Interesting Science Stuff Thread

[Duke87 1,070]

Nissan said that users would benefit from an improved driving experience since their intentions would be transmitted to the wheels faster than by using a hydraulic and mechanical system.

In addition it suggested that the development would "insulate" motorists from disturbances caused by unnecessary feedback.

"For example, even on a road surface with minor ridges or furrows, the driver no longer has to grip the steering wheel tightly and make detailed adjustments, so travelling on the intended path becomes easier," it said in a statement.

I wonder about this claim. That feedback which they call "unnecessary" gives the driver information about the road they're driving on. If they're getting a lot of it, it's an indication to slow down. Making the ride artificially smooth may give drivers an artificial sense of stability, which I could see leading to accidents.

The concern could also be raised about a failure in the electric system leading in an inability to steer, or worse, steering in directions unintended. But then, automatic transmissions have been in cars for decades without having been known to ever lose their ability to shift gears properly, so...

[Easy Bakes 253]

Nissan said that users would benefit from an improved driving experience since their intentions would be transmitted to the wheels faster than by using a hydraulic and mechanical system.

In addition it suggested that the development would "insulate" motorists from disturbances caused by unnecessary feedback.

"For example, even on a road surface with minor ridges or furrows, the driver no longer has to grip the steering wheel tightly and make detailed adjustments, so travelling on the intended path becomes easier," it said in a statement.

I wonder about this claim. That feedback which they call "unnecessary" gives the driver information about the road they're driving on. If they're getting a lot of it, it's an indication to slow down. Making the ride artificially smooth may give drivers an artificial sense of stability, which I could see leading to accidents.

The concern could also be raised about a failure in the electric system leading in an inability to steer, or worse, steering in directions unintended. But then, automatic transmissions have been in cars for decades without having been known to ever lose their ability to shift gears properly, so...

and until recently automatic transmissions were purely mechanical devices with no electronic components that could fail.they would only fail thru mechanical failure after normal wear or abnormal damage

  Edited October 18, 2012 by Easy Bakes  

[Easy Bakes 253]

Tibetan Mountain Finch has now been rediscovered on the Tibetan plateau

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20008988

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Interesting. This species may be a 'sport' that crops up among the others occasionally and may not breed true among its peers. With only three or four confirmed specimens, it will be hard to call it a new species. Birders should be more aware of genetic accidents.

[Easy Bakes 253]

Idiocracy or technical innovation?

Wifi capable Camera

  Edited October 31, 2012 by Easy Bakes  

[Jazzmaster 716]

Idiocracy or technical innovation?

Wifi capable Camera

Not sure if this is really a 'science' thing, but anyways....

When I got my first digital single lens reflex (D-SLR) camera back in May, the D3200 was on the approach. The sensor no doubt resolves details better and being newer does better in low light than older models, such is the way of technology. There's a couple reasons I'm not crazy about it though...

1.) Such high megapixel count means the files are not small. Might be too much for the audience it's marketed to: people who probably don't do more than casual family and travel photos.

2.) Firmware seems a little crippled, and it would hinder the growth of someone studying the art of photography

3.) The WiFi thing is a neat gimmick but I don't see the purpose in it. I shoot all files in RAW format and post-process them in Adobe Lightroom so I never really do the straight to internet thing.

4.)WiFi also lets you use your smartphone as a live view/remote shutter device. The extremely low resolution of even the fanciest smartphone means you're not going to get the picture you see on your phone when you take a picture. Viewfinder or bust.

[Ocram's Razr 963]

More math than science but have you heard of hexaflexagons?

--Ocram

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Nikon are simply going with the trend. More junk on the air waves. All this clutter will eventually break the system. It is not interesting science per se except as an example of the abuse of science.

[Easy Bakes 253]

Huge Storm on Saturn.

Saturn Warming

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Interesting. Now if they didn't have an orbiter out there, would it have been noticed? Astronomy has come a long way in the last few years. Maybe the Saturnians had a nuclear war?

[Easy Bakes 253]

Interesting. Now if they didn't have an orbiter out there, would it have been noticed? Astronomy has come a long way in the last few years. Maybe the Saturnians had a nuclear war?

probably not right away.

unless some amateur happened to be watching at the right moment

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Maybe you won't have to learn Mandarin after all.

