It's time for the Google Science Fair

We like Science Fairs here at Digital Diner.  When done correctly they help kids get excited about science and engineering.  One of the big ones starts today.  The Google Science Fair for 2013 is open to anyone around the world from 13-18 years old.  There are three steps for contestants: Enter, Experiment, Change the World.  It sounds simple. The grand prize winner will get to go on a 10 day adventure to the Galapagos Islands with National Geographic and win a $50,000 scholarship.  Most of the competition occurs online via Google Hangouts and YouTube videos.
If you are between 13 and 18 years old, I recommend that you go to the Google Science Fair website now and get working on your entry.  Good Luck!

Broken smart phone screens

We had an incident this weekend where one of our cell phones broke.  During a momentary change in the Earth's gravitational field, the phone came in untimely and forceful contact with a fireplace hearth.  As a result, the screen of said phone cracked.  Fortunately, and incredibly, we had another phone of the same type that had died of another cause earlier which still had a good screen.  We were able to take the phone apart and swap the screen and all is good.  Still it was a reminder of the dangers that our poor cell phones face every day.  We were very lucky to be able to replace it.  
You see these smart phones are substantially made of glass.  Glass is very strong, but also quite brittle.  They can withstand incredible impacts, but if they get a bonk a just the wrong angle - sproing - broken glass.
Of course, if you are PK Hunder and you are doing a totally rad ski jump for the X Games when your phone falls out of your pocket in mid air, you may be surprised to find it sliding down the icy hill behind you until it actually smacks into your ski boot at the bottom.  PK was really lucky.  Apparently his phone worked just fine after the episode.  No cracks!  See the video below.

On a related note, the number one cause of physical trauma to cell phones is water damage due to them being dropped in the toilet... so kids, remember, don't poop and text!

The wonder of flock behavior

We've seen our share of birds and they can certainly be amazing, but I've never seen anything like this in real life.  I'd certainly like to.  It seems surrealistic.  I think it is amazing how each individual bird makes local decisions about where to go next, yet the overall behavior of the herd swarm flock really looks as if it is being directed globally.
What you are seeing is a bunch of starlings performing a dance called murmuration.  Apparently scientists haven't been able to fully explain this behavior yet.  All I know is that it is very cool and I'm glad that filmmaker Neels Castillon was there to capture it for us to watch.

Now we know which came first...

I'm so glad we can finally put this issue to rest.  ASAP Physics has decisively settled the age old chicken vs egg controversy.  The video above explains the issue and its resolution in gory detail.  While I'm convinced (and always have been on this topic), I'm sure there will be doubters.  I suspect they will give scholarly presentations much like the one below.

I like these dry ice bubbles

If you have some dry ice, come on over this weekend... We really must try this.  I'll get the GoPro ready.

This is a fun card trick

I know, I know... If I tell you all about this card trick, then you'll all know it and you wont be able to fool each other.  Well, I understand that there are still a few people out there who don't read Digital Diner, so this is your chance to fool them.  It is a cute trick.  Watch the video.

Now, for extra credit, can you explain WHY this trick works?  If you understand it, you can make variations on it that will amaze even your friends who have seen this video.

Iodine Clock

Reason number 472 to have a high speed video camera: You can capture chemical reactions in sloooow motion.  Check out this video of the Iodine Clock reaction in slow motion and then hear the mind boggling explanation of the chemistry to see why what you see is awesomely amazing.

via itsoktobesmart

Audi's self parking car

The technology of self driving cars is evolving quickly.  It wasn't that long ago that the DARPA Grand Challenge was created to encourage the development of autonomous cars.  Now Sebastian Thrun, whose team won the DARPA Grand Challenge, works for Google where his team has been creating self driving car technology (as well as Udacity, but that is a different story).  The technology is amazing, but when will we actually get to use it?  When will we have our own self driving cars?  As is often the case, I expect that the technology will be well ahead of legal and social acceptance of the technology.  It is moving quickly, however, as California and Nevada have made it legal for self driving cars to roam the streets under certain conditions.  Still, it will be 2040 before you'll be able to get by without a driver's license.

In the mean time, there are places where the self driving technology may show up.  In the video above, Audi show's their concept of a car that parks itself.  This makes a lot of sense.  All the self driving happens on private property under very controlled circumstances.

We may see this well before 2040.  Of course, my question is what does the car do if there are no parking places?

Connected Learning

There is an interesting new report out on something called Connected Learning by The Digital Media and Learning Research Hub.

This report is a synthesis of ongoing research, design, and implementation of an approach to education called “connected learning.” It advocates for broadened access to learning that is socially embedded, interest-driven, and oriented toward educational, economic, or political opportunity. Connected learning is realized when a young person is able to pursue a personal interest or passion with the support of friends and caring adults, and is in turn able to link this learning and interest to academic achievement, career success or civic engagement.

I'm not sure why they restrict the definition to a "young person," but other than that it presents a compelling view of an approach to education.  The authors say that by combining the plethora of resources available today with the intersections of academics, interests and peer groups, you get a new kind of engagement in learning.  They also conclude that this style of learning has societal benefits as well as individual benefits.  This sounds to me like the same thing that attracts us to the Maker culture and homeschooling.  The table below summarizes some of the principles.

The report includes a plethora of videos from education professionals discussing Connected Learning, how it works and generally singing its praises.  If you are interested in directions in education for the 21st century, it is worth taking a look at these.

A summary report is available here
The entire publication is available here
Videos of educators involved in the study are here

Bad lip reading

I'm not a big football fan, but I must admit that I was pretty amused by this bad lip reading video.  If you haven't seen it yet, whether your a football fan or not, its worth taking a look.