If you dare, take a look at my new divestment banking clubs idea. This is what happens when I have to figure out where to store all that new camping equipment.
All posts by Chris
International Day of Awesomeness
March 10th, 2008 is the first NationalInternational Day of Awesomeness. I’ll let the awesome official site speak for itself:
What is The International Day of Awesomeness?
The International Day of Awesomeness is a celebration of awesomeness. People are awesome every day, frequently don’t realize it, and their feats of awesomeness are rarely recognized. We aim to fix that, with a special day to both perform and celebrate feats of awesomeness!
It’s the brainchild of Kevin Lawver, who knows a thing or two about awesomeness himself. So, what feats of awesomeness will you perform? You have a few months to decide.
UPDATE: It’s no longer just national, it’s INTERnational. And it’s on Eventful.
How walkable is your neighborhood?
Just found out about a site called Walk Score today. It uses Google Maps data to calculate a walkability score for any address based on how close it is to services like grocery stores, restaurants, schools, etc. For instance, my house got a “walker’s paradise” 91 (out of 100), while my work got only a 63. Still, not bad for San Diego.
It’s a simple but powerful idea; now I have a benchmark to use when deciding between hotels on vacation or (eventually) deciding which house to buy. Perhaps it’ll encourage more neighborhoods to become walkable…
DeLoreans go back into production?
The appeal of the DeLorean doesn’t seem to have diminished, according to a recent BBC story. On the contrary, the revived DeLorean Motor Company (based in Texas this time) has been doing a swift business in parts, accessories, and in some cases complete refurbishment (new parts on an original chassis).
As it turns out, demand has gotten high enough to warrant building new ones:
Demand for DeLorean cars is so high that it may go back into production, according to a US firm.
Mr Espey added: “There are guys who were in their teens when they first saw the movie, who are now in their late 30s or early 40s, who are at that point in life when they can get the car they wanted when they were a kid.
“We feel quite confident that there is a market for between 20-25 hand-built made to order cars each year, without question. Right now, we have a nine-month waiting list for cars.”
Ah, just in time for 2015 to come around! OK, who’s working on the hoverconversion technology? Mr. Fusion, anyone?
MIT team designs skintight spacesuit
Golden-age sci-fi fans, rejoice! The future is finally here. Your skintight spacesuit has arrived:
Dava Newman, a professor of aeronautics and astronautics and engineering systems at MIT… is working on a sleek, advanced suit designed to allow superior mobility when humans eventually reach Mars or return to the moon. Her spandex and nylon BioSuit is not your grandfather’s spacesuit–think more Spiderman, less John Glenn.
Newman’s prototype suit is a revolutionary departure from the traditional model. Instead of using gas pressurization, which exerts a force on the astronaut’s body to protect it from the vacuum of space, the suit relies on mechanical counter-pressure, which involves wrapping tight layers of material around the body. The trick is to make a suit that is skintight but stretches with the body, allowing freedom of movement.
Key to their design is the pattern of lines on the suit, which correspond to lines of non-extension (lines on the skin that don’t extend when you move your leg). Those lines provide a stiff “skeleton” of structural support, while providing maximal mobility.
Let’s see… private spacecraft, check; personal cleaning robots, check; skintight spacesuit, check; wrist computer with videphone, check; bionic limbs, check; OK, who’s working on the jetpacks?