Getting Ready For A Manned Mars Mission

The Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator Project will test inflatable decelerators and advanced parachutes in a series of rocket sled, wind tunnel, and rocket-powered flight tests to slow spacecraft prior to landing. This technology will allow NASA to increase landed payload masses, improve landing accuracy and increase the altitude of safe landing-sites. (NASA)

Rocket Sled Tests Are Technology Pathway to Safely Land Humans, Habitats and Cargo on Mars -- Mars Daily

Traveling 300 million miles through deep space to reach the planet Mars is difficult; successfully landing there is even harder. The process of entering the Red Planet's atmosphere and slowing down to land has been described as "six minutes of terror."

During the first four minutes of entry, friction with the atmosphere slows a spacecraft considerably. But at the end of this phase, the vehicle is still traveling at over 1,000 mph with only 100 seconds left before landing. Things need to happen in a hurry. A parachute opens to slow the spacecraft down to "only" 200 mph, but now there are only seconds left and the spacecraft is approximately 300 feet from the ground. From there, the spacecraft may use rockets to provide a gentle landing on the surface, airbags to cushion the impact of a free fall or a combination of rockets and tethers to lower a rover to the surface.

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My Comment: We are still a long way from flying to Mars, but it is interesting to see how we are preparing for that eventual mission.

Drug Resistant Gonorrhoea Spreading Around The World

Untreatable Gonorrhoea Spreading Around World: WHO -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Drug-resistant strains of gonorrhoea have spread to countries across the world, the United Nations health agency said on Wednesday, and millions of patients may run out of treatment options unless doctors catch and treat cases earlier.

Scientists reported last year finding a "superbug" strain of gonorrhoea in Japan in 2008 that was resistant to all recommended antibiotics and warned then that it could transform a once easily treatable infections into a global health threat.

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My Comment: Untreatable sexually transmitted diseases is a nightmare that the world is not ready for.

Has The Gold-Laden Lost City Of Ciudad Blanca Been Found At Last?

A view of the Honduras rain forest. Laser mapping scientists flew over a remote part of the forest and discovered what appear to be ruins. The next step is to visit the ruins in person to determine their age. The University of Houston and the National Science Foundation's National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping

Did Lasers Find Gold-Laden Lost City Of Ciudad Blanca At Last? -- MSNBC/Innovation

Archaeologists' 3-D digital map peeks under Honduras forest canopy, sees possible ruins

Underneath the thick, virgin rainforest cover in the Mosquitia region of Honduras, archaeologists have discovered ruins they think may be the lost city of Ciudad Blanca. Legends say the "White City" is full of gold, which is why conquistador Hernando Cortes was among the first Ciudad Blanca seekers in the 1500s.

But the method the modern researchers used was a little different from previous explorers' techniques. The modern-day researchers flew over the area in a small plane and shot billions of laser pulses at the ground, creating a 3-D digital map of the topology underneath the trees.

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My Comment: I betcha they are thinking/hoping that there is gold there.

'Vampire' Skeletons Found In Bulgaria

People believed the rod would pin the dead into their graves and stop them from becoming vampires

'Vampire' Skeletons Found In Bulgaria Near Black Sea -- BBC

Archaeologists in Bulgaria have found two medieval skeletons pierced through the chest with iron rods to supposedly stop them from turning into vampires.

The discovery illustrates a pagan practice common in some villages up until a century ago, say historians.

People deemed bad had their hearts stabbed after death, for fear they would return to feast on humans' blood.

Similar archaeological sites have also been unearthed in other Balkan countries.

Bulgaria is home to around 100 known "vampire skeleton" burials.

Searchers stumbled across the latest two specimens, dating back to the Middle Ages, in the Black Sea town of Sozopol.

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My Comment: I guess the vampire legends have a little truth to it.

Twitter's Users Tweet Over 400 Million Times Per Day

Twitter's 140 Million Users Tweet Over 400 Million Times Per Day -- MSNBC

I currently follow 159 users on Twitter and I occasionally get overwhelmed by how much they tweet. It's intimidating to imagine that these tweets amount to only a tiny fraction of the 400 million or so tweets generated each day.

Forbes' Tomio Geron reports that Twitter CEO Dick Costolo mentioned the social media network's latest statistics during a talk at a conference organized by the Economist.

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My Comment: Only 400 million times a day? I thought it was more.

Stunning New Footage Of Venus Transit

Nasa Releases Stunning New Ultra-High Definition Footage Of 2012 Venus Transit -- The Telegraph

One of the rarest astronomical events is captured on film in stunning detail as the planet Venus passes directly between the Sun and Earth, a transit that won't occur again until 2117.

The amazing video was captured by Nasa's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), the most advanced spacecraft ever designed to study the sun.

