BigRep ONE 3D printer creates whole pieces of furniture

 

Printing life-sized designs with the full-format RepRap-based BigRep ONE

Consumers and small businesses certainly have a handle on using 3D printers to create small mockups of bigger products, but there’s few options for creating true-to-size models or even finished products without having access to an industrial printer. German company BigRep aims to break that boundary with its RepRap-based BigRep ONE 3D printer, which offers over a cubic meter of print space.

The BigRep ONE prints in a volume of 1.3 cubic meters (46 cubic feet), with each side at or exceeding a meter in length, but really, at that point who’s counting? This large size allows for creating 1:1 prototypes, larger mechanical parts and prototypes, or even designer home furnishings.

It has the basic printing features like a heated bed, along with the not-so-basic such as optional CNC milling and double print heads.

The BigRep ONE's name alludes to, it's based off a RepRap printer design. RepRap is a family of open-source designs to create 3D printers, where a hallmark is the ability of one printer to create the parts for further printers.

The company's website will currently allow you contact someone to order a machine, with shipping estimated for March or April at a price of US$39,000.

More interestingly, the company indicates that it will be creating a network of service providers that will accept and print 3D commissions, perhaps in a manner similar to MakeXYZ, thus giving BigRep customers an outlet for recouping some of their purchase price.

SPARCS "camera grenade" offers an alternative to reconnaissance drones

 

 

The SPARCS round round has a CMOS camera sending back real-time images to a computerized receiver

Imagine a scenario where an earthquake brings down an industrial complex, trapping the survivors inside and as the disaster response team arrives, they unpack a grenade launcher and start lobbing rounds into the air. This may seem like madness, but there’s method in it. In this hypothetical case, the grenades are part of the Soldier Parachute Aerial Reconnaissance Camera System (SPARCS) built by Singapore-based ST Engineering. Instead of a warhead, each 40 mm grenade round has a CMOS camera sending back real-time images to a computerized receiver; turning disaster teams, police, and foot soldiers into recon units.

In military parlance, the fog of war refers to the uncertainty that incomplete knowledge plagues soldiers with. Even a glimpse over the hill can mean the difference between success and failure, which is why the use of drones has become widespread in recent years. Unmanned aerial vehicles present a far more attractive option that putting humans in the line of fire, but they are still expensive, and putting them in the field means carrying a lot of extra kit. SPARCS (also known as the S407 Round) is an alternative type of eye in the sky that ST Engineering says is low cost, simple to use, and requires no maintenance.

The SPARCS round is designed to fit any standard low-velocity 40 mm grenade launcher

ST Engineering already makes a wide range of grenades from less-than-lethal rounds to mini bunker busters designed to blow through walls. Aimed at military, law enforcement, and civil disaster management agencies, the 8 kg (17.6 lb) SPARCS is designed to fit a standard low-velocity 40 mm grenade launcher. The solid-state electronics are capable of surviving being fired at 76 m/s (250 ft/s) to an altitude of 150 m (490 ft), where a parachute slows its descent. As it comes down, the camera transmits top-down view images back to a receiver, with software stitching these together in real time.

According to ST Engineering, the receiver can be any wireless device that can pick up the 2.4 GHz signal and the software is compatible with most operating systems. The images can be retransmitted to other handheld devices or back to headquarters. In addition, the receiver can be repackaged into a load-bearing vest and the images sent to a head-mounted display.

Source: ST Engineering via IEEE Spectrum

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory shows the Sun’s coronal loops.

 

 

 

Coronal Loops in an Active Region of the Sun

An active region of the sun just rotating into the view of NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory gives a profile view of coronal loops over about a two-day period, from Feb. 8-10, 2014. Coronal loops are found around sunspots and in active regions. These structures are associated with the closed magnetic field lines that connect magnetic regions on the solar surface. Many coronal loops last for days or weeks, but most change quite rapidly. This image was taken in extreme ultraviolet light.

