Therapeutic Headgear December 25, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Applications, Awesome, Brain, Geek Stuff, Science, Star Trek Technology, Uncategorizable.add a comment
I have alluded to traumatic brain injury treatments in this space before, but more reputable journals can now be cited regarding the use of red LEDs to stimulate cognitive function by exciting cytochrome C and thereby enhancing the various reactions that use ATP—which is nearly all of them. Apparently simply irradiating patients with red LEDs is enough to gain some cognitive enhancement.
Who would have imagined it (besides Star Trek, of course)?
As a citizen scientist I felt the urge to test this myself and made a LED hat for my sainted, white-haired mother to treat herself with. The 300 red LEDs (LE Lampux 12V Flexible LED Strip Lights
Note the festive holiday placemat. This is what I did waiting for Newtonmas dinner. Here it is in therapeutic mode:
And in a non-blinded study:
So, if you want one of these, leave a comment and reply info. I could build you one (for a fee).
Homework:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3953713/#B1
http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/1.NPh.5.1.011004
A Temple of Greed In Las Vegas December 25, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Photography, Uncategorizable.add a comment
Just kidding; it’s the Morman temple in Oakland, California. The resemblance between it and any other temple of mammon must surely be coincidence.
Right?
Pretty Sure I Really Saw This December 25, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Mutants, Photography, Uncategorizable.add a comment
but I did just get out of therapy.
Your call.
Spycam File Transfer December 14, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Applications, Awesome, Geek Stuff, Toys.add a comment
Here’s a scary little proof of concept: an Android smart phone (HTC One XL) with the ThruGlassXfer app on it is held facing the laptop screen so that the phone’s primary camera can clearly read the displayed QR codes. The codes change rapidly, since they reflect an encoded file being transferred by light—no connection required.
Displaying binary data as a QR code required encoding the file using ThruKeyboardXfer (TKXf) which in turn required a USB HID keyboard, attached to this theoretically non-connected computer by emulating a keyboard.
Girl Genius Radio Theater December 13, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Awesome, Brilliant words, Webcomics.add a comment
A collection of breezy radio script readings by the Foglios and various fans and acquaintances are available here. Go listen to them all. I promise a very good time.
Going Wireless on Samsung i9250 December 13, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Applications, Awesome, Star Trek Technology, Toys.add a comment
The worst thing in the cell phone world is having a smart phone and no way to charge it or get data to and from it. It’s worse if you develop apps for it and can’t load them. I had a Windows CE phone and it eventually died at the USB connection…never again.
My now two-year-old Samsung Galaxy S3 i9250 phone can be made wireless with a wireless charging hack and ADB Wireless. Android Device Bridge is a piece of software that allows several operations to be run from one’s PC keyboard, like loading new software…but usually it requires a USB connection. Enter ADB Wireless…which requires the phone be rooted. Rooting a phone is a slightly risky procedure, if you are under warranty—I’m not. I rooted it with Kingo ROOT software, and then ran ADB Wireless. I can now load my self-developed apps without a USB cable.
Additionally, I use WiFi File Transfer Pro to move files to and from my phone, so that’s one more source of non-wired interface (it uses your PC’s browser to connect to your phone via a web server on the phone; an elegant solution I feel).
The wireless charging hack is a little trickier, but only because you have to take apart the phone, install the Palm Pre Touchstone Charging Kit
Another nice addition which can amaze and confuse is the Tasker app, which can allow you to automate quite a few little things, depending on your focus and obsession (“Tasker is a rabbit hole that brings opportunity to focus and obsess.”), like turning on WiFi when home, turning it off when leaving, turning on Bluetooth when driving and charging..none of which I have done yet.
But I’ll get to it, Real Soon Now. Honest.