On June 5 2012, SDO collected images of the rarest predictable solar event - the transit of Venus across the face of the sun.

This event happens in pairs eight years apart that are separated from each other by 105 or 121 years. The last transit was in 2004 and the next will not happen until 2117.

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My Comment: Cool video.

Cancer: An Interview With The Author Of The Emperor Of All Maladies: A Biography Of Cancer

Self-Guided Bullet

Straight Shooter Trevor Johnston

Rough Sketch: Self-Guided Bullet -- Popular Science

“Our .50-caliber bullet can guide itself to a hit half a mile away”.

For years, people have tried to come up with ways to steer bullets, and everyone has consistently said you can’t do it. And you couldn’t—if the bullet was spinning. A spinning bullet is too stable; you can’t apply enough force to turn it off its axis of revolution. The secret sauce is that our bullet doesn’t spin. It’s kind of like a musket ball, which doesn’t rotate, but with technology added to let us control where it goes.

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My Comment: For snipers .... I guess this is the ultimate weapon.

Mercedes Embraces More User-Facing Technology

Mercedes Makes the Mundane ‘Magical’ -- Autopia

Leave it to the Germans. Just when you think the most simplistic, mundane bits of a vehicle can’t be improved, they surprise. Such is the case with the 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL550 Roadster, which packs more user-facing technology than this week’s latest and greatest Android device.

But much like the thousands of Android-powered smartphones, Mercedes has a problem with branding. Look no further than the latest technological breakthrough on the SL: Magic Vision Control.

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My Comment: This is why Mercedes is one of the top car makers in the world.

A Look At The Most Active And Most Explosive Volcanoes In The Cascade Range

Map of the Cascadia Volcanic Arc by NASA. Image courtesy Wikipedia Commons.

Prelude To A Catastrophe: “One Of The Most Active And Most Explosive Volcanoes In The Cascade Range” -- Scientific American

Imagine being an extraterrestrial geologist in geostationary orbit above the Pacific Northwest in the 1970s. You’re the first explorers to reach Earth (underpants-thieving aliens aside), and you haven’t got a lot of data on this little blue marble. But your own planet has plate tectonics, so you’re familiar with the landforms caused by the process.

You have a look through your sensors, and see a conga line of volcanoes weaving up the continent.

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My Comment: These volcanoes will blow one day .... let us hope that it will not be today.

Apple Has Moved To Ban Samsung's New Galaxy S3 Handset In The U.S.

Apple has moved to ban Samsung's new Galaxy S3 handset in the U.S., saying it infringes two Apple patents

Apple Moves To Ban Samsung's Hit Galaxy SIII Handset In the U.S. - Just BEFORE It Launches -- Daily Mail

* Phone to launch on June 21
* Apple applies for temporary ban on sales claiming it infringes patents
* Apple expected to launch rival 'iPhone 5' in summer

Apple has moved to ban Samsung's new Galaxy S3 handset in the U.S., saying it infringes two Apple patents.

The companies have been locked in a patent battle on several continents for years - but Apple's latest move targets a key handset for Samsung, seen also as a 'standard bearer' for Google's Android operating system.

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My Comment: Apple knows that this cell phone is a winner .... hence the legal obstructions.

Instead Of Honoring D-Day, Google Honors The Drive-In Theater

D-Day vs The First Drive-In Theater? Google Picks Theater -- Search Engine Roundtable

68 years ago today was one of the most significant days in America's history - D-Day. But 79 years ago today, the first drive in movie theatre opened. Google picked, as it always does, the fun and light hearted even to celebrate with a special Google logo, aka Doodle.

So get past the fact Google doesn't have a logo for D-Day. There is still the concern for some that Google does logos at all on days like today. That is not for me to decide, just to report based on complaints in the forums.

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My Comment: I cannot be too critical of Google .... they do focus on the "fun and light hearted". But it would be nice to honor the vets from World War II at least once.

The 2,000-Year-Old Antikythera Computer

The Extraordinary 2,000-Year-Old Computer That You've Never Heard Of -- The Guardian

The Antikythera mechanism was designed to predict movements of the sun, moon and planets. Why isn't it better known?

Right, that's enough of the Queen for now. Have you ever heard of the Antikythera mechanism? You have? Well done. If not, I suspect you're in good company and the fact that I learned about it from a fascinating BBC4 programme – the high point of my jubilee weekend – on Sunday night is unlikely to broaden public knowledge as much as we might hope.

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My Comment: The ancient Greeks definitely knew their stuff.

Google Demonstartes New Mapping Technologies

An Android smartphone showcasing the new 3D imagery technology

Google Unveils New Mapping Technologies -- BBC

Google has demonstrated new mapping technologies in an effort to reassert its position as a market leader.

