January 2011
WatchIn our favourite video of the year, wooden balls appear to defy the laws of physics, running up slopes in a seemingly impossible motion. All is revealed when the illusion is viewed from a different perspective. This “Impossible Motion” illusion, created by Kokichi Sugihara of the Meiji Institute for Advanced Study of Mathematical Sciences in Kawasaki, Japan, won the 2010 Best Illusion...
Study: Virtual Reality Personas Influence Your...
Some people create virtual characters to escape reality, but a new study is showing that your virtual persona might have more influence on your real life than you think. Research completed at the Virtual Human Interaction Lab (VHIL) at Stanford University in conjunction with the National Science Foundation (NSF) found that when an avatar resembles a person their real world interactions will change...
The Best of CES 2011: Our Favorite Products of the... →
The Best Part about a Smartphone Is Never Having... →
Study Claims 100% Renewable Energy By 2030
New research has shown that it is possible and affordable for the world to achieve 100 percent renewable energy by 2030, if there is the political will to strive for this goal. Achieving 100 percent renewable energy would mean the building of about four million 5 MW wind turbines, 1.7 billion 3 kW roof-mounted solar photovoltaic systems, and around 90,000 300 MW solar power...
China to make largest city in the world by... →
climateadaptation:
Facts:
26 times the size of London
1/10th of China’s economy, growing at 4+%
Highly industrialized section of China - lots of pollution
Searching for a new name for the new city
29 rail lines, 3100 miles of track (NYC has 24 lines, and 800 miles of track)
42 million people -…
A Palin Free February
Palin clearly isn’t going away: “I am not going to sit down. I’m not going to shut up,” she told Hannity on Monday. But if we treat her a little less like a major political figure and a little more like Ann Coulter - a calculating individual who says shocking things to attract media attention - it won’t matter. Sure, we might lose some Web traffic or TV ratings, but...
Computer Game Sorts Your Life Out
A computer game that is supposed to help improve decision-making skills in all aspects of our lives has been developed. Boffins at Queen’s University Belfast have created a prototype game that they reckon could be enhanced by commercial games manufacturers and turned into an e-learning or training tool for professionals in all walks of life - and for the general public too. The team supported by...
iPhone 5 And iPad 2 Will Have Multi-Core Chips
In what we suspect might be just another runaway Apple myth, multiple tech news outlets are confidently reporting that Apple is working on multi-core chips for the next batch of iOS-powered devices. Originating in Hong Kong via Chinese-language Apple Daily, and spreading quickly to the Western media, we suspect rumours are largely based on the (slightly spurious) evidence-based suggestions that...
Citizens of Sarah Palin's Alaska Don't Like Sarah... →
The Generosity Of The American People →
The Essential Bunny Wailer →
Why You Need A USB DAC
A revolution is happening in the world of hi-fi-one that, contrary to the other audio upheavals of the last 30 years, combines technological innovation and better sound quality. In the 1980s, the warm, dynamic sound of vinyl LPs was displaced by the cold, compressed compact disc. Then, in the ’90s, just when CDs and CD players were finally starting to sound lifelike, along came MP3 and...