ಠ_ಠ Sci Art Mag - Science, Art & Entertainment

Man Etches Name In Sand, Visible From Space

2011-07-27T08:52:00.004-04:00

Gross opulence or a severe case of vanity it may be, but it's hard not to be impressed by this huge piece of graffiti. Or is it mega-landscaping? Or a new waterway? Frankly, it could be any of the above.

Measuring 1,000 meters high, and two miles wide, the name "HAMAD" has been etched into the island of Al Futaisi just off the coast of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The letters are dug so deep that they form an artificial waterway when filled with seawater and it is so large that it can be easily spotted by satellite -- this landmark will be around for some time to come. So, who is Hamad? That would be the 63 year-old billionaire Hamad Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan.

As a member of the ruling family of the oil-rich nation, Hamad is used to living it large. He built a pyramid to house 200 of his personal cars. He also built the world's largest truck, large enough to build four bedrooms in the cabin. Oh yes, and he has a motor home shaped like the Earth, exactly one-millionth the size... of the Earth.

Out of interest, you can see "HAMAD" yourself by typing the coordinates "24.3442, 54.3255" into Google Earth or Google Maps.

Here are two more images from Google maps of this enormous human-made architecture of enormous proportions.

via: Discovery News

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

2011-07-26T08:51:00.001-04:00

This lively RSAnimate, adapted from Dan Pink's talk at the RSA, illustrates the hidden truths behind what really motivates us at home and in the workplace.

via: RSABlog

By 2020 Over 50 Billion Devices Will Be Hooked Up to the Internet

2011-07-25T08:50:00.000-04:00

via: Cisco Systems

Global Trends for 2011

2011-07-24T16:27:00.000-04:00

via: TIG Global Blog

Shake the Dust

2011-07-13T14:03:00.000-04:00

Here is some inspiration for the day. Anis Mojgani really makes you think about the human nature in his poetic lyrics on the stage.

Shake the dust from Anis Mojgani on Vimeo.

This is for the fat girls.

This is for the little brothers.

This is for the school-yard wimps, this is for the childhood bullies who tormented them.

This is for the former prom queen, this is for the milk-crate ball players.

This is for the nighttime cereal eaters and for the retired, elderly Wal-Mart store front door greeters. Shake the dust.

This is for the benches and the people sitting upon them,

for the bus drivers driving a million broken hymns,

for the men who have to hold down three jobs simply to hold up their children,

for the nighttime schoolers and the midnight bike riders who are trying to fly. Shake the dust.

This is for the two-year-olds who cannot be understood because they speak half-English and half-god. Shake the dust.

For the girls with the brothers who are going crazy,

for those gym class wall flowers and the twelve-year-olds afraid of taking public showers,

for the kid who's always late to class because he forgets the combination to his lockers,

for the girl who loves somebody else. Shake the dust.

This is for the hard men, the hard men who want to love but know that it won't come.

For the ones who are forgotten, the ones the amendments do not stand up for.

For the ones who are told to speak only when you are spoken to and then are never spoken to. Speak every time you stand so you do not forget yourself.

Do not let a moment go by that doesn't remind you that your heart beats 900 times a day and that there are enough gallons of blood to make you an ocean.

Do not settle for letting these waves settle and the dust to collect in your veins.

This is for the celibate pedophile who keeps on struggling,

for the poetry teachers and for the people who go on vacations alone.

For the sweat that drips off of Mick Jaggers' singing lips and for the shaking skirt on Tina Turne

r's shaking hips, for the heavens and for the hells through which Tina has lived.

This is for the tired and for the dreamers and for those families who'll never be like the Cleavers with perfectly made dinners and sons like Wally and the Beaver.

This is for the biggots,

this is for the sexists,

this is for the killers.

This is for the big house, pen-sentenced cats becoming redeemers and for the springtime that always shows up after the winters.

This? This is for you.

Make sure that by the time fisherman returns you are gone.

Because just like the days, I burn both ends and every time I write, every time I open my eyes I am cutting out a part of myself to give to you.

So shake the dust and take me with you when you do for none of this has never been for me.

All that pushes and pulls, pushes and pulls for you.

