Science

Brain Basics: Know Your Brain: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Introduction The brain is the most complex part of the human body. This three-pound organ is the seat of intelligence, interpreter of the senses, initiator of body movement, and controller of behavior. Lying in its bony shell and washed by protective fluid, the brain is the source of all the qualities that define our humanity.

The brain is the crown jewel of the human body. For centuries, scientists and philosophers have been fascinated by the brain, but until recently they viewed the brain as nearly incomprehensible. This fact sheet is a basic introduction to the human brain. Image 1 The Architecture of the Brain The brain is like a committee of experts. The hindbrain includes the upper part of the spinal cord, the brain stem, and a wrinkled ball of tissue called the cerebellum (1). When people see pictures of the brain it is usually the cerebrum that they notice.

The cerebrum is split into two halves (hemispheres) by a deep fissure. The Geography of Thought The Cerebral Cortex Image 5. 8 Ways Magnetic Levitation Could Shape the Future. For years, NASA has been researching the possibility of using the high speeds of maglev transportation to fling spacecraft into low Earth orbit. "It would really open up space to human exploration and commercialization," Powell says. "It's something we can't do now because it's too expensive. " Powell and his colleagues have proposed two generations of space launching technology. The first is a cargo-only launch track that could be built into a mountainside to reach a height of 20,000 feet. Magnets could allow a spacecraft traveling along the track to reach speeds around 18,000 miles per hour—enough to fly into space. And that's just the first generation. Build a Touchless 3D Tracking Interface with Everyday Materials. Combine low-tech materials with some high-tech components and build a completely Touchless 3D Tracking Interface.

Explore capacitive sensing by using several panels of cardboard lined with aluminum foil. These panels, when charged, create electric fields that correspond to X, Y, and Z axes to create a 3D cube. With the aid of an Arduino microcontroller and some supplied code, movements inside the cube are tracked as your hand moves around inside the field. For Weekend Projects makers looking for an introduction to Arduino, this is a great project to learn from. Once you’ve gathered all your parts, this project should only take a couple hours to complete – you’ll be playing 3D Tic Tac Toe before the weekend is over! Once your touchless 3D tracker is up and running, what you do with it is only limited by your own imagination! Sign up below for the Weekend Projects Newsletter to receive the projects before anybody else does, get tips, see other makers’ builds, and more.