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Nvate Commentary: Is Technology Affecting Our Ability to Spell?
Posted on May 21, 2013 | 1 CommentPaloma Basilio Communication has evolved several times through the years with the most recent transformation due to the boom in technology. Our grandparents communicated through letters, our parents communicated through rotary telephones and our generation communicates through text messages and social media outlets. Being that we live in a fast-paced world everything must be communicated in a way that takes the least amount of time. This is when abbreviated words become useful. The use of technology has become second nature to us. We rely on it so much now that... -
“Pure Genius”—Engineers versus Wind, Fire and Water
Posted on May 18, 2013 | No CommentsBobby Miller This week the contestants designed a portable, one-person shelter that can protect an individual from extreme forces of nature. First, heavy wind blew the shelter to simulate a hurricane. Next, fire blast the shelter. Finally, water was shot at their creations. The judges showed these forces acting upon a miniature building for demonstration. Every element tears away at the structure—the water blast practically destroys it. In the Blueprint Challenge, the engineers come up with conventional ideas and some outlandish ones, such as a suit of armor akin to... -
“Sui Generis” Promises a Truly Exceptional Gaming Experience
Posted on May 17, 2013 | No CommentsAlison K. Lanier “Sui Generis,” a revolutionary game in production after a successful and newsworthy Kickstarter campaign, does justice to its Latin name, “of its own genius.” The gaming community is hailing this product as truly unique, an imaginative and thought-provoking first of its kind. A conceptual video game by Bare Mettle Entertainment, the small-business entity under the dominion of the game’s brain-father, Madoc Evans, “Sui Generis” melds the best of many types of RPGs and delivers something entirely new to boot—a dynamic, almost unbelievably diverse digital world based, to... -
The Rise of Artificial Intelligence: What’s Going on Now
Posted on May 16, 2013 | 1 CommentMichael Cleland Although James Cameron’s 2009 film “Avatar,” which is set in 2154, seems like a far stretch from reality, the first steps toward experimenting with robot surrogates have been taken. Avatar technology will prove to be able to forever change what science can accomplish for humanity. Of the many definitions of avatar, the online free dictionary contains a derivative that is the most relevant today, “a movable image that represents a person in a virtual reality environment or in cyberspace.” Recent precedents have proven that avatar-related technology has evolved... -
Picking through Online Guitar Lessons: What Works and What Needs Tuning
Posted on May 10, 2013 | No CommentsRudy Tardin Type in “how to play ‘Free Fallin’ on guitar” in the YouTube search engine and about 358,000 results turn up. Most within the guitar playing community consider Tom Petty’s classic tune a beginner’s song to learn with its basic three-chord strumming. But sift through the first page of search results and at least three different versions instructing a how-to of the same song exist from an assortment of amateur and professional guitarists. The difficulty of determining the correct way to play can be instantly frustrating when starting off,... -
“Pure Genius”—Fire at Will, Don’t Miss the Missile
Posted on May 10, 2013 | No CommentsBobby Miller The second episode, original airdate May 8, opens with a unique twist. Apparently the eliminated contestants will still be participating in every build. As the competition winds down, the judges will pick one capable “wild card,” who will then have a second chance at winning. Joe Caravella, who was eliminated last week, is confident that he can make a comeback. The wild card aspect certainly adds suspense to the show, and allowing the contestants to return prevents the teams from shrinking—smaller teams would mean less interesting builds. After... -
Danish Hotel Proves Green Living Can Be Posh and Profitable
Posted on May 7, 2013 | No CommentsTracey M. Romero Given the title of The World’s Greenest Hotel by Skal International, Crowne Plaza Copenhagen Towers in Denmark strives to show that sustainable living is not only possible, but can be a four-star experience for the customer while still being profitable for the business. One of their missions is to offer their guests a “vacation with a clear conscience.” The key, of course, is implementing the right innovations. As the first Danish hotel to sign the U.N. Global Compact, which asks businesses to work with the United Nations... -
“Pure Genius”—Protecting a Black Box in a Plane Crash… or Truck Collision
Posted on May 4, 2013 | No CommentsBobby Miller The first episode, original airdate May 1, opens with host Kal Penn explaining the scope of the series. He then tells the contestants to watch a little show as two white pickup trucks drive in traveling at 35 mph, about 56.3 kph. They collide head-on, causing boxes of explosives in the truck beds to explode. Penn explains that the explosives in the trucks were designed to detonate if their gravitational force, or G-force, exceeds 25 G’s. WiseGeek.org defines g-force as “either the force of gravity on a particular... -
“The Big Brain Theory: Pure Genius”—Inspiring a New Generation of Innovators
Posted on May 4, 2013 | No CommentsBobby Miller On the Discovery Channel every Wednesday at 10 p.m. EST, a new episode of “The Big Brain Theory: Pure Genius” airs. The show involves 10 contestants who are divided into teams each episode to tackle difficult engineering projects. It blends reality TV drama, where the contestants must deal with each other’s clashing personalities, with science that is explained in such a way that laypeople can understand. According to the show’s host, Kal Penn—who played Dr. Lawrence Kutner on the TV series “House”— “The Big Brain Theory” wants to... -
Political Revolutions: Like Us on Facebook
Posted on May 3, 2013 | No CommentsBobby Miller For most people, Facebook and Twitter are ways to chat with friends and catch up on the latest news. Many people use the sites to procrastinate when they have something important to be doing. However, in some countries, these websites have saved lives and allowed political upheavals to occur. They allow for free communication that has challenged authoritarian governments, making some go so far as to say that the Internet is a tool for democracy. The Political Revolutions The first instance in which we saw social media websites...