Tesla Coils: Unleash the Aether Nikola Tesla's most significant contribution was not AC power, radio, or the induction motor, but what we call the Tesla Coil - a tool which allows for the power of the aether to be unleashed and harnessed. Now being launched through an open source project. by Hank MillsPure Energy Systems News The inventions of Nikola Tesla are numerous. He invented radio, teleautomatics (remote control technology), poly-phase alternating current, the induction motor, and many other innovations that established the foundation for our modern civilization. However, the true significance of his greatest discovery - the "Tesla Coil" - goes mostly unrecognized. There are many misconceptions about Tesla coils and their intended use. Tesla coils have capabilities beyond even the highest voltage transformers of our day, because they are something far different. Radiant Blasts When an electrical switch in an electrical circuit is opened or closed, a spark of high voltage can be created. Safety Enhancements
Brain Painting Converting M4A to MP3. Using notepad, create a file called :ffmpeg_convert_m4a_to_mp3.bat I'll discuss two methods and you can choose which one to use. Add the script content of the option you would like to use. Convert single file to mp3:This option will take one file as an argument and convert it to an mp3 and save it as the original file name appended with a '.mp3'Script content: echo offset filename=%1 C:\Path_to_ffmpeg\ffmpeg.exe -i %filename% -acodec libmp3lame -ab 128k %filename%.mp3 PAUSE Convert a batch of arguments (not checked for type) to mp3.Loops through the batch file arguments and tries to convert them all. @echo offsetlocal enabledelayedexpansion set argCount=0 for %%x in (%*) do ( set /A argCount+=1 set "argVec[! I've created two batch files as can be seen in the attached image, one for each script, but only one is required.
12 must-see skywatching events in 2012 - Technology & science - Space - Space.com As the year 2011 comes to a close, some might wonder what is looming sky-wise for 2012? What celestial events might we look forward to seeing? I've selected what I consider to be the top 12 "skylights" for this coming year, and list them here in chronological order. Not all these events will be visible from any one locality ... for the eclipses, for instance, you'll probably have to do some traveling ... but many can be observed from the comfort of your backyard. Hopefully your local weather will cooperate on most, if not all, of these dates. Clear skies! Jan. 4: Quadrantid meteor shower peaks This meteor shower reaches its peak in the predawn hours of Jan. 4 for eastern North America. From the eastern half of North America, a single observer might count on seeing as many as 50 to 100 "Quads" in a single hour. Mercury will arrive at its greatest elongation from the sun March 5. Compare this with the August 2003 opposition when Mars was only 34.6 million miles away. © 2013 Space.com.
GeoCity Impressions 16 December 2013Last updated at 19:47 ET By Paul Rubens Technology reporter The price of a hacking victim's personal details are becoming cheaper to buy, says a study Fancy a bank account with $300,000 (£184,000) in it? If you know where to look and you don't mind dealing with cybercriminals then the going rate is just $300, a study of the hacking underworld suggests. For that you'll get the bank account details, plus online username and password providing you with full access to the money. For criminal buyers that price is a steal compared with the sums they were paying as little as two years ago. The investigation was carried out by Joe Stewart, director of malware research at Dell SecureWorks, and David Shear, an independent researcher. Continue reading the main story “Start Quote Hackers have got smarter and are now able to target places where a wide range of personal data is warehoused” End QuoteJoe StewartDell SecureWorks The glut in supply could continue for some time. Secrets for sale
Beautiful Home Built from Salvaged Car Parts (Video) Fair Companies/Video screen capture An awful lot of cars end up in junk yards. And that means an awful lot of waste. Green architect Karl Wanaselja has built a stunning home in Berkeley, California using salvaged car panels for siding and minivan windows for awning and windows. But that's just the beginning of how awesome this house is. From its relatively small footprint to its passive solar construction, the house has been built for both performance and comfort. The siding, for example, had to be salvaged from very specific cars to match Wanaselja's vision in terms of color, but also to take into account that most cars that end up in junk yards aren't in the best condition. The outbuildings are pretty awesome too. And there's a home office/studio made from a refrigerated shipping container. From an old garage turned stunning tiny house to a Spanish ghost town turned eco-village, we're already used to some really beautiful videos from the folks at Fair Companies.
