S.Africa inventions aim to stop slum fires, floods

S.Africa inventions aim to stop slum fires, floods
Pretoria (AFP) Feb 3, 2015 - South Africans social entrepreneurs have come up with inventions aimed at curbing deadly fires and floods in the country's crowded informal settlements. A turquoise detector no bigger than a pack of cigarettes is among the innovations being showcased at a technology exhibition in the capital Pretoria. While a conventional fire detector is set off by smoke, Lumkani, meaning "be aware" in ... more

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Complex environments push 'brain' evolution

Complex environments push 'brain' evolution
Madison WI (SPX) Feb 04, 2015 - Little animations trying to master a computer game are teaching neuroscience researchers how the brain evolves when faced with difficult tasks. Neuroscientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Michigan State University have programmed animated critters that they call "animats." The critters have a rudimentary neural system made of eight nodes: two sensors, two motors, and four in ... more

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Scientists discover organism that hasn't evolved in more than 2 billion years

Scientists discover organism that hasn't evolved in more than 2 billion years
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 04, 2015 - An international team of scientists has discovered the greatest absence of evolution ever reported - a type of deep-sea microorganism that appears not to have evolved over more than 2 billion years. But the researchers say that the organisms' lack of evolution actually supports Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The findings were published online by the Proceedings of the National Acad ... more

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