Category Science & Technology

Did the Milky Way shape-shift?

Embark on a journey to Verona and meet the dedicated volunteers preserving the legacy of one of Shakespeares greatest heroines

The House of Juliet also known as Casa di Gillette” is Italian, is more than just an old building in Verona Italy It is believed to have once belonged to the Cappello family which according to the legend inspired the famous Capulet family in English playwright William Shakespeare’s play Romen & haliet This is the very house where Gulietta Capuleti the supposed inspiration behind, the tragic heroine of Shakespeares play, is said to have livest

A global love connection

But the House of Juliet is not just a tounst attraction it is a hub of heartwarming connections from around the world Thousands of people lene letters addressed to Juliet. expressing their deepest feelings about love, relationship and life when they visit this medieval 13th Century palace Some letters are placest in a postbox at the house itself. while others are simply addressed to Juliet, Italy and sent from all corners of the globe

Juliet Club

The Juliet Club, a hidden gem tucked away in the backstreets of Verona since 1972 is a place where the timeless spirit of romance thrives. The dubs heart and soul lie in the dedicated committer of a dozen local women who affectionately call themselves The Secretaries of Juliet These volunteers take on the heartwanning task of responding to the staggering 50.000 letters Juliet receives annually. They diligently strive to answer every letter, even those written in languages beyond Italian or English, seeking local speakers to help bridge the communication gap. Stepping into the workroom fillest with boxes of handwritten letters, the secretaries embark on their mission to provide solace, wisdom, and advice on matters of the heart

This unique experience is not just limited to the dedicated team: anyone can be a part of Juliets legacy A visitor can drop in for a day and become Juliet’s secretary reading and responding to letters that resonate with their hearts. Each response is penned on official Club di Giulietta stationery and signed off as Secretary of Juliet.”

The first secretary of Juliet

The tradition of answering Juliet’s letters has a history dating back to the 1930s when the guardian of Juliets grave in Verona, Ettore Solimani, first began replying to letters left for the literary character. Handwritten letters have retained their allure, despite the prevalence of modem communication methods. The clubs archive stands as a treasure trove of countless love stories and a testament to the enduring power of love expressed through pen and paper

The Juliet Club and its Secretaries carry forward the legacy of Shakespeare’s iconic character, extending love hope, and empathy to countless hearts seeking solace and connection.

 

Did the Milky Way shape-shift?

For the longest time, astronomers have been trying to unlock the mystery surrounding our Milky Way galaxy. Astronomers have known that our galaxy looks like a spiral ever since the 1950s. Galaxies are classified based on their shapes and physical features. activity in their central regions, and so on. The presence of spiral anns in our galaxy has placed it in the category of spiral galaxies

What are spiral galaxies?

Galaxies are generally categorised as spiral (like our Milky Way). elliptical and irregular. Spiral galaxies have winding spiral arms. It makes them look like pinwheels and the cosmic entities comprise stars, gas, and dust.

Their spiral arms are composed of gas and dust from which bright younger stars are born. Stars are actively being formed in the spiral galaxies. The younger stars are formed in the arms that are rich with gas while the older stars occur in the halo, in the disk and within the bulge. And this is happening in our neighbouring galaxies as well The spiral galaxies are further grouped into normal spirals and barred spirals. A barred spiral galaxy has ribbons of stars, gas, and dust running across their centres. Our galaxy as well as Andromeda galaxy belong to the subtype of a barred spiral galaxy But here is a new spin on the story. New observations have shown that our galaxy was not always a spiral Reporting in the scientific journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, astronomer Alister Graham observed that galaxies evolve from one shape to another. He used old and new observations to show how the evolution of galaxies from one shape to another takes place. This process is called galactic speciation. The clashes and subsequent mergers with other galades result in the process of cosmic evolution.

So our galaxy transformed from a dust-poor lenticular galway to the spiral galaxy we know it as today. In future, between 4 billion and 6 billion years, our galaxy is all poised to merge with its neighbouring galaxy, the Andromeda galaxy Following this collision and merger, the daughter galaxy resulted will be a dust rich lenticular galaxy, with an intact disk but without the spiral structure.

Picture Credit: Google

Why was Apple forced to switch to USB-C?

Shreyas Sen

Apple recently announced that it plans to adopt the USB-C connector for all four new iPhone 15 models, helping USB-C become the connector of choice of the electronics industry, nine years after its debut. The move puts Apple in compliance with European Union law requiring a single connector type for consumer devices.

USB-C is a small, versatile connector for mobile and portable devices like laptops, tablets and smartphones. It transfers data at high speeds. transmits video signals and delivers power to charge devices batteries. USB stands for Universal Serial Bus. The C refers to the third type, following types A and B.

