Bunker.jordan

Scientists have shown that certain algae which use quantum effects to optimize photosynthesis are also capable of switching it off. It's a discovery that could lead to highly efficient organic solar cells and quantum-based electronics.

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lichgem:

You know, as I was sending a badly misspelled text and lamenting the engineers who thought that touch screen keyboards were a GOOD thing, I remembered something I thought when I was watching The Fifth Element.

The Fifth Element takes place in a futuristic sci-fi setting, where technology is so advanced you can put on all of your make-up with the click of a button, and get an entire roast chicken meal from a microwave with a pellet from a salt shaker. But then you’ll notice things, like the buttons in Korben’s taxi are really big, square, clunky, old-fashioned looking things.

And I thought, maybe in the future we’ve finally gotten over the idea that fancy gewgaw, glitchy and hard to use touch screens, and sleeker, smaller, ultimately less functional designs are ‘the future’, and have gone back to buttons that you can actually push. :P

we can only hope

Corning’s Gorilla Glass is very scratch resistant, shatter resistant, heat resistant, and even flexible material — it’s actually a perfect candidate to be used as a print bed material. The only problem is it’s not typically sold outside of consumer products, but that’s when [cvbrg] realized an iPad’s replacement screen would fit his maker-bot perfectly.

One of the biggest problems people encounter with 3D printing usually involves the print bed. Sometimes the prints don’t stick, the edges peel, or it even gets stuck on there too well when it’s done! A popular solution is a borosilicate glass bed, which typically helps with adhesion and surface finish — but again, sometimes the prints don’t want to come off! Sometimes parts can even tear up pieces of the glass bed when you’re trying to remove them. People usually counteract this with Kapton tape, which can become a headache in its own right — trying to apply it bubble free, tearing it, doing it all over again…

Using an iPad’s screen (only about $15 on eBay), means you can hack and jab at the print bed all you want without fear of breaking it – It even has a bit of flex to it to help pry your parts off. Did we mention it also has a very uniform flatness, good thermal conductivity, and resistant to pretty much all solvents?

Unfortunately it’s not quite as simple as just buying one and attaching it to your build plate with binder clips. It actually has two layers of glass, the second one having something to do with the capacitive touch sensing — but unfortunately, it’s very brittle and prone to cracking. It must be removed before you can use the gorilla glass by itself. This can be done using an exacto blade as a chisel, and when it’s all done, cleaned with acetone. But according to [cvbrg] it’s well worth the effort.

lizzymodblog:

conspicuouslad:

rustywidget:

k-y-h-u:

little owler knows best

It got better.

Better listen. She’s an expert in hooters.

Even better.

Today, I’m doing things a little differently for my “using everyday objects in cosplay” series and looking at an easy to obtain supply rather than a household object. Craft foam is incredibly useful in cosplay, and its availability and price make it a valuable item to keep on hand. You can find craft foam – usually available in variety of sizes and shapes – at any craft supply store, in the craft sections of department stores, or online. Sheets typically cost less than $1. If you ever see craft foam on sale, you should stock up. You never know when you’re going to need it. Remember that the color of the foam often doesn’t matter since you’re going to be painting it or just using it to create patterns. Here are five ways you can use craft foam in cosplay:

Body armor – Want to make lightweight and affordable armor? Turn to craft foam. Once you make your patterns either from a design of your own or from files available online, trace the pieces onto craft foam with a ballpoint pen. Use a gentle touch, and the pen will roll right over the surface of the foam without snagging. Label the pieces as you make them (on the underneath if you won’t be painting them). Then it’s a matter of shaping the pieces to curve to your body. You can use a heat gun for this. Eventually, you can glue the pieces together and paint them. The above video will help you, and this tutorial from Entropy House goes through the process step by step.

Patterns – If you want to use Worbla or Sintra for your project, pattern it out with craft foam first. As previously mentioned, it’s relatively inexpensive – much more so than Worbla. Make sure your design works with craft foam before you start cutting and shaping pricier material.

Crown – The thing about wearing a metal crown with your cosplay is that it can get heavy and uncomfortable. If you want a more flexible option that won’t dig into your scalp, use craft foam. You can cut the material into a circlet or an elaborate headdress. You can make sure the crown retains its shape by using layers of glue on the back/inside of the foam pieces to stiffen it (seal it first). Watch the above video to learn the ins and outs.

Wings – Wings should be light enough for a cosplayer to wear for a few hours, but they also need to have enough weight to not flap around while a cosplayer walks (unless he or she wants them to). Craft foam is a suitable medium to achieve the right look and heft. They won’t move like faux feathers, but you can replicate the layered look by cutting several feather-shaped pieces. DeviantArt user Zexion-the-gamer has a helpful how-to.

