May 23rd is S.O.S. Day, for Captain Paul Watson

May 23rd is S.O.S. Day, for Captain Paul Watson

| Peter Del Bosque | 05/23/2012 10:30PM

Sparked by my interest in the new Animal Planet series, Whale Wars, and my lifelong appreciation for all animals great and small, I decided to write an article to help bring attention to a worthy cause. If you would like to donate to the Sea Shepherd organization, you can do so by clicking on the word donate. Not only can you donate, but you can purchase Sea Shepherd gear, or you can volunteer. Whichever the case, at least you know you will be helping out innocent wildlife.

While vising the home website of the Sea Shepherd which is the organization founded by Captain Paul Watson in direct retaliation and protest of the massacre of marine life, most notably the plight of whales but also deals with seal, dolphin, and shark poaching to name a few. I discovered that today was S.O.S. Day which stands for “Save Our Skipper” day.

The reason for such a day goes back to 2002. While Captain Paul Watson was in Guatemala, Guatemalan authorities asked Captain Watson to arrest a Costa Rican long liner that was illegally fishing for sharks using illegal hooking techniques within Guatemalan waters. This action sparked outrage for Costa Rica and thus a warrant for his arrest was issued. Although the warrant had not been enforced for an entire decade, in light of the recent civil suit from the Japanese whaling industry against the Sea Shepherd organization, it is hugely speculated there might be a connection between Costa Rica and Japan. That they might be teaming up in an effort to shut down the conservation efforts of the Sea Shepherd and it's Captain Paul Watson.

Recently captain Paul Watson had been waiting in a jail cell to learn his fate whether he would be freed or extradited to Costa Rica. An extradition would ultimately drop Captain Watson into enemy hands where he is much hated by the Costa Rican fisheries and could potentially be murdered even before he sets foot on Costa Rican land.

Unfortunately the warrant will not go away and extradition is looming in the near future, there was some good news today, undoubtedly due to the thousands of correspondences via phone calls, emails, faxes, and letters, the Honorable German Ministers of Justice and Foreign Affairs have granted Captain Paul Watson bail.

Although this is a great victory for the Captain, he still faces extradition and needs further support from you. Please follow this link to find out how to contact the Honorable German Ministers of Justice and Foreign Affairs, to ask them to please let Captain Paul Watson go.

Here are some related videos. Please watch for further details.

Bioengineered DNA can Write and Rewrite Data in Cells?

Bioengineered DNA can Write and Rewrite Data in Cells?

| Peter Del Bosque | 05/21/2012 9:02PM

Medical advances have excelled within the last century due to the advancement of biotechnology. Scientists and medical doctors alike are now able to traverses the smallest nooks and crannies of the human body with the aid of fiber optic cameras and other types of optical probes. Scientists have also looked into trying to build a computer chip chat could travel throughout the human body to monitor vitals in real time. The problem with the computer chip idea is it's size. The technology has not been developed to produce a microscopic computer yet. In the mean time scientists have been looking for and developing less intrusive ways to monitor the human body from the inside.

Until just recently, scientists have discovered an ingenious way to create a biological medium for data storage that would have the ease of accessing any part of the human body. The medium is an actual snippet of DNA controlled by recombinant enzymes derived from viruses. The recombinant enzymes are used to switch the DNA on or off depending on the job.

The way this process of switching DNA on and off is not unlike that of ASCII binary computer code. The “0” and “1” represent one computer “bit”.

In an article with ScienceNews, they reported that an experiment with the infamous bacterium E-Coli or Escherichia coli, the bacterium used primarily as a symbiotic host within the digestive tracts of many animals, was experimented on. The group of scientists used the one-bit piece of data stroring DNA to influence the E-coli's natural flourescence. By switching between on and off, the scientists manipulated the e-coli's flourescence to change color back and fourth between green and red. This visual signal allowed the scientists to know in what direction the DNA had been switched.

Although this is only one “bit” of memory, the team is pursuing to create an 8-bit version. The drawback is that they predict the technology won't be available for quite a few years from now.

Fortunately, this scientific breakthrough has laid the foundation for an new era of technology. What was once science fiction as in Star Trek where Leonard H. McCoy aka “Bones” could scan the vitals of the human body - and in Star Wars where Qui-Gon Gin could scan Anakin Solo aka Darth Vader for midichlorians, we are one step closer to biocomputing.

A Fox, an Eagle and a Cat Walk into a Bar...Viral Video!

A Fox, an Eagle and a Cat Walk into a Bar...Viral Video!

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 04/01/2012 4:56PM

Pam Aus from Anchorage, Alaska reportedly told KKTU that, bald eagles like to perch on her porch and even sometimes hang out with her cats. Fortunately for her and the rest of Youtube's audience, a fox joined the party and all was filmed for our viewing pleasure.

Ms. Aus reportedly shot the video to prove how diverse animals peacefully coexist and aren't the killing machines society has portrayed them to be. Ms. Aus goes on to further say that the animals are not fed by her and that they are wild. She says they all, “kind of just coexist in this town.”

Here's the Youtube footage. Watch and enjoy.