So grab this world by its clothespins and shake it out again and again and jump on top and take it for a spin and when you hop off shake it again for this is yours.

Make my words worth it, make this not just another poem that I write, not just another poem like just another night that sits heavy above us all.

Walk into it, breathe it in, let is crash through the halls of your arms at the millions of years of millions of poets coursing like blood pumping and pushing making you live, shaking the dust.

So when the world knocks at your front door, clutch the knob and open on up, running forward into its widespread greeting arms with your hands before you, fingertips trembling though they may be.

Written and performed by Anis Mojgani

Object Vibrations - 1000 frames per second

2011-07-10T08:49:00.002-04:00

Here is some cool footage of various objects vibrating, shot at high speeds.

Vibrations - 1000 fps

Resonance - Abstract Geometry & Audio

2011-07-08T08:48:00.006-04:00

Resonance is the vision of SR Partners - a collaborative project with over 30 independent visual and audio designers / studios. The aim was to explore the relationship between geometry and audio in unique ways.

Animators and Audio Designers were paired up at the beginning of the project and were given the guidelines to create a piece between 12 and 20 seconds and in HD quality, the rest was up to them.

Basically this is eleven minutes of pure abstract awesomeness put into one video for your enjoyment. For best results please view in full screen HD and with volume up.

RESONANCE from Resonance on Vimeo.

Haboob - Intense Sandstorm Formation

2011-07-07T08:47:00.000-04:00

Image via Wikipedia

A haboob (Arabic هبوب) is a type of intense sandstorm commonly observed in arid regions throughout the world. There is almost no visibility in close proximity when inside the area covered by the haboob (as can be seen in the video below).

During thunderstorm formation, winds move in a direction opposite to the storm's travel, and they will move from all directions into the thunderstorm. When the storm collapses and begins to release precipitation, wind directions reverse, gusting outward from the storm and generally gusting the strongest in the direction of the storm's travel.

When this downdraft, or "downburst", reaches the ground, dry, loose sand from the desert setting is essentially blown up, creating a wall of sediment preceding the storm cloud. This wall of sand can be up to 100 km (60 miles) wide and several kilometers in elevation. At their strongest, haboob winds can travel at 35-50 km/h (20-30 mph), and they may approach with little to no warning.

via: YouTube

Visualized Twitter Activity from Japan after Earthquake

2011-07-06T08:47:00.002-04:00

Image by xotoko via Flickr

Here is a very interesting pattern of twitter activity just right after the big earthquake that hit Japan on 11th of March 2011.

Personal messages

On Twitter, we saw a 500 percent increase in Tweets from Japan as people reached out to friends, family and loved ones in the moments after the earthquake. The video below shows the volume of @replies traveling into and out of Japan in a one-hour period just before and then after the earthquake. Replies directed to users in Japan are shown in pink; messages directed at others from Japan are shown in yellow.

Spread of information

The clip below displays worldwide retweets of Tweets originating in Japan for one hour after the earthquake. Senders’ original Tweets are shown in red; Tweets retweeted by their followers in the hour after the event are displayed in green.

via: Twitter Blog

10 Cameras + 1 Tesla Coil = 70 Megapixel Bullet Time Lightning.

2011-07-05T22:39:00.001-04:00

Image via Wikipedia

This was one of the more challenging projects that Rob Flickenger had to do and it took him a while. He had to build a physical mount to hold all of the cameras, wire them together to a repurposed PC power supply, recompile CHDK to eliminate as many unnecessary camera keystrokes as possible, write some scripts to facilitate taking and retrieving the photos, then shoot the actual photos without accidentally frying the whole rig. And, of course, build and operate the Tesla coil itself, edit together the stills, and compile the whole thing into a possibly entertaining video.

reson8 from Rob Flickenger on Vimeo.

via: HackerFriendly

Mr. Freeman

2011-07-02T08:46:00.000-04:00

Here is an awesome motivational video to start off the weekend. It's an animation done in Russian with subtitles at the bottom. Make sure to view it the second time to get the full meaning of the author's message. So go out there and commit something outside of your comfort zone. "JUST DO IT" "The Most Important - It's Not A Game!"

