Posted on Techdirt - 21 March 2014 @ 5:00pm
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Recently, it seems like there are an increasing number of studies supporting the idea that eating too much red meat is bad for our health. Consumption of red meat has been linked to cancer, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity, cognitive decline, and the list goes on. Here are just a few more studies that will have cows dancing in the pasture.
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Posted on Techdirt - 7 March 2014 @ 5:00pm
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Part of the enjoyment of eating is indulging in the sensory experience of food. Whether we like a food depends on the texture, consistency, temperature (both physical and perceived, as in cool mints or hot peppers), smell, taste, and even its appearance. Flavor is primarily determined by our sense of taste and smell, and is often a main deciding factor in whether we like a food. Here are just a few links related to the chemistry of flavors.
- People may be shocked to learn that MSG, the infamous food additive that's supposedly responsible for "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome," is the essence of umami, the now trendy "savory" taste. The flavor-enhancing additive MSG, or monosodium glutamate, resulted from an attempt to mass produce the key chemical compound responsible for that delicious meaty flavor in foods. In case you're wondering how much glutamate might be found in an original Umami Burger from Adam Fleischman's chain of umami restaurants, the answer is almost 2.2 grams. [url]
- Why do people torture themselves by eating tongue-scorching chili peppers? Probably because the capsaicin in the peppers triggers the release of endorphins, which not only help to relieve the burning pain, but also give people a natural high. Check out this video about the chemistry of Sriracha sauce, which also includes an interesting bit on how the Scoville scale was established to measure how spicy a pepper is. [url]
- Here's a blast from the past: an article about the chemistry of flavor as it was understood in the 1960s. This was a time when the now widely used Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) technique was heralded as a "major breakthrough in instrumental analysis in aroma chemistry." The article also includes photos of old school chemical analysis equipment, as well as ads from that era for chemicals and equipment, from Morton Purex Salt to stainless steel tanks. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 20 December 2013 @ 5:00pm
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Some people like egg nog, some people don't. With the main ingredients being sweetened milk/cream and whipped eggs (and maybe salmonella), it's no wonder people added alcohol to make it drinkable. But the beverage is popular enough that there are tons of variations on it. Pretty much any kind or combination of hard liquor can be added, and it can be spiced up with spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. If you like egg nog, especially the alcoholic part, maybe you'll also like the following "disgusting" alcoholic drinks.
- The Powder Room in Los Angeles is offering a swanky $500 alcoholic milkshake called The Velvet Goldmine. This is no ordinary milkshake -- it features premium spirits, edible gold, and Belgian chocolate, and it's topped with a Swarovski Nirvana Montana crystal ring that retails for $190. [url]
- If you like heartburn, then you might like 100,000 Scovilles Naga Chilli Vodka. This spicy vodka has the same level of heat as a Habanero chili, plus it's got 40% alcohol. Check out the warning video for this product! [url]
- Craving tacos and an alcoholic beverage? Two words: Taco Gin. Apparently, gin is just "flavored vodka." To create Taco Gin, steep taco seasoning in 100-proof vodka in a jar for at least 48 hours, strain the mixture through a coffee filter, and cut it down to 90-proof by diluting with a bottle of 80-proof vodka. It shouldn't be a surprise that the reaction to the taste test was "That's awful!" [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 19 December 2013 @ 5:00pm
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It's probably safe to say that most managers and employees look forward to annual performance reviews as much as they would a painful root canal. Some companies like Adobe have eliminated them altogether, in favor of less formal check-in conversations throughout the year that focus on ongoing feedback. Here are some other companies that are changing the way they evaluate their workers.
- Microsoft has gotten rid of its "stack ranking" employee evaluation process. Many former and current Microsoft employees consider stack ranking -- reviewing on a curve -- to be detrimental to both career and morale. From now on, Microsoft will be evaluating employees based more on teamwork and collaboration. [url]
- "People analytics" -- a big-data-driven approach to evaluating employees -- is changing the way companies hire, fire, and promote. There are plenty of big companies that have dedicated analytics teams in their HR departments -- Google, HP, Intel, General Motors, Procter & Gamble -- but even smaller companies are getting into the game. So, beware that no matter where you work, they're watching you. [url]
- Yahoo's new employee evaluation process may finally be yielding its first results. The new approach attempts to mimic the more data-driven process used at Google, where CEO Marissa Mayer spent her entire career before becoming Yahoo's latest leader. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 18 December 2013 @ 5:00pm
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As we get closer to the most commercial holiday of the year, let's spend some time reflecting on capitalism and what it has become. Here are some capitalism-related links to get you started.