The Galileo: A Remote Controlled Tripod for your iPhone

The Galileo: A Remote Controlled Tripod for your iPhone

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 03/31/2012 10:58PM

There's a new Kickstarter project that has gadget geeks and amateur cinematographers excited with anticipation to get their hands on the clever little device. The device is so versatile, it comes with its own SDK development software so that someone with knowledge in robotics can create a robot based on the Galileo platform.

Here's how the Galileo works. First of all place an iPhone in it's cradle which can swivel 360 degrees from the left to the right and 360 degrees up and down. With an infinite combination of camera angles that can be achieved, it's versatility is unparallelled. Second, the Galileo can be controlled by a second iPhone. The Second iPhone pairs up wirelessly with the iPhone that's sitting in the Galileo's phone cradle. This allows someone to control the direction and angle of the first iPhone from great distances.

So, with every shipment of the Galileo comes an SDK developers kit. The kit will allow someone to create any type of robot they wish to use as an extension of the Galileo platform. Using the commands coming from that individual via a second iDevice albeit an iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad, the communication technology will be very useful in sensitive or distant situations. It is not clear if the Galileo will ever be able to run on the Android platform, but only time will tell.

To manipulate the Galileo that holds the recording iPhone, someone has to pair up either via bluetooth, wifi, or by sharing ip addresses. Once a connection is established, you would be able to see exactly what the iPhone in the Galileo is seeing on your iDevice. To go a step further, simply swipe your finger in any direction on the controlling iDevice to move the Galileo any of 360 degrees. The Galileo however, does have a blind spot. It's blind spot is located directly towards the bottom. If you move the iPhone to where it's facing down, you would only see the platform it's sitting on.

Here are some examples of how the Galileo can be applied. You can use it to set up a monitoring station at your home or business. You can use it for observing animals in nature without spooking them. You can use the Galileo as a baby monitor. The list goes on and on and I'm sure people will come up with very clever uses for this new technology. Here is a cool video to help you better understand how the Galileo works.

NES 8-bit Google Maps April Fools Prank Goes Viral

NES 8-bit Google Maps April Fools Prank Goes Viral

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 03/31/2012 3:39PM

If you decide to visit Google Maps, you will quickly notice there is a button on the top left corner that allows you to switch between Earth view, satellite view, map view and now, 8-bit view. If you choose 8-bit view, and I suggest you do, the entire map will transform into an 8-bit style NES video game. What an amazing harmless prank Google has mustered up.

Several features I wish would have been implemented are, 8-bit sound and 8-bit street view. I would love to see what an 8-bit version of my house would look like or what Disneyland looks like in 8-bit street view mode. Also, it would have been really cool to be able to interact with the map as if it were a real game like the retro Pokemon or Final Fantasy NES and SNES games. The ability to travel around my neighborhood on foot slaying strange beasts along the way would be epic. Then, when you only have half a heart left, you could go to the nearest Starbucks to replenish your life. You could purchase weapons at 8-bit sporting goods stores and also interact with people around town that really exist and are also online playing along, all-the-while listening to the cool 8-bit sounds of your neighborhood. Maybe the music could be the most popular in your area according to Pandora and converted to 8-bit sound of course.

Google has also included Easter eggs hidden throughout their 8-bit map system. Easter Eggs are cool little images that one would not normally find if they had not been strategically placed there on purpose. People around the globe can search for hidden Easter eggs in Google 8-bit maps. For example if you search for Mt. Everest, you will find an 8-bit Yeti image. Some of the Easter eggs have already been found and many Redditors have posted their findings on Reddit. Who knows what you'll find if you only look.

Below is a cool little video about the NES 8-bit version of Google maps. It made me laugh, I hope it makes you laugh too.

Planet of the Apes Becomes Reality with iPad

Planet of the Apes Becomes Reality with iPad

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 03/30/2012 8:47PM

Controlled by actual Bonobo apes? You heard right, the RoboBonobo, created by Ken Schweller, who heads programming at the Great Ape Trust in Des Moines, Iowa, says that the RoboBonobo was developed to aid in ape to human communication.

A prototype RoboBonobo

(Credit: Ken Schweller)

It works via touchscreen controls on an iPad. The apes simply control where the RoboBonobo goes and what it does. Creepily enough, Schweller has allowed the Bonobo apes the ability to blast visitors with water cannons affixed to the RoboBonobo. This is somewhat reminiscent to the Blockbuster film, 'Planet of the Apes,' where Apes became more advance than humans and also wield weapons against the human race, albeit they weren't water cannons.

Currently, the Bonobo apes work with touch-pad keyboards that are specifically designed with lexigram symbols used for ape to human communication. The touch-pads aren't exactly mobile, so Schweller has decided to create a Bonobo-chat app that will allow the touch-pad, lexigram, communication software to be readily available as an iPad app. Allowing the Bonobo's to use smaller touch-pads via the iPad will greatly enhance the Bonobo apes learning experience because of it's minimal size, ease of use and it's easy portability.

Schweller and Co. would like to make this kind of technology readily available for researchers so that ape to human communication can be more prevalent than it has ever been. Imagine going to a zoo and having a meaningful conversation with one of the apes on display. Or engaging in a challenging game of chess via the RoboBonobo controlled by a Bonobo ape.