140 dB - The Human Body and Sound Experiments

2011-07-01T08:45:00.000-04:00

"140 dB" is an experimental film about the interaction between the human body and sound experiments. In trying to show how sound can change the perception and the structure of objects, the creation of Tadas Svilainis be discovered in video below.

140 dB from Tadas Svilainis on Vimeo.

Kinesiology: The Myotomes

2011-06-30T08:44:00.001-04:00

Image by Tamityville via Flickr

Today I will introduce a series of posts entitled "Kinesiology:" which will deal with the interesting facts and information that I've learned throughout my years in university. If you could, give me your opinions whether you liked this post, and whether you would like similar in the near future in the comments section.

I have finished a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and Health Science program, and know a reasonable amount of background information on the subjects pertaining to health and physical activity. Today I will start off with a brief introduction to Myotomes and their testing.

Myotomes are defines as a groups of muscles supplied by a single nerve root. It also has to be noted that spinal nerves come in pairs, one from the left side and the other from the right side. So an injury to a single nerve root (either right or left) is associated with muscle weakness (a.k.a. incomplete paralysis) of the myotome (left side or right side muscles) supplied by that nerve root. When testing a myotome, key muscles are tested for weakness, not pain.

Image by EUSKALANATO via Flickr

Myotomes are tested according to the principles of muscle testing and graded according to the findings. Usually muscles are graded according to percentage, or 0 - 5, when compared bilaterally to the unaffected side. Where 0 is "No response; total paralysis", and 5 is "100% - Normal response; segment is held against gravity with normal resistance being given to the part."

Here is a list of upper extremity myotomes that correspond with spinal nerves C1 (Cervical 1) all through out to T1 (Thoracic 1)

C1 - None
[None]
C2 - Sternocaleiomastoid & Longus Colli
[Neck Rotation]
C3 - Trapezius & Splenius Capitis
[Neck Flexion]
C4 - Levator Scapulae & Diaphragm
[Shoulder Shrug & Diaphragmatic Push]
C5 - Supraspinatus, Infraspinatus & Middle Deltoid
[Shoulder Abduction]
C6 - Biceps Brachii, Wrist Supinator & Wrist Extensor
[Elbow Flexion & Wrist Extension]
C7 - Triceps & Wrist Flexor
[Elbow Extension & Wrist Flexion]
C8 - Extensor Pollicis Longus, Extensor Pollicis Brevis & Abductor Pollicis Longus
[Thumb Extension]
T1 - Hand Intrinsics, Flexor Digitorum Profundus, Flexor Pollicis & Opponens Pollicis
[Finger Spread]

The section of T2 (Thoracic 2) to L1 (Lumbar 1) spinal nerves is mainly responsible for ribcage movement and therefore is mainly not listed in the testing of myotomes.

The lower extremity myotomes start at the level of L2 (Lumbar 2) spinal nerves down to S1&S2 (Sacral 1&2) nerves.

L2 - Illiopsoas & Hip Adductor
[Hip Flexion]
L3 - Quadriceps Femoris
[Knee Extension]
L4 - Tibialis Anterior & Extensor Hallucis
[Ankle Dorsiflexion]
L5 - Extensor Hallucis, Peroneals & Gluteus Medius
[Big Toe Extension]
S1-S2 - Hamstrings & Gastrocnemius
[Knee Flexion]

Also as an added bonus here is a funny & educational video of all the myotomes in action

via: YouTube

If It Were My Home

2011-06-29T11:39:00.000-04:00

The lottery of birth is responsible for much of who we are. If you were not born in the country you were, what would your life be like? Would you be the same person?

IfItWereMyHome.com is your gateway to understanding life outside your home. Use our country comparison tool to compare living conditions in your own country to those of another. Start by selecting a region to compare on the map to the right, and begin your exploration. Aside from giving you a categorized comparison of countries, this website also displays a brief history of the chosen country. Here is some background information about my country - Canada:

Image via Wikipedia

A land of vast distances and rich natural resources, Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 while retaining ties to the British crown. Economically and technologically the nation has developed in parallel with the US, its neighbor to the south across an unfortified border. Canada faces the political challenges of meeting public demands for quality improvements in health care and education services, as well as responding to the particular concerns of predominantly francophone Quebec. Canada also aims to develop its diverse energy resources while maintaining its commitment to the environment.

