Combining cornstarch with volcanic ash clay to create a plastic for bone grafts could make the surgical process of bone replacement much simpler in the future. Researchers say the material could replace the need to remove bone from another part of a patient’s body, or to use donor cadaver bones that are limited in supply.

The preclinical findings come from researchers at Beaumont Hospital – Royal Oak and will be published in the journal Nanomedicine. … Read More → "Biodegradable implant could simplify bone replacement surgery"

In the last couple of years, Google and other companies have started testing their self-driving vehicles on public roads, giving us a chance to measure their real-world performance. And new research from the University of Michigan comes to a surprising — and seemingly paradoxical — conclusion: self-driving cars get in more accidents, per million miles traveled, than conventional vehicles. Yet so far, every single accident involving a self-driving car has been the fault of the person driving the other … Read More → "Self-driving cars have logged a million miles on the roads. Here’s their safety record"

A new NASA study has suggested that gigantic spiral patterns seen around very young stars may be a telltale sign of gigantic, unseen planets in their orbit. If proved accurate, the theory would allow for a new method of planet detection, while providing an invaluable look at planet birth.
via Gizmag

Continue reading</ … Read More → "Astronomers may have identified giant planets in the dust around young stars"

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University’s Human-Computer Interaction Institute have found a way to use 3D printers to create realistic-looking hair, bristles, and other fibers.

Goodbye crappy smartphone cases and other plastic trinkets, hello to home-made toupees and wigs with long, luxurious, flowing locks.
via Gizmodo

Continue reading</ … Read More → "We can finally 3D-print hair"

A new collection of wearable tech from Lumenus aims to provide bikers with features that motorists have taken for granted for years: turn signals, brake lights, and flashers.

The Los Angeles-based company started a Kickstarter campaign to fund their line of LED-illuminated jackets, vests, and backpacks. With their new wearable tech line, Lumenus is working  … Read More → "This apparel acts as brake lights and turn signals for bikers"

I’m not sure how ultimately practical this device is, but I don’t think that’s really the point here. A team at the Human Computer Interaction Lab at the Hasso-Plattner-Institut in Germany have created the Protopiper, a rapid prototyping machine built around a shipping tape dispenser (hey, if the 3D printer can basically be built around a glue gun…).
via Read More → "Turning a tape gun into a prototyping machine"

As of today, Scott Kelly now officially holds the record for the longest consecutive amount of time spent in space by an American astronaut. The previous record holder was Spanish-American astronaut Michael López-Alegría, who spent 215 consecutive days in space in 2007. Today marks 216 consecutive days for Kelly, who launched into space on March 27th of this year. His number count is only going to grow, too, … Read More → "Scott Kelly breaks the record for longest consecutive time in space by a US astronaut"

RICHARD PLOM IS a coder and a musician. He leads development of the iPhone app at Vine, after more than a decade of coding at Apple, and on the side, using a modular synthesizer, Apple’s Logic Pro software, and a classical Indian instrument called the sarod, he makes his own tunes.

This isn’t unusual. “Some of the best musicians I know are also … Read More → "Writing good code is a lot like making beautiful music"

In the canon of great horror writing, Stephen King, Edgar Allan Poe, H.P. Lovecraft, Bram Stoker, and Mary Shelley tend to dominate the craft. But Mother Goose isn’t too far behind. Yes, that fictional grande dame of kiddie poems has got a bit of a dark streak, as evidenced by the unexpectedly sinister theories surrounding the origins of these 11 well-known nursery rhymes.
via Read More → "The dark origins of 11 classic nursery rhymes"