Homely Scientist

Google Earth is one of those fantastic tools that just keeps getting better.  While, yes, it does take up a bit of drive space, it also gives you the ability to learn a lot about our world.  Take storms for example…
The Hurricane season has officially begun. And the second named storm – Tropical Depression Barry – is currently providing much needed wetness to a dry southeastern US. One of Google Earth’s most powerful features is the ability to pull in real-time information from other sites and overlay the information for visualization. Weather data is one of my favorite applications of this …read more

Comments Off

Thanks to Geek Dad I bring you some full moon facts like:
21 Scientists have long battled to explain the “moon illusion” – whereby the full moon appears to be larger the closer it is to the horizon. The phenomenon is understood to be caused by human perception rather than the magnifying effect of the earth’s atmosphere.

and
15 According to superstition a male child is more likely to be conceived at full moon.

countered by:
35 An analysis of the birthdays of 4,256 babies born in a clinic in France found no relationship between the full moon and fertility.

The next full moon is June 30th so, …read more

Comments Off

 Every summer NASA flies over the Greenland ice sheet to determine its “health”–that is thickness, size, and height.  Essentially how fast is it shrinking:
This summer’s NASA expedition to Greenland has returned with fresh data. Now the analysis begins. One piece of equipment used is an ice-penetrating radar that can find bedrock up to 2 miles below the ice surface. NASA estimates an average drop of 9 inches in the height of Greenland’s glaciers would result in a 0.12-inch rise in global sea levels. Source:Greenland’s ice sheet: The annual checkup | Tech news blog – CNET News.com
 I’m sure when the …read more

Comments Off

 Okay a bit cheeky, but these concepts from some engineering students for wind turbines over the highway could generate enough juice to power traffic signals and other important things for highway safety.
They might look far out, but for windy highways say in the mountain passes, they could probably be easier to deal with than the typical windmill style.
From Crunch Gear: Highway Wind Turbines
 
Technorati tags: wind power, alternative energy

1 Comment

Big news yesterday…
A team of astronomers announced they have discovered the smallest and potentially most Earth-like extrasolar planet yet. Five times as massive as Earth, it orbits a relatively cool star at a distance that would provide earthly temperatures as well, signaling the possibility of liquid water.
“The separation between the planet and its star is just right for having liquid water at its surface,” says astronomer and team spokesperson Stephane Udry of the Observatory of Geneva in Versoix, Switzerland. “That’s why we are a bit excited.” Source: All Wet? Astronomers Claim Discovery of Earth-like Planet: Scientific American

Wow!  Cool!  Let’s …read more

2 Comments

One of the huge problems with solar energy has been a materials science one.  Silicon-based cells are expensive, fragile, and have limited places they can be applied (easily).  Looks like that’s all going to change:
New solar cells developed by Massey University don’t need direct sunlight to operate and use a patented range of dyes that can be impregnated in roofs, window glass and eventually even clothing to produce power.
This means teenagers could one day be wearing jackets that will recharge their equivalents of cellphones, iPods and other battery- driven devices. Source: Solar power breakthrough at Massey – New Zealand …read more

4 Comments

So, is the government to blame – or are scientists working for the government to blame? Science geeks, help me out here. What really happened? Source: Daylight Saving Time – Snafu ~ Chris Pirillo

Yeah this recent change to DST in the US and Canada has been a pain.  I’ve had to help re-set VCR and TV clocks.  Had to make sure devices were patched.  And for what?  Nothing.
Yep, nothing.  See here is the basic theory, by “springing forward” each Spring, people can stay outside longer and use less electricity (since it’s light out later).  Okay, good idea.  Yes, it …read more

Comments Off

This isn’t something that I thought I would come across on Zane’s blog, but anyway researchers up here in the Great White North (that would be Canada) have found that a little bacteria loves sugar maple sap and the “output” of that love are some cool bio-polymers:
Researchers in Canada have discovered that maple syrup may aid in the production of bioplastic. It turns out that a form of bacteria called alcaligenes latus has a sweet tooth, and behaves particularly ravenously when exposed to maple sap and syrup. Researchers found that the bacteria not only thrive when added to maple syrup, …read more

Comments Off

I have a friend named Toby so I could resist the title.  Anyway, this is rather cool.  It seems that for a small streatch of the ocean floor the Earth’s crust didn’t form!  Instead the mantle is exposed!
SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Canary Islands (AP) — British scientists have embarked on a mission to study a huge area on the Atlantic seabed where the Earth’s crust is mysteriously missing and instead is covered with dark green rock from deep inside the planet.
The 12-member expedition to take an unprecedented peek at Earth’s mantle left the Canary Islands on Monday with a new …read more

1 Comment

You know all these great stuff we use online?  Google, this blog, your website, all of it is housed in data centres.  These are, essentially, giant computer warehouses.  Racks and racks and racks of serves live there connected to the Net and the power grid.  All of this computing uses a ton of power.  On GigaOm comes a simple suggestion that could help all of us:
To resolve this issue, I have been speaking with entrepreneurs that are working to solve the problem using solar energy. The theory is that if you can generate enough solar energy you can sufficiently supplement the …read more

1 Comment