The land now occupied by Canada was first inhabited approximately 16,000 years ago by aboriginal peoples. Starting in the late 15th century the British and French explored and settled along the eastern seaboard. The 19th century saw a rapid influx of European immigrants as the westward push that characterized the continent's development continued.

The beginning of the 20th century saw Canada's early involvement in World War I due to British control of its foreign affairs. In 1919 Canada joined the League of Nations independently of Britain taking control of its own foreign policy. Canada declared war on Germany during World War II three days after Britain, with the first Canadian Army units arriving in Britain in late 1939.

Today, Canada is characterized by its socially democratic programs such as universal health care, the Canda Pension Plan, and Canada Student Loans. In 2006 The Economist ranked Canada the third most democratic nation in its Democracy Index, ahead of all other countries in North and South America.

via: IfItWereMyHome.com

Top 10 Most Extreme Substances Known on Earth

2011-06-28T08:43:00.000-04:00

Here is a nice top 10 list of awesome Earthly substances, ranging form super-hot to the most darkest and the most magnetic to the super-fluid. So without any further adieu

10. The Darkest Substance Known to Man

What do you get when you stack carbon nanotubes on their ends and sandwich them together? A material that absorbs 99.9% of the light that touches it. The microscopic surface of the material is rough and uneven, which breaks up the light and makes it a poor reflector. Then add to that carbon nanotubes act as superconductors in certain arrangements, which makes them excellent light absorbers, and you have a perfect storm of black. Scientists are really excited about the potential applications of the substance; since virtually no light is “wasted”, it would be used to improve optical tools like telescopes, and even be used to make nearly 100% efficient solar collectors.

9. The Most Flammable Substance

A lot of things burn with astounding intensity; Styrofoam, napalm, marshmallows are just the beginning. But what if there was a material that could set sand on fire? Okay, so clearly that was a loaded question, but it was a necessary set-up. Chlorine triflouride has the dubious honor of being terrifyingly flammable, to the point that history’s evil boy-scouts, the Nazis, deemed it too dangerous to work with. When people who consider genocide their life’s goal don’t want to use something because it is too deadly, it bears treating it with some caution. There is a story that a ton of the stuff was spilled once and caught fire, and it burned through 12 inches of concrete and another meter of sand and gravel before going out. I hate to say it, but in this case, the Nazi’s were right.

8. The Most Toxic Poison

Quick, what’s the last thing you would want to inject into your face? Aside from something that burns through concrete, and maybe the world’s worst acid (coming soon), I would think “The world’s deadliest poison” would be in the top 3 with them. Not so, though, in the medical community; you’ve all heard of Botox, no doubt, and “deadliest poison” is it’s main claim to fame. Botox uses botulinum toxin, produced by the bacteria Clostridium botulinum, and it is so deadly, an amount equal to a grain of salt is enough to kill a 200 lb man. In fact, they even suggest that it would only take 4kg, properly dispersed, to kill every last person on earth. Maybe those crows feet around your eyes would be better treated with an angry rattlesnake….

7. The Hottest Substance Ever

There are few things known to man hotter than the interior of a freshly microwaved Hot Pocket, but this stuff manages to break even that record. Created by smashing gold atoms together at nearly the speed of light, it’s called a quark-gluon soup, and it reaches a balmy 4 trillion degrees Celsius, a mere 250,000 times hotter than the inside of the sun. The amount of energy released in the collision was sufficient to melt protons and neutrons, which in itself could be featured on a list of things you never even knew were possible. Scientists think this substance could give us an idea of what the birth of our universe was like, so it’s good to see they aren’t just creating tiny supernovas for the fun of it. However, the really good news is that the soup was only a trillionth of a centimeter across, and only lasted for a trillionth of a trillionth of a second.