Gauntlets – My favorite thing about craft foam is you can turn it into gauntlets or a collar piece or whatever you need with a small amount of time and effort. I needed to make gauntlets for my Amethyst costume in a hurry so I fit two sheets of yellow craft foam around my arms and cut them into shape. I used hot glue (puff paint would have been a better choice, but it worked out okay) to create the raised patterns on the gauntlets and applied a few thin layers of gold acrylic paint once the glue completely dried. I added a couple pieces of Velcro on the insides of the bracers/gauntlets, and tada: quick fix gauntlets done.

emmyc:

art dump

Julius von Brunk (Baron von Brunk) is such a massive console gaming fan, he decided that the last thing he should see at night should be the Spiritual Stones from Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time. So he built this working lamp containing a transparent mosaic of each stone, all harmoniously capped off by a Triforce…

Nine Ring Dao Sword

• Dated: early 20th century
• Culture: Chinese
• Measurements: overall length 95 cm

The sword has a wide, curved, single-edged blade with a double groove. It features nine “teeth” at the back, each one provided with an iron ring. The typical, circular quillon is made of brass with relieved border and floral engravings. The grip has fabric binding and a wide ring at the edge.

Source: Copyright © 2014 Czerny’s International Auction House S.R.L.

src via samuraitears

50watts:

Hamada Chimei, Mad Man, 1962

me irl

In what's being heralded as a secular triumph, the UK government has banned the teaching of creationism as science in all existing and future academies and free schools.

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A war of words between a judge and attorney in Florida ended after the judge allegedly punched the attorney in the head. Judge John Murphy of Brevard County, Florida, challenged veteran public defender Andrew Weinstock to a fight on Monday.

another addition to florida.txt

Officer’s Sword

• Dated: turn of 18th and 19th century
• Culture: French
• Measurements: overall length 90 cms

The sword has a double-edged, straight blade, flattened hexagon in section, with a central point. Both sides are decorated with etched and gilded ornaments. The sword has a wooden grip bound with twisted copper and brass wires and a gilded bronze hilt, plus an ancient military helmet-shaped pommel. The simple bar knuckle-guard is enhanced by a straight square crossguard and symmetrical heart-shaped counterguard.

Source: Copyright © 2014 Antikvity Praha S.R.O.

allthingseurope:

Basel  Münster, Switzerland (by rotraud_71)

yase

lowlivindaddy:

baking-waffles:

Nuclear test 15 megatons, Nevada, 1953, various angles.

Nightmares.

anyone else hear the score from the nuke scene in T2 in their head

yeaverily:

Fresco with trompe l’œil dome painted on low vaulting, Jesuit Church, Vienna, by Andrea Pozzo, 1703

An 1862 monograph by pioneering French neurologist Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne de Boulogne (1806-1875) is full of disturbing photos of human subjects. Using electrodes, the scientist triggered muscular contractions in their faces. You know, for science.

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lymphonodge:

daveygravey:

Whoa

spacetwinks

pinballllll

shinkicking:

kirinprincess:

there just a fucking dog right in the middle of it all i cant deal

everytime i see this its lower and lower quality

The legacy of the great artist, inventor, and scientist in illustrated “interactive” paper engineering that would’ve made Leonardo himself nod with delight.

As a lover of pop-up books, a celebrator of the intersection of art and science, and a great admirer of the vintage children’s book illustration of wife-and-husband duo Alice and Martin Provensen, I was instantly smitten with Leonardo da Vinci (public library) — a glorious 1984 pop-up book that traces the life and legacy of the legendary artist, inventor and scientist in gorgeous illustrations by the Provensens and “interactive” three-dimensional paper engineering that would’ve made Leonardo himself nod with delight.

In the spirit of previous efforts to convey the analog magic of vintage paper engineering in animated GIFs — including Bruno Munari’s “interactive” picture-books and this naughty Victorian pop-up book for adults — I’ve animated a couple of the visuals, which is of course no substitute for the hands-on whimsy but at the very least a whetting of the appetite.

Leonardo da Vinci is, sadly, long out of print, but surviving copies can still be found. Complement it with the Provensens’ timelessly wonderful illustrations for Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, Aesop’s Fables, some classic fairy tales, young James Beards’s cookbook, and a poetic homage to William Blake.

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“In the 1860s and 70s, photographer Timothy O’Sullivan came across this evidence of a visitor to the West that preceded his own expedition by another 150 years — A Spanish inscription from 1726. This close-up view of the inscription carved in the sandstone at Inscription Rock (El Morro National Monument), New Mexico reads, in English: “By this place passed Ensign Don Joseph de Payba Basconzelos, in the year in which he held the Council of the Kingdom at his expense, on the 18th of February, in the year 1726″. 

- The Atlantic

Last fall we reported on an unusual 3D printer that included an astonishing five separate extruders. Now they’re working on a new version, but it does not have a name. 

It may sound disorganized, but in fact the company behind the machine, ORD Solutions of Ontario, Canada, hopes to select a name with a contest. Aside from the brain-busting creativity you’ll need to conjure up a kick-ass name, entry is straightforward: just send them an email and post on your social media. 