- A distorporation is a new kind of company that's becoming ever so popular in the United States. A corporate structure called the master limited partnership is changing the way American capitalism works, allowing distorporations to circumvent rules that apply to regular public companies, such as paying taxes, but still giving them access to the public financial markets.[url]
- Could the United States -- the leader of cutthroat capitalism -- switch to the "cuddly capitalism" of Scandinavian countries? According to a group of researchers from MIT, Harvard, and the Paris School of Economics, this would apparently hinder the growth of the entire global economy by slowing down the pace of innovation.[url]
- American capitalism has created a wealthy country that's completely divided when it comes to its society, its economy, and its politics. Sure, capitalism can produce great wealth, but it's not going to solve all of our environmental concerns, racial divides, class distinctions, etc. You can't use it as a blueprint for building a just society. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 17 December 2013 @ 5:00pm
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It's that time of year again, when parents warn their kids to be good, because a big old guy with a white beard in a red suit is watching their every move and is going to find out if they've been naughty or nice. Well, Santa, we've got news for you. We're watching you too, sort of. Both Microsoft and Google have "Santa trackers" that will let kids and parents monitor Santa's location on a map on Christmas Eve as he delivers presents all over the world. For even more Santa fun, check out these links.
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Posted on Techdirt - 16 December 2013 @ 5:00pm
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December is a time to celebrate the holidays with family and friends, but it's also when flu season starts ramping up. Several states have already reported an increase in flu activity, and it appears that the predominant strain of flu found in patients who have been hospitalized so far is H1N1 -- the "Swine Flu" that caused a global pandemic in 2009 but is now a human seasonal flu virus. Here are a few links about the flu season, pandemics, and vaccines.
- The flu pandemic of 1918 killed more than 50 million people worldwide. The virus was a bird virus that had, by chance, acquired the ability to travel via coughing and sneezing, which enabled it to infect a person who then spread it others, starting the pandemic. Could an outbreak of that scale and lethality happen again? Possibly, but there are many events that have to come together just the right way for that to occur, and there's no way to predict it.[url]
- Flu season in the Northern Hemisphere starts in October and ends in May, typically peaking in February. In the Southern Hemisphere, flu season goes from May to October and usually peaks in August. But thanks to modern air travel, these complementary flu seasons can easily feed each other.[url]
- Scientists are working towards developing a new kind of flu vaccine -- one that would provide lifetime protection against many flu strains, including ones that haven't even evolved yet. The key to developing such a universal vaccine is to target an area of the flu virus that doesn't change very much, such as the stems of the surface proteins. Trials in mice and other animals have shown promising results, but it could be several years or decades before an effective universal vaccine becomes available for people.[url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 13 December 2013 @ 5:00pm
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Many people are freaking out about the potential shortage of Sriracha, the popular hot sauce (aka "rooster sauce") that has taken the world by storm, after it was reported that the new Sriracha factory in Irwindale, California, was facing a potential shutdown due to noxious fumes coming from the plant -- generated by chili pepper processing -- that were causing eye and throat irritation, as well as headaches, in nearby residents. A judge has now ordered the makers of Sriracha, Huy Fong Foods Inc., to stop any work that generates irritating fumes. While the smelly factory may not be welcome in Irwindale, at least two other cities (Philadelphia and Denton, TX) have suggested that the makers of Sriracha sauce relocate to their neck of the woods. In the meantime, here are a few links with more information about Sriracha, as well as potential alternative hot sauces.
