The Express Tribune T2 - March 24

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THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MARCH 24, 2012

Explore

Stellar space There is some pretty strange stuff in space. Things that not even the strangest science fiction stories have dreamed. Some things are just so weird that even astrophysicists don’t know what they are, while others just leave you completely baffled!

Maze

Extra inches

spherical liquids

Want to add a few inches to your height? Pay a visit to outer space!

All human beings are about two inches taller in space. The human spine is like a giant spring that is being held down by gravity as we walk around on Earth. When in space, the force gravity exerts on our body is no longer there, so the spine naturally stretches out like a spring in a process called spinal elongation. The bad news? Back on Earth, they shrink back down to normal height, because they’re not really “growing,” they’re just stretching out.

Unfortunately, the extra height can bring complications, which may include backache and nerve problems.

Here on Earth, liquids tend to flow downwards and take the shape of whatever container they’re put in. But something as simple as a liquid is completely different in space!

It is because of the zero-gravity vacuum of space that liquids shape themselves into perfectly round spheres. This is because of a phenomenon called surface tension that causes water to form as a horizontal surface on Earth causes liquids to form spheres in space.

SOURCE: PREK-8.COM

Diamond star Twinkling up and above in the sky is a diamond star of 10 billion trillion trillion carats, completely outclassing even the largest diamond on Earth.

The huge cosmic diamond — technically known as BPM 37093 — is actually a crystallized white dwarf. A white dwarf is the hot core of a star, left over after the star uses up its nuclear fuel and dies. In other words, a diamond star is the burned out corpse of a star!

The white dwarf is not only radiant but also rings like a gigantic gong, undergoing constant pulsations. Astronomers expect the Sun to become a white dwarf when it dies 5 billion years from now. Some two billion years after that, the Sun’s ember core will crystallize as well, leaving a giant diamond in the centre of the solar system.

ha ha ha

Why couldn’t the astronaut book a room on the moon?

Because it was full.

Quasars

How do astronauts serve dinner?

Lasting footprints

On flying saucers.

What do you think of that new restaurant on the moon?

The food’s great but it has no atmosphere.

How many astronomers does it take to change a light bulb?

None, astronomers aren’t scared of the dark.

Why does NASA believe there might be life on Mars?

The CD player was stolen from their Mars rover.

When do astronauts eat their lunch?

Due to the absence of air and wind on the moon, all astronaut footprints last for millions of years, longer than the most permanent structures on Earth. As long as a meteor or any other space particle does not hit the moon, any impressions made into its surface will virtually last forever. Now we know why Neil Armstrong’s left boot print, the one that made history, is still up there, most likely as fresh and new as when it was made over 42 years ago.

At launch time.

Which chocolate bars do you eat in space?

Short for “quasi-stellar radio source, many astronomers believe that quasars are the most distant objects yet detected in the universe. Quasars are believed to produce their energy from massive black holes in the center of the galaxies in which the quasars are located. Due to their great distance from Earth, energy from quasars takes billions of years to reach the Earth’s atmosphere. For this reason, the study of quasars can provide astronomers with information about the early stages of the universe.

Perhaps more interesting, Quasars give off enormous amounts of energy — they can be a trillion times brighter than the Sun!

Mars bars

How to make

Bow wreath Here is how to make a beautiful wreath using paper and ribbon.

Materials needed: • • • •

Craft Wire (12-inches or more) Hot glue gun Pastel paper (printer paper) Ribbon (any width)

Instructions: With the pastel paper, cut eight inch strips on each piece of paper. Then fold each strip to a 4 inch strip.

You will have several four inch strips of different colours when you will be finished. Hot glue the end of the strips as

you will be doing several bows to do the wreath.

With the wire, form a 12 inch (or larger) circle. Take each bow and starting at the top of the circle, hot glue each bow to the wire form. Make sure you are wearing protective gloves using hot glue. At the back of each bow, put a strip of paper so that the hot glue is not detected at the back.

