Tuesday, July 13, 2010
South Korea Deploys Killer Robot In DMZ
shikaisi writes"Not content with just killing people in computer games, South Korea has gone one better and is deploying remotely controlled sentry robots on the border with the north. According to the article 'If the command centre operator cannot identify possible intruders through the robot's audio or video communications system, the operator can order it to fire its gun or 40mm automatic grenade launcher.'"
Larger Head Size May Protect Against Alzheimer's Symptoms
ScienceDaily (July 12, 2010) — New research shows that people with Alzheimer's disease who have large heads have better memory and thinking skills than those with the disease who have smaller heads, even when they have the same amount of brain cell death due to the disease.
Do Home Computers Help Or Hinder Education?
theodp writes"The NY Times reports on economists' efforts to measure a home computer's educational impact on schoolchildren in low-income households. Taking widely varying routes, they are arriving at similar conclusions: little or no educational benefit is found. Worse, computers seem to have further separated children in low-income households, whose test scores often decline after the machine arrives, from their more privileged counterparts. Abroad, researchers found that children in Romanian households who won a $300 voucher to help them buy computers received significantly lower school grades in math, English and Romanian. Stateside, students in a North Carolina study posted significantly lower math test scores after the first broadband provider showed up in their neighborhood, and significantly lower reading scores as well when the number of broadband providers increased. And a Texas study found that 'there was no evidence linking technology immersion with student self-directed learning or their general satisfaction with schoolwork.'"
Monday, July 12, 2010
Amid the Murk of 'Gut Flora,' Vitamin D Receptor Emerges as a Key Player
ScienceDaily (July 8, 2010) — Within the human digestive tract is a teeming mass of hundreds of types of bacteria, a potpourri of microbes numbering in the trillions that help us digest food and keep bad bacteria in check.
Free Clock Democratizes Atomic Accuracy
Posted by samzenpus on Thursday July 08, @08:43AM
from the free-time dept.
from the free-time dept.
schliz writes"A new, trial network of software-based clocks could give data centers and networks the accuracy of an atomic clock for free. The so-called RADclock analyses information from multiple computers across the internet by collecting the time from each machine's internal quartz clock, the time it takes for this information to be transmitted across the network, and comparing all the information collected to determine a time that is most likely to be accurate, so machines are calibrated across the network with up to microsecond accuracy — as good as that provided by a $50,000 atomic clock, researchers say."
Concrete That Purifies the Air
Posted by samzenpus on Thursday July 08, @09:57AM
from the clean-roads dept.
from the clean-roads dept.
fergus07 writes"Although much of the focus of pollution from automobiles centers on carbon emissions, there are other airborne nasties spewing from the tailpipes of fossil fuel-powered vehicles. These include nitrogen oxides (NOx). In the form of nitrogen dioxide it reacts with chemicals produced by sunlight to form nitric acid – a major constituent of acid rain – and also reacts with sunlight, leading to the formation of ozone and smog. Everyone is exposed to small amounts of nitrogen oxides in ambient air, but exposure to higher amounts, in areas of heavy traffic for example, can damage respiratory airways. Testing has shown that surfacing roads with air purifying concrete could make a big contribution to local air purity by reducing the concentration of nitrogen oxides by 25 to 45 percent."
The Proton Just Got Smaller
Posted by samzenpus on Thursday July 08, @12:00PM
from the size-does-matter dept.
from the size-does-matter dept.
inflame writes"A new paper published in Nature has said that the proton may be smaller than we previously thought. The article states 'The difference is so infinitesimal that it might defy belief that anyone, even physicists, would care. But the new measurements could mean that there is a gap in existing theories of quantum mechanics. "It's a very serious discrepancy," says Ingo Sick, a physicist at the University of Basel in Switzerland, who has tried to reconcile the finding with four decades of previous measurements. "There is really something seriously wrong someplace."' Would this indicate new physics if proven?"
Doctor Invents 'Zero Gravity' Radiation Suit
Posted by samzenpus on Thursday July 08, @11:12AM
from the baron-harkonnen-approved dept.
from the baron-harkonnen-approved dept.
DrFrasierCrane writes"You think you feel weighed down when your dentist lays that lead apron on you to take X-rays: how about the doctors who deal with radiation treatments and have to wear those aprons all day long? A Dallas, Texas, doctor has created a 'zero gravity' radiation suit for just that problem. From the article: 'Physicians are supposed to wear a lead apron during those procedures. It is back-breakingly heavy and doesn't cover the body completely. The zero gravity suit eliminates the weight and the exposed openings.'"
Honey as an Antibiotic: Scientists Identify a Secret Ingredient in Honey That Kills Bacteria
ScienceDaily (June 30, 2010) — Sweet news for those looking for new antibiotics: A new research published in the July 2010 print edition of the FASEB Journal explains for the first time how honey kills bacteria. Specifically, the research shows that bees make a protein that they add to the honey, called defensin-1, which could one day be used to treat burns and skin infections and to develop new drugs that could combat antibiotic-resistant infections.
Stanford cuts down on clutter by removing 70,000 books from its Engineering Library
By Vlad Savov 
posted Jul 12th 2010 5:09AM
The Search For the Mount Everest of Caves
NoMeansYes writes"An interview with James Tabor, author of the new best-selling book Blind Descent, introduces a pair of accomplished scientists — American Bill Stone and Ukranian geologist Alexander Klimchouk — who are the two most prominent figures in extreme caving. Both have figured prominently in the ongoing quest to discover the deepest cave on earth. Tabor describes what conditions are like inside supercaves like Cheve (-4,869 feet) and Krubera (-7,188 feet), before discussing Stone and his far-reaching technological innovations. These include the Posideon Discovery Rebreather and NASA's ENDURANCE. Extreme caving probably won't remain underground (so to speak) much longer, however. The article notes that James Cameron is planning to release a 3D film next year about extreme cave divers."
Eye Movements and Sight Distance Reveal How Drivers Negotiate Winding Roads
ScienceDaily (July 6, 2010) — It is well-documented that when negotiating winding roads, drivers tend to look at a specific, well-defined point on the lane marking -- referred to as the tangent point. New research finds that the further drivers can look ahead, generally in left-hand curves, wide curves and when leaving a curve, the less they have to look at the tangent point.
Michael's team won second in the bot-ball tournament!
He said they would have had first if not for a software glitch in the last face off. Congrats Michael!
Some pics and the Blog:
Friday, July 9, 2010
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Burger King uses 'musical shower' as latest trick to entice Japanese clientele
By Vlad Savov posted Jul 8th 2010 7:39AM
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Watch While an Asteroid Eats a Star
ScienceDaily (July 6, 2010) — In a rare event on July 8, 2010, skywatchers will be able to see an asteroid briefly block out the light from a star as it passes in front. It may be the only asteroid 'occultation' this century observable with the naked eye.
Memory Links to 40 Winks
ScienceDaily (July 6, 2010) — When it comes to executing items on tomorrow's to-do list, it's best to think it over, then "sleep on it," say psychologists at Washington University in St. Louis.
French Company Offers Kidnapping Vacations
Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday July 07, @11:50AM
from the all-tied-up dept.
A French company is offering people the chance to get away from it all and be bound and gagged for a day. The company will abduct you without warning, and hold you prisoner for up to 10 hours. The kidnapping packages were among many unique vacations unveiled at the Tourism Futures conference in Brisbane.
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