The Stradivarius Violin Secreats Finally Decoded Via CT Scan
For three centuries people have been trying to reproduce the violins that Antonio Stradivari and Guarneri del Gesu crafted. None knew how these violins were able to produce their characteristic sweet sound. Now scientists used CT scans (technique for scanning lung tissue) and found that the wood density is probably the key to the Stradivarius and Guarneri success. The wood on the old master’s violins was found to be less porous than modern equivalents. You can read the results of the research here.
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Will Octopus Solve Rubic’s Cube?
Scientists don’t expect an octopus to solve the Rubic’s cube but they did gave it a shot! Twenty five octopuses were given the famous puzzle not to solve it but to show marine biologists which one of the 8 arms is their favourite to use. In this research 23 European centers are participating, handing out toys and food as stimulants to the octopus to interact. The results will be reported some time in the Autumn.
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Rubber Snake Generates Electricity From Waves
Renewable energy systems are currently in the hot spot as we try to end our addiction on oil. Scientists around the world try their best not only to improve existing systems but also to introduce us with their novel concepts. Engineers at Southampton University created a giant rubber snake that produces electricity from the passing wave pressure.The full scale of this Electricity producing Anaconda will be 200 meter long and 7 across and will reside between 40-100 meters deep. They will be commercially available in five years time and just one of them could power up 200 homes.
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Mars: Phoenix Finds Mysterious White Material Under Surface
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NASA’s Phoenix arrived on Mars on May 25th in order to spend a 3 month journey searching for ice (water) and proof of primitive life forms. Well yesterday Phoenix dug up something strange, it found a layer of white substance a few inches underneath Mars’ red soil. Scientists believe its not ice but may be some sort of salt and hope that ice might be found beneath it.
Update: NASA now believes that the white material might have been ice as after four days is disappeared (evaporated). Read the report here.
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Renewable Petroleum: Bug Eats Wheat And Excretes Crude Oil
Scientists in California have managed to stumble upon what seems to be the discovery of the century. The genetic alteration of bugs created a super species that can eat agricultural waste (woodchips, wheat straw etc) and excrete crude oil. This “renewable petroleum” promises to keep us addicted to the black gold and and (hopefully) drop the price of the oil pumped out of Middle East. LS9 which represents a group of Silicon Valley companies that are behind this idea, creates strains of nonpathogenic micro organisms (the timesonline.co.uk calls it yeast) (E. coli with an altered DNA) that gives out the “Oil 2.0″. Lets hope that all these genetic mutations of bugs do not “spread out” and cause more harm than good.
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Dancing Microrobots
Scientists have made microrobots that have the width of a hair and can be wirelessly controlled. Thus it is very easy to make them dance! Of course they move pretty slow at 10-20 billionths of a meter. This gives them the ability to make precise movements. Watch them dance in the video below.
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