Schweller is very passionate about his new technology and is trying to raise enough revenue to fund his RoboBonobo invention. Currently he has raised no more than $1,000 and needs $19,000 more to go to meet his goal. Watch the video below to see if you think the technology is worth investing in. If you do and you pledge more than $500, you will be allowed the privilege to speak via Skype to one of the speaking bonobo apes. Quite an investment with such a unique reward. The only other ways to get the chance to communicate to an ape is either by falling into a monkey exhibit and begging the ape not to tear you apart, or by spending thousands upon thousands of dollars at a top-notch school and spending many years studying to become an ape researcher.

You do the math.

The Sand Flea: Remote Controlled Car that Leaps Over Buildings

The Sand Flea: Remote Controlled Car that Leaps Over Buildings

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 03/29/2012 9:19PM

Lately it seems that the military has become highly interested in small robotic technology. For example, in the recent article found on Socialeaf, “Hydrogen Powered Robot Jellyfish: Amazingly Life-like!,” states that the military began to fund the development of robot jellyfish to be used for special underwater missions that may be very risky to humans. Similarly, the Sand Flea, which was created by Boston Dynamics, can access unusual remote locations with minimal limitation.

It is uncertain if the Sand Flea can float or swim on water, but it is very much capable of performing acrobatic feats on land.

The Sand Flea specs are as follows... It can jump about 20 feet in the air from a stand-still and while in mid-air, the Sand Flea remains level using a stabilization system to keep it's orientation. This stability allows for greater control of landings and improves video orientation in flight.

Check out the Youtube video below and please make sure to post comments.

Neighborhood Watch Movie: Bad Timing?

Neighborhood Watch Movie: Bad Timing?

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 03/27/2012 5:49PM

If you've been in isolation, under a rock or have not had access to breaking news media, you've probably heard of Trayvon Martin. The 17 year old Florida High School student who was shot and killed by George Zimmerman. Mr. Zimmerman was a 28 year old, self-appointed neighborhood watch captain of a northern Orlando community in Sanford Florida. the tragic event unfolded on February 26, 2012.

Unfortunatly for Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, the writers of the upcoming movie, Neighborhood Watch, starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill. The Trayvon Martin incident has caused quite a stigma about the neighborhood watch program among the public. Despite the tragic shooting of Trayvon Martin, the movie will go on as planned.

In a recent interview with a 20th Century Fox movie studio spokesperson, he says, 'We are very sensitive to the Trayvon Martin case, but our film is a broad alien invasion comedy and bears absolutely no relation to the tragic events in Florida... The movie, which is not scheduled for release for several months, was made and these initial marketing materials were released before this incident ever came to light. The teaser materials were part of an early phase of our marketing and were never planned for long-term use. Above all else, our thoughts go out to the families touched by this terrible event.

In other words, not only was the film created before the incident, much time, money, and talent was invested to produce the film. All investors are counting on the film to be released on the scheduled date and the show must go on. So, despite popular protest against the film, the creators will not shelve it. So you can count on the movie being in theaters this summer.

Here's the Neighborhood Watch movie trailer along with Chaka Khans new tribute video.

Tiny Scorpion Species Found in Death Valley with UV Light

Tiny Scorpion Species Found in Death Valley with UV Light

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 03/26/2012 8:55PM

The Wernerius inyoensis, measuring only half an inch long undiscovered until just recently, has drawn excitement among the scientific community and entomology enthusiasts alike.

Prior to 1972, most scorpions found were the ones that were easy to spot either of large or average size. Due to their camouflage nature and their ability to hide in small crevices, and the harsh locations in which they live - many of the smaller less-conspicuous species went unnoticed until it was discovered that they reflected ultraviolet light.

Scorpions, members of the arachnid family and just if not more venomous than spiders, are widely feared throughout the world. Of course scorpions aren't mindless brutes seeking out human targets, the problem is, people have invaded their natural territories by creating desert oasis cities, towns and villages. Scorpions have every right to sting an invader since it is their inborn reflex to survive.

As primitive as scorpions look, they truly are an ancient species that have been virtually unchanged for hundreds of millions of years. Their most prominent characteristic that has evolved has been their size. In the National Geographic News article by James Owen, 'Giant Sea Scorpion Discovered; Was Bigger than a Man,' (2007) says,

“Aekelopterus rhenaniae measured some 8.2 feet (2.5 meters) long, scientists estimate, based on the length of its 18-inch (46-centimeter), spiked claw.”

Although this is a sea scorpion and is very much different than the land scorpions we have today, it is a direct relative and also sheds light about how scorpions may have evolved from the sea to land.

The new species just found is incredibly much tinier and possibly much more venomous than it larger cousins. The potency of a scorpions venom is directly proportional to their size. In other words, the smaller a scorpion is, the more poisonous their venom is. Of course this may not be entirely true for all scorpion species, it is the general rule of thumb leading us to assume W. inyoensis, may be the most deadliest scorpion yet.

So, if you live in the Death Valley Inyo Mountain area or are planning to visit, keep a close eye or rather an ultraviolet eye out for your safety. The video below is not of Wernerius inyoensis but, it is a good example of the UV reflective exo-sceleton charagteristic unique to scorpions.

Hydrogen Powered Robot Jellyfish: Amazingly Life-like!

