Weather happens over hours, days & weeks. Climate happens over years & decades. The atmosphere is a heat engine, which moves heat around the Globe. Oceans too, redistribute heat around the Earth. While some parts of the Earth are becoming hotter, others are becoming colder.
In parts of the northern hemisphere, cold weather is being experienced. Unusually hot weather is being experienced in parts of the southern hemisphere.
“Global warming” & “climate change” are terms used to summarise the ideas in the paragraphs above.
http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/global-warming-will-make-our-winters-colder-9819825.html/ James Inhofe senator Oklahoma threw snowball America upper chamber man-made climate change threat President Barack Obama chairman Senate’s environment committee United States of America USA four unusually freezing winters succession cold Earth climate global warming climate denier deny contrarian skeptic sceptic climate weather weather patterns develop change over hours days weeks climate changes over years decades American landmass surface of the globe temperatures well below average world abnormally warm connection between climate change colder winters parts of the northern hemisphere link Arctic region poles colder equator air streams north south equalise temperatures northern hemisphere flow jet stream rotation of the Earth stream turns right as the planet spins flows wavy line around the pole northern hemisphere jet stream warmer air from the south more temperate weather northern regions flows Arctic warming faster Earth temperatures at the north pole risen temperate latitudes difference between the poles equator moderating effect northern weather Jennifer Francis Rutgers University northern hemisphere westerly wind speeds weaken weak weakened flow faltered undulations of the jet stream gentle waves bigger loops low-pressure areas cold air build up polar vortices freezing weather patterns America northern Siberia Arctic warms cools Dr Francis’s Nature Geoscience retreat of the Arctic sea ice doubled probability severe winters Europe Asia researchers Elizabeth Barnes Colorado State University statistical links changes Arctic jet stream scientific controversy climate change global warming skeptic sceptic /
Apple’s new MacBook (no Air, no Pro, just MacBook) has more lighter, more thinner, more smaller, plus a retina display.
● 13.1 mm (0.52”) thick
● 920 grams (1 pound)
Other features:
● edge-to-edge keyboard
● 12 inch retina screen (2304 x 1440)
● no fan
● touchpad no longer clicks — tactile feedback is generated by vibration motors & managed via a system of force sensors & software
● includes what Apple calls "Force Click" which allows the touchpad to respond to a range of pressures to, for instance, vary the speed of video
Inside
● new "butterfly mechanism" keys
● “terraced” battery allows shaping to more closely fit around the other components, saving space
● consumes 30 percent less power than previous displays
● which has facilitated the elimination of fans & longer battery life
Many things have been reduced, including weight & size. Another is the number of ports: the new MacBook has just 2:
● USB C (the new, reversible standard)
● 3.5 mm audio
Apart from audio, USB C provides all i/o, including video if an external display is used, plus charging (USB C provides 100 Watts of power, up from 10 Watts available previously).
While the new MacBook is lighter & smaller, the list of things you will need to carry won't be:
● SD card reader — no SD card reader in the new MacBook
● USB C to USB 2/3 adapter
● USB C multiport adapter, when they become available
Need to carry a proprietary charger will be reduced, but not until USB C power supplies become more widely available.
http://www.macworld.com.au/news/apples-radical-12-inch-macbook-is-the-slimmest-lightest-macbook-ever-136184/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Event+-+103&utm_content=Event+-+103+CID_863e73f9468cc83ead0f46167763445c&utm_source=Email%20marketing%20software&utm_term=Read%20on#.VP6EXWSUcrO/ update MacBook 2 pounds 12 inches MacBook Air models 24 percent thinner 11 inch MacBook Air measuring 13.1mm thickness all-new keyboard full width new MacBook butterfly mechanism better much more precise typing experience individual LED lighting for each key device that little bit thinner 12-inch screen Retina display family 2304 x 1440 resolution consumes 30 percent less power touchpad four force sensors one in each corner click feel managed by software pressure sensitivity pressing harder fast-forward QuickTime make a video play faster Force Click new USB Type-C connector upgraded reversible USB internal redesign logic board 67 percent smaller previous generations most dense densest no fan required computer Intel Core M Broadwell CPU battery life nine hours web browsing 10 hours movie playback new MacBook silver space gray stunning gold shipping begins April 10th most energy-efficient notebook laptop EPA US Environmental Protection Agency MacBook no extra name /
At 07:12 Abu Dhabi time (03:12 GMT) Andre Borschberg took off on the first leg of a round-the-world flight in a solar powered plane, Solar Impulse 2. First stop Muscat, Oman, 12 hours away. The aircraft is single seat — Borschberg will be alternating pilot duties with fellow Swiss, Bertrand Piccard.
Part of the journey will be at night. Crossing the Pacific, between Nanjing (China) & Hawaii, is projected to take 120 hours (5 days) non-stop. With only one source of energy, the Sun, it is essential to store electricity in the 633 kg of lithium ion battery during the day, to power the plane at night.
