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In this latest episode of Future Future, Phnam Bagley (Creative Director of Nonfiction and an actual Space Architect) and Mardis Bagley (Creative Director of Nonfiction and a Professor specializing in Sustainability) tell you why the future of space is bright, what we can expect, and what we need to do to get there.

NASA is using origami to build a giant star blocker, in hopes of imaging distant worlds. Check out a origami model starshede here: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/learn/project/space-origami-make-your-own-starshade/

University of Washington researchers have developed a novel solution to help reduce impact forces — for potential applications in spacecraft, cars and beyond. And the new approach was inspired by origami.

Discover how NASA’s Earth-observing satellites gather data to monitor food growth. Dr. Inbal Becker-Reshef describes how mathematics is used to interpret satellite data and describe vegetation and crop yield. Dr. Hannah Kerner shares how algorithms and models use NASA data to describe and predict food supply and food shortages. This work through NASA Harvest provides […]

No matter where plants grow, they have the same basic needs: water, nutrients, light, temperature, and atmosphere. No matter where humans may live, they need plants. Dr. Gioia Massa explains how NASA grows plants on the International Space Station in preparation for growing plants beyond Earth and, someday, on the Moon and Mars. Jacob Torres […]

NASA encouraging everyone to grow chile plants after space experiment

How did we feed humanity’s growing population in the early 1900s? How will we feed our growing population in the very near future? Revolutionary technologies like hydroponics will enable us to feed people wherever they are – whether in food deserts, on the Moon, or even on Mars. In this episode of Future Future, hosts […]

Planet Earth is beautiful, but she’s suffering. We’re polluting ecosystems. Displacing people because of climate change. And we’re seeing species disappearing every day at alarming rates. This needs to stop. In this episode of Future Future, hosts Phnam and Mardis Bagley cover the myths and misconceptions around the word, “sustainability,” and instead advocate for regeneration. Then, […]

Design is powerful. But if you’re not designing to positively impact humans and the environment, then you shouldn’t be designing. At Nonfiction, we think about systems around the product that we design. Where do the materials come from? How are they being transformed? How do they impact the lives of the people they’re designed for? What […]

Pre-historic humans designed the sewing needle to survive the elements, and started planting crops to feed their growing tribes. Today, we have customized transformative technology to help us perform better, like the Oura Ring and Fitbit. And soon, we’ll have AI and machine learning powered technology to help us become even healthier and happier. In […]

Real World: TriATHLETE – The Engineering Design Process in Action (Video) See the engineering design process in action at Desert RATS, or Research and Technology Studies, in Arizona. Learn about the next generation of the ATHLETE vehicle. See how the original design changed to allow a split into two robots and the addition of unique […]

Astronauts Tom Marshburn and Matthias Maurer discuss how engineers use the nine steps of the engineering design process to create solutions to technical problems. Watch Tom and Matthias aboard the International Space Station to see how technology was engineered for the station’s microgravity environment and learn how station technology continues to evolve, meeting the ever-changing […]

Experience Earth, our solar system, nearby asteroids, the universe, and the spacecraft exploring them with immersive real-time 3D web-based apps. Start exploring your solar system now! https://science.nasa.gov/eyes/

Danielle Wood leads the Space Enabled research group at the MIT Media Lab, where she works to tear down the barriers that limit the benefits of space exploration to only the few, the rich or the elite. She identifies six technologies developed for space exploration that can contribute to sustainable development across the world — […]

Those who’ve long dreamed of humans becoming a truly spacefaring race argue that exploring space provides down-to-earth benefits in areas such as health, mining and security. And more inspirational benefits, too. Here are some of the most compelling arguments for continuing the exploration of space. https://science.howstuffworks.com/10-reasons-space-exploration-matters.htm

Like many other modern marvels, space exploration has yielded huge technological benefits for humankind, but it can’t help but have the same major side effect as many other advances: It has left a trail of garbage in its groundbreaking wake. Check out this interactive on space debris and why we should care. https://static.scientificamerican.com/sciam/assets/media/multimedia/0212-spacejunk/space-junk.html