Use iridescent pink curly ribbon and wrap it around the wreath at different points and then make a bow at the top.

You can use any type of ribbon you have to make the bow.

SOURCE: FAMILYCRAFTS.ABOUT.COM

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THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MARCH 24, 2012

Teen spirit

health tips

All work and no play!

Balancing academics and extracurriculars is essential for all school goers

Jaundice: When yellow isn’t a pretty color GOHAR WARRAICH

Someone says Hepatitis and you immediately take a step back as your heart skips a beat. It is not usually because it is a scary disease but rather us being uninformed and uneducated.

Just remember that viruses are responsible for the aforementioned illness. Hepatitis basically means injury of the liver, an organ with many vital functions necessary for the continuity of life, present on the right side of the body, a little underneath our rib cage. It is a short lived condition with a variable presentation or severity of illness. It can range from mild flu like symptoms to very rarely critical liver injury or inflammation. Patients may experience exhaustion and lethargy. The patient can be feverish, throwing up or nauseous. He or she may lose their appetite, feel abdominal pain and generalized muscle aches. Further, the skin might be tinged yellow, with prominent coloration of the whites of the eyes — a state known as jaundice. The word ‘jaundice’ is how Hepatitis A is often recalled when one retells their past illnesses — and it is derived from words referring to the said color. Its presence and how advanced it is, is dependent on individual cases.

Jaundice is not a telltale sign of Hepatitis A and is present in a multitude of other diseases, hence, visiting the doctor is of utmost importance. It is caused by a deposition of a yellow colored pigment arising out of the breakdown of old red blood cells. Normally it is processed by the liver and removed from the body via stool. In Hepatitis A though stools passed is light colored whereas the urine is a darker shade of yellow.

Hepatitis A is caught mostly by the ‘fecal-oral route’ and contaminated water. Repelling information as it is, it happens when food is handled or prepared by people suffering from the virus, even if they are not experiencing symptoms, or by those who have not washed their hands properly after a trip to the bathroom. It is highly contagious, with one of the biggest outbreaks affecting 601 people in Mexico, spread via green onions. Other causes are due to sharing of needles, getting transfused with contaminated blood or blood products and so on.

The treatment is mainly supportive. Rest up as there is a significant element of fatigue. If solid diet is not well tolerated, it is advisable to maintain a caloric intake with plenty of juices, milk and small snacks. Diets rich in protein and medications being taken for any other condition should be avoided to reduce the liver’s work load.

As with many other diseases, the key here is breaking the transmission cycle so that other members of the family or those around you don’t fall prey to it as well. Heat food separately and use separate utensils. Rinse hands thoroughly for at least 20 seconds and dry them off with paper towels.

AYESHA KHALID

right unwise to become involved in activities that don’t leave time for homework!

Before joining an activity, it is always wise to sit down with your school schedule and other activities and try to map out what’s realistic. Are you taking a class this semester that requires extra studying time? Do you need to focus on grades? Will you have time to eat, sleep, and relax? Is this activity take too much of your time? Can you give it the time it needs? Make a decision based on these answers. Don’t forget, however, that if you feel stressed out after joining the activity, it is never too late to reconsider.

It is also important to consider the different roles within groups — president, captain, participant, leader, support person. Each role is important. Being president teaches you leadership and management skills, but involves more commitment in terms of time and responsibility; being a member gives you structure and is less stressful.

Taking up activities because they look ‘good’ is also a pitfall many students fall into. Colleges look for depth as well as breadth. The best idea is to have a few longterm activities to demonstrate commitment and a few diverse activities to show that one is interested in the world around them. Get involved in community service because you care. If you try to do something like that for credit, it is only a matter of time that it will exhaust you and you may also resent the work you do.

If you can’t participate because of financial stress on your family, then explain how you found a way to overcome that disadvantage.

Your ability to express yourself in writing will get you a long way. A thoughtful explanation about your life and choices will make all the difference on your application. Also keep in mind that there are great summertime jobs or internships that can make all the difference!

