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Video of the day

Gene — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:15:58 +0000

Smart as a fly

ARTiFactor — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:25:59 +0000

Robots that "think for themselves"

Fly's eyes: Can the nerves, eyes, and "brain" function of a fly be modeled within a computer circuit?
Courtesy NeilsPhotography Engineers are trying to design machines that can "think for themselves" when on surveillance or search and rescue missions. Somehow the machines has to look at its environment and decide what to do.
Have you ever tried to catch a fly? They are pretty good at seeing your hand and knowing just how to escape your grasp.

If we can figure out how a fly can do it ...

Can we figure out how a fly is able see, and find food, and escape from our fly swatters? With today's super microscopes, I am sure that we can visualize and model every nerve connection, muscle fiber, and eye facet.

Computational biology

David O’Carroll, a computational neuroscientist who studies insect vision at Australia’s University of Adelaide has been studying the optical flight circuits of flies, measuring their cell-by-cell activity. In a paper published in Public Library of Science Computational Biology, O’Carroll and fellow University of Adelaide biologist Russell Brinkworth describe an

algorithm composed of a series of five equations through which data from cameras can be run. Each equation represents tricks used by fly circuits to handle changing levels of brightness, contrast and motion, and their parameters constantly shift in response to input.

The "fly brain" circuits are small and use only a fraction of a milliwatt

“It’s amazing work,” said Sean Humbert, who builds miniaturized, autonomous flying robots,

“For traditional navigational sensing, you need lots of payload to do the computation. But the payload on these robots is very small — a gram, a couple of Tic Tacs. You’re not going to stuff dual-core processors into a couple Tic Tacs.

Learn more - mathematical modeling of insect biology

Secret Math of Fly Eyes Could Overhaul Robot Vision Wired Science
Robust Models for Optic Flow Coding in Natural Scenes Inspired by Insect Biology Computational Biology

We have constructed a full model for motion processing in the insect visual pathway incorporating known or suspected elements in as much detail as possible. We have found that it is only once all elements are present that the system performs robustly, with reduction or removal of elements dramatically limiting performance. The implementation of this new algorithm could provide a very useful and robust velocity estimator for artificial navigation systems.

The Answers to the MCA @___@

SHINee003 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 17:38:53 +0000

Declared by the "The No Child Left Behind Program" (NCLBP) and the State of Minnesota, science is an important subject and required for student's after the graduating class of 2011 to pass in order to graduate. The first MCA Science test was handed out last year to students in 6th and 8th grade, since it was their first year testing students on Science the scores has not yet been posted.
In the past, there were different types of MCA's passed out to student's, there was the MCA 1 and the MCA 2 and there is a plan for an MCA 3 in the year of 2014. With each different tests, it gets more and more rigorous, but the question is why? For each tests the standards have changed ( if you want to check out the standard for science in the MCA check out this link http://education.state.mn.us/MDE/Academic_Excellence/Academic_Standards/... and download Academic Standards: Science K-12 (2009)) in the past few years and the standards are changing to be a set higher than the years before. Could this be the reason why many students are not able to meet the standards for the MCA? The groups that tend to not meet the standards are special education and the limited English students, these groups will have a handicaps for the test. We also know that if any group of students who did not meet the standards the entire school suffers the consequences. The problem is not that these students will always fail but that the school should do is provide these students with resources that they need to help pass this test and especially Science. Science does not only consistences of just reading but also math and critical thinking, all of the students should also have the opportunity and resources to help pass these tests. What the N.C.L.B.P. should do is not place the entire school under academic probation but to step back and provide helpful resources to students who are willing to step up and take responsibility for themselves.
Every time I requested or asked for information about the standards from the years of 2004- present from those who worked for the MCA, my question was either avoided or never answered, I decided to interview people who works for the state, I asked Roger Anderson who worked for the Research and Assessment and a few other people who works or had information about the MCA and it's standards. I had sent my interview questions to all of them and never got a reply in return. I meet Ms. Wilson at school after she gave a power point presentation about the MCA and how Harding students did last year on the test. I was quite surprised to see the data and the dramatic change in the scores from the MCA 1 and MCA 2, compared to MCA 1, the MCA 2 was made more rigorous because of the scoring and the standards set higher than the MCA 1. In result with the changes in the different test more students had failed or did worse than the previous year.
I am almost positive that the MCA's for Science will also be following the same pattern where the standards will continue to get more and more rigorous as the years go by. I understand that it may not always be the tests fault that students fail, most of the time students are not prepared for the test because for two reasons. One they chose not to study or prepare for the test, or two the teachers did not teach the MCA requirements for the student's. With these constant changes in the MCA standards it has effected how the students perform on the tests and how the teachers teach their students. It is just as important that student's prepare themselves for the test just as that those who work for the MCA keep the standards the same. For more information go to education.state.mn.us/ about the MCA.