Cigarette Smoking Is Going Up On A Global Scale

 

January 20, 2014 |  by Eric Lyday  |  Health

Smoking has been cool for a long time. From the earliest days of advertisement, cigarettes were the ultimate indicator of normalcy, coolness, rebellion, and sexuality. Though cigarettes still may have these connotations, we all now know how harmful cigarette smoke can be for first-hand or even second-hand inhalations and the allure of cigarettes has somewhat died away. Or has it?

Almost 50 years after the U.S. Surgeon General declared cigarettes to be harmful for your health, a study from Washington State has found that cigarette smoking has gone up on a global scale. A staggering 1 billion people worldwide are still smokers. Between the years 1980 and 2012 the number of adult smokers went from 721 million to about 1 billion. In comparison, the approximate number of cigarettes smoked went from 5 trillion to 6.25 trillion.

You may ask yourself, “Well that doesn’t make sense, there seems to be less people smoking today than before.” If you’re living in the U.S. at least, you would be correct. The number of U.S. smokers has declined from 52 million to 38 million people in the same time period. The issue instead lies within third-world and other poorer countries where cigarette smoking has been embraced more fully, likely due to the lack of restrictions of cigarette companies in these areas.

What really makes these numbers truly staggering is that the World Health Organization estimates that 5 million people die every year from tobacco-related illnesses. This number trumps deaths related to AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined!

Photos Reveal What It's Like to Have Anxiety Issues

 

 

Photographer John William Keedy explores themes of anxiety and varied neuroses in his series titled It's Hardly Noticeable. Examining his own struggles with anxiety over the past nine years and drawing from other mental disorders, the images present an insightful look at behaviors that are deemed "abnormal" while simultaneously challenging ideas of normalcy. The serious topic is addressed in an intriguing fashion, one that offers small windows into the lives of people who suffer from mental illnesses. Each image is like a pocket of information that reveals a tiny corner of a bigger picture.

In one frame we are presented only with the hand of an anonymous character gripping onto a bloodied individual flosser over a sink filled with dozens of the tiny instrument, already used, and there are still over a dozen more flossers waiting to be used. Clearly, Keedy is reflecting the obsessive-compulsive behavior of an individual who is compelled to continually clean his teeth. Another image shows countless delivered packages at a doorstep, suggesting it's the residence of an extremely agoraphobic individual, finding difficulty to take even one step out the door.

Ultimately, the series exposes the struggles faced by people with mental disorders on a daily basis. At the same time, he questions what "normal" is anymore, seeing as there are so many individuals dealing with anxiety-based issues. Keedy asks, "Is it possible for a society to have a commonly held idea of what is normal, when few individuals in that society actually meet the criteria for normalcy?"

Fireworks–Be cautious

Link:

Fouth of July - fireworks –Infographic

So, this 4th of July, remember to follow the proper safety precautions during your annual celebrations. Other than the basic “Don’t let kids play with fireworks” and “Always have an adult around”, take special care to remember to some rules you might not think of in the spur of the moment at a party. For instance, always hold the firework away from your face when lighting, never try to re-light or pick up a firework that did not light properly, and be sure to have a source of water handy when lighting your fireworks.

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Moraine Lake

 

Moraine Lake is a glacially-fed lake in Banff National Park, 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) outside the Village of Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada. It is situated in the Valley of the Ten Peaks, at an elevation of approximately 6,183 feet (1,885 m). The lake has a surface area of .5 square kilometres (0.19 sq mi).

The lake, being glacially fed, does not reach its crest until mid to late June. When it is full, it reflects a distinct shade of blue. The colour is due to the refraction of light off the rock flour deposited in the lake on a continual basis.

