#research

Webcam Model(fatpussycview) is live
LIVE
The World’s Smartest SupercomputerIBM and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laborat

The World’s Smartest Supercomputer

IBM and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory recently unveiled the world’s smartest, most powerful supercomputer, called Summit. At peak performance it can run 200 quadrillion calculations per second, or, in other words, if every person on Earth completed one calculation per second, it would take the world population 305 days to do what Summit can do in 1 second. Summit was built to meet the data-centric demands of the AI era, which can optimize the amount of simulation that needs to be done for faster results. Summit was designed with over 30 applications in mind, and it’s unveiling helps bring the computer industry even closer to supercomputing at scale.

Learn more about Summit here ->


Post link
Rockin’ out IBM researchers have made a new breakthrough in the study of nanoparticles. Because of n

Rockin’ out

IBM researchers have made a new breakthrough in the study of nanoparticles. Because of nanoparticles’ naturally erratic movement and small size (about 1,000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair), they’re notoriously difficult to separate and control – and study. IBM researchers created a motor device for sorting, separating and moving nanoparticles without the need for water, which could eventually lead to lab-on-a-chip applications. Using a “rocking” motion and oscillating electrical field across the nano-landscape, the device can more precisely separate nanoparticle populations; a model suggests that it can separate nanoparticles ranging from 5 nanometers (nm) to 100 nm. This technology has major implications in the fields of material science, environmental science and biochemistry, such as potentially helping eradicate drinking water pollutants.

Learn more about rocking Brownian motors ->


Post link
One giant leap for mankind Today, we celebrate the 49th anniversary of one of humanity’s greatest ac

One giant leap for mankind

Today, we celebrate the 49th anniversary of one of humanity’s greatest achievements: the Apollo 11 moon landing. On July 20, 1969, the first human walked on the moon. IBM is proud to have worked on all the Apollo lunar missions. Thousands of IBM administrators, engineers and technicians contributed both software, hardware and expertise to help ensure each mission’s success. And IBM is always looking forward, working to develop technologies to help prepare humanity for the next frontier.

Learn more about the Apollo missions ->


Post link
A smart app to help those living with diabetesThere are approximately 30.3 million Americans living

A smart app to help those living with diabetes

There are approximately 30.3 million Americans living with diabetes – and 1.5 million new cases are being diagnosed every year. To help people with diabetes, Medtronic partnered with IBM to build an intelligent digital application, called Sugar.IQ, that uses machine learning to provide personalized, real-time insights and help predict the likelihood of hypoglycemia—a state of dangerously low blood sugar that can impact the brain’s ability to function—up to 4 hours in advance. IBM is proud to have helped Medtronic put smart technology to work to help those living with diabetes.

Learn more about Sugar.IQ->


Post link
IBM and Nanotechnology Nanotechnology is the area of science and innovation concerned with material

IBM and Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is the area of science and innovation concerned with material of less than 100 nanometers. Specifically, it involves the control and manipulation of individual atoms and molecules. On this day in 1979, IBM created the smallest electronic circuit elements ever reported. The nano devices had a thickness of only 100 by 200 atomic diameters – that’s smaller than the fibers of a human nerve. This breakthrough was one of the first steps in the still-ongoing development of nanotechnology. Today, IBM scientists continue to explore and improve the design of semiconductors and computer chips, making them smaller, smarter and more energy efficient. It’s another way IBM is investing in practical technology development for the future.

Learn more about nanotechnology ->


Post link
IBM 3525 Card Punch: Innovating an InnovationIBM was one of the first companies to begin manufacturi

IBM 3525 Card Punch: Innovating an Innovation

IBM was one of the first companies to begin manufacturing punched cards. For almost four decades, punched cards were the major medium for storing, sorting and reporting data processed first through punched card equipment and—later—computers. Colloquially known as “IBM cards,” the punched cards were so embedded in business operations that by the 1950s, they represented over 20% of IBM’s revenue. On this day in 1971, IBM announced a new version of the IBM 3525 Card Punch replacing incandescent lamps with LEDs—a new technology at the time—to read punched cards. While the punched card may now be a thing of the past, LEDs are as relevant as ever, with new applications being actively developed. In retrospect, with a bit of serendipity, one great innovation passed the baton to another.

