« December 2007 | Main | February 2008 »
January 23, 2008
Holographic Display
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FF1vFTQOWN4
By using a high-speed video projector, a spinning platform with a holographic diffuser and special decoding hardware, the display can crank out up to 5,000 real-time images per second. Once the display spins up to speed, it creates a fully 3D image that you can walk all the way around.
Posted by chek at 03:46 PM | Comments (0)
Kite Powered Ship
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7205217.stm
There is something rather magical about being up on deck of a giant cargo ship as it pushes its way out to sea.
Ten thousand tonnes of metal heaving through the water, the ship's giant masts glistening in the winter sun.
But there is something even more magical about being aboard MS Beluga SkySails.
After all, it is no secret that when it comes to greenhouse gases, commercial shipping is normally the villain of the transport world. Of all the CO2 being pumped into the atmosphere today, 4% comes from ships.
In fact, shipping produces more emissions than the aviation industry.
Twisted spaghetti
MS Beluga SkySails, though, is different.
Once the ship has reached the open sea, it reveals its brand new weapon in the fight against global warming - a kite.
The 160sq m (1,722sq ft) blue-and-white kite is winched up a mast, strings dangling like twisted spaghetti.
For half-an-hour or so, it sits there at the top of the mast, not doing a great deal.
Wind power is a wonderful thing, but you do actually need some wind to make it all work - and there is not very much at this particular moment.
Half-an-hour later, though, the wind has picked up and the kite is flying hundreds of meters in the air - and helping to tug the ship along.
Kite power means the ship's engines down below can work on reduced power: and that means fewer carbon emissions.
It also means smaller fuel bills. With the price of shipping fuel having doubled in the past two years, kite power is promising big savings.
MS Beluga SkySails believes its fuel bill will be cut by £800 ($1,560) a day.
The kite is controlled by computers. One computer helps it to fly in figures of eight in the sky - maximising the power it produces. Another computer adjusts the kite's direction.
If the project is successful, expect to see even bigger kites soon - some up to 5,000sq m (53,820sq ft) in size pulling ships across the seas and oceans.
* The kite sail will help reduce annual fuel costs by 10-35%. Reduced fuel also means fewer harmful carbon emissions
* The large towing kite resembles a paraglider and is shaped like an aircraft wing, to enable it to take advantage of different wind directions
* It operates at 100-300m above surface level - much higher than a normal sailing craft - where winds are stronger and more stable
* The kite can be used in winds of 12-74km/h (7-40 knots) and not just when the wind is blowing directly from behind the ship
Posted by chek at 02:32 PM | Comments (0)
January 22, 2008
Rentometer
http://www.rentometer.com/
Enter an Address and Get Rental Comps Back!
Posted by chek at 10:14 AM | Comments (0)
January 21, 2008
StudySpanish.com
http://www.studyspanish.com/index.htm
Learn Spanish
Posted by chek at 06:26 PM | Comments (0)
January 17, 2008
Leukaemia in Children
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7192420.stm
Leukaemia cell culprit discovered
A study of four-year-old twin girls has identified a rogue cell which is the root cause of childhood leukaemia.
The finding could mean more specific and less intensive treatments for all children with the blood cancer.
Both twins were found to have the "pre-leukaemic" cells in their bone marrow, although to date only one has developed leukaemia.
UK researchers reported in Science that a second genetic mutation is needed for full-blown disease to develop.
Leukaemia occurs when large numbers of white blood cells take over the bone marrow leaving the body unable to produce enough normal blood cells.
Along with lymphoma it accounts for almost half of childhood cancers.
Olivia Murphy, from Bromley in Kent, developed acute lymphoblastic leukaemia when she was two-years old - but so far her twin sister, Isabella, is healthy.
Researchers found they both have "pre-leukaemic stem cells" containing a mutated gene, which forms when the DNA is broken and rejoined at another point.
The pre-leukaemic cells are transferred from one twin to the other in the womb through their shared blood supply.
But it takes another genetic mutation in early childhood for the cells to cause disease.
This second mutation, which may be caused by infection, occurred in Olivia but not Isabella.
Doctors do regular tests on Isabella to look for signs of the cancer but once she reaches adolescence it is thought the rogue cells will disappear.
Achilles heel
About 1% of the population is thought to be born with pre-leukaemia cells. Of these, 1% receive the second "hit" that leads to cancer.
Current treatments are far too aggressive to justify eliminating the rogue cells before cancer develops, which also means screening is unlikely.