Hydrogen Powered Robot Jellyfish: Amazingly Life-like!

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 03/26/2012 07:07PM

When one observes a jellyfish at an aquarium or has the fortunate chance of spotting one in the ocean, one must wonder what those silly creatures are up to. With a seemingly aimless sense of direction and sporting a body only an alien mother could love, jellyfish spark interest and amazement in the minds of the curious observer.

One such team of researchers and scientists funded by the U.S. Office of Naval Research had such an interest in the curious little creatures that they decided to cleverly create the Robo-Jellyfish. This robotic feat of technology has also sparked interest for the military who plan to use the little cute robots as drones to aid in search and rescue missions and survey missions.

The Robo-Jellyfish is very reminiscent of actual jellies. Although the parts are made of different materials they motor processes are quite similar. The Robojelly's muscles are made up of a shape-memory alloy. Shape-memory alloys are somewhat of a new invention created by NASA. The metal alloy behaves just like a normal piece of allow metal where it can bend and change shape however, if it is heated to a certain degree, it spontaneously goes back to it's original shape. This technology has recently been introduced to the public. We use shape-memory alloys for orthodontic braces and eyeglass frames.

The advantage of using a shape-memory alloy for the muscles is to not only help prevent irreversible damage caused by natural sea processes but it also is used as a propeller. Not a spinning propeller but a pulsating propeller. The shape-memory alloy muscles spontaneously contract with heat generated by a chemical reaction of the hydrogen and oxygen fuel within its own body. The memory-shape alloy is covered with carbon dusted with a layer of platinum. When the hydrogen and oxygen mixture come in contact with the platinum, they interact chemically causing a superheated combustion reaction. The reaction causes the shape-memory allow to become instantly rigid back to their original form. When this reaction suddenly stops, the surrounding water instantly cools the shape-memory alloy causing it to relax and fill with water. This constant pulsating engine generates enough thrust to allow the Robojelly swimming capabilities.

The beauty of this chemo-engine is that there is a possibility of creating a self sustaining robot fueled by the very water it swims in. Since water is made up of hydrogen and oxygen, it is theoretically possible to create a way to split the molecule apart allowing the Robojelly to create it's own fuel. To add the icing on the cake, so to speak, the waste generated by the fuel's combustion is completely non-toxic and safe for the environment. The byproducts are only heat and water which means there would be no pollutants to damage the ocean.

OMGPOP's 'Draw Something' App Sold for $180 Million to Zynga

OMGPOP's 'Draw Something' App Sold for $180 Million to Zynga

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque 03/25/2012 10:42 PM

Up until very recently, OMGPOP had been striving to stay afloat in the highly competitive mobile app market. They tried to break into the app revolution with meager success and had been inching along ever since. As chance would have it, until just about 7 weeks ago OMGPOP created an app called 'Draw Something.'

The 'Draw Something' app is similar to Pictionary. Players have to draw a picture about the randomly selected word or phrase that is generated for them via the app. The drawn picture, along with scrambled letters of the word or phrase, is then sent to an opposing friend who must then solve the puzzle. Solving correctly earns you points. Earning enough points allows a player to buy more items such as different colors for their color palette and/or bombs that can blow-up unnecessary letters.

With it's seamless Facebook integration, opponents can be easily found. The Facebook integration allows anyone to quickly select either a close friend or anyone at random. When someone finds a friend they want to play with, they are immediately given a list of three options of words or phrases ranging from beginner to difficult depending on the players skill preference. Once they're done drawing the picture, it is sent instantly to the recipient who then needs to guess the word or phrase based on the picture.

As a result of it's stunning simplicity, cute graphics and ease of use, 'Draw Something' has quickly gained both interest and success.

This new social game app exploded on the scene and began to draw interest among socialites and big-time game developers alike. There had been so much of an interest that famous social game developer Zynga gave OMGPOP an offer they couldn't refuse.

Just last week, Zynga, maker of social games such as Farmville, Words with Friends, Castleville and Zynga Poker, met with Mr. Foreman and his colleagues and offered them $180 Million dollars for the addicting mobile app, 'Draw Something.'

Although Mr. Foreman had not been directly involved with the creation of Draw Something, he did have a major stake in the company that allowed him to cash in big on the sale of this game. Mr. Foreman reportedly claims to be taking home about $22 million dollars as a result of Zynga's purchase. In a recent interview, Mr. Foreman said, “I had $1,700 in my bank yesterday, and now I have a whole lot more.”

Statistically speaking, since it's release on February 6^th, Draw Something has been downloaded more that 35 million times and more than a billion drawings have been created from it's faithful users. With numbers this big in such a small amount of time, it is no wonder that Charles Foreman is now a millionaire and why Zynga quickly scooped up this new social game. Now with their new-found success, it is interesting to see what's next to come from their creative minds of OMGPOP.

Reddit App gets Pulled from Google Play for Porn Content

Reddit App gets Pulled from Google Play for Porn Content

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque 03/24/2012

Apparently, Google Play decided to pull the plug on a third party app called "Reddit is Fun" because it allowed it's app users the ability to search pornography on the ever popular social link site Reddit.