Learn more about the long history of the punched card ->


Post link

neil-gaiman:

wisteria-lodge:

image

I didn’t. I didn’t want to be this person. But Aziraphale is sitting RIGHT THERE looking like A TOTALLY RESPECTABLE Roman citizen circa 40 AD. Maybe the hair might be unusual, but the Romans LOVED blonde hair. They thought it was cool and foreign and exotic in sort of a sexy way.

But Crowley isso historically confused. And I think the production design is too good and Neil Gaiman is too on top of his game for this to be accidental. It must mean something. 

I - HAIR

image

What is on your head Crowley. Are you the emperor? Are you a victorious general currently participating in a victory parade? 

Sure, you sometimes see laurel wreathes in portraits. But FUNERAL portraits.

image

That crown is a symbolic thing, to celebrate your victories in life. It’s not STREET WEAR. 

And okay. It’s 40-41 AD. Caligula is emperor. Military chic is in. If you’re a guy, you’re wearing your hair short and un-styled (LIKE AZIRAPHALE.) Those dramatic little spit curls wouldn’t show up until at least Nero. 

image

But actually, pulling back for a second - are you appreciating the absurdity that is this hairstyle? Because it took me a second to notice that only the FRONT HALF is curled.

image

Whichisa Roman hairstyle. But it’s a Roman LADY hairstyle. 

(It tends to get called ‘Flavian Hair’ because the Flavian era ladies of the 70s-90s got pretty extreme about it, but you still had less… dramatic versions in the 40s.)

image

That’s you, Crowley. That’s your style reference. Honestly, if you had just kept your hair long everybody would have thought you were a cool barbarian chieftain or something. 

II - CLOTHES

The black is fine. It’s eccentric, but fine. Romans wore black. Wearing black was Cato the Younger’s *thing.* It gets associated with mourning and/or protest, but it would have been really visually confusing to have Crowley wear some other color. This gets a pass.

Nope, my question is about his articles of clothing. There’s a charcoal grey garment that seems to be a toga + undershirt. It’s looped over Crowley’s arm, which is a classic toga give away. 

image

That part’s fine. But over the top, he’s wearing a true black… short cape? Shawl? it’s really hard to tell, because whatever it is, he is NOT wearing it correctly (is it folded in half?) Also, that irregular red zigzag pattern is very strange and I do not recognize it from anywhere.Seriously, I can’t even decide on a continentfor this garment.

III - JEWELRY

Emperor Nero usually gets credit for inventing the first sunglasses, after he started watching gladiators fight though a green gemstone. He won’t be emperor for about ten years. But hey, he probably got the idea from somewhere.And dark glasses are just a really sensible way to hide your snakey eyes. This is also the first time we see Crowley put up some proper emotional barriers, so it’s a good place for the glasses to be introduced. (@theladyzephyr has a wonderful meta that goes into a lot more detail here.) 

So the sunglasses are good. BUT THAT BROOCH.

Okay. This is Aziraphale wearing a fibula plate brooch

image

It’s a really Roman style, and a really Roman shape (a “pelta”)

image

I’ve never seen one that looks like angel wings, but a Roman citizen is going to look at that and see a soppily patriotic Imperial Eagle. How nice that this lovely man from Germania/Greece has made some money and become such an exemplary citizen!

But Crowley is wearing a penannular (pin-and-ring) brooch

image

That’s not roman. That’s a style from the British Isles (Irish, Pictish, Scottish, Welsh.) It says barbarian, boonies, outskirts of the civilized world. 

image

And nobody @ me with pictures of pin-and-ring brooches from Rome. Those are small, cheap, and undecorated. They’re the cultural equivalent of safety pins. Thisis patterned like a snake, and it’s the size of Crowley’s palm. 

image

AND THAT’S ANOTHER THING. They didn’t do snake-themed jewelry in the British isles. Snakes didn’t have the best cultural associations there, and there weren’t too many of them there to begin with. This isn’t something Crowley picked up because “hey, a snake, cool,” and then got attached too. This must have been commissioned special. 

But you know who LOVED snake jewelry? 

ROMANS. 

image
image
image

Romans associated snakes with healing and rebirth - clinics sometimes had lil snakes crawling around on the ground to give the place good vibes. 

You cannot tell me that Crowley could have existed in Rome for any length of time and not picked up some of this jewelry. Which leads me to my conclusion:

IV - CROWLEY IS EXTREMELY NEW IN TOWN

The unfashionable pin and hair? The clothing draped the wrong way? The cultural colorblindness of wearing a laurel crown when you’re not supposed to? Crowley looks like a tacky tourist because he is one. He’s not staying here long, he “just nipped in for a quick temptation.”

