Active volcanoes have been ruled out as the source of Mars’s atmospheric methane, increasing the (still considered slight) chance that the gas comes from living organisms.
The Snow Wovel
Does this snow shovel on a wheel work? I have my doubts. I do know you’ll look unbearably geeky using one. But then, in January in Saskatchewan, no one looks suave while shoveling snow. Personally, I think I’m holding out for a snowblower. (Via Gizmodo.)
Zero-emission coal-fired power generation?
The Energy & Environmental Research Center at the University of North Dakota claims the technical hurdles are behind us and “it is just a matter of time” before the system economically becomes reality. Great news!
Mountains
I may be a prairie boy now, but I didn’t start out that way. I was born in Silver City, New Mexico, and as a small child, whenever we went back to New Mexico, I always said we were going to “my mountains.” These days, of course, the mountains I go to are typically the …
The big eye
“Canadians Drafting Plans to Build the World’s Largest Telescope” says the headline to this story. In Hawaii, possibly. Or Mexico. Or other warm climes. Definitely not in Saskatchewan. Because Canadians aren’t, you know, like, stupid.
Making Star Trek’s Universal Translator a reality?
Well, not exactly. But pretty darn close for human languages. From the press release: An increasingly globalized world became even smaller on Thursday when Carnegie Mellon University and German scientists unveiled technology that makes it possible to speak one language, yet be understood in another. Wow.
Serenading wins mates
At least, if you’re a male mouse. It works for humans, too, you know.
I’m back!
Why, yes, now that you mention it, this blog has been silent for the last week or so. Thanks for noticing! The reason: a fabulous few days at the Banff Springs Hotel, centred around the International Wine and Food Festival. More later (there’ll be an extensive report at some point over at Willetts on Wine), …
People began wearing shoes around 30,000 years ago
That’s what a new analysis of toe bones suggests. Since the oldest extant shoes are only 9,000 years old, that pushes the history of footwear back quite a bit.
"I didn’t like that sensation"
Here’s a fascinating first-person account on what it feels like to be a remote-controlled human.
In with the CO2, out with the oil
A well is a hole in the ground. Sometimes it has water in it. Sometimes it has oil in it. But increasingly, in southeastern Saskatchewan, it has carbon dioxide (CO2) in it. Apache Canada Ltd. recently began injecting CO2 into its oilfield in the Midale area. EnCana has been injecting CO2 into the Weyburn oilfield …
A car that makes its own fuel?
An Israeli company called Engineuity says it has developed a unique system to make hydrogen inside a car using common metals such as magnesium and aluminum–and that within a few years it can be commercialized in emission-free cars cars that will cost about the same as existing conventional cars to run. It sound promising–here’s hoping …
My latest live walk and vlog
Buy Autographed Books