It is good to try to rise above the rest and enhance your personality by exposing oneself to different challenges and experiences.

But is it really worth risking your grades is a question every student must ask before committing to an activity. And yes academics are important but are you sure you have enough downtime to catch up with your friends or hang out at the mall, order a pizza and watch TV because it may be a waste of precious time because after all, all work and no play can make you a dull boy!

One of the best perks of being in school is how much exposure you get to different activities. In addition to the academics, there are so many options available which help us overcome not just our boredom but also give us the opportunity to meet and interact with new people!

Be it team sports to theatre, debating or chess club, young leaders groups, student internship programs, literary community, environmental club, photography classes and so on, there is always a fun way to stimulate our sense and challenge ourselves.

What’s the best part about this: extracurriculars are the perfect avenue to demonstrate our experiences and achievements, skills and commitment and look above the rest when it comes to our college and university applications!

In fact, some of us try to conceal it and some of us do not, almost all students have tried to get involved in extracurricular activities because it looks ‘good’ on the resume.

As students we are conscious that whenever colleges give out any scholarships or awards they unfailingly look at our activities outside of the classroom just about as much as they look at our GPAs. We are conscious that we must place ourselves in the limelight as the ‘all-rounder’. The result of this: the vast majority of college students are guilty of “resume building”-- that is to say, many students are not involved in most of their extracurricular activities because they enjoy them, but merely because they believe it will make their resumes look good.

Many high school students get confused about priorities because they hear so many contradictory opinions. What may ultimately happen is that in a bid to do too much, they may over stretch themselves.

Being a junior in high school, I too get confused about my priorities in school, trying to figure out what would look best on my college application. One real danger that I faced was getting so wrapped up in clubs and sports that my grades began to suffer.

It took me a while to understand that extracurricular activities may be great fun, but when it comes to college admission applications, they may be important but not more than my grades!

Now, how important are extracurricular activities? Always remember that grades serve as the foundation and hence it is out-

Enterteenment!

Celebrities and their gaming addictions

Angry Birds Angelina Jolie is rumoured to be a big Angry Birds fan — so much so that she allegedly made screeching sound effects on the set of Kung Fu Panda 2 to mimic the iconic birds. Other fans of the game include Justin Bieber, Fall Out Boy lead singer Pete Wentz and Glee cast member Cory Monteith, who has tweeted that “angry birds is taking over my life.”

Scoops Pop starlet and Justin Bieber’s girlfriend Selena Gomez has confessed that she can’t get enough of the mobile app game Scoops, in which ice cream scoops fall from the sky and players have to catch them on a cone.

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THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MARCH 24, 2012

The amazing device that lets paraplegics stand

Geek Guide

The young man in this video looks like he’s riding a Segway.

But Yusuf Akturkoglu was paralyzed after falling from a horse five years ago, and he’s being mobilized by an amazing device invented by Turkish scientists. It’s going to change lives.

It’s called the Tek Robotic Mobilization Device, and it not only allows people who can’t walk get around more independently than any device has before, but it also helps them stand up on their own, which is crucial for maintaining basic health functions in people who have spinal cord injuries.

Crucial standing assistance

Indium — you may not see it but you need it NOMAN ANSARI

Liquid Crystal Displays, more popularly known as ‘LCDs’, are a vital component of today’s technology dependent world.

They can be found just about everywhere; from small devices like clocks, watches, calculators, and cell phones, to larger devices, like portable gaming systems, tablets, laptops, and LCD TVs. There are many reasons why LCDs are so much more popular than alternatives such as Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs) and Plasmas. Not only are LCDs more energy efficient, and easier to dispose of than the competition, but can be produced in just about any shape or size.

As you read this article, have a look around. In all probability there is at least one device near you which carries an LCD screen of some size. Yes, for the vast majority of us, life without these energy efficient screens is simply unimaginable, which is why there is some concern in the technology world over the predicted shortages of the element, Indium around the year 2020.

