Posts

On August 21, large swaths of America will fall under a total solar eclipse for the first time in almost 40 years. The phenomenon is much more dramatic than a partial solar eclipse, and PBS’s series Space Time just released a wonderful new video to let you know what to expect. View full post on YoutubeWhile the moon is obviously much smaller than the sun, it is also much closer to Earth, making the two celestial bodies appear relatively the same size in the sky....

Helicopter parenting is so 2005. Now, it’s all about quadcopter parenting. Chris Early, a super dadly dad from Knoxville who is probably a subscriber to Dad Magazine, came back with a clever way to fight back against his daughter’s want for a modicum of independence. She wanted to walk to school on her own; he wanted to keep an eye on her. So Early, a drone enthusiast, just sent his quadcopter to follow his daughter to school, which somehow did not result in her being mercilessly mocked by her peers, even though children are second only to junior high schoolers or military juntas in their cruelty....

First time I ever climbed into the seat of a ride-on lawn mower was the summer of 1989, working a groundskeeping job at an industrial park near the airport. It was twenty acres, carved into parking lots, low warehouse buildings, landscaped islands, and long stretches of thick ryegrass. We used a Simplicity tractor mower—eleven-horse Briggs & Stratton, thirty-six-inch deck. Once a week, on mowing day, I’d do the whole property, Walkman in my ears, Snapple wedged next to my hip (no cup holders then), the hot black vinyl seat burning the backs of my legs....

The U.S. Navy’s experimental railgun is getting new upgrades to make it fire more powerful shots, and fire them faster. It’s the latest bit of progress on this still-landlocked weapon, but when and where it actually would be installed on a warship is not clear.Defensetech reports the Navy wants to push the Office of Naval Research’s prototype railgun from a science experiment into useful weapon territory. The goal, according to Tom Beutner, head of Naval Air Warfare and Weapons for the ONR, is ten shots per minute at 32 megajoules....

Mary J. BligeMedia Platforms Design TeamThe Grammy award-winning R&B songstress raised the roof at GM Style this year. Packed to the rafters with fashionistas and auto buffs from all over the world, the crowd went crazy as Blige belted out her new hit, “Just Fine.” The sexy, soulful singer was followed down the runway by a classic 1953 Chevrolet Corvette and six leggy models sporting the latest designs from Marciano. Though the eye candy was sweet on stage, Blige knew where her loyalties lie: “I’ve seen the cars, and they are off the chain,” she said of the evening’s vehicle lineup....

Ford plans to close the Canadian factory that produces the Ford Crown Victoria in 2011, spelling the end of production for America’s most ubiquitous police car (Crown Vics currently account for approximately three-quarters of all law enforcement fleets). So what will replace it? Several companies are poised to take a bite out of crime, as well as the annual sales market of 65,000 to 75,000 vehicles. The following presents a handful of arresting options....

Media Platforms Design TeamIt’s easier than ever for creative types to perform serious science as a hobby. You don’t need a doctorate or the backing of a federal agency to ask a novel, worthwhile scientific question. You just need curiosity and confidence. Here are five ways to get started:Learn to Program MicrocontrollersNo matter which scientific field you want to dabble in, microcontrollers such as Arduino, Beagle Bone, or Raspberry Pi can make your experimental setup easier and more efficient....

Media Platforms Design TeamFor people in too many developing countries, clean water is often a luxury. Chlorine treatments are too expensive for small villages, boiling requires a hefty investment in fuel, and UV radiation demands regular high-tech maintenance. But now, scientists say that a simple, inexpensive water filter might be only a tree branch away from reality.As reported in a paper published yesterday on PLOS One, MIT researchers ran contaminated water through a sapwood branch and found that the plant tissue successfully filtered experimental dye and actual bacteria out of the mix....

The gamer punches in play after endless play of the Atari classic Space Invaders. Through an interminable chain of failures, the gamer adapts the gameplay strategy to reach for the highest score. But this is no human with a joystick in a 1970s basement. Artificial intelligence is learning to play Atari games. The Atari addict is a deep-learning algorithm called DQN.This algorithm began with no previous information about Space Invaders—or, for that matter, the other 48 Atari 2600 games it is learning to play and sometimes master after two straight weeks of gameplay....

