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The process of being prepared for the grave is fairly ghastly business: There’s the removal of blood and most of the organs, incisions and sewing with thick thread and lots and lots of make up. In the U.S., after the funeral and procession, it’s off to the graveyard or the crematorium, depending on one’s tastes and religion. Somewhere along the way, if you’ve been the fortunate recipient of a pacemaker, it too is removed — and taken out of circulation, either being thrown away or put into storage.
While I’m sure that we’ve talked about cruise control in the past, I thought we’d take just a few moments today to talk about a recent (but not necessarily new) variation of that original system — Dynamic Radar Cruise Control (DRCC). And since it’s not all-new technology, I’ll just give you a quick description of how the system works…
Watch your body language, travelers!
by Amanda Arnold | October 22, 2010
I don’t care what Black Sabbath song comes raging over the loud speakers in Italy or Cuba, don’t throw up your index and pinky fingers in a salute to heavy metal and expect to make any friends. In those countries, this devil horns gesture is akin to the American use of the middle finger, except that it implies another person’s wife is “not of sexual moral standing.”
This is just one example of how a seemingly friendly gesticulation can be construed as rude when you’re traveling abroad.
Recognizing Faces and Challenging Tablets on TechStuff
by Jonathan Strickland | October 22, 2010
There are certain themes that pop up repeatedly in our podcasts. Data security is a big one. Another repeat offender is the importance of critical thinking. A third topic is how can time travel work the way they lay it out in the film Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure? Those guys could cause the future to turn out the way they wanted to just by saying “We’ll go back and fix it later.” Seriously, this sort of thing keeps me up at night. But it doesn’t have anything to do with this week’s topics. Privacy, however, played a big role.
I recently wrote a Discovery Space piece titled “Is Warp Speed Possible?” and the fuel efficacy issues really fascinate me. How much energy would you need to outrun a beam of light on a jaunt across the galaxy? First, let’s refresh on warp speed travel. According to Einstein’s theory of special relativity, light is the universal speed limit. Nothing travels through space faster, and approaching it causes time to slows down and mass to become infinite. In other words, cosmic fat days last FOREVER.
For more than a hundred years, people have been using the hook as the grapser on the end of a wooden or plastic prosthetic arm. Here’s how it works: According to users it is surprisingly useful. But it is obviously not a hand. The state of the art in prosthetic arms is moving rapidly forward, [...]
You Asked:
How does a hydrogen generator work? — Sepideh, Tehran, Iran
Marshall Brain Answers…
You Asked:
When I let a balloon go, how high can it go? — Timothy, York, Pa.
Marshall Brain Answers…
White House Touts Jobs and Economic Security For Women
by Cristen Conger | October 22, 2010
On Thursday, the National Economic Council (NEC) released its study on Jobs and Economic Security for America’s Women. Its arrival just shy of the November congressional elections — in which, ironically, women politicians are actually poised to lose seats in the Senate for the first time roughly 30 years — isn’t coincidental, either.
DIY – Make your own Storm Trooper or Master Chief armor
by Marshall Brain | October 22, 2010
It’s funny to think that the original Star Wars movie was released in 1977. Here we are more than 30 years later, and Stormtrooper outfits are still cool and interesting. A lot of stuff from older movies looks tired and dated. That hasn’t happened at all with Stormtroopers. Sure you could buy a costume. But [...]
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