I have a short lunch today so I must be brief, but I wanted to point to these two articles, both published today:Monkey controls robot hand through brain implantsProsthetics Breakthrough Might Fuse Nerves With Fake LimbsSo many times on this blog, I've talked about the "next great technological revolution" being the fusion of man and machine. And I'm not the only one to say so. When I was reading that Danger Room article about the prosthetics breakthrough, I was reminded of 15 years ago when 3D printers were still cutting-edge tech. Now one can...
Monday, 27 February 2012
While I recognize that my opinion is amongst a tiny minority, I have to say that I unequivocally despise sports rivalries. I have the distinct pleasure of holding a degree from the University of Missouri and another from the University of Kansas, two schools which anyone around here will quickly tell you are locked in a "bitter rivalry" that has lasted more than a century. Writers like Joe Posnanski, as they discuss the annual basketball game or football game where the two teams clash, love to dredge up pre-Civil War interstate politics,...
Saturday, 25 February 2012
I was humbled to have the privilege of giving a eulogy at my grandfather's funeral Friday morning. By posting it here, it becomes immortal, and so does the man the words describe. The man had many names and titles.Loren Glenn Waller. Glenn. Occasionally “Glenn E. Waller”. Son. Brother. Husband. Dad. Uncle. Grandpa. G-Pa. Lieutenant. Captain. Major. Colonel. Pledge Brother. Big Red. Entrepreneur. Navigator. Guardsman. Veteran. Advisor. Mentor. Investor. Surveyor. Conservationist. Hunter. Neighbor. Friend. Colleague. Gardener. Philanthropist....
Tuesday, 21 February 2012
Monday, 20 February 2012
Where to begin on this one? Well, first off a disclosure. I formerly worked at MRIGlobal, which was formerly known as Midwest Research Institute. We had a large contract with Boston Dynamics as the systems integrator developing the robot mentioned here. I'm assuming I'm not breaching my still-enforced security clearance because that info is readily available on BD's website. Anyway, when we got the contract, and my boss told me the government was paying tens of millions of dollars to build an incredibly accurate anthropomorphic robot - for no other...
Friday, 17 February 2012
I think we just need to acknowledge that the political process is unappealing to scientists. Imagine two physicists, trying to determine the molecular mass of a particle. One thinks it is X and the other thinks it's Y. They do research, present findings, and the scientific community eventually settles on either X or Y or a later determined mass Z. In politics, the "goal" is to start with X and Y and end with (X+Y)/2 aka a middle ground compromise. That just doesn't work for scientists. Scientists believe that given enough facts there is one right...
Thursday, 16 February 2012
You were one of my best friends. You still are one of my favorite people. I know we disagreed at times about how you should launch your business and I know that there was tension in there somewhere that maybe made it hard to hang out. And I know you had your brothers as your go-to best friends when you needed someone to hang out with.Now you've got a little baby I'd love to meet, and more than anything I just want to see you again and laugh with...
John Paulos asks why more scientists (chemists, biologists, physicists) and engineers aren't in politics:Among the 435 members of the House, there is one physicist, one chemist, one microbiologist, and 6 engineers.His reasoning for this is clear: scientists and mathematicians are secretly dismissed by the American electorate because technical-minded people are elitist.Let's pause for a minute here, and please someone tell me how a microbiologist is an elitist but Mitt Romney isn't? Your average mid-career scientist probably makes around $56,000...
Friday, 10 February 2012
When it comes to space exploration, long-time readers know I fully support internationally-backed robotic missions. But I also have strong criticisms for manned missions to the Moon and/or Mars because they seem less like genuine plans and more like excuses to provide Brevard County, Florida with economic stimulus.One thing that really bothers me is when space exploration is justified by the need for national security - or worse - nationalism is used to try to buoy support for it. With NASA about to cut Mars exploration by a hefty chunk in their...
Yes, yes, the first three movies were awful, the plots were weak and discontinuous, the characters were lame and the acting was poor. The amount of CGI vs. the awesome campiness of the original trilogy was obnoxious too. Spare me, I know what people say about them and mostly I agree.But...Back in 1999, when Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace came out I went and saw it in the theater, opening night, seduced as all geeks were by the irresistible pull of Anything-Made-By-George-Lucas. After the movie yawned through the first half hour, the little...
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