- Sriracha is made with hybrid jalapeño peppers (processed within a day of being picked), vinegar, sugar, salt, and garlic. Sriracha was created in 1980 by David Tran, at the time a recent immigrant from Vietnam, who couldn't find any hot sauces that would satisfy his palate. It took him months to come up with the right formulation for the now well-known Sriracha sauce that's packaged in the distinctive clear bottles with the rooster logo and green caps. [url]
- YouTube filmmaker Griffin Hammond has created a 33-minute documentary about Sriracha. The film -- which features many interviews, a glimpse inside the Sriracha factory, as well as a number of songs and videos dedicated to Sriracha sauce -- can be viewed online for $5 a view. It seems that, until recently, relatively little was known about the company that makes this popular hot sauce. [url]
- "Bizarre Foods" host Andrew Zimmern thinks Sriracha sauce is overrated. While he does love Sriracha, he says there are many better alternative hot sauces, such as the Marie Sharp line from Belize and Crystal from Louisiana. Other chefs recommend hot sauces such as the Rogue, a super-hot Moruga blood orange and Scorpion chili sauce from High River Sauces, and Tobanjan (Japanese) and Kochujang (Korean) sesame-based hot sauces. And if you just can't get away from Sriracha, you can try the Thailand-made Shark Brand Sriracha sauce. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 27 November 2013 @ 5:00pm
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It turns out that many Americans aren't paying much attention to the ongoing battle over labeling genetically modified foods. A recent survey by researchers at Rutgers University found that half of Americans know very little or nothing at all about GM foods, while a quarter have never even heard of them. Furthermore, they found that many Americans are also confused about what types of GM foods are on the market. Meanwhile, heirloom fruits, vegetables, and grains are gaining popularity. These are plants that have been grown and passed down from one generation to another -- some for more than 100 years -- often selected for their superior flavor, as well as other characteristics such as productivity, hardiness, and adaptability. If you want to avoid GM foods, why not spend some time rediscovering heirloom varieties? Here are a few links to get you started.
- Glass Gem corn is a stunning variety of heirloom corn that's named for its multi-colored, gem-like kernels. You really have to see it to believe it. Glass Gem is the result of many years of selective breeding of corn that exhibited vivid, translucent colors.[url]
- Tartine Bakery in San Francisco has started incorporating heirloom and ancient varieties of grains into the bread they make. Apparently, these older varieties of grains -- rye, barley, einkorn, and emmer -- have a different gluten quality that makes them easier to digest. [url]
- In case of an apocalyptic disaster that destroys the world's crops, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault will make sure we can rebuild the global plant population. Built on the edge of the Arctic Ocean in Svalbard, Norway -- away from civilization -- the seed vault can hold up to 4.5 million different seed varieties and keep them safe from disasters caused by climate change, asteroid strikes, plant diseases, nuclear warfare, and even earthquakes. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 26 November 2013 @ 5:00pm
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According to the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, scientists are 95% certain that human activities have been responsible for most of the climate change observed on the planet since the 1950s. Apparently, we've already burned 54% of the 1 trillion tons of carbon that would need to be emitted into the atmosphere to increase the average global temperature by 2°C (3.6°F) -- a threshold set by climate negotiators in Copenhagen in 2009 to avoid catastrophic climate change. Unfortunately, even as we try to reduce carbon emissions now, some predict that we'll still surpass the 2°C limit by the end of the century. Will renewable energy be able to curb global warming while also satisfying our energy-hungry ways? Here are some energy-related links.
- Scientists are saying that nuclear power will be necessary to make a significant impact in reducing global warming. While those who oppose nuclear power argue that wind and solar energy can be scaled up to address our energy needs, top climate scientists believe that we need to work on developing safer nuclear power as well. [url]
- If you need another reason to ditch coal in favor of nuclear power, here's one: the coal ash emitted by a power plant is actually more radioactive than nuclear waste. The uranium and thorium naturally present in coal is concentrated in coal ash, such that it puts out 100 times more radiation into the surrounding environment than a nuclear power plant producing the same amount of energy. [url]
- Kyocera is launching a 70-megawatt solar power plant in Japan that will be able to power 22,000 homes. The plant's 290,000 solar panels are set offshore on Kagoshima Bay, occupying an area of about 314 acres.[url]
- A 2-megawatt wind turbine has been set up about 12 miles off the coast of Fukushima, Japan, as part of an effort to turn the quake-ravaged area into a clean energy hub. Two more 7-megawatt wind turbines will be added to the floating offshore installation, with the eventual plan to increase the wind energy capacity to 1,000 megawatts. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 22 November 2013 @ 5:00pm
