30 April 2015

Beetle Farts ~ Pulse-Jet Explosive Defense Mech!

MIT Material Science grad student Eric Arndt describes and shows how explosive pulse-jet Bombardier Beetle defensive "farts" result from internal organ reaction chamber transmorphing!

29 April 2015

AVERT Project ~ Swarmbots for Car Roboparking

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3059585/Watch-creepy-robot-swarm-CAR-Tiny-machines-surround-wheels-work-unison-lift-vehicles.htmlThe DM spots the AVERT Project building swarmbots for robomatically shifting cars around omnidirectionally, allowing much denser space-packing of vehicles in existing parking garages... Nevermind all the mumbo-jumbo about "emergency response" vehicle movement. The big use is storage efficiency!

27 April 2015

Tyson vs Stewart ~ On The Rise of Geekosphere!

Neil deGrasse Tyson on the Daily Show debating merits of superheroes with Jon Stewart...
"We only enter the future on the intellectual capital brought to this world by the geekosphere!"

21 April 2015

Tech Sector ~ Charting Market Value over Time...

The Economist's Dailychart‬ shows the changing shape of the US technology sector...
"Founded in 1911 as a manufacturer of punch-card machines, more than a century later IBM remains one of the largest technology companies in the world. But the days of Big Blue’s dominance are long past. It was recently surpassed in market value by Facebook, a company barely a decade old..."
http://econ.st/1QfdNNp

19 April 2015

Ninebot ~ Nextgen Personal Transport Vehicles...

NextBigFuture reports that startup Ninebot with smartphone giant Xiaomi backing buys Segway for alternative transportation unification. They're already shipping the One... (Of course, anyone paying attention would have seen this coming for the last six years or more)

Urban Oases ~ Rooftop City Greenspots!

Time for another dose of urban greenspots... http://urbangreens.tumblr.com/image/109401381516 http://inhabitat.com/this-lush-green-cube-is-a-dream-artists-studio-hidden-in-a-san-francisco-garden/ http://homesthetics.net/one-coffee-table-book-reveals-new-york-citys-breathtaking-elaborate-rooftop-gardens/ http://inhabitat.com/enchanting-japanese-rooftop-oasis-is-a-soothing-secret-garden/ http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/photos/urban-farming/#/earth-day-urban-farming-new-york-rooftop_51631_600x450.jpg http://www.marvelbuilding.com/contemporary-house-design-ideas-roof-garden-meera.html

CO2 Portrait ~ NASA Simulates Atmosphere...

I'm particularly interested in long-term, humanity-scale global dynamics. Remembering Jay Forrester's World Dynamics and economic modeling. Nice example here by NASA's Goddard Global Modeling and Assimilation Office...

Bulldozing the Future ~ Unwise Preservationism...

Reason's Jim Epstein shares how The Destruction of Penn Station Led to the Landmarks Preservation Movement and re-evaluates it...
"The underground Penn Station that replaced the old structure is a planning nightmare that's outright disliked by the general public, but that’s an argument for replacing it with something new, not saving the flawed structure that preceded it. New York became the world’s preeminent city by letting its developers sometimes violently tear down old buildings. Progress isn't free, and neither is preservation."

06 April 2015

I Don't Do STEM ~ MIT's Calandrelli @ TEDxOSU

MIT alumna and host of space exploration TV show Emily Calandrelli at TEDxOregonStateUniversity on STEM outlook!

Ambitious Woman ~ Dame Steve Shirley @ TED!

The amazing and hilarious Dame Stephanie "Steve" Shirley at TED shares her experience building a women-centric software venture in post-WWII UK!