But attacking the pre-leukaemic cells in children with leukaemia would be a better way of treating the disease and ensuring it does not come back, the researchers said.
Study leader Professor Tariq Enver, from the Medical Research Council Molecular Haematology Unit in Oxford, said: "These are the cells which drive and maintain the disease.
"Now we know about the cell, hopefully we can find an Achilles heel we can target."
Professor Mel Greaves, from the Institute of Cancer Research and co-author on the study, said he suspected that the stem cells could escape conventional chemotherapy and cause relapse.
He said the study in the twins had been unique.
"There is an element of chance, we still have to work out why it happens in one child and not the other.
"We're pretty certain it's triggered by common childhood infection."
Dr Phil Ancliff, consultant in paediatric haematology at Great Ormond Street Hospital, said 90% of children now survived leukaemia because of intensive chemotherapy, but that it came at a price.
Olivia lost the sight in one eye after she was unable to fight an infection due to her cancer treatment.
"A significant number of children are now being over-treated but we don't know which children," he said.
In the future, he added, children could be tested to see if the stem cells had been killed off after the first few weeks of chemotherapy with some being able to stop treatment earlier, sparing them harmful side-effects.
Dr Bruce Morland, consultant paediatric oncologist at Birmingham Children's Hospital and chairman of the Children's Cancer and Leukaemia Group, said: "The identification of the leukaemic stem cell has been one of the 'Holy Grails' for cancer biologists and this study certainly brings us one step closer."
Professor Vaskar Saha, professor of paediatric oncology at Cancer Research UK, said: "This important paper shows how leukaemia develops, and how it can persist even after therapy.
"By identifying the cells involved, it raises the hope that we will be able to identify children at risk of relapse, and develop new, targeted drugs to treat the disease."
Posted by chek at 01:50 PM | Comments (0)
January 15, 2008
Jeerjeerak
http://www.jeerjeerak.blogspot.com/
Posted by chek at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
ماه شب اول
http://www.firstnightmoon.blogspot.com
Posted by chek at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
Sanazi
http://cantfindanamexyzsanaz.blogspot.com/
Posted by chek at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
Shabnam
http://shabnamr.blogspot.com/
Monday, December 17, 2007
Alcohol
Sanaz could not find me. She thought that it may be due to her alcohol intoxication. It was a big cabin and she had to search three stories. The rest of the individuals present did not realize that I was missing. Sanaz finally found me. I was spread out in the middle of a flight of stairs. I had not been able to make it to the bottom of the flight and had passed out in the middle of my journey to the bottom floor of the cabin.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Act one started with me singing an "Andy" song on top of a stool in the bar, and Sanaz spilling her drink on the lap of an innocent bystander. Act two was Mohammad trying to keep both Sanaz and I from running across the street in order to get to the next bar. Act three was was when I asked Mohammad to take Sanaz outside because she was not feeling well, and ending up puking myself when the fresh air had contact with my face. Act four was Payam trying to drive my car to take us home and having to immediately halt in order for Shideh to hurl. Even though shideh did not have much to drink apparently throwing up is contagious for her. Act five was Sanaz and I both making sure that each other's hair does not get in the way of our puke. The final act was Mohammad laughing at my loud moans coming from the upstairs bedroom, as I was laying helpless on Sanaz's bed.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was new year's eve in Vegas. Anahita was taking a nap with her head on her lap as she was sitting very close to the roaring band. We continually threw pieces of paper at her. She would raise her head once every few throws, look at us and go back down. She ended up dancing on the side walk to her own singing of "man delam mari ro mikhad...".
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maryam went to the bathroom. She did not return. I had to go see what the hold up was. She had locked herself in the stol and would not open the door. She refused to come out or let any one in. The manager of the bar had to be called. He continually demanded that I get my friend out. I was helpless. Maryam was assured that Houman had gotten the car and is waiting by the curb. She came out and was carried to the car.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bahareh and Maryam were passed out in the freezing car as the rest of us were having a 3:00 a.m. breakfast in the restaurant. Maryam kept trying to see if Bahareh was breathing. She concluded that Bahareh was dead due to not being able to see her breath. Bahareh finally had to let out a mellow moan in order for Maryam to calm down.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
One morning Sasan woke up on the lawn in front of his dorm. He realized that the night before he had not quite made it inside the building before he had passed out!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Good times, good times...
Posted by Shabnam at 5:31 PM
5 comments:
sanaz said...
I wish you were here to see the huge smile you put on my face! I would laugh out loud, but unfortunately I can't cause there are people around...
