I had meant to post this video some weeks ago but got caught up in a number of other social media related discussions that were a bit more salient at the time. That said, I’ve been a big fan (and critic) of some of the more recent innovations in robotics and this new clip shows some interesting advancements in the anthropomorphic sector of the field. Continue reading
I hate to admit it but this week’s schedule has been pretty crazy between my work and family obligations so I didn’t have as much time as I like to commit to The Road Not Taken. That said I was able to uncover an incredible video about the world’s smallest and smartest Rube Goldberg machine: Melvin the Magical Mixed Media Machine (or just Melvin the Machine). Continue reading
In February of 2011 Corning, the American glass manufacturer founded in 1851, released a video called “A Day Made of Glass” (below). The video portrays a not-too-distant future where most of the surfaces with which we interact are interactive, integrated, and intelligent. Continue reading
You don’t have to be a NASA fan, an Angry Birds fan, or even a Don Pettit fan to truly appreciate how terrific the video above is in the grand scheme of things. There’s nothing like zero gravity to help budding minds appreciate the basics of physics – which is clearly on Don’s mind – in a way that’s probably a bit more enthralling than the classroom. Continue reading
Who knew James Cameron was obsessed with the darkest depths of the Earth’s oceans? Actually it shouldn’t be all that much of a surprise given the fact that he was behind some of the most well-loved major motion pictures about the bodies of water that make this the blue planet including The Abyss (1989), Titanic (1997), and Sanctum (2011). Continue reading
So let’s say you’re fascinated with highly efficient 19th century rivals to the steam engine, you are a relatively skilled solderer, and you have plenty of time on your hands – what would you do? Build a Stirling engine out of a sardine can, assorted paper clips, foam rubber, and a discarded compact disc. Continue reading
The idea of a “space elevator” – a structure that would allow material and/or people to move from Earth’s surface into space (and back) without the use of rockets – dates back to the late 1800s when Konstantin Tsiolkovsky proposed a free-standing structure that would stretch from the surface of the Earth to a geostationary orbit 22,236 miles (35,786 km) up. Over the past century a number of different concepts (e.g., using a counterweight in space to support the structure) and technological innovations (e.g., carbon nanotubes) have come along that have put this ambitious idea more within reach. Continue reading
When I first saw the video above taken from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory the “Tears In Rain” soliloquy delivered by Replicant Roy Batty in Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner (1982) immediately came to mind. These twisters are as large (or larger) as the Earth itself, gust at 300,000 miles per hour, and are a relatively cool 15,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Continue reading
Heart-shaped maps are one thing, but maps of the human heart are quite another, and I’ve got both on this Valentine’s Day. The charting of emotional territory, as opposed to physical space, has resulted in the production of several interesting maps from the seventeenth century to the near-present. Below are the companion Map of the Open Country of a Woman’s Heart…
When one imagines worlds undiscovered and untouched by humanity, thoughts of far-flung planets many light-years beyond our own come to mind. However as any oceanographer or polar scientist will tell you, there are worlds filled with alien lifeforms a few thousand feet beyond our grasp. Continue reading