Media Platforms Design TeamWhile NASA has already set in motion plans to fix the Hubble—a mission that comes with a fair amount of risk, says our Resident Astronaut—the space agency has begun the fanfare for the telescope’s deep-space successor. The James Webb Space Telescope, with its oversize sunshield and generally large design, has been mocked up with a full-scale model on display in Washington, D.C. (and above), in anticipation of a 2013 launch....

Media Platforms Design TeamTake this, Detroit: American automakers may have staked a claim to the next wave of in-car infotainment technology (click here for our comparison test), but now Mercedes-Benz is combining the mapping powers of rival Internet giants Google and Yahoo with a new Web-to-dash crossover technology it’s calling “Search and Send.” With direct download capabilities integrated into Benz’s new C-, S- and CL-Classes, drivers can take advantage of high-powered map functionality without the hassle of inputting directions directly into a GPS system....

If you happen to live along the East Coast, there’s a good chance you might be able to catch a lovely little light show tonight courtesy of NASA, which is set to perform a test that includes some very colorful vapor clouds.Specifically, NASA will be testing a Black Brant suborbital rocket motor in a flight out of from the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia with a launch window between a 7 and 9 PM, weather willing....

Solar thermal energy (STE) generators share little technological DNA with rooftop photovoltaic panels, the hardware commonly associated with solar power. Ausra, of Palo Alto, Calif., has built a prototype (above) of a system that will become the largest STE facility in the United States. The core of this solar thermal system is an array of flat mirrors that reflect sunlight to boil water in an elevated tube, producing steam that drives turbines to generate electricity....

It started in 1996–a 26-ft. Glacier Bay catamaran with twin 90-hp Honda 4-strokes, became the first outboard-powered craft to reach the Bermuda Islands from the U.S. mainland unassisted. A couple of years later, Mercury pushed a boat that trimmed more than 7 hours off the 1996 record of 37 hours. But now, a 30-ft. Renaissance Prowler 306 catamaran powered by Honda BF225 4-stroke outboards has shattered the record by making the run in just 22 hours and 23 minutes....

Media Platforms Design Team Long used as an economical and heat-resistant countertop surfacing material, plastic laminate is made of kraft paper impregnated with melamine (a plastic resin). The two are formed into a thin sheet under high heat and pressure. The product is easily installed on the job site by gluing it to a substrate such as particleboard with contact cement. Excess material is trimmed flush to the substrate with a laminate trimmer (above)....

The traffic seems unusually light this morning. In fact, you haven’t seen another car to the rear for 10 miles. Time to make a little time. But then there’s a strange noise following you. Sounds like a siren. Hmmm. No lights behind you, so where is that sound coming from? It’s coming from the police car that’s riding your tail. You didn’t see it because your glued-on rearview mirror isn’t on the windshield....

Check out that sky–black as the inside of a cow. A big thunderstorm is rolling this way for sure. Better run out and close the car windows. Of course, that’s exactly when it happens, as was laid down in the beginning when we humans made our first deal with the gods of internal combustion. You turn the key, hit the button, and either you get a hitching, grinding noise and the glass just sort of trembles, or there’s no sound whatsoever....

From sheet metal with a ragged edge to pointy branches and broken glass, the average home abounds in sharp edges that can hurt you and others. Here are 10 ways to keep it under control without getting cut or jabbed.1. Trim low-hanging branches. Working around foot paths and gathering places such as patios, get out the lopper or bow saw and take off any branch within seven feet of the ground....

Media Platforms Design TeamOn March 14 in New York City, 64 teams of high school students went head to head in the metro-area showdown of the national FIRST Robotics Competition. For many, it was the high-energy culmination—complete with mascots and a drum corps—of a six-week build period, in which students had to create robots capable of competing in what was essentially a game of soccer. Some robots performed exactly as the teams hoped they would, kicking balls into goals for commanding leads; others met unexpected challenges while trying to cross steep bumps in the middle of the field or raise themselves up on a tower for extra bonus points....

Multi-caliber rifles have become quite the popular idea in recent years—typically designed as modular systems where a quick change of a couple components can allow a gun to use different cartridges. Well, it’s not necessarily a new idea—and some attempts at it have been much more audacious than what we have today.These drawings are dated December 1943, and signed by one H. Dyer—about whom I know nothing beyond his rank of Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers....