A Good Deal

Exploring the solar system and the Universe

2012-10-22T19:58:00.001+02:00

Below some renderings that I created recently illustrating the solar system, including the terraforming process, and drawings of other celestial bodies like giant stars, binary systems associated to a massive star, quasars, seyfert, black holes and more. These illustrations are available and put on sale on my LUXORION website.

Catalog of Exoplanets

2012-10-20T22:44:00.003+02:00

Below some renderings of explanets that I created recently. These illustrations are put on sale on my web.

Time-lapse videos

2012-10-03T03:15:00.000+02:00

Here are some time-lapse videos I created recently with LRTimelapse and Lightroom from pictures recorded with a DSLR Nikon D7000 equiped with a 16 mm lens.

The first one is constituted of 270 images exposed each 1/125th of second at f/8 at interval of 8 seconds during 36 minutes. The video is projected at a rate of 12 fps.

The next video is constituted of 1759 images exposed 0.5 second at f/4 at interval of 2 seconds during 1 hour. The video is projected at a rate of 50 fps.

At last sequence constituted of 207 images exposed 1/250th of second at f/9.5 at interval of 10 seconds during 35 minutes. The video is displayed at 25 fps.

Thanks to the tutorials available on LRT website, you can understand the main functionalities of these both programs in one hour. Mastering Lightroom will be a bit longer.

Namaqualand, or when the desert flourishes

2012-07-01T18:00:00.022+02:00

There is in South Africa, in nordwest province of Cap, by 29° South, an area named Namaqualand that extents on the Atlantic side over 50000 ha.

This arez close to Tropics is almost desert and constitutes one of the most dry area of the Southwest Africa.

However, once a year, this desolated area alterning meadows and granitic ranges is subject to an amazing metamorphosis.
Between July and September, billions of flowers are blooming, offering to the visitor colorful blossom carpets that change from the monotony that usually rules in this desert.
This spectacular event is fascinating and known from all botanists and more and more tourists. To preserve this nature, the South Africa State created three reservations in this territory.

By what magic does this desert flourishes? In fact, in this spot unique in the world survive plants that adapted to desertic conditions that started 50 million years ago.
To avoid to burn under the blazing sun heat, seeds filled with water after the rainy season (July-August with a peak of precipitations in June) sprout from the austral spring under a milder climate and cover the desert in an explosion of thousand colors.

This area shows one of the widest floral biodiversity with more than 3000 species of endemic plants. One finds there "stone-flowers" that look like to stones before to flower.
Visit Namaqualand
This place is a must to visit but that lasts only a few weeks each year. The flower explosion usually happens between mid-August and end-September but all depends on amount of rain.

Some tourists visited this country end of August without observing this floral carpet and their frustration was as strong as their hopes.

The best to do should be to phone to several cottages and B&B hotels of the region and ask them when the desert flourishes or if it's just spouting and to visit it within the two next weeks.

As all natural phenomena to forecast such an event is as difficult as to predict the great mammal migrations.
So, if you cannot visit this country immediately or long time enough, say that you have some chances to see that floral explosion if your plan your trip early Septembre. Expect an average temperature of 32°C and be lucky.

Nikon Surf Photo of the Year 2012

2012-06-20T20:14:00.000+02:00

Recently photographer Ray Collins won the "Nikon Surf Photo of the Year 2012" award for this image showing Australian surfer Mark Mathews riding the wave named “The Right” in West Australia.

The swell was estimated at 5 or 6 meters. Collins used a Canon 7D camera body with a 70-200mm, f/2.8L lens.

Here are images taken by the other finalists :

A view from Tehran, Iran

2012-06-14T19:32:00.007+02:00

A very nice image of the Tohid tunnel in the capital-city of Tehran, Iran, and Alborz ranges.

In spite of what could think some people, Tehran is a modern city which buildings are locally much more futuristic than in many american or european cities.
Tehran is a megapole with close to 8,5 million inhabitants living on 750 km2 (urban area). It is a very modern capital, far to the cliché of an outmoded village lost in the middle of the desert, full of camels, and women in chador...

Tehran is a beautiful city surrounding with snowy mountains (up to 5600m high), full of ultramodern monuments, crossed by highways, a metro, there are gardens, shops, markets, shopping centers, exhibitions, and the city is till brighter at night.

Only major issue and not the least, its leader is a dictator and terrorists are not living far away...

Do no hesitate to visit Tehran, it is a historical city. Its prestigious past - remember the Medes and Persians - and its people merit your attention.

Time lapse of New York, a city that never sleeps

2012-06-10T12:53:00.006+02:00

Here is a nice time lapse video of New York. Filmed in HD by Steve Bumgardner, this 3-minute video was taken while spending a week filming our new "National Parks of New York Harbor DVD". This film is available from Finley Holiday. Enjoy !