While it boasts one billion users, Google Maps has recently seen defections by some key developers and partners.

Reports suggest Apple may abandon Google Maps next week at its annual developer conference.

They suggest Apple may announce its own mapping application to replace Google Maps on its smartphones and tablets.

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My Comment: They must innovate to keep their relevance.

Ancient Man Had A Taste For Sea Food

Catching fish is a practice that goes back thousands of years

World's 'Oldest Fish Trap' Found Off Coast Of Sweden -- BBC

Wooden fish traps said to be some 9,000 years old have been found in the Baltic Sea off Sweden, possibly the oldest such traps in existence.

Marine archaeologists from Stockholm's Sodertorn University found finger-thick hazel rods grouped on the sea bed.

They are thought to be the remains of stationary basket traps.

"This is the world's oldest find when it comes to fishing," said Johan Ronnby, a professor in marine archaeology.

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My Comment: I guess ancient man had a taste for sea food.

Watch The Venus Transit Online

Missed the Venus Transit in 2012? Watch It Online Until 2117 -- PC World

Did you miss the transit of Venus in front of the sun yesterday? Were there clouds in your skies? Stuck in Antarctica? If you didn’t catch this last alignment of our cloud-shrouded planetary neighbor and our closest star until 2115, here are some ways to re-live the transit.

My favorite video was taken by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, a spacecraft dedicated to observing the sun. You can watch Venus passing in front of the sun and its giant coronal loops, where plasma moves along the sun’s magnetic field lines.

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My Comment: Watching it online is not the same as watching it outside.

Boeing Unveils Hydrogen-Powered Surveillance Drone Which Can Stay Airborne For Days

The 'Clean' Spy In The Sky: Boeing Unveils Hydrogen-Powered Surveillance Drone Which Can Stay Airborne For Days -- Daily Mail

A new Boeing unmanned drone that is designed to stay airborne for days has completed its first autonomous flight at Edwards Air Force Base.

The 28-minute flight of the Phantom Eye began at 6:22 a.m. Friday and the aircraft reached an altitude of 4,080 feet (1,244 meters) and a cruising speed of 62 knots (114 kph) before landing at the California desert base.

When the drone touched down, it damaged its landing gear, but Boeing Phantom Works President hailed the flight as beginning 'a new era' of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

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Update: Video: First Test Flight for Military’s Mega-Drone -- Danger Room

My Comment: A sign of things to come.

A Rat Is Still Smarter Than Google

Clever - but still learning: Google Navigation, pictured here on an Android phone, is a clever, intelligent-seeming system - but it is still just code, following instructions

Why Google Is Nowhere Near As Clever As A Rat - But One Day, Even Your Smartphone Will Be Smarter Than You -- Daily Mail

* Clever technology such as Google is still powered by rote-learning and pattern-matching, say AI researchers...
* ...But over the next 30 years, super-computers will become smarter, cheaper, and smaller

Google has spent the last 15 years becoming smarter and smarter, learning how to power our lives - from our homes, our cars, our phones.

But - and with apologies to founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin - all of that work is still no match to the intelligence of a common rat.

Or taking it further, even a gnat.

The point was made by artificial intelligence researchers Yann LeCun and Josh Tenenbaum, who were not criticising the search engine, just pointing out how much further we have to go until we can create computers which contain - or at least, perfectly mimic - intelligent life.

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My Comment: We have made progress .... but we definitely still have a long way to go before an AI platform is smarter than a rat.

Robot Ethics: Morals And The Machine

Robot Ethics: Morals And The Machine -- The Economist

As robots grow more autonomous, society needs to develop rules to manage them

IN THE classic science-fiction film “2001”, the ship’s computer, HAL, faces a dilemma. His instructions require him both to fulfil the ship’s mission (investigating an artefact near Jupiter) and to keep the mission’s true purpose secret from the ship’s crew. To resolve the contradiction, he tries to kill the crew.

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My Comment: As advancements in robots and drones continue to develop .... the issue on how to manage them will become more important .... especially robots and drones with military applications. But we better move fast .... because that time is fast approaching

iPhone 5 To Offer 4-Inch, 16:9 Screen

Will we see a bigger screen and better camera on the next iPhone? (Credit: Apple)

iPhone 5 To Offer 4-Inch, 16:9 Screen With HD Camera, Says Analyst - CNET

Buyers waiting for the next iPhone could be greeted with a larger screen, higher aspect ratio, and better quality camera, at least if KGI analyst Mingchi Kuo is on the money.

In a new research report detailed by AppleInsider, Kuo said he believes the iPhone 5's screen will measure 4.08 inches, offer a resolution of 1,136 x 640 pixels, and boost the aspect ratio to 16:9.

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My Comment: I prefer a bigger screen .... but it is still the right direction for Apple's iPhone.