Fantasist's Scroll

No, not a car that files.

A car that runs on compressed air. Now that is an innovation! It sounds too good to be true, but, according to this article on Wired News, the compressed air car actually exists. At the moment there are some issues with regulation and drive length, but, c’mon, this is the ultimate green car. I mean, what’s the down-side to this? Air might leak out? And, we could even use solar power to run the air-compressor to “re-fuel”. I love this car. Now, if they can just get a model that runs further than 5 miles on a tank of air and get the US government to approve it….
Ah, well, a guy can dream!

A new, experiemental model may duplicate animal eyes.

At least, that’s the goal. A scientist has recently created a system that he believes will let him “see” like an octopus. Or, a lion. Or, an eagle. Or, really, just about any other animal one cares to name. What’s more, according to the article on Wired News, he hopes to simulate what it might look like if an eagle saw things through an octopus eye. And other combonations that aren’t possible in nature. It’s certainly an interesting look at one way science is trying to understand how animals percieve the world. And, of course, how we do, too.

Well, actually, macadamia nuts, but still…

According to this article on the Sydney Morning Herald, there’s now a power plant in Australia that runs on the shells of macadamia nuts. It opened on September 18 and is the first of it’s kind. The “green” facility will “…convert 1680 kilograms of waste shell into 1.5 megawatts of electricity” but “will reduce greenhouse gases by around 9500 tonnes which is the equivalent of taking more than 2000 cars off the road”, and that’s just in its first year.
The article says that several other countries have expressed interest in this plant, including the United States. About time. We need power that is less damaging to our environment. Way to go Australia!

Not sure where this fits, really, but it’s interesting.

Ever wanted to get a close look at the inside of a prison without going to jail? Well, now, according to this article on Wired News, you can. The state of Tennesse has a “virtual tour” of their maximum security prison. You can look in on Death Row, the Rec Yard, the Gym, and the Perimiter, among other virtual destinations. It’s the real deal, so be prepared. You can check it out for yourself here.

Freakishly, we can still raed them.

And, you probably just did. Yes, that misspelling of “read” was on purpose. I did it as an example of what Kourosh Saberi of Caltech, Pasadena, and David R. Perrott of California State University, Los Angeles, California have discovered about how we “see” words. According to this article on Nature.com, we apparently don’t usually read all the letters in a word, just the first and last. The rest of the letters can be there in almost any order and we’ll still “see” the right word. It’s bizarre, but apparently true, to a certain extent, of course.
Hmm, I wonder if that’s why I have such trouble spelling?
In any case, it’s an interesting article and idea. Go check it out.

Well, not really, but it’s an eye-grabber, isn’t it?

According to this article on the BBC, there’s actually less than a 1% chance that an asteroid will hit us in the year 2014. Well, they’re monitoring it anyway.
Still, the article has some interesting info on what they track, and why, and how they classify threats from space rocks. Really, it’s a good article.

Go Read It!

Food science takes on a whole new meaning for the military.

According to this article on Wired News, the US military is trying to make better meals our service people. They’re working especially hard on the field rations known as “MREs”, or Meals Ready to Eat. Terrible things, for the most part. Nasty freeze-dried food that a soldier reconstituites in the field. Just the scent of some of these makes guys gag. So, that’s what they’re working on improving. Here’s hoping! (And, they still beat the nasty porridge that the Legions got. Blech!)

Well, the exoskeletons are new, but they’re for the elderly.

No, really, according to this article at Yahoo!News, a Japanese inventor, and college professor, has invented an exoskeleton designed to assist the elderly get around. Taking care of the elderly is something very important to a lot of cultures, though not so much to American culture for some reason, and the Japanese are especially sensitive to their elderly’s needs. This invention might help them out. And, again, it’s a fun story!