Below another nice time lapse video of New York City by James Ogle. Shot with a DSLR Canon EOS 7D. equipped with various lenses: 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 USM, 28-135 f/3.5-5.6, 50mm f/1.4 USM, 75-300mm f/4.5-6 III USM and Pro Optic 8mm f/3.5.

A last nice time lapse video of the Big Apple released some years ago. Background music by Moby-inside from the album PLAY (copyright WMG).

World Oceans Day

2012-06-08T01:01:00.028+02:00

This 8 June we celebrate the "World Oceans Day" - our planet’s biggest celebration of the ocean.
70% of the Earth is covered in water! This water is available in three states: liquid, solid and gazeous and has been classified into five different categories: oceans, rivers, lakes, groundwater, and ice.
As an essential part of our daily diet, water is vital for the survival of our ecosystems.

The world's oceans comprise 97.3% of the total water available on Earth and consists of 5 oceans: Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, and Southern. The current range for the volume of the world's ocean is from 1.3 to 1.5 billion km3 and it will still get larger and larger as time passes.

There are two origins of water: comets (extraterrestrial bombardment) and out gassing (condensation of steam from early volcanism). These processes are continuing today. It is estimated that the volume of the earth's ocean increases by 1 cubic meter every year.

This year, we encourage you to reach out to young people and help inspire them for the 2012 theme Youth: the Next Wave for Change. Explore this site for ideas, resources, and information about how you can get involved.

One World One Ocean

It is a multi-platform, multi-year campaign dedicated to using the power of film, television and new media to spark a global grassroots movement for the ocean.

Filming in 40 locations in 5 oceans, and using the latest IMAX and 3D digital technology, One World One Ocean will bring to life the world of the oceans, inspiring people to act on its behalf through compelling content.

Writer Ray Bradbury dies at 91

2012-06-06T20:22:00.009+02:00

Science fiction writer Ray Bradbury, whose dystopian works served as cautionary tales about perilous futures and reflected the anxieties of post-war America, has died at the age of 91.

Bradbury’s publisher HarperCollins confirmed his death on Tuesday in Los Angeles after an unspecified “lengthy illness,” as tributes poured in from fans and family alike for a man seen as one of the genre’s greatest authors.

“In a career spanning more than seventy years, Ray Bradbury has inspired generations of readers to dream, think, and create,” HarperCollins said in a statement.

“The great fun in my life has been getting up every morning and rushing to the typewriter because some new idea has hit me,” Bradbury said in 2000.

“The feeling I have every day is very much the same as it was when I was 12,” he said on his 80th birthday.

Ray Bradbury on Amazon

His most-remembered work, “Fahrenheit 451″ (1953), was a Cold War-era work about the evils of censorship and thought control in a totalitarian state and reached a worldwide audience as a film adaptation by Francois Truffaut in 1966.
“Fahrenheit 451″ was his only sci-fi book, he said, because it was a “depiction of the real” — or of something that could actually happen in a totalitarian state.

International fame followed the 1950 publication of “The Martian Chronicles,” a novel assembled from a stack of short stories, praised by critics as a morality tale set in the very near future.

He was not the first to examine the dual potential for good and bad in science and technology, but he sought out a larger audience.

More than eight million copies of his books have been sold in 36 languages. In all, the award-winning writer penned nearly 600 short stories and 50 books.

Ray Douglas Bradbury was born August 22, 1920 — an event he claimed to remember — in Waukegan, Illinois, the third son of a telephone lineman and Swedish immigrant Esther Marie Bradbury.

He graduated in 1938, but skipped university in favor of independent study at a local library, reading Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoyevsky and others, while selling newspapers on the street.

His first paycheck as a writer came for a short story, “Pendulum,” published in Super Science Stories, a pulp magazine.

He published his first book, “Dark Carnival,” in 1947, the year he married Marguerite McClure.

Bradbury did not write “sci-fi,” he said, but fantasy, which he defined as “a depiction of the unreal,” giving as an example “The Martian Chronicles,” because it was a story that could not happen.
Bradbury said the novel was not meant to be grim: “I wasn’t trying to predict the future. I was trying to prevent it.”
“You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them,” he once said.
Bradbury branched out into film, television and theater, with an Academy Award nomination for his 1962 animated film, “Icarus Montgolfier Wright,” and an Emmy as a television writer for “The Halloween Tree.”
He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and an asteroid bears his name: 9766 Bradbury.
“Don’t worry about things. Don’t push" he once said. "Just do your work and you'll survive. The important thing is to have a ball, to be joyful, to be loving and to be explosive. Out of that comes everything and you grow."
Yesterday Venus transited in front of the Sun and this will no more happen until 2117. Ray Bradbury transited in front of the Sun and this will never more happen.

