on the wall, converting a laser beam1427 into a laser cone, preserving most of the energy of1428 the laser.1430 - Invisible Glass :: Take a container of liquid and embed a1431 glass sculpture made out of glass that has exactly the same index1432 of refraction and color of the liquid. Then the sculpture will be1433 totally invisible in the container, and will only be revealed1434 when the liquid is drained. The container might be a fancy1435 wine/spirit bottle or an hourglass.1437 - Caterpillar people :: A race of caterpillar like creatures gains1438 intelligence after eons of predation by birds, etc. These1439 caterpillar creatures still undergo metamorphosis into a large1440 butterfly-like creature. The metamorphosis process turns the1441 caterpillar's brain into mush and reforms it into a minimal,1442 dumb, truly insect-like mind, completely destroying the person1443 the caterpillar was. The society develops all sorts of customs and1444 religious interpretations of the metamorphosis. It is viewed as1445 good and natural by some since it is part of their life cycle and1446 necessary to propagate the species, as only the butterflies can1447 mate. Some think that the butterflies are still the same person1448 because they have the same soul, even they no longer posses the1449 memories or personality of the original caterpillar. Some see the1450 butterfly form as the "true form" of the species, since the1451 butterflies can fly, mate, and are beautiful. Many make a big1452 deal out of the fact that 1-2% of the caterpillar's mind is1453 actually preserved in the butterfly. Some see it as a terrible1454 tragedy and argue that the caterpillars should try to stop the1455 metamorphosis by technology. Practically, some very important1456 members of society undergo hormone therapy and/or surgery to1457 prevent metamorphosis so that they can live longer as themselves.1459 This is a continuation of Marvin Minsky's ideas about pain being1460 something that preserves our bodies while destroying our minds,1461 something that is a remnant from our too harsh animal days that1462 hasn't caught up to the fact that we have very complex brains1463 now. It's a worst-case scenario about a maladaptive genetic1464 legacy. Also, it's inspired by "There She Is!!!", which makes a1465 compelling point about homosexuality by introducing a second1466 gender characteristic (bunny/cat, male/female), which makes1467 homophobia look very silly. Here, our own biological legacy of1468 pain and death is made to look like the tragedy it is through the1469 lens of the the caterpillar people.1471 - relationships as a business :: [[http://thedailywtf.com/Articles/Up-or-Out-Solving-the-IT-Turnover-Crisis.aspx][Turnover-Crisis]] is an excellent talk1472 about the "culture of quitting," which is about better business1473 by letting people go instead of keeping them around past their1474 "apex". Focuses on information transfer. Cool idea of an alumni1475 network, which for relationships would be a group of satisfied1476 ex-lovers, who would recommend new people your way, and who might1477 consider coming to you again, refreshed from their time away with1478 new stories/experiences. I should look for examples of this and1479 how they worked out.1481 - coffee with tea :: /rlm-tea/ contains 2% sugar, 10% cream, and 20%1482 dylan coffee. /dylan coffee/ contains 5% sugar,1483 20% cream, and 10% rlm-tea. Start your mornings1484 with recursion!1486 - psychic crystal :: in a science fiction story, this would be an1487 object that is very easy to move physically but is extremely1488 difficult to move with telekinesis.1490 - http://betsofbitco.in/ :: what a great place for an AI/person to1491 prove themselves as a good predictor. I wish this could be1492 automated.1494 - true reflection :: don't forget about that mirror in the student1495 center!, it's two mirrors at right angles, like staring at a1496 corner of a room. The light reflects so that it shows you what1497 you actually look like, instead of your mirror image.1499 - remote control wasp :: use computer to drive wings with remote1500 power/logic.1502 - encrypted email phone book :: public (distributed?) database of1503 email->private-key pairs, to enable automatic encryption.1505 - universal eye color :: every equivalent creature will see each1506 others' eyes as black -- it's universal. Even if the creatures1507 see in radio waves, and their eyes are 2m long pieces of jagged1508 metal, when those creatures look at each other, they will see1509 black, the absence of light and color (since it's being absorbed1510 by the sensor array).1512 - intelligent microwave :: it learns where the hot nodes of its fields1513 are, and uses them to evenly heat any food item. It has an infrared1514 camera or something to keep track of how hot the food is. That way,1515 you don't get bowls where the edges are boiling, while the center is1516 still frozen. Requires a little bit of intelligence/vision, since1517 the exact pattern of heating totally depends on the exact shape of1518 the food. Wouldn't need a carousel, and wouldn't need a timer,1519 just a desired temperature. Could also detect ice, and automatically1520 defrost the parts which are frozen. Might be able to work much1521 faster since it can avoid overheating; might have problems with1522 heating the insides of thick things, might need a weight sensor too.1524 + Would be much cleaner than other microwaves, since food would1525 "sputter" and splash liquid