What did the world’s first language sound like?
What languages sounded like before a few thousand years ago is one of the great unsolvable mysteries of modern science. Now two linguists have come up with a bold hypothesis: the speakers of the oldest known language spoke like Yoda.
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This has got to be one of the coolest gadgets I’ve seen for a long time. And I want one.
The Wacom Inkling is a device that you simply clip to your drawing pad. Using the supplied pen, draw and sketch to your heart’s delight. As large or as small as you want. As detailed as you want. As many as you like.
The Inkling will digitally store your drawings to be uploaded to your computer via USB. It will save your digitized drawings in several formats; jpg, gif, png, tiff, etc. You can use any popular graphics software to manipulate your drawings into the work of art you desire.
The pen has 1024 degrees of pressure, so you can add light or heavy strokes to your sketch. You can add layers for precise detailing in Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro, or any other graphics program that supports layers.
The Wacom Inkling is scheduled to be released any day now. At USD$199 MSRP it’s a tad spendy, but did that ever stop you before?
Drug delivering Nanoparticle
A new type of nanoparticle developed in the laboratories at the University of North Carolina has shown potential for more effective delivery of chemotherapy to treat cancer. Wenbin Lin, PhD, Kenan Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Pharmacy, and colleagues report their finding in the Sept. 14, 2011 issue of Angewandte Chemie.
In laboratory studies, Lin and colleagues developed and tested a new type of nanoparticle that can deliver larger amounts of a drug and will not leak the drug as the particle circulates through the blood stream on its way to the target.
In the proof-of-concept experiments, they tested the nanoparticle’s ability to deliver therapeutic doses of the chemotherapy drug oxaliplatin to colon and pancreatic tumors. The oxaliplatin-based particles showed significant growth inhibition of pancreatic tumors that are extremely difficult to treat. The nanoparticle has two to three times therapeutic efficacy over oxaliplatin.
The nanoparticle is different from other nanoparticles in its very high drug loading and in the ability to release in the chemotherapeutics in a controlled fashion. The release of therapeutic cargoes depends on the naturally occurring molecules that are more abundant in many tumors.
Lin explains, “The polysilsesquioxane (PSQ) particle we have developed carries extremely high loadings of oxaliplatin-based chemotherapeutics. The particles are stable under normal physiological conditions, but can be readily reduced to release the platin cargoes in highly reducing tumor microenvironments that have high concentrations of reducing agents. As a result, they have very little background release and are more easily targeted to tumors than most existing particles. We need to thoroughly determine the pharmacokinetics and other important properties of the PSQparticle in order to translate this particle platform to the clinic.”
Since its inception a decade ago, K Zone has won over many, but many still remain against an official role in pitch calling.
by Peter Murray October 20th, 2011
It’s one of the important questions facing American society today. On the one side are the liberal-minded who want more regulation; on the other side, conservatives who despise any proposals put on the table.
I’m speaking, of course, about the debate of whether or not technology should be used to call balls and strikes in baseball.
This same question was posed recently on Slashdot with an invitation for readers to comment – and comment they did, 141 times. The original question entertained the use of “robot umpires” to “either replace or enhance the human umps’ work on the field.” And it considered how to go about developing technologies such as “touch-sensitive bases/foul lines, etc.” rather than simply calling balls and strikes. But I’m going to limit our own peregrination on this topic to the strike zone simply because the technology’s already here to potentially improve this central part of the game.
And yet we’re not using it.
Not surprisingly the Slashdot discussion centered mostly on the question of the strike zone. Is there really a need for an upgrade at the umpire position? If so, would the current “robot umpires” do a better job than their human counterparts? I’ll get to the comments, but first let’s take a look at what the human umps are up against.
Microsoft CEO On Android: “Only A Computer Scientist Could Figure Out How To Use It”
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer took his appearance at the Web 2.0 Summit as an opportunity to publicly press the dislike button on Android, Google apps, and the iPhone.
Microsoft is planning to release new Nokia phones powered by its Windows Phone operating system at Nokia World on October 26 and Ballmer told Web 2.0 interviewer John Batelle that he thought iPhone was the main competition. Though Google’s Android software has gobbled up market share to become the most popular smartphone operating system in the United States, Ballmer was dismissive of the competitor.
By James Milstid
E-Readers, the Internet, and digital audio books have changed the way many of us are reading.
Sure, real books have a certain warm and cozy je ne sais quoi and appeal that I’ll never deny. But electronic books have won me over for convenience and ease. I’m sure that my being a techy has something to do with it too. But having read at least thirty books on my nookcolor (and several more on my iPhone before I had a nook) puts me way beyond the exploratory mode. My e-Reader is my preferred media for books.
I’ve been interested for some time how digital media is affecting publishers, bookstores, libraries, and the like. So it was with some interest that I read this article in the New York Times. It certainly is a sign of the times…
Canon Unveils the 1D X: One DSLR to Rule Them All
As the rumors foretold, Canon has announced a new DSLR today combining the 1D and 1Ds line of DSLRs into a single camera: the EOS-1D X. This beastly DSLR is an 18-megapixel jack of all trades. It’s full frame, but still shoots 14fps using 61 autofocus points and a 252-zone metering system. ISO can be boosted up to a whopping 204,000.
There’s a large 3.2-inch LCD screen on the back, and a futuristic optical viewfinder that offers things such as a dual-axis electronic level and an on-demand grid. For remote shooting and file transferring, there’s a handy built-in wired LAN connection. In terms of video, camera can also do 1080p recording at 24/25/30fps, along with 720p at 50/60fps. You’ll have to start saving up though — the 1D X will cost $6,800 when it’s released in March 2012.
By ANDREW LISZEWSKI
You don’t need to be a physicist, a PhD student, a geek, or even a member of the Insane Clown Posse to appreciate the awesome capabilities of superconductors and magnets as demonstrated in this video by Tel-Aviv University.
An unidentified member of the university’s Superconductivity Group School of Physics and Astronomy shows off the quantum locking, or quantum trapping, effects of a magnet that’s been super cooled with liquid nitrogen. Now we’ve probably all seen demonstrations of super cooled magnets floating above a track before, with promises of them facilitating high-speed trains zigzagging across the country. But this video goes one step further, showing how the position and angle of the magnet can be locked in a magnetic field while it’s in motion. The moral of the story is that it makes for an impressive demo, and I better see hoverboards popping up in toy stores by Christmas.
