We receive 5 times more information today than we did in 1986.
If you think that you are suffering from information overload then you may be right – a new study shows everyone is bombarded by the equivalent of 174 newspapers of data a day. The growth in the internet, 24-hour television and mobile phones means that we now receive five times as much information every day as we did in 1986.
In 2005, Japan’s unmanned Hayabusa spacecraft (illustration) successfully landed on an asteroid.
Getting to Mars is going to involve building a huge spacecraft and loading it up with tons of fuel and radiation shielding. Unless, that is, we could just tag along with a spacecraft that’s already headed in that direction, like an asteroid.
Continue reading… “Astronauts Could One Day Reach Mars by Riding Asteroids”
Argentine ants connect three nests in an empty arena via the shortest possible network.
Ants are able to connect multiple sites in the shortest possible way, and in doing so, create efficient transport networks, according to a University of Sydney study published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface. The research also revealed the process by which the ants solve network design problems without the help of a leader.
Continue reading… “Leaderless Ants Create Super Efficient Transport Networks”
A confidential United States embassy dispatch released by Wikileaks provides details about a new technology developed by the Chinese Academy of Science to identify people by their gait.
The technology is designed to be deployed beneath existent flooring. From there it measures pedestrian pace and walking pressure to create a unique biometrics profile which can be used to identify and track the movements of individuals without their knowledge…
Continue reading… “Chinese Develop Gait-Biometrics Surveillance”
Russian scientists held a meeting 14 months ago to look at launching an operation to knock the Apophis asteroid off course
An asteroid travelling at 23,000mph could crash into Earth on April 13, 2036 killing millions and causing global chaos, scientists claim. In a plot line taken straight from a science-fiction film, astronomers in Russia are predicting that the 300-yard-wide Apophis will slam into the planet in 25 years’ time.
Continue reading… “‘Doomsday’ Asteroid Could Crash Into Earth on April 13, 2036”
Quantum fluctuations may melt glass when it gets too cold.
Anyone who’s seen enough old Sesame Street episodes or been to enough Renaissance Fairs knows that when glass gets hot enough, it turns to liquid. Applied heat pumps energy into the solid pieces of glass, getting their molecules jiggling. As the heat dissipates, the glass becomes cool and solidifies again.
Continue reading… “Amazing Discovery – Glass Melts When it Gets Ultracold”
Smoking habit could cost you your job if you work at a hospital.
Smokers now face another risk from their habit: it could cost them a shot at a job. More hospitals and medical businesses in many states are adopting strict policies that make smoking a reason to turn away job applicants, saying they want to increase worker productivity, reduce health care costs and encourage healthier living.
Continue reading… “Hospitals Shifting From Smoke-Free to Smoker-Free Workplaces”
The world’s smallest engraving by human hand has been completed on the edge of a razor blade.
Graham Short etched the motto “Nothing is impossible” which measures just a tenth of a millimetre. The letters are invisible to the naked eye, and can only be read with a medical microscope at 400 times magnification.
Chart compares hospitalizations for stroke, by age group.
Strokes are rising dramatically among young and middle-aged Americans while dropping in older ones, a sign that the obesity epidemic may be starting to reshape the age burden of the disease.
Continue reading… “Dramatic Increase in Strokes Among Young and Middle-Aged Americans”
It seems as though the Catholic Church really really wants us to go to confession, so much so that apparently it has sanctioned a new iPhone app aimed at bringing some of the wandering sheep back into the fold. (video)
Continue reading… “Do You Need to Confess Your Sins? There’s an App for That”
People tend to replace their phones much more often than they do their computers.
Smart phones such as Apple Inc.’s iPhone are outselling personal computers for the first time ever, according to a report by research group IDC that was released Monday.
Continue reading… “First Time Ever Smart Phones Outsell Personal Computers”
