Biblio Bytes: Pondering Library Science in the News

Monday, August 22, 2016

A New Documentary Of The Internet (Werner Herzog)

Werner Herzog Has Met The Internet and It Is Us

Alex Pasternack | August 22, 2016

[Blogger's note: Herzog is considered one of the greatest figures of the New German Cinema, along with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Margarethe von Trotta, Volker Schlöndorff, Werner Schröter, and Wim Wenders. Herzog's films often feature heroes with impossible dreams, people with unique talents in obscure fields, or individuals who are in conflict with nature.French filmmaker François Truffaut once called Herzog "the most important film director alive." American film critic Roger Ebert said that Herzog "has never created a single film that is compromised, shameful, made for pragmatic reasons, or uninteresting. Even his failures are spectacular." He was named one of the 100 most influential people on the planet by Time magazine in 2009. - from Wikipedia.]
Look, the internet is so many things, everywhere and nowhere, necessary but often completely obscure to us. Talking or thinking about it is, like a sign-on screen, practically an invitation to get lost. The so-called "network of networks" now represents digital culture, new media, new war, the global commons, a digital Times Square, the world's economic engine, increasingly, everything. It is also arguably a kind of work of art—is it the greatest masterpiece of human civilization? It's what William Gibson imagined it would be, after wandering around Vancouver, listening to his new Walkman for the first time: "A consensual hallucination," he wrote in Neuromancer about cyberspace,
experienced daily by billions of legitimate operators, in every nation...A graphic representation of data abstracted from banks of every computer in the human system. Unthinkable complexity. Lines of light ranged in the nonspace of the mind, clusters and constellations of data. Like city lights, receding... [William Gibson in Cyberspace]

[Click on link for video.] Source: http://motherboard.vice.com/read/herzog-lo-and-behold-internet-dreams

[Click on link for video.] "In his newest film, Werner Herzog is again asking existential questions -- this time, about the internet. In “Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World,” released in theaters on Friday, Herzog analyzes this ever-expanding fortress of information, and how it promises possibilities of both progress and catastrophe." Source: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/legendary-filmmaker-explores-internet-reflects-human-nature/

Ancient 'Genetic Engineering'

10 Foods That Exist Because Of Ancient Genetic Engineering

Bridget O'Ryan | August 22, 2016

"GMO” foods may seem like a modern phenomenon, made possible only because of well-funded labs and genome analysis. What most consumers don’t realize is that most of humanity’s crops were already genetically modified thousands of years ago. In almost all cases, our favorite fruits and vegetables were engineered to be fundamentally different from their wild ancestors.

The List of Ten Plant Foods:covered in the article

Wheat

Coffee

Avocados

Strawberries

Pumpkins

Corn

Bananas

Brocoli, Cauliflower And Other Cultivars

Watermelon

Almonds

"Even in ancient times, humans were genetically modifying their food without realizing it, molding crops into more desirable versions over time." Source: http://www.medicaldaily.com/brief-history-genetically-modified-organisms-prehistoric-breeding-modern-344076

[Click to Enlarge] "Use of Genetically Modified Organisms" Source: http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2015/from-corgis-to-corn-a-brief-look-at-the-long-history-of-gmo-technology/

China Plans A Manned Moon Station

China Wants to Build a Manned Radar Station on the MOON: 'Lunatic' Idea Could Improve Our Images of Earth

Facility could include living quarters for astronauts and a powerful radar. Would have to be powerful, stretching at least 164 feet (50 metres) high. The deadline for the team to submit its final report on the project is 2020

Abigail Beall | August 22, 2016

Over the past few years China has shown increased interest in exploring the moon and space, with its Jade Rabbit lunar rover and the world's biggest radio telescope.
Now the country is looking into building a manned radar station on our natural satellite, in order to monitor our planet in more detail than current satellites allow.
But experts have said the potentially massive cost of the project could outweigh the benefits.

Artist's sketch showing moon-based readar station scanning a much larger area of Earth than is possible by satellite (shown on right). Source: http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2006611/chinese-scientists-study-viability-manned-radar-station

"China's Jade Rabbit lunar rover spent 31 months surveying the moon's surface. The device, designed for a lifespan of a mere three months, surveyed the moon's surface for 31 months, overcoming numerous technical problems and design flaws to become a national icon. Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3752944/China-wants-build-manned-radar-station-moon-Lunatic-idea-improve-monitoring-Earth-need-power-station.html

North Korea's 'Netflix' Service

North Korea Has Just Launched Its Own Netflix-Style Streaming Service

Trevor Mogg | August 22, 2016

North Korea now has its own Netflix-style streaming service. Sort of.
The highly secretive state reportedly launched the service in recent days, offering citizens in three cities, including the capital Pyongyang, access to five streamed channels alongside a selection of on-demand content.

