Category Archives
Nerd Alert!
ScienceNext Up, Warp Speed
We always thought this was the thing of make believe, but “Star Wars” may be coming to a different kind of theater soon. The military is testing laser weapons to use in combat. The technology has been around for about 50 years but designers have just recently been able to harness enough power to create a sort of laser blaster, not uncommon to the death rays made famous by Darth Vader. [USA Today]
Posted 2:57 PM | Friday, May 14th, 2010 | Permalink
Source: wikicommons/wiki
Double Ds in 3D
Playboy founder Hugh Hefner asked himself, "What would people most like to see in 3-D?" He then answered himself, "Probably a naked lady." And that's what Playboy "readers" will get in the new June edition, which hits Friday: a seemingly blurry centerfold and a pair 3D glasses. [AP]
Posted 6:32 PM | Tuesday, May 11th, 2010 | Permalink
What’s Ghandi’s Email Address, Again?
Just about everything has found a home online, even protest movements, it turns out. “Electronic civil disobedience” has replaced the kind popularized by Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. The paper profiles a University of California professor who help fund the Electronic Disturbance Theater, which carries out online protests by “flood[ing] network servers with automatic ‘reload’ requests that can disrupt and slow systems, but not destroy data.” [LA Times]
Posted 2:13 PM | Friday, May 7th, 2010 | Permalink
When Aliens Attack
A new global survey found that one in five adults believe that alien life exists on earth, disguised as humans. Men were more likely to believe in extra-terrestrial life than women according to the poll, and most of those who do believe in aliens were under 35 they came from all incomes and classes. [Telegraph]
Posted 12:36 PM | Friday, April 9th, 2010 | Permalink
Blocking Your YouTube
In some very important "in case you missed it" news from yesterday, a court ruling dealt a blow to the FCC and the notion of “net neutrality,” giving Internet providers the right to “block or slow specific sites” at their discretion. Providers can now charge more for certain content - like to download big files from BitTorrent or YouTube - that clogs their network. Opponents say the ruling opens the censorship door, and that there is no way to stop say, Comcast from blocking its users’ access to content from NBC’s rivals. [New York Times]
Posted 4:43 PM | Wednesday, April 7th, 2010 | Permalink
Source: Nasa/Nasa Images
Girl Power In Space
– Four women have flown into the world record books as the most female astronauts ever to fly in space at the same time. Discovery launched into space earlier today, where three of the seven astronauts aboard are women. They include former high school teacher Dorothy "Dottie" Metcalf-Lindenburger, robotic arm expert Stephanie Wilson and Naoko Yamazaki, the second Japanese woman ever to reach space. The fourth women is chemist-turned-astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson, who is living on the International Space Station after arriving at the orbiting laboratory on Sunday. [Yahoo]
Posted 12:34 PM | Monday, April 5th, 2010 | Permalink
Source: flickr/DON PUGH PERTH WESTERN AUSTRALIA
National Parks Rock!
In a tribute to national parks, the U.S. Mint today unveiled designs for the first five quarters in the America the Beautiful Quarters Program. Mint officials say the series will honor 56 national parks and other sites across the country and in U.S. territories. The first coin, featuring Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas, will be available April 19. [USA T]
Posted 1:36 PM | Wednesday, March 24th, 2010 | Permalink
Take A Look, It’s In A Book…
Amazing news: "Reading Rainbow," the popular children's show that unfortunately ended too soon in 2006, may soon return! In a tweet on March 19, show host LeVar Burton said: "You heard it here first... Reading Rainbow 2.0 is in th[e] works! Stay tuned for more info." We can't wait! The Emmy Award winning television show featured celebrities reading books as well as other segments about books and reading. [Huff Post]
Posted 12:08 PM | Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010 | Permalink
The Unfriendly Skies
It turns out the only people who may hate the new airline baggage fees more than we do are...flight attendants. The more expensive it becomes to check your bags, the more of us are struggling onto aircrafts with over-packed, bulky bags. According to a new survey by the Association of Flight Attendants, more than 80% of attendants say they've been injured by helping passengers with their carry-on luggage. [USA Today]
Posted 10:16 PM | Monday, March 22nd, 2010 | Permalink
Nerd Alert!
Science nerds, rejoice! The Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History opened a new permanent exhibit today, exploring the over 6 million year history of human evolution. The nearly $21 million Hall of Human Origins exhibit includes more than 285 fossils and artifacts, including the only Neanderthal skeleton in the United States. The museum was the most popular in the U.S. last year, after it attracted 7.4 million visitors. [AP]
Posted 1:14 PM | Wednesday, March 17th, 2010 | Permalink
Does Your Boss Know You’re on Twitter?
The answer may not be what you think: two-thirds of employers monitor workers' Internet use, according to an American Management Association/ePolicy Institute survey. Nearly half track content, keystrokes and time spent at the keyboard. They're looking for discriminatory remarks, sexual harassment, spilling trade secrets, even bad mouthing your boss. We think the creepiest are the companies that use webcams and minuscule video cameras to secretly record employees' movements. Unacceptable. [USAT]
Posted 9:24 AM | Wednesday, March 17th, 2010 | Permalink
Toyotas need some sunblock
Toyota has has a rough go of things lately, but we're not sure this is going to be their answer. Apparently, federal regulators are studying whether “radiation from space” could be the source of Toyota’s problems. Radiation from outer space has been linked to problems with airplanes, spacecrafts and even computers on Earth. An anonymous tipster told regulators that “the design of Toyota’s microprocessors, memory chips and software could make them more vulnerable than those of other automakers.”
Now we've heard it all. [Detroit Free Press]
Posted 3:31 PM | Tuesday, March 16th, 2010 | Permalink
Fun Facts
For your next party: Google gets an average of 7.2 billion page views a day. Fictional languages that get Google support: H4x0r, Klingon, Pig Latin, Elmer Fudd. Products in beta: 45%. Oh, and our favorite: there are 17 gourmet cafeterias for Google employees. For more fun facts check out this awesome chart. [Pingdom]
Posted 9:27 AM | Monday, March 8th, 2010 | Permalink
SHAAAAARK!
With summertime approaching, here's some good news for beach lovers: The number of shark attacks in the United States has declined, according to a new study by the University of Florida. Shark attacks in the U.S. dropped from 41 in 2008 to 28 in 2009, according to the report. Also interesting:Fewer people die from the more serious shark attacks than a century ago, when about 60 percent of shark attacks were deadly. Now, only 7 percent of the attacks reported between 2000 and 2010 were deadly. [AP]
Posted 2:00 PM | Monday, March 1st, 2010 | Permalink
ENDANGER
It's a sad day to be a great white shark: According to a new study by Stanford University, the number of Great Whites have dropped below the 3,500 tigers that exist in the wild. Scientists had been under the impression that Great Whites were not endangered, because they were spotted at different areas, but the study found that it was the same sharks being seen over and over again. [Telegraph]
Posted 12:48 PM | Friday, February 19th, 2010 | Permalink
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