6.5 million passwords stolen at LinkedIn

2012-06-06T19:52:00.001+02:00

LinkedIn, the business-based social network, has reportedly been breached by hackers who made off with about 6.5 million user account passwords (on 150 million users in the database).

At this point, stop reading this and go change your LinkedIn password to one that’s strong (uppercases, lowercases, and numbers). Do it now! I’ll wait.

Very good, now that you are protected, you should know that about 300,000 of the passwords have been cracked so far.

The passwords are encrypted, reports The Next Web, but maybe not for a long time. According to TNW: "Norweigan IT website "Dagens IT" reported the breach, with 6.5 million encrypted passwords posted to a Russian hacker site. Security researcher Per Thorsheim has also confirmed reports via his Twitter feed, stating that the attackers have posted the encrypted passwords to request help cracking them".

Finnish security firm CERT-FI is warning that whilst user details have not been posted, it is believed that the attackers will have access to user data as well as their passwords.

Transit of Venus: Your last chance on 5-6 June 2012

2012-06-04T19:56:00.011+02:00

If you missed the last transit of Venus on June 8, 2004, in a couple of days, the 5-6 June you will have a last chance to be part of the event that will no be happening again until 2117.

8 June 2004 Venus transit.

For astronomers and fans of astronomy this transit will thus receive a very significant attention.

A transit of Venus across the Sun takes place when Venus passes between the Sun and Earth. Having almost the same size as the Earth, Venus will appear as a significant dark black disc moving slowly across the sun disk.

The Venus transit will begin at 5th June 2012 at 22:09 UT and will finish by 04:49 UT in 6th June.

The Pacific Ocean region, Japan, NE Asia, Philippines, East Australia and North America will view the entire event.

In Europe, the Sun rising only around 4h UT, in London, Brussels or Berlin the observers will only see the end of the transit (3^rd and 4^th contact) which will have already begun in the U.S.A. by 22h UT. In Europe the Sun will be only at 6° to 14° above l'horizon at the time of the 3^rd contact. Conversely in New-York or Los Angeles amateurs will only assist to the first phase of the transit (1^st and 2^nd contacts) a few times before the sunset. So, the best locations to observe this event will be along the beach, over the eastern (Europe) or western (U.S.A) horizon.

South America or Western Africa will miss this rare event, as the transit will not be visible from these areas.

Venus transit can be viewed and pictured or filmed across a small telescope (reflector or refractor from 50 mm of diameter) equipped with a solar filter (a mylar sheet placed in front of the objective).

For more information

To get more information on how to observe and picture this event, read my article The Transit of Venus (also available in French). Check NASA website for a live coverage of this event.
Latest news - Images of the Venus Transit 2012
Below an image recorded from Hinode spacecraft on June 5, 2012 at 22h26 UT, just before the 2d contact. In front of the turbulent solar surface and its prominences note the thin ring of light surrounding the planet's dark silhouette; it is the sunlight refracted by Venus' thick atmosphere :

Below an image in yellow light recorded by the Solar Dynamics Observatory on June 6, 2012 just before the 3d contact :

At last a nice image recorded on June 6, 2012 by AP photoreporter Kevin Frayer from Taj Mahal in India :

New Audi A3 review

2012-06-03T14:52:00.008+02:00

In its battle with BMW 1 Series and Mercedes A Class, the new Audi A3 takes an high-tech approach that could well be to its advantage.

The new A3
Two generations after the first A3 (1996-2003, 2003-2012) that were each a best-seller, this new Audi A3 continues to surprise us.

Although it looks globally the same as the first model in both shape and sizes, the huge difference is that the new A3 addresses to the upmarket with a performing, efficient, dynamic and high-tech model.

Audi has taken an intelligent approach to the new A3. Using almost the same volume, engineers extended the wheelbase to provide more interior space, better dynamics using in addition a MBQ platform - lighter chassis of around 80 kg - allowing individual tailoring for different sizes and classes of car.

All these novelties improve everything from comfort and refinement to safety and economy. So apart from its look, plenty has changed. Audi itself describes the new A3 as evolutionary. The goatee grill remains with slightly slimmer headlights, a sharper crease along the sides and larger rear lights. But the big affair is inside as we will see below.
Then, between 2012 and 2013 the new A3 will come in four variants: 3-door hatch, cabriolet, 5-door Sportback and 4-door sedan in order to satisfy the largest audience as possible.

Inside A3

Inside A3, the changes are more obvious as the car feel much more spacious, especially in the front (a five-door Sportback model will arrive next year) because at rear the space is not better that in other compacts entry models. Boot space is up 15 litres to 365 litres making for a decent sized load space.

