#142 - Animal Equality, Ghost Nets, And Asteroid Deflection!
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In the News
⚡️ Microsoft unveiled a new type of transistor for quantum computers. Time will tell if it actually works as predicted.
👻 AI is being used by the WWF to help identify lost or abandoned fishing gear, known as “ghost nets,” that are dangerous to marine wildlife.
☄️ An asteroid is heading for us with a ~2% chance of hitting Earth, so a team of astrophysicists are trying to stop it.
🤘 Researchers have synthesized a new material called MAC that is 8x stronger than graphene and resistant to fractures.
Opportunities
Guardian Project is looking for developers. “We are a global team who builds and designs easy to use secure apps, open-source software libraries, and customized solutions that can be used around the world by any person or organization looking to protect their communications and data from unjust intrusion, interception and monitoring.”
Arcadia is a London-based community organization that empowers AI researchers and engineers. They’re hiring an ops intern and a technical writer.
The European Union Joint Research Centre is looking for an applied AI researcher. “The vacancy is in The Cybersecurity and Digital Technologies Unit of the Digital Transformation and Data Directorate. The Unit works on risk mitigation, cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence, cybercrime, digital forensics, and innovative digital technology solutions for security, privacy and safety, and on the associated legal and regulatory frameworks, to strengthen the trust of the European citizen in a secure and fair digital European society.”
Animal Equality is an international nonprofit that works with society, governments, and companies to try to end farmed animal suffering. It conducts public education programs, corporate campaigns, undercover investigations, and legal advocacy. They’re currently looking for a campaign associate.
What We’re Watching
A new analysis from Our World in Data shows how child mortality has halved in nine Asian countries since 2000. Remarkable progress in such a short time.
Protein localization is a big challenge, but AI tools are making it easier to decipher how proteins know where to go within cells. This has wide-ranging applications from disease screening to genetic modifications.
Here’s a phenomenal writeup about AI regulations and the global back-and-forth between US and other countries.
Relationships with AI companions are already here, and they may become more commonplace.
Quotes We Love
“All profound distraction opens certain doors. You have to allow yourself to be distracted when you are unable to concentrate."
— Julio Cortázar
That’s all for now! See you in your inbox in another two weeks! ❤️