December 18, 2007 1:52 PM
Anahita said...
I laughed so hard! So hard that made Peyman curious as to what the cause of the laugh was...As a result, he is reading your blog right now at the other corner of the room...
For the record, you were not throwing pieces of paper at me. They were pieces of ICE! Do you actually think that I would have woken up just by pieces of papers?!! Take a look at my Orkut album and you see for yourself :)
December 18, 2007 10:01 PM
sanaz said...
na na anapilaa! you're mixing it up...shabi is talking about Vegas 7 years ago! new year's eve! music lounge! us throwing paper at you! me dancing on the chair!
December 19, 2007 3:29 PM
Anahita said...
Nooo Nooo Nooo :) I'm not mixing it up. I swear I still feel the cold ice on my back. Maybe you were throwing paper and Houman was the one throwing ice at me...But then again..."Alcohol"...What do I know?!
December 20, 2007 9:34 AM
Shaghayeg said...
Way to go girl! It was really funny!
I remember our last trip to Vegas when Anna and Ghazaleh fell asleep on top of each other on the couch and we started taking pictures!!!!
December 26, 2007 12:52 PM
Posted by chek at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
January 14, 2008
Ahmad Ashoorpoor
http://www.voanews.com/persian/2008-01-14-voa18.cfm
احمد آشور پور
پدر ترانه های فولکلور گيلان درگذشت
Ahmad Ashourpour
Posted by chek at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
BelARC
http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html
Belarc Advisor - Free Personal PC Audit
Posted by chek at 09:45 AM | Comments (0)
January 11, 2008
Spanish <=> English Dictionary
http://www.spanishdict.com/
SpanishDICT.com - Dictionary of Spanish and English
Posted by chek at 06:53 PM | Comments (0)
January 01, 2008
My Dic 2008
http://www.chekonim.com/archives/dictionaries_dictionaries/index.html
My Dic is a dictionary of new words I come across everyday.
See also: 2007, My Dic 2006
Each word has a definition from answers.com, and an example sentence with a link to the source of the example.
A
abject (article)
Sex and the City's four heroines line up on a sofa, abject fascination writ large, as a matronly type demonstrates the art of lingam massage on her naked husband.
acrimony (article)
The move comes a day after the assembly was adjourned amid acrimony and calls for its dissolution.
ad hominem (article)
I intentionally didn’t respond to individuals because I didn’t want to legitimize their ad hominem attacks
anathema (article)
Why not fund increased consumption at home, rather than that of the richest country in the world, to pay for a tax cut for the richest people in the richest country, or to fight a war which most view as anathema?
apogee (article)
Archaeology is beginning to paint a clearer picture of an ancient super power at its apogee.
B
brinkmanship (article)
Iraqi MPs have made an breakthrough in parliament by passing three important laws after weeks of delays and brinkmanship between rival factions.
C
cataclysm (article)
Most physicists believe the risk of a cataclysm lies in the realms of science fiction. But there have been fears about the possibility of a mini-black hole - produced in the collider - swelling so that it gobbles up the Earth.
collusions (article)
cronyism (article)
The modus operandi of political life requires a recipe of bribery, nepotism, cronyism, secret deals, and financial collusions.
D
disavows (article)
McCain disavows aide's comment about terrorism.
disinter (article)
Accounts can be found — in the pages of the great collators of sexual deviance in its manifold forms, such as Richard von Krafft-Ebing — of individuals who even went so far as to disinter corpses in order to have intercourse with them.
dovetail (article)
The latest MasterCard SpendingPulse survey found that demand for gasoline fell by 4.7 percent last week compared to the same week last year. That dovetails with recent data from the Energy Department and Federal Highway Administration suggesting high prices are cutting American's appetite for fuel.
E
effluent (article)
They want to rename the Oceanside Water Pollution Control Plant the George W. Bush Sewage Plant. "(Bush) has always done well for the affluent of America, and anyone that does well for the affluent should be named for the effluent"
egregious (article)
The money that's gone into waste, fraud and abuse under these contracts is just so outrageous, its egregious.
(article)
You can't help but look at this material and not be disturbed, To say 'graphic' and 'egregious' doesn't capture it.
ephemeral (article)
Was the Wall a heavily defended frontier for centuries - or an ambitious engineering project, perhaps abandoned after no more than ephemeral use?
enigma (article)
The 'Red Snake' is unmatched in so many respects and an enigma in yet more.
