LONG LAUNCH: So you think you've seen rocket launches: that big whoosh and the thing hurtles into the sky. It's all over in seconds. Not if you watch the narrated 8 minute version of the launch of Apollo 11 on 16 July 1969. The launch was recorded on film at a massive 500 frames per second. So what took 30 seconds of real time takes 8 minutes in this video, with fascinating detail. There's a lot more goes on that just a whoosh and a roar. Spacecraft Films.
ATTRACTIVE SOAP: Oil spills. Sigh. They're an enormous problem to clean up, but scientists at the University of Bristol may have something to help. They dissolved iron in liquid surfactant to create a soap that can be controlled by magnets. The magnetic properties could mean that the soap can be readily removed from the environment once it's done its cleaning job. And, with any luck, recycled too.
University of Bristol.
JAWS OF DEATH: Researcher at the University of California, Irvine tethered a transistor 25 times smaller than the circuitry in smartphones to teardrops. They aimed to discover how the antiseptic proteins called lysozymes in our tears actually destroy dangerous bacteria. They used the transistor to listen to a single molecule of protein. What the transistor showed is that lysozymes have jaws that latch on and chomp through rows of cell walls. The researchers hope this technique may prove useful in detecting cancerous molecules. I have visions of old-style video games.
University of California, Irvine.
SEE HOW IT RUNS: The Genius BlueEye DX-Eco wireless mouse won't chew through batteries the way other mice sometimes do. That's because it doesn't need batteries to run. Instead it uses a gold capacitor that you charge for about 3 minutes per day. The makers claim you can recharge it up to 100,000 times. Hooray. No more worrying about how to dispose of dead batteries. Genius.
DON'T GET TOO COMFY: Sitting in one position all day can cause all kinds of problems for the human body. And while for some of us, that just means we don't get up and walk around often enough, for people who use wheelchairs it can be a serious problem. Engineers from Empa and the company in Switzerland are testing a new ergonomic seat for electric wheelchairs.
