# Key Points from #hplusroadmap IRC Discussions

- A breakthrough medical study in the New England Journal of Medicine demonstrated using fMRI to establish communication with patients in vegetative states, representing a significant advancement in brain-computer interfaces for severely disabled individuals.

- Intel's "Single-Chip Cloud Computer" with 48 cores was highlighted as a major advancement in computing hardware, potentially enabling new capabilities for distributed computing applications.

- Google announced plans to offer 1 gigabit/second internet connections to select US cities, signaling a potential leap forward in consumer internet infrastructure that could enable new applications and services.

- Bitcoin was discussed as an emerging cryptocurrency solution, with debate focusing on its "one CPU one vote" design, concerns about incentivizing "unchecked CPU wastage," and questions about its economic model allowing money creation "from thin air."

- The "quantified life" concept was referenced in relation to an H+ Magazine article about self-tracking technologies, highlighting growing interest in personal health monitoring systems.

- SKDB (Skill Database), an open-source project for describing physical objects and manufacturing processes, was discussed including funding developments and implementation challenges for digital fabrication.

- Participants criticized current 3D file formats, specifically noting that DXF format is "worse than STL" for 3D modeling, indicating ongoing standardization challenges in digital fabrication technologies.