The interior style and quality is signed Audi without any doubt. The dashboard sits lower than before, while there is less clutter. A slim 5.8“ screen rises out of the dash, there are simpler airco controls and even a very efficient handwriting recognition (mainly used for the GPS) on top of the MMI controller (rotary button) after many of the other functions. All this is smart and simple to use

Among gadgets, there is a smartphone connection via Bluetooth but you can also navifate thanks to Google Street View using your own on-board wireless hotspot.

The A3 is comfortable without being as soft as the old model, specially when you are going really fast. But the standard suspension is good, comfortable with only a slight hint of firmness and a real step forward compared to old A3s.

Options

Even entry-level A3 SE models are reasonably specced with alloys, airco, iPod and Bluetooth connection, plus MMI and fancy display screen.

Mid-spec Sport model adds 17” alloys, Audi Drive Select (so you can choose between sportier or more relaxed steering and throttle settings), sports seats, climate control and some aluminium trim.

At the top of the tree is S-Line, sold with 18” alloys, smart Xenons, daytime running lights, and a mild body kit.

S-Line and Sport models are normally lowered by 25mm and 15mm respectively.

Engines

Unfortunately Audi offers few engines. You can choose between 1.4 (138 bhp) and 1.8 (178 bhp) TFSI petrol engines (the latter coming with an S-Tronic double clutch gearbox) and a 2.0 (148 bhp) TDI diesel. A second diesel 1.6 TDI (105 bhp) will be available towards the end of the year.

The 2.0-litre equipped with the slick-shifting S Tronic gearbox shows low CO2 emissions limited to 106 g/km. This engine has punch, but its consumption increases in cities, while the stop-start system is a bit loud.

The 1.6 TDI 105 is probably the best model in term of quality/price ratio. 1500€ cheaper than the 2.0-litre diesel, it shows the lowest CO2 emissions with 99g/km. Its engine is sweet, revving keenly with enough acceleration, and excellent refinement.

On the road, the new A3s show all a sense of refinement. There’s very little road noise, only a small amount of wind noise and the engine is nice and quiet.

Premium prices

The entry prices are equivalent to VW Golf and are on a par with BMW 1 Series. They start at €23,500 for the A3 Attraction 1.2 TFSI 105 and at €25,050 for the smallest diesel A3 Attraction 1.6 TDI 105. The Ambiante 1.6 TDI 105 seems to be the best comprise with a price starting at €27,550.

Going to Sport adds €1500, while going for S-Line means spending a further €2500.
On top of the series, the A3 Ambiente 2.0 TDI 170 S tronic full options is worth €41,600 € and the Audi S3 2.0 TFSI quattro 265 S tronic full option is worth €44,600.

A forensic tool retrieves data from iCloud

2012-06-03T12:01:00.006+02:00

Apple's iCloud is an online backup service. Incremental backups created by this system offer a near real-time copy of information stored on iPhones including emails, call logs, SMS and websites visited.

When set up to use the iCloud service, the iPhone automatically connects to iCloud network and backup its content every time a docked device gets within reach of a Wi-Fi access point. This system was considered as safe, at least up to now.
But according to The Register, a new forensics tool developed by ElcomSoft lets investigators - including cops - retrieve user data associated with iPhones from iCloud.

Here is how this technology works as describes this note found on ElcomSoft website:

While other methods require the presence of the actual iPhone device being analyzed or at least an access to device backups this is not the case with iCloud," ElcomSoft chief executive Vladimir Katalov explained.

"With a valid Apple ID and a password, investigators can not only retrieve backups to seized devices, but access that information in real-time while the phone is still in the hands of a suspect."

Hopefully, this method does require that the investigartor knows the Apple ID and password of the suspected person and they might not be easy to obtain as all passwords. But anyway, once those personal data are in place, the information can be swiftly downloaded, unencrypted...

EU ordered Google to change search results

2012-06-02T20:20:00.002+02:00

According to The Guardian, the European Commission ordered Google to change its search results and advertising rules or face court over antitrust issues.

Joaqin Almunia, the EU head of competition policy, outlined in a letter to the commission his fears on how Google's search engine dominance is damaging competition. In a statement, Google told the Guardian: "We operate in over 100 countries around the world, and the internet is disruptive by its nature. It's understandable that our business should attract scrutiny and sometimes complaints in a few of those countries. We're always happy to answer questions authorities may have about our business."

Almunia specifically targets Google for giving preference to its own properties in the search listings. If the EU have their way then Google will need to adjust their search listings, possibly even giving rivals preferential treatment.

Google are also facing legal issues in both France and Germany over privacy issues. So, in France, the company has until June 8th to provide their data protection commissioner with details around how user data is processed and how long it is stored. In Germany meanwhile they have landed in trouble after their Street View service was found to tap into wireless connections from homes.

NamibRand Nature Reserve: a new Dark Sky Reserve

2012-06-02T15:21:00.007+02:00

The International Dark Sky Association (IDA), a night sky preservation advocacy group, announced that the NamibRand Nature Reserve in Namibia is not only the 3d International Dark Sky Preserve but the first in Africa.