Is the changing of the weather a sign of 2012?

dellax28 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 17:14:32 +0000

Have you notice that this year is a bit different than these past few years? There is climate changes and I have found out that there is many places that have unusual weather going on. To find out what kind of weather is happening at other people's location I posted up a question on answers.yahoo.com (http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ai6ehEHIOirNwIoaUPUQaEAazKI...) to see if the weather is really a sign or a warning of 2012.
Downtown St. Paul: Downtown St. Paul
Courtesy Della XiongFor an example. In Minnesota, on Spring there wasn't as much rain as it usually did every year. September was the month that has the most rain. It seems as if September was Spring instead of Fall. And going towards October their were a couple days that have snowed, it was unexpected. It's like the weather shifted a month forward. So for me the cause of 2012 could be the weather, but I wasn't sure about it so I ask another question "Is the changing of the weather a sign of 2012? on answers.yahoo.com to get peoples opinion. (http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Agak5C7_ZvFnrKhAwJySvp0azKI...) The answer that I get was no. Most of them said the changing weather is just a symptoms of global warming and climate changes that is caused by human and this made me think that they could be right about it. So what is your opinion? And what do you think of the weather? Do you think the weather has anything to do with 2012?

Hair: the chemicals we put in it

shaunalynn10 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:41:17 +0000

Hair and the chemicals we put in it.

Do you know what you are putting in your hair when you dye, perm, or relax your hair?
Hair dyes contain harsh chemicals. Para Phenylenediamine is a potent allergen. It is also a possible carcinogen which is cancer causing. Reports suggest over exposure to hair dyes might increase the chances of forms of cancer such as lymphoma, multiple myeloma, breast cancer, and leukemia. Another chemical in hair dyes is lead acetate and lead is said to disrupt the function of your brain.
Hair relaxers are mostly used by African Americans to get straight silky hair. I used to get these relaxers and thought they were great but now my hair has lots of breakage. So I no longer get them. Relaxers contain a chemical called lye also known as sodium hydroxide which are used in drain cleaners. This is a very strong potent chemical The relaxer breaks the protein bonds in the hair. If relaxers are misused the scalp can be severly burned and hair can fall out leaving bald spots. Even without misuse lye breaks down the protein in the hair leaving hair dry with breakage. It can also lead to brain damage. Watch the video below…Would you want the foil to be your head?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2zSWhf4VUg
sodium hydroxide burn
Courtesy ......

What are the side affects of the h1N1 and the flu vaccines?

plee057 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:31:08 +0000

The "flu shot" vaccine side effects are usually the normal common reactions, and usually minor. some reactions are: about one in three people get a sore arm, little redness, or low fever from the shot, and an average of 10-15% of people feel tired or get a headache. The flu itself can cause serious problems, including GBS (Guillain-Barré Syndrome); the body's immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system.
A large proportion of the world population will get H1N1 and the vaccine side effect risk is far smaller than the sickness. When vaccines are approved, which includes the H1N1 vaccine, they are guaranteed to be much less risky than the sickness they prevent. "There could be unknown side effects. Something could happen, but it hasn't, but we think that is highly unlikely," infectious disease and vaccine expert Mark Mulligan, MD, executive director of the Hope Clinic of the Emory Vaccine Center in Atlanta.
An interview with the health teacher, Mr. Mcginnis at Central Sr. high school, gave a new direction for this topic. He explained to me that when people encounter the H1N1 flu, teenagers and young adults are not in the high level of complications and death. As to the age range of an elder, or 7 and under, are at the high risk. Students at Central Sr. high have encounter with the H1N1, and at least 1 in 10 people at Central knows who has or had it. Teenagers to get the H1N1 vaccine aren't on the top of the list but, as a matter of fact they really don't need it. Their bodies can fight it off and can get it out of their body systems. There has been little deaths so far relating teens dying from this vaccine. Mr. Mcginnis added that "we should still stay home when we have signs of the flu. It could happen to be something else, and getting the vaccine should be kept a priority to get done for everyone."
Interview with a staff member Edward Cullen*, was a first hand look at the H1N1 virus. He had recently encounter the H1N1 late October in 2009. He first came down with the symptoms after the school homecoming game. The next morning he had a very high fever of 104 degrees, and all the symptoms of a regular cold. After about four days he scheduled an appointment with his doctor, and after about a few questions it was confirmed that he has had the H1N1 for about the last 4 days. He was given Tylenol, Advil, and Delsym to treat the virus. Looking back now he says "it was horrible and hope to never experience it ever again." Adding on he missed a whole week of school, and the teachers compromised for him to catch up on assignments. As to his plans to get the H1N1 shot, he doesn't need it. The virus is already immune to his system. Edward Cullen's* advice to everyone is to " GET THE H1N1 VACCINE!".
All vaccines aren't safe, but we've been using them for years so adding the H1N1 vaccine doesn't make a difference. The vaccines we have used and still using has side effects but people still get the shots for it. The H1N1 has not shown any real side effects other then the usual side effects of the other vaccines. It should be fine and be used to stop the spread of the H1N1. Have you gotten the shot? Do you know someone who has the H1N1? What are your plans to not get the H1N1?

