Extraordinary Animals In The Womb

National Geographic is preparing a new series showing very detailed images of animals in the womb.
[ Extraordinary Animals In The Womb ]

The Sun is now in the quietest phase of its 11-year activity cycle, the solar minumum - in fact, it has been unusually quiet this year - with over 200 days so far with no observed sunspots. The solar wind has also dropped to its lowest levels in 50 years. Scientists are unsure of the significance of this unusual calm, but are continually monitoring our closest star with an array of telescopes and satellites. Seen below are some recent images of the Sun in more active times.

The solar hurricane totally pwn3d that comet, imo. That's no sun, it's a space station. [ the sun ]

If you were hoping to send your DNA sequence into space for safekeeping, sorry, but you missed the boat. Or more specifically, the rocket launch.

The Associated Press reports that Richard Garriott, a computer game designer, blasted into space today. Also on board: the digitized DNA sequences of an assortment of famous and not-so-famous specimen, from scientists to athletes to unknowns.

These now immortal digital souls include:

Physicist Stephen Hawking
Comedian Stephen Colbert
Playboy "Cyber Girl of the Year" Jo Garcia
American Gladiator Matt Morgan

Here's the weirdest part-- the genetic sequences will be stored at the international space station, in case a disaster on Planet Earth wipes out all human life!

"Operation Immortality" is the name of the project, and its fear-inducing website reminds you: "This is our best, last hope against extinction."

So I guess the hope is that someday aliens will reassemble versions of Stephen Colbert and Stephen Hawking to entertain themselves.

As for reproduction, that responsibility will fall on the few women included. Let's hope that Stephen Hawking's daughter Lucy, a couple of sci-fi television writers, and the Playboy model are ready for child-bearing!

--Clare Abreu

I will never tire of watching Tornado videos. However, every time I watch it I remember how much my mom loved the film Twister and claimed it to be the best film ever. I will forever mock her of that statement. No offense, Helen Hunt. [ House Destroyed by Tornado ]

The official judging for the 34th Annual Small World Photomicrography Competition took place on May 28, 2008. The winners will be announced on October 15, but we’re giving you the chance to pick your favorites among this year’s top entries.

Based on the vote ratings, the microscopic photography community is tough to impress.The photo above is an entry from Dr. Margaret Oechsli at the Jewish Hospital, Heart & Lung Institute. [ Small World Photomicrography ]

The Deus Ex Machina is a wearable exoskeleton motorcycle concept, and it's pretty damn cool (although it looks a little impractical to me). Note that it says he invented a concept vehicle. It means he invented a concept, so it's legit. Crazy, impractical, and unworthy of attention, yes. But he did legitimately invent a concept. A very, very bad concept. [ Deux Ex machina ]

This is exactly why we send astronauts to risk their life to service Hubble: in a paper published last week in the Astrophysical Journal, scientists detail the discovery of a new unidentified object in the middle of nowhere. I don't know about you, but when a research paper conclusion says "We suggest that the transient may be one of a new class" I get a chill of oooh-aaahness down my spine. Especially when after a hundred days of observation, it disappeared from the sky with no explanation. Get your tinfoil hats out, because it gets even weirder.

Oh man, someone on that starship is fired....

"See, that new stealth engineer kept effing up for the past week, and those damn humans finally caught a glimpse of us. That's Dave's third strike...."

Hehe, alienz are teh suck at covert eckzplurayshun. [ Hubble finds unidentified object ]

Okay first it has chicken feet secondly it's scared of water. Addddddorable. Sounds like something Pixar would dream up. [ Chicken Duck ]

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

The Sun

The Sun is now in the quietest phase of its 11-year activity cycle, the solar minumum - in fact, it has been unusually quiet this year - with over 200 days so far with no observed sunspots. The solar wind has also dropped to its lowest levels in 50 years. Scientists are unsure of the significance of this unusual calm, but are continually monitoring our closest star with an array of telescopes and satellites. Seen below are some recent images of the Sun in more active times.

The solar hurricane totally pwn3d that comet, imo. That's no sun, it's a space station. [ the sun ]

If you were hoping to send your DNA sequence into space for safekeeping, sorry, but you missed the boat. Or more specifically, the rocket launch.