This coveted designation is given to wilderness areas where the sky quality and darkness are protected from the nuisance of light pollution and people are able to soak in the starry heavens in their pristine state. Canada and England are home to the two other certified International Dark Sky Reserves.

Milky Way above Africa`s first International Dark Sky Reserve. Credit: George Tucker.

As cosmopolitan areas continue to grow, so does artificial light pollution from street and building lights. As a result maybe only a couple of dozen of the brightest stars are visible from typical urban setting, compared to as many as one to three thousand stars from a remote, dark countryside.

Extending over an area of 1722 km2 the NamibRand has been actively supporting the management of the unique ecology and wildlife found along the eastern edge of the Namib desert. Tourism directly finances the parks conservation and educational efforts and now by adding this new designation the hope is that it will not only enhance the nature experience but educate people about the heritage of the night sky and the importance of proper lighting.

"The night sky over the NamibRand Nature Reserve is exceptional, as are the efforts the reserve has taken in modifying its lighting for the sake of its wildlife and visitors," said IDA’s Executive Director Bob Parks in a press release statement.

Like in many deserts, in NamibRand Nature Reserve stars of 6th magnitude - the weakest stars visible naked eye - are visible without difficulties all around the year, and the Milky Way runs across the sky in all its splendor. In that desert the nearest neighboring communities are small entities that lie some 100 km away. So you are far from any light pollution. If you visit that spot, don't forget to raise your head to the sky.

Toyota GT-86

2012-06-01T23:04:00.007+02:00

The new Toyota GT-86 alias BTZ is available in Europe since June 2012. The retail price is about €29900.

This compact 2+2 sports car has a low, highly aerodynamic bodyshell stretched tight over the engineering hard points, making it the world’s most compact four-seat sports car design.

Shunning a heavy, large displacement powertrain for its performance, the GT86 returns to Toyota’s sporting roots with the world’s only combination of a compact, front-mounted, naturally aspirated, free-revving, horizontally opposed ‘boxer’ petrol engine and rear-wheel drive.

Here are specifications of this sport car in a few key words :

Model : coupe

Fuel : petrol

Engine : 2 litres (1998 cc)

Cylinders : 4 cyl., horizontally-opposed (boxer), direct fuel injection, double overhead camshafts, 4 valves/cyl.

Compression : 12.5:1

Transmission : 6-speed manual, opt. 6-speed automatic

Drive : rear-wheel
Power : 200 hp at 7000 rpm
Torque : 205 hp at 6600 rpm
Top speed : 240 km/h
Acceleration : 0-100 km/h in about 7 sec
Consumption (mixed) : ~8 L/100km
Weight : 1200 kg
Wheel rim : 215/40R18 (front), 225/40R18 (rear)
Size : 424 cm x 128.5 cm x 257 cm (LxHxW)

Google's World Wonders Project

2012-06-01T22:59:00.002+02:00

Google has just released the World Wonders Project, an educational-leaning interface to serve up the wonders of our world, both near and afar.

This new tool will serve together fans of history and fans of geography, all the more if you have not the opportunity to travel abroad.

The right-hand side of the World Wonders site has menus allowing you to find out more about the location, including information provided by UNESCO World Heritage, along with links for additional information.

There is a video section with YouTube selections highlighting various points of interests on the site, and a photography section with content provided by Getty Images and image sharing sites OurPlace and Panoramio.

At last, an option on the sidebar provides 3D models (if available) from Google Earth. As using the other menus, you can click and drag the models and zoom in on them, just as you can in Google Earth.

With so many information at your fingertips, I bet that World Wonders will soon become one of your favorite travel guides.

Underwater cases for videocams

2012-05-30T19:43:00.009+02:00

Aquabotix has just released a waterproof case named HydroView. Equipped with a HD camera (sic!), it is able to film and shoot underwater down to 50 meter deep.

Measuring 37x 48 x 18 cm and weighing 4 kg, the submersible comes with LED lights, a three-hour battery and a top-side box that connects with a cable tether. The box also allows users to communicate with the HydroView via a computer (iPad, Mac or PC).

The HydroView can also take pictures and gather data about water conditions. Top speed for the submersible is five knots or about 10 km/h, and one knot when going in reverse.

Comments

Is it a good choice ? The HydroView cost $3,995 for a so called "HD video" of... 480 pixels only ! All is said.
Indeed, stricto senso 480p is not qualified as HDTV but simply as EDTV (enhanced definition TV).
"Affordable and fun" claims the manufacturer. One could add rather ridiculous to offer a so low resolution ! This system is very expensive compared to other waterproof cases that, without to be motorized, are all the same autonomous and thus wireless.
Why using a motor when we wear palms ? For the pleasure to move faster. Agreed.
But why such a price when we can easily find waterproof cases for most camcorders much cheaper ? Because it is motorized ? Up to you to appreciate its utility.
If it is not a bobby-trap, in all cases it is an accessory much too expensive due to its poor video performances and its mandatory link to the surface.
At the end what the amateur wants is an autonomous waterproof HD 1080p camcorder, doesn't it ? In this context, the motorisation is optional and the cabling system becomes a constraint.