The developer, Andrew Shu of the "Reddit is Fun" app is quite confused about the sudden divorce from the Google Play Android Store because, the app itself does not promote or create illicit material on Reddit. The app is simply a tool for people to use in searching Reddit.com whether the content found is offensive or not.

The developer for the "Reddit is Fun" app argues that any popular social site such as Youtube, Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest who allow their users to post links, always run the risk of carrying questionable material that may not be suitable for all audiences and may be explicit and illicit in nature.

Andrew Shu, the creator of the "Reddit is Fun" app says, “I’m not sure how to go about appealing this. After all it’s true that reddit content includes NSFW (not safe for work) content. Not sure exactly why my app was singled out and the other reddit apps weren’t, though.”

Obviously enough Andrew decided to post this information on Reddit to help cause a stir among the faithful Reddit users. Amazingly, a member of Google found the article and has volunteered to help Andrew with his appeal.

Although a Google team member has reached out, there is still no official word from Google whether or not the app will be allowed to be offered for download in the Google Play store ever again.

Float Down the Amazon River with Google 'Street View'

Float Down the Amazon River with Google 'Street View'

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque | 03/22/2012

Have you ever watched those amazing survival shows like Bear Grylls' Man vs. Wild, Dual Survival, Man Woman Wild, and Les Stroud's Survivorman and thought how great it would be to go on an exciting excursion? You think about how you would make fires by hand, how you would hunt and kill wild game to feed your empty stomach, then later realize it would be near impossible to fulfill that dream due to lack of funds and fear for your life.

Well, the wait is over. simply go to Google Maps or click on this link http://maps.google.com/intl/en/help/maps/streetview/#utm_campaign=en&utm_medium=van&utm_source=en-van-na-us-gns-svn

Although, it doesn't quite compare to actually being there and experiencing the Amazon in person and by no means can you build a campfire by hand and hunt your own food in Google maps. It does however, gives you a very beautiful, extremely cost efficient, rarely ever seen, tour of the sacred Amazon River.

Netflix iOS App: HD Update for iPad 3's Retina Display

Netflix iOS App: HD Update for iPad 3's Retina Display

Socialeaf | Peter Del Bosque

Netflix, both an innovator in the area of movie streaming and one of the most convenient applications for streaming media. Allows it's subscribers to stream via computers such as PC's and Mac's - via game consoles such as Microsoft's XBox, Sony's PS3, Nintendo's Wii and 3DS and via mobile devises such as iPhones, iPad's and Android smartphones.

With the advent of digital streaming and the greater consumer demand for higher definition media, it is no wonder that Apple has followed suit and created the Retina Display for their latest smart tablet creation, the iPad 3.

This particular move in the mobile industry chess game has allowed Netflix the opportunity to innovate once more. This time the innovation is in their new Netflix App update for the iPad 3 iOS. Although there is no definite time when the app will be updated, owners of the new iPad 3 will soon get the much anticipated update and will be able to take full advatage of the new retina display technology while enjoying their favorite movies and TV shows via Netflix.

Man Figures Out How to Fly Like a Bird and Films it!

Man Figures Out How to Fly Like a Bird and Films it!

It turns out the video was a fake.

Jarno Smeets, a Dutch Engineer who had a dream to fly, put his creativity and intelligence to work by creating fully functional bird-like wings allowing the possibility of human flight. He used videogame controllers an Android phone and custom-made wings he created himself.

On March 18 at a park in Hague, Smeets lived his dream and flew like an albatross. The albatross was the bird he used for inspiration in creating his bird-wing invention. On his Youtube channel Smeets says, “I have always dreamed about this. But after 8 months of hard work, research and testing it all payed off.” Smeets further explains where he got his amazing idea. He says that he remembers his grandfather's sketches of a flying bicycle, of which he had spent much of his life designing and had intended to build it but, regretfully never completed the project.

Inspired by his grandfather's mechanical dream, Smeets enrolled at the Coventry University in Englands' school for engineering and regretfully found out the flying bicycle design could not physically work despite his grandfather's ambitious mind. Later, Smeets begins to look for other works of inspiration. He soon looks to Leonardo Da Vinci's wing drawings as an inspirational source for his flying machine. Smeets then later pairs up with Bert Otten, a neuromechanics expert who helps bring his dream to reality.

Bert Otten helps develop the robotic prosthetics used to mechanically flap the wings in relation to the movement of Smeets' human arms. Basically the design causes the wings to become more like a fluid extension of our own arms allowing a human to have the ability to efficiently flap giant wings. Furthermore, the 37-ounce wings made of fabric are designed in proportion to the human body which helps in weight distributiion and helps to allow the possibility of lift.

On his blog Smeets writes, “Working with the fabric was difficult because it was very fragile, It’s important to sew the seams carefully, and give the wing shape extra strength without making it too heavy. The top part of the kite will be folded around the ribs to create an aerodynamic shape. For extra lift and control I’ll stretch a piece of kite fabric between the legs, as some sort of tail wing.”

Smeet calculated that he needed to generate about 2,000 Watts of continuous power in order to carry his 180 lb. body and 40 lb. wing pack. Unfortunately humans aren't designed to be able to creat that much power continuously, but with the use of motors, his upper body arms and pecs allowed him to guide the device and flap his wings.

