[Skip the intro to mark 1:00 for the good stuff!]
Being paralyzed shouldn’t stop someone from engaging in a sport lovingly described by Mark Twain as “a good walk, ruined,” thanks to the Paragolfer machine by Parabasetec.
Check out the paragolfer in action (yes, it’s a promo video, but it’s amazing nonetheless)…
Pregnant women are being given the chance to hold life-size models of their unborn babies, thanks to an invention that converts data from ultrasound and MRI scans.
Jorge Lopes, a Brazilian designer, uses 3-D printing technology to create the plaster models, which go on show today at an exhibition at the Royal College of Art in London.
But the invention has already attracted the attention of medical experts. “For doctors this is a fantastic development and it is absolutely unique,” said Stuart Campbell, head of obstetrics and gynaecology at King’s College London and a pioneer of the use of ultrasound diagnosis in the 1980s…
Papst Steals The Ugly Show
The World’s Ugliest dog contest has been decided … and the result ain’t pretty! Congrats to Pabst, a boxer-mix shelter dog who won the 21st annual World’s Ugliest Dog Contest at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, California.
From the official website:
As the crowd chanted “Pabst, Pabst,” the celebrity judges deliberated between the so-named boxer-mix shelter dog and Rascal, a former world champion Chinese Crested to determine who would be the 2009 World’s Ugliest Dog Champion tonight at the Sonoma-Marin Fair. First timer Miles Egstad from Citrus Heights, California was stunned at Pabst’s win. ” I don’t think he’s that ugly!” he said of his boxer mix whose under bite was his most compelling physical feature. His sweet personality made him an audience favorite…
The newest version of Sony’s PlayStation Portable isn’t even on sale yet, but the company is already looking ahead to what’s next, according to Reuters. Continue Reading »
ECSTATIC space officials at Nasa could be about to unveil one of their most stunning discoveries for 40 years – new and amazingly clear footage of the first moon landing. Continue Reading »
Two cable powerhouses have announced an ambitious pilot program that aims to convince their customers that, actually, TV on the web should not be free. Continue Reading »
Experiment after experiment confirms that a diet on the brink of starvation expands lifespan in mice and many other species. But the molecular mechanism that links nutrition and survival is still poorly understood. Now, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have identified a pivotal role for two enzymes that work together to determine the health benefits of diet restriction.
After 18.6 years in space and defying several earlier expectations of its demise, the joint ESA/NASA solar orbiter Ulysses will achieve ‘end of mission’ on 30 June 2009. The final communication pass with a ground station will start at 17:35 CEST and run until 22:20 CEST (15:35-20:20 UTC) or until the final command is issued to switch the satellite’s radio communications into ‘monitor only’ mode. No further contact with
Augmented reality is a technology futurists and scifi authors like Vernor Vinge have been talking about for decades. Now the tech has matured and is entering the market. Two videos of new products show you the near future. (Videos after the jump)
Scientists have developed a way of identifying wine so accurately they can even say which barrel it was produced in.
It uses an electronic nose to make even the most confident sommelier a little nervous.
It has the wingspan of a Boeing 747 but weighs less than a small car – and could be the first plane to fly around the world powered entirely by the sun.
The inhabitants of the small Greek island of Chios have stage their traditional “Rocket War”.
In a bizarre but long-cherished local tradition to celebrate the Orthodox Easter holiday, two churches in the town of Vrodandos fire rockets at each other’s churches – while services are held.
A child’s first pet has become accepted knowledge in recent years that children with pets receive numerous benefits including increased kindness toward other children, increased self-esteem, even stronger physical and emotional development. (Pics)
It is now possible to engineer tiny containers the size of a virus to deliver drugs and other materials with almost 100 percent efficiency to targeted cells in the bloodstream.
Researchers from the Royal Adelaide Hospital and University of Adelaide believe our oldest mammalian relative may help us to better understand ovarian cancer.
The thing we like about summer is that a whole new season of two-bubbles-off-plumb photos begin to make their appearance. The photos come from nowhere and from everywhere. Here are a few that are sure to loosen your elastic and tickle your cosmic funny bone. (Pics)
When a zebra finch hears a new song from a member of its own species, the experience changes gene expression in its brain in unexpected ways, researchers report. The sequential switching on and off of thousands of genes after a bird hears a new tune offers a new picture of memory in the songbird brain. Continue Reading »
Doctors have known for decades that too much carbohydrate-laden foods like white bread and corn flakes can be detrimental to cardiac health. In a landmark study, new research from Tel Aviv University now shows exactly how these high carb foods increase the risk for heart problems.
Using a “neurologger” specially designed to record the brain activity of pigeons in flight, researchers reporting online on June 25th in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, have gained new insight into what goes through the birds’ minds as they fly over familiar terrain.
A refreshingly skewed look a the world. Two more videos after the jump. (Videos)
A new viewpoint for research.
How do researchers study the tops of rain forests? One way is to use a canopy raft, which is flown up and settled on the very tops of trees.
Canopy rafts are extraordinary things. they’re basically enormous nets attached to an inflatable frame and are dropped onto trees from airships, resulting in a viewing platform like no other which can also be used as a base from which to hang using climbing gear. the raft above is the solvin bretzel, a new design by gilles ebersolt which due to its pretzel-inspired shape is both safer to use and more effective than older versions. researchers can spend days at a time on the raft (hence the tent) and due to its extremely light weight the trees are left unharmed…
Motorcycle sidecars have been given an entirely new definition by Francois Knorreck, and one that is quite literal. While most of the world thinks of sidecars as the retro attachments to bikes, Francois created a sidecar that is actually a car, on the side. But it’s easier said than done, it took the man 10 years and nearly 15,000 Euros to complete his work – the Snaefell.
Design student Anna Schwamborn has created a range of jewelry made with the hair and cremated ashes of a dead loved ones. (Pics)
To many, New York Gov. Eliott Spitzer’s fall from grace seemed to make no sense at all. But a new Northwestern University study offers provocative insights that possibly could relate to why the storm trooper of reform — formerly known as the Sheriff of Wall Street — seemingly went from saint to sinner overnight.
Coffee could hold the secret to keeping bad breath at bay. The beans contain compounds that prevent bacteria releasing the gases behind halitosis, research shows.
