of information. of the science and tech variety that is. culled off this month's issue of popular science, are the following topics that rightly feed my grey cells:
1. ...Purdue University researchers have created a scale so sensitive it can detect the ethereal weight of a single virus particle...
about time to as loads more newly-evolved mutant airborne viruses are expected these days, as proven by sars.
2. ...if Princeton University bioengineer Ron Weiss has his way, within the next 10 years the first generation of man-made bacterial robots, or microbots, not only will detect dynamite but will scrub carbon dioxide from smokestack emissions, diagnose disease, and siphon hydrogen from water for fuel...
man programmes bacteria the way he does with computers. the thought could be either kewl or scary. kewl => man manipulating bacteria; scary => man manipulating bacteria. 'nuff said.
3. ...Oragenics, has patented a simple swab of bacteria that when wiped across a set of teeth will (allegedly) grant a lifetime of protection from tooth decay...
good news for those of us who are mighty scared of the dentist. no more fear. hurrah. and dentists will no longer be in business. so?
4. ...Even as the Pentagon struggles with the low-tech reality of war in Iraq, it looks to increasingly bizarre-sounding technology for next-gen fighting systems...
wars in the future to be waged sci-fi style. expect more incidences of friendly fire from our friends across the pond - which is the norm. or mowing down an entire town of civilians by complete spastic mistake. and then you'd hear them insisting the victims are really infiltrated foreign fighters in disguise. and now they are increasingly looking to science fiction for inspiration. which brings us to the next topic..
5. ...With combat shifting increasingly to urban environments, the need for adaptive camouflage is stronger than ever...
wars in the future to be waged sci-fi style. no more utterly logic-defying incidences of friendly fire from our friends across the pond then? let's wait and see.
marketing is pure evil. their clever use of word play has tricked many amoeba's into believing all those "scientific" claims. and this caution comes from a marketing major. ie: yours truly, the letter b. the irony.
the above are but a wee selection of majorly interesting subjects covered. which reminds me to beg me bro to lend me his magazine copy.
as enscribed by the letter b @ July 14, 2004 06:15 AM