He’s in a bad mod because he’s had an awful day, everyone keeps looking at him funny, the temptation was a complete bust, he has culture shock, and now he’s just trying to get a drink. But they don’t have any PROPER drinks like ALE or MEAD here, so he just orders “whatever’s drinkable.” He’s even not sure what they drink in Rome. 

But then Aziraphale shows up and invites him to lunch some place fashionable. So everything’s going to be okay.

Good Omens fandom is the Best Fandom.

In our new #ToxicTwitter study, our sample group of women, on average, received 1 abusive or problem

In our new #ToxicTwitter study, our sample group of women, on average, received 1 abusive or problematic tweet every 30 seconds. http://fal.cn/rilW


Post link

Some days are better

I always complain so today I’d like to say something positive. I got through the wash day of ChIP and got a western to primary antibody before 1pm! That’s pretty awesome. So, some days are still exciting

fuckingimpala:

I’m not anywhere near a gun specialist, but I’ve been raised around them and I know enough that I can tell you most things on tv you see guns doing is bullshit. So here are some simple tips:

  • There is no muzzle flash when a shot gun or hand gun is fired. Never. Not once. Not on hand guns or shot guns have I ever seen a muzzle flash in real life.
  • Guns are fucking loud. Shot guns are louder than hand guns, but if you’re not wearing protective gear, even hand guns are fuck all loud and can blow out your hearing for a while.
  • Bullet shells are hot. If they come out of the gun and touch you, on clothes or not, they will burn you. They literally just went through a mini explosion and came out of hot metal.
  • On that note: After firing, the barrel of a gun and the muzzle of a gun are hot. Hot enough to burn you. No one experienced with guns is going to grab the barrel of a shot gun after it was just fired in their face.
  • Contrary to Wanted you can not bend the trajectory of a bullet. Like, that literally doesn’t make any sense if you know anything about any sorts of physics.
  • Fucking aim. Like, very very experienced shooters can whip a gun out of a holster (or lord forbid the waist line of their pants) and maybe shoot somewhere near where they intended, but that’s also if they know their gun. But, yeah, there is no instinctual dead shot in the heart. Hence why hunting is fucking hard and why shooters that have been hunting/shooting for twenty to fifty years have a hard time dropping a buck.
  • There’s this thing called a kick back. So, the way guns work is that their is basically a mini explosion that happens in the gun and propels the bullet or shell forward through the barrel and out the muzzle. This explosion, in all guns, not just shot guns and high caliber rifles, can cause the gun to jerk back and can push back the entire body of an unexperienced shooter. It really hurts your shoulder, too.

So, there you go. If you have any questions you can ask me and if I don’t know the answer I can ask my dad or grandpa.

Dreams and Dream Interpretation in Judaism

This is the first of a two-part post exploring how to pull from my Jewish roots to make working with dreams a bigger part of my witchcraft practice. This first post will focus on examples of the belief that dreams hold significant spiritual meaning and of dream interpretations in Jewish tradition. My second post will focus on specific practices I use to induce or interpret dreams. (more…)

View On WordPress

We already knew that vegan was best, now we break down some myths.
We already knew that vegan was best, now we break down some myths.

We already knew that vegan was best, now we break down some myths.

Sticking to a low-fat, vegan diet may help people with multiple sclerosis fight fatigue, according to a new study presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s annual meeting in Philadelphia.

The study, which began in 2008, is the first randomized-controlled trial to examine the effect of a low fat vegan diet on managing MS, an…

View On WordPress

How peckish penguins find their food Animals have used the same technique to search for food that’s How peckish penguins find their food Animals have used the same technique to search for food that’s How peckish penguins find their food Animals have used the same technique to search for food that’s

How peckish penguins find their food 

Animals have used the same technique to search for food that’s in short supply for at least 50 million years, a BBSRC-funded study suggests.

Creatures including penguins search for food using a mathematical pattern of movement called a Lévy walk. It might sound complex, but it is a random search strategy made up of small steps and a few larger steps. Although a Lévy walk is random, it’s the most efficient way to find food when it’s scarce.