F
facetious (article)
The tone of the blog is chatty, at times even facetious.
G
gamut (article)
They want to rename the Oceanside Water Pollution Control Plant the George W. Bush Sewage Plant. The idea behind the renaming runs the gamut from the humorous.
graft (article)
Shanghai F1 boss jailed for graft.
H
hedonistic (article)
Now a chorus of depression seems to be drowning out Beirut's famous hedonistic vibe.
heresy (article)
Supporters of the Islamic Defence Front stage a demonstration in Jakarta, Indonesia, demanding the disbandment of an Islamic sect they believe to be heretical.
I
insouciance (article)
The nurse’s admonitions to Vis, once her charge has realized she is married to someone for whom she feels no affection, are given with cynical insouciance.
J
K
kibosh (article)
Put the kibosh on
kiln (article)
These huge bricks were produced on an industrial scale. Our surveys indicate that brick kilns line most of the Wall.
L
laudatory (article)
A laudatory review of the new play
lick (article)
Flames lick the pyre of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Allahabad, India, as thousands of the late guru's followers gather for his cremation.
lingam (article)
Sex and the City's four heroines line up on a sofa, abject fascination writ large, as a matronly type demonstrates the art of lingam massage on her naked husband.
lobotomy (article)
ludicrous (article)
M
matronly (article)
Sex and the City's four heroines line up on a sofa, abject fascination writ large, as a matronly type demonstrates the art of lingam massage on her naked husband.
mogul (article)
Police study Georgia mogul death.
motley (article)
Wall Street fluctuated Friday, struggling to score a second straight day of gains as investors sifted through a motley batch of corporate profit reports and outlooks.
N
necrophilia (article)
It defines obscenity as "content whose effect will tend to deprave and corrupt those likely to read, see or hear. This could include images of extreme sexual activity such as bestiality, necrophilia, rape or torture."
nepotism (article)
The modus operandi of political life requires a recipe of bribery, nepotism, cronyism, secret deals, and financial collusions.
O
obliterate (article)
What better argument do the ayatollahs need to justify their obtaining a nuclear “deterrent” than that the possible leader of the first nation to develop nuclear weapons, and the only one to ever use them to kill people, now threatens the people of Iran with obliteration?
P
persona non grata (article)
"They have not been declared persona non grata but they have been asked to leave," the official said.
podgy (article)
Australia allows 'podgy posties'
Australia's postal service has raised its weight limit for new recruits to attract a wider range of applicants.
posit (article)
The current wisdom regarding genetics and sexual orientation posits that genes may play a role in male homosexuality but not in female homosexuality.
protagonist (article)
Kiarostami has a reputation for using child protagonists, for documentary style narrative films, for stories that take place in rural villages, and for conversations that unfold inside cars, using stationary mounted cameras.
provost (article)
pyre (article)
Flames lick the pyre of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Allahabad, India, as thousands of the late guru's followers gather for his cremation.
Q
R
restive (article)
A senior Pakistani army officer is among eight people killed in a helicopter crash in the restive South Waziristan region.
S
sondage (article)
Two collapsed arches offered an opportunity to dig a sondage into the interior without destroying any preserved architecture.
spurn (article)
Germany spurns US troop appeal.
squander (article)
It is totally hypocritical for Clinton or McCain to now talk about getting tough with Iran over the nuclear weapons issue, when both contributed so mightily to squandering U.S. leverage over Tehran.
stagger (article)
Theater seats were staggered for clear viewing.
stilettos (article)
A women's health physiotherapist, stressed the findings did not suggest that stilettos were a good thing for those keen on improving their pelvic floor function, but for women who like a slightly higher heel, the findings are reassuring.
swathe (article)
Dozens of people have been killed in violent tornadoes that cut a swathe of destruction across southern United States.
T
U
undermine (article)
underpin (article)
Pound sterling will enjoy a positive rate differential to the U.S. dollar and that should underpin the currency as we move through 2008.
V
veracity (article)
We have been in discussions with the Syrian authorities to verify the veracity of the information available.
W
wreath (article)
Trumpeters of the Russian honour guards play at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika lays a wreath during his visit to discuss energy ties.
writ large (article)
Sex and the City's four heroines line up on a sofa, abject fascination writ large, as a matronly type demonstrates the art of lingam massage on her naked husband.
X
xnay (article)
The quick reference has been the source of many problems, let's xnay the quick reference (starting with the next release) and save us trouble and wasted time in the future.
Y
Z
Posted by chek at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)