- Thank God for science because without it, the world would
not be one significant step closer to having access to an invisibility cloak
straight out of the world of Harry Potter. Physicists at the University of
Texas have developed
a method to make objects "invisible" within a limited range of light
waves and it’s a key step in developing a device that could create complete
invincibility. The UT researchers have developed a thin material called a “mantle
cloak,” which causes any object wrapped in it to “disappear” – but only under a
limited range of light waves and specifically, microwaves. For their
experiment, the researchers covered a cylinder about a foot long and an inch or
so in diameter with the material and microwave detectors were unable to see it
even though it remained visible to the human eye. The next step is transferring
this same principle to the range of perceptible light, which could make objects
invisible to the human eye. For now, the invisibility effect only covers a very
small band of electromagnetic waves at one time and therefore only “disappears”
objects significantly thinner than a single strand of hair. While it could be useful
in nanotechnology by letting light bypass microscopic objects that would
otherwise block it, that’s not going to excite much of anyone not wearing a lab
coat or rocking the letter PhD after their name. Streamlining the process of
making objects “invisible” and making the devices used in the process simpler
and smaller is fine, but until this new cloak made of a sheer, handy material
that can be applied to many surfaces is turned into a cloak that a would-be
superhero can drape themselves in and disappear from view of the bad guys, the
invention is unlikely to generate much buzz. Maybe a magician or two will
utilize the cloak in their Vegas act if it ever becomes an affordable
technology, but the mantle cloak’s new approach to invisibility needs
refinement. The cloak is made by combining copper tape with polycarbonate, a
material commonly used in DVDs. That process creates a very small pattern that
is effective in neutralizing the waves bouncing off of it. However, it only
works if the material's pattern is roughly the size of the wavelength of light
to be canceled out. Nice try, science, but you’ll have to do better than that……..
- Major League Baseball may eventually embrace equipment
that makes the game safer for pitchers and hitters, but that embracing won't
come in time for the start of the coming season. Despite the fact that then-Oakland Athletics pitcher Brandon
McCarthy suffered life-threatening brain injuries after he was struck in the head
by a line drive in September and MLB responded by accelerating its efforts to
come up with acceptable protective headgear for pitchers, that new headgear
won't be in use when the season begins next week. MLB senior vice president Dan
Halem conceded in an interview that no safety devices, be it a padded cap
lining for pitchers or something else, will be approved in time for Opening
Day. Halem based his statement on the fact that no products have yet passed high-speed
impact tests that MLB mandates before it approves a device for on-field use. The
silver lining in MLB’s slow response to the issue is that pitchers don't need the
league office's clearance to wear caps with padded linings. Players can take
their safety into their own hands if they are concerned enough and even when MLB
officially approves such a product, Halem said the plan is for it to be offered
on a voluntary basis. Equipment maker Unequal has gone to major league teams on
its own and sent two unapproved padded cap prototypes to 26 of them. The
company is unsure if any players plan to wear them this season, but if the
joked-filled reaction to a bulked-up batting helmet worn by New York Mets third
baseman David Wright is any indication, it wouldn’t be a surprise if no
pitchers took the mound with a padded cap on top of their head………
- In a truly cowardly act that was historically ironic
while also being complete bullsh*t, construction crews, protected by about 250 police,
took down part of a three-quarter of a mile strip of what remains of the Berlin
Wall. The wall, which was constructed overnight and divided Germany’s capital
city from 1961 until the peaceful revolution against the communist East German
government in 1989, still stands in small sections around Berlin. It remains a
powerful reminder of the World War II era and its aftermath and what Berliners
faced when they woke up one morning to find that a barrier had been built that
prevented them from seeing friends and family members who may have only lived a
few blocks away. It remained a despised symbol of division for nearly 30 years,
a weaving concrete mass that snaked through neighborhoods and cut the city in
two. When most of the wall was finally torn down in 1990, dignitaries gathered
and crowds cheered each swing of a sledgehammer to break it apart. In recent
days, those opposed to a section of it being torn down to provide access to a
planned luxury apartment complex overlooking the Spree River have battled to
keep the site, known as the East Side Gallery, standing. The section of the
wall has become a major tourist attraction, with colorful images painted by 120
different artists adorning its gray concrete sections. No less a German icon
than David Hasselhoff visited Berlin and vowed to raise money to save the
section of wall, fueling allegations that developers are sacrificing history
for profit. It remains the largest surviving portion of the 96-mile wall that
surrounded Western-occupied West Berlin. At least 136 people were killed trying
to escape East Germany by scaling the wall, running across the “no man’s land”
in the middle and hopping the fence on the other side. When the ‘Hoff attended
a rally to save the wall, he was adamant that it should stand. “It’s like
tearing down an Indian burial ground,” Hasselhoff said during the March 17 protest.
