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Aerial Drones and U.S. Law My post last Friday (Making Money with Drone-Based Businesses) was long on enthusiasm and short on facts. Thanks, as always, to our fantastic commentariat for helping me get up to speed. The story of drone entrepreneurship is, in fact, emerging, but the technology and the willing entrepreneurs are mostly in place, already, and the action, for now, is about the law and how it’s changing. As things stand, to legally operate an unmanned aircraft in US national airspace for other than recreational purposes, or at altitudes above 400 feet, requires a special certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA does not issue these for commercial use, though it has issued some dozens for experimental purposes and some hundreds to public agencies like the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security.
World's Tiniest Chameleons Found in Madagascar Researchers have recently discovered four new chameleon species, which rank among the world’s tiniest reptiles. Adults of the smallest species are just over an inch from snout to tail. The four new species belong to the genus Brookesia, also known as the leaf chameleons, which live in remote rainforests in northern Madagascar. The genus is already known to contain some very small species, with members typically resembling juvenile versions of larger species. As small as these guys are, a super-tiny dwarf gecko found in the British Virgin Islands might be just a tad more wee.
Computer, read my lips: Emotion detector developed using a genetic algorithm A computer is being taught to interpret human emotions based on lip pattern, according to research published in the International Journal of Artificial Intelligence and Soft Computing. The system could improve the way we interact with computers and perhaps allow disabled people to use computer-based communications devices, such as voice synthesizers, more effectively and more efficiently. Karthigayan Muthukaruppanof Manipal International University in Selangor, Malaysia, and co-workers have developed a system using a genetic algorithm that gets better and better with each iteration to match irregular ellipse fitting equations to the shape of the human mouth displaying different emotions. They have used photos of individuals from South-East Asia and Japan to train a computer to recognize the six commonly accepted human emotions -- happiness, sadness, fear, angry, disgust, surprise -- and a neutral expression.
Awesome pictures from around the world Someone sent me these in a chain email, it was horribly formatted. I also do not know who made the comments, or how accurate they are. I take zero credit in the pictures, I just wanted to compile them nicely for all to see. The world’s highest chained carousel, located in Vienna, the height of 117 meters. Matheus Lopes Manifesto, traditional art, mixed media Building a galaxy, digital art, mixed media Alternate ending, digital art, mixed media Ace of Wands, digital art, mixed media 19 Amazing Video Game Cakes Serious gamers know just how time-consuming gaming is, often making it difficult to do anything besides working (only to buy more games) and playing the games themselves. Even so, gamers usually do still manage to have lives outside of the console; these cakes are some of the amazing creations born as a result. Consoles While most people dedicate their gaming obsessions to the specific games they play, others adore entire consoles. For those who worship at the altar of the original NES, Debbie Does Cakes has made a simply amazing cake complete with some of the system’s most classic characters.
‘Artificial leaf’ makes fuel from sunlight Researchers led by MIT professor Daniel Nocera have produced something they’re calling an “artificial leaf”: Like living leaves, the device can turn the energy of sunlight directly into a chemical fuel that can be stored and used later as an energy source. The artificial leaf — a silicon solar cell with different catalytic materials bonded onto its two sides — needs no external wires or control circuits to operate. Simply placed in a container of water and exposed to sunlight, it quickly begins to generate streams of bubbles: oxygen bubbles from one side and hydrogen bubbles from the other.
Why Nikola Tesla was the greatest geek who ever lived Additional notes from the author: If you want to learn more about Tesla, I highly recommend reading Tesla: Man Out of Time Also, this Badass of the week by Ben Thompson is what originally inspired me to write a comic about Tesla. Ben's also got a book out which is packed full of awesome. There's an old movie from the 80s on Netflix Instant Queue right now about Tesla: The Secret of Nikola Tesla. It's corny and full of bad acting, but it paints a fairly accurate depiction of his life. The drunk history of Tesla is quite awesome, too. History.com has a great article about Edison and how his douchebaggery had a chokehold on American cinema.
Amy Casey New work from Cleveland-based artist Amy Casey who paints delicate networks of roped and towering cityscapes. Casey currently has a show at Zg Gallery in Chicago through August 6. I definitely intend on stopping by. You can see much larger and detailed versions of these paintings here.