much less.1527 + Throw in some SIFT+R processing to match previously cooked foods1528 and learn the exact heating profiles for things that have been1529 cooked before -- it can get faster the more it's used.1531 - compression :: brain-aware image compression algorithm1533 - Credit card proxy :: would be a company which works like paypal1534 except for real world transactions1536 - Flesh pillow :: a pillow like the arm or torso of a human, complete1537 with simulated temperature, bones, and heartbeat.1539 - super screw :: a screw which has only one or two threads and instead1540 uses compression to fit into a hole (the whole shank1541 of the screw is split into multiple pieces to1542 accomplish this; the tip is a point, then the middle1543 bulges out and gets compressed when screwed in.1545 - light filter :: (like light tweezers) to mechanically separate1546 fluids with different index of refraction1548 - chalk eraser project :: maybe make a directional eraser, for easy1549 release of chalk dust, like fur, and how it likes to rest in a1550 certain direction.1552 - silver socks :: socks laced with silver for the antimicrobial1553 properties.1555 - UROP :: magnet gear/metal teeth tape1557 - Rod of Moses :: device to distill urine through evaporation and1558 easily dispose of urea crystals for use in desert --1559 produce drinkable water.1561 - UROP :: Make the LED in line with the flow for the micro injector, so1562 that it may transmit maximum flow. Motor that changes1563 distance of internal magnet from windings depending on1564 desired speed so as to obtain maximum power efficiency.1566 - lottery scraper :: web scraper which monitors various lotteries,1567 looking for "special" gimmick changes in the rules (like 4x1568 winnings on Wednesdays) and computes expected value...1570 - Memristiors novel design :: make an evolutionary algorithm to make1571 old stuff using all four basic circuit elements.1573 - Conductive concrete :: concrete that has embedded metal fibers so1574 that it can conduct electricity.1576 - little bitty melting pot :: might be useful for some types of1577 manufacturing/3D printing -- how small can an induction melter be1578 made, for example.1580 - power strip/timer programmable combination :: meh1582 - algorithms :: which learn what their inputs are and in what order,1583 and can adapt to changing circumstances -- they1584 remember previous arguments and adapt so as to respond1585 to different connections.1587 - true pure tones :: hear a true pure tone by direct stimulation of the1588 nerves of the ear1590 - mechanical analogue to the electrical op-amp :: would be an object1591 with two levers -- you pull on one lever and the other moves the1592 same way, no matter what's in the way or what it is driving. This1593 analogy could be useful to teach op amps to people.1595 - paper folding device :: make it convenient to fold lots of papers in1596 various ways.1598 - concrete epoxy :: epoxy with sand/ some other solid material.1600 - light capacitor :: suspend some ball of material with a high index1601 of refraction and shine light into it so it gets stuck -- would1602 the light stay trapped forever? Could you build up unlimited1603 quantities of light inside the sphere (which could then be1604 released slowly by frustrated internal reflection?1606 - movie screening :: Movies always are too long at first. One way to1607 shorten them ``scientifically" is to record blink rate during the1608 move and then remove / shorten the frames of the parts in which1609 there are a lot of blinking (average this over multiple people)1610 better yet, put it online and do it across thousands of people. I1611 got this from youtube in which there is an episode of kill bill1612 which is composed entirely of the parts in which people had their1613 eyes closed. slogan: want to make a movie people can't take their1614 eyes off of? Just take those parts out!1616 - optimize an article :: capture reading of a scientific article via1617 screen capture while people read it, then use it to make the1618 article better. like the movie-pruning idea.1620 - super reading program :: teaches people the ideal mental mask to1621 apply during reading so as to read very fast.1623 - explosive thermite epoxy putty :: one part would contain the rust,1624 one part the aluminum.1626 - reading comprehension :: use the above screen capture routine to1627 make a quiz program that constructs questions about the content1628 you seemed to gloss over while reading. could be easy if the pdf1629 came with embedded questions. Dylan: automatically generate1630 word-cloud about the parts you found most interesting; help1631 others who read the same stuff by drawing attention to the1632 interesting parts.1634 - hard sword :: make a samurai sword, but use osmiridum instead of1635 martensite for the cutting part; it should be a better1636 sword.1638 - close range wireless :: use the induction technology used to1639 recharge electric toothbrushes with no metal links to send data1640 without any metal at all!1642 - reading :: is a form of synsethesia1644 - DNA printer :: A machine which translates the text eg, "ACTGAC" into1645 actual DNA1647 - black generator :: ferro-fluid magnetic field suspended micro1648 generator to make electricity1650 - alcohol battery :: alcohol/fluid flow powered battery1652 - folding razor blade sword ::1654 - perfect pitch :: learn perfect pitch using another sense in1655 combination (sight or touch)1657 - kaleidoscope