Is That Your Vestigial Tail, Or Are You Just Happy To See Me?
Here’s some crunchy biology for your Tuesday! Our bodies are covered in vestigial traces of biological functions we’ve long left behind us. Once, we were able to move our ears like monkeys and cats, had tails, and may have even had a third eyelid, much like most reptiles do today.
We Live In The Future: Electronic Temporary Tattoos
I know temporary tattoos are usually pretty lame, but the ones they’re making over at the University of Illinois are looking pretty rad. Because unlike regular temporary tattoos that fade within two days and look like awful birthmarks, these guys come with diagnostic sensors, LEDs, wireless antennas, and solar cells for power. Take that, Kinder Surprise.
They’ve Invented A Date-Rape-Detecting-Straw
Two Israeli scientists say they have developed a sensor that can accurately detect date-rape drugs in drinks 100 percent of the time – a tiny, drink-stirrer-looking device that, when dipped into your appletini or other refreshing beverage, can detect the presence of dissolved drugs. Nice job, science.
Meet Virgin Galactic’s First Astronaut
Dave MacKay, 53-year-old British pilot, will be the first captain of Virgin Galactic‘s commercial space fleet, taking up the role first with the maiden voyage of SpaceShipTwo, scheduled for 2013. MacKay has over 30 years of regular flying experience, but like pretty much everybody, he’s wanted to fly spaceships since he was a kid.
“Swallowable Parfum” Makes Your Skin Emit Perfume
Australian artist and ‘body architect’ Lucy McRae, in collaboration with Harvard biologist Sheref Mansy, is releasing these little digestible capsules that make human skin emit perfume scents. Which is nice and futuristic, I think. And by futuristic I mean I have no idea how this thing works.
Magnified Sand Is… Gorgeous [Photos]
Next time you’re on the beach (and frankly, given the current weather in Cape Town, that may be later today), bear in mind that there’s more to the scenery than meets the eye. Sand is ba-yoodiful, too – beyond what our human eyes can perceive. Have a look at these shots of tiny grains of sand magnified to 250 times their real size.
Volkswagen Has A Car With Hands-Free Driving Now
VW are proposing a new technology that will allow drivers to take their hands off the wheel at speeds up to around 130km/h, and let the car’s system temporarily take over. Look, it isn’t exactly Knight Rider, but it’s good that VW’s looking after people who want to multitask while cruising down highways.
The Future Is Awesome: Electronic Memory Expansion Is Coming Along Nicely
Researchers at the University of California have put together tiny robot brains that replicate the long term memory function in rats; using this, they could switch long-term memory on and off with a button. Which means ‘electronic memory’ and the possibility of knowing stuff without having to learn stuff is suddenly a real thing.
They’re Rolling Out Cheap New Meningitis Meds
Yay, science. A new vaccine for meningitis A – that disease killing thousands of people in the central African “meningitis belt” annually – has been released. Which is good, but even better is the fact that it’s way cheaper and more effective than whatever we were using before.
They Shut Down The Mars Rover
Ending a seven-year mission, NASA has decided to cut off communications with the Mars rover Spirit. Data was last received from Spirit in March 2010, and it hasn’t been heard from since – the thinking is that the rover was damaged during the martian winter when there wasn’t enough solar power for its survival heaters to run.
It Turns Out Vuvuzelas Are Also Really Good At Spreading Germs
Not only do vuvuzelas make sporting matches sound like they’re being attended by giant, angry bees, but they also emit more germ-carrying particles than regular screaming; testing the amount of bacteria-sized particles emitted by a shout and by vuvuzela,researcher Ruth McNerney found the vuvuzelas a couple of hundred times more effective.
Has The “God Particle” Been Detected?
A rumor is floating around the physics community that the world’s largest atom smasher may have detected something called the Higgs boson. Also known as the “God particle”, it has long eluded physicists who believe it could explain why objects have mass. It was apparently crucial to forming the cosmos after the Big Bang took place.
We Can Barcode Animals Now
The University of Illinois, collaborating with the Equid Research and Conservation lab at Princeton, have put together software that can uniquely identify any striped, spotted or otherwise marked animal with a clear digital photo. Like a barcode!
One Step Closer In The Quest For A HIV Vaccine
Hooray for science. US government scientists say they have discovered three powerful HIV antibodies, the strongest of which neutralizes 91% of HIV strains, more than any HIV antibody yet discovered. Details inside.
Virgin Oceanic: Richard Branson Is Getting Into The Submarine Business
And business is good. See how I avoided the Beatles reference in the title? Sir Richard Branson, known for doing fancy things with money and vehicles, launched Virgin Oceanic, which aims to explore “the last frontiers of our own Blue Planet: the very bottom of our seas.”
National Geographic Finds The Average Human
So hey, congrats to all you non-male, non-Chinese folks who were worried about looking average! Because according to a decade’s worth of research by the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing for National Geographic, a 28-year-old Han Chinese male is the mean. Numbers, explanation after the jump.
Utah Archeologists Discover New Dinosaur – ‘Thunder Thighs’
Oh, scientists. You discover an entirely new species of dinosaur on a quarry dig, and then you come up with a name for it that non-scientist people use to insult hefty folk with. I mean sure, you use the fancy Latin Brontomerus mcintoshi, but Thunder Thighs is the sort of thing people remember.
Dating Site Calculates The Best First Date Questions
Well this is pretty awesome. Researchers at OkCupid waded through 776 million matches of questions and answers between would-be-couples, and matched those against relationships success rates – and come up with some bizarre, awesome data. Apparently beer drinkers put out more.
Is Your Child A Criminal In The Making?
Is your toddler impulsive, easily frustrated, restless and unable to think about his/her long-term future? If they are, you’re unfortunately the proud parent of a future alcoholic, drug addicted, criminal with no future prospects whatsoever. No, really, that’s a scientific fact.
The Woolly Mammoth Will Walk The Earth Again
A bunch of Japanese scientists (how surprising) believe they have the technology to clone a woolly mammoth. Yes, you heard that right, they want to bring an extinct animal back to life, and are hoping to achieve this within the next six years. End of days here we come.
My Genes Were Drunk
You also bump into things, talk loud, take swipes at lamp shades and smash your fist through tempered glass when you’re drunk? Well, it’s not because we were simply raised that way. It’s not even the liquor. It’s Drunk Gene.
Amazing Book Shows Us The Really, Really Small Side Of Life
What do you reckon is shown in this picture? If you said “household dust under high-powered electron microscope”, you would be correct. A book by Brandon Broll hits us with stunning electron microscope images of insects, human body parts and household items, making even things like the bacteria on your tongue look pretty amazing. More inside.
THE ONLY COCKROACHES YOU SEE ARE THE ONES WITH ATTITUDE
A study published in scientific journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B suggests comes right out and claims that each and every bug on this planet (insects, arachnids and otherwise) enjoys its own individual personality. This from Discovery News: