‘Tau day’ marked by opponents of math constant pi

The mathematical constant pi is under threat from a group of detractors who will be marking “Tau Day” on Tuesday.

Tau Day revellers suggest a constant called tau should take its place: twice as large as pi, or about 6.28 – hence the 28 June celebration.

Tau proponents say that for many problems in maths, tau makes more sense and makes calculations easier.

Not all fans of maths agree, however, and pi’s rich history means it will be a difficult number to unseat.

“I like to describe myself as the world’s leading anti-pi propagandist,” said Michael Hartl, an educator and former theoretical physicist.

“When I say pi is wrong, it doesn’t have any flaws in its definition – it is what you think it is, a ratio of circumference to diameter. But circles are not about diameters, they’re about radii; circles are the set of all the points a given distance – a radius – from the centre,” Dr Hartl explained to BBC News.

By defining pi in terms of diameter, he said, “what you’re really doing is defining it as the ratio of the circumference to twice the radius, and that factor of two haunts you throughout mathematics.”

The discrepancy is most noticeable when circles are defined not as a number of degrees, but as what are known as radians – of which there are two times pi in a full circle. With tau, half a circle is one-half tau.

Dr Hartl reckons people still use degrees as a measure of angle because pi’s involvement in radians makes them too unwieldy.

He credits Bob Palais of the University of Utah with first pointing out that “pi is wrong”, in a 2001 article in the Mathematical Intelligencer.

But it is Dr Hartl who is responsible for the Tau Manifesto – calling tau the more convenient formulation and instituting Tau Day to celebrate it.

Kevin Houston, a mathematician from the University of Leeds, counts himself as a convert.

“It was one of the weirdest things I’d come across, but it makes sense,” he told BBC News.

“It’s surprising people haven’t changed before. Almost anything you can do in maths with pi you can do with tau anyway, but when it comes to using pi versus tau, tau wins – it’s much more natural.”

via BBC News – ‘Tau day’ marked by opponents of maths constant pi.

Horn of Africa sees ‘worst drought in 60 years’

Some parts of the Horn of Africa have been hit by the worst drought in 60 years, the UN says.

More than 10 million people are thought to be affected across the region.

The UN now classifies large areas of Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya as a crisis or an emergency.

Charity Save the Children says drought and war in Somalia has led to unprecedented numbers fleeing across the border into Kenya, with about 1,300 people arriving every day.

Three camps at Dadaab, just inside Kenya, are home to well over 350,000 people, but they were built to hold just 90,000 and are severely overcrowded.

A prolonged failure of rains, which began in late 2010, is now taking its toll.

The UN’s Office for the Co-Ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warns that the situation is continuing to deteriorate, and the number of people in need will continue to increase.

via BBC News – Horn of Africa sees ‘worst drought in 60 years’.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: What it is, cause and treatment

I took an Internet test tonight and it said I should get checked for OCD. On the test, a score of 8 is “possible”, 12 is “likely” … my score was 27. Hmm… That’s interesting. I guess other people have known this about me, but I never suspected it, not really. I joked about it, but I never really believed it. I’m starting to now.

I don’t have any outwardly bizarre symptoms like repetitive behaviors (hand washing, organizing objects) but I do have times when I get ridiculously worked up about something and, for example, rewrite the same email for an hour or more without being able to stop, obsessing about getting the wording right and consternating about the point that is making me write the email.

Anyway, I’m going to get a real evaluation for this. Might help me chill out when I need to.

Here is more on the brain and OCD, including the cure (remove part of your brain). Oh sure. I’d do that.