projector ::1659 - razor blade de-sharpener :: for guilt free disposal1661 - bricks :: filled with luminescent plant material1663 - bio metallic structure :: metal grids with seeds inside, which grow1664 together and form a durable biological matrix. The metal1665 substrate delivers water. (maybe use plastic instead of metal?)1666 Dylan: enrich plants with inorganic compounds; electrical1667 interfaces in cellular plant matter => remote-controlled1668 photosynthetic/bioluminescent structures.1670 - conducting extracellular matrix :: to allow better control of1671 organic systems and an enhanced nervous system.1673 - cross-modal memory hashing :: a way to retrieve memories more1674 robustly.1676 - flossing thimble-guards :: (these actually exist)1678 - rules + lattice learning :: integrate lattice learning with rules by1679 generating hypothetical examples1681 - wooden refrigerator :: to give food a better taste Dylan: like1682 barrels for wine, or planks for salmon. Maybe just have "flavor1683 planks" for your pre-existing fridge. Need to mitigate effect of1684 temperature on volatility?1686 - radioactive transmutation molecule by molecule :: create precious1687 metals or something else economically advantageous.1689 - crowd preservation :: inoculate food with tons of harmless1690 bacteria so that there's no room for bad bacteria as a method of1691 preservation1693 - old school preservation :: Pasteur - style holding jar with siphon1694 as a way to store liquids at room temperature indefinitely w/o1695 refrigeration.1697 - restaurant policy :: Throw rude people out of restaurant as a matter1698 of course -- make ambiance much better.1700 - clean windows :: make something that mixes soap with fire hydrant1701 water (and reduces the pressure a bit) and use it1702 to clean windows of buildings.1704 - ocarina :: make an ocarina out of pure silver1706 - fire pen :: pen which burns words on to the page, thus never needing1707 any ink. Is there a way to make it runnable from the1708 human's energy?1710 - website to design your own soda :: and label, and have it mailed to1711 you / sell it from your own online store.1713 - solar panels :: that float on the ocean1715 - handcuffs with more than two cuffs (3?) :: great for daisy chaining1716 people, binding them to environment, etc.1718 - vector based SOUND files :: like the pictures but with SOUND. codify1719 sound in a language with enough symbols so that it can describe1720 everything and encode it in that. would be like going from speech1721 to text or smtg. Could also store sound as an image of the1722 wavefront encoded as a vector image.1724 - Mouse :: with a horizontal scroll wheel in addition to the vertical1725 scroll wheel1727 - logic maintenance system for big institutions :: to make sure the1728 things they are thinking about doing are not retarded1730 - http://www.regulations.gov/ :: cool site1732 - genetically engineered glowing fruit :: sell seeds?1734 - memory slide :: IF memories are encoded using particular sensory1735 impressions, what happens if the sensory organ1736 itself changes? those memories would become1737 inaccessible. maybe this is why we can't remember1738 much from our childhoods. also, could this happen1739 throughout life as well? Could S remember stuff from1740 his childhood?1742 - make a completely indestructible phone :: no moving parts or display1743 you should be able to slam it around all you want, and it will1744 just work. brutally simple. aerogel around the battery, minimal1745 interface - never gets too hot, and can be dropped into water. no1746 holes -- uses field effects for everything from the buttons to1747 inductive charging and data transfer.1749 - midi to ocarina "tabs" program :: (online website? buy ocarinas from1750 it too)1752 - 3d printing with sound pulses (or just patterns) :: like the 8.031753 lecture1755 - lighter flint on spring :: make hot, throw it at something, and it1756 makes sparkles!1758 - nuclear energy :: Rebranding New+Clear Energy with informational1759 campaign and public debate forum to enforce its1760 transparent and open nature. France needn't be the1761 world leader in nuclear energy. (Dylan)1763 - bubbles :: Engineer a material which has both ductility and high1764 surface tension to make the "third"1765 minimal-surface-energy solution to a bubble suspended1766 between two equal-diameter rings. (Solutions are1767 cylindrical catenary curve, two separated half-bubbles,1768 and a double-cone)1770 - Textbook whose content can be varied continuously :: alter level of1771 difficulty, rigor, diction, emphasize crossover with certain1772 other discipline, etc. Content generated dynamically from1773 knowledge base, along with questions that are moreover altered to1774 guide knowledge acquisition. Motivation: One book of1775 knowledge. /One./1777 ** From Jacob's idea list1779 - Roommate-canceling headphones: uses roommate's laptop mic to seed1780 noise cancellation alg in your headphones (would this1781 work?). -Update on sound canceling headphones that take feed from1782 tv: how about ones that cancel people talking on the phone by1783 receiving the phone signals and playing inverse sound1784 waves. #signalprocessing ~jcole@mit.edu1786 - ClackerAlert -- tells if you slam the keys too hard using sound data1787 (and speed/jerkiness data)!.Prevents RSI ~jcole@mit.e1789 - Panic Pin :: separate pin that you can tell someone if forced to1790 identify your PIN (idea from idea about credit cards)