You want names of its competitors ? Canon, Panasonic, Olympus, etc, sale low-cost waterproof cases that resist down to 20 or 30 meter deep for ~$100.

At last Aiko sale tens of waterproof cases that cost less than $900 (~ €800) compatible with most brands selling camcorders delivering excellent HD 1080p videos ! Knowing this, the HydroView is useless. Good to know.

US presidential election: exercise your voting right

2012-05-28T10:52:00.004+02:00

In waiting for the 57th quadrennial US presidential election that will be held on November 6, 2012, take a look at how the abstainers can impact the result, and why it is more useful to exercise his voting right.

In a democratic country where the vote is not compulsory, the voters disappointed by the last elections or by political scandals tend not to vote any more, imagining that so they will favor the other minority candidates or will make only bother the favorites. This way of conceiving the impact of the abstainers on the result of the elections is totally false!

Indeed, let us take a simplified example: in a panel of 100 voters old enough to vote, the candidate Smith obtains 40% of the voices or a 40/100 ratio, Martin obtains 30% of the voices or 30/100, the third significant candidate obtaining 10% of the voices or 10/100, the other candidates being divided the remaining 20%.

The first candidate thus gained 17 points and reaches the absolute majority (50% + 1 voice), the second candidate gained 13 points whereas the third candidate increased his popularity only by 2 points.

We notice that more the candidate is popular more he gains in voice thanks to the abstainers that he can only congratulate to their displeasure!

A good advice: forget what wrote Jean-Paul Startre in 1973 in Modern times: "elections, trap for idiots" and exercise rather your voting right! Otherwise do not complain that one didn't take your voice into account, and that a challenger wins the election.
The 26th Amendment
In the United States, suffrage is determined by the separate states, not federally. However, while the vote is not compulsory, the "right to vote" is expressly mentioned in five Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. So the 26th Amendment entered into force in 1971 states : "The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age."

Demonstration of temporal cloaking

2012-05-27T22:41:00.009+02:00

You know Star Trek and their cloaking device. Up to know it's pure fiction. But one day who knows... In all cases, such a wild idea is slowly turning into reality... Here is the story of the first steps of this extraordinary discovery.

All really began in 2006. Physicists demonstrated that a class of synthetic materials could bend light completely around an object, like water flows around a rock. Without light bouncing off the object, it would essentially disappear; the cloaking device was born !

In 2007, V.M. Shalaev, a physicist expert in nanoptics and nanophotonics from Purdue University at West Lafayette, Indiana, created a plasmonic device able to cloak an object with minimized scattering.

The first invisibility cloaks worked only at microwave frequencies but in a few years, physicists have found ways to create cloaking device working in visible light, for sound and for ocean waves.
In 2008, researchers at Caltech created a fabric that bent light in ways impossible with natural materials. While it was not an invisibility cloak, the fishnet-like structure demonstrates that light could be bent around an object to hide it from detection by the human eye.
In 2009, Yun Lai and his team designed cloaks that can make one object look like another.

In 2010, Alexander Gaeta from Cornell University was interviewed by a reporter who asked his opinion about a strange news published in the Journal of Optics: a team of scientists claimed that it might be possible to create a time cloak, i.e. a device that would render events undetectable...

In short, rather than just rerouting the rays of light striking an object, a time cloak would have to deflect all the light beams impacted by the object as it moves through space. The time cloak would create a break in time during which all information about what an object is doing disappears.

The author, theoretical physicist Martin McCall of Imperial College London, proposed splitting a light beam into two segments moving at different speeds. As one fragment built a lead on the other, a gap of complete darkness would open up between them. In other words, anything happening within that gap would be impossible to detect, since there would be no light to scatter. Then McCall proposed bringing those two segments back together so that by the time the beam of light reached an observer, there would be no way to detect that the gap ever existed.

While McCall estimated that the building of this device would require up to 10 years to complete, the Gaeta group has imagined to build it much more quickly.

Indeed, since 2007 the Gaeta group is developing a device called a time lens able to alter the speed of a light beam. The time lens combines two techniques: it involves hitting a beam of light with a laser just as it passed through a glass fiber, allowing considerable control over the beam’s speed.

The experiment

Gaeta and his team have assembled a complex system of optical fibers and lasers. Then they sent a light beam into one end of the fiber and through a time lens, splitting the beam into two parts. As the leading segment of the beam surged ahead, the time gap widened. By the time the fragmented beam had traveled 1 kilometer, the gap of darkness had reached 15 trillionths of a second. At that point, the team introduced a marker event by shooting a laser across the fiber.

