Should medicine be used to enhance—not just restore—human bodies?

 

The Economist 

最愛  · 5分鐘  · 

This week on “Babbage”, using technology to improve humanity is no longer science fiction

economist.com

 Should medicine be used to enhance—not just restore—human bodies?1

骨傳導Bone conduction

Bone conduction is the conduction of sound to the inner ear primarily through the bones of the skull, allowing the hearer to perceive audio content even if the ear canal is blocked. Bone conduction transmission occurs constantly as sound waves vibrate bone, specifically the bones in the skull, although it is hard for the average individual to distinguish sound being conveyed through the bone as opposed to the sound being conveyed through the air via the ear canal. Intentional transmission of sound through bone can be used with individuals with normal hearing—as with bone-conduction headphones—or as a treatment option for certain types of hearing impairment. Bones are generally more effective at transmitting lower-frequency sounds compared to higher-frequency sounds.

Bone conduction is also called the second auditory pathway and not to be confused with cartilage conduction, which is considered the third auditory pathway.

 骨傳導是一種聲音傳導方式，即通過將聲音轉化為不同頻率的機械振動，通過人的顱骨、骨迷路、內耳淋巴液傳遞、柯蒂氏器、聽神經、聽覺中樞來傳遞聲波。相對於通過振膜產生聲波的經典聲音傳導方式，骨傳導省去了許多聲波傳遞的步驟，能在嘈雜的環境中實現清晰的聲音還原，而且聲波也不會因為在空氣中擴散而影響到他人。

骨傳導技術分為骨傳導揚聲器技術和骨傳導麥克風技術：

1. 骨傳導揚聲器技術 用於受話，受話即聽取聲音。氣導揚聲器是把電信號轉化為的聲波（振動信號傳至聽神經。而骨傳導揚聲器則是電信號轉化的聲波（振動信號）直接通過骨頭傳至聽神經。聲波（振動信號）的傳遞介質不同。
2. 骨傳導麥克風技術 用於送話，送話即收集聲音。氣導送話是聲波通過空氣傳至麥克風，而骨傳導送話則直接通過骨頭傳遞。

利用這些骨傳導技術製造的耳機，稱之為骨傳導耳機，也被稱作骨導耳機、骨感耳機、骨傳耳機和骨傳感耳機。

a Chinese "astronomy coin"

 "Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious." - Stephen Hawking

Photo: a Chinese "astronomy coin"

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China's Ambitious Plan to Build a Giant Solar Power Plant in Space 嘿嘿 天上的能源

 China's Ambitious Plan to Build a Giant Solar Power Plant in Space

China has launched an ambitious plan to develop a solar power station in space. The proposal involves constructing a solar panel structure approximately one kilometer wide, positioned in geostationary orbit at around 36,000 kilometers above Earth. The primary goal of this initiative is to capture solar energy without atmospheric interference and transmit it to the planet using radio wave transmission technology .

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古老的貝殼杉樹 (kauri tree ) 記錄了地球磁場的最後一次崩塌 為科學家提供了地球磁場在近乎逆轉事件期間的史無前例的記錄。The kauri's growth rings have preserved a detailed timeline of this magnetic upheaval,

 

科學家發現了一棵古老的貝殼杉樹，它記錄了地球磁場的最後一次崩塌，而這種現象將再次發生。 紐西蘭一棵埋藏了數千年的貝殼杉樹為科學家提供了地球磁場在近乎逆轉事件期間的史無前例的記錄。 這棵古樹是在 Ngāwhā 地熱發電廠擴建期間出土的，長 65 英尺，直徑 8 英尺。放射性碳定年法表明，它生活在 41,000 至 42,500 年前，即所謂的拉尚漂移時期，當時地球的磁極有所動搖，但並未完全翻轉。 貝殼杉的年輪保存了這次磁場劇變的詳細時間線，為我們了解地球磁場變化如何影響地球提供了基礎。 在這種事件中，磁場減弱會導致宇宙輻射增加，對生命和現代技術構成威脅。 新南威爾斯大學的古氣候學家克里斯·特尼指出了這棵樹的重要性：「這棵巨大而孤獨的樹在地球歷史上一個非凡的時期生長了大約 1,700 年。

Scientists found an ancient kauri tree that captured the last collapse of Earth's magnetic field and it will happen again.

A kauri tree buried for thousands of years in New Zealand has provided scientists with an unprecedented record of Earth's magnetic field during a near-reversal event.

The ancient tree, unearthed during geothermal plant expansion in Ngāwhā, measures 65 feet long and eight feet in diameter. Radiocarbon dating reveals it lived between 41,000 and 42,500 years ago — during a period known as the Laschamp Excursion, when Earth's magnetic poles wavered but did not fully flip.

The kauri's growth rings have preserved a detailed timeline of this magnetic upheaval, offering insights into how changes in Earth's magnetic field impact the planet.

During such events, the weakened magnetic field allows increased cosmic radiation, posing risks to life and modern technology.

Chris Turney, a paleoclimatologist at the University of New South Wales, notes the tree’s importance: “This huge, lonely tree grew for some 1,700 years during a remarkable period in Earth's history.

Image: Nelson Parker