6. Most Acidic Substance

Acid is scary stuff; they gave one of the scariest movie monsters ever acid blood to make it scarier than just a simple killing machine (the Alien), so it’s pretty ingrained in our psyche that getting dissolved is bad. If the Aliens had been filled with fluoroantimonic acid, they not only would have probably fallen through the floor until they hit dirt, the vapors given off by their dying bodies would have killed everyone around them. It is 21019 times more powerful than sulphuric acid, and can even eat through glass. And it explodes when exposed to water. And when it is reacting, it gives off poisonous fumes that can kill everyone in a room. Maybe we should move on from this one…

5. The Most Explosive Substance

This particular honor is actually currently shared between two compounds; HMX and Heptanitrocubane. Heptanitrocubane mostly exists in labs, and is similar to HMX, but has a denser crystal structure, giving it greater destructive potential. HMX, on the other hand, exists in quantities large enough to be physically threatening. It is used in solid rocket fuel, shaped charges, and even nuclear weapon detonators. That last one is the scariest, because despite how easy movies make it look, starting the fission/fusion reaction that makes bright glowing radioactive mushroom clouds is not an easy ball to get rolling, but HMX is up to the task.

4. The Most Radioactive Substance

Speaking of radiation, it’s worth noting that the glowing green rods of “plutonium” on the Simpsons are completely fictional. Just because something is radioactive does not mean it glows. I mention that because Polonium-210 is so radioactive, it glows blue. A former soviet spy, Alexander Litvinenko, was duped into consuming some without his knowledge, and he died of cancer shortly thereafter. This is not that kind of thing you ever want to mess with; the glow is caused by the air around it being excited by the radiation, and it can actually heat objects nearby. If the fact that something highly radioactive gives off heat, keep in mind that when we usually think “radiation”, we are thinking of things like a nuclear reactor or explosion, where an actual fission reaction is happening. This is just your run of the mill loss of ionized particles, not a runaway splitting of atoms.

3. The Hardest Substance

If you thought the hardest substance on earth was diamond, that was a good, if inaccurate guess. It is technically an aggregated diamond nanorod. It is actually a collection of nano-scale diamonds, and it is the least compressible, hardest substance known to man. They aren’t naturally occurring, which is actually kind of cool, since it implies we could one day coat our cars in this stuff and just walk it off when we collide with a train (not really). It was developed in Germany in 2005 and will likely be used in the same capacity as industrial diamond, except will be more wear-resistant than regular diamonds. That’s harder than algebra.

2. The Most Magnetic Substance

If Magneto was a small black lump, that would be him. The substance, developed in 2010 out of iron and nitrogen, is 18% more magnetic than the previous record holder, and is so powerful, it has forced scientists to revisit how magnetism works. The man who discovered the substance has taken great pains to ensure that his work can be reproduced by other scientists, because a similar compound was reported developed in Japan back in 1996, but other physicists could not replicate it, so it was never officially accepted. No word on whether Japanese physicists have to commit Sepuku under these circumstances. If it can be reproduced, it could spell a new age of efficient electronics and magnetic engines, maybe even powered by number 10.

1. The Most Superfluid Substance

Superfluidity is a state of matter (like solid or gaseous) that occurs at extremely low temperatures, has high thermal conductivity (every ounce of it is always exactly the same temperature), and no viscosity. Helium 2 is the “most” example of this. A cup of He2 will spontaneously flow up and out of a container, as if it just decided to leave. It also seeps right through otherwise solid materials because its complete lack of friction allows it to flow through otherwise invisible holes that would not allow regular helium (or water for that matter) to flow through. He2 did not wind up at number 1 just because of its ability to act like it has a mind of its own, though, it is also the most efficient thermal conductor on earth; several hundred times that of copper. Heat moves so fast through Helium 2 that it moves in waves, like sound (and is fact known as “second sound”), rather than dispersion, where it simply transfers from one molecule to another. Incidentally, the forces governing He2’s ability to crawl walls is called “third sound”. You can’t get much more extreme than a substance that required the definitions of 2 new types of sound.

via: TopTenz

Keep your mouth shut about your goals and plans.

2011-06-27T08:43:00.000-04:00

When you have some great aspirations in your life, shouldn't you announce them to your family and friends?
Isn't it good networking to tell people about your upcoming projects?
Doesn't the “law of attraction” mean you should state your intention, and visualize the goal as already yours?
Nope.

