Using Nature to Grow Batteries

Inspired by an abalone shell, Angela Belcher programs viruses to make elegant nanoscale structures that humans can use. Selecting for high-performing genes through directed evolution, she’s produced viruses that can construct powerful new batteries, clean hydrogen fuels and record-breaking solar cells. In the following video, she shows us how it’s done.

[Picture source: Wikimedia Commons]

Mousetrap Fission [Video]

Here’s yet another mousetrap fission video for you guys to enjoy :)

What it shows:
In a nuclear reactor or atom bomb, a fissile material such as 235U can capture a neutron. The resulting unstable nucleus fragments into two smaller nuclei, releasing energy and several neutrons (a typical equation is given below). Each of these neutrons can in turn cause the fission of a 235U nucleus. If there is above a critical concentration of fissile material, this chain reaction will continue unaided, and if unregulated, can result in a very loud bang.

n + 235U ? 236U* ? 141Ba + 92Kr + 3n

How it works:
We have a 120 × 70 × 100cm high plexiglass case, onto whose base we set a 5 × 20 array of mouse traps. 1 Onto each trap is rested a ping-pong ball. The traps represent the fissile atoms, and the balls the neutrons. When an extra ping-pong ball is dropped through a hole in the top of the case, it lands on an triggers a trap. Now there are two ping-pong balls each capable of setting off a trap. Thus a chain reaction ensues; the whole explosion lasts about three seconds.

[Source | Via Neatorama]



So Many Geeky Cupcakes You’ll Be on a Sugar High [pic]

 

At first I was going to link to the amazing Space Invaders cupcakes noted on Cakewrecks last weekend. Then I noticed that the creator of them, hello naomi, was also responsible for the sweet Pac-Man cupcakes that made the Internet rounds some time ago. And then I noticed all of the other amazing geeky cupcakes she has made, from the Danger Mouse ones (above) to the Lego set, and I could barely contain myself from squealing. You’d probably just better go and flip through her photostream for yourself, because you’re sure to find a theme that will make you react the same way.

[Via Cakewrecks]

3D Craze Now Truly Universal

We try our best to bring you the latest news at Geeks Are Sexy, but unfortunately the image above is a little out of date. To be specific, it’s somewhere between 10 and 12 billion years out of date.

The image is a two-dimensional close-up section of what is being billed as the largest three-dimensional map of the universe ever created. It’s the work of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, a telescope that includes a tool known as the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey.

The tool, known also as BOSS, specializes in the light from quasars, which are distant galaxies that are particularly bright thanks to the heat of a black hole consuming matter.

The big gain for astronomers is that the light from quasars is affected by hydrogen clouds on its journey to earth. Each beam of light gives us a record of the hydrogen density along a straight line: combine the data from enough beams and you can build up a three-dimensional picture that lets you figure out the density of the matter around us.

The astronomers have so far analyzed 14,000 quasars, which is enough to make a rough outline and confirm that the process works. They say they won’t be releasing a three-dimensional image for public display until they’ve analyzed between 50,000 and 60,000 quasars, around a third of the known total.

This isn’t the first time the technique has been used for three-dimensional mapping, but it’s the first time it’s been used for such distant material. The image below shows the previous work on tracking galaxies, and a snapshot of the BOSS analysis. In both images, the blue patches represent areas of little gas, while the red patches represent the densest gas clouds.

Chrome Password Fail: A Good Reason NOT to Save Your Password Locally

If you’re using Chrome as your browser of choice, anyone with access to your computer could easily take a peek at all your saved passwords. All you have to do is:

1-Click on wrench icon on the top right of the browser
2-Click on “Options”
3-On the left of the “options” screen, click on “Personal Stuff”
4-Click on “Manage save passwords” in the password sub-section
5-Select any site from the displayed list
6-Click on the “show” button.

I understand that the browser needs to have a feature like this, but seriously Google, you guys need to protect this section a little better.

Edit: Now please, people, calm down. I only posted this to point out a “possible” security problem to those who were not aware of it. Now let’s all take a deep breath and see this post for what it is: a simple warning.

[Via]