Usually, the laser would noticeably alter the color of the original beam of light. But the cloak worked to perfection: Because the laser passed through the unlit gap, the color of the beam didn’t change. After passing through another time lens that speed up the slower fragment and slowed down the faster one, the reunified beam reached its endpoint, in one piece, with the same properties as when it started. An independent observer would have no way of knowing the laser had ever been fired.

In a second experiment, the time lens opened a gap of 40 trillionths of a second, and the light sensor confirmed that the laser had been cloaked. Nature approved the publishing of this experiment in its January 2012 issue.

Next goal

Gaeta group’s next goal is to increase the gap to billionths of a second, which will require about 20 times more power ! Such a gap on that timescale could have immediate implications for the hightech industry which relies on streams of data traveling at light speed over fiber-optic cables.

For instance, people streaming video on home computer could potentially use a time cloak to create a break in the data stream and download a file without interrupting the video.

A time cloak could also allow cybercrime agents to monitor enemy communications undetected. The agents could slow down the flow of data, record the information, and then speed it back up so that neither the sender nor recipient could possibly know it was intercepted.

But there could be worse implications: terrorists or even the Army could hide not only objects or what they are doing but that they are doing anything at all...

But for Gaeta these kind of projects are far to be operational. "This is just the first step. There needs to be another 100,000 steps before you can create a full spatial time cloak that can hide people," he says. "Then again, when the transistor was invented 50 years ago, I don’t think anybody imagined something like the iPhone. We don’t know where this will take us."

New Mazda CX-5 SUV review

2012-05-27T13:08:00.027+02:00

After the mixed success of its CX-7 SUV (4x4) model, Mazda unveiled the all-new Mazda CX-5 compact crossover SUV at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. The new Mazda CX-5 has been introduced progressively to global markets early 2012 and is now available to all dealers.
Skyactiv
It's the first time that a Mazda SUV benefits of their new generation of Skyactiv technologies. These include new engines, efficient gearboxes, a more free-flowing exhaust system, and a lightweight body and chassis.
Three engines are available: a 162 bhp 2.0-litre petrol and 148 bhp and 173 bhp versions of a 2.2-litre diesel.
You can also choose between four drivelines: front- or all-wheel drive with a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission.

Thanks to Skyactiv, all "blue engines" are efficient, and show relatively low CO2 emissions. So the two small CX-5 models are almost "green": the 148bhp diesel is only producing 119 g/km of CO2, and the front-wheel-drive petrol emits 139 g/km of CO2 while the 173bhp and all-wheel drive diesel emits 144 g/km of CO2.
In addition the fuel consumption is respectively ranging from 4.1-5.8L for 2WD and 4WD in city to 5.4-8.1L on highways.
At last, security side, on May 25 the CX-5 has been awarded the maximum five-star rating by the European New Car Assessment (Euro NCAP).

The CX-5 is also the first of a new generation of Mazda vehicles that will evolve the company's hallmark fun-to-drive character by providing a new level of driving pleasure.

Aiming for the Best of all Worlds - Making a crossover SUV with enduring appeal CX-5 Programme Manager, Hideaki Tanaka, says: "We aimed to develop a vehicle with a long-term appeal that would delight owners and make them proud for years to come. I think that these were the most important values we had to embody in the CX-5. We wanted to deliver the best of all worlds in order to suit the various lifestyles and life stages of our customers, and satisfy their high expectations over the long term. Specifically, we focused on providing pleasure through the CX-5's appearance, ist precise handling, its insightful functionality, and its long-term appeal. By aiming to achieve the ideal in each area, we pursued the innovation of driving pleasure."

Specifications
Engine: Skyactiv-G 2.0L or 2.2L 16 valves, inline 4 cylinder, aluminum block and head
Injection: direct fuel
Fuel: petrol or diesel
Displacement: 1997 cc
Compression rate: 13:1-14:1
Bore and stroke: 83.5 x 91.2 mm
Power (SAE net): 160 hp @ 6000 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 155 lb-ft @ 4000 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic with manual shifting mode, 6-speed manual
Min-max fuel ratings (2WD-4WD): 4.1-5.8L (Urban) to 5.4-8.1L (Highway)
CO2 emissions: 119-144 g/km
Ground clearance: 215 mm (2WD), 210 mm (4WD)
Acceleration: 0 to 100 km/h in 8.0-8.2 sec

Wheels: 17" alloy (GX, GS) or 19" (GT)

Min. turning circle: 11.2 m

Cargo volume: 966L to 1,852L

Curb weight: 1,459 kg (2WD 6MT), 1,555 kg (4WD 6AT)

Towing capacity: 907 kg

Overal dimensions (LxWxH mm): 4,555 x 1,840 (2,165 with mirrors) x 1,670 (1,710 with antenna)

Prices

Mazda CX-5 starts at around €24,000 ($20,700 or £21,400) for the 148 bph diesel, the diesel models carrying a €2000 premium that’s worth paying. The price of a full-option diesel model is close to €35,000.

