The Daily Flash -Eco, Space, Tech (11/04)
Genetic analysis of the now-extinct Falkland Islands Wolf has answered a biological riddle that caught the attention of a young Charles Darwin, and helped shape his understanding of evolution.
During his voyage aboard the HMS Beagle, Darwin observed that the wolves — like his now-famous finches — varied widely in size between different islands, suggesting that the traits of species were not immutable, but changed over time in response to their environments.
Beaming high-powered lasers into the sky allows scientists to study changing weather patterns, pollution in the Earth’s atmosphere and even gravity on the Moon. But if one of those helpful lasers happens to cross paths with an airplane, it can temporarily blind or distract the pilot and potentially cause a crash. Now, researchers have created a radio-tracking device that can perform the same task as a pair of eyes, without the potential for human error.
Spider’s Color-Changing Camouflage Is a Mystery
Crab spiders can scuttle, but apparently they can’t hide. Long touted as an example of cryptic coloring, the female Misumena vatiaspider switches her body color over the course of days depending on the flower where she lurks.
Rumor: Apple Wants to Route Your TV Shows Through iTunes
Apple rumors swirl practically every week, but there's rarely one that's as potentially game-changing as this one: According to insiders, the company's aiming to cut out the cable TV middle man, and serve up network TV to as many as 65 million users via iTunes.
The Next Space Race: Elevator Rides Into Orbit
Remember how the Ansari X-Prize resulted in the nascent commercial space trip business, with Virgin Galactic in the lead? Now there's a similar push to innovate space technology, but of a different sort: Space elevators, making the ride into orbit amazingly cheap and easy
2010 Olympics to Offset All CO2 Emissions
The former candidate cities for the 2016 Olympic games may have fought over green credentials, but Vancouver isn't doing too bad itself for next year's games. The Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) plans to offset all emissions at the event--that's 118,000 tons of CO2 emissions from things like construction, staff travel, and even the torch run.Starship Pavillion to Tour Asia
Here are the best images yet of "Fluid": the stunning whale-inspired floating pavilion being built for World Expo 2012 in Yeosu, South Korea. Designed by Australian architects, Peddle Thorp, Fluid will sail onto other Asian cities after the show.
Cheap, Printed Solar-Powered LEDs Could Change 1.5 Billion Lives
Photovoltaic cells printed on sheets aren't news, nor are LEDs and ultrathin lithium batteries. What's news is a combination of the three which can help give light to 1.5 billion people who live in impoverished areas without access to electricity.
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