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Assorted news and tech stories
Jun. 9th, 2008 01:20 pmDepleted uranium rounds safer for ducks - except, of course, for the fact that pure depleted uranium can spontaneously burst into flame, or that it needs to be separated from nuclear waste. In 1983, a study of 40 ducks fed a mix of mash and depleted uranium were found to be in excellent health, and the flesh rated "fair to excellent" (I doon't know if they ate it... I wouldn't). The authors concluded that depleted uranium rounds would make an excellent substitute for lead rounds which are known to cause illness in waterfowl.
Goldsmith, briefly, knows how cyanide tastes - and lived long enough to report it. According to an unconfirmed report, an unfinished suicide note left by an Indian goldsmith, it "burns the tongue and tastes acrid", although part of that might be attributed to the alcohol with which he mixed the stuff. An autopsy will confirm whether or not he died of cyanide poisoning.
Wireless technology rats out thieves - A digital camera with an Eye-Fi wireless SD card sent photos to its owner that included the faces of the two people who had stolen the camera. No word on whether the thieves were caught, but the owner got all their pictures back, and the police have clear pictures of who to look for.
Ottawa student develops efficient desalinator - The University of Ottawa graduate student developed a membrane technology that is 600% to 700% more efficient than current technology, allowing it to be power by solar energy in regions like the Middle East.
Gas exploration leads to mud volcano - which is still going strong two years later, and has caused millions of dollars with of property damage, not to mention the thousands of people that were displaced. The researchers concluded that an earthquake several days before the eruption was too small to have triggered this eruption, but there is evidence of a "kick" - an influx of fluid and gas into the borehole - in a nearby exploratory gas well, followed by a sudden and massive rise in pressure within the borehole. They suggest that a stronger bore casing might have prevented the disaster.
Goldsmith, briefly, knows how cyanide tastes - and lived long enough to report it. According to an unconfirmed report, an unfinished suicide note left by an Indian goldsmith, it "burns the tongue and tastes acrid", although part of that might be attributed to the alcohol with which he mixed the stuff. An autopsy will confirm whether or not he died of cyanide poisoning.
Wireless technology rats out thieves - A digital camera with an Eye-Fi wireless SD card sent photos to its owner that included the faces of the two people who had stolen the camera. No word on whether the thieves were caught, but the owner got all their pictures back, and the police have clear pictures of who to look for.
Ottawa student develops efficient desalinator - The University of Ottawa graduate student developed a membrane technology that is 600% to 700% more efficient than current technology, allowing it to be power by solar energy in regions like the Middle East.
Gas exploration leads to mud volcano - which is still going strong two years later, and has caused millions of dollars with of property damage, not to mention the thousands of people that were displaced. The researchers concluded that an earthquake several days before the eruption was too small to have triggered this eruption, but there is evidence of a "kick" - an influx of fluid and gas into the borehole - in a nearby exploratory gas well, followed by a sudden and massive rise in pressure within the borehole. They suggest that a stronger bore casing might have prevented the disaster.