The CX-5 offers much more than just a quality diesel engine, though. It’s practical, good to drive, and comfortable, including features that are in option in the VW Tiguan or in a lesser extend in the Ford Kuga, Honda CR-V, and other Asian SUVs.

So it looks like it will be a sound financial proposition if you stick with one of the cheaper SUV.

By its design, its performances and its price, the CX-5 is destinated to a large audience and to a bright future.

Now, if your budget’s any bigger, look at the Audi Q3, BMW X3 or Land Rover Evoque.

You will find hires images of CX-5 on Bert Ogden website.

Introducing the Leap

2012-05-27T12:26:00.002+02:00

Leap Motion unveiled a 3D motion control device that will introduce a more advanced technology for handsfree interaction with computers.

Evolution of the Kinect system, Leap represents an entirely new way to interact with your computers. It's more accurate than a mouse, as reliable as a keyboard and more sensitive than a touchscreen. For the first time, you can control a computer in three dimensions with your natural hand and finger movements.
The Leap will be available this winter for $70.

Oldest musical instruments found in Germany

2012-05-26T16:34:00.004+02:00

Researchers have identified what they say are the oldest-known musical instruments in the world.

The flutes, made from bird bone and mammoth ivory, come from a cave in southern Germany which contains early evidence for the occupation of Europe by modern humans, Homo sapiens.

Scientists used carbon dating to show that the flutes were between 42,000 and 43,000 years old. The findings are described in the Journal of Human Evolution.

A team led by Prof Tom Higham at Oxford University dated animal bones in the same ground layers as the flutes at Geissenkloesterle Cave in Germany's Swabian Jura.

Pr. Nicholas Conard, the Tuebingen University researcher who identified the previous record-holder for oldest instrument in 2009, was excavator at the site. He said: "These results are consistent with a hypothesis we made several years ago that the Danube River was a key corridor for the movement of humans and technological innovations into central Europe between 40,000-45,000 years ago".

"Geissenkloesterle is one of several caves in the region that has produced important examples of personal ornaments, figurative art, mythical imagery and musical instruments."

Musical instruments may have been used in recreation or for religious ritual, experts say.

Field-of-View Simulator for Astrophotographers

2012-05-24T22:28:00.002+02:00

The slovak start up company Cloudmakers is developing cross-platform solutions for local and remote observatory control dedicated to amateur astrophotographers.

They have developed two web applications named FOV Simulator and jNOVAS 3.1 Library, available free of charge. See the below screenshot.

If you need more information, do not hesitate to contact Eva Slovenciakova at Cloudmakers.

What Gagarin saw during his historic space flight

2012-05-24T21:26:00.003+02:00

In 2011, in honor of Yuri's Night 2012, National Geographic reporter Victoria Jaggard posted a piece she did for the 50th anniversary of Gagarin's first spaceflight, which originally appeared on the National Geographic magazine blog Pop Omnivore. The post included an interview with a film director who last year premiered his movie about Gagarin, which uses some stunning imagery from a modern ISS astronaut to re-create Yuri's view from space. Just one year after this event, Victoria reposted her article.

Fifty years after the fact, details about Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin‘s historic first mission into space are still creeping out from behind a shroud of secrecy.

But there is something we’ll never know about Gagarin’s flight, even in the age of Wikileaks: What did the farmer’s son from Klushino, Russia, see from 200 miles (322 kilometers) above Earth on April 12, 1961?

More concerned about survival than documentary footage, Gagarin brought back sparse imagery of his monumental voyage—and obviously nothing in full-color HD.

“What Gagarin did is something of galactic significance, and it needs marking in some way other than crackly, black-and-white footage,” said film director Christopher Riley.

Now Riley hopes to re-create this piece of history with the worldwide, online premiere of his new Gagarin movie, First Orbit.

Posted on YouTube at midnight GMT on April 12, 2011, the roughly 108-minute film blends a few 1960s historic reels with modern shots taken from the International Space Station (ISS) by Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli. His video not only retraces Gagarin’s view from orbit, it shows Earth bathed in sunlight at the same angle the cosmonaut would have seen during his 1961 flight.

Now available in 30 languages on BluRay and DVD from Firstorbit.org - this real time recreation of Yuri Gagarin's pioneering first orbit, was shot entirely in space from on board the International Space Station. The film combines this new footage with Gagarin's original mission audio and a new musical score by composer Philip Sheppard. For more information visit First Orbit.