Wednesday 25 September 2013

Today's Daily Brain Teaser (Sep 26, 2013)

Drift With The Current



I drift forever with the current

Down these long canals they've made

Tame, yet wild, I run elusive

Multitasking to your aid.

Before I came, the world was darker

Colder, sometimes, rougher, true

But though I might make living easy,

I'm good at killing people too.





Check Braingle.com for the answer.

Today's Daily Trivia Quiz (Sep 26, 2013)

Of Legends and Tall Tales

In the past, many stories were told of great deeds and extraordinary people. Some were real and others were great exaggerations. How well do you remember these legends and tall tales?



Take the Quiz at Braingle.com

Vocabulary : Word of the Day : Expatiate

ex-pa-ti-ate



verb :: To wander at large, or without restraint.



verb :: To enlarge in discourse or writing; to be copious in argument or discussion; to descant.



verb :: To expand; to spread; to extend; to diffuse; to broaden.



"Now, as the business of standing mast-heads, ashore or afloat, is a very ancient and interesting one, let us in some measure expatiate here." --Melville, Herman

Creativity : Synonyms III

For each of the following statements, come up with at least two plausible reasons why they are true. Now, come up with at least two plausible reasons why they are false. This exercise will help you to see that many issues have different sides to them.



1. Putting money under your mattress is a good investment.

2. Small dogs have more energy than big dogs.

3. Hot weather makes people tired.



You can repeat this exercise by using any subjective statement that you can find.

Memory : Phonetic Word Creation

Here are some tips on making keywords using the Phonetic Mnemonic System. We have already explained how each digit has an associated sound and that these sounds can be constructed into words. The key here is that each digit has a sound, not a letter.



When a single sound is created with two letters, we only count it once. For example, 'toll' is 15 not 155 and 'tack' is 17 not 177.



When a repeated letter makes two different sounds, then it is counted. For example, 'accept' is 7091.



Silent letters are always ignored. For example dumb is 13 and knee is 2.

Super Mario (extra big)

Super Mario (extra big)


Saw this on Lumberjocks a while ago and I just had to make it.

original was made by drunkenwoodworker http://lumberjocks.com/projects/83027

The original version had 1” square tiles and therefore he had to make the chamfers with a grinder. I wanted to use a router table so I opted to make my tiles 2” square for safety.

Now its super huge and heavy and I’m not sure where I’m going to hang it….almost 40”x40”

Anyway, my son and I had a blast making it and it tore him away from video games for a while.

44 Maple squares

62 Walnut

64 African Mahogany

All tiles chamfered and glued to 3/4” oak plywood and framed.

I sprayed on Laquer. I probably should have used sanding sealer first because my Maple darkened quite a bit losing some of the effect. The image almost appears better at an angle (pic 4) than when you look straight at it (pic 1).

Either way it was fun. I asked drunkenwoodworker to make a Donkey-Kong next so I can copy that idea as well.

Thanks for looking.



http://lumberjocks.com/assets/pictures/projects/425755-196x130.jpg

New Nose Is Grown on Man's Forehead

Doctors in China are growing a new nose on a man's forehead to replace the one that was damaged by an infection.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/human/life/forehead-nose-a-common-technique-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

DNews: Teen Inventors Amaze at Science Fair

The winners of the 2013 Google Science Fair have been announced, and the prizes this year go to some truly amazing young scientists. Trace shows us the inventions they came up with.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/tech/videos/teen-inventors-amaze-at-science-fair-video.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

SpaceShipTwo Trial Run Scrubbed

Virgin Galactic customers get their first taste of spaceflight -- a delay. Continue reading →



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/space/virgin-galactic-customers-get-first-taste-of-spaceflight-a-delay-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Help me build a Jig!

My engineering skills are fairly insufficient. I tend to find that my gut instinct in constructing new devices tends to be totally contrary to the inter-workings of reality.


So, please feel free to help me think this out.


A few weeks ago I received some amazing help planning out some compound joints. Here is a sketch I was provided.



I would like to build a jig to cut multiples quickly and efficiently.


My gut says, build a small sled, lay out the necessary angles and attach rest blocks along the angles. I would then only need to lay the wood across the blocks and run the sled down the table saw. It seems fairly simple in my mind, but when I attempt to execute it, it appears to be the work of a cross eyed slug. I can’t seem to figure out how to properly lay it out properly. Math is a serious issue with me. I typically have my wife help me with this sort of thing, but I’m not having much luck on this one.


I know that the angles I need are all 30 and 60 degrees. The depths vary, but that’s not as big a deal as the placement of the joints themselves. If you look at this picture, you can see that there are two cuts, one on top of the other, wherein the placement is offset slightly. I’d like to achieve this by perhaps dropping in stop pegs at the correct distances.


Hopefully my request for help will give someone another great puzzle to solve. lol. Thanks in advance for any advice.



https://s3.amazonaws.com/ljimg/mtp5ljq.jpg

Thousands of Dino Tracks Found in Alaska

Researchers may have just scratched the surface of major new dinosaur site nearly inside the Arctic Circle.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/animals/dinosaurs/yukon-dinosaur-tracks-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Brain Stethoscope Turns Seizures Into Music

Recordings of brain activity could help care givers for people with epilepsy recognize when undetected seizures occur. Continue reading →



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/tech/biotechnology/brain-stethoscope-turns-seizures-into-music-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

First Face? Prehistoric Fish Was a Jawdropper

The world's first known face belonged to a prehistoric fish with a bullet-shaped head, body armor and beady eyes.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/animals/first-face-found-on-prehistoric-fish-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Weird Island Appears After Pakistan Earthquake

A new island emerged from the ocean offshore of the city of Gwadar, Pakistan, after a strong magnitude-7.7 earthquake shook the country.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/earth/rocks-fossils/pakistan-earthquake-caused-gwadar-island-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Bizarre Sighting: Cane Toad Eating a Bat?