Interesting work being done by Microsoft and others.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

LHC strikes again.

The tragedy of science is that beautiful, popular theories are invalidated by one dull fact.

[Haljackey 17,270]

The Saturn V explained in Simple English

[Easy Bakes 253]

So there is no "Dark Matter"

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

So there is no "Dark Matter"

That's a definite maybe. Besides if the matter is dark and you convert it in the normal manner, you should get the normal amount of dark energy, eh?

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Meanwhile, 100 light years distant, we have ... an orphan of the sky. This is a really big hunk of rock.

---

Discovery Science Channel recently ran an hour on Betelgeuse. This red giant is apparently in its death throes becoming a supernova. Astronomers will be able to detect the neutrino blast in time to turn telescopes to watch the main event. It is predicted to be visible in the daytime sky for four days when it goes. They are licking their chops and hoping it happens in their lifetimes. Rather ghoulish, if you ask me.

For those who don't follow astronomy much, Betelgeuse is the giant red star in the constellation Orion.

The resulting blast of gamma rays from the explosion will miss the earth by around 20 degrees. If it hit us, it could be an ELE (End of Life Event). This star is 640 light years away, which makes it a next-door neighbour.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Finally, luminescent panels and shapes that are more or less permanent.

If this technology uses less energy than CFLs or LEDs, produces an acceptable light, and doesn't cost the earth this will be the first major scientific advance in a long, long time. There is room for petro-chemical technology in our future if we can only stop using it for fuel.

[Easy Bakes 253]

Mr Flibble will change his name to Mr FIPEL

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

That Goldilocks really gets around.

The idea that we are alone of planets with "life as we know it" is getting thinner and thinner. Tau Ceti is a long way away.

[Easy Bakes 253]

Interesting 60 minutes story about what they plan to do with the costa concordia.

i did not know that ship was bigger then the Titanic.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18560_162-57559311/costa-concordia-salvaging-a-shipwreck/

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Aha! In Nelson's navy this trick was called a "Camel". You attach two or more other vessels to it, pump them out, and use Archimedes Principle to raise it. Nothing spectacular in the physics, just the scale of the thing is mind boggling.

C.S. Forrester borrowed this trick in the novel that had Hornblower in the Baltic bombarding the coast when he couldn't get close enough with his mortars. A little "pain pour Nicole".

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

I guess nobody noticed my pun on the word Pumpernickel. Oh, well ...

This is a promising start. Older men, take note and keep your fingers crossed.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Seems there has been a loud call recently for more research into the psyche. Some scientists say it is the work of the 21st. Century.

[Haljackey 17,270]

Then there's the world's first commercially available OLED TV - which means organic light-emitting diode

Thin enough? lol!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20888689

[blade2k5 1,523]

That Goldilocks really gets around.

The idea that we are alone of planets with "life as we know it" is getting thinner and thinner. Tau Ceti is a long way away.

In astrological terms, that's right next door.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Now I really hope you meant astronomical turns. Only Prime Ministers and President's wives consult astrologers.

Yes, I agree in those terms 500 Light Years or so is close, but it would take us millennia to get there. We really need some new science based on the Higgs particle. An anti-Higgs effect might give us an inertialess drive as outlined in the 1930s Lensman series. Doc Smith cheated in his novel because Nels Bergenholm was an alien (Arisian).

[blade2k5 1,523]

Now I really hope you meant astronomical turns. Only Prime Ministers and President's wives consult astrologers.

Yes, I agree in those terms 500 Light Years or so is close, but it would take us millennia to get there. We really need some new science based on the Higgs particle. An anti-Higgs effect might give us an inertialess drive as outlined in the 1930s Lensman series. Doc Smith cheated in his novel because Nels Bergenholm was an alien (Arisian).

Meant to say astronomical.

[Duke87 1,070]

Absolute zero may not be so absolute.

But the article's explanation of how that works doesn't really make sense...

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

In some "scientific circles" it doesn't have to. Quantum physics is more statistics than anything else, and Einstein never completely accepted Schrodinger’s work. It is hard to imagine anything having a state less than entropy. This breaks the laws of Thermodynamics, so are we going to have a new set of physical theories? Maybe we are all living on the surface of a Kline bottle??