Tests done since 1933 show that people who talk about their intentions are less likely to make them happen.

Announcing your plans to others satisfies your self-identity just enough that you're less motivated to do the hard work needed.

In 1933, W. Mahler found that if a person announced the solution to a problem, and was acknowledged by others, it was now in the brain as a “social reality”, even if the solution hadn't actually been achieved.

NYU psychology professor Peter Gollwitzer has been studying this since his 1982 book “Symbolic Self-Completion” (pdf article here) - and recently published results of new tests in a research article, “When Intentions Go Public: Does Social Reality Widen the Intention-Behavior Gap?”
Four different tests of 63 people found that those who kept their intentions private were more likely to achieve them than those who made them public and were acknowledged by others.

Once you've told people of your intentions, it gives you a “premature sense of completeness.”
You have “identity symbols” in your brain that make your self-image.Since both actions and talk create symbols in your brain, talking satisfies the brain enough that it “neglects the pursuit of further symbols.”

At first you might feel unable to hold all your goals and aspirations only to yourself, but you should try and do it gradually to see the most benefit from it. If you can't hold off telling someone your goal then try rephrasing it into a way that will not give you any social satisfaction or gratification. For example, instead of saying: "I've joined a gym and bought running shoes. I'm going to do it!" say something like: "I want to get into shape and become more fit, and if I slack off you should kick my ass or not talk to me for a while". That way you will be dissatisfied with your statement to a friend and will still be compelled to do your hard work to reach that goal later on.

via: Derek Sivers Blog

Inception, the movie in 60 seconds

2011-06-25T08:42:00.001-04:00

An entertaining idea has been born on the YouTube - 60 second videos that try to depict full length movies in only one minute. YouTube user DISS2011 has compiled a big collection of these 1 minute movies over at his channel.

Here is the short 1 minute video for "Inception":

Here is also a video for "Forrest Gump" in 60 seconds:

via: YouTube

Art meets science in a stem-cell exhibit

2011-06-24T18:59:00.000-04:00

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the discovery of stem cells by Canadian scientists James Till and Ernest McCulloch, thus the Ontario Science Centre !dea Gallery has brought together scientists and artists to explore the intersection between art and the cutting-edge science of stem cell research.

This collaboration has inspired student artists and designers from a remarkable diversity of disciplines -including fashion design, science and medical illustration, and visual and textile arts - to respond with their personal visions of what stem cells are and what they mean.

Watch the animation made for this exhibition to find out more about stem cells.

via: OntarioScienceCentre

Japan - 3 Months after the Catastrophe

2011-06-21T08:42:00.011-04:00

Japan continues to struggle with the effects of 9-point earthquake and ensuing tsunami that occurred three months ago on the northeast coast of the country. Local authorities are still trying to deal with the consequences of accidents at nuclear power plants, Fukushima. Workers continue to dismantle obstructions, while the approaching rainy season, which may increase the risk of spreading diseases. Collected here are photos taken over the past week - three months after the devastating catastrophe in the land of the rising sun, as well as photos of individual areas before and after the disaster.

The following are 30 high resolution pictures of Japan now. For a higher resolution make sure to click on an image.

1. Cars drive through the destroyed area for three months and two days after the 9-pointearthquake and tsunami, June 13, Natori, Miyagi Prefecture. The Japanese governmentis trying to deal with the consequences of disasters and problems of nuclear power plantaccident at Fukushima. The authorities are preparing for an increased risk of spread ofviral and infectious diseases as we approach the rainy season, which also hamper the work of raking debris. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty
Images)

2. Qais Kubota with his grandmother JE pray for the victims of the earthquake devastated city of Miyako, Iwate Prefecture. His father worked as a volunteer at Kais opening the gate dam, it was washed away during the tsunami wave on 11 March.(Kyodo News / Associated Press)

