This week, there have been medical advances with the first ever stem cells produced from human blood, as well as the successful 3D printing of ovaries that have produced healthy mice. Elsewhere, China has broadened its software patent guidelines—could this mean more US software companies filing patents there?
IP
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China opens doors to software patents
Earlier last month, the State Intellectual Property Office in China released new patentability guidelines. These widened the rules for software-related inventions to include patents for computer programs and business methods.
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Apple has been granted a patent for a borderless screen
Apple has been granted a new patent which hints at a device (potentially the new iPhone) with a larger, borderless screen and embedded fingerprint scanner. This would improve the size of the display without increasing the width of the device.
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End of the MP3
Key MP3 audio format patents expired last month. The patent holder, Fraunhofer Institute, has confirmed it will not renew the patent and has terminated its licensing program.
Tech
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Google makes Kotlin a first-class language for android apps
Google announced earlier this week that it’s making Kotlin—a statically typed programming language for the Java Virtual Machine—a first-class language for writing android apps.
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Scientists develop a way to split water for fuel
Scientists from the University of Houston have developed a catalyst for splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen. This cheap method could mean that clean hydrogen could be used as fuel in the future.
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Teenager builds world’s lightest satellite
Rifath Sharook, a teenage scientist at Space Kidz India, has built the world’s lightest satellite which will be launched by NASA. It’s made from 3D-printed carbon fibre and weighs 64 grams.
Medical
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3D printed ovaries produce healthy mice
A team of scientists at Northwestern University of Chicago has 3D printed ovary structures for mice and implanted them in mice without ovaries. The mice can ovulate and give birth to healthy offspring.
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First ever lab produced stem cells from human blood
Scientists from Boston and New York have transformed mature cells into primordial blood cells that generate themselves. This gives hope to people with blood disorders, who need bone-marrow transplants but cannot find a compatible donor.
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Scar tissue remedy from mussels
Scientists from Pohang University of Science and Technology in South Korea have found a way to heal scar tissue. They have discovered a particular protein in mussel glue that can help heal scars by preventing the clumping of collagen.