Finding food in a timely fashion could be a matter of life or death. Choose the wrong direction and it could be curtains. But moving in a random search pattern is mathematically the best way to find isolated food. 

Read more

Image credit: Christopher Michel

Stay tuned for more (biological) festivities…


Post link

Plants vs obesity 

Seaweed isn’t technically a plant, but it does have some serious plant power.

Researchers found that alginate from seaweeds, especially kelp, helps to stop the body from digesting fat. And we don’t get the side effects that come with other obesity treatments. Alginate is in lots of foods we eat, but there isn’t enough to do the trick.

Fat busting alginates are easily extracted and incorporated into other foods. When researchers used it in bread, tasters actually preferred the seaweed bread. No seaweed flavour, same great texture, extra fat busting magic.

This is one more way that everyday plants (and seaweed) are doing amazing things. 

#seaweed    #health    #plant power    #plants    #seaweeds    #alginate    #healthy    #obesity    #science    #nutrition    #research    #biology    #animation    #science animation    

Be part of an important study on the genetics of sexual orientation

·        Have you had your DNA analyzed by 23andMe or Ancestry?

·        Are you 18 years or older?

If you answered YES to these questions, you are eligible to participate in a study on sexual orientation.

The purpose of this research study is to understand how genetics may influence people’s personalities and sexual orientation. If you take part in this online study, we will instruct you how to find your genetic data file on your 23andMe account and upload it to our secure website. We will also ask you to complete a series of questionnaires on your personality and sexual behavior.

Time required to complete the study should be about 15-25 minutes.

Anyone 18 years or older who has been sexually active and has had a 23andMe or Ancestry analysis is eligible to participate, regardless of sexual orientation.

Please follow this link to begin the study:

https://pennstate.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_e5Vi2kF7dFeGGr3

This study is being conducted by the Department of Anthropology at Penn State University, 409 Carpenter Building, University Park, PA.

Please contact the study coordinator Heather Self ([email protected]) or the principal investigator David Puts ([email protected]) for further information.

Be part of an important study on the genetics of sexual orientation

·        Have you had your DNA analyzed by 23andMe or Ancestry?

·        Are you 18 years or older?

If you answered YES to these questions, you are eligible to participate in a study on sexual orientation.

The purpose of this research study is to understand how genetics may influence people’s personalities and sexual orientation. If you take part in this online study, we will instruct you how to find your genetic data file on your 23andMe account and upload it to our secure website. We will also ask you to complete a series of questionnaires on your personality and sexual behavior.

Time required to complete the study should be about 15-25 minutes.

Anyone 18 years or older who has been sexually active and has had a 23andMe or Ancestry analysis is eligible to participate, regardless of sexual orientation.

Please follow this link to begin the study:

https://pennstate.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_e5Vi2kF7dFeGGr3

This study is being conducted by the Department of Anthropology at Penn State University, 409 Carpenter Building, University Park, PA.

Please contact the study coordinator Heather Self ([email protected]) or the principal investigator David Puts ([email protected]) for further information.

Be part of an important study on the genetics of sexual orientation

·        Have you had your DNA analyzed by 23andMe or Ancestry?

·        Are you 18 years or older?

If you answered YES to these questions, you are eligible to participate in a study on sexual orientation.

The purpose of this research study is to understand how genetics may influence people’s personalities and sexual orientation. If you take part in this online study, we will instruct you how to find your genetic data file on your 23andMe account and upload it to our secure website. We will also ask you to complete a series of questionnaires on your personality and sexual behavior.

Time required to complete the study should be about 15-25 minutes.

Anyone 18 years or older who has been sexually active and has had a 23andMe or Ancestry analysis is eligible to participate, regardless of sexual orientation.

Please follow this link to begin the study:

https://pennstate.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_e5Vi2kF7dFeGGr3

This study is being conducted by the Department of Anthropology at Penn State University, 409 Carpenter Building, University Park, PA.

Please contact the study coordinator Heather Self ([email protected]) or the principal investigator David Puts ([email protected]) for further information.

fixyourwritinghabits:

writing-questions-answered:

I get a lot of Asks from people who say they Googled their topic but didn’t find anything. Then I Google it and find a ton of resources. I prefer to think that this is because internet research can be daunting, so I am putting together this little guide in hopes of making internet research a little easier.

