Photon Detectors

 

Your eyes are very sensitive, able to detect just a few photons of light. If you take a look on a very clear night at the constellation of Andromeda, a little fuzzy patch of light is just visible with the naked eye. If you can make out that tiny blob, you are seeing as far as is humanly possible without technology. Andromeda is the nearest large galaxy to our own Milky Way. But "near" is a relative term in intergalactic space – the Andromeda galaxy is 2.5m light years away. When the photons of light that hit your eye began their journey, there were no human beings. We were yet to evolve. You are seeing an almost inconceivable distance and looking back in time through 2.5m years.

The Internet

The Internet is the fastest-growing tool of communicationever. It took radio broadcasters 38 years to reach an audience of 50 million, television 13 years, and the Internet just 4 years. A NeXT computer used by Tim Berners-Lee was the world’s first web server.

Domain registration was free until the National Science foundation decided to change this on September 14th, 1995. The first ever domain name registered online was www.symbolics.com. All three letter word combinations from aaa.com to zzz.com are already registered as domain names. One million domain names are registered every month. Almost half of people online have at least three e-mail accounts.

According to Message Labs spam accounts for over 60 per cent of all email. Google says at least one third of all Gmail servers are filled with spam. Anthony Greco, aged 18, became the first person arrested for spam (unsolicited instant messages) on February 21, 2005. Yahoo started out as “Jerry and David’s guide to the world Wide Web”. Jerry Yang and David Filo were PhD candidates at Stanford in 1994 when they started the site.

The first internet worm was created by Robert Morris, Jr, and attacked more than 6,000 Internet hosts. Only 4 per cent of Arab women use the Internet. Moroccan women represent almost a third of that figure. Official statistics in the UK say that 29 per cent of women have never used the internet, but only 20 percent of men. 220 million tons of old computers and other technological hardware are trashed in the United States each year.

The United States generates more e-waste than any other nation. An estimated 50-80% of e-waste collected in the United States for recycling is exported to areas such as China, India or Pakistan. In February 2009, Twitter had a monthly growth (of users) of over 1300 per cent several times more than Facebook. Facebook is growing at a dizzying rate around the globe, surging to nearly 500 million users, from 200 million users just 15 months ago, writes The New York Times’s Miguel Helft.

 

Doggie Toy

Doggie Toy rftarsy of 203 kilometers per hour in space travel. Auster ylya Canberra a unique gift for my nephew, a man made ​​of wool, produced bloom is the Doggie in the vacuum has been reached successfully. Doggie person with the helium gas-filled balloons and a camera e been touched by connecting fzamyn a few seconds in the 70-thousand-foot distance.

Cat Chasing Mosquito Survives 11-Story Fall

The 2-year-old cat, named Wasabi, survived but suffered a fractured leg and broken bones. The Juneau Empire reports the cat was chasing the mosquito Monday in her owners' apartment in Juneau, about two blocks from the state Capitol. The mosquito escaped out a window, and Wasabi went after it. Stephanie Gustafson says her mother watched the female cat fall.

Wasabi landed in a parking lot, and Gustafson found her huddled nearby, bloody and wet from rain. The cat underwent an operation, and has pins and wires holding together her fractured leg and broken bones in a joint. She also is sporting a pink cast. Gustafson says Wasabi is expected to heal in about six weeks.

E-Cigarettes as Effective as Patches to Stop Smoking

PARIS: Tobacco-free electronic cigarettes are as effective as nicotine patches in weaning smokers off their habit, but both techniques are only modestly successful, a study said on Saturday.

It is the first trial to compare the increasingly popular "e-cigarette" -- a plastic tube which heats a liquid to an inhalable vapour -- against nicotine patches as an anti-smoking aid.

Researchers in Auckland, New Zealand, recruited 657 smokers who wanted to quit, and assigned them randomly to three groups.

Two groups of around 290 people were given a 13-week supply of either patches or e-cigarettes that delivered nicotine vapour.

Another 73 were given e-cigarettes without nicotine.

Six months later, the volunteers were then questioned, and their breath was analysed for carbon monoxide telltales of smoking, to rate their success in giving up tobacco.

The success rate among the nicotine e-cigarettes was 7.3 percent, compared with 5.8 percent in the patch group and 4.1 percent in the non-nicotine e-cigarette group.

None of the e-cigarette users fell ill from using the product, but the researchers stress that its long-term safety -- an issue that has emerged in the European Union which plans to class e-cigs as medicinal products -- remains unclear.