 

Les 5 plus gros virus informatiques de tous les temps

 

Internet est devenu incontournable dans notre société, quasiment tout passe par là : nos informations personnelles, les échanges avec nos proches et même nos transactions bancaires. De ce fait, ce réseau mondial est devenu le terrain de chasse favori des hackers et crackers en tout genre qui ne cessent de créer de nouveaux virus. DGS vous présente les 5 virus qui ont causé le plus de dégâts dans le monde. 

1. Le virus MyDoom en 2004

Dommages estimés à : 38,000,000,000$ (environ 28,000,000,000€)
Ordinateurs infectés : environ 2,000,000

Ce virus se répand par email. Une fois le courriel ouvert, MyDoom se télécharge et « vole » tout le carnet d’adresse de l’ordinateur infecté. Ainsi, il est devenu le virus qui s’est le plus vite répandu au monde.

2. Le virus Sobig F. en 2003

Dommages estimés à : 37,100,000,000$ (environ 27,000,000,000€)
Ordinateurs infectés : environ 2,000,000

Sobif F. était capable de se dupliquer lui-même et se répandait par email. Quand l’email était ouvert, il déclenchait le ver qui se mettait en chasse de nouvelles adresses électroniques sur l’ordinateur infecté. Le flot de messages qu’il envoyait submergeait les boîtes mails et ralentissait tout le système informatique. De nombreuses grandes entreprises en ont été victimes, comme Air Canada par exemple.

3. Le virus I Love You en 2000

Dommages estimés à : 15,000,000,000$ (environ 11,000,000,000€)
Ordinateurs infectés : 500,000

Ce ver tire son nom de la pièce jointe au courriel qui le transporte : Love-letter-for-you.txt.vbs. Lorsqu’il est ouvert, un programme malveillant est déclenché. Ce virus a été conçu pour voler des mots de passe d’accès Internet et il se renvoyait lui-même à l’intégralité du carnet d’adresse de l’ordinateur infecté.

4. Le virus Code Red en 2001

Dommages estimés à : 2,600,000,000$ (environ 1,900,000,000€)
Ordinateurs infectés : 1,000,000

Code Red exploitait une faille dans le système d’exploitation de Windows 2000 et Windows NT ce qui lui a permis de « défigurer » et de planter certains sites web, dont le site de la maison blanche. Il choisissait au hasard 100 adresses IP à la fois en scannant le système Microsoft.

5. Le virus Slammer en 2003

Dommages estimés à : 1,200,000,000$ (environ 870,000,000€)
Ordinateurs infectés :  200,000

Slammer était un ver internet qui causait des dénis de service sur les serveurs Internet et qui ralentissait considérablement le trafic général. Ce ver est un petit code qui générait des adresses IP de façon aléatoire et envoyait des copies de lui-même à ces adresses. Il se répandit à une vitesse fulgurante sur Internet, doublant de volume toutes les 8,5 secondes. Parmi ses victimes, on peut compter Continental Airlines, une centrale nucléaire dans l’Ohio, une banque américaine ainsi que le système des appels d’urgence dans l’État de Washington.

On est estomaqués de voir le prix des dommages causés par ces virus et la vitesse incroyable à laquelle ils ont évolué… Il est d’ailleurs effrayant de voir que de « simples » vers informatiques peuvent mettre en difficulté de grandes entreprises et organismes gouvernementaux comme l’ont fait les virus Slammer ou encore Code Red. Est-ce que votre ordinateur a déjà été infecté par un virus qui vous a mené la vie dure ?

 

The Scientifically Best Time to Drink Coffee, in One Simple Graphic

 

 

You wake up, tired and groggy, and you can think of only one thing: coffee. But in reality, first thing in the morning isn't the best time to hit hit the caffeine—and it's science that says so.

In fact, we've covered this in some detail before—and you can read all about it below. But for those of you who like to ingest your data graphically, this little visualization shows you that you're far better offer quaffing the coffee mid-morning and early afternoon to get the maximum impact. [I Love Coffee]

 

The Scientifically Best Time to Drink Coffee

 

Ever wonder what the best time is to drink your coffee? You probably know it is not a good idea to drink part of your daily dose of caffeine in the afternoon. Especially for those who have problems sleeping. But, do you ever drink your coffee and feel like it just didn’t work?