The Associated Press reports that Richard Garriott, a computer game designer, blasted into space today. Also on board: the digitized DNA sequences of an assortment of famous and not-so-famous specimen, from scientists to athletes to unknowns.

These now immortal digital souls include:

Physicist Stephen Hawking
Comedian Stephen Colbert
Playboy "Cyber Girl of the Year" Jo Garcia
American Gladiator Matt Morgan

Here's the weirdest part-- the genetic sequences will be stored at the international space station, in case a disaster on Planet Earth wipes out all human life!

"Operation Immortality" is the name of the project, and its fear-inducing website reminds you: "This is our best, last hope against extinction."

So I guess the hope is that someday aliens will reassemble versions of Stephen Colbert and Stephen Hawking to entertain themselves.

As for reproduction, that responsibility will fall on the few women included. Let's hope that Stephen Hawking's daughter Lucy, a couple of sci-fi television writers, and the Playboy model are ready for child-bearing!

--Clare Abreu

I will never tire of watching Tornado videos. However, every time I watch it I remember how much my mom loved the film Twister and claimed it to be the best film ever. I will forever mock her of that statement. No offense, Helen Hunt. [ House Destroyed by Tornado ]

The official judging for the 34th Annual Small World Photomicrography Competition took place on May 28, 2008. The winners will be announced on October 15, but we’re giving you the chance to pick your favorites among this year’s top entries.

Based on the vote ratings, the microscopic photography community is tough to impress.The photo above is an entry from Dr. Margaret Oechsli at the Jewish Hospital, Heart & Lung Institute. [ Small World Photomicrography ]

The Deus Ex Machina is a wearable exoskeleton motorcycle concept, and it's pretty damn cool (although it looks a little impractical to me). Note that it says he invented a concept vehicle. It means he invented a concept, so it's legit. Crazy, impractical, and unworthy of attention, yes. But he did legitimately invent a concept. A very, very bad concept. [ Deux Ex machina ]

This is exactly why we send astronauts to risk their life to service Hubble: in a paper published last week in the Astrophysical Journal, scientists detail the discovery of a new unidentified object in the middle of nowhere. I don't know about you, but when a research paper conclusion says "We suggest that the transient may be one of a new class" I get a chill of oooh-aaahness down my spine. Especially when after a hundred days of observation, it disappeared from the sky with no explanation. Get your tinfoil hats out, because it gets even weirder.

Oh man, someone on that starship is fired....

"See, that new stealth engineer kept effing up for the past week, and those damn humans finally caught a glimpse of us. That's Dave's third strike...."

Hehe, alienz are teh suck at covert eckzplurayshun. [ Hubble finds unidentified object ]

Okay first it has chicken feet secondly it's scared of water. Addddddorable. Sounds like something Pixar would dream up. [ Chicken Duck ]

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

A plan for Armageddon. No, seriously.

If you were hoping to send your DNA sequence into space for safekeeping, sorry, but you missed the boat. Or more specifically, the rocket launch.

The Associated Press reports that Richard Garriott, a computer game designer, blasted into space today. Also on board: the digitized DNA sequences of an assortment of famous and not-so-famous specimen, from scientists to athletes to unknowns.

These now immortal digital souls include:

Physicist Stephen Hawking
Comedian Stephen Colbert
Playboy "Cyber Girl of the Year" Jo Garcia
American Gladiator Matt Morgan

Here's the weirdest part-- the genetic sequences will be stored at the international space station, in case a disaster on Planet Earth wipes out all human life!

"Operation Immortality" is the name of the project, and its fear-inducing website reminds you: "This is our best, last hope against extinction."

So I guess the hope is that someday aliens will reassemble versions of Stephen Colbert and Stephen Hawking to entertain themselves.

As for reproduction, that responsibility will fall on the few women included. Let's hope that Stephen Hawking's daughter Lucy, a couple of sci-fi television writers, and the Playboy model are ready for child-bearing!

