Eclectic junk from the four corners of the ‘Net. And pictures too!
This is worth reading. The integration of robots into society is best seen in Japan. I don’t know exactly what the cause is but whatever it is, it could be the way of the future.
Kiyomori surely catches people’s eyes but is it something worthwhile to talk about when there are already other humanoid robots that can stand on two feet?
we make money not art: Whatever You Imagine, Including Kiyomori
This Friday the new Imax film, ‘Roving Mars’ comes out. I’m looking forward to seeing this soon, the vistas of the red planet should be impressive on such a big screen.
A cousin of the snail, the ‘Nudibranchs’ (means ‘naked gills’) is a member of the mollusk family and is one of the most beautiful creatures that I’ve seen. It’s like your looking at a moving abstract painting. Found anywhere in the sea from under rocks in tide pools to right out of the reef, I’m going to keep an eye out for them on my next visit to the beach.
[via neatorama]
Nudibranchs of the Sunshine Coast Australia – Gary Cobb and David Mullins
I’m sure that this is years away from being used in people but the idea is pretty neat. Nano sized electrical cells that could power things in a person like an artificial retina, replacement cochlea, maybe even pacemakers. Maybe this could also serve as a way to correct vision like LASIK or radial keratotomy by flexing a liquid lens implanted in the eye. Something like that could be a new lease on vision for cataract sufferers.
[via Medgadget]
Sandia researchers to model nano-size battery to be implanted in eye to power artificial retina
Ok, we have another DIY pinhole contender and this time it’s from Korea. All pre-cut cardboard construction with metal knobs and brass pinhole means it’s going to be easy to put together but watch out if your going to use it on the beach! The native format is 120 roll film but includes some cardboard spacers to hold a roll of 35mm film, so you can use it and get panoramic images and have them developed at your local Photo-Hut (just tell them not to cut the negatives!) For $20US if is a pretty good kit, the film combo ability is the big seller here.
Want the frustration of flying a remote controlled plane but don’t want to spend the money on buying one just to smash it into the dirt? Give the German ‘Flug Modell Simulator’ a spin. Don’t worry, there is an English version so your not going to be hopelessly lost. I tried to use it with a keyboard and discovered exactly why the joystick was invented. There were wooden pixel splinters all over the place. If I can find a better control option I might give it another try. It could be a very useful tool in learning how to do tricky things like turn the aircraft while it’s flying towards you or what to do when you can’t see your flying money sink anymore because your let it fly out of visual range. Looks as if there are options to attach a real R/C transmitter to your computer via the training port (if your rig has one) and use that as the controller. If you have the means I highly recommend it. I own an antique Graupner transmitter so I’m SOL, but if you happen to have on go for it, you might be able to get some stick time in even on IFR days.