22. juni 2003

Unmanned planes steal the show The latest hit in weapons is unmanned spy planes, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), after spectacular demonstrations in Afghanistan and Iraq. At this year's Paris Air Show, customers are flocking to the makers of armed and unarmed UAVs, and many countries are interested in buying. The biggest optimists are suggesting UAVs will eventually take over most roles of manned aircraft, and that the  F-35 Joint Strike Fighter may become the last major battle plane developed, but most think human pilots can never be fully replaced. Yet, air force pilots may well find themselves in less demand in the future. 11:36:07 PM    comment []

Absolute yellow You should check out the Post-It Gallery, which displays good scans of what people have been doing on (and in some cases, with) the little yellow notes we all know so well. Above is Mathieu Sylvain example of a meta-post-it: Post-It on a table. On a computer screen. 7:06:08 PM    comment []

Why you should have paid attantion at chemistry class Want to make wonderful ice cream in 30 seconds? The answer is using liquid nitrogen. The result, literally 30 seconds later, was a half-gallon of the best ice cream I'd ever tasted. The secret is in the rapid freezing. When cream is frozen by liquid nitrogen at –196°C, the ice crystals that give bad ice cream its grainy texture have no chance to form. Instead you get microcrystalline ice cream that is supremely smooth, creamy and light in texture. As they say, unlike you're a chemist, don't try this at home. 4:18:32 PM    comment []

Saddam killed, again Reports are coming out that US officials are "cautiously optimistic" that they have taken out Saddam Hussein and his son Uday. A convoy of lucury vehicles was targeted by airstrikes near the Syrian border, and currently DNA samples from the fatalities are being analysed to see if it really was the ex-dictator they hit. US intelligence had intercepted a phone call from Saddam or his son and traced it to the convoy, which was then attacked. The Pentagon is very tight-lipped about the whole operation. It is "unreleasable information." 4:07:43 PM    comment []

Hamas official killed Israeli soldiers shot and killed the senior Hamas militant Abdullah Kawasme on the eve of new talks on the "road map." Israel says Kawasme was armed and resisted arrest, while Palestinian sources say it was an assassination. Israel claims Kawasme was responsible for planning the June 11 suicide bombing of a bus in Jerusalem. That bus bombing was the Hamas response to the last Israeli assassination attempt, on the day before. Hamas has promised revenge. 3:05:08 PM    comment []

Darker Today was the longest day of the year on the northern hemisphere. Here in Bergen, the sun sets at 11:10 pm, and rises again 4:11am. There are plenty of long summerdays left, but still a fact that from now on until xmas, the days are getting shorter and the nights longer. 3:00:10 AM    comment []

German police arrest cow German drivers called the police when they spotted a cow waling around on the autobahn. With the help of a local farmer, the policemen managed to catch it. The problem was: how to transport it away. Solution: declare the cow formally arrested. Spokesman Ruediger Schwarz described the act as a "legal trick". It meant officers could call for a prisoner transport van from a nearby police department. The story does not tell what the official charge was. Where is Gary Larson when you need him? 2:46:07 AM    comment []

© Copyright 2003 Jan Haugland. Last update: 01.07.2003; 00:25:37.