Link Blogger

Feb 25

smarterplanet:


Model Realistically Simulates Plate TectonicsETH Zurich scientists have for the first time succeeded in realistically simulating how an oceanic plate sinks of its own accord under an adjacent plate. At the same time they showed why only one of the plates rather than both subducts into the Earth’s mantle, and how this process affects the dynamics of the Earth’s interior. Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Model-Realistically-Simulates-Plate-Tectonics-022412.aspx

via laboratoryequipment:

smarterplanet:

Model Realistically Simulates Plate Tectonics

ETH Zurich scientists have for the first time succeeded in realistically simulating how an oceanic plate sinks of its own accord under an adjacent plate. At the same time they showed why only one of the plates rather than both subducts into the Earth’s mantle, and how this process affects the dynamics of the Earth’s interior.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Model-Realistically-Simulates-Plate-Tectonics-022412.aspx

via laboratoryequipment:

Feb 24

latimes:

Federal raids a “serious blow” to rhino trade:  Wildlife investigators in California and other states crack down on an international smuggling ring that trafficked for years in sawed-off rhinoceros horns.

With prices reaching $20,000 to $25,000 per pound, the lucrative enterprise has turned some wardens into “khaki-collared criminals,” assisting poachers who at times arrive by helicopter and use automatic weapons to shoot the animals dead and then hack off their horns with machetes.
It’s possible to remove most of a rhino’s horn by tranquilizing the animal rather than killing it. Some game reserves have tried to protect rhinos, which weigh a ton or more, by preemptively removing the horns. But poachers kill them anyway for the nub that remains.

Photo:  U.S. Fish and Wildlife officers seized this stuffed rhinoceros head, with artificial horns, in a raid at Win Lee Corp. in Westminster. Horns can fetch $20,000 to $25,000 per pound in some Asian nations. Credit: Katie Falkenberg / For The Times

latimes:

Federal raids a “serious blow” to rhino trade: Wildlife investigators in California and other states crack down on an international smuggling ring that trafficked for years in sawed-off rhinoceros horns.

With prices reaching $20,000 to $25,000 per pound, the lucrative enterprise has turned some wardens into “khaki-collared criminals,” assisting poachers who at times arrive by helicopter and use automatic weapons to shoot the animals dead and then hack off their horns with machetes.

It’s possible to remove most of a rhino’s horn by tranquilizing the animal rather than killing it. Some game reserves have tried to protect rhinos, which weigh a ton or more, by preemptively removing the horns. But poachers kill them anyway for the nub that remains.

Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife officers seized this stuffed rhinoceros head, with artificial horns, in a raid at Win Lee Corp. in Westminster. Horns can fetch $20,000 to $25,000 per pound in some Asian nations. Credit: Katie Falkenberg / For The Times

(Source: Los Angeles Times)

Feb 23

latimes:

It’s the 50th anniversary of Marvel’s Spider-Man, and all year Hero Complex will talk to notable names about the character’s success and singular appeal.
Today: A guest essay by Neal Adams, one of the most influential comic-book artists of the modern era and one of the industry’s leading voices for artists’ rights.

And so with Superman the concept of superhero was born and flourished … until the dark ages of comics showed up with the fanatical attacks of Fredric Wertham and Congress. Comics nearly shut down, except for Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, a bevy of new sparkle-toothed-born do-gooders. Not one bad thought existed in the minds of these heroes, whose books shared the spinner-rack with DC’s Pat Boone comics (yes, I said Pat Boone comics) and Jerry Lewis.
I was there, and it was hell.

Image:  Panel from the first Spider-Man story. Credit: Marvel Comics

latimes:

It’s the 50th anniversary of Marvel’s Spider-Man, and all year Hero Complex will talk to notable names about the character’s success and singular appeal.

Today: A guest essay by Neal Adams, one of the most influential comic-book artists of the modern era and one of the industry’s leading voices for artists’ rights.

