One in fifty people in the United States is suffering from some form of paralysis. According to the New York Times, they have gotten this way predominantly from a spinal cord injury or a stroke. Doctors have been hard at work trying to let these people live a normal life once again. A new wearable exoskeleton has given paraplegics with strength in their arms the ability to walk once again. While a huge step, it does nothing for those who have lost communication between their arms and their brain. A huge step towards reestablishing that connection took place this week. A field called neuroprosthetics could be the promising wave of the future.

Everyone remembers the horrific BP oil spill of 2010. At first, there was widespread panic about how we could possibly clean up all of the oil in the most vital fishing port in the United States. We were exposed to unbelievably sad photos of various creatures covered in gunk. We were then informed by the media that the clean-up efforts were going extremely well, and that we were nearing conditions similar to what they were prior to the oil spill. Since that time, the non-gulf public has gone about living their lives and eating their seafood, but what most don’t realize is that the problem is far from over.

In a shining example of the importance of an exact keyword domain name for a business, it has been confirmed that the domain name PrivateJet.com has been sold for just over $30 Million USD. PrivateJet.com is one of the most premium pieces of online real estate around; not only is a private jet one of the most expensive and luxurious things you can own, there are over 300,000 Google searches for that term per month.

Tupac Shakur is one of the greatest musicians, lyricists, and performers of all time, and to see him seemingly alive and kickin’ sixteen years after his tragic death is definitely worthy of the world spotlight. The epic performance of Tupac and Snoop Dogg at Coachella in California will live on in history for a number of reasons, but what it really did was shed some light on one of the coolest forms of future technology that could be in our living rooms soon. Holograms and Telepresence are about to become a major part of the way we live our everyday lives. We are nearing an age where will be able to trick ourselves into thinking people and objects are there that aren’t.

Many remedies for diseases have been tested on animals, and this has been the cause of much uproar amongst animal rights activists. Even with evolving technology, this is still the most effective method to date. It’s no doubt sad to see animals have to deal with this, but this kind of experimentation leads to incredible breakthroughs.

Astounde covered a story last month of how scientists had perhaps unlocked the code to combatting seven different types of cancer, as well as lymphoma and leukemia. The treatment effectively stopped the growth of cancerous human tumors that had been implanted in mice. Official human trials are slated for the near future. Another breakthrough of similar significance occurred this week.

Humans have been grounded for most of their existence. From Nostradamus and beyond, humans have dreamed of sprouting wings and touching the clouds. When the Wright brothers first got off the ground and into the air in 1903, the course of human histroy changed forever. Now you’re considered an oddity if you haven’t floated up above the clouds and seen the Earth from a stratospheric perspective.

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The initial taste of flight has spawned an incredible addiction for many human beings. The limits of what our bodies can handle are being pushed to the extreme; we are discovering new ways of getting airborne. In the future, we will take off vertically from a standstill. Gravity may become a thing of the past. Here are a few examples of how this hover technology is making it’s way into our lives today and in the future.

Heart complications have been plagued humanity since the dawn of time. 300,000 people with heart disease die each year. Options to fix various heart conditions have been severely limited. Even with advancements in heart transplant science, the supply of available organs cannot come close to meeting the demand. There are currently over 100,000 patients waitlisted to receive an annual supply of 2,200 hearts. That means that only 2.2% of people who need a heart will get one.

Normally the human heart pumps blood throughout our system using a set of cardiac muscles. These muscles subconsciously squeeze and push blood through each of our four chambers in a coordinated fashion. Each muscular squeeze allows for efficient blood circulation through the body, and can be heard as a beat.

With the world moving to the internet via computer, TV, or phone, domain names are as becoming more important than ever. Once you own a domain name, all you must do is pay for its renewal each year, and you’ll own it forever. Domain names that receive a lot of traffic are similar to a popular mall or tourist destination; they get access to a lot of visitors, and their wallets as well.

Early-adopters known as domain investors or ‘domainers’ have made a living off of owning premium domain names. Premium generic terms such as credit, jobs, and law reign supreme. Originally based on the core of .com, .org, and .net, the internet is rapidly expanding, creating many more opportunities to own a corner of the web.

Overflowing landfills are a huge problem in the U.S. and worldwide. Scientists may have discovered an innovative way to dispose of much of the plastic, but a lot of trash still remains.

Everything we buy usually comes packaged in some form of non-biodegradable padding or casing, including boxes, bags, wrappers, and foam. We throw it away without even thinking about it, but trash from packaging is adding up. By weight, 50% of all of the trash in the United States is from packaging. The average American throws away their own weight in packaging every 30-40 days! Some of the smarter people in the world have begun to take notice, and are doing some big things about it.

With the news today of Facebook acquiring internet photo site Instagram.com for a cool billion, here’s a comprehensive list of the best things $1 billion can buy you in 2012.