I went to Amazon's high-tech hair salon and virtually dyed my hair pink — then got the best haircut I've ever had

In the spring of 2021, Amazon opened a hair salon in a trendy London neighborhood. The Amazon Salon is equipped with several screens that provide information about different shampoos and other hair products on display at the site. But they also (more importantly) allow customers to use an augmented reality app to test different hair colors and styles in real time. The Business Insider journalist chose to keep her natural color. She was pleased with her cut, performed by a regular hairdresser.

Note from the archivist: "So very Flat Eye," says an anonymous developer on the Monkey Moon forum.

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Scientists 3D print living brain cells

A team of scientists has successfully 3D printed living mouse braincells. "Most" of the neurons survived. The researchers tempered their success, explaining that while the long-term goal is to 3D print cells to treat neurodegenerative diseases, for example, they are currently far from being able to do so. In the meantime, the experiment aims to help advance research.

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Pig Kidney Successfully Transplanted From Hog to Human

A medical advance in xenotransplants: a pig kidney was transplanted to a braindead woman and functioned normally for 54 hours. The patient's ventilator was unplugged after that, leading to her death. The operation was carried out in New York City at an NYU facility thanks to a grant from United Therapeutics. The company's CEO, Martine Rothblatt, is a self-avowed transhumanist who hopes to build pig farms for transplant purposes.

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In Iceland, CO2 sucked from the air is turned to rock

One of the methods being tested to reduce CO2 levels in the atmosphere is Direct Air Capture (DAC). A company called Orca has built a plant in southeast Iceland that captures atmospheric carbon. Climeworks, a Swiss competitor has also opened a plant in Iceland. Once captured, the carbon is stored underground, where it takes to years to petrify. The CO2 will remain there unless it's disturbed by a volcanic eruption.

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Crypto Investors Buy 40 Acres of Land in Wyoming to Build Blockchain City

CityDAO (for Decentralized Autonomous Organization, a blockchain-based voting system and entity) wants to build a "crypto city" managed by a DAO. The group has acquired 40 acres of land in Wyoming, which recognizes DAOs as companies. Members can purchase NFTs to obtain voting rights and the ability to settle land.

Note from the archivist: Not much has changed a year on.

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Alphabet is launching a company that uses AI for drug discovery

Google's parent company, Alphabet, is investing in Demis Hassabis's vision for artificial intelligence. Hassabis, who already heads up DeepMind, the Alphabet subsidiary that uses AI to extrapolate protein structures, will now also run Isomorphic Laboratories. This new Alphabet subsidiary will use AI to develop new medicines by predicting how the body will react.

Note from the archivist: Demis Hassabis started his career as a video game developer, working most notably on the games Theme Park and Evil Genius. As I write this, DeepMind has just published a database containing the structure of almost every known protein.

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A New Origami Lunar Habitat Can Unfold Into 750 Times Its Own Size

Danish architecture firm Saga has become a specialist in designing habitats for the Moon and Mars. One of its projects, Lunark, could house two people on the Moon. It is foldable, for easy transporation, but can nevertheless withstand high pressure. The Lunark testers, who spent 60 days inside the module in Greenland, found that it intrigued a polar bear.

Note from the archivist: Since then, Saga has unveiled a new prototype: Rosie. This time it's not foldable; it can be 3D printed in a single piece and is designed to be transported by space shuttle.

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Elle avale son AirPod au lieu d’un médicament et envoie un message vocal depuis son ventre

An American woman accidentally swallowed a bluetooth earbud, mistaking it for a pill. She realized her error when she used Apple's Find Airbuds feature, which made it beep from inside her body. She has since expelled it naturally, but she never reused it.

Note from the archivist: She tells her story on her TikTok account @iamcarliiib. The tale inspired a Flat Eye story line.

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Electric cars with sound by composer Hans Zimmer

How can we make electric vehicles as loud as cars with combustion engines? BMW has entrusted award-winning composer Hams Zimmer with creating sounds for its electric cars. Zimmer has designed "sound worlds" for the inside of the car depending on the selected "driving mode" as well as an engine sound projected outside the car.

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