The silvery white metal, which is somewhat rare, and quite soft, is a vital ingredient in the production of LCDs when manufactured into Indium Tin Oxide (ITO).

Interestingly, when a bar of indium is bent, it emits a high-pitched sound, known as its “cry”. But, the reason why indium is such an important component of touchscreen devices is because when formed into ITO, it becomes

transparent, allowing it to conduct electricity on your device screen through thin film coatings, without becoming a visual distraction.

Zinc Ore processing residue is where indium is mainly produced from, although it is also found in ores of copper, lead, and iron. China is the world’s biggest producer of the element, but the element is also found in the South American country of Bolivia, as well as Mount Pleasant Mine in New Brunswick, Canada.

Most indium consumption is through the production of LCDs, with the technology responsible for nearly 50% of total consumption. This demand has left others dependent on the element, like solar cells manufacturers, struggling to secure supply. As a result, prices have shot up. Prices have gone up from double digit figures in 2002, to around $1000/ kg in 2012, not that many years later. A side effect of this has been an actual smuggling of the element out of China.

But, by and large, the biggest problem so far is that supplies of the element are dwindling. A high level expert group, chaired by the European Commission in 2010, has termed the element as “critical”, and warned of potential shortages in the coming decade.

Gaia Vince, a science writer and broadcaster, shares a bleak outlook writing for the BBC, “But the supply of indium cannot meet our voracious demands. Indium is harvested as a byproduct of zinc mining because this so-called ‘hitchhiker’

metal exists almost entirely in trace amounts inside deposits of other ores such as zinc and lead — sometimes as little as 1 part per million. And because indium is not mined in its own right, greater demand for it won’t necessarily lead to more being mined, according to Robert Ayres, a physicist and economist at the INSEAD Business School in France.

‘Most of the indium is just single atoms stuck inside rock that can never be utilized,’ he says.”

Meanwhile, recycling of the element has become a bigger market than actual production, but with such little recovery rates, experts feel the recycling process is too resource heavy.

Other carbon based alternatives such as Graphene do exist, but so far lack the monetary push to become viable at this moment in time.

Some experts like Tim Worstall of Forbes, however, believe the hysteria over indium supplies being ‘exhausted’ is unwarranted, “We don’t in fact run out of minerals, we never run out of minerals or the metals that we extract from them. They just become more expensive. That might well prompt us to substitute them which of course means again that we never run out of them.”

Worstall believes that if indium prices go high enough, old mines with the resource will reopen because of greater viability. In the end, whatever the case, it will require significant effort to maintain the current stability of the LCD market in the future.

Awesomely insane guns used by people

Tech Society

Instead of entering from the front like a normal wheelchair, people using the Tek RMD enter from the back of the device.

That way they don’t have to hoist themselves with a momentum that can be dangerous and is next to impossible to do alone. By attaching a thick padded strap around the hips, Yusuf maneuvers himself into the Tek RMD on his own. The device uses a suspension system that balances the weight so he can stand up with just a gentle pull. Standing for an hour or more every day is important for people who have lost movement in their legs; without the weight-bearing effect of standing, they can develop cardiovascular problems, brittle bones, pressure sores not to mention the psychological importance of eye-to-eye interpersonal contact.

Independence In the video, Yusuf calls the device to his bedside with a remotecontrol, gets himself out of bed, goes grocery shopping, maneuvers around a bookstore, and even does some things in the bathroom that we thankfully don’t observe to completion. But these these abilities that most of us take for granted every day are key to the emotional well-being of paraplegic people. The ability to squat down and easily come back to standing is key.

And while standing, Yusef’s hands are free to carry groceries or do whatever else he might need them to. Before trying out the Tek RMD, Yusuf, who was a student before his injury, rarely left his home where he lives with his parents.

