It seems so simple: where do the elements come from? We can study the individual constituents that make up the classical elements of the periodic table, and we can certainly do cool things with those elements, but their origins have remained at least somewhat uncertain, on the level of elementary particles. Science has long known that fusing particles together into atoms heavier than about lead requires so much energy that it could not realistically be done anywhere other than the most violent astronomical events, like supernovae. Evidence supporting or updating this basic theory has been hard to come by, however, since even the Large Hadron Collider can’t create high enough energies to make such elements here on Earth.
DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA — Moog Music announced it’s reintroducing the classic Minimoog Model D synthesizer with a pilot production run at . The Model D first hit the market in 1970, and was used on countless recordings and live tours throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. After a hiatus of over 30 years, Moog Music employees are handcrafting new examples in a pilot production run at the Moog Pop-Up Factory here at Moogfest. The company will sell the units made here in Guitar Center’s Moog Store. We had the chance to, if not exactly sit down, instead stand up and walk around the Pop-Up Factory with Moog Music guru Jim DeBardi.
DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA — Dr. Martine Rothblatt has a message for would-be creative types and entrepreneurs alike: Don’t give up. Specifically, don’t let anyone get in the way of your idea. And you can bet that lots of people will try. “When I started SiriusXM, virtually everybody said it was a fool’s errand,” Rothblatt said in her keynote speech at on the future of creativity. During her talk, she delved into topics as diverse as transhumanism, the controversial HB2 law, and 3D printing organs. Make no mistake: Rothblatt has an incredibly impressive track record. She started both Sirius Radio and GeoStar satellite navigation, and then founded biotech behemoth United Therapeutics in 1996, which has offices both in Silver Springs, Maryland and Research Triangle Park here in Durham.
Is your current PC loud, bulky, and slow? Well, it must be time for an upgrade. But thankfully, you won’t have to spend much for a nice modern desktop — just take a look at this Inspiron 3000 from Dell. If you’re looking for a PC for everyday tasks like email and web browsing, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better deal than this. (List price: $599.98 — Coupon code: DELLDTDEAL) So, what are the specs like on this desktop? On the inside, it sports a fourth generation dual-core 3.7GHz Intel Core i3-4170 CPU, integrated Intel HD Graphics 4400, 4GB of DDR3 RAM (1600MHz), a 500GB 7200RPM hard drive, a DVD burner, Bluetooth 4.0, and 802.11b/g/n WiFi support.
This month, Facebook came under fire for allegations of censoring conservative-slanted news from users’ supposedly auto-generated Facebook news feed. In an interview with Gizmodo, a former team member said that a group of Facebook employees personally curates the articles that get the most promotion through Facebook, with a bias toward mainstream sites like CNN and BBC and against fringe sites like Breitbart and NewsMax. Though the company has denied the allegations of bias, the report has had an oddly out-sized impact over recent weeks. Not only conservatives are beginning to turn on the service, but anyone with reservations about the company’s aggressive history of social engineering.
Updated 2:59pm: That’s it, the keynote is over. We didn’t see much new hardware, but the new VR platform and improved app installations are enough to get us excited. Updated 2:26pm: Android Wear 2.0 offers an improved experience without needing to be paired to a smartphone. Updated 2:14pm: Daydream, launching this fall, is Google’s VR standard for Android. Updated 1:51pm: Duo is a new cross-platform video calling app that offers live video previews of the caller. Launching this summer. Updated 1:39pm: Google is launching a new “smart” messaging app called Allo. Updated 1:22pm: Google Home is a new product that seems a lot like Amazon’s Echo.
One of the disadvantages to using an older Microsoft operating system is the need to install several hundred megabytes of patches after the initial OS is loaded. In the past, Microsoft ameliorated this problem by releasing several service packs over the life of the OS, but Windows 7 only ever got one service pack, in 2011. As a result, the last four years of updates and patches has to be run manually. Now, that’s changing. Microsoft isn’t calling this new “” Windows 7 SP2, but that’s functionally what it provides. The update will also support slipstream installations, meaning you can roll the software updates into a unified installer and bring a system fully up-to-date at base install.
Traditional 3D printing has limits that have negatively impacted its usefulness. For one, almost all 3D printers use plastic as the medium, and that plastic needs to be supported during the printing process. An experimental printer developed by Harvard’s Wyss Institute and the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) uses nanoparticles and lasers to make metallic feasible in midair. The printing medium is a special formulation of silver nanoparticle ink. The ink is fed through a printing nozzle that can move along the x, y, and z axis. The silver ink itself would just drip out of the nozzle and splash on the floor before solidifying.
Blizzard has a long history of producing high quality multiplayer games, and Overwatch isn’t going to buck that trend. Last week’s open beta gave us a representative look at how the retail version of the game will be when it launches on the 24th, and it seems to work as intended regardless of which platform you plan on using. For the better part of a decade, was working on developing an MMO dubbed “Titan.” It was eventually canceled in 2014, but some assets from that project still live on in Blizzard’s new first-person shooter. And it’s not just Blizzard’s legacy that is building on.