The intelligent flying device was created out of salvaged everyday electronics which any hacker would appreciate. He used Wii controllers, accellerometers pulled from an HTC Wildfire Android phone and Turnigy motors.

After his glorious flight and after landing the sacred contraption Smeet said, “At one moment you see the ground moving away, and then suddenly you’re free, a really intense feeling of freedom. The true feeling of flying. A f*ckin' magical moment. The best feeling I have felt in my life.”

Deep-Ocean Expedition Discovers Surprising Oasis of Life

Deep-Ocean Expedition Discovers Surprising Oasis of Life

In 2009, NASA collected data that hinted of hydrothermal vents lining a submersed rocky ridge near the Grand Cayman Island. These vents eject incredibly hot water that is heated by volcanic activity near the surface of the ocean floor. In 2010, a UK funded expedition confirmed the existence of these hydrothermal vents and are located at a place called the Mid-Cayman Rise.

In August 2011, Paul Tyler of the University of Southhampton manned the vessel dubbed the Okeanos Explorer. Armed with wonder and a submersible robot, Tyler visited the site and began his exploration.

The beauty of being armed with a submersible robot allowed Tyler to explore in the vast deepness of the Mid-Cayman Rise and also allowed most of his team to explore via intelligent high speed satellite communications. Tylers land locked team of scientists used real time live video derived from a camera on the submersible robot to view the new secrets that unfolded under the deep sea.

The most surprising phenomena that was witnessed was the fact that two types of animals who had never before been witnessed interacting with eachother were doing just that. Tubeworms and shrimp were living in an area devoid of sunlight where scientists had previously thought was impossible. Instead, both creatures have evolved to rely on chemosynthetic bacteria feeding on the rich minerals that seep from the volcanic earth below.

Not only was this revelation astounding and previously unknown, but it was also amazing to find out that tubeworms were happily living in the Atlantic despite earlier ideas that hydrothemal vent tubeworms only lived in the pacific.

In a recent press release, marine biologist Paul Tyler of the University of Southhampton said, “The iconic symbol of Pacific vents is the tubeworm, while the iconic symbol of Atlantic vents is the vent shrimp … To find both together has important implications for the evolution of vent communities in the Caribbean as the Atlantic became separated from the Pacific some 5 million years ago.”

1) Chemosynthetic bacteria living in a tubeworm’s tissue color it burgundy.

2) Close-ups of the underwater discovery. Chemosynthetic tubeworms are labelled “T” while the shrimp are labelled “S.” Small white dots are marine snails.(NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program/MCR Expedition 2011/NOAA-OER)

Socialeaf

Is that a Tattoo on Your Arm or are you Just Happy to See Me?

Is that a Tattoo on Your Arm or are you Just Happy to See Me?

Nokia has always been at the forefront of technology and has always been a king of innovation. There was a time when Nokia had dominated the mobile phone market for several years. Their new smarter designs and cutting edge technology favored well in the late 90's into the new millenium. What caused Nokia to fall behind was the advent of the smart phone. Although there was a slight disturbance in the force, Nokia has maintained it's role in the mobile phone market and has stepped up from the anologue phones of yesterday to the emerging smart phones we have today.

In their ability to evolve with the changing times, they have created a new device to be paired up with their smart phones and have filed for a pantent with the United States Patent and Trademark office. The tiny device is a sort of tattoo that is embedded into the person's skin. The tattoo works by communicating with the phone through magnetic waves. The phone sends off a magnetic signal and causes the tattoo to generate a response that might be a vibration of sorts.

The Patent also elludes that there might be the possibility of varying the response depending on the caller. Perhaps the vibration would generate different wave patterns or there might be different sensations such as tingling or an itchy sensation. It's not certain exactly what the "ring tones" might be but in any case, this is a cool breakthrough in technology.

"Tatooine" Planet With Two Suns Could Host Habitable Moon?

"Tatooine" Planet With Two Suns Could Host Habitable Moon?

Does the planet of Tatooine which is in George Lucas' famous sci-fi movie "Star Wars" and home to Luke Skywalker, really exist? Are there actual planets in space that have two suns that rise and set and can also support life? Astronomers and scientists think they have found the answer. In our vast universe, the astronomers seem to have stumbled upon two new planets who share this characteristic and are in extreme proximity to their parent stars in the habitable zone.

The new discovery has taken what seemed to be impossible and made it possible, the chance for a planet to have two suns. This phenomena has spawned a new class of planet that is able to orbit two suns simultaneously. These twin suns can be called binary stars and scientists believe that there may be many planets lying within the habitable zones of such planetary systems.

Recently, astronomers have used NASA's Kepler space telescope to aid finding the "circumbinary planets." The astronomers sampled 750 planetary systems and found and confirmed at least three planets who share the two-sun characteristic.

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New Viper found in Tanzania called Matilda's Horned Viper

New Viper found in Tanzania called Matilda's Horned Viper

A new snake has been discovered in Tanzania. Not only is it deadly, it is also beautiful. The snake is called the Matilda's Horned Viper and is named after a 7-year old girl.

With it's yellow and black scales and it's menacing horns, you would think people would want to stay away from this dangerous reptile. On the contrary, it's location is being kept secret to deter poaching which could wipe out the small population.