* Name has been changed.

Where have all the dinos gone?

Gene — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:04:54 +0000

Of course, some dinosaurs may not be missing--just hiding.: Many species adopt camouflage to blend in to their environments.
Courtesy Elston
Looooooong time passing....

Seems like some of them were never here to begin with. Over the years, scientists have named about 700 different species of dinosaurs. But a recent study indicates that perhaps as many as a third of these were phantoms—specimens that were given distinct names despite actually belonging to another, well-known species.

For example, Torosaurus is now thought to be just a fully mature version of Triceratops. At the other end of the age scale, Nanotyrannus is considered by some to be just a juvenile form of the famous Tyrannosaurus rex.

Why the changes? Well, identifying species is hard, even under the best of circumstances. With fossils, it’s especially tricky. You often only have one specimen to study, not dozens or hundreds as with living creatures. You can only see the fossil’s bones, not the full creature. And, most important, you only have the dead body—you can’t watch the living creature to see how it changes as it grows. (Dinosaur bones, it seems, are extremely malleable and prone to change shape as the creature matures.)

But don’t be too hard on the poor paleontologists. Other scientists have this same problem. Last year, it was reported that over 30% of all living marine creatures had been misidentified, and for the same reasons. An individual (or small group) was slightly larger than normal, or slightly smaller, or a slightly different color, or came from a different location—enough to lead the scientist to classify it as a new species, when in fact it was already a member of an established species. If taxonomists can make that many mistakes with living creatures, we shouldn’t be surprised that the dinosaur family tree will need a little pruning.

An unhappy first

Liza — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:48:44 +0000

Officials in Cardiff confirmed today the world's first cases of human-to-human transmission of Tamiflu-resistant H1N1 influenza. It's not unexpected, but it is worrisome. Even though flu cases are down here in Minnesota and across the US, keep washing your hands!

Round-up on mammogram standards debate

Thor — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:10:54 +0000

Here's a nice round up of opinions and press coverage of the controversy revolving around changing the beginning age for mammogram testing in women from 40 to 50. In the past several years having personally known several women under the age of 50 dealing with breast cancer, I have to admit I was dumbfounded by this new recommendation.

Are you ready for a timeout?

Westy — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:39:42 +0000

Meditation
Courtesy h.koppdelanyDo you ever just need a break? How many times have you been told to just take a deep breath? Turns out that may not be such a bad idea, especially if you have coronary artery disease. Recent research by Midwest physicians took a look at the effect of regular meditation on the health of patients surviving with narrowed coronary arteries. They studied more than 200 of these high risk patients for over five years. The test half of the group received instruction and practiced daily transcendental meditation for up to 20 minutes. The meditating patients experienced close to a half as many major issues to their health such as heart attacks, strokes, and death. Death is one of those things most of us try to avoid. Scads amount of research has delved into the possible effects of a wide range of meditative practices on such things as creativity, focus, mental well-being, and even job performance. It would seem a natural thing to embrace. I can certainly think of a few Type-A personalities that could stand to hum a few bars of “ooommmmmm” during their morning commute. Take a moment and enjoy your day!

