Fed2 Star - August 12, 2018 - page 1 (of 2)
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Fiona Craig
Aug 12, 2018, 7:47:03 AM8/12/18
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Star
Earthdate August 12, 2018
[This is a subscription mailing list. Details about how to stop
receiving it are at the foot of the email.]
For a fancy formatted version go the Fed2 Star website:
http://www.ibgames.net/fednews/current/index.html
In this week’s Fed2 Star: not much going on in Fed DataSpace, extreme
cold for space experiments, rundown of reasons why robot cars came a
cropper, project to build your very own planetary exploration rover,
improving deodorants to better banish BO, internet closed to stop
cheating students, robots set to clean offices in Singapore, why flying
cars haven’t become a real thing, and some close-up pictures of an
asteroid. Plus Winding Down, the tech newsletter from Alan.
Official News part one
THE SUMMERTIME SILLY SEASON IS IN FULL SWING
by Hazed
Back from our news break, the newsdroids are finding it hard to garner
much in the way of news.
The Galactic Administration, never much of a hive of activity at the
best of times, seems to have closed up shop as all the politicians have
taken off for holidays and the bureaucrats who are left are just going
through the motions, showing up for just long enough to draw their pay
packets before leaving again for “urgent” meetings or “vital” lunch
appointments that last all afternoon.
Even the galaxy’s celebrities, who can usually be relied upon to provide
newsworthy gossip and scandal, seem to have gone into some kind of
slowdown. We’ve heard nary a hint of an extra-marital affair, an arrest
for appalling behaviour, or a falling out between people that used to be
best friends and/or lovers.
What’s a poor newsdroid to do?
Well, we will struggle on to bring you an issue for the next couple of
weeks, before taking our next break, to coincide with the late summer
public holiday in the UK.
REAL LIFE NEWS: CREATING THE COLDEST PLACE IN THE KNOWN UNIVERSE ON THE ISS
by Hazed
Experiments being run on the International Space Station will create the
coldest spot in space. NASA’s Cold Atom Laboratory (CAL) will start
producing ultra-cold atoms, called Bose-Einstein condensates, which are
cooled to 10 millionth of one Kelvin above absolute zero.
The experiments are part of a study being carried out in microgravity on
quantum mechanics and the fundamental nature of matter.
Quantum weirdness happens at the extreme scales – when things are very
small, or very fast, or in this case very cold. The source article
explains in detail exactly what happens when something is cooled down to
as close to absolute zero as possible.
The CAL is currently being calibrated, and it will start operating
properly in September.
Source: https://newatlas.com/iss-absolute-zero-cal/55665/
REAL LIFE NEWS: SELF-DRIVING CAR SCREW-UPS REVEALED IN REPORTS
by Hazed
Eight companies which are testing self-driving cars on the roads of
California have been required to submit reports about “disengagements” –
incidents when a human backup driver has to take over from the robotic
car. These reports show just how far the technology has to go.
The problems include, as expected, hardware and software failures. But
they also highlight problems to do with the way the cars sense their
environment, and how they manoeuvre on the road. Some show that the cars
struggle to deal with crowds of pedestrian, or with badly-marked lanes.
Many of the problems appeared in reports from more than one company: for
example, misread traffic lights, drifting out of lanes, and problems
with braking. Read the source article for the full list of things that
went wrong.
One thing that always seems to cause the robot cars difficulties is when
human drivers break the rules. If other drivers fail to yield when they
should, run stop signs, or cut in front of the robot cars, the safety
drivers have to take over because the self-driving cars can’t cope.
So it’s going to be a while before self-driving cars are ready to be
rolled out for use outside of these test conditions.
Source:
https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/05/01/self-driving-cars-shortcomings-revealed-in-dmv-reports/
REAL LIFE NEWS: BUILD YOUR OWN MARS ROVER
by Hazed
If you’re looking for a project to keep the kids quiet this summer
holiday, why not help them to build their very own planet-exploring
rover? NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab has just released the plans for a
scaled-down version of the six-wheeled rovers that get sent to other
planets.
The plans are for a rover that is one-sixth the size of the real thing,
and it uses mostly off-the-shelf parts. NASA estimates they can be had
for a total of $2,500.
The control system for the mini-rover is a Raspberry Pi which means it
can be controlled by devices such as game controllers or Android apps.
Interested? Check out the article, which has a link to the open source
rover project.
Source: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/08/02/nasa_open_source_rover/
REAL LIFE NEWS: A BETTER WAY TO BANISH BODY ODOUR
by Hazed
Experts investigating skin bacteria think they’ve come up with a better
deodorant to deal with stinky armpits. The key is to understand how the
bacteria creates a smell from sweat which is virtually odourless.
