Yes, sure, my first response was also ‘not well - dead patients are often difficult test subjects on which to continue clinical trials’. Thankfully, however, the Canadian Medical Association Journal has looked more deeply into this most pressing of issues. In fact, as the paper’s introduction states: There is a great deal of speculation concerning […]
Culture
RIP Patrick Moore - thank you for the wonder
Sir Patrick Alfred Caldwell-Moore, CBE, FRS, FRAS, the self-taught (i.e. amateur) astronomer who inspired millions to look upwards at the heavens, has died aged 89. Sir Patrick Moore. Credit: The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/aug/31/small-ask-young-readers-questions From the Telegraph obituary: …Sir Patrick Moore, who has died aged 89, became better known than any of the academics in his field […]
Google+ rolls out Google Communities
Well, earlier today (depending on where you are, of course), Google+ started rolling out Google Communities. The service is brand new, so I don’t have much of an opinion about it yet. I’ve just joined a makers/hackers/engineers/artists community, as these are things I think are cool and I reckon it’ll be a really interesting example […]
Amazing Mad Men smoking/drinking data visualisations
The visual.ly website is a great place to watch for infographics and data visualisations of all sorts*, and a recent one, brought to my attention by excellent publication Fast Company, is particularly boggling. In the words of its creators, it’s Analysis of characters’ bad behaviours in the TV Series Mad Men during the first season […]
DeSTEMber is here!
A quick note, today, to make sure that you all, dear readers, are aware of and following/taking part in #deSTEMber. What is it, you ask? Well, the Google Science Fair peeps have teamed up with girlstart, with the stated aim being to get people more actively interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, maths). It’s going […]
Sorting algorithms explained through folk dance
Yep, you read that correctly. This morning, I was introduced to the video below - quick-sort as demonstrated through Hungarian folk dancing. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywWBy6J5gz8[/youtube] Hell, even the youtube _comments_ are saner and less nonsensical, so this has GOT to be geeky stuff. It’s also, of course, a very good, and clear, explanation of what’s going on, […]
Hanging out with Vint Cerf
Ever thought it would be great to have the chance to hang out with a computer scientist who’s recognised as one of the “fathers of the internet”. Well, you can :) And the luminary in question is Vint Cerf himself. Let’s all just take a moment to think about the awesomeness of that… […]
Shaming Lassie
I’m not sure if you’re familiar or not with the hilariously wonderful site Dogshaming. —- Now that you’re back here, having just spent an hour giggling at it, welcome! My partner and I don’t yet have our herd (or pack, whatever) of dogs*, so I’ve offered up another image instead. Lassie. Because, well**, she just […]
Shiny sexy data centre pr0n
Yep, folks, you heard me right. Data centre pr0n. I’ve had a couple of friends* send me this link today, from Google. The page it directs one to will give you lots and lots of shiny data centre photos grouped around the tech, the people and the places. Of course, explanations of the photos are […]
Engaging early- and mid-career scientists
Those involved in New Zealand’s science scene may have heard of Stratus, ‘a network of emerging and early career University of Auckland researchers’, which was launched in 2008. Well, there’s a new kid on the block - allow me to introduce WEMCR, or Wellington Early- and Mid-career Researchers. WEMCR is currently led by 5 researchers […]