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Showing posts from July, 2013

Show Notes for July 24, 2013

Chromecast Marvell , makes the CPU inside the Chromecast HDMI CEC  allows Chromecast to control the TV (turn TV on, etc) BTW "Apple TV does not support the HDMI Consumer Electronics Control (HDMI CEC) protocol for automatic control by TV Remote." ( Wikipedia ) Horizon: The Truth About Personality: full documentary on YouTube Spark EV "the first all-electric passenger car marketed by General Motors in the U.S. since the EV1 was discontinued in 1999" "pricing in the U.S. starts at US $27,495"

Show Notes for July 17, 2013

Boats and planes How an Airplane Wing REALLY Generates Lift Knot (unit) "is a unit of speed equal to one nautical mile (1.852 km) per hour, approximately 1.151 mph" "Until the mid-19th century vessel speed at sea was measured using a chip log. This consisted of a wooden panel, attached by line to a reel, and weighted on one edge to float perpendicularly to the water surface and thus present substantial resistance to the water moving around it. The chip log was "cast" over the stern of the moving vessel and the line allowed to pay out.[4] Knots placed at a distance of 47 feet 3 inches (14.4018 m) passed through a sailor's fingers, while another sailor used a 30-second sand-glass (28-second sand-glass is the currently-accepted timing) to time the operation.[5] The knot count would be reported and used in the sailing master's dead reckoning and navigation. This method gives a value for the knot of 20.25 in/s, or 1.85166 km/h. The difference from t

Show Notes for July 10, 2013

Health Back pain LUMO a "belt" with iPhone app that helps you improve your posture, $150 Muscle relaxant "commonly prescribed for low back pain or neck pain" "all of them have adverse effects, particularly dizziness and drowsiness" RunKeeper , free app, for iOS and Android Under the skin, a tiny laboratory "EPFL scientists have developed a tiny, portable personal blood testing laboratory: a minuscule device implanted just under the skin provides an immediate analysis of substances in the body, and a radio module transmits the results to a doctor over the cellular phone network. This feat of miniaturization has many potential applications, including monitoring patients undergoing chemotherapy." Technology Bluetooth low energy "merged into the main Bluetooth standard in 2010, when the Bluetooth Core Specification Version 4.0 was adopted" Used by LUMO, see above "The first device to implement v4.0 spec was t

Show Notes for July 3, 2013

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Tungsten carbide "approximately three times stiffer than steel" "roughly 10 times harder than 18k gold" "part of its attraction to consumers is its technical nature" Price of gold 80% of the annual production goes to jewelry (two third) and industrial applications (12%) The US dollar was pegged to gold at a rate of US$35 per troy ounce until 1971 The Swiss franc was pegged to gold until 2000 Female urination device Wikipedia "It is possible for a woman to aim her urine from a standing position without using a device. This was the norm in much earlier times, and standing to urinate was commonplace in certain cultures and situations." Examples of products:  Shewee , Whiz Vibrators Hitachi Magic Wand "The Cadillac of Vibrators" Many chain stores now add a toy aisle for adults (USA Today) "CVS, Walgreens, Kroger, Safeway, Target and Walmart are among major national chains that now include vibrator