(2:30 a.m. Sunday Night)

It's the last week of Singularity University. We've been working in our individual group projects around the clock for three weeks. I am a part of the UpCycle group which is working to reduce waste and look at waste as valuable opportunity. 

Last week, at SU, one of my team members (Let's call him Robot Brad) logged into a webpage from a remote location and visited us at Singularity. He wondered the halls and talked to us through the Willow Garage Telepresence robot called Texai.

I caught the robot invasion on video below: 

It is not everyday a girl gets to play in a jet engine! My friend Chiara and I spent the evening at the Aviation Museum learning about The Future of Cities with Paul Romer, Greg Lindsay, Alex Garvin. 

We had fun exploring the museum and gathered insight into designing future cities. My favorite talk was Greg Lindsay who talked about Aerotropolis, which is about building cities around airports. It may sound crazy, but as we become come more and more global it only makes sense to live near an airport so you can get to where you want to go. 

The vision of housing growth around airports makes me wonder about the future value of current and historic houses and communities? 

Before leaving for Singularity University, I had the pleasure of shooting a new TV show for WEtv called "Put A Ring On It"

The show consists of me, as the Technology Expert; Diana Falzone, the Relationship Expert; and Thomas Henderson, the Stylist. Guys looking to propose to their girlfriends come to us and we help him create an unforgettable wedding proposal. 

In the pilot, we helped Michael surprise his girlfriend by freezing time while he proposed. I had to fight back the tears as I watched this moment happen in person. It was so sweet and I promise will brighten up your day! 

"Put a Ring On It" was produced and directed by Michael Krivicka and James L. Percelay at thinkmodo. 

The 7 minute pilot episode received 100,000 views on YouTube (watch) only one month after it was posted. Thousands of Facebook shares, hundreds of Twitter tweets, numerous articles & blog posts, and several TV news segments created a highly effective buzz for the show.

One of the main topics of discussion here at SU is the concept of open source science and its affect on the future. You can now create and manipulate DNA in your garage or with your local community. This idea is generating excitement and fear. As the sciences become more accessible some people are reveling in the creativity of creating DNA art, while others are fearing a crazy viral outbreak or mutant rat take over. 

If you want to know more about what is happening in this area, The First Open Source Sciences Summit is shared online today. They are discussing how open source sciences push scientific exploration and innovation through open collaborative processes. The sciences included quantum computing, DIY biology, mathmatics, informatics, and much more. 

Watch the summit right NOW, here is the link!  http://fora.tv/live/open_science/open_science_summit_2010

The classes we’re having down here at Singularity University are really amazing. It’s a unique opportunity to listen to speakers who blow your mind. I must confess, however, that there’s something I’m quite worried about: When taking some distance from what is going on at the classes, you can notice that, hard as we may try, we students don’t manage to pay attention for an extended period of time.

It seems as if the culture of brevity reflected on Twitter or TED (the shorter the better) had destructed our capacity to stay focused for more than just a couple of minutes.

Maybe it’s because it’s been a long time since I last stepped into a classroom. Or it might be because at that time we didn’t have personal computers on our desks. Or perhaps it was because even if we had one, there was no internet to put the whole world just one click away. Truth is that my prior experiences on what it means to be “a student” consisted in 40 minutes to 2 hours sitted, paying close attention most of the time.

 (Photography by Matt Rutherford)  

For the past three weeks, I've been feeling good and learning a lot. I've also been wearing awesome clothes by Alex & Eli. Everyday, I feel sexy and comfortable. Alex & Eli bring together a perfect mix of contemporary colors, classic tailoring, and natural fabrics. This is seriously the best label for creative and professional women who also want to have a little fun. In the pictures, I am wearing the summer collection, but I can't wait for the Fall. Check it out now on the official Alex & Eli website.

Andy Barry who runs the innovations lab here at Singularity University is working on an amazing 3D scanner that you can build with easily found parts. He is developing a kit. Watch the video below as I get scanned into cyberspace with his homemade gadget costing less than $400.

When I was scanned, all I could think about was the TV Series, Caprica, where people's images are scanned into the computer and they hook up to the computer and play in the virtual world. 

What do you think it would be like to see your exact image wondering around the virtual space? Could people replicate your image and be you? How would you control the rights to your image? If you controlled it, would you do things you've never done before because it is just a replica of your outer self and not actually your soul? What happens if we download data to this 3D virtual self from our own brains?

This may all sound far fetched, but it only takes a few technologies to grow and become cheaper for this scenario to become a reality. Today, for example, the majority of 3D scanners are professional and can range in cost from $1.6K to $9K. However, as seen in the video above, cheaper options are coming soon. 

It's easy for candy-colored fiber optic fashions to come off as hokey and garish, but Francesca Castagnacci brings a touch of elegance with her techno-stilletos.

via: Inhabitat