Neatorama » experiment

Two Balloon Surprise

Miss Cellania — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 13:11:00 +0000

This surprised me. What happens when you connect two balloons, one blown up much bigger than the other? I thought for sure they would equalize. Doesn’t air rush out harder from a fully-inflated balloon than from a partially-inflated balloon? Even the explanation puzzles me. Are there any scientists around who could explain more thoroughly? -via Dark Roasted Blend

Utah’s 4-day Work Week

Miss Cellania — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 15:07:57 +0000

Last year, the state of Utah mandated a four-day work week for state employees. The salaries and number of hours each worker put in remained the same as the workday became longer, but offices were closed on Fridays.

After 12 months, Utah’s experiment has been deemed so successful that a new acronym could catch on: TGIT (thank God it’s Thursday). The state found that its compressed workweek resulted in a 13% reduction in energy use and estimated that employees saved as much as $6 million in gasoline costs. Altogether, the initiative will cut the state’s greenhouse-gas emissions by more than 12,000 metric tons a year. And perhaps not surprisingly, 82% of state workers say they want to keep the new schedule.

Even those who do not work for the state have benefitted since offices are open later Monday through Thursday. Other states and businesses are looking at the results and may possibly try the schedule out. Link -via Digg

DIY Science Experiments

Miss Cellania — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:15:43 +0000

Popular Mechanics bought eight science kits for kids, reviewed them, and found instructions on the ‘net for replicating the same experiments with materials many people have on hand.

…homemade experiments can be just as complex and educational (while costing up to $100 less), so we found alternatives to each of the boxed kits that teach similar lessons just as well. Bottom line: Whether preassembled or drawn from kitchen cupboards, science kits can be educational and fun.

Link -via Geek Like Me

Tweenbots

Miss Cellania — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 11:53:20 +0000

(blip TV link)
Kacie Kinzer’s Tweenbots experiment is less about robots and more about human nature. She designed small cardboard robots with smiling faces that will move only forward. Kinzer then would set a robot down in an area of New York City with a flag that indicated its destination. The only way it could get “home” was with the help of passers-by. People really came through! Over several months and many missions, each time a robot got stuck or headed in the wrong direction, someone would set it straight or otherwise helped it along its way. My question is: would people have helped a robot that wasn’t so cute? Link -via Gizmodo

The Body Swap Illusion

Miss Cellania — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:01:06 +0000

Out-of-body experiences and even the sense of switching bodies with another person can be induced by tricking the mind with sensory illusions!

In a study presented Tuesday, neuroscientists at Stockholm’s renowned Karolinska Institute show how they got volunteers wearing virtual reality goggles to experience the illusion of swapping bodies with a mannequin and a real person.

“We were interested in a classical question that philosophers and psychologists have discussed for centuries: why we feel that the self is in our bodies,” project leader Henrik Ehrsson said. “To study this scientifically we’ve used tricks, perceptual illusions.”

70-80% of the test subjects experienced the illusion “very strongly”. How weird that feeling must be! Link -Thanks, Geekazoid!

(image credit: AP/Niklas Larsson)