3. Japanese national flag in the wind develops in Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

4. Otsuchi ruins. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

5. The evacuated residents from city Namie, undergoing tests for radiation levels, returning to his home in the 20 km exclusion zone around the nuclear power plant in Fukushima Minami Soma. Minami Soma City suffered the strongest of all in the tsunami and earthquake on March 11, when power passed out Fukushima electricity. About 80% of the city is located within a radius of 30 kilometers from the zone of radiation, and 4100 families live in the zone of complete evacuation, the Government established a 20 km radius of the plant. (Tomohiro Ohsumi / Bloomberg)

6. A broken picture frame in Sendai on 13 June, three months after the disaster.(Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

7. The Japanese in the ruins of the city Minamisanriku. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

8. Dilapidated buildings - all that remains of the city in the prefecture of Iwate Otsuchi.(Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

9. Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Cannes on a special committee of the Lower House of Parliament, dedicated to the reconstruction after the disaster in Tokyo. The Japanese government approved a bill to help pay billions of dollars in Tokyo compensate refugees in the area of radiation, giving birth to mnogonedelnomu project, which may decide the fate of the largest power company of Asia. (Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)

10. The debris in the city of Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture, on June 13. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

11. Protesters shout slogans during a march in Tokyo on June 11. The protesters held a large demonstration against the use of nuclear power plant just three months after the earthquake and tsunami, which killed dozens of people and started one of the worst man-made disasters in the world. (Koji Sasahara / Associated Press)

12. Local fisherman rake debris into Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, on June 11.(Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

13. Heavy machinery rake debris in Natori. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

14. 47-year-old Miyuki Saito, who in the catastrophe lost mother and older brother, collecting plants from what was left of her garden, in Natori.

15. Children dismantle donated stationery at a charity event in Otsuchi. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

16. The builder is working on temporary housing for evacuees affected by the disaster on March 11 in Otsuchi. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

17. 47-year-old Sakiko Yamaguchi (left) with her son in May Yamaguchi built a temporary shelter at an elementary school parking lot Ando, turned into an evacuation center in Otsuchi. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

18. The remaining carcass after the disaster center for disaster prevention in Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty Images)

19. Evacuees from the exclusion zone within a radius of 20 km from the plant, Fukushima residents, including Nao Yoshida (center), light candles at an event organized by exactly three months after the earthquake and tsunami in Minami Soma.(Tomohiro Ohsumi / Bloomberg)

20. Tsunami washed away the wreckage of the ship Kesennuma March 12 (left) and June 3 (right). (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

21. Left: the coast from the rubble of collapsed houses in Isinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, in northeastern Japan, a day after the earthquake and tsunami. Right: the same place three months later on June 3. (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

22. The gate to the temple amid the wreckage of Kozuchi Otsuchi after the earthquake on March 14. On the right are the same gates on June 3. (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

23. Damaged cars in the flooded area with fragments of 12 March (left) and the same area three months later (right). (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

24. Damaged houses in the debris after the tsunami, March 23 (top) and the same area in the Miyako June 3. (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

25. Left: on the beach washed away the wreckage of the ship Miyako on March 12.Right: the same road on June 4. (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

26. Steam-ship on the buildings in the devastated city Ofuchi April 6 and the same area three months later. (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

27. Top: the survivors in the crash go to the river with plastic containers and teapots, to fetch water, across the street, barred a fallen tree, on March 14 in Kesennuma. Below: The same way three months later. (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

28. Top: broken homes and debris in the parking lot of a shopping center in Otsuchi March 13. Below: the same parking lot on June 3. (Kyodo News / Associated Press)

29. Top: the tsunami waves covered residential area of Natori March 11, during a severe accident in the history of Japan. Below: The same area three months later.(Kyodo News / Associated Press)

30. Satellite photos of Japanese nuclear reactors at Fukushima. Top: before, bottom: after the earthquake and tsunami. (Sina / China.org.cn)

SmartphOwned - Fail Autocorrects and Awkward Parent texts

2011-06-20T08:41:00.000-04:00

Smartphowned is a humor site featuring autocorrection fails and awkward parent texts. Users can upload images or share their conversations using our unique iPhone message builder.

Here are some notable funny texts:

via: SmartphOwned

Interactorium, the coolest 3-D molecular visualizer

2011-06-17T08:40:00.001-04:00

The Interactorium is a platform built to visualise very large interactome datasets. Developed in collaboration with the School of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of New South Wales, it is adapted from the Skyrails Visualisation Engine, which was originally developed by Yose Widjaja.

