If your like me and have little time to devote to actual hard core study then Drawspace is prefect for learning how to draw or just to polish your current skills. Once you sign up for an account (Its free) you gain access to dozens of detailed PDF formatted lessons that instruct on every topic from what kind of drawing tools to get to a study of facial muscles. Pretty much covers all the main points you need to get the basics of drawing. Go out there, grab a pencil and DRAW!
Drawspace.com – Drawing lessons
Category: Cool
The Official God FAQ
This won’t settle any arguments but it’s sure to start some. Enjoy but use in moderation.
The Bamboo and Carbon Fiber Bike Frame
I got a comment on my post about bike frames made of bamboo today and figured it was worth of a new post
The bike is made from Bamboo that has been smoked and heat treated to prevent splitting. Lugs are available in carbon fiber or hemp fiber, for the all-natural look. The chainstays are available in carbon fiber for extra stiffness in the drivetrain.
As Sean says they are working on the paper and epoxy versions. I’m sure he is joking but hey, he knows his Gibson! If I were in the market for a bike and I wanted something that was light weight and strong but I didn’t want full carbon fiber I’d choose bamboo hands down. The stuff is strong as hell and looks great.
LolCat Builder
While not having much to do with technology or science, it has everything to do with the Internet. Trust me, it’s one of those ‘meme‘ things the ‘net is full of these days. The whole ‘lolcat‘ thing had me confused as hell, I was wondering where all of the "I’m in ur [object], [present tense/derived nominal] ur [object]" cat photos were coming from. Turns out many of them might have been created on this site. Choose an image (or upload one of your own like I did), type in some l33t text and select the style you want. Preview and save. Go make your own, share them with your bewildered friends and smirk at your l33tness.
[via techchickblog]
LolCat Builder
Massive collection of photos all search able via tags on I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER?
Handheld Terahertz Device Wins Prize
I for one can’t wait to get a terahertz dev kit. How much fun could you have with that? I’m talking real X-Ray Specs!
Schulkin’s “Mini-Z” is dramatically smaller and lighter than any previous terahertz device, and it already has proven its ability to detect cracks in space shuttle foam, image tumors in breast tissue, and spot counterfeit watermarks on paper currency. The system, which weighs less than five pounds and fits snugly in a briefcase, could open the door to a wide range of applications in homeland security, biomedical imaging, and nondestructive testing of industrial components.
Supercool Water
This is an excellent example of super cooled liquids. If pure water is not disturbed and is truly pure, it can be chilled well beyond its normal freezing point (0 degrees C). If there is nothing for the water to crystallize around all is fine, it stays a liquid. The water can stay liquid down to -42 C, past that the water will crystallize on it’s own. If something is introduced like a mote of dust or tiny bubbles caused by moving the water, a chain reaction occurs and the body of water freezes.
More super cooling examples are here:
Supercooling Experiment 1
Supercooling Experiment 2
Supercooling Experiment 3
BTW, the guys on Digg are saying that it’s a hoax. I doubt it, I’ve had this happen to be before. Its happen with bottles of water or water in an ice tray in the freezer, and even a can of Coke. The Coke froze into a can of slush as soon as it was opened, I think the vending machine was set a little too cold that day. Conditions need to be just right for this to happen in your home freezer. The circulating fan will more than likely cause your supercooling experiments to fail. If you unplug the refrigerator just remember to plug it back in. Looks like fun, I have some water in the freezer in hopes I too can make instant ice.
[inspired by digg]
Wikipedia entry on supercooling