We’ve all see video of some chicken wandering around sans their head and other various Frankensteinish type medical wonders but somehow the idea of something in a petri dish in a lab having a pulse you can measure isn’t high on the list of things to watch.

That’s a shame because even though it might be hard to believe scientists have managed, with stem cells, to create the smooth muscle cells that make up the blood vessels in your heart. Once created the cells ‘try’ to create a heart but only really get as far as being able to send out a pulse that causes the cardiac cells to contract – hence having a pulse.

Even better from a research point of view is that these disembodied heart cells are able to respond to drugs in the same way that interior heart cells would respond. The example given is that this type of petri dish testing would be able to tell doctors if a cancer patient’s heart would be able to handle chemo therapy.

It’s a little on the expensive side right for conducting tests this way, like $15,000 expensive and it also takes a year but given how fast this type of thing is advancing we could soon be able to do this for less money and take less time.

via io9

Would you take the pulse of that petri dish over there please [Video] is a post from: winextra
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Okay I can’t say that I’ve been overly concerned as to why zebras, which look like horses, have stripes but it would seem that this is a rather pressing question in some scientific circles.

Lucky for them then that we finally have an answer and it has to do with horseflies apparently, or so says a team of scientists in Budapest who tested their hypothesis with painted trays and salad oil.

I kid you not folks:

Insect defense!

A team in Budapest painted trays with different black and white patterns, inspired by research showing tsetse flies attack striped animals the least. They covered them in salad oil to trap flies, and unleashed the nipping little insects.

The trays with stripes most closely resembling a zebra’s attracted the least flies. Why? The stripes are confusing to the horseflies, making it hard for them to land, and also disrupt polarized light, which is how horseflies tend to navigate.

via Gamma Squad

See I told you – horseflies.

Fun science fact for today – why zebras have stripes is a post from: winextra
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Just in case you aren’t familiar with the name George Orwell he is the famous author who is responsible for two of our best and classic pieces of literature: Animal Farm and 1984.

The image above is actually quite hilarious when you know that 1984 was his masterpiece about “Big Brother” and always being under the eye of the government.

via Geeks are Sexy

George Orwell lived here is a post from: winextra
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It might not seem like much of a big deal unless of course you play a lot of games; or you are a developer of games of course, then this news is a really big deal especially since the breakthrough is based on code that will work on run of the mill computers – like yours and mine.

Graphics researcher Jorge Jimenez came up with the process called separable subsurface scattering (SSS) using code that is based on original research using DirectX 10. Now Jorge has said that this graphics technology will run on consumer-level computers and graphic cards however reality does suggest that you will still need the upper end of that ‘consumer-level’ hardware. Jorge himself runs with a GeForce GTX 580 equipped machine which will run the downloadable demo at around 112.5 frames per second.

As you can see from the video below his breakthrough shows an incredibly realistic skin texture that if it makes its way into our future games should be pretty incredible.

via GizMag

Real-time computer rendering breakthrough – ultra realistic skin [Video] is a post from: winextra
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There is no getting around it – Skyrim rocks and has to best the best game so far of the year and will probably become a classic that other games will aspire to be as good as in the genre. However as good as the standard game might be the creators of Skyrim have given players the tools to create their own mods to make the best even better.

So what happens then when you suddenly have 500 Draugr, 200 skeletons, 500 Dwarven Warriors and a dragon?

Well if you are Tyrannicon you have a fight to the death and make a video of it which you then upload to YouTube; but first here’s a couple more images snapped from the video to tease you with.

Now for the video. Enjoy.

via Nerd Approved

The biggest, baddest Skyrim battle you will never fight [Video] is a post from: winextra
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Before zombies saw their resurgence and before vampires rekindled a twinkle in your eye any geek worth their salt was a Princess Bride fan who could recite lines from the movie without even a second thought. Like Rocky Horror Picture Show the Princess Bride became a cult classic.

As with all things though much of the fandom around the movie faded away or moved on to something newer and geekier, but never fear I bring you news of one of the most iconic sword fights has made it’s way into a statuette that you can buy for your bookshelf.

Any serious fan of the movie will automatically know the exact scene that the statuette is from and the well worn lines of dialog that go with it but for those of you still new to this great movie this little scene is taken from the movie where the Dread Pirate Roberts and Inigo Montoya trade blades and quips.

You can help bring back those memories by heading over to Amazon and getting these glorious little statues for $249.99 each.

via Geeks are Sexy

A special treat for you Princess Bride fans is a post from: winextra
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