Thursday 31 August 2017

I am hedgehog


My contribution to the old hedgehog meme, which I really wish had caught on.




I am not baby chicken. I am hedgehog



I am not delicious watermelon. I am hedgehog



I am not bridesmaid. I am hedgehog.



I am not winter hiker. I am hedgehog.



I am not scary vampire. I am hedgehog.



I am not Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. I am hedgehog.



I am hedgehog.

Wednesday 24 May 2017

Wednesday 29 March 2017

Finally!


Britain is at last on the road back to sovereignty as the British ambassador delivers the formal letter starting the two-year process.

A great day.

Sunday 15 January 2017

Scientists turn toy into a 20-cent blood centrifuge



Many of us have played with whirligigs as kids, but now these playthings made of buttons and twine are getting a new life as medical lab tools for the developing world. Bioengineers at Stanford University have developed a blood centrifuge based on the children's toy that costs only 20 US cents in materials to build, yet can compete with commercial lab centrifuges costing thousands of dollars.

.. Continue Reading Scientists turn toy into a 20-cent blood centrifuge

Category: Good Thinking

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Blood
Stanford University

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Super Hornets drop world's largest swarm of micro-drones



With a whine like a swarm of giant angry wasps descending on a picnic, 103 micro-drones recently carried out organized maneuvers in the skies over China Lake, California. Billed by the US Department of Defense (DoD) as the world's largest micro-drone swarm, the Perdix drones were launched last October from three F/A-18 Super Hornets and autonomously carried out a series of missions that demonstrated collective decision-making, adaptive formation flying, and self-healing.

.. Continue Reading Super Hornets drop world's largest swarm of micro-drones

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Plastic bags made from shrimp shells might help Egypt's trash problem



A team of bioengineers from the University of Nottingham and Nile University in Egypt are developing a new substitute for conventional plastic carry bags using a material made out of shrimp shells. This biodegradable alternative to the more conventional polythene made from fossil fuels that is used in shopping bags is not only greener, but can also extend theshelf life of foodstuffs.

.. Continue Reading Plastic bags made from shrimp shells might help Egypt's trash problem

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Rocket Crafters granted patent for safer, cheaper 3D-printed rocket fuel




We've seen 3D-printed rocket engines, but what about 3D-printed rocket fuel? Florida-based Rocket Crafters, Inc. (RCI) has been awarded a patent for a method of fuelling hybrid liquid/solid rockets using 3D printing technology. The company claims that the process ensures the fabrication of flawless, high-performance, safer-handling fuel grain. It will enter service in 2019 for launching satellites.

.. Continue Reading Rocket Crafters granted patent for safer, cheaper 3D-printed rocket fuel

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Lexus Sport Yacht Concept take Lexus styling and dual V8 power to the water



Lexus has taken the wraps off of something a bit different for the luxury car brand – a Sport Yacht Concept. Making its debut at Di Lido Island on Biscayne Bay, Miami Beach, Florida, the seagoing Lexus is a one-of-a-kind proof-of-concept that uses similar design language to the marque's land-lubber vehicles and is powered by two Lexus V8 engines.

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Falcon 9 returns to space with Iridium-1 launch



SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster roared back into service today over four months after a disastrous launch pad explosion threw its future into doubt. At 9:54 am PST (17:54 GMT), the reusable rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California carrying the 10-satellite constellation of the Iridium-1 mission. According to the company, this is the first of a series of launches that will eventually form the 81-satellite Iridium NEXT global communication network.

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Tuesday 10 January 2017

New 3D graphene is ten times as strong as steel



It's incredibly strong and has unique electrical, thermal, optical, and chemical properties, but in some ways Graphene's two-dimensional structure makes it a bit like the laser was in the 1960s – a solution in search of a problem. To give graphene a new dimension, a team of MIT scientists have developed a sponge-like 3D version that has only five percent of the density of steel, yet is ten times as strong.

.. Continue Reading New 3D graphene is ten times as strong as steel

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Hubble charts path of the Voyager probes out of the Solar System



As NASA's Voyager 1 and 2 unmanned deep space probes head out of the Solar System, they are in territory that is the very definition of "uncharted." To help fill in the map, the Hubble Space Telescope is charting their path in order to learn more about the mysterious regions of deep space.

.. Continue Reading Hubble charts path of the Voyager probes out of the Solar System

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Earth-like planets may not be very Earth-like



When is an "Earth-like" planet not Earth-like? It's a question that the search for life beyond the Solar System revolves around, and a team of scientist are using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) to shed some light on the subject. By looking at the composition of exosolar planets, they conclude that some Earth-like candidates, including "garnet planets" may not be as habitable as once thought.

.. Continue Reading Earth-like planets may not be very Earth-like

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DARPA's TUNA program completes first phase



If truth is the first casualty of war, then communications come a close second. To keep the US Navy and allied fleets operating when data systems are disrupted, DARPA is conducting its Tactical Undersea Network Architectures (TUNA) program, which has completed its first phase of development. The tactical data network uses a system of rapidly-deployable buoys and advanced fiber optic technology to temporarily reestablish data networks at sea, that may have been destroyed due to enemy action or other forces.

.. Continue Reading DARPA's TUNA program completes first phase

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