Inherent in an aircraft, is another energy storage system: altitude. In addition to charging the battery, the plane will climb during daylight to around 3,000 metres (10,000 feet). At night, energy stored in the battery can be supplemented by allowing the aircraft to glide to a lower altitude. This works well in the Solar Impulse 2: it has been designed on sailplane principles & so has a glide ratio over 40 (how many metres it moves forward for each metre of altitude it loses)¹. At that glide ratio, 3,000 metres of altitude can be turned into 3,000 * 40 = 120,000 metres = 120 km (74.5 miles) of forward progress.
By contrast, a Boeing 747, with a glide ratio around 12 moves forward 3,000 * 12 = 36,000 metres = 36 km for a loss of 3,000 metres².
Update: 06 April, @solarimpulse tweeted: "#Si2's pilot climbs up to the height of Mt. Everest, 8,500 m (28,000 ft), in an unpressurized cabin!" At a glide ratio of 40, 8,500 metres = 8,500 * 40 = 340,000 metres = 340 km = 211 miles.
² "747 Family Technical Characteristics" http://www.boeing.com/boeing/commercial/747family/pf/pf_400_prod.page/ Swiss pilot pilots first ever attempt fly around the world propelled the Sun André Borschberg compatriot Bertrand Piccard take turns piloting single seater seat Solar Impulse 2 21,747 miles 35,000 km kilometre 12 legs including gruelling five- to six-day stints across the Atlantic Pacific oceans entire journey will take five months Borschberg took the controls takeoff take off take-off Al-Bateen executive airport Abu Dhabi early on Monday first destination Muscat in Oman pilots roughly 250 hours each inside narrow cockpit no oxygen temperature control temperatures outside range between -40 degrees C to 40°C falling asleep flight need constant attention Piccard Borschberg survive 20-minute naps every two to four hours pilots will practise yoga stave off the physical discomfort remaining confined seat for days at a time Borschberg biggest challenge maintaining concentration Piccard psychiatrist team 1999 first circumnavigated globe non-stop balloon taught techniques of self-hypnosis meditation maintain concentration time duration in the present moment the only way is to be present almost a spiritual experience entire journey circumnavigating Earth in a family car aircraft weighs the same as a Volvo sedan comparable speeds SI2 top speed 87m/h 140km/h pilots conserve battery power limiting plane half cockpit only slightly larger average car contain life support systems food oxygen supplies reclining pilot’s seat triples bed chair toilet fly both day and night no fuel powered by 17,000 solar panels set on its wings wider Boeing 747’s fuselage 633kg bank of lithium batteries quarter weight store energy run motors overnight journey early days intercontinental flight enormous speed range jet engines Qantas fly Kangaroo Route Sydney to London hopping Darwin Singapore Kolkata Karachi Cairo Tripoli en route Borschberg success Solar Impulse project first solar-powered plane fly through the night first to fly between two continents primitive step toward zero-carbon jumbo combustion fossil fuels dominated powered flight 19th century dirigible aviation burns the most carbon per passenger per kilometre of any mode of mass-transport and, despite efforts to limit emissions, remains the fastest growing anthropogenic source of greenhouse gases sector climate change toughest major emissions source to decarbonise solar flight seeks remains decades away Wright Brothers Charles Lindbergh deputy editor Aerospace magazine Bill Read solar flight commercial flights solar cells generate power fly Solar Impulse fly using solar power constructed very light weight light-weight lightweight huge wingspan solar cell technology power source aircraft advances project real-world uses today fly Sun day and night build an aircraft extremely energy efficient technologies energy efficiency used in your home your car appliances four motors power aircraft generate heat energy efficiency single cheapest way reduce carbon emissions across the world technologies challenge energy environment pollution natural resources /
Standard smartwatch functions such as phone connectivity via Bluetooth, display of notifications, & pedometer are included.
Uniquely, a built in microphone & speaker + the ability to unclip the watch from the band combine to allow use like a conventional (though tiny) phone to answer calls without first dragging your mobile (cell) out of your pocket, or searching for it in your bag.
Credit: Pipo
http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/pipo-c2-smartwatch-unveiled-for-32-06-03-2015// smartwatch smart watch hundreds of dollars for a wrist worn wearable device new smartwatch Pipo C2 Chinese manufacturer Pipo C2 priced detachable wristband connect smartphone via Bluetooth display notifications directly on your wrist dial phone numbers wrist speaker phone speakerphone integrated smartwatch talk smartwatch remote control connect applications wrist Google’s Android Wear operating system built-in pedometer tracking the distance walked, the number of steps taken speed available worldwide launched very soon in China more information C2 smartwatch /
An artificial heart that has no pulse, & uses magnetic bearings to reduce wear, is expected to have a useful life of up to 20 years. After having been successfully tested in sheep & cows, it is hoped to be ready for human trials by 2018, & to be routinely saving lives by 2020.
