Category Archives: Brain

For all your cerebral needs…

Incredible Dinosaur Pumpkins at the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze

October 31st, 2013 | Brain

Dinosaur Pumpkins 3

Pumpkin Dinosaurs

Dinosaur Pumpkins 4

Pumpkin Clock

Pumpkin Arch

Pumpkin Arch 2

Pumpkin Spider

Pumpkin Design

Pumpkin gazebo

The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze is a month-long Halloween festival held every year at the Van Cortlandt Manor near New York City. The event features over 5,000 hand-carved pumpkins crafted into a variety of incredible designs.

Here’s a word from the organizers:

“Stroll through the Tunnel O’ Pumpkin Love and witness the incredible sight of gourd-filled Jack-in-the-Boxes springing up and bouncing around. See slithering ground snakes, a giant spider web, and go gaga over a collection of shrunken Little Monsters. Gaze in amazement at a towering pumpkin bonfire and a working doomsday grandfather clock.

A giant sea serpent adds some hiss to the Undersea Aquarium while comical, squash-eating Venus pumpkin traps sprout in the garden. New dinosaur additions this year to Blaze’s perennially popular Jurassic Park include a pterodactyl and a brontosaurus.”

The sculptures are pretty amazing, so I would definitely try to check it out next year if you live in the area. Unfortunately, all of this year’s tickets have been sold out! However, you can see a whole lot more images on flickr.

-RSB

[via Colossal]

“Carn” by Jeff Le Bars

October 7th, 2013 | Brain

Carn

-Lost in the woods, a young boy makes a fateful oath with a dying wolf.

“Carn” is a short animated film from Jeff Le Bars, which he created for a 2012 graduation project. The design is superb and the storyline is even better. This artist has a very bright future.

Hope you enjoy.

-RSB

Using Optogenetics to Fight Obesity

October 3rd, 2013 | Brain

Optogenetics

Joshua Jennings and Garret Stuber of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill recently developed an experiment to “turn off” hunger in a genetically-modified mouse. The process utilizes a technique known as optogenetics (discussed before here). This technology essentially means that you can use a laser to control certain cells in the brain, and afterwards, observe what happens to the behavior of the animal.
buy premarin online langleyrx.com no prescription

In this case, the researchers successfully manipulated neurons in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST), which have been known to regulate hunger through their actions on the lateral hypothalamus.

Limbic System

As you can see in the video above, when the laser activates, the mouse immediately begins to eat, and when the laser inactivates, the mouse stops eating. It’s really quite amazing!

Of course, it would a long time before anything like this could work in humans.
buy singulair online langleyrx.com no prescription

 A key factor in this sort of experiment is that the mouse has genetically-engineered cells which respond to light, but this research does represent a first step in understanding how to manipulate neurons to control complex urges such as hunger.
buy priligy online langleyrx.com no prescription

If this sparked your interest, you can read more about the Stuber Lab and its research here, and if you’d like to read the article for yourself (with subscription), head here.

-RSB

Into Abstraction with Mark Lovejoy

September 6th, 2013 | Brain

Mark Lovejoy 1

Abstraction

abstraction

Mark Lovejoy 4

Mark Lovejoy 8

Mark Lovejoy 7

Mark Lovejoy 6

Mark Lovejoy 5

Mark Lovejoy created these beautifully abstract photographs using a collection of materials found in his art studio (see below). The images are full of color and depth, each expressing its own mood.

The work is extremely reminiscent of David Lidbetter, who we featured on the site back in May.

Here’s a word from the artist:

“These are not photographs of paintings – no paintings exist.  These images are of something as fleeting as any street scene or sunset – illuminated pigments, diluents, extenders, resins, oils, fillers, waxes, drying agents, etc. which, depending upon the mix, have varying miscibilities, viscosities, tacks, surface textures, reflectance, drying times etc., etc.  All images are made using CMYK, white & in some cases silver & gold.  Each original image has been reworked & reshot repeatedly – preserving any given iteration would be to doom all subsequent possibilities – the photographic record is all that remains . . . “

Another Friday filled with color. Find more from Mark Lovejoy at his Tumblr.

-RSB

Big Wave Surfing – Teahupo’o, Tahiti

August 29th, 2013 | Brain, Space

Teahupo'o Big Wave Surfing

Teahupo'o Big Wave Surfing 2

The sleepy village of Teahupo’o is known for a world class break that can be one of the most dangerous places to surf on the World Championship Tour. The day featured in the video above was 2 years ago, on August 27th, 2011. Kelly Slater stated that “witnessing this was a draining feeling… being terrified for other people’s lives all day long. It’s life or death. Letting go of that rope one time can change your life and not many people will ever experience that in their life.”

It’s awe-inspiring to witness the power (and beauty) of the ocean. I don’t think I’ll ever be the one facing down that wave, but I’m glad it was captured in all its force.

For more from the filmmaker, check out his site.

-RSB

CT Scanner – Inner Workings Revealed

August 21st, 2013 | Brain, Robot

CT Scanner Without Cover

What is a CT Scanner? Are you sure this isn’t a Time Machine?

Well, CT stands for Computed Tomography.  The machine is basically a traditional X-ray machine that spins around the patient so that it can acquire many different images of the body.  A computer algorithm converts the images into layered scans to allow radiologists to sift through them looking for tumors, internal bleeds, pneumonia, and a range of other conditions. The final images look something like this.

CT scans are one of the most frequently ordered diagnostic tests in emergency departments in the United States (many say they are ordered way too much), so it’s important to know a little bit about how they work… And unfortunately, no, it is not a time machine.

Here is a labeled image to give you a bit more detail into how it works:

CT Scanner Without Cover Labeled

1: X-ray tube

2: High voltage power source and transformer

3: Scintillation detectors with 5 cooling fans

4: Fluid pump and radiator for cooling the X-ray tube

All of these components make 2 to 3 complete turns per second around the patient.

So how does the CT Scanner stay electrically powered while spinning?

To keep the machine charged without tangling the cords, CT scanners rely on the technology of the Slip Ring:

A Slip Ring is basically an electromechanical device that allows the transmission of power and electrical signals from a stationary to a rotating structure, in this case, from the base to the rotating scanner.  One difference between the image below and the slip rings of CT Scanners is that there is a pool of liquid metal molecularly bonded to the contacts instead of the sliding brush. This decreases friction even more to allow constant rotation of the scanner.

 

Slip Ring

Hopefully you found this interesting and at least somewhat easy to understand. For further reading, head here.

-RSB

Page 10 of 25« First...78910111213...20...Last »