Though an industrial designer by training, Seoul-based Beomseok Chae makes no bones about these pieces being art furniture. Inspired by sci-fi in general as well as movies like “Interstellar” and “Blade Runner 2049,” Chae’s Post-Collapse collection applies the genre’s design cues to unlikely furniture creations. https://www.core77.com/posts/120373/Sci-Fi-Inspired-Industrial-Designer-Creates-Space-Age-Furniture#

We know pollution is a problem on earth, but we’re filling space with our junk too. And if we don’t figure out a way to clean up space junk, we could end our interstellar dreams before they even get started. Today, we’re visiting some cool engineers in Switzerland to learn about the space junk problem […]

A NASA mission to harvest Hatch green chiles in space just might help farmers on earth adapt their growing methods.

These four artists are merging art with technology in the most creative ways. While Geoffrey Drake-Drockman builds interactive cybernetic sculptures, the artists at Factum Arte painstakingly produce replicas of Egyptian art. Janet Echelman weaves massive installations out of high-tech fiber originally made for NASA, and coder Miral Kotb lights up the dance world with wearable […]

In a time of much reckoning over American history, there are questions raised anew about what a monument is and who should be honored. A new exhibition in Los Angeles explores that, in what is known as “augmented reality.” Jeffrey Brown has a look for our arts and culture series, “CANVAS.”

Most people think of augmented reality as visual, but artist Max Frimout finds this a limited take on AR. He finds sound and how it interacts with your physical positioning as a listener much more interesting. During Hybrid Music Vibes, Frimout has further developed the concept of the Odio app, an app which allows the […]

This article by the BBC looks at Acute Art and other AR artists using technology to connect to each other. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-56123958.amp

Explore artist Tamiko Theil’s AR installation at the Whitney. Tamiko Thiel’s Unexpected Growth uses augmented reality (AR)—the overlay of virtual elements onto physical reality—to create a parallel dimension of organic growth for the Whitney’s Floor 6 outdoor gallery. Through this work, Thiel highlights the inherent connection between natural processes and the generative qualities of code […]

“One of the most accessible, but at the same time impressive ways to marry art and tech is AR (augmented reality). Everyone has a computer in their pocket with a powerful camera that can act as a portal into the parallel reality where your act takes place.” Check out this article on Medium about some […]

A simple introduction to sustainable development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The film is produced by Animaskin on behalf of UN Association of Norway and UNICEF Norway, as part of an interdisciplinary learning program for students on primary and secondary level.

Check out these comic books released by NASA on Astrobiology, Becoming an Astrobiologist and more! https://astrobiology.nasa.gov/resources/graphic-histories/

Dr. Andrea Albert answers the question in this physics snippet.

Dr. Andrea Albert talks about visible light and atoms in this physics snippet.

Ramblings of an astrophysicist — astrophysics for people in a hurry! Check out Dr. Andrea Alberts’s Youtube channel! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtba-nPOuL_fY_ITz2S7uJg

In the largest study of its kind, scientists are coming closer to understanding exactly how space affects the human body.

“Over centuries of evolution, humans’ pattern recognition skills determined natural selection. Hunters skilled at spotting prey and predator and telling poisonous plants from healthy ones offered them a better chance of survival than those blind to the patterns. It enabled the survivors to pass on those pattern-friendly genes to future generations.” (Neil deGrasse Tyson, 2015) […]

Biomimicry design, explained with 99% Invisible.

