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The Pre-Akashic records

Created:
Sun Jun 07, 09 6:37 AM
Karma:
153 Points
Number Of Entries:
22
Number Of Replies:
6

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Juggling rewires the Brain

[ Category: Biology ]

From ABC News Network:

Conspectushttp://brokencontrollers.com/weblog_posting.php?mode=newentry&w=184

Quote:
Neuroscientists have discovered that learning to juggle causes changes in white matter, the nerve strands which help different parts of the brain communicate with each other.

University of Oxford researchers recruited 48 healthy young adults who were unable to juggle and put them in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanner to get a cross-section map of their brain.

Half the volunteers then underwent a six-week training period to learn how to juggle, during which they were also encouraged to practise for 30 minutes a day.

At the end, they were all able to perform at least two cycles of the classic three-ball 'cascade'.

They were then scanned again, as were their non-juggling counterparts.

Among the juggling group, imaging showed important changes in white matter, the bundle of long nerve fibres that carry electrical signals between nerve cells and connect different areas of the brain.

So-called grey matter consists of areas of nerve cells where the brain processes information.

By: so64 | On: Wed Nov 04, 09 8:40 PM


Magnetic Monopoles...fou nd?

[  Mood: Shocked ]

Okay, so I recently read how scientists have discovered a way to locate magnetic monopoles within a magnetic and I was shocked. Now to explain what a monopole, let me first give some background information. As a child knows and as I was taught in Physics, a magnet has two parts: a North side and a South side and the magnetic field always seem to flow from the North to the South. Normally and up until now, it has always been assumed that magnets would always have this duality, especially since when one breaks a magnet it still has a North and South side. And it would be impossible to find a monopole. But now scientists have created a substance which actually acts like monopoles and even has magneticiy, a term for the magnetic current that the team observed.

More can be read here

This could have a great effect our understanding of theoretical physics and is a great step towards quantum computers.

By: so64 | On: Sat Oct 17, 09 9:54 PM


New species of Spider discovered and is vegetarian

[ Category: Biology ]

Source

Quote:
In Latin America, there lives a unique spider called Bagheera kiplingi. It's a jumping spider and it shares the group's large, acute eyes and prodigious leaping ability. But it also has a trait that singles it out among all 40,000 species of spider - it's mostly vegetarian.

Virtually all spiders are predators. They may hunt using different methods but they all end up sucking the liquidised innards of their prey. If they consume plants, they do so rarely, even accidentally. Some take the odd sip of nectar to supplement their diet of flesh. Others accidentally swallow pollen while recycling the silk of their webs.

But B.kiplingi is an exception. Christopher Meehan from Villanova University has found that this spider exploits a partnership forged between ants and acacia trees. The trees employ ants as bodyguards and it pays them with shelter inside hollow thorns, and nutritious nodules called "Beltian bodies" that grow from its leaves. B.kiplingi has learned to steal these delicacies from the ants, and in doing so, it has become the world's only (mostly) vegetarian spider.
Meehan spent seven years observing the spider and filming its foraging trips. He showed that the spiders are almost always found on acacia trees that are occupied by ants, for the trees only grow the tasty Beltian bodies when ants are around. In Mexico, Beltian bodies make up 91% of the spider's diet, while in Costa Rica, they make up 60% of it. More rarely, they will also drink nectar and evern more rarely, they will have a meat treat by taking ant larvae, flies and even others of their own kind.

Meehan confirmed his results by analysing the chemical make-up of the spiders' bodies. He looked at the ratio of two types of nitrogen: N-15 and N-14. Plant-eaters tend to have relatively less N-15 than meat-eaters do, and sure enough, B.kiplingi's body had 5% less of this isotope than other species of jumping spiders. Meehan also considered the ratio of two carbon isotopes, C-13 and C-12. Meehan found that the vegetarian spider and the Beltian bodies had virtually identical ratios, as is usually the case between an animal and its food.

Feeding on Beltian bodies is worthwhile but far from straightforward. First, there's the problem of the bodyguarding ants. B.kiplingi's strategy is stealth and evasion. It builds its nests at the tips of the oldest leaves, where ants rarely patrol. They will actively avoid ant guards if they see them approaching. If cornered, they will use their powerful legs to leap away. Sometimes, they even drop to safety using a line of silk, hanging in midair until the danger passes. Meehan documented several different strategies, all evidence of the impressive mental skills that jumping spiders are known for.

Even if it avoids the sentries, B.kiplingi has another problem. Beltian bodies are extremely high in fibre and spiders really shouldn't be able to handle that. Spiders can't chew their food; they rely on digesting their prey outside their own bodies using venom and digestive juices, and 'drinking' the liquefied remains. Plant fibre is a much tougher mouthful and we still don't know how B.kiplingi copes with it.