And so with Superman the concept of superhero was born and flourished … until the dark ages of comics showed up with the fanatical attacks of Fredric Wertham and Congress. Comics nearly shut down, except for Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, a bevy of new sparkle-toothed-born do-gooders. Not one bad thought existed in the minds of these heroes, whose books shared the spinner-rack with DC’s Pat Boone comics (yes, I said Pat Boone comics) and Jerry Lewis.

I was there, and it was hell.

Image: Panel from the first Spider-Man story. Credit: Marvel Comics

(Source: Los Angeles Times)

Feb 22

[video]

Feb 21

latimes:

NASA’s Webb telescope: Revolutionary design, runaway costs. The $8.8-billion Webb Space Telescope promises to provide a glimpse at the first light in the universe. But its spiraling cost may push NASA into a new era of austerity.
Photo:  Specialists work on the sun shield for the James Webb Space Telescope at Northop Grumman Corp. in Redondo Beach. Credit: Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times

latimes:

NASA’s Webb telescope: Revolutionary design, runaway costs. The $8.8-billion Webb Space Telescope promises to provide a glimpse at the first light in the universe. But its spiraling cost may push NASA into a new era of austerity.

Photo: Specialists work on the sun shield for the James Webb Space Telescope at Northop Grumman Corp. in Redondo Beach. Credit: Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times

(Source: Los Angeles Times)

Feb 15

The Dot Com Street

How many search engines are there on the web? The really popular ones are Google, Yahoo and Bing.

Being a dot com street mogul, I get a lot of scam mails trying to sell me something I never even asked for.

latimes:

China political star Xi Jinping a study in contrasts: This is a profile on the Chinese vice president, who begins his U.S. tour this week. On track to take China’s top post this year, he was sent as a teen to a dirt-poor village.
Photo:   Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping waves to Thai students during a visit to Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok late last year. Credit: Pairoj / AFP/Getty Images

latimes:

China political star Xi Jinping a study in contrasts: This is a profile on the Chinese vice president, who begins his U.S. tour this week. On track to take China’s top post this year, he was sent as a teen to a dirt-poor village.

Photo: Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping waves to Thai students during a visit to Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok late last year. Credit: Pairoj / AFP/Getty Images

(Source: Los Angeles Times)

Feb 14

latimes:

Jan. 13, 1969: A sea of Volkswagen vehicles — mostly the famous Beetle model — sit at Terminal Island after unloading from a ship.
Photo credit: John Malmin / Los Angeles Times

latimes:

Jan. 13, 1969: A sea of Volkswagen vehicles — mostly the famous Beetle model — sit at Terminal Island after unloading from a ship.

Photo credit: John Malmin / Los Angeles Times

(Source: Los Angeles Times)

Feb 13

smarterplanet:

Step into the Smarter Planet Time Machine!
For a little Friday Fun, try one of these three settings:
…One Week Ago
…One Month Ago
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Or for quintessential quantum experience, try the Random button to sample one of the more than 4000 posts about All Things Smarter since we started three years ago in November, 2008.
You are welcome to like or reblog your favorites to feed our collective intelligence on those posts that best reflect how the world’s systems can become more sentient and senseable.
Of course, you can always browse through the misty mountains of Smarter Time via the Archive. Want to hold Smarter Planet in your hand? Get the mobile apps for iOS and Android.

smarterplanet:

Step into the Smarter Planet Time Machine!

For a little Friday Fun, try one of these three settings:

Or for quintessential quantum experience, try the Random button to sample one of the more than 4000 posts about All Things Smarter since we started three years ago in November, 2008.

You are welcome to like or reblog your favorites to feed our collective intelligence on those posts that best reflect how the world’s systems can become more sentient and senseable.

Of course, you can always browse through the misty mountains of Smarter Time via the Archive. Want to hold Smarter Planet in your hand? Get the mobile apps for iOS and Android.

Feb 10

smarterplanet:

mHealth: Remote Patient Monitoring Is On The Rise, With Smartphones Leading The Way - http://pulse.me/s/5M92U