Miabi Films » science

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish

Greg — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 04:14:25 +0000

Dolphins never cease to amaze. Had it not been for a few evolutionary detours, these things would be ruling this planet. And probably doing a better job at it than we currently are.

Apparently some dolphins in a tank at Sea World started creating these incredible bubble rings from their blow holes. Not just a series of tiny bubbles that may resemble a ring, but a singular torus-like bubble that writhes in the water. Kind of like how a smoker creates a nifty smoke ring- only the dolphins can play with it, pass it along, and generally have a blast. What’s really interesting is that at first only a few of them knew how to do it, but those early trailblazers managed to teach the behavior to their dolphin brethren, and it appears as though most of them in that tank are now participating.

If only a few dolphins could figure out how to clean up oil and teach it to their pals, we might be saved.

Tooth Extraction by Rocket

Greg — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 04:48:09 +0000

One of the many terrific uses for rockets…

No related posts.

First Contact

Greg — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 04:59:44 +0000

Would you know what to do if you were the first contact with an intelligent alien race? Most historians and scientists agree that this would be the most important moment in all of human history. So I suggest you bone up. Don’t want to screw it up.

Click to the picture to make it larger.

LHC Letter Of Concern

Greg — Thu, 27 May 2010 19:37:06 +0000

David is concerned about the Large Hardon Collider.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/awesomer/letter-of-concern-regarding-the-large-hardon-coll

Hawking’s Time Machine

Greg — Wed, 05 May 2010 04:23:52 +0000

What you knew is that Stephen Hawking is a brilliant mind who thinks about science in ways that you can’t begin to comprehend. What you didn’t know is that homeboy is also into girls and champagne.

Hawking’s very simple explanation of time travel…

How the Earth was Made

Greg — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 04:13:03 +0000

Dear Eyjafjallajökull,

Please do not destroy Iceland before I get to go. Just create.

Cheers Brother,
Greg

Come on, Barry

Greg — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 04:09:42 +0000

Well I’d been fearing Obama’s speech today for quite some time. Ever since word started to trickle out about the President’s plan for the US Space Program, I’d been a little skittish. It didn’t sound good. Today he was in Florida to give a speech outlining his plan for NASA in the coming decades.

I’m quite disappointed in what we got. Obama has canceled the program that would be the Space Shuttle’s replacement. Leaving the United States stranded on Earth without asking for help from Russia for the foreseeable future. That’s not what bothers me. Constellation was supposed to take us back to The Moon as well. And this was where we should have been going. We should be going back to The Moon. By stating that, “We’ve been there before” he’s completely missing the point. Going back to Luna meant setting up a permanent presence there. A presence that would produce incredible science and immeasurable resources for coming generations. All en route to Mars. Not just stopping by again to play in the sand.

Yes, he wants to send us to Mars. But first, he intends to send humans to an asteroid. A mission to an asteroid is worthless except for PR. Robots have worked extraordinarily well for this kind of exploration. We can have men on Mars in the same timeframe he is proposing, even while setting up shop on the Moon first. His plan is a misstep.

Doing a heavy lift rocket for 2015 is a good start, but that’s where it ends. The Constellation Program may have had issues, but I believe it’s aim was true. He should have gotten it back on track instead of killing it. Now we are left with not only starting from scratch, but headed off-course. Not good.

One thing that is encouraging is his support of privatization. If private companies are going to be building the launch vehicles for our space program, I hope those same companies have the wherewithal to sell these spaceships to other private business as well. If Barry is not going to take us to The Moon; then Virgin Galactic, Hilton, McDonald’s, and Starbucks will.

http://www.howmanypeopleareinspacerightnow.com/

Beautiful Physics Starting Now

Greg — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 04:02:46 +0000

So the LHC (Large Hadron Collider) started really smashing things yesterday. My friends and I have been anxiously awaiting this day. Not for the potential life changing discoveries the LHC may provide, but, naturally, for the black hole it’s bound to create that will consume the Earth in a flash of gravity and special effects. Indeed we are still here and all we can really hope for is that the black holes putter out very quickly and don’t suck us all to Geneva. (Not that there’s anything wrong with Geneva, I hear it’s wonderful.) I for one am very excited about this massive experiment. Sure they are looking for the God Particle and a menagerie of other cleverly named designer specks. But I’m really excited for the surprises. What are they going to find that they weren’t looking for? And will it improve the functionality of my microwave or alarm clock? These are exciting times. Go science!

The Science of Sleep (Paralysis)

Greg — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 05:29:22 +0000

This is really scary and you probably shouldn’t watch it if you have trouble sleeping. Like I did. Super-interesting nonetheless.

It’s ok though. If you do have trouble sleeping after watching the video, you can download the iPhone app, Sleep Cycle. Pretty much the coolest app I’ve so far used and the best 99 pennies I’ve ever spent. Sleep Cycle is an alarm clock on HGH. It stays in bed with you and actually measures how you toss and turn through the night using the iPhone’s accelerometer. These subtle measurements allow the app to determine what sleep phase you are in. “Waking up in the lightest sleep phase feels like waking without an alarm clock – it is a natural way to wake up where you feel rested and relaxed.” So even though you set the alarm for a certain time, it can wake you up at any point during a 30 minute window, according to what phase you are in. After a while, it learns your sleep patterns and displays them in nightly graphs. You can even annoy your friends by posting the graphs to Facebook!

Naturally, I was skeptical at first, but so far this thing works like gangbusters. Since I started using it, I don’t feel groggy during the day and have had more energy than I know what to do with. Don’t know if it’s magic or psychological or if it just works, but color me a believer. Now I can’t wait to go to sleep. Read more about it here and here.

Robot Art

Greg — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 05:03:06 +0000

Have a look at this most excellent collection of robot and ray gun art. Very nifty.

Click on the picture for more…