Book Vending Machines.... COOL!
Chronic Diseases in Israel: Mortality, Morbidity and Trends
In 2003, a total of 38,505 people died in Israel: 19,426 men and 19,079 women. The leading causes of death for the general population were cancer (crude mortality rate of 143/100,000), heart disease (114/100,000), diabetes (42/100,000), cerebrovascular disease (37/100,000), and respiratory diseases (29/100,000) (1). Trends were similar for Jews and for Arabs, except that for Arabs, heart diseases, not cancer, were the leading cause of death (Table 1).
MORE FEAR MONGERING, BUT ITS FUN!
Flying suicide bomber drones could be almost unstoppable If you thought the 12-gauge shotgun-wielding AutoCopter was bad news, imagine one of the little menaces in the hands of a terrorist and strapped with several pounds of explosives -- or worse, biological, chemical, or radiological payloads. Several experts are warning that we are nearly defenseless against such attacks, even though terrorists have already shown a propensity for using such tactics in the Middle East and South America, and are known to have purchased so-called "drone" airplanes capable of high-precision navigation even over long distances. One scenario that is particularly disturbing involves a fleet of drones or robotic helicopters launched from an off-shore freighter, sent en masse to attack a large gathering like a sporting event where stampeding from panic would likely cause more deaths than the bombs themselves. The Pentagon is supposedly working on an drone-killing drone of its own, called Peregrine, that would patrol the skies and intercept any hostile aircraft -- but the main problem seems to be finding, not destroying these things, and you'd need a whole lot of Peregrines to cover every potential target in the US.
I AM SO GLAD THEY DID NOT HAVE THESE WHEN I WAS IN A COLLEGE DORM ROOM! GAH!
The Computer Bed: making telecommuting even easier We're not sure if The Computer Bed could support the weight (or even footprints, for that matter) of our three monitors, desktop tower, photo printer, speakers + sub, flatbed scanner, and plethora of input devices, but if you've got a sparser setup and not a lot of space at your pad, this convertible desk/bed may be just what you've been looking for. Described as a "modern Murphy Bed," the multifunction product features gas pistons so your gear doesn't tumble around during the twice-daily conversion process, and also serves as a low-cost space heater at night by positioning you directly above your toasty equipment. At almost $2,500, The Computer Bed seems a bit pricey for a few pieces of unfinished wood and a twin-sized mattress that is most likely not Tempurpedic, but considering that you probably don't have the proper tools in your cramped little apartment to build your own, this may be the only solution.
FUN WASTED TIME!
Google Translator Boomerang Having fun with machine translation services is by no means a new pastime. Even back when it was at altavista.digital.com, people were feeding text into AltaVista's Babelfish and translating it from one language to another to another and back again to see what would come out. It's a fun way to kill some time, but why kill time when we can make the computer kill it for us? Google Translator Boomerang is a Windows app that uses Google's translation service to translate your text to another language (or nine) and back again, just for kicks. It's pretty configurable, letting you choose your languages and the number of "loops." It's donationware, meaning it's free to use but donations are welcome.
Dialing Down the MRI Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machines' knack for peering at soft tissue deep within the body has made them one of the most popular imaging tools. But MRI isn't perfect. It works by beaming radiofrequency pulses into a patient and tracking how this radiation affects the magnetic behavior of tissues. But those pulses must be carefully controlled to prevent them from overheating tissue and injuring patients. Now, a new study could pave the way to a new form of radiofrequency-free MRI scans that would offer several advantages.
ANCIENT RUINS AS SEEN FROM SAPCE.... AWESOME!
starting points for learning more about sketchup
Google's recently released Sketchup software will unleash a torrent of new 3D creative expression. By distributing this software for free, literally millions more youth and adults will be able to dabble and develop skill at expressing their ideas in 3D.
The Pepper Pad: open alternative to Microsoft's Origami
Mutation in deafness gene can help heal wounds and prevent infection A mutation in a gene commonly associated with deafness can play an important part in improving wound healing, a scientist told the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, today (Monday 8 May 2006). Dr. Stella Man, from the Institute of Cell and Molecular Sciences, Queen Mary's University, London, UK, said that the discovery may have implications for the treatment of a wide range of wounds, including post-surgery. Dr. Man and her team, led by Professor David Kelsell, were studying the association between a mutation of a gene (GJB2) which produces a protein called Cx26 which is the most common cause of genetic deafness. Professor Kelsell was the first to describe the link between Cx26 mutations and deafness in 1997. "Since many people carry this mutation", Dr. Man said, "and people who have just one such mutation are not deaf, we felt that there might be some evolutionary advantage to it, so we decided to investigate how the mutation affected the ability of cells to communicate with each other in the epidermis where Cx26 is also expressed." The cells within tissues such as skin need to be able to communicate with each other in order to retain their correct characteristics and allow the tissue to grow and repair itself. One way that cells communicate is through the regulated opening and closing of channels called gap junctions that link cells together. The main components of these channels are proteins called connexins, of which Cx26 is one. "When we looked at the function of Cx26 in a laboratory skin model", said Dr. Man, "we found that it was directly associated with wound healing and bacterial invasion. We concluded that there is a definite advantage to carrying a mutation in this protein." If a drug that temporarily knocks out Cx26 protein can be successfully delivered to the wound, healing could be improved. Such a drug could be useful in a wide range of epidermal wounds, she said. The scientists now intend to test the effect of Cx26 mutation in other epithelial cell types, such as the gut, where defence against infection is also important. "It is interesting to speculate that Cx26 deafness mutations have been selected over the evolutionary process due to their beneficial effects on wound healing," said Dr. Man.
http://snipurl.com/q6j8
INVISIBLE BOOKSHELF>>>> PRETTY COOL
Powder coated steel floating book shelf becomes invisible behind stack of books. Mounting hardware included.
http://snipurl.com/q6ja
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