For everything from family to computers…
In the following video, Bill Hammack, the engineer guy, shows how the three key characteristics of laser light – single wavelength, narrow beam, and high intensity – are made. He explains the operation of a ruby laser – the first laser ever made – showing how electronic transitions create stimulated emission to give coherent light, and then how the ends of the ruby cavity create a narrow wavelength highly collimated beam.
Eric Schmidt has said that Google will make cash available through its investment into Teach First to buy Raspberry Pi and Arduino units for British schoolchildren. He was at the UK’s Science Museum to talk about Mountain View’s partnership with the charity, which puts top university graduates into schools to teach disadvantaged kids. The Android-maker wrote a cheque to fund over 100 places on the scheme, aiming to get bright computer scientists to reintroduce engineering principles to pupils. Mr. Schmidt hoped that with the right support, kits like the Raspberry Pi would do for this generation what the BBC Micro did three decades ago.
from Engadget
Excessive drinking and other Mad Men-like behavior has become part of the culture of getting an MBA degree at schools like Harvard and Wharton, including, in some cases, sexual harassment.
Potable water is both a finite and renewable resource. While it is infinitely recyclable, the Earth’s stores of fresh water at any point are limited. So when humanity’s booming populations drain these reserves faster than they can be replenished, shit gets real. And this is how we fix it. More »
from Gizmodo
When Gac Filipaj fled war-torn Yugoslavia in 1992, he became a refugee in New York. He took a janitor’s job at Columbia University because it included free tuition. But he first had to learn English. After a dozen years, he received a bachelor’s degree in classics over the weekend.
from Morning Edition
We love biomimicry in robots, especially those that look and move like animals and insects. Now here’s an opportunity to build your own!
A University of Dundee scholar has been working on a wonderful tool that aims to evoke the emotional connection between children with autism and their parents. While we’ve seen novelties like the My Keepon in the past, any addition to the cause is always a pleasant one, and the Passive Play’s no exception. The concept comes in the form of an interactive toy cube for the kid (pictured above), which pairs up with an iOS app and allows the parent to see any interaction the little one is having with the device. Passive Play’s creator, Tom Kirkman, says his inspiration comes from “wanting to learn more about autism,” and in case you happen to be in the UK, he’ll be showing off the project at Dundee University later this month. For all those details, be sure to check out the PR after the break.
from Engadget