Smallest dimensions The makers of Tek RMD says it’s the most compact device of its kind, which allows Yusuf to navigate crowded grocery aisles, libraries, all without knocking into people and things around him. Users still need ramps in place of stairs, but the device eliminates the need for special bathroom stalls and other facilities that allow space for bulky wheelchairs.

The Tek RMD comes in five sizes. It will be on the market in Turkey this week, and the company is looking for outlets in Europe and the United States, where it will cost about $15,000 (Rs 1,361,446). Here’s hoping insurance will cover it.

SOURCE: GIZMODO.COM

Pixels, music and projections: When art and technology collide

The duck’s foot pistol The 18th century duck’s foot pistol, so named because its four splayed barrels were shaped like the foot of a duck, was designed to take on large groups at close range. It was most popular with officers on sailing ships, who often carried a pair of them to, “discourage” potential mutineers in the cramped quarters.

Interestingly enough, you can never hit what you’re actually aiming at with a standard duck’s foot pistol. You can only hit everything else around it, because none of the four barrels point straight ahead.

Harmonica guns The 19th century lunatic musician had a tough choice to make: play an instrument, or shoot folks in the face. Now, it used to be that you had to play the people a nice harmonica solo first and then riddle them with bullets while they were clapping, but no longer!

These are “harmonica guns.”

Technically they weren’t functional harmonicas — it’s just that their loading mechanisms somewhat resembled the instrument.

The turbiaux palm-squeezer pistol

Key guns First used in the 16th century, key guns allowed a jailer to keep his weapon throughout the entire extremely vulnerable process of opening a cell door, thus never leaving him unprotected. Well, all except for the times when he’s actually using the key/barrel end of the pistol to disengage the lock. That’s right, key guns weren’t just shaped like keys to throw people off or disguise their nature as pistols — they’re both functional keys and functional pistols.

One of the smallest ever made pistol was the turbiaux palm-squeezer — designed mostly for ease of concealment rather than range or stopping power. The palm-squeezer was meant to be held with the barrel in between your fingers and the trigger squeezed with the palm.

The turbiaux could hold anywhere from eight to 10 bullets in its “turret cylinder”, which, combined with its stealthy nature, would make it seem like an assassin’s dream weapon.

Forget paint brushes and molding clay. Today’s avant-garde uses technology — computers, software code and wireless signals — for all modes of artistic expression.

The Creator’s Project, an exhibition held in San Francisco this weekend, celebrated just this type of innovation in 21stcentury art. A joint venture of Intel and Vice.com, the event is in its third year, but the 2012 gathering marked its first time in the Bay Area.

Upon entering the exhibition, attendees passed through a 40- by 40-foot grid of light and metal called Origin (which can be seen in the final slide of this gallery). Once the sun set, a number of event-goers lay at the bottom of the lattice structure, gazing up at the rippling and blinking LEDs, and taking in the undulating, almost guttural noises emanating from its core.

These people weren’t just observing this digital installation. They were becoming a part of it.

“So much of how we understand ourselves and communicate with each other is behind glass — you can’t touch it,” Jamie Zigelbaum, co-creator of an interactive piece titled Six-Forty By Four-Eighty told Wired. “We hope that by using our exhibit, you start to think a little differently about what computing and electronics can be.”

SOURCE: WIRED.COM

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THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MARCH 24, 2012

offbeat

The station that makes the sun shine at night

Buckle up for some out of space fun!

Who thought science would one day make the sun go to work at night too. Well, not really. But scientists have managed to build the first solar power station in the world that works day and night!

The Gemasolar station stands out in the plains of Andalusia, southern Spain, and one can see its central tower lit up like a beacon by 2,600 solar mirrors that surround it in an immense 195-hectare (480-acre) circle.

Santago Arias, technical director of Torresol Energy, which runs the station says, “The mechanism is very easy to explain: the panels reflect the sun’s rays on to the tower, transmitting energy at an intensity 1,000 times higher than that of the sun’s rays reaching the earth.

Energy is stored in a vat filled with molten salts at a temperature of more than 500 degrees C (930 F).