In Retrospect - Part I SD Cards Aren’t As Secure As We Think The hardware hacker Bunnie Huang gave a talk at the Chaos Compute Club Congress where he offered some good news and some bad news. The good news? SD cards contain powerful, handy micro controllers that are useful to hackers and hobbyists. The bad news? SD cards are woefully insecure. In a detailed and readable post, Huang describes the exact problems with Flash memory. Huang writes: Flash memory is really cheap. To take up arms against these errors, SD cards are essentially over-engineered to ensure an acceptable level of data retention. Here’s the worse news: because these cards contain firmware, this firmware can be updated. And the good news: Huang also notes that these cards could be reprogrammed to become Arduino-esque open source microcontroller and memory systems. So, in short, destroy your SD cards if you have any dirty info on them and keep your eyes peeled for ultra-small, ultra-fast Arduino hacks.
First dogs came from East Asia, genetic study confirms Researchers at Sweden's KTH Royal Institute of Technology say they have found further proof that the wolf ancestors of today's domesticated dogs can be traced to southern East Asia -- findings that run counter to theories placing the cradle of the canine line in the Middle East. Dr Peter Savolainen, KTH researcher in evolutionary genetics, says a new study released Nov. 23 confirms that an Asian region south of the Yangtze River was the principal and probably sole region where wolves were domesticated by humans. Data on genetics, morphology and behaviour show clearly that dogs are descended from wolves, but there's never been scientific consensus on where in the world the domestication process began. "Our analysis of Y-chromosomal DNA now confirms that wolves were first domesticated in Asia south of Yangtze River -- we call it the ASY region -- in southern China or Southeast Asia," Savolainen says. The Y data supports previous evidence from mitochondrial DNA.
From D.C. To Beijing In 2 Hours – Evacuated Tube Transport Could Revolutionize How We Travel Evacuated Tube Transport capsules will be lightweight and able to hold up to six passengers or 800 lbs of payload, then zip away at 4,000 mph. Daryl Oster wants to change the world by making it smaller. He wants you to “Imagine living in warm sunny Los Angeles and commuting daily to New York City with only a forty-five minute commute.” Or to “Imagine ordering Chinese food – from China.” And he doesn’t need a spaceship to do it because, in a way, he’s bringing space travel to Earth. What it is is Evacuated Tube Transport, or ETT. ETT does the maglevs one better by sending its levitated capsules down guider tubes out of which the air has been sucked, creating a vacuum. And the motion we’re talking about is seriously fast. I’ll take the Szechuan beef, extra spicy. And give me your finest bottle of rice wine. Here’s a video summary of how the ETT would work. Each capsule fits in the 1.5 meter-diameter tube and seats six passengers. Of course, that’s not actually going to happen.
Microfactory adds milling and etching to its 3D printer (video) Mebotics Debuts 'World's First Machine Shop in a Box' – Integrating Machining, 3D Printing & Etching into a Single Package The Microfactory is a networked, easy to operate, affordable, mess-free, quiet, safe and fully-enclosed machine designed for makers, by makers Somerville, Mass. – August 28, 2013 – Mebotics, LLC is launching the Microfactory – already gaining notoriety as the "world's first machine shop in a box" – on Kickstarter this week. The Microfactory will be the first widely-available machine to marry both additive and subtractive manufacturing, integrating machining and 3D printing into a safe, self-cleaning, networkable unit. The company has announced a $1 million fundraising goal. The Mebotics team conceived, designed and built the Microfactory over the past year. The Microfactory contains four printing heads on two separate heaters, plus a milling head. "The Microfactory is an open platform designed to be adaptable to the needs of its users," Fryer-Biggs explained.