It’s once again the time of year for rewarding some of the most truly remarkable efforts in various fields of science and other research. And no, I don’t mean the Nobel Prizes. I mean the Ig Nobel Prizes. Now in their 20th year, the prizes are awarded by the magazine Annals of Improbable Research. Unlike […]
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At a dogpark in Cambridge, Massachusettes, Matthew Mazzota installed a gaslamp powered by methane generated from dog poop. Burning the methane, which is 30 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, helps the environment, he said. And with dogs dropping tons of poop in cities everywhere, he thinks the idea of using […]
Researchers at Stanford University have successfully used light signals to stimulate muscle activity in mice. The concepts used in the experiment could one day form the basis of medical treatment for humans with a range of muscle-related conditions, including reversing the process to reduce involuntary muscle spasms. The experiment began with using an algae-derived gene […]
IBM has been looking into the concept of what would be the ultimate in tiny memory chips. And like any good scientific research, it’s all down to a super-powerful microscope. The study is based on a remarkably simple premise. The best way to produce a smaller memory chip (or in turn, to get more capacity […]
Now this is REALLY cool. The AntWorks ant farm lets you watch your ants as they dig their way through unexplored territories. The kit includes a removable LED Illuminator with power adaptor, nutrient gel, magnifying glass, extreme zoom lens, ant catching/tunnel starting tool, and an instruction booklet. [Fascinations AntWorks Illuminated Blue – $24 on Amazon.com]
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About 20,000 light years from the Sun, right near the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy, sits V838 Monocerotis, a red variable star. Does it remind you of something? Of course it does: it resembles one of the world’s most famous Internet browser: FireFox. This shot was taken by the Hubble space telescope on February […]
Wow, not only is the technical design on this portable coilgun impressive, but the whole thing looks completely badass. Check it out: After 2 long years of on-and-off work my coilgun project is finally completed. For anyone who doesn’t know what a coilgun is, it’s a gun that fires a projectile with magnetic force instead […]
Have you ever wondered what would happen to your hand if you would put it inside the LHC while it’s running? The people from the Sixty Symbols project have asked the very same question to some of the LHC’s top scientists. Check it out: [Via [H]]