Even so, it's clear that the rewards are worth it. Beltian bodies are a ready-made source of food that's available all year round. By exploiting this feast that's produced for others, B.kiplingi has become very successful. Today, it's found throughout Latin American, wherever ants form partnerships with acacias.

Reference: Current Biology in press


Spiders New_Species

By: so64 | On: Tue Oct 13, 09 5:46 PM


New Ion engine could speed up space travel

[ Category: Physics ]

Excerpt:

Source: gizmag.com

Quote:
The problem with traditional rockets is that they’re terribly inefficient. About 90% of a mission’s initial weight is fuel, most of which is burned up escaping earth’s gravitational pull. After that, a traditional rocket could only slowly coast to Mars. Very slowly. Scientists describe rocket efficiency in terms of specific impulse, which is a rough measure of how fast fuel is ejected out of the back of the rocket. A chemical rocket has a relatively low specific impulse of 450 seconds - in other words, it gets one pound of thrust from one pound of fuel for 450 seconds.

Chang-Diaz’s prototype, however, promises specific impulses as high as 15,000 seconds. How? Well, his rocket doesn’t achieve propulsion by combusting fuel but, rather, by superheating atoms to create and expel a plasma plume.

By: so64 | On: Fri Jul 31, 09 8:06 PM


Do stimulants take a toll on the brain?

[ Category: Biology ]

Source: Scientific American
Excerpt:

Quote:
# Stimulant treatments for ADHD are effective; they can improve attention, concentration and productivity and suppress impulsive behavior, producing significant improvements in some people’s lives.
# Over the past 15 years doctors have been prescribing stimulants for a rapidly rising number of patients, who also increasingly take the drugs for many years. With the expanded and extended use of stimulants comes mounting concern that the drugs might wreak silent havoc on the brain over the long run.
# A smattering of recent studies, most of them involving animals, hint that stimulants could alter the structure and function of the brain in ways that may depress mood, boost anxiety and, in sharp contrast to their short-term effects, lead to cognitive deficits.


A few years ago a single mother who had recently moved to town came to my office asking me to prescribe the stimulant drug Adderall for her sixth-grade son. The boy had been taking the medication for several years, and his mother had liked its effects: it made homework time easier and improved her son’s grades.

At the time of this visit, the boy was off the medication, and I conducted a series of cognitive and behavioral tests on him. He performed wonderfully. I also noticed that off the medication he was friendly and playful. On a previous casual encounter, when the boy had been on Adderall, he had seemed reserved and quiet. His mother acknowledged this was a side effect of the Adderall. I told her that I did not think her son had attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and that he did not need medication. That was the last time I saw her.



Read the full story at the source.

By: so64 | On: Thu Jul 23, 09 8:11 PM


A website about mummies

[ Category: History ]

Quote:
Mummification in ancient Egypt was a very long and expensive process. From start to finish, it took about seventy days to embalm a body. Since the Egyptians believed that mummification was essential for passage to the afterlife, people were mummified and buried as well as they could possibly afford. High-ranking officials, priests and other nobles who had served the pharaoh and his queen had fairly elaborate burials. The pharaohs, who were believed to become gods when they died, had the most magnificent burials of all. In the case of a royal or noble burial, the embalmers set up workshops near the tomb of the mummy.
from this website


summary: This web page explains the process of mummification that ancient Egyptians used. Now, while the information is very concise, it is a great place to start to catch up on the culture of the Ancient Egyptians.

By: so64 | On: Sun Jul 12, 09 11:38 AM


What is the Casimir Effect?

[ Category: Physics ]

Source:Math.ucr.edu

Quote:
The Casimir effect is a small attractive force that acts between two close parallel uncharged conducting plates. It is due to quantum vacuum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field.

The effect was predicted by the Dutch physicist Hendrick Casimir in 1948. According to the quantum theory, the vacuum contains virtual particles which are in a continuous state of fluctuation. Casimir realised that between two plates, only those virtual photons whose wavelengths fit a whole number of times into the gap should be counted when calculating the vacuum energy. The energy density decreases as the plates are moved closer, which implies that there is a small force drawing them together.

By: so64 | On: Wed Jul 08, 09 7:23 PM


Toy that could possibly allow kids to control brainwaves

[ Category: Psychology ]

Source: The NY Post.com

Quote:
HE Force can be with anyone now.

Later this summer, anybody anywhere will have the ability to physically move stuff with their minds like characters do in "Star Wars."

No joke.

A new toy that harnesses the same technology doctors use to monitor brain waves will arrive in stores in August. The toy moves when it senses a change in the user's brain-wave patterns.

"It's pretty cutting-edge," says, Frank Adler, executive vice president of Uncle Milton, the toy company that manufactures the "Star Wars"-branded Force Trainer. "It certainly appears to be where things are headed."

It will be if the reaction from 5-year-old "Star Wars" fanatic Ryan Mogg is any indication. Mogg tried out the Force Trainer at a recent "Star Wars" toy fair. In less than a minute, he was controlling the rise and fall of a pingpong ball in a clear tube -- with his brain waves.

