(Re)Share | #38 - Pro terraforma
Mantle rain | Explainable AI | Solar shades | Cloud brightening | Solar farming | BCI
It’s been a few weeks since the last (Re)Share due to full force travel. Since last we spoke I’ve been in Chicago, NYC, Berlin, London, NYC again and soon to be Paris. This would all be a lot more glamorous if I didn’t exclusively fly economy but this is the life I’ve chosen. Lots of interesting deep tech stuff this month so let’s get into it!
Stuff Worth Sharing
Deep dive - One of the more out-there companies that I’m looking at has me investigating Earth’s water cycle, but not the one you’re thinking of. Research on water subduction suggests that the sediment layers that make up the Earth’s mantle (~410km below the surface ) might actually be rich with an ocean’s worth of water. Not in its liquid phase but more of a semi-liquidized goop called Ringwoodite. This water-rich mineral could actually have a significant impact in the stability of ocean levels and is believed to be the underlying reason why oceans have remained stable over millions of years. In theory, the Earth could actually have a nearly inexhaustible water supply if detection and extraction methods advance (watch this space). You can find a more detailed paper here.
Welcome with open arms - The US has exempted the UK and Australia from the very laborious International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) requirements. The framework controls the import and export of defense products. While this may sound reasonable, in practice, it extends to nearly any product directly related to the space industry. Until now, selling to US customers—whether government or private sector—immediately triggered compliance restrictions, compelling any spacetech startup to be US-based from day one or to ignore the single biggest market for the sector. This change will be a huge boon to the UK’s still nascent defense tech scene!
What’s in the box?! - Anthropic released research that seeks to answer the question of how LLMs think. Building on the October 2023 study, the team extracted millions of features from the middle layer of the Claude 3.0 Sonnet to understand which features were most triggered by a given input or parameter. Think of it kind of like an MRI—where we can see which parts of the brain light up with electrical activity based on what we’re thinking about. Measuring both the strength of feature response and the associated 'distance' of other concepts begins to form a map of how LLMs actually function above the neuron layer.
Throwing shade - As some readers may know, I have a growing investment interest in geo-engineering—as a means to combat the effects of global warming. Perhaps the most ambitious approach is orbital sun shields: celestial crafts that can expand and retract a giant shade to control the solar radiation reaching Earth. This paper presents a design for such a shield, with a specific focus on the orbital placement of the main craft and a tether counterweight. For the shade to be effective, it would need to be placed far outside of Geostationary Orbit (GEO), so to remain 'fixed,' a counterweight would require a different orbital speed. For those interested this paper introduced me to Lagrange points.
Silver lining - A more down-to-Earth (😏) solution for geo-engineering is marine cloud brightening (MCB), which involves spraying sea salt particles into clouds over oceans to increase their reflectance of sunlight, thus cooling the surface of the Earth. While this method has limitations in its overall impact, it could be a highly effective tactical solution to prevent climate tipping points. The focus of this research is on the impact of specific latitudinal lines and how this relates to effectiveness. TL;DR - deployment in the Southeast Pacific region is by far the most impactful. Unlike other methods mentioned in this newsletter, MCB has a much more localized effect, enabling a stronger ability to track related impacts and prevent negative externalities.
Slow cooker - Research from the Department of Ecology claims that it takes about 10 years for a given ton of CO2 emissions to reach its maximum warming effect. This is due to multiple flywheel effects that naturally occur in Earth’s atmosphere, serving as a sobering reminder that even if we magically cut all emissions today, we would continue to see temperatures rise for at least a few more years. The positive spin on this is that most people will see the results of their own emissions reductions within their lifetime. Unless you’re super old, but then you’re probably not reading this newsletter anyway.
Walking on sunshine - The EU set a record for solar installation last year. Over 56 gigawatts (GW) of capacity was installed, marking the third consecutive year of 40%+ growth. Germany led the way, followed by Spain with 8.2 GW, Italy with 4.8 GW, Poland with 4.6 GW, and the Netherlands with 4.1 GW. Collectively, this translates to approximately 17 million more European homes now being powered through renewable sources.
On my mind - Precision, a NY-based brain computer interface (BCI) company, set a new world record for the most neuron-dense brain electrode device. This 4096-electrode marvel, one fifth the thickness of a human hair, is designed to lay atop the brain but not penetrate it. This non-invasive architecture is the foundational purpose of the company and distinguishes Precision from its rival, Neuralink, where the founder previously worked. While the Elon-backed company may have a more impressive clinical impact (see past post), a non-invasive modality would radically expand the medical applicability and patient adoption.
Make a splash - SpaceX’s fourth test flight of its Starship/Super Heavy Booster took place last week with massive success. Both the rocket and the 165-foot-tall spacecraft completed a splashdown landing in the ocean, marking a significant milestone in reusability functionality, which has transformed the company into the juggernaut it is today. Ten minutes of coverage, including liftoff, separation, and the joyous reaction to the booster rocket splashdown, can be found here.
Portfolio Flex
Palisade co-founder Manthan Dave attended Consensus 2024 and was interviewed on NASDAQ TradeTalks to discuss the company’s cutting edge Web3 custodial infrastructure.
Transcelestial is on a tear. In the last month they’ve announced two major collaborations for their laser-based communications and bandwidth technology.
Axiom Space to redefine space communications in Southeast Asia.
Far EasTone to deliver stable connectivity over water without fiber cables.