"E-cigarettes, with or without nicotine, were modestly effective at helping smokers to quit, with similar achievement of abstinence as with nicotine patches, and few adverse events," says the study, published by The Lancet.

But, it adds: "Uncertainty exists about the place of e-cigarettes in tobacco control, and more research is urgently needed to clearly establish their overall benefits and harms."

The probe, led by Chris Bullen at the University of Auckland, was presented this weekend at a conference of the European Respiratory Society in Barcelona, Spain, The Lancet said.

Re-Interested in NASA's Moon

Tyarkrdh huge amount of eight million dollars sophisticated robotic spacecraft is being dispatched to the moon today.

Snails

 

A species of snails named as Garden Snail have about 14,175 teeth that are located on its tongue. Another cool and interesting fact about snails is that they can sleep up to 3 years without any break.

Woodpecker

A woodpecker can peck on wood 20 times per second. A woodpecker was represented successfully by an artist Ben Hardway as fictional Woody Woodpecker.. Their average total pecks are 8,000 to 12,000 a day.

BMW Gina Concept Car Made From Textile Fabric

BMW unveiled the GINA Light Visionary Model concept car on June 10, 2008 and shows the direction of how BMW’s design may take. The concept car uses fabric as the skin over a wire frame and carbon fiber and allows drivers to change the shape of the car at will.

The flexibility of car can be seen when the car door or bonnet opens and it is also much lighter as it is made out of light weight materials. The BMW Gina Visionary Model concept car may or may not find its way into production but it may be the precursor of new material alternatives that are lighter and more fluid.

In the video, Chris Bangle gives us a first impression of the ideas behind the process of sculpturing an experimental study.

6 more pics of the BMW Gina Concept Car and 1 videoclip after the jump.

First E-mails

The first emails could only be sent to someone using the same local host with two computers literally side by side. In late 1971 Raymond S Tomlinson sent the first useful email to a user separated from the same host by simply implementing a minor addition to the protocol that was being used and chose to use the @ sign in the email address which we still use today. When asked why he chose the @ sign, he said the @ sign just made sense.

Toilet Paper

The first patent for rolled toilet paper was made in 1883. Some of the things used to wipe before toilet paper was put into mass-production included mussel shells, corn cobs, wool, leaves, the left hand, moss, snow and even sticks.

Fun Dog Facts for Kids

Enjoy these fun dog facts that deliver a variety of information about interesting breeds, puppies, guide dogs such as Labradors and much more. As the famous saying goes, dogs are man’s best friend. Whether it’s as reliable workers, family pets or loyal companions, dogs are wonderful domestic animals that offer a number of qualities that are put to good use by humans.

• In total there is said to be around 400 million dogs in the world.
• The domestic dog has been one of the most popular working and companion animals throughout human history.
• Dogs perform many useful tasks for humans including hunting, farm work and security as well as assisting those with disabilities such as the blind.
• Although experts often disagree, there is scientific evidence which shows that the domestication of dogs could have occurred more than 15,000 years ago.
• There are hundreds of different breeds of dogs.
• Examples of these breeds include: Bulldog, German Shepherd, Collie, Golden Retriever, St Bernard, Greyhound, Bloodhound, Chihuahua, Labrador, Great Dane, Rottweiler, Boxer and Cocker Spaniel.
• The most popular breed of dog in the world by registered ownership is the Labrador. With their gentle nature, obedience, intelligence and near limitless energy, Labradors make for excellent family pets and reliable workers. They often assist police and are a common choice as guide dogs.
• Dogs have formed such a strong bond as pets, workers and companions to humans that they have earned the nickname "man's best friend".
• Humans help train various dog breeds to enter in competitions such as breed shows, agility and obedience contests, racing and sled pulling.
• Dog have superior hearing than humans, capable of hearing sounds at four times the distance.
• Dogs have a remarkable sense of smell, they are capable of differentiating odors in concentrations nearly 100 million times lower than humans can.
• The average life span for a dog is around 10 to 14 years.
• Those involved in dog breeding refer to males as ‘dogs’, females as ‘bitches’, dogs younger than a year old as ‘puppies’ and a group of offspring as a ‘litter’.
• Domestic dogs are omnivores, they feed on a variety of foods including grains, vegetables and meats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Derawar Fort, Cholistan, Pakistan

Derawar Fort is an ancient fort located in Cholistan Desert in Pakistan. The Fort was built by Deoraj, a prince of Jaisalmer. It was in possession of royal family of Jaisalmer when it was captured by Abbasis in 1735. In 1747, the Fort slipped from the hands of Abbasis in the reign of Nawab Bahawal Khan due to his pre-occupations at Shikarpur. Nawab Mubarak Khan took the stronghold back in 1804.