I know I have that feeling sometimes. The explanation for this has to with a concept that I think is extremely interesting but rarely discussed: chronopharmacology.

Chronopharmacology can be defined as the study of the interaction of biological rhythms and drug action. One of the most important biological rhythms is your circadian clock. This endogenous 24 hour clock alters your physiology and behavior in variety of ways but it can also alter many properties of drugs including drug safety (pharmacovigilance), pharmacokinetics, drug efficacy, and perhaps even drug tolerance.

But, what part of the brain produces this 24 hour cycle and what signals does it receive in order for it to do so properly? It has been known for a long time that light is a strong zeitgeber. A zeitgeber is a term used in chronobiology for describing an environmental stimulus that influences biological rhythms. In the case of mammals, light is by far the most powerful. Following the discovery of connections between the retina and hypothalamus (theretinohypothalamic tract), investigations were aimed at the hypothalamus as the putative master clock.

Related

Indeed, in some of the most elegant brain lesion experiments, Inouye and Kawamura (1979) provided some of the first evidence demonstrating that the hypothalamus acts as the master clock in controlling the circadian rhythm. By creating an "island" in the brain by methodically cutting the hypothalamus away from any surrounding tissue, the circadian clock was completely lost (Inouye and Kawamura, 1979).
What does that mean? Well, the output of the hypothalamus nucleus (the suprachiasmatic nucleus or SCN) that controls the circadian clock has a variety of functions. The SCN controls your sleep-wake cycle, feeding and energy consumption, sugar homeostasis, and in addition to a few other things it controls your hormones. And, with respect to your alertness, the SCN’s control of cortisol (often referred to as the "stress" hormone) production is extremely important.
Most readers here, especially the ones in science enjoy–and desperately need–their morning coffee. I’ve seen some striking posts (here and here - note the caffeine consumption map with the number of researchers map) on the internet lately showing the correlation between science and caffeine. Not surprisingly to me, wherever there are scientists, there is a lot of caffeine consumed. And, a scientist also happens to be #1 the profession with the greatest caffeine consumption. But, if you are drinking your morning coffee at 8 AM is that really the best time? The circadian rhythm of cortisol production would suggest not.
Drug tolerance is an important subject, especially in the case of caffeine since most of us overuse this drug. Therefore, if we are drinking caffeine at a time when your cortisol concentration in the blood is at its peak, you probably should not be drinking it. This is because cortisol production is strongly related to your level of alertness and it just so happens that cortisol peaks for your 24 hour rhythm between 8 and 9 AM on average (Debono et al., 2009). Therefore, you are drinking caffeine at a time when you are already approaching your maximal level of alertness naturally.

One of the key principles of pharmacology is use a drug when it is needed (although I’m sure some scientists might argue that caffeine is always needed). Otherwise, we can develop tolerance to a drug administered at the same dose. In other words, the same cup of morning coffee will become less effective and this is probably why I need a shot of espresso in mine now. Although your cortisol levels peak between 8 and 9 AM, there are a few other times where–on average–blood levels peak again and are between noon to 1 PM, and between 5:30 to 6:30 PM. In the morning then, your coffee will probably be the most effective if you enjoy it between 9:30 AM and 11:30 AM, when your cortisol levels are dropping before the next spike.

Originally, when I heard a lecture on this topic, the professor said that since light is the strongest zeitgeber he suggested driving into work without sunglasses on. This would allow for stronger signals to be sent along the retinohypothalamic tract to stimulate the SCN and increase your morning cortisol production at a faster rate. I still tend to drive with them on since I feel blinded by the sun in the morning. However, on mornings when it is partially cloudy out and I did not get a lot of sleep, I drive with them off because this will help me feel more alert than if I was shielding what little sunlight was available.