Two teams of scientists, from the Universities of York and Oxford, have
announced that they have deciphered the first step in the metabolic
process, which could pave the way for a new generation of deodorants
designed to block the creation of the smells.
Co-author Dr Gavin Thomas, from the Department of Biology at the
University of York, said: “Modern deodorants act a bit like a nuclear
bomb in our underarms, inhibiting or killing many of the bacteria
present in order to prevent BO. Only a small number of the bacteria in
our armpits are actually responsible for bad smells.”
The culprits are Staphylococus hominis bacteria. They use a “transport”
protein to recognise and swallow up the odourless compounds secreted in
sweat that they convert into BO.
Dr Thomas and his colleagues say the trick will be to produce a new type
of deodorant which stops the transport system from functioning.
The source article on the BBC news website gives a helpful list of how
to stop BO which seem blindingly obvious – wash, use a deodorant, and
wear clean clothes. Of course the people who suffer from BO tend not to
realise they have a problem…
Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-44680255
OVER-REACTION OF THE WEEK: TO STOP STUDENTS CHEATING IN EXAMS, A COUNTRY
BLOCKS THE ENTIRE INTERNET
by Hazed
Students who are taking exams find it a lot easier to cheat these days,
what with mobile phones or other devices that connect to the internet
and let them look up answers. Teachers have trouble trying to keep up;
mobile phones get confiscated but invigilators can never know if a
conniving student has a device hidden somewhere.
Authorities in Algeria decided to take drastic action to put a stop to
cheating students. They closed down the internet, for the whole country:
fixed connections, wifi, 3G, everything.
The shutdowns lasted up to three hours each day that exams were being
held, timed to coincide with the baccalaureate exams on six separate days.
It seems a very drastic measure, but apparently the country has a
massive problem with cheating. In 2016, questions and answers began to
appear on social media before or just after the start of each exam.
Thirty-one people were arrested, including several education ministry
employees, and the authorities ordered more than 500,000 resits using
new question papers.
In 2017, mobile phone jammers were installed in the country’s 2,100 exam
centres, and access to social media sites was blocked. Late-comers were
also banned from taking the exam.
But still this was not 100% effective in stamping out cheating, so this
year some draconian measures were put in place. Not only was the
internet turned off, but exam centres were fitted with metal detectors,
and teachers and invigilators had to surrender their phones and tables.
Algerian internet users were not happy at the loss of their service
during exam times. Presumably the students who found their ability to
cheat curtailed were also unhappy!
Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jun/21/algeria-shuts-internet-prevent-cheating-school-exams
Earthdate August 12, 2018
[This is a subscription mailing list. Details about how to stop
receiving it are at the foot of the email.]
For a fancy formatted version go the Fed2 Star website:
http://www.ibgames.net/fednews/current/index.html
In this week’s Fed2 Star: not much going on in Fed DataSpace, extreme
cold for space experiments, rundown of reasons why robot cars came a
cropper, project to build your very own planetary exploration rover,
improving deodorants to better banish BO, internet closed to stop
cheating students, robots set to clean offices in Singapore, why flying
cars haven’t become a real thing, and some close-up pictures of an
asteroid. Plus Winding Down, the tech newsletter from Alan.
Official News part one
THE SUMMERTIME SILLY SEASON IS IN FULL SWING
by Hazed
Back from our news break, the newsdroids are finding it hard to garner
much in the way of news.
The Galactic Administration, never much of a hive of activity at the
best of times, seems to have closed up shop as all the politicians have
taken off for holidays and the bureaucrats who are left are just going
through the motions, showing up for just long enough to draw their pay
packets before leaving again for “urgent” meetings or “vital” lunch
appointments that last all afternoon.
Even the galaxy’s celebrities, who can usually be relied upon to provide
newsworthy gossip and scandal, seem to have gone into some kind of
slowdown. We’ve heard nary a hint of an extra-marital affair, an arrest
for appalling behaviour, or a falling out between people that used to be
best friends and/or lovers.
What’s a poor newsdroid to do?
Well, we will struggle on to bring you an issue for the next couple of
weeks, before taking our next break, to coincide with the late summer
public holiday in the UK.
REAL LIFE NEWS: CREATING THE COLDEST PLACE IN THE KNOWN UNIVERSE ON THE ISS
by Hazed
Experiments being run on the International Space Station will create the
coldest spot in space. NASA’s Cold Atom Laboratory (CAL) will start
producing ultra-cold atoms, called Bose-Einstein condensates, which are
cooled to 10 millionth of one Kelvin above absolute zero.
The experiments are part of a study being carried out in microgravity on
quantum mechanics and the fundamental nature of matter.
Quantum weirdness happens at the extreme scales – when things are very
small, or very fast, or in this case very cold. The source article
explains in detail exactly what happens when something is cooled down to
as close to absolute zero as possible.