The working name of the new printer is the terribly awkward “MH3000R2”. It’s no wonder they’re running a naming contest. 

While the machine’s interim name may be awkward, the new machine itself is not. Like its predecessor, the R2 retains the unique five extruder arrangement. Improvements we’re expecting include: larger build volume, upgraded structure and mechanicals and ease of use features, but these have yet to be officially confirmed and will be formally announced when the R2’s Kickstarter campaign launches later this summer. We will, of course, have all the deets when they’re available. 

Meanwhile we recommend you come up with a name for their new machine before June 20th, because if your entry is selected, you’ll receive a FREE R2, valued at USD$2,600. 

Via ORD Solutions

Freelance designer and stop-motion animator Micaël Reynaud (previously) creates animated GIFs unlike any we’ve seen. His process involves the use of video techniques like slit-scanning, time-lapse, and various forms of masking to create what he refers to as “hypnotic very short films.” Indeed many of these animations are pulled from fully realized videos which you can watch over on his Vimeo channel. Reynaud’s work has not gone unnoticed in the art world, the pigeon GIF above was a finalist in the first Saatchi Gallery Motion Photography competition, and he recently won the 2014 Giphoscope International Art GIF contest. You can scroll through dozens of his creations over on Google+.

narcodigitalhedonist:

Transistor by Jen Zee [Xaxor]

Estonian researchers believe the remains of Vlad III — aka Vlad the Impaler and the inspiration for Dracula — are buried in a church in Naples, Italy. But to prove it they may have to open his tomb — which sounds like an extraordinarily bad idea.

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CNN Tech has a great story on Virgin Galatic’s newest passenger spaceship.

When I first poked my head inside Virgin Galactic’s newest spaceship, I felt a little like I was getting a front-row seat to space history.

The company, led by billionaire Richard Branson, allowed CNN unprecedented access to a “SpaceShipTwo, Serial Two” spacecraft which was being carefully assembled by workers at a secure facility in the high desert north of Los Angeles.

This invention spun from carbon fiber and imagination is designed to fly tourists some 60 miles high to the edge of space.

In 2008, Branson predicted the company would be launching paying passengers by 2010. Obviously that hasn’t happened yet. Meanwhile, more than 700 people — reportedly including astrophysicist Stephen Hawking, Justin Bieber and Ashton Kutcher — are awaiting to gain official status as Space Cowboys.

The latest word: Virgin Galactic says it’s on track to begin commercial service by the end of this year.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day,” Branson tweeted in January.

The spaceship I boarded isn’t expected to fly until 2015. I was asked not to take photos or video. From the inside, it looks bigger than you’d expect after seeing its 60-foot-long exterior. For some reason I expected more machinery during assembly. Standing inside the cabin’s shell, I found four technicians working away with precision and TLC.

There were no furnishings installed yet, so I tried to imagine which of the six seats in the spacecraft would be my choice — if I could afford a $250,000 ticket.

The cabin is dotted with so many windows it blew me away — a side window and a ceiling window for every passenger. I imagined myself in the front row. Right side. Stepping carefully to the window, I remembered what space travelers have said about the power of seeing the awe-inspiring curvature of the Earth and what a life-changing experience that is.

I was sort of projecting that as I stood inside the spaceship.

Here’s how Virgin Galactic’s space tours are supposed to work: Six passengers and two pilots will board a SpaceShipTwo — a combination rocket and glider. The ship is attached to a powerful airplane, called a WhiteKnightTwo. That plane flies the rocket/gilder up to about 50,000 feet.

Then the real fun starts.

The pilots separate the spacecraft from the plane. They ignite the spacecraft’s rocket engine, creating G-forces that pin passengers back in their seats, according to Virgin Galactic. They’ll experience “eye-watering acceleration” to nearly 2,500 mph, more than three times the speed of sound.

As the ship reaches higher and higher, the cobalt blue sky turns to black. Then: engines off.

Silence.

Passengers will be allowed out of their seats — to feel that weightlessness we’ve all heard so much about.

It will be interesting to learn what really happens during the six minutes of weightlessness that Virgin Galactic says passengers will get on each flight. Imagine all six passengers inside this cabin as they’re dying to get that space-faring-selfie they can post online for the rest of their lives.

I’m wondering: What are the rules in space to get those photos? How is that going to work? Is everyone going to be bumping into each other while they’re floating around the cabin? There were four workers in the ship’s cabin with me, and I could imagine us all bumping into each other — accidentally throwing an elbow while we tried to maintain balance and control in zero-G.

After the weightless portion of the flight — if all goes according to plan — passengers will strap themselves back into their seats before the spacecraft yields to the forces of gravity and begins its glide downward toward sweet Mother Earth.

Read the full story here.

Emma Bass buggin’ out in her Icon Airmada full face helmet… “Wanna see my bug collection?”

[ more photos of Emma | IG @emmelinerose ]