The USB Implementers Forum, a consortium of over 1,000 companies that promote and support USB technology, developed the USB-C connector to replace the older USB connectors as well as other types of ports like HDMI, DisplayPort and VGA. The aim is to create a single, universal connector for a wide range of devices.

The key features and benefits of USB-C include a reversible connector that you can insert in either orientation. It also allows some cables to have the same connector on both ends for connecting between devices and connecting devices to chargers, unlike most earlier USB and Lightning cables.

USB-C’s widespread adoption in the electronics industry is likely to lead to a universal standard that reduces the need for multiple types of cables and adapters. Also, its slim and compact shape allows manufacturers to make thinner and lighter devices. USB-C refers to the physical connector. Connectors use a variety of data transfer protocols – sets of rules for formatting and handling data – such as the USB and Thunderbolt protocols.

The latest USB protocol, version 4, provides a data transfer rate of up to 40 gigabits per second, depending on the rating of the cable. The latest Thunderbolt, also on version 4, supports up to 40 gigabits-per-second data transfer and 100 watts charging. The newly announced Thunderbolt 5 will support up to 80 and 120 gigabits-per-second transfer and 140 to 240 watts power transfer over a USB-C connector.

Since its introduction in 2014, USB-C has gained widespread popularity and has already become the connector of choice for most non-Apple devices. Apple converted the iPad Pro to USB-C in 2018 and now is doing the same for the best selling Apple device, the iPhone.

Thanks to the industrywide adoption of USB-C, consumers soon won’t have to ask “Is this the right connector?” when they reach for a cable to charge or sync their portable devices. (This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence.)

Picture Credit: google

What do driverless cars use to determine the best route or course of action when travelling from one location to the next?

From finding the fastest path to a cafe to self-driving cars, modern necessities and benefits rely upon something that many take for granted: the Global Positioning System (GPS). GPS is so deeply ingrained into our daily lives that it’s difficult to picture a world without it, but did you know where it came from?

The origin of GPS

In the middle of the 1960s, the US Navy experimented with satellite navigation to follow U.S. submarines that were carrying nuclear weapons. The Department of Defence (DOD) decided to employ satellites to support their scheduled navigation system in the early 1970s because they wanted to make sure that it was a reliable, stable system, based on previous ideas from navy scientists. In 1978, the Department of Defence launched the first Navigation System with Timing and Ranging (NAVSTAR) satellite which later changed into GPS. In 1993, the 24-satellite constellation went into full functioning. It was initially intended to replace earlier navigation systems and locate military transportation equipment worldwide with accuracy. Over time, the GPS evolved into an easily available, free device that improves daily safety and comfort together

The Pioneers behind GPS

Despite being created by the U.S. Department of Defence, a few scientists have been recognized as having made significant contributions to this ground-breaking technology. Roger L. Easton led the Space Application division of the Naval Research Laboratory. Timing technology and circular orbits are two of the most important aspects of GPS that he specialised in as a Cold War scientist. As the first manager of the Navstar GPS programme, Brad Parkinson contributed to the program’s conception and early to mid-stage implementation. Dr. Ivan Getting was the founding president of The Aerospace Corporation and drove the GPS’s launch. To pinpoint their precise location, Dr. Gladys West first worked at the U.S. Naval Weapons Laboratory, where she calculated equations and analyzed satellite data.

How Does GPS Work?

Satellites, ground stations, and receivers make up the three components of the GPS. 13 satellites transmit radio signals that provide precise time and location derived from onboard atomic clocks. At a speed of 300,000 kilometres per second or the speed of light, these signals travel across space. The precise location of these satellites is verified by ground stations by receiving their signals. A computer, an atomic clock, and a radio are installed on every satellite. It continuously sends its position and time shifts since it recognizes the Earth’s orbit and the clock. The scientific use of the GPS is offering historically beyond-reach data in exceptional amounts and with extraordinary clarity. The movement of the polar ice sheets, the tectonic plates of Earth, and volcanic activity are all being measured by scientists using GPS. Ever wondered how birds find their way?

If you were lost in the middle of the woods and couldn’t see the sun, you might use a compass to figure out which way to go. For more than a thousand years, people have used magnetic compasses to navigate. But how do the other birds find their way?

