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  • Competition, Internet, Science!, Simon

    Google Global (!) Youth Science Fair

    14.01.11 | Permalink | Comment?

    Google is running a Global Science Fair for teens. As it is global, anyone in the world can enter. Even a NZer. Especially a NZer, since we’re quite good at innovation and science. Entrants (i.e. everyone reading this I hope*) need to be between the ages of 13 and 18, and can work solo or in groups of up to three. You enter it online obviously! 

    *The prizes are beyond awesome. They are actually epic. Guys you need to win this.


  • Science!, Simon, Space: The Final Frontier

    Across the universe

    07.10.10 | Permalink | Comment?

    The Scale of the Universe - from the very largest (i.e the universe) to the very smallest (Quantum foam! for real!). Presented so that you get a sense of scale. We are so small. So very, very small.

    What isn’t depicted is the resulting existential void you may find yourself in. See you there!


  • Adrienne, Competition, Science!

    ReelScience

    10.02.10 | Permalink | Comment?

    Are you curious about science? Or do you love filmmaking but aren’t too keen on science?

    Well!

    ReelScience is a competition for senior secondary school students (Yr 11 – Yr13) that starts on February 10th. To enter you’ll have to make a 2min short film on any aspect of science. There are cool prizes up for grabs like a Mac and film courses. This here clip tells you all about it (or check out their website).


  • DVDs, Jack, Science!

    Documentary Madness

    24.09.09 | Permalink | Comment?

    Well, as long as five new DVDs is considered mad it’s madness. All kinds of bases are covered by this selection, and here they are…

    brady barrBest of Dangerous Encounters with Brady Barr follows a reptile expert as he does all sorts of silly things in the name of science.  My favourite bit is when he wears a 200 pound kevlar suit covered in hippo dung to extract sweat from a hippo.

    The Most Extreme is a series that follows all sorts of extreme behaviour in the animal kingdom. Fighters, Stinkers, Gluttons and many more are looked at in these fantastically shot episodes originally made for Animal Planet.

    Sticking with the extreme, Gravity Games H2O is a four disc box set filled with wakeboarding, tow-in surfing, motorcross, kite surfing and other assorted watery hijinks. Except for the motorcross, I can’t explain it’s inclusion unless they somehow ride on water. Now that’d be extreme.

    Ultimate Factories is a National Geographic series that goes to, well, ultimate factories. In this one they go see how Ferraris and M1 Tanks are produced. So if you’ve ever wondered how they put them together, now you can find out.

    Naked Science: Surviving nature’s fury is a three disc set in the excellent National Geographic Naked Science series. These episodes look at asteroids, the Bermuda Triangle, alien contact and other popular and controversial scientific topics.


  • Grimm, Happenings, Science!

    See Leonardo’s Gadgets

    21.11.08 | Permalink | Comment?

    The Leonardo da Vinci Machines Exhibition is on at the New Zealand Academy of Fine Art until 15 February. A collection of over sixty machines based on his sketches, this exhibition looks pretty cool. The website says that it’s interactive, so you get to pick up some of the models to get a better look (although I suspect you probably don’t get to have a go with his hangglider).

    Prices are $10.00 for students and $12.00 for adults (children under 13 get in for $8.00), but from the looks of the photo gallery it’s worth it.


  • Alex, Internet, Music, Science!

    Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring.

    09.10.08 | Permalink | 1 Comment

    Cellphones: not just a replacement for the megaphone, these handy devices are now fashion statements in themselves. But nothing turns your phone-bling into a pocket albatross like a bad ringtone. Maybe you’ve just never gotten around to changing it from the “Nokia tune” (which is a phrase from Gran Vals, by Francisco Tárrega, an early 20th century classical guitar piece). Or have you (wrongly, oh so wrongly) chosen to have Slipknot or Rihanna blasting out every time someone calls? Shame on you.

    The trendiest people in Wellington have natural or everyday sounds for their ringtones. Check out the tones here, and have a tui in your pocket! Or for the more adventurous and avant-garde of you, why not formulate your own ringtone using a whole computational universe (for bonus points you can even read about the new scientific paradigm behind your catchy ring). Just remember though: no matter how catchy and stylish your ringtone is, we still don’t want to hear it at the movies …


  • Science!, Simon

    The moon is bright and milky white

    19.07.08 | Permalink | Comment?

    NASA has created a video from stills taken in deep space that show the moon moving around Earth. This is very rare footage as, well, it’s not everyday photos are taken in deep space.

    During a full Earth rotation, images obtained by Deep Impact at a 15-minute cadence have been combined to make a color video. During the video, the moon enters the frame (because of its orbital motion) and transits Earth, then leaves the frame. Other spacecraft have imaged Earth and the moon from space, but Deep Impact is the first to show a transit of Earth with enough detail to see large craters on the moon and oceans and continents on Earth.

    Watch it here, or watch it below …
    Read more…


  • Edna Welthorpe, Environment, Science!

    What lovely altocumulus castelanus

    28.06.08 | Permalink | Comment?

    Wellington is famous for its umbrella-unfriendly gusts of wind. It’s something to be proud of, in much the same way that Rotorua smells of hydrogen sulphide, or Auckland sits amidst a gazillion volcanoes. The next time you’re looking at the sky, watching the clouds race past at galeforce speeds, keep watch for rare clouds. Yes! Rare clouds! Who knew?


  • Internet, Science!, Simon

    Zon

    11.06.08 | Permalink | Comment?

    Zon is “an unique interactive massively multiplayer online role playing game for learning Mandarin Chinese.” It’s browser-based, so you don’t need to download anything (maybe Flash). You can design your avatar (mine is the height of style), become a citizen of Zon and eventually begin your own business and add content to the world. Which is very cool, especially as you learn about Chinese language and culture while playing!


  • Horror, Internet, Sci Fi, Science!, Simon

    Wiki-tastic

    06.06.08 | Permalink | Comment?

    Wikipedia is an amazing resource, and although anyone can edit it, many of the entries are fairly reliable (though probably shouldn’t be used as the final word on a topic). I enjoy reading articles on Wikipedia that introduce new and interesting things to me; peoples, places, and events that I hadn’t heard of before.

    Everyone like a good mystery, and here are some of the weirder & spookier articles/lists:

    • List of Cryptids – Cryptids are creatures whose existence is a mystery, either because they’re recently exinct, or fictitious, or just unknown. The Caspian Tiger, the yeti, and creepy Mothman are examples.
    • The Bloop – in 1997, underwater monitors detected an immense ‘bloop’ sound that originated near South America. The sound was similar to the sound a living creature would make … a HUGE living creature.
    • Uncontacted People – Incredibly there are still groups of people in the world who have very little or even no contact with the rest of the planet. Most are in the South American rainforests, but there are also some off the coast of India.
    • List of Mysterious People – They are people. They are mysterious.
    • List of Ghost Towns – Sometimes towns and cities are abandoned (usually when something bad happens), leaving what’s left to deteriorate and be spooky. Disappointingly, there aren’t any listed in New Zealand.
    • Hatepe Eruption - One of the largest volcanic eruptions in recent times (well, 1900 years ago) was in New Zealand, when Lake Taupo erupted. The sky turned red in Rome! Chillingly, Lake Taupo is dormant and not extinct. The mystery is when it will erupt next. Hopefully not when I’m visiting, I tell you what.


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