--Clare Abreu

I will never tire of watching Tornado videos. However, every time I watch it I remember how much my mom loved the film Twister and claimed it to be the best film ever. I will forever mock her of that statement. No offense, Helen Hunt. [ House Destroyed by Tornado ]

The official judging for the 34th Annual Small World Photomicrography Competition took place on May 28, 2008. The winners will be announced on October 15, but we’re giving you the chance to pick your favorites among this year’s top entries.

Based on the vote ratings, the microscopic photography community is tough to impress.The photo above is an entry from Dr. Margaret Oechsli at the Jewish Hospital, Heart & Lung Institute. [ Small World Photomicrography ]

The Deus Ex Machina is a wearable exoskeleton motorcycle concept, and it's pretty damn cool (although it looks a little impractical to me). Note that it says he invented a concept vehicle. It means he invented a concept, so it's legit. Crazy, impractical, and unworthy of attention, yes. But he did legitimately invent a concept. A very, very bad concept. [ Deux Ex machina ]

This is exactly why we send astronauts to risk their life to service Hubble: in a paper published last week in the Astrophysical Journal, scientists detail the discovery of a new unidentified object in the middle of nowhere. I don't know about you, but when a research paper conclusion says "We suggest that the transient may be one of a new class" I get a chill of oooh-aaahness down my spine. Especially when after a hundred days of observation, it disappeared from the sky with no explanation. Get your tinfoil hats out, because it gets even weirder.

Oh man, someone on that starship is fired....

"See, that new stealth engineer kept effing up for the past week, and those damn humans finally caught a glimpse of us. That's Dave's third strike...."

Hehe, alienz are teh suck at covert eckzplurayshun. [ Hubble finds unidentified object ]

Okay first it has chicken feet secondly it's scared of water. Addddddorable. Sounds like something Pixar would dream up. [ Chicken Duck ]

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

House Destroyed by Tornado

I will never tire of watching Tornado videos. However, every time I watch it I remember how much my mom loved the film Twister and claimed it to be the best film ever. I will forever mock her of that statement. No offense, Helen Hunt. [ House Destroyed by Tornado ]

The official judging for the 34th Annual Small World Photomicrography Competition took place on May 28, 2008. The winners will be announced on October 15, but we’re giving you the chance to pick your favorites among this year’s top entries.

Based on the vote ratings, the microscopic photography community is tough to impress.The photo above is an entry from Dr. Margaret Oechsli at the Jewish Hospital, Heart & Lung Institute. [ Small World Photomicrography ]

The Deus Ex Machina is a wearable exoskeleton motorcycle concept, and it's pretty damn cool (although it looks a little impractical to me). Note that it says he invented a concept vehicle. It means he invented a concept, so it's legit. Crazy, impractical, and unworthy of attention, yes. But he did legitimately invent a concept. A very, very bad concept. [ Deux Ex machina ]

This is exactly why we send astronauts to risk their life to service Hubble: in a paper published last week in the Astrophysical Journal, scientists detail the discovery of a new unidentified object in the middle of nowhere. I don't know about you, but when a research paper conclusion says "We suggest that the transient may be one of a new class" I get a chill of oooh-aaahness down my spine. Especially when after a hundred days of observation, it disappeared from the sky with no explanation. Get your tinfoil hats out, because it gets even weirder.

Oh man, someone on that starship is fired....

"See, that new stealth engineer kept effing up for the past week, and those damn humans finally caught a glimpse of us. That's Dave's third strike...."

Hehe, alienz are teh suck at covert eckzplurayshun. [ Hubble finds unidentified object ]

Okay first it has chicken feet secondly it's scared of water. Addddddorable. Sounds like something Pixar would dream up. [ Chicken Duck ]

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

34th Annual Small World Photomicrography Competition

The official judging for the 34th Annual Small World Photomicrography Competition took place on May 28, 2008. The winners will be announced on October 15, but we’re giving you the chance to pick your favorites among this year’s top entries.