Story at ScienceMag.org

Rainer Zangerl birthday

mdr — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 02:13:05 +0000

Today is the birthday of paleontologist Rainer Zangerl born 1912 in Winterthur Switzerland. Zangerl’s career spanned over 6 decades, much of it working for the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago where he served many years as Curator of Fossil Reptiles and later as Curator of Fossil Fish, and as Chairman of the Geology Department. He specialized in fossil and extant turtles and prehistoric sharks. His volume for “Handbook of Paleoichthyology” (3A) dealing with Paleozoic sharks is considered a classic study of the ancient predatory fish. In the early 1950s, Zangerl discovered an exposure of Pennsylvania black shale rich in fossil fish in nearby Indiana, and spent many years studying and documenting the find. Dr. Zangerl was an expert in comparative anatomy, highly-skilled in x-ray photography, and a founding member of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, which awarded him its highest honor, the Romer-Simpson Medal in 2003.

Dr. Bruce Erickson, the Science Museum of Minnesota’s curator of paleontology worked several years with Zangerl at the Field Museum. “He was my boss, my mentor, and good friend,” he told me. “I even named a couple fossil turtles after him.”

(My own life intersected with Dr. Zangerl's in the early 1960s. When I was about 10 years old and in the early throes of my fascination with dinosaurs, I dragged a bag of bones all the way from Duluth to Chicago with hopes of having someone at the Field Museum confirm my suspicions they were from a stegosaurus. A road crew had unearthed the bones down the hill from our neighborhood and they let me take home as many as I wanted. The remains included ribs and teeth, vertebrae, femurs and tibias (I’m seen holding one in my avatar photo). When we got to the Field Museum my mom was surprised I had brought the bones along, but she was a good sport about it and asked someone if we could have the “fossils” identified. We were sent up to the second floor to meet with someone from the paleontology department. There, an older gentleman carefully studied my collection of bones until finally he picked out a tooth, held it up, and said in a thick German accent: “You’ve got yourself a horse.” It was Dr. Zangerl.

According to my mother my response was a very disappointed: “Oh, shucks.”)

Brain scans reveal hypnosis effects

mdr — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:28:40 +0000

You're getting sleepy...sleepy!: Subjects in the University of Hull hypnosis study were asked to imagine a non-existent cat. This isn't it. Or is it?
Courtesy rKnightA new study out of the University of Hull in Great Britain shows a person’s brain displays visible changes while under hypnosis.

Hypnosis has been around for a long time and used by professionals to help people reduce stress or pain, eliminate phobias, quit smoking, lose weight, and for just general relaxation. It’s also used as entertainment.

We’ve all seen the classic routine of volunteers in a trance running around on stage clucking like chickens. Or where somebody suddenly jumps up to dance like Pee Wee Herman when the song “Tequila” starts playing. Or where some poor fool thinks he or she is suddenly buck-naked on stage when the hypnotist utters a “trigger” word or phrase such as “monkey wrench”.

Some folks are easily hypnotized, others aren’t. When I still smoked, I had my doctor use hypnosis to help me stop (I don’t know that it worked – I still smoked after that although I did quit several years later so maybe the hypnosis planted something in my brain). In the past, I’ve volunteered at hypnosis stage shows I’ve attended but never seemed to get picked as a malleable subject. Like me you may considered myself unsusceptible to hypnosis but I believe we’ve all experienced hypnotic states when lost in music, or when driving, or just zoned out in front of the television. It’s as if the conscious brain shifts into neutral and the subconscious takes over.

In the Hull University study, researchers compared the brainwaves of ten “highly suggestible” (i.e. easily hypnotized) individuals against those of seven individuals who had low response to hypnosis. All the test subjects were asked to perform minor tasks such as “seeing” non-existent animals, or “listening” to non-existent music. During rest period between tasks brainwaves were carefully tracked using functional magnetic imaging (fMRI).

It was in these rest periods where the brains of the highly suggestible subjects showed decreased activity in the region where daydreaming or mind wandering occurred. The other group’s brains showed no such change at those times. The results give credence to the theory that hypnosis acts as a primer for individuals susceptible to suggestion.

“Our study shows that hypnosis is real,” said Dr William McGeown, a psychologist at Hull, and the study’s lead researcher. “It corresponds to a unique pattern of brain activation which was not observed in any other experimental condition and was not seen in people who were not hypnotizable.”

Results of the study were published in the journal Consciousness and Cognition.