A park ranger in northwest Peru got a surprise when he encountered a toad with something in its mouth.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/animals/cane-toad-eating-a-bat-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Curvy Smartphones Coming from Samsung

Look out iPhone, Samsung is unveiling a smartphone with a curved display in October.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/tech/gear-and-gadgets/curvy-smartphones-coming-samsung-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

This Game's Beautiful Infographic Puzzles Will Mess With Your Head - Kotaku Australia









This Game's Beautiful Infographic Puzzles Will Mess With Your Head

Kotaku Australia

Oh, look: a side-scroller. You know what to do, right? Just run to the right and hop onto that elevated platform to get to the next screen. Wait. What's happening? It's getting taller as you move closer to it? Why? WTF? This isn't how things are ...





http://ifttt.com/images/no_image_card.png

Get Ready For New Mobile Device Rules On Planes

Federal regulators are looking at relaxing rules for in-flight use of mobile phones and other electronics. Continue reading →



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/tech/gear-and-gadgets/get-ready-for-new-mobile-device-rules-on-planes-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

DNews: NASA Will Pay You to Lay in Bed

How does getting paid $18,000 for laying in bed sound? Well NASA's ready to pay up! Laci explains why the agency is willing to cut the check.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/space/videos/nasa-will-pay-you-to-lay-in-bed-video.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Penis Bones Show Size Mattered to Ancient Bear

Penis bones are rare in the fossil record, but researchers have found five of them in the Madrid Basin in Spain that belonged to a primitive bear.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/animals/size-mattered-to-ancient-bear-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Super-Dense Galaxy a Victim of Stellar Robbery?

It's a case of cosmic whodunit: What happened to all the external stars in M60-UCD1, an ultra-compact dwarf galaxy? They were stolen. Continue reading →



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/space/astronomy/was-this-super-dense-galaxy-the-victim-of-a-stellar-robbery-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

New Arctic Island Discovered

Russian explorers have discovered a new island in the Arctic after the split of Northbrook Island, which occupies an important place in the annals of Arctic exploration. Continue reading →



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/earth/new-island-found-in-the-arctic-13092.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Is It Really Lincoln? Gettsyburg Photo Stirs Debate

A stereoscopic photograph taken on the day of the Gettysburg Address may or may not show President Lincoln.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/history/us-history/really-lincoln-gettysburg-photo-debate-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Stunning New View of Cat's Paw Stellar Kittens

The glow of the star-forming region inside the Cat's Paw Nebula has been captured in stunning detail by a newly commissioned instrument on the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment, or APEX, telescope.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/space/astronomy/cats-paw-nebula-star-forming-region-vista-eso-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Ancient Impact Continues to Cause Ripple Effects

The ancient impact strike that formed the Chesapeake Bay Crater, as well as other epic space rock impact scars, still affect Earth today.



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/earth/rocks-fossils/ancient-asteroid-impacts-earth-effects-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Super-Dense Galaxy a Victim of Stellar Robbery?

It's a case of cosmic whodunit: What happened to all the external stars in M60-UCD1, an ultra-compact dwarf galaxy? They were stolen. Continue reading →



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/space/galaxies/was-this-super-dense-galaxy-the-victim-of-a-stellar-robbery-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Spheroku™ Mobile Game is Now Available for iOS devices - PR Web (press release)









Spheroku™ Mobile Game is Now Available for iOS devices

PR Web (press release)

This new mobile game combines the logic of sudoku with a three-dimensional experience reminiscent of the Rubik's cube. The game is free to install and contains four puzzles, one for each of four difficulty settings. Additional puzzles can be purchased ...





http://ifttt.com/images/no_image_card.png

Hotter Earth Cooks Up More Thunderstorms

A new study finds that we can expect a lot more deadly thunderstorms and tornadoes thanks to climate change. Continue reading →



via Discovery News http://news.discovery.com/earth/weather-extreme-events/more-severe-thunderstorms-ahead-130925.htm#mkcpgn=rssnws1

Traversing through puzzles - The New Indian Express








The New Indian Express



Traversing through puzzles

The New Indian Express

Now, as for the game itself, it's a co-operative puzzle platformer. A single-player co-operative puzzle platformer. You control one brother with the left thumbstick on the controller, and the other with the right one. And yeah, this means you're going ...





http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSoWjneDqoEmfJgCnrVxiebuT5aG3XOtuykU8QdtFJXVJKX7c2CDlgp1gc

Nihilumbra Review - Capsule Computers








Capsule Computers



Nihilumbra Review

Capsule Computers

Beautifun Games takes full advantage of the abilities in crafting the puzzles. For example, one puzzle will require the player to use the mud ability to sneak past a sleeping monster while another will use the same mud ability to pin monsters safely in ...





http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ2BhxPkTqgsqmWe5oeCPW4khX0GzykWaTz7ATEA16f3XQXiR3htr8DqX8_