Weekend Takeaway: Is there life on Mars?


29 Mar 2019

Image: © janez volmajer/Stock.adobe.com

Essential weekend sci-tech reading, from bringing helicopters to Mars, to VR gaming, to tips for a happier working life.

Calling all PhD researchers: Show us your sci-comm talent!

Dr Arlene Gallagher hosts Researchfest 2018. Image: Conor McCabe Photography

Researchfest 2019 calls for entries from smart PhD researchers to share their work at Inspirefest.

Dublin Airport to trial document-free boarding for travel to UK airport

Passengers walking through Dublin Airport with luggage on their way to boarding gates.

Image: DAA

Dublin Airport passengers travelling to Bristol Airport will have the option to be boarded using US facial recognition technology.

Facebook reforms political ad rules ahead of EU elections

A crayon-drawn image of the EU flag with 2019 in its centre in the hand of a person about to cast a vote.

Image: © lefebvre_jonathan/Stock.adobe.com

Proof of residence among stringent new rules to counter any potential ‘gaming’ of Facebook in run-up to European Parliament elections in May.

Mars Helicopter now the ‘real deal’ after successful test flights

NASA researchers in white overalls tinkering with the small Mars Helicopter.

NASA researchers working on the Mars Helicopter. Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech

This week in future tech, NASA gets even closer to the real Mars Helicopter, while the EU plans to slow things down on our roads from 2022.

All-party committee signs off on ‘Good Friday Agreement’ for climate action

Timelapse of busy Irish motorway with trails of headlights following the course of the road.

Image: © Dorota /Stock.adobe.com

From next year, a series of increases for a carbon tax will be introduced as the all-party Committee on Climate Action finally came to an agreement.

Stripe to grow engineering hub in Dublin as it secures e-banking licence

Inside the Stripe offices in Dublin with two male engineers talking and a young woman engineer at work.

Inside Stripe’s Dublin office. Image: Stripe

Local is key to global, according to Stripe’s methodology for growing engineering hubs.

VR game recreates famous Dambusters Word War II ‘Raid on the Ruhr’

Image showing a bomber careening away from an exploding dam.

Image: VR Education

VR Education from Waterford is redefining educational and historical experiences through virtual reality.

The robots are waiting: What’s holding businesses back from automation?

A man holding a coffee cup gets a selfie with a small robot toy while two people wait in the background to take a selfie of their own.

Image: Luke Maxwell/Silicon Republic

Deloitte’s robotics survey reveals the barriers to adoption of robotic process automation globally and in Ireland.

Woman with genetic ‘superpower’ could help usher in new pain medications

Painkiller pills flowing out of an amber plastic container.

Image: © Victor Moussa/Stock.adobe.com

A 71-year-old woman who has lived her life with almost no physical pain or anxiety thanks to a genetic mutation could revolutionise medicine.

Do you want to be happier at work? These tips can help

View of a young smiling man wearing thick-rimmed glasses looking at his co-worker.

Image: © fizkes/Stock.adobe.com

If you’re unhappy in your job, this guide may help you change your circumstances enough to make your situation work better for you.