Mentally controlled bionic arms: great for amputees; how about for those with birth defects?
9/14/2006 article:
This man had used his arms for years before he lost them in an accident and got prosthetic arms - one "regular"; one thought-controlled.
Man's bionic arm provides hope for GIs
9/17/2006 article:
This woman lost an arm in a motorcycle accident and is learning to use her new thought-controlled bionic arm.
Bionic arm puts life in reach
Read about it!
The Mistress' question:
Will this technology work for people, such as thalidomide babies, who never had arms or legs to begin with? One would assume it would, if those people have the shoulder nerves (or, alternately, hip nerves) mentioned in the article.
But can we learn *their* language?
Kosik the Korean elephant has learned to mimic some of his trainer's words. He seems to be trying to communicate; next step is to test whether he really does understand "sit", "lie down", "no", "yes", and a few other words in Korean. If he does, will he teach us those words in his language?
S.Korean park features talking pachyderm
Beautiful underwater SF: who knew?
Just west of the Golden Gate Bridge is where the outflow of San Francisco Bay is deposited. Using high-tech equipment and procedures, scientists have been able to show that this underwater area is dominated by... sand dunes! Huge ones, some of the biggest in the world. The computer-generated representations of the dunes are breathtaking.
The original article is here:
CITY'S BEAUTIFUL BUT HIDDEN SAND DUNES
UCSF study: too much fructose, not enough fiber the keys in childhood obesity
We've seen it for a long time. UCSF sees it. When will manufacturers stop adding sweeteners to kids' food and start using more whole grains?
Science Daily: "Childhood Obesity Caused By 'Toxic Environment' Of Western Diets, Study Says"
Don't feel dumpy enough? Try getting carried around like a sack o' potatoes...
Another sport new to the Mistress, even more off the wall than underwater golf:
Wife-schlepping, a *championship* fought over by Estonians and Finns (and others)... Yay, Vikings!!!
Estonians reign at wife-carrying championships
Why has this not been in a Monty Python skit or movie?
Zamboni lovers, unite!
Another recent oddity, but a useful one:
Vermont inventor has made himself a very clever snowblower/Zamboni for use in backyard skating rinks.
If you have $30K to spare, you can order one now! The Mistress wishes she could :->
Bambini Revolution
The gentleman also offers temporary (seasonal) skating rinks for backyard or commercial use. These start at about $500 for a 10'x20' liner system for home use and go up to $500K or thereabouts for a large, refrigerated, commercial-grade one.
Cucumber x Cantaloupe: who knew?
One of many odd stories of late:
Cucumbers and cantaloupes can cross-pollinate to produce tasty, edible, hugely elongated, bumpy-skinned fruit...
Houma couple’s garden surprises them with a 'cuculoupe’
The Doll Lady of Sylacauga
This is the sort of person our children should aspire to be. Not financiers, not day traders, not people who try to win at everything.
For two decades, she has used her skills to make a library even friendlier for the children and staff who use it. How? By making dolls and artwork for the library.
What a doll! Sylacauga woman spends countless hours making dolls for B.B. Comer Library
Not everyone has as much time and skill as Christine Keay, but most of us have a little something we can do close to home. What have you done this year?
Haiku of the day: rain (ame)
The Mistress has been doing lots of Japan-related things of late, so please enjoy a haiku she made up this afternoon for a munchkin's amusement.
Rain on the windows
'Spring showers bring May flowers'
Too bad I can't breathe
What do dolphins call each other?
Scientists monitoring dolphins have determined that dolphins have names for one another and use them even when that dolphin is not present.
Just call me Dolph
What would be more interesting to know is this: what sorts of names? Bignose? Can't-Swim? Brownspot? Fast One? Four-Leg-Friend?
Six Degrees of Kevin Everyman
Invading foreign countries and then rebuilding them because that money couldn't possibly be better used improving our own schools, helping our own poor, stopping genocide, or feeding the hungry around the world: not enough.
No Child Left Behind: enough to "use" valuable classroom time and trained teachers in teaching to the test without financing this; otherwise, not enough.
Welcoming lobbyists and profiteers to the White House and government chambers: common enough, but not enough.
Claiming to love our country, but trying to pass laws against natural human diversity: not enough.
Getting rich off of gas prices: not enough. This is just the on-ramp!
The latest?
Six Degrees of Kevin Everyman's phone calls:
NSA has database of domestic US phone calls: report
Do you really think this will be enough?
Pentagoing, going, gone...
Pentagon photos were on the news tonight, and mention of the name "Pentagon" inspired these non-9/11-related jokes, some lamer than others:
They've renovated the Pentagon again. New name: the Hexagon.
You've probably heard some version of that one before (it was original for those who giggled over it), but maybe not these follow-ons:
They'll move it to Texas and call it the Texagon (to Mexico, the Mexagon).
They'll cover it with mirrors and call it the Reflectagon.
Install washers and dryers and call it the Socks-are-Gone. (or Pants-are-Gone)
Tip the Washington Monument over to ring the Pentagong.
Dang, can't remember the rest. The Mistress is sure that you're relieved by this.
...5/12/06 addendum: got 'em!
Mmm, Chexagon.
Stomp, stomp, stomp - here comes the T-Rexagon!
Split CA? TX? VA? Fix the flag first!
See the Dvorak Uncensored blog re: splitting California up into 2-3, or even more, smaller states.
I suggested that the U.S. flag be redesigned first, to *allow* for state boundary changes more easily. If we separate the flag issue from the addition or removal of states from our Union, things could proceed much more easily.