Fermi Paradox Solved! December 12, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Awesome, Brilliant words, Geek Stuff, Star Trek Technology.add a comment
“Beams of neutrinos have been proposed as a vehicle for communications under unusual circumstances, such as direct point-to-point global communication, communication with submarines, secure communications and interstellar communication. We report on the performance of a low-rate communications link established using the NuMI beam line and the MINERvA detector at Fermilab. The link achieved a decoded data rate of 0.1 bits/sec with a bit error rate of 1% over a distance of 1.035 km, including 240 m of earth. “ — http://arxiv.org/abs/1203.28471
Seriously, this is why SETI never sees the little green men; we’re using radio. All the cool kids are using modified neutrino emissions (or maybe gravity waves).
1. This paper has a lovely section devoted to authors’ names: D. D. Stancil, P. Adamson, M. Alania, L. Aliaga, M. Andrews, C. Araujo Del Castillo, L. Bagby, J. L. Bazo Alba, A. Bodek, D. Boehnlein, R. Bradford, W. K. Brooks, H. Budd, A. Butkevich, D. A. M. Caicedo, D. P. Capista, C. M. Castromonte, A. Chamorro, E. Charlton, M. E. Christy, J. Chvojka, P. D. Conrow, I. Danko, M. Day, J. Devan, J. M. Downey, S. A. Dytman, B. Eberly, J. R. Fein, J. Felix, L. Fields, G. A. Fiorentini, A. M. Gago, H. Gallagher, R. Gran, J. Grange, J. Griffin, T. Griffin, E. Hahn, D. A. Harris, A. Higuera, J. A. Hobbs, C. M. Hoffman, B. L. Hughes, K. Hurtado, A. Judd, T. Kafka, K. Kephart, J. Kilmer, M. Kordosky, S. A. Kulagin, V. A. Kuznetsov, M. Lanari, T. Le, H. Lee, L. Loiacono, G. Maggi, E. Maher, S. Manly, W. A. Mann, C. M. Marshall, K. S. McFarland, A. Mislivec, A. M. McGowan, et al. (48 additional authors not shown)
Procrastination by Punctuation December 12, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Awesome, Books, Brain, Brilliant words, Geek Stuff.add a comment
On the List That Cannot be Named, there is a lively week-long (and still ongoing) discussion of letters that didn’t make it into the alphabet. This alone is Stuff I Like, but there is a long parody which contains this snippet, duly appreciated:
>>> Of all the many characters,
>>> Old English to adorn,
>>> There are a few that no one here knew,
>>> Like Yogh and Ash and Thorn.
>>> …
>>
>> =v= That’s downright awesome. Did you write it?
>> </Lazyweb>
>> <_Jym_>
>
> Indeed. The levels of creativity produced by finals procrastination
> astound me.
> – Ray
Wait till you get to PhD thesis avoidance.
Future Cookies December 4, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Awesome, Geek Stuff, Toys.add a comment
This joy can be found here: 3D Spaceship Cookie Cutters
Be On the Lookout For Brains—100 Brains in Jars December 3, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Brain, Mutants.add a comment
The University of Texas at Austin is missing about 100 brains – about half of the specimens the university had in a collection of brains preserved in jars of formaldehyde. in the basement
One of the missing brains is believed to have belonged to clock tower sniper Charles Whitman, who was also reportedly the youngest person in the world ever to become an Eagle Scout.
"It’s entirely possible word got around among undergraduates and people started swiping them for living rooms or Halloween pranks."
The university’s agreement with the hospital required the school to remove any data that might identify the person from whom the brain came. However, Schallert said Whitman’s brain likely was part of the collection.
"It would make sense it would be in this group. We can’t find that brain," he said.
What a brain in a jar may look like.
EXCITING UPDATE: Brains have been found at the University’s sister campus in San Antonio. “They read a media report of the missing brains, and they called to say: ‘We got those brains!’"
Damn. I was looking forward to a SyFy original TV series in which a handsome couple hunts down the brain of the week. Maybe I will have to pitch it to them myself.
A Blast of Coffee, Please December 2, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Awesome, Brain, Toys.add a comment
From Big Mouth Toys on Amazon.com
Russian Satellite View of Earth December 2, 2014
Posted by stuffilikenet in Uncategorized.add a comment
It’s 3840×2160.
Stuffilike.net 