Based on the vote ratings, the microscopic photography community is tough to impress.The photo above is an entry from Dr. Margaret Oechsli at the Jewish Hospital, Heart & Lung Institute. [ Small World Photomicrography ]

The Deus Ex Machina is a wearable exoskeleton motorcycle concept, and it's pretty damn cool (although it looks a little impractical to me). Note that it says he invented a concept vehicle. It means he invented a concept, so it's legit. Crazy, impractical, and unworthy of attention, yes. But he did legitimately invent a concept. A very, very bad concept. [ Deux Ex machina ]

This is exactly why we send astronauts to risk their life to service Hubble: in a paper published last week in the Astrophysical Journal, scientists detail the discovery of a new unidentified object in the middle of nowhere. I don't know about you, but when a research paper conclusion says "We suggest that the transient may be one of a new class" I get a chill of oooh-aaahness down my spine. Especially when after a hundred days of observation, it disappeared from the sky with no explanation. Get your tinfoil hats out, because it gets even weirder.

Oh man, someone on that starship is fired....

"See, that new stealth engineer kept effing up for the past week, and those damn humans finally caught a glimpse of us. That's Dave's third strike...."

Hehe, alienz are teh suck at covert eckzplurayshun. [ Hubble finds unidentified object ]

Okay first it has chicken feet secondly it's scared of water. Addddddorable. Sounds like something Pixar would dream up. [ Chicken Duck ]

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

A Wearable Motorcycle

The Deus Ex Machina is a wearable exoskeleton motorcycle concept, and it's pretty damn cool (although it looks a little impractical to me). Note that it says he invented a concept vehicle. It means he invented a concept, so it's legit. Crazy, impractical, and unworthy of attention, yes. But he did legitimately invent a concept. A very, very bad concept. [ Deux Ex machina ]

This is exactly why we send astronauts to risk their life to service Hubble: in a paper published last week in the Astrophysical Journal, scientists detail the discovery of a new unidentified object in the middle of nowhere. I don't know about you, but when a research paper conclusion says "We suggest that the transient may be one of a new class" I get a chill of oooh-aaahness down my spine. Especially when after a hundred days of observation, it disappeared from the sky with no explanation. Get your tinfoil hats out, because it gets even weirder.

Oh man, someone on that starship is fired....

"See, that new stealth engineer kept effing up for the past week, and those damn humans finally caught a glimpse of us. That's Dave's third strike...."

Hehe, alienz are teh suck at covert eckzplurayshun. [ Hubble finds unidentified object ]

Okay first it has chicken feet secondly it's scared of water. Addddddorable. Sounds like something Pixar would dream up. [ Chicken Duck ]

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

Hubble Finds Unidentified Object in Space, Scientists Puzzled

This is exactly why we send astronauts to risk their life to service Hubble: in a paper published last week in the Astrophysical Journal, scientists detail the discovery of a new unidentified object in the middle of nowhere. I don't know about you, but when a research paper conclusion says "We suggest that the transient may be one of a new class" I get a chill of oooh-aaahness down my spine. Especially when after a hundred days of observation, it disappeared from the sky with no explanation. Get your tinfoil hats out, because it gets even weirder.

Oh man, someone on that starship is fired....

"See, that new stealth engineer kept effing up for the past week, and those damn humans finally caught a glimpse of us. That's Dave's third strike...."

Hehe, alienz are teh suck at covert eckzplurayshun. [ Hubble finds unidentified object ]

Okay first it has chicken feet secondly it's scared of water. Addddddorable. Sounds like something Pixar would dream up. [ Chicken Duck ]

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

Chicken-footed duck scared of water

Okay first it has chicken feet secondly it's scared of water. Addddddorable. Sounds like something Pixar would dream up. [ Chicken Duck ]

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

Floating City

It's 2100. Humans haven't gained control of their carbon emissions. The earth has warmed up. The oceans have risen. Millions of ecological refugees have nowhere to go. Unless, of course, they had the foresight to build Lilypads.

Pretty sweet design concept and I am all about living on a floating city. Too bad I will never be around to see something like this.  [ Floating City Design ]

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]

Peugeot concept vehicles: the cars of the future

These vehicles are all entries to the Peugeot Design Contest 2008. Designers   were asked to create a concept car for the cities of the future,   concentrating on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive   mobility and economic efficiency.

This car was looking pretty bad ass unti I saw the wind turbine on the back. [ Peugeot Concept Vehicles ]