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It seems like every other day we hear about yet another chemical in our food supply that's bad for our health. Maybe it's because the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, which is supposed to help regulate the use of chemicals in consumer products, has failed us with its assumption that "chemicals are safe until proven harmful," and has turned us into unwitting human guinea pigs. Phthalates in vinyl, perfluorinated chemicals in non-stick cookware, brominated flame retardants in electronics, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in coolant/dielectric fluids, and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) in insecticides -- these are just a few chemicals that, over the years, have been discovered to be unsafe, long after they were introduced in consumer products. Here are a few more:
- The FDA will likely ban trans fats in foods. Trans fats, typically found in partially hydrogenated oils, help increase the shelf life of processed foods and make deep-frying oils last longer. However, the FDA has now concluded that the negative health effects of trans fats -- they raise LDL (bad) cholesterol and lower HDL (good) cholesterol -- far outweigh their benefits. [url]
- The FDA is now warning people to reduce their consumption of acrylamide, which tends to form when starch-rich foods are cooked at high temperatures, like in frying or baking. Acrylamide, in high doses, can cause cancer in animals and likely also in humans. So, in every humanly possible way, avoid eating tasty things like fries, chips, toasted bread, and even coffee. [url]
- The FDA is keeping an eye on bisphenol A (BPA). While there have been a ton of fear-mongering media reports on BPA, the FDA has concluded that at this time, there is no strong evidence that BPA is unsafe at the very low levels we get exposed to through our diet. However, it will continue to study BPA and recommends that people who want to reduce their exposure to BPA should: avoid using plastics with recycle codes 3 or 7; never put hot liquids in containers made with BPA; and throw away scratched plastic bottles. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 20 November 2013 @ 5:00pm
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The U.S. Postal Service hasn't been doing well for a while now. Even though it achieved its first revenue increase in five years, it still lost $5 billion in fiscal year 2013. This marks the seventh consecutive year of losses for the USPS, which lost a record $15.9 billion last year. Part of the reason is that people just aren't sending as much mail these days. Why send a physical letter when you can send a message online? The Postal Service's most profitable product, first-class mail delivery, has been going down -- mail volume peaked in 2000 and has decreased by almost a third since then. On the brighter side, it seems that people are buying more things online now, and the USPS's package volume has been on the rise. As the Postal Service struggles to survive, it will be interesting to see how it adapts to the changing economy in the coming years. Here are a few links to some things about the USPS that you may not know.
- The USPS has the nation's largest distribution network, with 461 distribution centers that are linked to 21 major network hubs, 32,000 local post offices, and 213,000 delivery vehicles. In comparison, FedEx has only six network hubs in the U.S., and its global network has only a quarter as many vehicles and a third as many offices. [url]
- The official USPS website actually has a comprehensive page of interesting postal facts. For example, ZIP codes were introduced in 1963 to make handling increasing volumes of mail easier. A related fun fact: The easiest ZIP code to remember -- 12345 -- is assigned to General Electric in Schenectady, NY. And each year, GE receives thousands of letters from kids who think that the ZIP code for Santa's address in the North Pole is 12345. [url]
- Sunday mail delivery used to be the norm. In 1810, Congress passed a law that required post offices to be open for at least one hour on Sundays (and when everything else was closed on Sundays, post offices became the local "taverns" where people would go get their mail and then stay on to drink and play cards). Then in 1912, Congress passed another law that forced post offices to close on Sundays. [url]
- Sunday mail delivery is back! As part of a deal with Amazon, the USPS will begin delivering packages on Sundays again. Sunday delivery has already started in New York and Los Angeles, and the service should be extended to many more cities next year. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 11 November 2013 @ 5:00pm
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How do you measure the impact of a scientist's research? Some common metrics include the number of publications in peer-reviewed and high-impact journals, the number of citations, etc. But it's more complicated than just using the quantity and quality of a scientist's peer-reviewed publications to determine their significance in the scientific community. Here are a few more things to consider.
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Posted on Techdirt - 25 October 2013 @ 5:00pm
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If fruits and vegetables tasted even better, maybe people would include more in their diet. Part of what researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture are trying to do is to improve the taste and nutritional profile of specialty crops like fruits and vegetables, in the hope that Americans will adopt a healthier diet. For generations, humans have been inadvertently breeding the nutrients out of fruits and vegetables, by selecting varieties that are more palatable (i.e., higher in sugar and starch). Then, somewhere along the way, appearance became important, and farmers began breeding aesthetically pleasing varieties, often at the expense of taste. So, now we're stuck with some pretty bland products. Here are some more tasty links.