http://bivacor.com// world first beatless artificial heart invented invent design Brisbane save saving lives 2020 device similar to a pool pump pass rigorous tests costs millions of dollars Brisbane’s Prince Charles HospitalPCH Foundation appeal raise $5 million ready heart human trials 2018 The Common Good cardiac expert John Fraser pump blend medicine engineering brilliance taking-on evolution alive without a pulse evolution developed pulse we don’t need one pump no pulse spinning disk levitated by magnets Japanese trains levitated by magnets no wear and tear devices support one side of the heart entirely replace the heart this could go for 20 years Professor Fraser electrically powered pump save patients suffering from heart failure largest killer in the 21st century development team device ready to be implanted in heart failure sufferers alternative to donor hearts short supply patients die spare hearts on a shelf invented Brisbane engineer Daniel Timms dying of heart failure his father plumber PhD engineering at Queensland University of Technology funded by a passionate group of doctors engineers PCH Foundation BiVACOR device slept in our lab many times no wages largest donors Texas furniture salesman Jim Mattress Mack McIngvale medical device importer N. Stenning & Co donated $100,000 Australia’s richest people various levels of government receiving $2.5 million from Federally-funded National Health and Medical Research Council NH&MRC wealthy people venture capital Bill Gates cheque books Prince Charles Hospital Foundation CEO Michael Hornby crowd-funding appeal was aimed at raising money from everyday mums and dads commercialised floating a company on the Australian Securities Exchange cost to buy successfully tested on sheep and cows kept alive in a laboratory for up to 50 days euthanased artificial heart technology doctors engineers /
Despite the title of a biography: “I am not Spock,” it is for that role that he will be primarily remembered. Many know that he directed two of the Star Trek movies, fewer, that he directed “3 Men & a Baby”, fewer still are aware of his photography.
“Boston was a great city to grow up in, & it probably still is. We were surrounded by two very important elements: academia & the arts. I was surrounded by theater, music, dance, museums. And I learned how to sail on the Charles River. So I had a great childhood in Boston. It was wonderful.”
“My folks came to U.S. as immigrants, aliens, & became citizens. I was born in Boston, a citizen, went to Hollywood & became an alien.”
“Logic is the beginning of wisdom, not the end.”
"I quit smoking 30 years ago. Not soon enough. Grandpa says, quit now!!"
On photography
“For a period of time, I carried cameras with me wherever I went, & then I realized that my interest in photography was turning toward the conceptual. So I wasn't carrying around cameras shooting stuff, I was developing concepts about what I wanted to shoot. And then I'd get the camera angle & do the job.”
“But if you're talking about fine art work, then I think you have to ask yourself some pretty deep questions about why it is you want to take pictures & what it is you want to say.”
“My dream concept is that I have a camera & I am trying to photograph what is essentially invisible. And every once in a while I get a glimpse of her & I grab that picture.”
Leonard Nimoy 1931-2015
/ StarTrek movie actor actor Leonard Nimoy worldwide fan base as the pointy-eared half-human half-Vulcan Mr Spock Star Trek television film franchise died at age 83 chronic obstructive pulmonary disease home Los Angeles Susan Bay Nimoy death New York Times private memorial service outpouring of grief social media paid tribute geek idol Star Trek co-star William Shatner Captain James T Kirk co-star George Takei Mr Sulu heartfelt tribute the world lost a great man great friend live long and prosper friend acting career 1950s television series iconic role Mr Spock Star Trek 1966 spaceship USS Enterprise science officer Spock galaxy exploring new worlds character Spock several feature films Vulcan salute salutation live long and prosper SF SciFi Sci Fi science-fiction hand gesture Jewish blessing US president Barack Obama "Long before being nerdy was cool, there was Leonard Nimoy" accomplished director directing 1987 box-office hit Three Men and a Baby starring Tom Selleck diagnosis diagnosed with COPD Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease chronic obstructive lung disease COLD chronic obstructive airway disease COAD progressive lung disease /
There’s the fairly obvious, but rarely used, last moment warning for small objects, like an insect flying into the eye, triggering a tightly closed eye.
Recently, a study of a large number of species, including red kangaroo, camel, African elephant, giraffe, zebra & chimpanzees has found that the length of eyelashes is one third the width of the eye. At this length, eyelashes create an area of still air on the surface of the eyeball.
But people have different length eyelashes — this may reflect differences in the width of the eye, or the shape of the face.
http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2015/02/25/4186151.htm/ long lashes eyes stand research researchers ideal lash length protects your eyes dust damage Journal of the Royal Society Interface eyelashes length one-third width eye eye ball protective zone still air eyeball surface Dr David Hu function eyelashes eyes hypotheses eyelashes associate professor mechanical engineering biology Georgia Institute of Technology shade eye Sun dust catchers study colleagues studied 22 mammals Museum of Natural History New York City animal pelts eyelash length animals strict relationship lash is about one-third width of the eye wind tunnel researchers fake eye tested it walking-speed wind tunnel evaporation eye's surface optimum eyelash length minimises air flow on the eye surface cuts down evaporation reduces the amount of dust fine particles contact eye air moving over the eye's surface protect the eye too long funnel air down towards the eye create a zone of still air at the eye's surface variation one-third rule longer eyelashes shape of the face studies influences flow gets to the eye wind tunnels pressure on the eye animals live desert environments camels giraffes especially thick eyelashes shelter eyes from dust children with allergies longer lashes eyelashes provide protective function /
