In its attempts to quash weapons of mass destruction, the Pentagon has been trying novel ways to track down dangerous materiel. For years, DARPA has been trying to train insects and bugs to sniff out toxic substances, providing more sensitive detection, as well as access that conventional sensors might not have.
I remember another insect/soldier plan by an MIT professor back during the Vietnam war. He wanted to train insects to latch onto Vietcong soldiers using the Ho Chi Min Trail. The bugs would bite and annoy the Vietcong guys so much they would surrender and we would win the war. Clever plan. I don't think the insects cooperated though. newyorkdude celluloseethanol.info
We are proud to introduce today the first installment of our newest regular feature,Kitchen Alchemy. In it, H. Alexander Talbot and Aki Kamozawa, a husband-and-wife cooking duo and authors of the constantly fascinating Ideas in Food blog, will take us through the myriad intersections of food and science; and as an added bonus, each column will also feature an innovative and, needless to say, delicious recipe for putting said science into action. Enjoy. —Eds. Pressure cookers are among our favorite culinary gadgets. We like them for things as simple as perfectly steamed beets and as playful as caramelized yogurt. And the days of screeching, squealing pressure cookers, shuddering on your range top and conjuring fears of explosions, are on the wane. Today we have quiet, efficient appliances that are used in both professional and home kitchens. Now you can buy electric pressure cookers, which shorten cooking times, are easy to clean and make a minimal amount of noise.
Judging by the whistling one can hear if one is on the streets at food preparation time, pressure cooking is the norm in India. In fact, sometimes printed recipes contain cooking time instructions like: one whistle, two whistles etc. newyorkdude newyorkdudeinindia.blogspot.com
Stay up to date on the latest news of the future of science and technology from your iPhone with full articles, images and offline viewing
Featuring every article from the magazine and website, plus links from around the Web. Also see our PopSci DIY feed
Share links with friends, comment on stories and more
In our December issue, Popular Science names the 100 best innovations of the year: bombproof wallpaper, self-parking cars, the fastest helicopter, and 97 more. Plus inventor profiles and videos.
Check out the best of what's new here.