Tag: Experiment

Apparently, because we don’t already have enough problem with scooters weaving in and out of traffic, scientists are working on a way for rats to drive around in miniature cars. Yes, these rodents can now literally join the rat race.

Smartphones and tablets are packed with sensors. Normally they’re used by apps or the phone itself, but now Android users can take advantage of their mobile device’s light sensor, microphone and accelerometer to gather and record data with the help of Google and Exploratorium’s new Science Journal app.

Bento Bioworks claims it has created a compact and relatively affordable device that incorporates the machines you’ll need to prepare and analyze DNA samples on the go. The Bento Lab is meant for professionals and enthusiasts, but there will be a starter kit for newbies as well.

Astronauts on the International Space Station get up to some cool experiment. Sometimes these experiments have limited scientific value, but look really cool. Take this video from the ISS shot with a fancy RED 4K camera.

A few years ago we learned of rumors about contact lenses that gave the wearer night vision. But a better solution may have been around doctors for years all along. Independent research team Science for the Masses made eye drops based on Ce6, a substance used to enhance the potency of lasers against cancer cells as well as to treat night blindness. 

From Blade Runner to CSI, popular fiction often stretches the capabilities of photography in the service of plot. But technology has a way of catching up. Last year, psychologists Rob Jenkins and Christie Kerr were able to extract identifiable faces that were merely reflected in the eyes of a photographed person.

Most people who start playing video games do so with whatever is trending at the time that they start. Same goes for other forms of entertainment as well. I’d wager that no music listeners began their journeys by hearing a primitive human banging two rocks together rhythmically, and then slowly worked his/her way through prehistory and history to the modern day.

Even if you use the Internet only casually – thanks for spending time here! – chances are several companies have gathered a bit of data about you, or at least your online habits. These trawlers range from big fish such as Facebook, Google or your government to obscure advertising companies and perhaps even hackers.

Facebook is the largest social network out there and has hundreds of millions of users around the world. Something you might not know is that by using the social network, you are allowing them to mess with your head at times.

The weird thing about social media is that it’s not really that social in the personal sense. Sure, you can connect and message with friends and acquaintances, whenever and wherever they might be. But if you’re sending online messages to someone you could otherwise talk to on the phone or in person, then isn’t that kind of besides the point?

When posting online, how much personal information is too much? A lot of people post statuses, pictures, and videos on social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram that often reveal more than they intend to. For example, someone could simply be posting a selfie shot in their garden, but other people (like would-be stalkers, for example) might be able to identify where they live from that photo alone.

Lab rats have it bad enough having to jump through hoops and perform in order to be studied, but now life just got worse for the furry rodents. Scientists at Japan’s Waseda University have created a robotic rat designed to terrorize their organic lab rats, inducing stress and depression so their reactions can be studied.

How do you get over an addiction? Some people check into rehab, others go cold turkey, while others resort to hiring people off Craigslist to slap themselves out of it. The first two seem like typical things to do.

If robots and humans are to work together, we need to destroy all copies of The Matrix, The Terminator and other media portraying robotic uprising. That’s the first thing we should do. Only after we have done that should we expand on the experiments being done in the Jouhou System Kougaku (JSK) Lab of the University of Tokyo, which involves teaching robots to work together.

There are lots of ways to put out a fire, but most of them require some way to actually spray or douse the flames with the suppressant. This can cause problems in small or obstructed spaces.

Jamie and Adam have some explaining to do. While trying to bust their latest myth, they sent a cannonball through someone’s home in Dublin, California. This marks the first time that they have been busted before an actual myth.