The CAL is currently being calibrated, and it will start operating
properly in September.
Source: https://newatlas.com/iss-absolute-zero-cal/55665/
REAL LIFE NEWS: SELF-DRIVING CAR SCREW-UPS REVEALED IN REPORTS
by Hazed
Eight companies which are testing self-driving cars on the roads of
California have been required to submit reports about “disengagements” –
incidents when a human backup driver has to take over from the robotic
car. These reports show just how far the technology has to go.
The problems include, as expected, hardware and software failures. But
they also highlight problems to do with the way the cars sense their
environment, and how they manoeuvre on the road. Some show that the cars
struggle to deal with crowds of pedestrian, or with badly-marked lanes.
Many of the problems appeared in reports from more than one company: for
example, misread traffic lights, drifting out of lanes, and problems
with braking. Read the source article for the full list of things that
went wrong.
One thing that always seems to cause the robot cars difficulties is when
human drivers break the rules. If other drivers fail to yield when they
should, run stop signs, or cut in front of the robot cars, the safety
drivers have to take over because the self-driving cars can’t cope.
So it’s going to be a while before self-driving cars are ready to be
rolled out for use outside of these test conditions.
Source:
https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/05/01/self-driving-cars-shortcomings-revealed-in-dmv-reports/
REAL LIFE NEWS: BUILD YOUR OWN MARS ROVER
by Hazed
If you’re looking for a project to keep the kids quiet this summer
holiday, why not help them to build their very own planet-exploring
rover? NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab has just released the plans for a
scaled-down version of the six-wheeled rovers that get sent to other
planets.
The plans are for a rover that is one-sixth the size of the real thing,
and it uses mostly off-the-shelf parts. NASA estimates they can be had
for a total of $2,500.
The control system for the mini-rover is a Raspberry Pi which means it
can be controlled by devices such as game controllers or Android apps.
Interested? Check out the article, which has a link to the open source
rover project.
Source: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/08/02/nasa_open_source_rover/
REAL LIFE NEWS: A BETTER WAY TO BANISH BODY ODOUR
by Hazed
Experts investigating skin bacteria think they’ve come up with a better
deodorant to deal with stinky armpits. The key is to understand how the
bacteria creates a smell from sweat which is virtually odourless.
Two teams of scientists, from the Universities of York and Oxford, have
announced that they have deciphered the first step in the metabolic
process, which could pave the way for a new generation of deodorants
designed to block the creation of the smells.
Co-author Dr Gavin Thomas, from the Department of Biology at the
University of York, said: “Modern deodorants act a bit like a nuclear
bomb in our underarms, inhibiting or killing many of the bacteria
present in order to prevent BO. Only a small number of the bacteria in
our armpits are actually responsible for bad smells.”
The culprits are Staphylococus hominis bacteria. They use a “transport”
protein to recognise and swallow up the odourless compounds secreted in
sweat that they convert into BO.
Dr Thomas and his colleagues say the trick will be to produce a new type
of deodorant which stops the transport system from functioning.
The source article on the BBC news website gives a helpful list of how
to stop BO which seem blindingly obvious – wash, use a deodorant, and
wear clean clothes. Of course the people who suffer from BO tend not to
realise they have a problem…
Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-44680255
OVER-REACTION OF THE WEEK: TO STOP STUDENTS CHEATING IN EXAMS, A COUNTRY
BLOCKS THE ENTIRE INTERNET
by Hazed
Students who are taking exams find it a lot easier to cheat these days,
what with mobile phones or other devices that connect to the internet
and let them look up answers. Teachers have trouble trying to keep up;
mobile phones get confiscated but invigilators can never know if a
conniving student has a device hidden somewhere.
Authorities in Algeria decided to take drastic action to put a stop to
cheating students. They closed down the internet, for the whole country:
fixed connections, wifi, 3G, everything.
The shutdowns lasted up to three hours each day that exams were being
held, timed to coincide with the baccalaureate exams on six separate days.
It seems a very drastic measure, but apparently the country has a
massive problem with cheating. In 2016, questions and answers began to
appear on social media before or just after the start of each exam.
Thirty-one people were arrested, including several education ministry
employees, and the authorities ordered more than 500,000 resits using
new question papers.
In 2017, mobile phone jammers were installed in the country’s 2,100 exam
centres, and access to social media sites was blocked. Late-comers were
also banned from taking the exam.
But still this was not 100% effective in stamping out cheating, so this
year some draconian measures were put in place. Not only was the
internet turned off, but exam centres were fitted with metal detectors,
and teachers and invigilators had to surrender their phones and tables.
Algerian internet users were not happy at the loss of their service
during exam times. Presumably the students who found their ability to
cheat curtailed were also unhappy!
Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jun/21/algeria-shuts-internet-prevent-cheating-school-exams
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