The Earth’s magnetic field is recognized for shielding the planet and its people from risky cosmic rays and plasma emitted by the sun. However, birds use this magnetic field for navigation in a unique manner, similar to a GPS, and they can turn it on and off with great flexibility. Researchers have discovered two factors that are essential to a bird’s internal GPS: eyesight and scent. The perfume is unusual because we don’t typically associate birds with a sense of smell. The scent, it turns out, plays an important role in helping birds navigate. A bird can identify magnetic fields visually, allowing it to use a visual compass to navigate over long distances. Scientists have discovered a protein called cryptochromes in their retinas that enables signalling and sensing activities, assisting birds in navigating the great distances they travel while migrating.

Researchers detected a little magnetite area on the beaks of several birds. Magnetite is a magnetised rock that functions as a miniature GPS device for birds, providing information about its position relative to the Earth’s poles. Birds are considered to be able to navigate vast distances across places with few landmarks, such as the ocean, by using both beak magnetite and eye sensors.

Picture: Credit Google

Why is google’s default’ status in trouble?

Riding the tide of in-built advantage

When we buy a new smartphone, It usually comes loaded with Google apps, including Chrome, YouTube, and Gmail among others. Turns out Alphabet-the company that owns Google-pays phone makers millions of dollars to make Google the default search engine in their gadgets. Google’s competitors are upset about this arrangement. It is no wonder, as most of us do not care to go to the settings and swap Google out for Bing or DuckDuckGo.

The issue sparked concerns of unfair trade practices in the U.S. and the Justice Department there filed a case in December 2020. The case was filed by the Attorney Generals of eleven States, as they felt Google was acting like a monopoly. Currently, the case has turned into the largest antitrust trial that the U.S. has witnessed in the Past 25 years. District Judge Amit Mehta’s decisions can impact the way all of us use the most popular search engine in the world-even in India.

Is the search engine business a monopoly?

The US. court is investigating if Google is running an illegal monopoly in the search engine business. Google’s search engine has earned a huge market share ever since it started presenting people with helpful information culled from billions of websites that have been indexed since former Stanford University graduate students Larry Page and Sergey Brin developed the technology during the late 1990s.

Today, Alphabet’s market value is around a whopping $1.37 trillion. However, there are several other companies in the fray of the search engine business, though most of them may be unheard of and unknown to large sections of internet users. According to statistics, of all internet users, a massive 91.85 percent use Google. Next comes Bing, from Windows, with just 3.01 of percent people using it. The remaining 5 percent of users use one of the many other companies, such as Yahoo, Yandex, Baidu, DuckDuckGo.

If the U.S. court rules against Google, it could open the market up for new online avenues for consumers and businesses to explore in pursuit of information, entertainment and commerce. This may end up improving the quality of online services for consumers.

Picture Credit : Google

What is the origin of barcode?

 

It has been 50 years since barcode, a series of parallel bars or lines of varying width printed on various products, was invented. Over the years, the barcode has transformed the way the retail industry functions globally. It is now used to speed supermarket checkout lines, parcel deliveries. Airline check in, etc.

Origin

The barcode was invented by Drexel University students Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver in 1948 and patented in 1952. However, the first barcode was drawn in sand in Miami Beach, U.S. by Woodland, decades before technology could bring his vision to life.

The incident that led to the invention of this technology was when a local food chain store owner in Philadelphia requested the dean of then Drexel Institute of Technology (now Drexel University) to come up with a way to get shoppers through the billing faster. Though the dean shrugged it off. Bernard Silver and Woodland teamed up to develop a solution.

The first barcode was called Bull’s Eye barcode, a series of concentric circles. It was a linear representation of Morse code, the well-known character-encoding scheme in telecommunications, defined by dots and dashes. However, the idea could not be developed into a system due to expensive laser and computing technology.

Later, US engineer George Laurer implemented Woodland’s idea using less expensive laser and computing technology. He developed a rectangular scanner with strips called the Universal Product Code.

On April 3, 1973 big retailers and food companies agreed to use barcode to identify products. On June 26 in 1974, the barcode technology was used for the first time in the US. State of Ohio to scan a pack of chewing gum. The gum is now in the National Museum of American History in Washington.

The original barcode carried an 11-digit formula-six identifying the manufacturer and five identifying the product a 12th digit was added later as a check.

How do they work?

The bars are black strips on a white background. Their width and numbers are, however, different on each product. The bars are used to represent the binary digits 0 and 1 sequences of which represent numbers from 0 to 9 and be processed by a digital computer. Barcodes display the printed 12-digit number typically underneath the product as a backup in case of possible complications.

Barcode scanners use an incandescent light bulb or laser to shine light through the barcode. While the black lines on the barcode absorb light, the white parts shine through and get reflected. While scanning a barcode, the amount of light is detected, which then gets translated into a set of digits or data. Information can be retrieved from a computer database using this data.