There’s a lot of trash on the Moon right now – including nearly 100 bags of human waste – and with countries around the globe traveling to the Moon, there’s going to be a lot more, both on the lunar surface and in Earth’s orbit. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/analysis-why-trash-in-space-is-a-major-problem-with-no-clear-fix

Is the idea of humans venturing into space a frivolous waste of time and resources? No! It’s about more than just sending people into space. It’s about pushing the boundaries of what’s possible, and using that knowledge to improve life on Earth. From developing new technologies that solve problems on Earth, to inspiring future generations […]

Sustainability is an ideal. Its principles reinforce that everything you do has consequences, even when they’re hidden from view. Its worldview imbues you, as either a consumer or producer, with a clear, undeniable sense of responsibility. It gives you a role—to change how you think, what you make, and what you buy—and confirms that your […]

In September 2015 the United Nations made history – 193 member states unanimously adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): seventeen goals that the world aspires to achieve by 2030. These goals aim to economically develop the world in a way that eliminates poverty, respects planetary boundaries and leaves no one behind. The international community agreed […]

The 2030 Agenda and its 17 Goals for Sustainable Development are an ambitious commitment of the world community to ensure sustained and economic growth, social inclusion and environmental protection. At the heart of the Agenda are 5 critical components: People, Prosperity, Peace, Partnership & Planet. Learn more about the dimensions of the 2030 Agenda in […]

The importance of the role of space applications such as Earth Observation (EO) and geolocation (provided by Global Navigation Satellite Systems known as GNSS) in supporting the achievement of the development goals is recognized by the United Nations (see General Assembly resolution A/RES/70/1: Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development ). However, the […]

How old is the universe, and how did it begin? Throughout history, countless myths and scientific theories have tried to explain the universe’s origins. The most widely accepted explanation is the big bang theory. Learn about the explosion that started it all and how the universe grew from the size of an atom to encompass […]

Future space missions aim to reach Mars and beyond, but many challenges must be overcome before this can be achieved – and nanomaterials will play a critical role. From bio-nano robot-laced spacesuits, to radiation shielding, to new means of travelling into space, research employing nanomaterials is underway. https://www.azonano.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=4983

Planck data reveals that the universe’s contents include 4.9% ordinary matter, or atoms, the building blocks of stars and planets. Dark matter comprises 26.8% of the universe. This matter, different from atoms, does not emit or absorb light. It has only been detected indirectly by its gravity. 68.3% of the universe, is composed of “dark […]

The hunt for elusive neutrinos will soon get its largest and most powerful tool yet: the enormous KM3NeT telescope, currently under development by a consortium of 40 institutions from ten European countries. Once completed KM3NeT will be the second-largest structure ever made by humans, after the Great Wall of China, and taller than the Burj […]

Artists have been putting extended reality (XR) technologies such as AR and virtual reality (VR) to use for decades, but AR has seen a recent surge of interest from various industries. https://www.artnews.com/art-in-america/features/augmented-reality-art-1234581120/

NASA is committed to recognizing and respecting the sovereignty of Indian nations, their rights to self-determination and self-governance, and to fulfilling federal trust responsibilities through environmental stewardship, consideration of the communities surrounding NASA facilities, and the protection and preservation of tribal rights, lands, and resources. 

For the first time in decades, NASA is planning to send astronauts back to the moon. Their spacesuits will be very different from what Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin wore when they walked the lunar surface in 1969. Spacesuits today are thinner and lighter, while still making sure astronauts can complete tasks and stay alive. […]

Living in space could have significant physical and mental impacts on astronauts. Wearables have the potential to play a critical role in monitoring, supporting, and sustaining human life in space, lessening the need for human medical expert intervention. https://www.media.mit.edu/projects/bio-digital-wearables/overview/

For more than 50 years, NASA’s Human Research Program (HRP) has studied what happens to the human body in space. Researchers are using what they learn to design procedures, devices, and strategies to keep astronauts safe and healthy throughout their missions.

During the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo missions, one of NASA’s concerns was the safety of its crews, something it monitored rigorously through the use of biomedical instrumentation. As initial flight planning commenced in 1959, biomedical equipment capable of transmitting from space did not exist. NASA quickly brought together medical staff and hardware engineers to develop […]

If you ever thought the periodic table was a boring collection of elements that has nothing to do with your life, this app will show you otherwise. “NOVA Elements” lets you explore an interactive periodic table, build the elements, play a game hosted by technology columnist David Pogue, and watch the two-hour NOVA program, “Hunting […]