Although it's exact location is a mystery, the Matilda's Horned Viper was found in a tiny area of southwest Tanzania about two years ago. As a result of this new finding, Zootaxa, a mega-journal for zoological taxonomists, deemed the Matilda's Horned Viper the world's newest species of snake discovered to date.

The director of the Wildlife Conservation Society in Tanzania, Tim Davenport, was lucky enough to be on the team that discovered the rare viper species. His involvement gave him the opportunity to name the new viper species after his very own daughter, Matilda. Who's name will live on forever thanks to her father's naming the snake.

In a recent interview with Associated Press, Davenport says, "My daughter, who was five at the time, became fascinated by it and used to love spending time watching it and helping us look after it. We called it Matilda's Viper at that stage... and then the name stuck."

The rarity of finding a new species of viper is great. Within the last three decades, there have only been three new vipers discovered across Africa. That equals to one viper every decade. This means that finding Matilda's viper was an extremely rare and important occasion. Due to it's rarity and it's small population, the viper's exact location is being held secret because of Africa's serious poacher and trophy hunter epidemic.



Due to the Matilda Viper's remote location and it's harsh environment, Davenport says it is extremely difficult to conduct accurate snake counts. However, twelve have been brought into captivity to be a part of the Matilda Viper's breeding program which insures the viper will not become extinct despite it's home being decimated by logging and the threat of poachers coming in to steal the snakes.

Davenport hails from Britain but has lived in Tanzania for 12 years. He said that many people fear snakes but most are harmless and help keep rodent numbers down. Human have many reasons to fear snakes whether their sheer size is intimidating as with Anacondas and Boa Constrictors or they fear the chance of being bitten by a venomous snake as with any viper. In the case of the Matilda's horned viper, it is small and can grow to two feet (65 centimeters) or bigger, they said.

Via web chat with Associated Press, Davenport says, "This particular animal looks fierce and probably is venomous (though bush viper bites are not deadly), However, it is actually a calm animal and not at all aggressive. I have handled one on several occasions."

Davenport mentioned that since The Wildlife Conservation Society is in charge of the Central Park Zoo and the Bronx Zoo in New York, it would be a "great option" to showcase the new horned viper at any of those locations, but that nothing has yet been decided.

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Rovio Mobile Introduces the Ice Bird for Angry Birds Space

Rovio Mobile Introduces the Ice Bird for Angry Birds Space

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The Swedish born company that goes by the name of Rovio Mobile has created a new atmosphere for it's ever-changing saga of Angry birds, Angry Birds Space.

Along with the new space layout come 6 new birds, the Lazer Bird, a new variation of the Red Bird and 4 other new birds, one of which is the Ice Bird.

The ice bird is a cube shaped fowl that demands respect. Not only does it have a sub zero temperature similar to deep space but, it's also super-powered.

With 6 new birds and 60 levels with 30 more levels for Samsung Galaxy Note owners, this Celestial version of Angry Birds aims to please.

Chernobyl Diaries: Extreme Tourism Gone Wrong

Chernobyl Diaries: Extreme Tourism Gone Wrong

| Peter Del Bosque | 05/14/2012 10:37PM

Chernobyl Diaries is a one of a kind movie that takes place in a town near the infamous Nuclear power plant Chernobyl.

On April 26, 1986 the power plant suffered an incredible explosion causing vast quantities of radioactive contaminants to be spewed into the European atmosphere. The Чорнобильська катастрофа or Chernobyl disaster was classified as a level 7 and not only killed and contaminated thousands upon thousands of people and wildlife, but was so costly it crippled The U.S.S.R. Economy.

In the movie Chernobyl Diaries, it is present day and 26 years after the fateful disaster. A band of 6 adventurous tourists seek out an extreme tour guide to take them to the radioactive infected city of Pripyat which is located just next to the old Chernobyl power plant.

Despite several warnings not to enter the ghost town, they enter anyway. Unfortunately they become stranded within the desolate poisonous town and soon realize they are being watched.

Chernobyl Diaries- Directed by Brad Parker starring Jonathan Sadowski, Devin Kelly Jesse McCartney, Olivia Taylor Dudley, Nathan Phillips, Ingrid Bolso Berdal and Dimitry Diatchenko. The movie will be released on May 25^th to the US and June 22^nd to the UK.

Oren Peli Interview with Flicks and Bits:

How did the idea for ‘Chernobyl Diaries’ come about?

Oren Peli: One day I was just goofing around on the internet, and I found this website of this girl who was travelling through Pripyat on a motorcycle. She posted a photo-blog of her journey. That was the first time I came across Prypiat, the city next to Chernobyl, which was basically abandoned overnight and left like a sort of ghost town, printed in time and history, left pretty much unchanged. I just thought that it was extremely fascinating, very sad, and could also be the setting of a very creepy horror movie.

How important was it to capture the look of Prypiat?

Oren Peli: The authenticity of the look of the place was very important for us, because the city of Prypiat is almost like a character of its own, as well as the Chernobyl reactor. So it was very important for us to recreate the look and feel of being in an abandoned city. I think it was the biggest nuclear disaster ever, the actual Chernobyl event, and this town next to it, Prypiat, it housed 50,000 people, the people of Prypiat had to be evacuated overnight, they didn’t have time to take their belongings, so you have this city that is totally abandoned. If you go into an apartment, you’d find peoples personal items, their clothes, their photographs, they never had a chance to take any of that. And unfortunately many people didn’t get out in time. Many people are suffering the effects of the radiation for the rest of their lives.

