The 10 inventions that will change the world according to Bill Gates – 14/03/2019

Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, philanthropist and one of the richest men in the world, was invited by the publication MIT Technology Review to choose the 10 inventions of 2019 which, in his opinion, will sow a seed in the future.

From robots up & # 39; to hamburgers with synthetic meatthe entrepreneur develops a list of technologies and innovations that will make a difference in everyone's lives and that are already starting to be available.

1. Robots with dexterity

While the industrial robots can perform multiple tasks with total precision they remain clumsy e inflexible. However, a new generation of automata is learning to manage the physical world.

Gates cites as an example Dactyl, a robot who has learned to manipulate a block of toys with his hands. These robots get, by trial and error, take objects without breaking them After observing them, a very human skill and that of a robot is almost impossible to achieve.

For another example, we can cite the robot formed by a group of researchers from the same Mbadachusetts Institute of Technology so that play at Jenga, a game that requires excellent fine motor skills so that the tower of blocks does not fall.

Gates believes that with these advances, robots will no longer be "clumsy" in less than 5 years.

2. The renewal of nuclear energy

The advanced fusion and fission reactors they become reality. The new designs that have grown over the last year promise to make this source of energy safer and less expensive.

Gates cites the fission reactors of fourth generation, an evolution of traditional conceptions; small modular reactors; and fusion reactors, a technology that seemed eternally inaccessible.

These inventions are coming back safer nuclear energyand much less harmful to the environment. Its creators think they can supply electricity networks by 2020.

3. Predicting premature births

A simple blood test can predict if a pregnant woman is at risk of giving birth prematurely.

Stephen Quake, a Stanford engineering engineer, has found a way to solve one of the toughest problems in medicine: about one in 10 babies is born prematurely.

By sequencing RNA floating in the mother's bloodQuake can detect the fluctuations it highlights as being badociated with the premature birth. This allows you to identify women who have probabilities to give birth too early. Once alerted, doctors can take steps to prevent premature births and give the child a better chance of survival.

4. The intestinal probe in a pill

A small device what can you do swallow captures detailed images of the intestine without the need for anesthesia, even in infants and children.

William Tearney, pathologist and engineer at Mbadachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston, is developing artifacts the size of a pill which can be used to inspect the intestine and even get tissue biopsies. Unlike endoscopes, they are easy to use in a primary care center.

This invention could be crucial in the detection of diseases such as enteric dysfunction of the environment (EED), one of the most expensive and most difficult to diagnose.

The capsule is being tested in humans, and this year will start testing on children.

5. Customized cancer vaccines

Scientists are about to market the first personalized cancer vaccine. If it works as expected, the vaccine, which activates a person's immune system to identify a tumor by its unique mutations, could effectively treat many types of cancers.

The treatment encourages the body's natural defenses destroy only cancer cells by identifying unique mutations for each tumor.

The possibility of developing this type of vaccine began to take shape in 2008, five years after the completion of the human genome project. The current trial is aimed at at least 10 types of cancer and aims to recruit more than 560 patients worldwide.

6. The burger without cows

The breeding for human consumption a harmful effects for the environment. Because of that, they try so much alternatives grown in the laboratory like the others herbal that come close to the flavor and nutritional value of real meat without the ill effects.

Researchers from the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands strive to produce meat grown in the laboratory on the scale and believe that they will have a burger grown in the laboratory by 2020.

However, the environmental benefits are still very important. rare in this type of system: a recent report from the World Economic Forum indicates that greenhouse gas emissions from laboratory-grown meat would only be a factor 7% discount than those of beef production.

A better result at the environmental level occurs with vegetable meats companies like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods, which use pea, soy, wheat, potato and vegetable oil proteins to mimic the texture and taste of animal flesh.

According to an badysis by the University of Michigan's Center for Sustainable Systems, a hamburger of this type generates 90% less emissions than a conventional cow-based hamburger.

7. "Capture" carbon dioxide

Relating to the previous point and the problem of greenhouse gas emissions, for Gates, it is essential to find ways to capture carbon dioxide reduce environmental change.

To avoid a dangerous temperature increase, the UN panel on climate warns that the world must eliminate 1 trillion tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in this century.

David Keith, a Harvard scientist, has shown that it is possible to catch a ton of carbon dioxide at a cost of about 100 dollars. The problem is what to do with these captured particles.

A Canadian startup now offers generate fuel using captured carbon dioxide as the main ingredient. Other proposals include the use of carbon dioxide in the production of soda.

However, eliminate CO2 from the air is, from an engineering point of view, one of the most difficult and expensive cope with climate change. But given the slowness with which emissions are reduced, there is no other option.

8. An electrocardiogram on the wrist

Technological advances make it easier for people continuous monitoring of their hearts with portable devices.

Smart watches activated to perform electrocardiograms offer the convenience of a portable device with a precision close to medical device, who can also emergency alert or contacts in case of detection of heart failure.

The Apple watch was pioneer in this area, but several companies are developing complementary sensors that can detect certain types of heart failure.

9. Waste treatment without sewers

One of the projects in which Gates is heavily involved is the creation of a new type of toilet that could work without a sewer system and treat the waste in situ.

The lack of an appropriate sanitation system is spreading bacteria, virus and parasites which can cause diarrhea and anger. Diarrhea causes one in nine infant death In the whole world.

Researchers are working to build this new type of toilet It's enough cheap for developing countries that can not only dispose of waste, but also treat it.

In 2011, Gates launched a global challenge reinvent the toilets. Since then, several teams from around the world have realized successful prototypes, although it is still not feasible produce them on a large scale.

10. Virtual Assistants Can Hold Conversations

Alexa, Siri and the Google Assistant they are more and more involved in our lives. However, these systems based on artificial intelligence they recognize only a limited number of guidelines and they stumble easily with the deviations of the tongue.

But certain recent advances are about to expand the repertoire of these virtual badistants, as the technique developed by OpenAI researchers, which will allow them to move from simple commands a keep complete conversations with the robots.

Some of these developments are already used, such as Google Duplex, the human innovation relentless Google Assistant, who can answer phone calls and clbadify them as spam, or you can make calls to make reservations at restaurants or similar places.

But although artificial intelligence programs they improved As to what the user wants, still can not understand a sentence, reflecting how difficult it is to equip machines with a true understanding of language. Once that is crossing this obstacle we will be in the presence of one true revolution.