Those salts are used to produce steam to turn the turbines and produce electricity.

It is the station’s capacity to store energy that makes Gemasolar so different because it allows the plant to transmit power during the night, relying on energy it has accumulated during the day.

“I use that energy as I see fit, and not as the sun dictates,” Arias explained. SOURCE: AFP

Space tourism is expected to become a billion-dollar industry within a decade, according to a Reuters report.

A handful of companies are already planning to offer sub-orbital private space flights, most notably Virgin Galactic. In fact, television star Ashton Kutcher has already booked himself a ticket for a $200,000 (Rs18,165,920) ride aboard Virgin Galactic, which expects to begin flights in 2013.

XCOR Aerospace, another company, expects to begin testing late this year or in early 2013, and that commercial flights should begin by 2014. Tickets cost $95,000 (Rs8,628,812) per flight.

According to Space.com, there are concerns regarding the safety of the commercial spaceflight industry and space tourism companies have until October 2015 before the Federal Aviation Administration institutes safety regulations for space tourists.

Booking yourself a ticket?

Now that’s fin-credible

Imagine being under water and a shark comes towards you. Scary, isn’t it. The same happened with Eli Martinez when he was swimming off the coast of the Bahamas and a lemon shark started making its way towards him. Fortunately for Eli, he had been on many shark dives and therefore knew that the best strategy was to stay calm.

But the shark had something else in mind and to his utter surprise, not only smiled at him but left a fin outstretched for a friendly greeting.

Recalling the moment, Eli said, “At first she was swimming straight towards me, but I didn’t expect her to turn at the last moment. She tapped my palm with her fin like we were high-fiving”.

Luckily, Eli’s friend was carrying an underwater camera and managed to capture the incredible moment the grinning shark gave him a high-five!

He added: ‘”This particular shark I had encountered before. She is very laid-back, so I knew if I held my hand out she would come over. I love interacting with sharks, and spend hours with them at a time. They are very calm creatures unless they feel threatened. So as long as I didn’t do anything to alarm her she was always safe to be around.”

SOURCE: THESUN.CO.UK

German bikers dying to ride a Harley, literally.

SOURCE: HUFFINGTONPOST.COM

What would you choose?

Girls love nothing more than an elaborate wedding. But when bride-to-be Lizzie Griffiths was faced with the tough choice of getting married or paying more than £3,000 (Rs431,206) to give her pet lizard chemotherapy, she chose to save a life!

Lizzie had adopted the lizard, George, from a rescue centre last year. But when she found out that her pet had head cancer, she refused to have him put down and told fiancé Chris Fisher the cash they had saved for their wedding would pay for cancer treatment.

Lizzie, 25, of Purley, South London, said: “Chris knows George will always come first.”I fell in love with George the minute I saw him and knew I’d do anything to look after him properly. So right now we can’t afford a wedding.”

George is in remission after his treatment — the first chemotherapy for a bearded dragon in the UK. Now that’s what you call true love!

A German motorcyclist has developed a sidecar hearse fitted to a Harley-Davidson in order to transport fellow bikers to their final resting place in the style they are accustomed to.

According to the BBC Joerg Grossmann, 48, says the sidecar hearses will be available later this year, following the recent success of a prototype sidecar hearse attached to a Kawasaki. He plans to launch 10 hearses.

Grossmann expects a brisk business from bikers, anticipating up to 1,000 bookings each year in Germany from enthusiasts prepared to hire a hearse for 1,200 euros (Rs143,383) compared with about 200 euros (Rs23,897) for a normal hearse.

Grossmann said many motorcyclists were excited about the idea.”It’s something special,” he said. SOURCE: DIGITALJOURNAL.COM

The click that did not click

SOURCE: THESUN.CO.UK

Amy Winehouse to pour tea

Frog in New York

Canine nurse The friendly dog managed to succeed where many nurses and doctors were struggling.

