Posted on 03 April 2012
Have our brains evolved to handle the hyperstimulation of today's Internet enticements? Gary Wilson discusses the disturbing symptoms showing up in some heavy Internet users, the surprising reversal of those symptoms, and the science behind these 21st century phenomena. Continue Reading
Posted on 21 March 2012
Using videogame controllers, an Android phone and custom-built wings, a Dutch engineer named Jarno Smeets has achieved birdlike flight. Continue Reading
Posted on 17 March 2012
Sarah Barnes had climbed the tree to smoke, because where better to get high than in the branches of a 118-foot, 3,500 year old cypress ? The fire in question came when she wanted to get a better view of her surroundings, and presumably also her drugs. "The Senator," as the tree was known, was burned to the ground. Continue Reading
Posted on 16 March 2012
Jason Russell, 33, was allegedly found masturbating in public, vandalizing cars and possibly under the influence of something, according to Lt. Andra Brown. He was detained at the intersection of Ingraham Street and Riviera Road. Continue Reading
Posted on 15 March 2012
Scientists and amateur enthusiasts alike have long been fascinated by the abilities of some groups of animals to move in lockstep with one another, most specifically with schools of fish and flocks of birds. Now, new research by a team of researchers studying the flocking abilities of European starlings has shown that some of their abilities might be mathematically defined Continue Reading
Posted on 14 March 2012
There is one goose in Echo Park with a ritual all her own. Every morning, her priority is to stand by the side of the road and patiently wait for her mate to return - on his scooter. Continue Reading
Posted on 09 March 2012
The scanners are now effectively worthless, as anyone can beat them with virtually no effort. Continue Reading
Posted on 09 March 2012
Imagine you are invited to give a TED talk at the big conference in Long Beach. But just as your talk on the topic of the "unexpected" gets underway, you're plagued with that Apple computer "spinning beach ball of death" and your total AV package is frozen. Gulp. Continue Reading
Posted on 07 March 2012
The organization behind Kony 2012 — Invisible Children Inc. — is an extremely shady nonprofit that has been called ”misleading,” “naive,” and “dangerous” by a Yale political science professor, and has been accused by Foreign Affairs of “manipulat[ing] facts for strategic purposes.” They have also been criticized by the Better Business Bureau for refusing to provide information necessary to determine if IC meets the Bureau’s standards. Continue Reading