Hull University press release
More about hypnosis
And even more about hypnosis

How to shrink a head (without the help of S. Freud)

Thor — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:47:13 +0000

National Geographic has obtained what might be the only film footage showing native South American people conducting headshrinking activities. The 1961 footage was captured by a team of Amazon River explorers and so far experts who have studied the film have not found anything that makes it seem like it's a hoax.

WARNING: THIS VIDEO SHOWS GRAPHIC IMAGES OF THE HEADSHRINKING PROCESS.

How To Use Bluetooth Headphone's

pcarter003 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:28:22 +0000

Here’s everything you need to know connecting a bluetooth device to your apple computer.

I know some people have bluetooth headphones, headsets or speakers that the have brought for their computer, but do not know how to connect them for use. So in this video I will walk you through the steps of connecting and using your bluetooth device on your computer.

Well the first thing you would need to do is to look at the bluetooth device booklet and read it thoroughly because their is some information that you will definitely need, which is your device pass key, how long your device will need to charge your device “By the way, always charge the maximum amount of time because it will be a lot easier to connect to your computer that way”, but you will also need to know how to put your device in pairing mode.

Two, only apple computers with mac OS X Version 10. 5. 8, and higher can use a bluetooth device because earlier versions didn't have a bluetooth module, and you can check this by going to the apple on the very upper left hand corner. click on it and you should find a tab saying “about this mac”. So now that we have that covered, again go to the apple in the very upper left hand corner and click on the tab that says “system preferences”, and you should find the icon bluetooth. Click on it and it should have a icon that says “Set Up New Bluetooth Device” Click on that and when it gives you a choice to turn on or leave off bluetooth, turn it on. Then it’s gonna ask you what type of device it is, so click on your device type and immediately put your device in pairing mode, then press continue. Once you see your bluetooth device name, double click it. Then you will need to put in your device pass key, which is usually 0000, then press continue, and your bluetooth device is paired with your computer.

Now using your device with your computer go back to your system preferences, click on bluetooth icon, then click on the silver gear button, and it should have an option that says use and then your type of bluetooth device. Click on it and your bluetooth device should connect to the mac. PS you can tell when screen has a green bubble that says connected.
Now go to your sound options in your system preferences and if you have speakers or headphones click on the link output and their you will double click your bluetooth device from their menu. I you have a headset go to the icon input and double click your device.
if you have a printer, keyboard or mouse go to those icons in system preferences and double click your bluetooth device.

And that's all you need to know about connecting your bluetooth device to your mac

Thanks for reading, and good Luck.

Ways The Earth Could Be Destroyed In 2012

pcarter003 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:07:17 +0000

We all know that the world is said to end in 2012, but in what way will the earth, life and all mankind be destroyed? The Mayan calendars don’t give any specific details at all of how the world will end; they just stopped their calendars on the specific date, and said that it will. In this article I will let you know ten ways the earth could be destroyed.

The first way and one of the most significant I think, is about sun storms and gamma rays. Experts say that the sun has these storms constantly, and should be in the middle stages of it’s being, but they predict that sometime in 2012 that it will have on so big that that gamma rays the sun produces could kill all humanity. Now this is very possible in the coming years because scientists say that the sun storms are building up energy and possibly could erupt close to 2012.

The second way is that the particle accelerator in Geneva, Switzerland could create mini black holes that could consume the earth. Black holes are a region of space where the gravitational field is so strong that not even light can escape, but black holes expand as they consume more and more space, so it could consume the earth very quickly. This is plausible because they have not seen what the accelerator could do yet since it broke down on the first try. I think it would be bad luck for the second.

The third way would probably be anti matter colliding with regular matter. Anti matter is matter reversed in every way, and when it touches normal matter, they create an extreme amount of energy. Don’t worry though because to make one gram of anti matter it would cost 100 billion dollars.

The fourth way to destroy the earth is by creating stable strangelets and keeping them stable long enough to consume the entire earth. Now this is very unlikely to happen because to keep the strangelets stable you would need some type of super strong material that quarks cant consumed. But no material known to man can be consumed by quarks. But if it did happen, and the earth was consumed and turned into strangelets, earth would be a big blob of unknown matter.

The fifth and final way to destroy the earth is by a blunt instrument from space. Now by blunt instrument I mean meteor or asteroid. But to destroy human life on earth, you would need a meteor the size of about china, but eventually the earth would recover. To destroy the earth, you would have to hurl a rock the size of mars at very high speed to smash it into tiny pieces. This is pretty possible, because space rocks are all over the place. But if one were going to destroy us in 2012, we would have known about it already.