science
Today is a Geek Holiday: Happy pi Day!
Hip hip hooray! Today is PI DAY! Okay, I don’t really get that excited about mathematical constants, but I didn’t think I could let the day go by without an acknowledgement. Pi, which is the ratio of the circumference to the diameter of a circle, is approximately 3.14. At least, that’s the way most of us learned it in school. If you have continued your education beyond high schoo...
Great Gadget: Water Powered Clock
This water-powered clock is so cool! Not only does it run on water (or any electrolyte liquid), but it can even do bud-vase duty. That’s good news, because not only will it tell time for two to three months on a single fill of the reservoir, but looking at flowers in the morning can help you feel better. It’s true. (You can read more about the Harvard study on flowers here.) So this cl...
Never Knew I Needed a Laser Until I Saw This One
Wow! This Hercules laser looks amazing. Besides that, I’m sure it has some very useful, scientific, real-world applications. Among the capabilities listed on the Laserglow site, it is visible in direct sun, can light a fireworks fuse, pop a balloon, cut through electrical tape, and even burn through plastic. Well, what the heck have I been doing popping my balloons and cutting tape the old f...
My kids say the funniest stuff: flytraps
A few days ago, I was driving The Mother Ship (minivan) with the kids in the back. The boys, ages 6 and 8, were reaching across the seat between them, going “chomp! chomp!” toward one another. Hoping to avert a brawl, I was about to tell them to keep their hands to themselves, when I heard the younger one say, “Chomp! I’m a Venus flytrap!” I thought that was cute. The...