Zeke — who suffers from a rare genetic disorder that leaves his body unable to break down protein — used his furry eight-year-old friend as a support for his wobbly little legs. Ralf — who visits the hospital every week — even got two-year-old Claire Couwenberg to walk for the first time in the five days since her surgery to remove a cancerous kidney.

Claire’s mum Marie McPhee said when her daughter was handed Ralf’s leash, she amazed everyone by standing up to take it.”As soon as she saw him, she stood up, and she very slowly, very wobbly, got on her feet and started to walk, and now you can’t stop her.”

Keeping in mind his growing popularity and more so his unique, rather miraculous talent, Rafl is quickly becoming a regular attendee of the children’s section of the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, Australia! SOURCE: THESUN.CO.UK

Amy Winehouse has been immortalised — as a teapot.

The tragic Back to Black singer is one of a range of quirky ceramics that feature offbeat famous faces.

Other subjects include teapot versions of Charles Manson, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Kim Jong-il. They are the work of Seattle-based creative duo Charles Krafft and Mike Leavitt, who have based their ‘Pitchfork Pals’ project on tabloid personalities and dark characters.

Mike explains: “Originally we were drifting towards characters from the tabloids. Eventually we broadened the theme to “evil”.

We’ve always factored marketability and the visual striking-ness of a certain person’s likeness into our decision-making as well.

Converting a face into a ceramic sculpture simply wouldn’t be worthwhile if it wasn’t somehow fun or interesting.”

Stuart McGhee has been crowned Britain’s worst photographer thanks to this shot of a glowing baby.

He beat off competition from hundreds of hopeless snappers to take the title in a competition run by photography training company RedCloudDays.co.uk.

The website compiled a shortlist of ten images from the entries of out-of-focus, poorly positioned, useless photographs, reports the Mirror. Fellow photographers and members of the public voted and Stuart’s “demon baby” came out on top, winning him free photographic training with the organisers.

He said: “I am extremely surprised to have won. Family and friends already see me as a bad photographer; this award makes it official!”

Red Cloud Days founder, Lee Bown, reportedly: “All the entries were fantastically awful. However, Stuart’s entry really ‘shone’ for us. Whilst we found all the photos funny, Stuart’s ‘glowing baby’ entry proved to be incompetent on so many levels.”

SOURCE: WEB.ORANGE.CO.UK

The wonders of a strong brew

SOURCE: ORANGE.CO.UK

Scientists have been on a roll recently with discovering new species one after another. The latest being the discovery of a new and unusual species of frog in New York.

The mottled green creature was for years mistaken as belonging to a widespread variety of the leopard frog. But now scientists realize this is new. According to the New York Times, the biologist who found the frogs, Jeremy A. Feinberg, realized that they could be a new species based on the their “croaks”, which are made as part of their mating call. The frogs made a clicking sound which was very different to other types of frogs.

To indicate that the frogs are indeed a new species, the research team undertook analysis of DNA extracts taken from the frogs (using what is termed phylogenetic analysis, a means of linking different species to different families at the genetic level).

Scientists have expressed concerns about the vulnerability of frogs to environmental changes and have called for the frogs to be protected under special conservation measures.

An artist has created an uncanny portrait ‘painting’ using nothing but coffee and a mug.

Hong Yi used coffee ring stains from the bottom of a cup to depict Taiwanese song-writer Jay Chou after becoming ‘inspired’ by one of his songs.

She has experimented with a variety of different media to create artwork in the past, which include sunflower seeds, chilli paste, and basketballs.

Despite using such unconventional methods, Hong Yi, 25, from Malaysia, has honed her art skills to produce portraits almost exactly like the original photographs.

Yi said: “This project was inspired by the opening and closing lines of one of my favourite songs by Jay Chou called ‘Secret’. The opening line is about a coffee cup being lifted off the saucer, which is why I’ve used coffee cup stains as my medium in this project”.

SOURCE: DIGITALJOURNAL.COM

SOURCE: WEB.ORANGE.CO.UK