"For movies made outside of North Korea, its citizens will have to continue to rely on smuggled material from activists..." Source: http://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/north-korea-streaming-service/

"SThe box, called Manbang, has been dubbed the country's version of Netflix in some reports." ource: http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-37154456

Maker Movement Is Attracting Researchers, Scientists

Maker Movement Turns Scientists into Tinkerers

Researchers in growing numbers are starting to enlist do-it-yourself 3-D printers, cheap electronics, sensors and more to advance their work

Prachi Patel | August 22, 2016

To do science, scientists need money—and usually a lot of it because specialized equipment and tools don’t come cheap. That means researchers often have to spend a significant amount of time pursuing funds from government agencies and private entities. But the era of open-source software and cheap hardware, including 3-D printers, is making it easier for them to quickly test innovative ideas and make their own research tools. These technologies are typically considered the dominion of “makers,” a word that evokes tinkerers and hobbyists, yet many scientists have begun to embrace the build-it-yourself ethos to advance their research in a variety of fields, including energy, transportation, neuroscience and consumer electronics.

[Click on link for video.] (New tech turns your skin into a touchscreen for your smartwatch. A team at Carnegie Mellon has found a way to make skin a user interface for gadgets.May 5, 2016) Source: http://www.theverge.com/2016/5/5/11597878/skintrack-carnegie-mellon-skin-tracking-smartwatch-userface

Maker Movement - LinkedIn. Source: https://www.linkedin.com/topic/maker-movement

Glass 3D Printing For Walls And Entire Buildings

New Russian Patent-Pending Glass 3D Printing Solution Makes Glass Walls and Buildings a Reality

Alec [www.3ders.org] | August 19. 2016

Over the past few months, Russia has been making quite a few 3D printing headlines – but mostly in the context of metal 3D printing for aerospace and nuclear applications. But Russian PhD candidates Anuar Kulmagambetov and Vladimir Bodyakin are moving into an entirely new direction with a remarkable patent application. With an eye on the construction industry, they are working on a 3D printing setup that can build durable walls and structures from glass, using a compact glass melting furnace as an extrusion unit. The researchers are currently looking to set up a pilot, and see significant cost-saving and environmentally-friendly opportunities.

3D Glass Printing Concept. "Most importantly, its ‘filament’ is the most eco-friendly, natural and widespread material in the world: silica sand. Combined with with sodium bicarbonate, dolomite, lime and other additives (depending on the application), it is very cheap and adaptable. But it doesn’t end there. Glass is also very resistant to decay, mold and humidity, requires very little maintenance and is quite energy-efficient to produce." Source: http://www.3ders.org/articles/20160819-new-russian-patent-pending-glass-3d-printing-solution-makes-glass-walls-and-buildings-a-reality.html

"This object was built by a new 3-D printer that can work with molten glass." Source: https://www.technologyreview.com/s/540926/3-d-printing-breaks-the-glass-barrier/

Laser 3D Printing

Demand for Laser 3D Printing Grows As Concept Laser Reports 88 Percent Sales increase

Alec [www.3ders.org] | August 17, 2016

While laser 3D printing has sometimes been criticized for being too expensive and too limited in its usefulness, it’s obvious that the technology’s popularity is surging. This is certainly reflected in the sales figures of numerous prominent laser-based 3D printing specialists. Just last week, SLM Solutions reported excellent growth figures, and now fellow German specialists Concept Laser have revealed that 2016 has been hugely successful so far – with an 88 percent increase in sales compared to the same period in 2015.
Concept Laser is a very promising company based in Lichtenfels that has been making a name for itself in industrial circles. Founded in 2000 by couple Kerstin and Frank Herzog, Concept Laser has been particularly praised for its patented LaserCUSING layer construction technology and its top-of-the-line industrial grade machines. What’s more, they have not at all suffered from a supposedly stagnating 3D printing market, as 2015 was the best year in their history in terms of sales.

"QM Meltpool 3D monitoring concept." Source: http://www.3ders.org/articles/20160817-demand-for-laser-3d-printing-grows-as-concept-laser-reports-88-percent-sales-increase.html

"This awesome ‘replicator’ combines industrial machining with laser 3D printing to create just about anything." Source: http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/174782-this-awesome-replicator-combines-industrial-machining-with-laser-3d-printing-to-create-just-about-anything

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