The Interactorium functions as an atlas of known protein-protein interactions. The current distribution uses the yeast protein-protein interaction dataset by Bertin et al.

A groundbreaking visual presentation of a microscopic organism at a molecular level such as this, encompasses such a great amount of detail and interactivity, its mind-boggling. This project should be adapted to other organisms and eventually to human beings, possibly to study the life around us in a more grandiose fashion and to understand all the little minute changes that happen at a the molecular level.

via: Interactorium

Soichi Noguchi's Top 15 Most Beautiful Photos, Tweeted From The Space

2011-06-12T08:39:00.003-04:00

Soichi Noguchi is a Japanese aeronautical engineer who is currently a part of the Soyuz TMA-17 crew and Expedition 22 to the International Space Station and it seems that he is one of the first scientists who got an excellent idea to share what he sees from space with internet users.

Soichi recently started tweeting from the space and he decided to show us some of his best photos taken from there which he shares with us almost every day via Twitpic. Here you can see the list of some of the most beautiful photos taken by Soichi Noguchi from International Space Station.

Amazon River, Brazil, photo taken on February 6, 2010

Aruba Antiles near Venezuela, photo taken on February 6, 2010

Bahrain, photo taken on February 9, 2010

KSC, Florida. Space Shuttle Endeavour STS-130 is preparing to launch, photo taken on February 4, 2010

Mount Fuji, photo taken on January 31, 2010

Hawaii Island, photo taken on January 31, 2010

Jakarta, Indonesia, photo taken on February 9, 2010

Mount Kilimanjaro, photo taken on February 1, 2010

Maldives Island in Indian Ocean, photo taken on February 3, 2010

Moscow, Russia, photo taken on February 5, 2010

Pico de Orizaba, Mexico, photo taken on February 7, 2010

Quebec City, Canada, photo taken on February 3, 2010

Golden Gate Bridge, San Fransisco, photo taken on January 30, 2010

Sapporo, Japan, photo taken on February 4, 2010

Tokyo, Japan, photo taken on January 28, 2010

via: IncredibleWorld

Magnetic Movie

2011-06-10T08:38:00.003-04:00

The secret lives of invisible magnetic fields are revealed as chaotic ever-changing geometries. All action takes place around NASA's Space Sciences Laboratories, UC Berkeley, to recordings of space scientists describing their discoveries. Actual VLF audio recordings control the evolution of the fields as they delve into our inaudible surroundings, revealing recurrent 'whistlers' produced by fleeting electrons. Are we observing a series of scientific experiments, the universe in flux, or a documentary of a fictional world?

Magnetic Movie from Semiconductor on Vimeo.

via: SemiconductorFilms

Money Art

2011-06-09T08:37:00.000-04:00

Some people might call this government property defacement, other might call this an art form. I'm pretty sure many people have seen some amazing drawings that alter paper currency into an art. Be it with a slight reference to X-Men, Tron, Star Trek or Avatar all of them are awesome. But wait, this is not what this post is going to be about. An artist by the name of Dan Tague creates a different kind of money art. Unlike many money-artistes, he folds currency to align the letters on the bills so that they spell out some intriguing messages and other common sayings. The Following exhibition of this unique art form is titled: "Live Free or Die"

Don't Tread On Me

Freedom Land

Holy Shit

Lest We Forget

Live Free Or Die

Love And Hate

Reality Sucks

Save The Coast

Trust No One

We Need A Revolution

Two other exhibitions from Dan can be found at his website:

"Cost of War/ Price of Freedom"

"Cash Rules Everything Around Me"

via: DanTagueStudio

Akinator - The ultimate character guessing internet genie

2011-06-08T20:33:00.000-04:00

Akinator is a little fun website that can guess a person, character or anything for that matter. It is an Artificial Intelligence program that can find and learn the best questions to be asked by the player. All you have to do is answer around 20 questions honestly about who you are thinking about and the answer will magically appear by the magical powers of the Akinator.

Go ahead and try to think of something or someone that this internet genie will not be able to guess.

via: Akinator