Analysis, Green Friendly, Historical Perspectives, Science & Technology News

Phase one of UK’s Nationwide Electric Car Charging Network complete

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The Electric Car is making new inroads in the UK.

Back in July of 2011 we heard about reports of plans for a nationwide network of electric vehicle charging stations across the UK. Wind energy utility Ecotricity was installing charging stations in rest areas up and down the nations highways. Now CEO Dale Vince—who was interviewed in a live chat about building a wind energy empire—just posted on his blog that phase one of the Electric Highway is complete, and he is predicting that 2012 may just be the year of the electric car…

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Analysis, Education, Health & Fitness, Historical Perspectives, Human Behavior, New Discoveries

Massage feels good because it changes your gene expression

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Ahhhh. Massage.

Stiff muscles definitely benefit from a rub down, but scientists have never quite known why. Now, a team of researchers has shown that it works by changing your gene expression — quite literally, your body is hard-coded to release pain-easing chemicals when you’re massaged.

If you listen to people in the world of alternative medicine, they’ll normally tell you that massage “releases toxins”. That is bull, and scientists know it. But knowing an answer is wrong doesn’t give you the right one. No, doing some science does…

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Analysis, Breakthrough Thinking, Food, Health & Fitness, Human Behavior, New Discoveries

Preference for fatty foods may have genetic roots

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People with certain forms of the CD36 gene may like high-fat foods more than those who have other forms of this gene.

A preference for fatty foods has a genetic basis, according to researchers, who discovered that people with certain forms of the CD36 gene may like high-fat foods more than those who have other forms of this gene.

The results help explain why some people struggle when placed on a low-fat diet and may one day assist people in selecting diets that are easier for them to follow. The results also may help food developers create new low-fat foods that taste better…

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Breakthrough Thinking, Health & Fitness, Science & Technology News

UK Company ReVend Revamps Fluorescent Light Bulb Recycling

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Lighting up new options for fluorescent recycling.

Lots of people know that they shouldn’t be throwing away batteries, fluorescent light bulbs, and other pieces of household hazardous waste (HHW). But what should you be doing instead? Today, many large businesses collect such waste for recycling; our pals over at Earth911 have a searchable list of American HHW recyclers. The UK company reVend has recently teamed up with IKEA to make it even easier—at two flagship stores in the UK, they’ve rolled out “reverse vending machines” for spent bulbs and batteries.

It’s stupid simple: you put your light bulb in a hole in the machine, a video camera identifies the bulb so the machine can sort it, and you receive a reward voucher for a free cup of coffee…

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Analysis, Current Events, Historical Perspectives, New Viewpoints

America’s most miserable cities

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Feeling miserable today? Maybe you live in Miami, Florida. The city – famous for mega-million mansions and South Beach clubs – has just gotten the unenviable title of America’s Most Miserable City.

Forbes Magazine took a look at 10 factors (including violent crimes, unemployment rates, and foreclosures) for the 200 largest metro areas in the United States to find the 10 most miserable cities in America. See if yours make the list..

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Great New Product, Nanotechnology, New Inventions, Science & Technology News

Researchers develop ‘smart paint’ that monitors structural damage

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Dr Mohamed Saafi and David McGahon have developed a smart paint that can detect microscopic faults in large structures.

Researchers have developed a ‘smart paint’ able to detect tiny faults before damage can occur, and at a fraction of the cost of current methods.

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Food, Great Videos, Photo Perspectives, Plant Life, Science & Technology News

Urban Cultivator compact garden

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Fresh herbs taste better than their dried counterparts, and there is no denying that garden-fresh veggies are preferable to ones that have spent the past several days in a truck or on a supermarket shelf. People who are lucky enough to live in warmer climates can keep the fresh greens coming year-round, if they plant a garden. For those of us in colder regions, however, things get a bit more challenging come winter. We can rig up indoor herb gardens on windowsills or using full-spectrum fluorescent lights, but that can sometimes get a little complicated. If you can justify its price, however, there is an alternative – the Urban Cultivator. (Pics)

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Award Winner, Photo Perspectives

Amazing photos taken by kids

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Makayla Hayes, 14, won the international grand prize in the 2011 National Geographic Kids photo contest for this photo.

When you hand a kid a camera you can get a glimpse into their world.  They have an interesting perspective on just about everything.  This year’s winners in the Fifth Annual National Geographic Kids International Photo Contest captured humorous quips, quirky sights, and poignant moments that may be impossible to see without a view finder. (Pics)

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Animals, Art

Top 10 Photos of the Week

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As pigeons evolve, their wings will become useless, much like the human brain

Quote of the Day: Truthiness is tearing apart our country, and I don’t mean the argument over who came up with the word. I don’t know whether it’s a new thing, but it’s certainly a current thing, in that it doesn’t seem to matter what facts are. It used to be, everyone was entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts. But that’s not the case anymore. Facts matter not at all. Perception is everything.” – – Stephen Colbert

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Analysis, Science & Technology News, top 10

Top 10 techiest cities in America

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Seattle tops the list of top techiest cities in the U.S.

As part of the annual America’s Favorite Cities survey, Trave l + Leisure readers ranked 35 major cities on qualities such as microbrews, live music and street food. Readers also judged how tech-savvy the locals seem, and the reliability of wireless coverage; we combined the two sets of results to come up with our list of the techiest cities.

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Animals, Art, Breakthrough Thinking, Crazy Stuff, Education, Entertainment, New Discoveries, New Viewpoints

Ferrofluid Sculpture

I just learned about Ferrofluid today. It can do some amazing things, like this video shows. After the jump is a second video explaining HOW ferrofluid works.

From the YouTube descriptioin:

A steel sculpture with changing magnetisation is coated with ferrofluid.
The fluid is pulled in the direction of increasing flux density and forms peaks, which become smaller in higher flux density. At an accumulation of fluid at ridges, the flux density at the surface decreases. The flow and the distribution of the fluid can be observed at several characteristic locations…

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Discover the Hidden Patterns of Tomorrow with Futurist Thomas Frey
Unlock Your Potential, Ignite Your Success.

By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.

Learn More about this exciting program.