1

Chemistry / Latest negative perceptions - nano

« on: 21/05/2012 15:37:47 »

In our industry, anything nano is now suddently considered suspect, like the bubble has burst, our enthusiasm for new emerging nanotech industry to cure world problems has waned, everyone realises its just tiny stuff and now theres poor science journalism running smear campaigns on nanoparticles for cosmetics use, sunscreens, etc. Is there a risk or is it just scaremongering?

2

Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution / a fish out of water...

« on: 26/04/2012 16:06:12 »

How do salmon, that migrate from saline to fresh water environments, survive the osmotic pressures during transition from one system to the other?

3

Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology / What causes the Earth's magnetic poles to reverse?

« on: 26/03/2012 09:59:39 »

In geological history it is well documented via constructive margins in the sea bed rock, that the magnetic poles swap over every few tens of thousands of years, but what drives this process and when is the next one due?

4

Physiology & Medicine / How good is a good cuppa tea?

« on: 17/02/2012 13:56:54 »

Interesting program on BBC the other night, focusing on nutrients in common foods, and dispelling a few common misconceptions. There was a section on tea, our national drink, stating if you left the teabag mashing in the cup for 3 minutes as opposed to the average 40 seconds, it would double the anmount of natural flavinoid antioxidants extracted from the leaves and it would be 'twice as good for you'. Whilst this is very comforting information no reference was given to the significance or actual flavinoid content needed to be beneficial to the metablism.
If it took 20,000ug of flavinoid to mop up those nasty free radicals and tea was giving you only 5ug then it makes pretty little difference how long you left the tea brewing.
Does anyone know what a good level of antioxidant intake is and how much you get in an average cuppa?

5

Physiology & Medicine / Why do we tell our kids to eat their crusts?

« on: 14/02/2012 12:43:32 »

My two are devils at leaving their crusts - pizzas, sandwiches, toast, you name it. My parents always told me I had to eat the crusts as they were 'the best part'. I say they were the driest and most tasteless part.
Is there any extra or additional nutrition in bread crust or was this just a lame ploy at trying to cut down on  food wastage?

6

That CAN'T be true! / does tourmaline have magical beneficial powers?

« on: 23/01/2012 23:09:23 »

Came across these tourmaline 'ionic balance' wriststraps on Facebook.
http://www.ionic-balance.com/technology/tourmaline.html
Can they really make these wild claims? Theres a lot of shocking bad science here. People are paying £23 for a rubber wristband with a bit of mineral in it. Power of placebo? Is there actually any real scientific study backing up this snake-oil sales pitch?

7

Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution / do pets have bad days?

« on: 20/01/2012 12:37:42 »

I'm interested to know if animals have moods, bad days, happy days, when they wake up and feel a bit low, depressed, grumpy, and so on. There's been a lot of stuff i the past about biorhythms which I remain sceptical about, but everyone gets those days when they are just a bit down, fed up, low energy. I wondered if it was something shared by other cogniscent mammals, or is it just an extension of our own moods transferred to our pets, part of the humanizing bond that can go on between pet and owner. How much of a mood is physico-chemical inbanance and how much of it is mental state? Can the two really be separated?

8

Technology / Can vintage electronic components sound better?

« on: 18/01/2012 16:43:58 »

One of my interests is tweaking guitar circuits and making stompboxes - analog overdrive pedals, distortion, chorus and fuzz boxes. Here there is a load of mystique about specific resistors and capacitors to capture the true vintage tone. It's common for people to shell out $30 - $40 on a single vintage bumble bee resistor for a Les Paul or an 'orange drop' capacitor for a fuzz circuit. The old and original germanium transistors had a lot of inconsistency in them with current leakage and wobbly bias meaning it was sometimes hard to predict the quality of the distortion. Now silicon transistors are so cheap and accurate they are also a lot more reliable, but the mystique has gone. Some people also rave about certain vintages of op-amp chips for Tubescreamer circuits. I've tried a bunch and can't tell the difference.
Is there any scientific basis for an older non-polar capacitor or a vintage resistor adding some unique quality to the guitar tone?

9

The Environment / Are there any health implications of wind farms?

« on: 12/01/2012 16:50:42 »

I read a year or two ago there was a health lobby against further wind farm developments on the grounds that they were linked to cancer or brain tumours amongst people living in the locality. Gut feeling says this is rash irresponsible journalism or someone has his facts well messed up. What possible link could they make between the spinnig blades of a windmill and human cell carcinoma development?

10

Technology / Why are kettle (IEC) leads for high-end audio so expensive?

« on: 12/01/2012 13:27:33 »

I'd be interested in a reasoned scientific debate that justifies the incredible cost of these high end mains cables for hifi. Soaring to £1999/m for top of the range, it is supposed to give massively improved acoustic response by 'cleaning up' the mains feed to your amp.
http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/copy_of_Nordost.html
http://www.nordost.com/93/blue-heaven-power-cord
I suspect a lot of very expensive snake oil here, but is there a proper reason why these leads, by reducing any ac noise from all that filthy mains electricity entering your house ring mains via the grid's dirty old exterior cables, can significantly improve the sound of your Snow patrol CD whirring away in your Amstrad?

11

Technology / Is it better to inflate car tyres with nitrogen?

« on: 11/01/2012 15:49:20 »

Heres some dodgy science promoted by Qwikfit, proposing massive increases in fuel economy if you use Nitrogen to inflate your car tyres. What are your views? Do they realise how much nitrogen is already in compressed air? When invetigating further it seems the company supplying the N2 machines to the garages say its about maintaining a proper tyre pressure that boosts your fuel consumption, as well as all the safety benefits of having inert gas in  your tyre instead of all that evil combusible oxygen in case of a crash - that's "why F1 cars and aeroplanes all use N2". No it isn't. Discuss.