• The Environment

    Jellyfish Invasion

    By Posted on 6.4.2008 17 Comments

    For most of us, jellyfish are nothing more than a nuisance. They drift toward beach shores and into our consciousness each summer near the end of their life cycle, making a refreshing dip in the water a bit less carefree for a few weeks. But that may be changing. Last November, a 10-mile-wide and 42-foot-thick swarm of baby mauve stingers (Pelagia noctiluca) decimated Northern Ireland’s farmed-salmon population. Overnight,120,000 fish were reduced to a floating mass of carcasses by billions of the small jellies native to warmer waters thousands of miles to the south. The salmon, which were killed by stings and oxygen deprivation, had a market value of $2 million.

    6.6.2008 at 08:29am - Comment by bb1984

    Of course another species will take over. This is the result of reckless overfishing.

  • Technology

    DARPA's Amazing Robot Pack Mule Keeps its Balance On Ice

    By Posted on 3.17.2008 17 Comments

    Two years ago we showed you Boston Dynamics' incredible BigDog—one of the world's most ambitious legged robots—being developed for DARPA and the U.S. Army. With its advanced system of hyper-responsive hydraulic joints and a suite of sensors, accelerometers and gyroscopes, the BigDog's most stunning achievement is it's ability to walk, climb and maintain its balance on diverse terrain, even after slipping on ice or receiving a kick to one side. All while carrying several hundreds of pounds of supplies on its "back."

    3.18.2008 at 07:50am - Comment by bb1984

    [Mr. Kinney points a pistol at ED-209] ED-209: [menacingly] Please put down your weapon. You have 20 seconds to comply. Dick Jones: I think you better do as he says, Mr. Kinney. [Mr. Kinney drops the pistol on the floor] Dick Jones: [ED-209 advances, growling] ED-209: You now have 15 seconds to comply. [Mr. Kinney turns to Dick Jones, who looks nervous] ED-209: You are in direct violation of Penal Code 1.13, Section 9. [Entire room of people in full panic trying to stay out of the line of fire, especially Mr. Kinney] ED-209: You have 5 seconds to comply. Kinney: Help me! ED-209: Four... three... two... one... I am now authorized to use physical force!

  • Science

    Pakistan Accidentally Hijacks YouTube

    By Posted on 2.26.2008 2 Comments

    All across the globe yesterday, users tried and failed to get their daily dose of yawning kittens and manic explosions. The problem? Pakistan accidentally hijacked YouTube. It started when the government of Pakistan tried to limit access to a video critical of Islam. In order to keep its citizens from playing the clip, reportedly a portion of an inflammatory film by the Danish Dutch politician Geert Wilders, Pakistan Telecom had local Internet service providers block the site by rerouting users—instead of getting the video site, they'd hit a blank page.

    2.26.2008 at 04:35am - Comment by bb1984

    Geert Wilders is Dutch, not Danish. I guess the journalist is mixing up the Danish cartoonist that drew muhammad with this Dutch fool.

  • Science

    Pakistan Accidentally Hijacks YouTube

    By Posted on 2.26.2008 2 Comments

    All across the globe yesterday, users tried and failed to get their daily dose of yawning kittens and manic explosions. The problem? Pakistan accidentally hijacked YouTube. It started when the government of Pakistan tried to limit access to a video critical of Islam. In order to keep its citizens from playing the clip, reportedly a portion of an inflammatory film by the Danish Dutch politician Geert Wilders, Pakistan Telecom had local Internet service providers block the site by rerouting users—instead of getting the video site, they'd hit a blank page.

    2.26.2008 at 04:35am - Comment by bb1984

    Geert Wilders is Dutch, not Danish. I guess the journalist is mixing up the Danish cartoonist that drew muhammad with this Dutch fool.

  • The Environment

    The Explosive Nuclear Question

    By Posted on 2.16.2008 15 Comments

    It's going to be at least another two decades before any commercial models are built, but researchers are at work designing the Generation IV nuclear reactors. Unlike the generation II and III models now in use that use water to cool and control the fission (preventing runaway reactions, subsequent meltdowns and the environmental apocalypse that would result), the leading contender for cooling material for the Gen IV reactors is molten sodium. Not sodium chloride (plain, unreactive table salt), but sodium metal.

    2.18.2008 at 05:38am - Comment by bb1984

    "I'm sure there's good reasons for all this, but really, can this possibly be on the whole a good idea?" Classical example of lazy journalism.



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