Weird Science

Ian alerted me to this article today:

In a surprising feat of miniaturization, scientists are reporting today that they have produced nuclear fusion - the same process that powers the sun - in a footlong cylinder just five inches in diameter. And they say they will soon be able to make the device even smaller.

While the device is probably too inefficient to produce electricity or other forms of energy, the scientists say, egg-size fusion generators could someday find uses in spacecraft thrusters, medical treatments and scanners that search for bombs.

Kick ass! The article goes on to warn that egg-sized fusion generators (one foot by five inches? That's a hell of an egg!) won't provide a limitless source of energy, but that they're useful in other ways. For example, clowns across the world finally have the limitless source of helium they've been craving for so long. Plus there's some nonsense about it being useful for security and medical purposes. Read the article. I ain't the Clif notes.

But I am the Clif notes for this article about putting mice into suspended animation:

The researchers from the University of Washington and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle put the mice in a chamber filled with air laced with 80 parts per million (ppm) of hydrogen sulphide (H2S) - the malodorous gas that gives rotten eggs their stink...

In the latest study, Dr Roth and his colleagues found that the mice stopped moving and appeared to lose consciousness within minutes of breathing the air and H2S mixture.
The animals' breathing rates dropped from the normal 120 breaths per minute to less than 10 breaths per minute.

During exposure their metabolic rates dropped by an astonishing 90%, and their core body temperatures fell from 37C to as low as 11C.

A similar effect can be caused by filling the air with Yo Yo Ma at 250 parts/million. Long-term exposure can lead to permanent torpor.

At Long Last, My Head...
Adrienne finally has Internet access at home, so she sent me the pictures of my birthday cake. Here they are, after much demand.

This will include little commentary, but if you want to know how things were made and what the process was, Adrienne has created a Power Point file that explains everything...er...sort of. You can find it here.

Here's the photos of process and the final cake without much commentary from me:

My Yummy Body Parts
Why I'm a Smart Guy
My Neck is Fully Recyclable (Thank you Adrienne for that joke)
Skull and Bone
Red Velvet Cake has Never Been More Disturbing
Existential Dillemma
Adrienne Gives Head...um... (oh come on...that joke had to be made eventually)
Another Great Idea Dawns on Me
Me, Myself
Fun at My Own Expense (I'm giving myself a wet willy, in case you can't see)
More Fun
And Now the Violence

That's that, folks.
It's Friday. I'm off. But not in love.