Impact Lab – Page 1371 – A Laboratory of the Future Human Experience

Breakthrough Thinking, Great New Product, Health & Fitness, Historical Perspectives, New Viewpoints, People Making a Difference

Could Fire Truck Ladders Be Replaced with Escalators?

January 5, 2011

Up, Up and Away On A Conveyor Belt!

Orville Douglas Denison thinks that telescoping ladders used by firefighters are too slow for firefighters to use effectively. So he designed a system that would lift up firefighters on something like a conveyor belt or an escalator:

In a rescue, firemen could extend Denison’s hydraulic ladder to windows as high as 113 feet. But rather than clamber up the ladder, the firefighter would hop on, and the rungs would roll up at 200 feet per minute—more than twice the average climbing speed of a firefighter weighed down by 130 pounds of gear…

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Art, Breakthrough Thinking, Crazy Stuff, Culture, Current Events, Human Behavior, Humor, Internet, New Viewpoints

Chinese Computer Geek Has Fitting Headstone

January 5, 2011

A headstone carved in the shape of a monitor.

Computer geek Hu Chuang got the ultimate i-Bod – after he died at his screen while emailing friends.

Chuang, 26, from Chongqing, south west China, was so geeky about computers his family had a headstone carved for him in the shape of a monitor giving his dates of birth and death.

Stonemasons also included a keyboard and a mouse with a picture of tragic Chuang to complete the tombstone tribute…

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Crazy Stuff, Culture, Current Events, Globalism, Health & Fitness, Historical Perspectives, Hot Issues, Human Behavior, Latest News, New Discoveries, New Viewpoints, People Making a Difference

7 Billion

January 5, 2011

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sc4HxPxNrZ0&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

Sometime this year, the world’s population will pass the 7 billion mark. By 2045, that figure is expected to be 9 billion. National Geographic is beginning a year-long series on how the world’s population came to be, where we are headed, and the challenges that come with so many of us living together. Those challenges include energy consumption, education, birth control, natural resources, immigration, and more.

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Breakthrough Thinking, Current Events, Historical Perspectives, New Discoveries, New Viewpoints

10-Year-Old Canadian Girl Discovers Supernova

January 5, 2011

Supernova girl Kathryn Gray

A 10-year-old girl in Canada has become the youngest person to discover a supernova – an exploding star which can briefly outshine a whole galaxy. Kathryn Gray was studying images taken at an amateur observatory which had been sent to her father. She spotted the magnitude 17 supernova on Sunday.

Supernovas – which are rare events – are stellar explosions that mark the violent deaths of stars several times bigger than the Sun. The supernova was discovered in the galaxy UGC 3378, about 240 million light years away, in the constellation of Camelopardalis. “I’m really excited. It feels really good,” Ms Gray said…

(video after jump…)

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Analysis, Health & Fitness, Science & Technology News

Driving a Convertible with the Top Down Could Damage Your Health

January 5, 2011

Driving a convertible exposes drivers and passengers to dangerous noise levels.

Driving a convertible with the top down could expose you to dangerous noise levels on a par with a building site, claims a new study. Levels as high as 100 decibels were recorded at speeds of 75mph which for long periods could lead to damage to hearing.

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Science & Technology News

OnStar Anywhere Expands Beyond GM to Most Top-Selling Cars

January 5, 2011

OnStar

Starting this spring, OnStar will begin selling — for $299 — “Anywhere,” a standalone rearview mirror compatible with most top-selling vehicles that allows access to much of OnStar’s services. Yup, it’s OnStar-to-go. This may be the coolest safety-and-security gadget ever.

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Nanotechnology, New Discoveries, Science & Technology News

‘Nanoscoops’ – New Nanomaterial Could Spark Next Generation of Rechargeable Batteries

January 5, 2011

The material, called a “nanoscoop” because it resembles a cone with a scoop of ice cream on top, is shown in the above scanning electron microscope image.

An entirely new type of nanomaterial developed at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute could enable the next generation of high-power rechargeable lithium (Li)-ion batteries for electric automobiles, as well as batteries for laptop computers, mobile phones, and other portable devices.

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Alternative Transportation, Green Friendly, Science & Technology News

Hydrogenase: Self-sufficient Organic Airship

January 5, 2011

Hydrogenase

Vincent Callebaut’s latest project, Hydrogenase, aims to create a self-sufficient organic airship. This conceptual transport system would be comprised of airships that produce biofuel from seaweed. The project draws its inspiration from nature, as well as from the qualities of its materials and its self-manufacturing processes. (pics)

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Analysis, Big Problems, Health & Fitness, Science & Technology News

Hyper-Texting Linked to Risky Behavior in Teenagers

January 5, 2011

Too many text messages and social networking linked to risky behavior.

Parents of text-crazed teenagers might have more to be concerned about than sky-high cell phone bills, according to a Case Western Reserve University study that links excessive use of popular high-tech communications to risky health behaviors.

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Analysis, Breakthrough Thinking, Globalism, Historical Perspectives, Latest News

Weather.com Text Alerts

January 5, 2011

I used to be a weather idiot. When it was going to rain, I usually found out by getting wet or by seeing everyone else holding an umbrella or rain coat on public transportation. I wanted something that informed me when it was going to rain (but not something that I had to look for). I wondered if there was a text message alert system for when it rained…

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Analysis, Art, Breakthrough Thinking, Current Events, Historical Perspectives, Science & Technology News

Ancient Rock Art In Western Australia Maintains Its Vivid Colors Because It Is Alive

January 4, 2011

(Scale bar = 1mm. Rectangle left shows approximate location of digital micrograph illustrated right).
‘Cherry’ figure. Note that red organisms predominate, but black fungus is also present.

While some rock art fades in hundreds of years, the “Bradshaw art” remains colourful after at least 40,000 years.

Jack Pettigrew of the University of Queensland in Australia has shown that the paintings have been colonized by colorful bacteria and fungi.

These “biofilms” may explain previous difficulties in dating such rock art…

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Brain, Breakthrough Thinking, Crazy Stuff, Current Events, Health & Fitness, Historical Perspectives, Human Behavior, Latest News, Medical Breakthrough

Scientists Find Evidence For ‘Chronesthesia,’ or Mental Time Travel

January 4, 2011

Is your brain aware of more than the time right now?

Researchers have found evidence for “chronesthesia,” which is the brain’s ability to be aware of the past and future, and to mentally travel in subjective time. They found that activity in different brain regions is related to chronesthetic states when a person thinks about the same content during the past, present, or future…

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