- For the past 70 years or so, people have been breeding tomatoes for a uniform red color, but in the process, a gene that increases sugar content in tomatoes was inactivated. The gene, SlGLK2, increases the formation of chloroplasts, which are responsible for producing sugars through photosynthesis. Researchers have shown that by re-inserting an intact copy of the gene into tomatoes, they could increase the amount of glucose and fructose by up to 40%, while still retaining the uniform color ripening trait. Too bad they weren't actually able to taste them (federal regulations prohibit sampling experimental crops). [url]
- Researchers have found that today's Fuji apples are mealier, less flavorful, and more susceptible to disease than they were in the 1970s. The culprit: climate change. Studies in controlled temperature environments have shown that higher temperatures have been linked to a decrease in taste and texture in apples. Who knows what other crops might also have been changed due to global warming? [url]
- University of Florida researchers have discovered that they can improve the taste of fruits by exposing them to far-red light. They were able to use specific wavelengths of light to manipulate the production of volatile compounds that control aroma and taste in fruits like tomatoes, strawberries, and blueberries. Imagine your produce tasting even better after being stored in your far-red-light-equipped refrigerator! [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 11 October 2013 @ 5:00pm
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Which of these are berries: bananas, watermelon, avocado, strawberries? Surprisingly, all of them, except strawberries. According to the botanical definition, a "berry" is a fleshy fruit that's produced from a single ovary. Strawberries are actually "accessory fruits" which consist of many small individual fruits embedded in a fleshy receptacle. The "seeds" that you see on the surface of strawberries are the actual fruits, and each of them surrounds a tiny seed. Here are some more strawberry-related links.
- Japanese electronics company Sharp is working on growing strawberries in the Middle East, where it's difficult to grow them and expensive to import. The strawberries will be grown at a facility in Sharp's Middle East Free Zone Establishment in Dubai, in a controlled environment of optimal temperature, light, and humidity. These will all be precisely controlled using Sharp technology, such as LED lighting and "Plasmacluster" air-purification technology. [url]
- There are more than 600 varieties of strawberries in the world, but only 3 types: June-bearing, everbearing, and day-neutral. Some of the most popular varieties grown in the U.S. include Honeoye, Allstar, Chandler, Jewel, Seascape, Tristar, and Earliglow, which is considered to be one of the best tasting strawberry varieties out there. [url]
- A new wild strawberry species was recently discovered in the Cascade Mountains of Oregon. It grows at elevations of 3,000-5,000 feet. Unlike other local wild strawberries, which have only 8 sets of chromosomes, this new strawberry (Fragaria cascadensis) has 10 sets of chromosomes. [url]
- Japanese researchers have developed a $50,000 strawberry-picking robot that can pluck a strawberry every 8 seconds. The robot uses a 3D stereo camera system to determine which berries are ripe based on color, and when it finds a ripe one, it extends its arm, snips the stem, and then places the berry in the basket. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 27 August 2013 @ 5:00pm
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It's amazing some of the stuff that gets published in peer-reviewed scientific journals these days. For example, recently there was a paper published in a peer-reviewed journal in which the images appeared to be photoshopped. The photoshopping was so badly done that it was obvious upon looking at the images that they were doctored. The paper was withdrawn after this was discovered, but why didn't the journal editors catch this before it was published? Here are some other examples of questionable things that have made their way into journals.
- The supporting information for a recently published chemistry paper contained an editorial note that was inadvertently left in the published document. Not only did the journal's editors fail to catch this, but the paper's author is apparently being told to make up fake data: "Emma, please insert NMR data here! where are they? and for this compound, just make up an elemental analysis..." [url]
- A bizarre and completely unintelligible journal article that was recently published in a peer-reviewed journal has people wondering if it's a joke. The author spends most of the time explaining, in the most convoluted and incomprehensible manner, what the paper is apparently about, without really telling the audience what the paper is about. [url]
- The number of retracted scientific papers is increasing -- but not necessarily because more scientists are fabricating, falsifying, or modifying data. It's more likely because there is now an increased awareness of research misconduct, a greater audience thanks to the internet, and better software to detect plagiarism, image manipulation, etc. The blog Retraction Watch keeps track of scientific papers that have been retracted. [url]
- Check out some of last year's worst scientific mistakes, missteps, and misdeeds. These include at least one author who faked the e-mail addresses of and impersonated his paper's reviewers. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 21 August 2013 @ 5:00pm
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Remember the Concorde? It was the longest operating commercial supersonic aircraft that flew its last flight in 2003 after 27 years of service. With a cruising speed of 1,350 mph (Mach 2), the Concorde could fly from New York to London in under 3 hours. For more than 20 years, the Concorde was the fastest and safest airliner in the world, but a deadly crash in 2000 that killed all 109 people on board, as well as 4 people on the ground, precipitated the demise of the Concorde, which was already suffering from a general downturn in the aviation industry. There hasn't been a successor to the Concorde since it was retired, but perhaps the following are some possibilities.