Shrine of Bibi Jawindi, Uch Sharif, Pakistan

Uch or Uch Sharif is located in Punjab, Pakistan. Uch is also known as “Alexandria at the Head of the Punjab”, is a historical city in Pakistan. Once it was an important city of ancient India. It is believed that in 325 BC Alexander the Great founded a city called Alexandria at the site of the last confluence of Punjab rivers with the Indus river.

 

Pakistan – Fairy Meadows – Circles of Life

The mountain in the picture is Nanga parbat (also known as Nangaparbat Peak or Diamir) is the 9th highest mountain on Earth and the 2nd highest in Pakistan. Nanga Parbat has tremendous vertical relief over local terrain in all directions. To the south, Nanga Parbat boasts what is often referred to as the highest mountain face in the world: the Rupal Face rises an incredible 4,600 m (15,000 feet) above its base. To the north, the complex, somewhat more gently sloped Rakhiot Flank rises 7,000 m (22,966 feet) from the Indus River valley to the summit in just 27 km, one of the 10 greatest elevation gains in so short a distance on Earth. Nanga Parbat is the fastest growing mountain on Earth and it is still growing about 7mm a year.

Shahjahan Masjid, Pakistan

 The Shah Jahan Mosque was built in the reign of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. It is located in Thatta, Sindh province, Pakistan. In the town of Thatta (100 km / 60 miles from Karachi) itself, there is famous Shahjahani Mosque with its beautiful architecture. This mosque was built in 1647 during the reign of Mughal King Shahjahan, also known as the builder King. The mosque is built with red bricks with blue coloured glaze tiles probably imported from another Sindh’s town of Hala.

The Seven-League Boots

The Seven-League Boots are a recurring artifact in numerous European fairy tales, and the boots themselves allowed one to travel seven leagues (roughly five kilometers or three miles) per step. The boots aren’t very well known, and they are featured primarily in the French fairytale Hop-o’-My-Thumb.

In the story, Hop-o’-My-Thumb is a small boy who is extremely intelligent. When his parents abandon him and his brothers, he becomes the (very tiny) man of the house. When an ogre decides to make a meal of the brothers, Hop-o’-My-Thumb steals their magical boots to escape and make his fortune for his family.

Skatert-Samobranka

Let’s say you’re out for a picnic, and you’ve forgotten the food. That’s not an issue, you just need to whip out your Skatert-Samobranka. The Skatert-Samobranka was a magic tablecloth that could produce food when unfurled and cleaned itself up when it was folded again. As with most supernatural items, there were rules. The Skatert-Samobranka was sentient, so it needed to be respected and cared for. If angered, it might have ruined the food, and any rips or holes would cause it to slowly lose its magical properties. That’s one temperamental tablecloth.

Dragon’s Teeth

Dragons are the quintessential monster of European folklore: giant, fire-breathing lizards that may have been the medieval explanation for dinosaur bones. The Greek legend of Cadmus states that, in the days of yore, Cadmus killed the sacred dragon of the god of war—Ares. Athena, Ares’s sister, told Cadmus to plant the teeth, which grew into a fresh crop of soldiers. He then threw a precious gem in amid the soldiers, who fought each other for it until there were five survivors. These five later went on to found the city of Thebes. To this day, to “sow dragon’s teeth” means to cause something that breeds dispute.

Bizarre Chelonians

Turtles and tortoises belong to the family Chelonii. In general, “turtle” is used to define water-loving members of the group. The dome-shaped, land-based chelonians are frequently referred to as tortoises. These differences explained, the entire group boasts some exceedingly odd traits. Chelonians may resemble a shellfish, but unlike the inert calcium carbonate shell of oysters, their carapace is actually a complex bone structure that evolved from their ancestors’ rib cage structures.

Odder still is the lack of a diaphragm for breathing. As a result, turtles cannot cough, making them vulnerable to infection. Vocal cords are absent, but hissing and bellowing sounds can be produced by air pressure in many species. Finally, certain species attract their prey by using their tongue as a wormlike lure. These ancient creatures offer a true multitude of novel and bizarre characteristics.