Problems

While barcodes have indeed revolutionised the way of registering and selling products, there are several problems as well. With barcodes, there is high probability of misreading the product due to misorientation, obstruction by dirt, mist, protrusions, and damage. Besides, the barcodes can be scanned only from a particular distance – one metre. Also, barcode scanners are delicate and expensive

It has been 50 years since barcode, a series of parallel bars or lines of varying width printed on various products, was invented. Over the years, the barcode has transformed the way the retail industry functions globally. It is now used to speed supermarket checkout lines, parcel deliveries. Airline check in, etc.

Origin

The barcode was invented by Drexel University students Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver in 1948 and patented in 1952. However, the first barcode was drawn in sand in Miami Beach, U.S. by Woodland, decades before technology could bring his vision to life.

The incident that led to the invention of this technology was when a local food chain store owner in Philadelphia requested the dean of then Drexel Institute of Technology (now Drexel University) to come up with a way to get shoppers through the billing faster. Though the dean shrugged it off. Bernard Silver and Woodland teamed up to develop a solution.

The first barcode was called Bull’s Eye barcode, a series of concentric circles. It was a linear representation of Morse code, the well-known character-encoding scheme in telecommunications, defined by dots and dashes. However, the idea could not be developed into a system due to expensive laser and computing technology.

Later, US engineer George Laurer implemented Woodland’s idea using less expensive laser and computing technology. He developed a rectangular scanner with strips called the Universal Product Code.

On April 3, 1973 big retailers and food companies agreed to use barcode to identify products. On June 26 in 1974, the barcode technology was used for the first time in the US. State of Ohio to scan a pack of chewing gum. The gum is now in the National Museum of American History in Washington.

The original barcode carried an 11-digit formula-six identifying the manufacturer and five identifying the product a 12th digit was added later as a check.

How do they work?

The bars are black strips on a white background. Their width and numbers are, however, different on each product. The bars are used to represent the binary digits 0 and 1 sequences of which represent numbers from 0 to 9 and be processed by a digital computer. Barcodes display the printed 12-digit number typically underneath the product as a backup in case of possible complications.

Barcode scanners use an incandescent light bulb or laser to shine light through the barcode. While the black lines on the barcode absorb light, the white parts shine through and get reflected. While scanning a barcode, the amount of light is detected, which then gets translated into a set of digits or data. Information can be retrieved from a computer database using this data.

Problems

While barcodes have indeed revolutionised the way of registering and selling products, there are several problems as well. With barcodes, there is high probability of misreading the product due to misorientation, obstruction by dirt, mist, protrusions, and damage. Besides, the barcodes can be scanned only from a particular distance – one metre. Also, barcode scanners are delicate and expensive.

 

Picture Credit : google

 

What is a 3D printed robotic hands?

Researchers have succeeded in printing robotic hands with bones, ligaments and tendons for the first time. Using a new laser scanning technique, the new technology enables the use of different polymers.

Additive manufacturing or 3D printing is the construction of a 3D object from a 3D digital model. The technology behind this has been advancing at great pace and the number of materials that can be used have also expanded reasonably. Until now, 3D printing was limited to fast-curing plastics. The use of slow-curing plastics has now been made possible thanks to a technology developed by researchers at ETH Zurich and a MIT spin-off U.S. start-up, Inhabit. This has resulted in successfully 3D printing robotic hands with bones, ligaments and tendons. The researchers from Switzerland and the U.S. have jointly published the technology and their applications in the journal Nature.

Return to original state

 In addition to their elastic properties that enable the creation of delicate structures and parts with cavities as required, the slow-curing thiolene polymers also return to their original state much faster after bending, making them ideal for the likes of ligaments in robotic hands.

The stiffness of thiolenes can also be fine-tuned as per our requirements to create soft robots. These soft robots will not only be better-suited to work with humans, but will also be more adept at handling delicate and fragile goods.

Scanning, not scraping

In 3D printers, objects are typically produced layer by layer. This means that a nozzle deposits a given material in viscous form and a UV lamp then cures each layer immediately. This method requires a device that scrapes off surface irregularities after each curing step.

While this works for fast-curing plastics, it would fail with slow-curing polymers like thiolenes and epoxies as they would merely gum up the scraper. The researchers involved therefore developed a 3D printing technology that took into account the unevenness when printing the next layer, rather than smoothing out uneven layers. They achieved this using a 3D laser scanner that checked each printed layer for irregularities immediately.

This advancement in 3D printing technology would provide much-needed advantages as the resulting objects not only have better elastic properties, but are also more robust and durable. Combining soft, elastic, and rigid materials would also become much more simpler with this technology.

Picture Credit : Google