The “extreme tourism” for this group gets a bit too extreme…

Oren Peli: Yeah. There’s a few problems, first of all they’re stranded. They’ve no way of getting out of there. They know it’s not safe to be there for long periods of time because of the radiation, so that’s another concern. They realise something has tampered with the van, they hear noises at night, it’s not a good situation for them. Extreme tourism in general is the kind of tourism for the people who don’t just want to go to Museums and look at the country side from a bus, they want to get an adrenaline rush and risk their lives doing crazy things. Those are the people that would go swimming with sharks, the things that 99% of us would be more than happy to never do (laughs). They’re the people that go for the thrills, and in Ukraine, one of the things you can do is go on a tour to Prypiat. It has to be an organised tour, you can’t just go and drive there, it has to be through a licensed tour company. What you do is you go with a guide, they drive you there, you get to walk around for a couple of hours in Prypiat. The guides know the safe areas you can go in the city, they have a Geiger counter, to make sure you don’t go into an area with a high level of radiation.

The film has a documentary feel to it. What was it like getting director Brad Parker on-board with this style of filming?

Oren Peli: The documentary feel, the style, we were sort of going for the early Paul Greengrass films, or ‘Traffic,’ ‘The Wrestler,’ ‘Children of Men,’ those kind of movies. Brad Parker totally got it, he was very on-board with the style. And he brought this amazing sense of visual understanding of how to create that. Also, a great understanding of the material and how to work with the actors to create this natural, improvisational feeling that we were going for to create the authentic feeling of the movie. We are always with the characters in this film, so you as the audience feel like you’re a part of the group. We only know and see what the characters know and see.

View the nail biting trailer down below, It's sure to have you at the edge of your seat.

Why You Need a Samsung Galaxy S III

Why You Need a Samsung Galaxy S III

| Peter Del Bosque | 05/09/2012 10:23 PM

In a world driven by vast amounts of information and a demand for devices intelligent enough to deliver the world to your fingertips, Samsung is seizing the moment. No more are the days of waiting at home for your 'landline' phone to ring and where waiting 6-8 weeks for a cereal-box toy to arrive via snail mail is accepted.

At the dawn of the smartphone age, Apple saw a untapped niche and thus the iPhone was born. Well, who ever said Apple could be the only one in the smartphone industry? Samsung stood their ground and developed the Samsung Galaxy in 2007. The first Samsung Galaxy was the i5700 and later the i7500. They were impressive but couldn't compete with the iPhone. In fact, for the next few years, no one could compete with Apple's ingenious simple yet powerful iOS platform. Although there were plenty of updates fixing vital flaws and updates to combat jailbreaking and unlocking, the fact of the matter is, the iOS has constantly been evolving to be more streamlined and efficient compared to the Android platform which has been completely reworked several times. Here is a list of the Android OS versions since their debut, (Beta 2008, Cupcake – Donut – Eclair 2009, Froyo – Gingerbread 2010, Honeycomb – Ice Cream Sandwich 2011).

In May 2011, Samsung hit the jackpot. They finally produced a smartphone that could nip at the heals of Apple's dominant iPhone 4/4S. The iPhone 4 and 4S were and still are a huge hit among people demanding a high performing phone, but there were several issues with the iphone 4 platform, first of all, people became increasingly tired of the redundant iOS layout. Yes your iPhone was better looking and performed faster, but when it came down to it, the darn thing basically had the same home-screen layout as the first 2G iPhone. Of course that's a minor problem, but another issue was its sheer size. Samsung had come out with a larger more vibrant looking Galaxy S II whereas Apple's new creation kept it's screen relatively the same size as it's predecessors. Yet another issue was it's glass screen's uncanny ability to shatter with the slightest drop. I experienced such an episode and let me tell you, my heart sank. A $500 beautiful iPhone looked like yesterdays garbage in an instant. It was as if I had been carrying around a fragile Faberge egg all along. The Samsung Galaxy S II on the other hand was bigger slimmer and had strong Gorilla Glass technology developed by Corning. With these simple yet amazing differences, I decided the Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket would be the phone for me. Although switching from an iPhone to a Skyrocket was as awkward as learning to write with your left hand when all your life you've been right handed, the benefits outweighed that obstacle. Now I can proudly say I'm a lefty.

With that said, I'm anxious to get my hands on the Samsung Galaxy S III here in the US later this June. Here are a list of it's anticipated new features.

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  Color options – Marble white and pebble blue.

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  Smart Stay – The screen remains on if you're looking at it and turns off if you look away.

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  Direct Call – When texting, put phone up to ear to immediately call that person.

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  Pop Up Play – Video and other activities can be on the screen at the same time.

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  S Voice – Similar to iPhone's Siri, (speech recognition and personal assistant).

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  Buddy Photo Sharing

These are but a few amazing features of what to expect on the new Samsung Galaxy S III. Please watch the video down below for more info.