- Apparently, a secret team of Boeing engineers is still working on the Sonic Cruiser, which was cancelled and replaced by the 787 Dreamliner. Technically, the Sonic Cruiser isn't supersonic, since it's designed to fly at 0.98 Mach, but its design has changed a bit since the original was proposed. The engines, which would have F-35 like variable geometry chevrons, are now located over (rather than embedded in) the wings, which now also have vertical stabilizers. [url]
- The X-51A WaveRider "Scramjet," an unmanned hypersonic aircraft, successfully reached Mach 5.1 in its final test flight. It traveled 230 nautical miles in just over 6 minutes and was the longest air-breathing hypersonic flight ever. The X-51A is unique in that it uses a hydrocarbon (rather than hydrogen) fuel in its supersonic combustion engine.[url]
- Why isn't there a successor to the Concorde? Perhaps it's because we're too cheap to fly faster. In fact, we're actually flying slower today than we were 50 years ago. In 1958, airliners were traveling at cruising speeds of just over 600 mph, compared to today's more fuel efficient 550 mph.[url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 14 August 2013 @ 5:00pm
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Our oceans harbor some of the world's most bizarre lifeforms, like alien-like isopods, vampire squid, and blobfish. In fact, one of the aliens featured in the movie "Men in Black 3" was closely modeled on the creepy and weird-looking blobfish. Here are a few more examples of deep sea creatures that are the stuff of nightmares.
- Pyrosomes are like the Borg of the sea. Resembling a giant translucent wind sock, pyrosomes can grow up to 60 feet long, and they consist of hundreds or thousands of individual zooid clones, connected together by a gelatinous tunic, working together to propel the entire colony through the water. Furthermore, they're bioluminescent, with each individual zooid capable of emitting light. [url]
- The mantis shrimp is a beautifully colored sea creature that has 16 color-receptive cones (humans have only 3). But you might want to think twice before petting one, considering they're one of the most creatively violent animals on the planet, with their two raptorial appendages able to strike with 1,500 Newtons of force, dismembering their prey in less than 0.003 seconds. And you probably don't want to keep one as a pet either, since they can apparently break aquarium glass, too. [url]
- Megalodicopia hians is a predatory sea squirt that waits for small marine animals to drift or swim into its translucent hood-shaped mouth. Most sea squirts are filter feeders, but this one has a greatly enlarged syphon that acts like a trap, opening to allow prey to enter, and then snapping shut to trap them. Apparently, they're our distant relatives, as both humans and sea squirts belong to the phylum Chordata. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 8 August 2013 @ 5:00pm
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People usually don't think too much about how important bees are to the quality of human life. As pollinators, bees play an important role in the survival of crops that depend on them. The mass die-off of bees, also known as "Colony Collapse Disorder," can have detrimental effects on economies that depend heavily on pollinator-dependent crops. Scientists are just starting to figure out what might be causing these mass die-offs, while others are working on alternatives to using bees for pollination. Here are a few links related to the disappearing bee.
- A new study has found that pollen contaminated with a wide variety of pesticides and fungicides could be responsible for the mass die-offs of bees. Bees that ate contaminated pollen were less able to resist getting infected by a parasite called Nosema ceranae, which has been implicated in Colony Collapse Disorder. On average, the contaminated pollen contained nine different pesticides and fungicides. [url]
- The once-common-but-now-rare Western bumblebee (Bombus occidentalis) has been spotted in Washington state for the first time since the mid-1990s. This particular bee species has a very unique "white butt" that makes it instantly distinguishable. A queen and a few other bees were also spotted, and they may be the only population of Western bumblebees in the state. The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation is hoping to conserve and help rebuild the population. [url]
- University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources is looking at using leafcutter bees as an alternative to disappearing honey bees for pollination. While leafcutter bees are more expensive and management intensive, they're as good as or even better than honey bees at pollinating certain crops, such as alfalfa seed, strawberries, and melons. [url]
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture is studying the use of blue orchard bees (aka orchard mason bees) as a replacement for honey bees. Blue orchard bees can pollinate a variety of crops, including almond, peach, plum, cherry, and apple, and they're extremely efficient. For fruit trees, it takes only 2,000 blue orchard bees to do the work of 100,000 honey bees. [url]
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Posted on Techdirt - 31 July 2013 @ 5:00pm
from the urls-we-dig-up dept
Science isn't glamorous. It says a lot when kids these days are more familiar with Mark Zuckerberg than they are with Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, Louis Pasteur, Thomas Edison, or Isaac Newton. So, what better way to inspire and encourage scientists than to recognize and reward them for their innovative work with huge cash prizes? Here are just a few examples of some lucrative science prizes that are being awarded to exceptional researchers.
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