“It’s a no-brainer.” Demolition work was temporarily halted as local
politicians and the investors looked for alternative access to the apartment
site, but no alternative was found and the project’s main investor, Maik Uwe
Hinkel, decided to resume the project. Demolition began at 5 a.m. Wednesday in
order to avoid doing the work with too many people out on the streets to see
and possibly interfere. “I can’t believe they came here in the dark in such a
sneaky manner,” said Kani Alavi, the head of the East Side Gallery’s artists’
group. “All they see is their money. They have no understanding for the
historic relevance and art of this place.” Well said, K…….
- Add another entry to the list of products that dog lovers
simply could not allow to be humans-only items. How dare anyone suggest that
sweaters, comfortable beds or exercise equipment shouldn’t be available for
canines? Oh, and slot energy bars somewhere on that list as well because
Vermont resident Mark Brooks has
tackled a key need in the lives of dogs by creating a version of the popular
product that is safe for pooches. Brooks’ creation, Yaff Bars, is the
result of months of trial and error and has achieved market saturation across
the Northeast. Seeing someone like Brooks take his background and training as a
chef and using it to make a completely unnecessary product whose users cannot
speak a single word about what they think of it is definitely uplifting. He
says the doggie energy bars grew from a product he began making in a simple mixing
bowl in his kitchen to a large-scale, multi-state business built on
wheat-based, caffeine-laced dairy bars that are mostly organic. Brooks admitted
that he is surprised by how quickly the idea has taken off and what’s sad is
that he really shouldn’t be. Overly enthusiastic, loser pet owners who treat
and feed their dogs better than they do their children and human family members
will buy anything they think might put a “smile” on Fido’s face. "There
are great people in Vermont," Brooks said in explaining Yaff Bars’ success. "Making
connections and finding out how to get into a market is not as daunting as it
would be in a place like New York City or another major market." He keeps
the business mostly in state, using Vermonters for website and package design
in the hope that his company can help young entrepreneurs in the state……
- One channel wasn’t enough, two was insufficient and so FX Networks is
creating a third channel, rounding out its offerings with a trio of options
that it plans to use to target specific audiences and demographics. The new
network bears a name, FXX, that makes it sound like Fox is getting into the porn
business, but the new channel is actually a replacement/upgrade for the current
Fox Soccer Channel. FXX will launch Sept. 2 and target the desirable
demographic of adults ages 18 to 34. It will do so by reaching 74 million homes
and by serving as the home for established shows such as “It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia” (returning
for a 10th season), “The League” (back
for a sixth season) and “Legit” (returning for its second season). “Totally
Biased,” a late-night series starring W.
Kamau Bell, will also air on FXX and will expand to a five-nights-a-week
talk show from its current weekly format. Fox plans to develop a fourth comedy
for the channel and will also use FXX to air reruns of “How I Met Your Mother,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Freaks and Geeks,” “Arrested
Development” and “Sports Night.”
It will be focused more on comedy than FX Networks sibling FX, which will
retain hit series such as “Louie,” “Justified, “”American Horror Story” and
top-rated “Sons of Anarchy.” FX
will also have a slew of new projects to replace what it will lose to FXX,
including “The Bridge,” a new series debuting in July and featuring Demian
Bichir and Diane Kruger as Mexican and American detectives working to capture a
cross-border killer, and “Fargo,” a 10-episode "limited series" due
next spring and based on the 1996 film of the same name. Other comedy and drama
pilots are in the works and Fox clearly feels strongly that several of them
will make it to air or it would not be going ahead with the launch of its
porn-tastic new FXX channel………
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