Wilson da Silva
Bio
Wilson da Silva is a science journalist in Sydney | www.wilsondasilva.com | https://bit.ly/3kIF1SO
Stories (41/0)
Why Are Cities Unhealthy? Poor Biodiversity
EVEN ON A BLUSTERY winter’s afternoon, Mount Lofty flaunts its splendour as a bushland oasis, one of the last vestiges of the original forests and woodlands that once dotted the Adelaide Plains of South Australia. As you meander down the narrow tracks from the summit, you feel invigorated by the scenery, the silence, and the smell of wet earth after a light shower. To a city dweller like me, the air itself seems therapeutic.
By Wilson da Silva3 years ago in Earth
The Promise of Social Robots
THERE IS SOMETHING unnerving about Geminoid F. She breathes, blinks, smiles, sighs, frowns, and speaks in a soft, considered tone. On the surface, she appears to be a Japanese woman in her 20s, about 165 cm tall with long dark hair, brown eyes and soft pearly skin. She breathes, blinks, smiles, sighs, frowns, and her lips move when she speaks in a soft, considered tone.
By Wilson da Silva3 years ago in Futurism
Spinal Surgery: Observing a Five-Hour Procedure
“YOU’VE NEVER SEEN an operation before?” asked Dr Chris Pike as we entered Theatre One at the Prince of Wales Children’s Hospital in Sydney, Australia. “Well, you’ve picked just about the most gruesome one for starters.”
By Wilson da Silva3 years ago in Longevity
Why Japan Fears Not the Robot
WHY ARE WE so afraid of robots? It’s not just anxiety about the job-killing potential of creeping automation and the rise of artificial intelligence that makes people fear robots: it’s deeply embedded in Western culture. Yet in Japan, they are adored.
By Wilson da Silva3 years ago in 01
- Top Story - May 2021
Radiance: The Brilliant Career of Marie CurieTop Story - May 2021
AN AILING François Mitterrand, in the final weeks of his last term as French president, finally made amends for centuries of Gallic sexism. At an April 1995 ceremony in the Panthéon, the great monument to French national heroes, he enshrined the ashes of Marie Curie — the first woman to be so honoured for her achievements.
By Wilson da Silva3 years ago in FYI
The Race to Build a Quantum Computer in Silicon
ANDREA MORELLO is not what you expect when you think of quantum computing. Tall, lizard-thin and sporting a luxuriant ponytail and greying goat-patch beneath his lower lip, in skin-tight pants and a pendant, he has an intense gaze that could almost hold you in a trance.
By Wilson da Silva3 years ago in 01
Experimental Cancer Therapy Is Blowing Expectations Away
A RESEARCHER sees a patient’s most painful and intimate moments when developing new treatments for cancer. Working assiduously to improve those treatments, some progress is made. Occasionally, there are miracles.
By Wilson da Silva3 years ago in Longevity
CSIRAC: World’s Last Surviving 1st Generation Computer
THE WORLD WAS a different place in 1949: vinyl LP records had just been invented, the now-iconic Volkswagen Kombi van debuted on the market, the world’s first jet-powered airliner took its maiden flight, and the People’s Republic of China was proclaimed by Mao Zedong.
By Wilson da Silva3 years ago in 01