"It's like what Obi-Won Kenobi and Darth Maul do!" he said afterward with a big grin. Scientists call the technology BCI, or Brain Computer Interface, and more sensitive, medical-grade versions are used to help amputees move artificial limbs and victims of paralysis communicate using a computer and software that reacts thought.

A recent episode of the medical drama "House" about a patient suffering from locked-in syndrome (a condition in which the victim of a brain injury is aware and awake but cannot move or communicate) featured a similar device.

The Force Trainer, expected to sell for about $120, is not medical-grade hardware, but it uses a headset to monitor the brain, and then transmits a signal to a base that features a fan and a ball in a tube.

The headset is calibrated to sense beta waves, a specific type of brain waves associated with concentration. When you focus, the headset reads the electrical pattern from inside your head and sends a signal to a microchip that switches on the fan in the base unit and levitates the pingpong in a clear tube.

The more intense the focus and concentration, the faster the fan spins and the quicker the ball rises. When concentration is broken or weak, the ball drops.

A computer chip programmed with the voice of Yoda the Jedi master guides users through several increasingly different levels of control.

Another mind toy, Mattel's Mind Flex, uses the same mind-bending technology to guide a ball through a series of obstacles. It will be available in the fall.

"The mind sends signals to the body all the time," says Tansy Brook, spokeswoman for Neurosky, the company that simplified and shrunk the technology to fit inside the toys. "But for many people this is the first time you can see it sending a signal to things outside body, and it's really just a matter of learning what kind of feeling you need to have in your brain to make things happen.

"The application and modification of the technology is cutting-edge," says Brook, "but its history and roots are based in something very familiar -- EEGs."

Scientists have been studying electroencephalography, or EEG -- the recording of electrical activity along the scalp produced by the firing of neurons within the brain -- since 1890. The technology has been used for medical applications for roughly 60 years, but this is the first time it's become widely available and affordable

By: so64 | On: Thu Jul 02, 09 10:13 PM


Foster + Partners Break Ground on Virgin Galatic Spacepor

[ Category: In the works ]

From: Inhabitat



Quote:
t’s an exciting time for space fanatics everywhere as construction recently began on the world’s first commercial space launch pad, Spaceport America. Designed by Foster + Partners, the facility is located in southern New Mexico near the White Sands Missile Range and will serve as a launch site for private space travel. Built into the side of a hill, the Spaceport will meet LEED building standards and includes some high-tech green building strategies including a solar roof, excellent use of thermal mass, and a highly efficient HVAC system.

Virgin Galactic, part of the Virgin Group run by Richard Branson, commissioned the Spaceport from Foster + Partners, and has invested over $300 million to develop the new space launch system. Their plans are to have their first private space launch by 2011. 300 passengers have already signed up for their space flight and paid their $200,000 for the privilege. Additionally, when completed, Spaceport America will serve as the official venue for the X Prize competitions.

Built into the side of a hill, the Spaceport will use the thermal mass of the surrounding earth to moderate the hot and cold desert temperatures. Earth-tubes will pre-condition air to reduce HVAC costs by 50-70% and solar thermal panels on the roof will heat water. The 110,000 square foot facility will also use skylights and natural ventilation to achieve greater energy efficiency.

On top of the new construction being über cool and exciting, Spaceport America isn’t too far away from famed Roswell, NM, known for the recovery of a UFO. The proximity of the two space sites will help boost interest in southern New Mexico as tourists travel to see the historical spot as well as the future-forward space launch site.

Executive Director Steve Landeene of the New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA) said, “The groundbreaking for Spaceport America is the beginning of a historic new chapter in New Mexico’s long legacy of space and cutting-edge technology. From the pioneering rocketry work of Robert J. Goddard in New Mexico in 1930, the beginnings of America’s space program in the 1940’s and 50’s to the ongoing NASA programs at White Sands Missile Range and now to Spaceport America, the Gateway to the Future.”

By: so64 | On: Tue Jun 30, 09 4:11 PM


MP3: Scientific Attempt To Create Most Annoying Song Ever

[ Category: Psychology ]

Source: Wired.com

Quote:
An online poll conducted in the ’90s set Vitaly Komar, Alex Melamid and David Soldier on a quest to create the most annoying song ever. After gathering data about people’s least favorite music and lyrical subjects, they did the unthinkable: they combined them into a single monstrosity, specifically engineered to sound unpleasant to the maximum percentage of listeners. The song is not new, but it resurfaced on Dial "M" for Musicology.

Amazingly, this "most unwanted music" contains little dissonance — that would have been too easy. For the most part, they seem to have tried to assemble these elements in a listenable way.


I personally listened to this and I actually liked it better than the most wanted music. So goto the source, listen, and determine how annoying it truly is.

By: so64 | On: Mon Jun 29, 09 10:07 AM
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