Step One - Reduce your topic to the fewest number of words you can and try Googling it. For example, if your protagonist is a fireman, try Googling:

  • Fireman
  • Firemen

Step Two - Put the information you need into question form and Google it. For example, for your fireman character, you will need to know what it’s like to actually be a fireman. Try Googling:

  • What’s it like to be a fireman?
  • What does a fireman do?
  • What is a fireman’s life like?

Step Three - Think of different statements that describe the information you’re looking for. For example, if you want to know what it’s like in a firehouse, try Googling:

  • Life inside a firehouse
  • Fireman daily routines

Step Four - See if there are any alternative words you could use to describe your topic and Google those. For example:

  • Fireman/Firefighter
  • Firehouse/Fire Station/Fire Department
  • Fire Truck/Fire Engine

Step Five - Search for personal points-of-view by searching for blogs, interviews, forum posts, and experience essays. Using a fireman as an example, you could search for:

  • “Fireman Blog”
  • “Interview with a firefighter”
  • “My experience as a firefighter”

You can also search for an IamA (I am a…), which is a form of Ask Me Anything on Reddit. IamAs are posted by people with interesting jobs or careers who open themselves up to questions from other Reddit members. Reading through an IamA on your topic (if there is one) is a great way to learn from the personal point-of-view of an expert.

Step Six - Search for your topic on YouTube. I know it sounds crazy, but just do it. You never know what you might find. Case in point:

Now, Let’s Talk About Results:

When you type a search term into Google, you’re likely to get millions of results. That can be very daunting if you’re not entirely sure what you’re looking for. So, how do you wade through all of that information to find what you’re looking for?

To start with, you should be able to find enough information to help you within the first three pages of results. As you read down each page of results, just ignore things that obviously don’t pertain to your search, and when you see something that might pertain to your search, right-click on the result and then left-click “open in a new tab.”

Let’s take a look at what comes up for “fireman”:

image

Clearly, we’re not looking for a Little Wayne song, so we can ignore that. Definitions might offer helpful information, but you probably already know the definition of your topic. Images can be helpful, but ignore them unless you need a visual. Wikipedia links, though not always accurate, are always worth opening. The article will give you a helpful overview of the topic—just make sure to double-check any facts you note down. So, one result for the first page isn’t bad. Pages two and three offered a few more worth opening.

Now, let’s look at the results for “interview with a firefighter”:

image

Any search for a career plus “interview” is likely to bring up tips for people who are interviewing for a job in that career. In this case, most of the results on the first page were interviewing tips for prospective firefighters. However, there was one helpful hit—a video interview with a firefighter. That is exactly what we were looking for, so we’ll open up that tab. Once again, pages two and three had a few more links to actual interviews with firefighters as opposed to interviewing tips.

Once you have three to five tabs open, you can start looking through each one to gather information on your topic. You can jot the notes down in a notebook, or you can open up a Notepad document (just be sure to save it a lot) and jot down your notes in there. It is also helpful to print out articles or interviews if you can, and then use a highlighter to keep track of important information.

The three most important things you can do when doing internet research are:

1) Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed by all the information. Just take one result at a time and keep going until you have enough helpful information.

2) Be patient. While you should be able to find a lot of helpful information within the first few pages of results, sometimes you may need to look at several pages or try several different search terms.

3) Don’t give up! Research is important to your novel, and you’re really the only one who knows exactly what information you need. It may take hours or even days, but stick with it until you find the information you’re looking for. Sometimes a new search term to try will hit you out-of-the-blue, and that’s the one that brings up all the information you could want.

Good luck and happy researching!





THANK YOU SO MUCH

Research != practice

This is a reminder to myself because I often get caught up in my own deep lore and neglect to study other cultures.

There’s a part of me that’s strangely afraid of researching other magical cultures as much as I research my own. It’s an irrational fear I have that I’d be somehow disturbing or dishonoring that culture by simply looking into its knowledge - like a fear that my brain might be “appropriating” their tradition simply by knowing anything about it.

So I have to remind myself, that looking at intentionally-written existing resources in order to see new perspectives is actually the opposite of “appropriating” that culture - if a resource was intentionally given to the world from people of that culture, then I’d actually be doing a disservice to those who cared enough to document and share their lives.

My magical investigation should, and must, go beyond self-understanding. There is a massive difference between learning and practicing; and I can practice my existing framework without ever feeling a need to “adopt” other frameworks just because I am learning lessons from other people who do practice those frameworks.

loading