…OCD could be due to abnormalities of the frontal lobe, basal ganglia, and cingulum. The function that the basal ganglia are involved with is routine behaviors, like grooming. The frontal lobe is involved with organizing behaviors and in planning. Finally, the cingulum is involved with communication in the brain’s behavioral and emotional messages. Cingulum is comprised of fibrous bands. There has been evidence to support the hypothesis that cingulum is involved with OCD. This evidence is that when the cingulum is surgically severed, the result is that people with OCD are cured of the disorder. 6 What researchers believe is that OCD is caused by problems in communication between the frontal lobe and basal ganglia. 5 When PET scans of people with OCD were compared to PET scans of people without OCD, it was found that those with OCD burned energy more quickly in the frontal lobe and cingulate pathway. The cingulate pathway is made of cingulum, so the cingulate pathway is what connects the frontal lobe to the basal ganglia. The energy that is burned the more severe OCD is. So it is possible that this increased use of energy is the cause of OCD. 7

The other possible cause of OCD is the abnormally low levels of serotonin found in people with OCD. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that sends messages from one nerve to another throughout the brain. The way the neurotransmitter works is that it is released by a nerve ending, known as a synapse, it then crosses a gap and is then picked up by another nerve ending. The serotonin is usually cleaned out of the synapses by enzymes located in the brain. 6 It has been found that drugs that increase the levels of serotonin in the brain reduce the OCD symptoms. Therefore, it is reasonable to deduce that the reduced amount of serotonin inhibits a person’s nerve cells to communicate effectively. 7There are two possible treatments for OCD: psychotherapy and medication. Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy CBT is one of the possible treatments of OCD. This type of treatment helps patients internalize a strategy to resist OCD for the rest of their life. The way behavioral therapy works is that it helps people learn to change their thinking and feelings by first changing their behavior. For OCD, behavior therapy involves exposure and response prevention E/RP. The idea behind exposure is that anxiety will go down after being in long enough contact with what the person fears.

A person’s anxiety should decrease after repeated exposure until the fear is gone. The next part of the treatment is the response or ritual prevention RP used in combination with exposure. In RP, the person’s rituals are blocked, so for example, someone who is always concerned about germs is not allowed to washing their hands all of the time. The purpose of this part of treatment is to help decrease compulsive behavior. Cognitive therapy CT is added to E/RP to help reduce the catastrophic thinking and exaggerated sense of responsibility. CT will helps end faulty assumptions made by obsessions. CBT is free of side effect, but all patients undergoing this type of treatment have some type of anxiety. …

via Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: What it is, cause and treatment.

Asperger syndrome: What’s your AQ?

Image: People with Asperger’s often display intense interests, such as this boy’s fascination with molecular structure.

—

Cambridge psychologist Simon Baron-Cohen and others designed this test, published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2001. This test was devised from a Globe and Mailarticle.

Choose your response to each question: Definitely agree, slightly agree, slightly disagree or definitely disagree.

Take the test.

 

Interesting. My score is 29. About 3 points away from being autistic.

Facebook employs hacker who cracked iPhone and PlayStation 3 security

Facebook has employed a hacker who published a way of running any software, including pirated games, on the PlayStation 3 and cracked into the iPhone.

George Hotz, 21, has been a software engineer at the social network since May 9.

A posting on his Facebook page last week read: ‘Facebook is really an amazing place to work… first hackathon over.’

Just two months ago, Sony won a restraining order against him.

A California court ordered Hotz – also known as GeoHotz – to never again publish secret codes used by Sony to protect the PS3 from being used for unauthorised purposes.

He was also given ten days to hand over his computer equipment to Sony.

Sony then announced its intention to seek damages after claiming the hacks’ publication is affecting sales of its PlayStation games.

In 2008, Hotz managed to unlock the iPhone and posted details of how to do so on a blog.

His biggest claim to notoriety was uncovering Sony’s secret ‘signing in’ number for the PS3 earlier this year. …

via George Hotz: Facebook employs hacker who cracked iPhone and PlayStation 3 security | Mail Online.

Kind of a mixed message to give kids. Cracking our systems is a crime and so is publishing how, but if you are really good at it, you’ll land a nice job.

 

Generating ‘green’ electricity: Waste heat converted to electricity using new alloy

University of Minnesota engineering researchers in the College of Science and Engineering have recently discovered a new alloy material that converts heat directly into electricity. This revolutionary energy conversion method is in the early stages of development, but it could have wide-sweeping impact on creating environmentally friendly electricity from waste heat sources.

Researchers say the material could potentially be used to capture waste heat from a car’s exhaust that would heat the material and produce electricity for charging the battery in a hybrid car. Other possible future uses include capturing rejected heat from industrial and power plants or temperature differences in the ocean to create electricity. The research team is looking into possible commercialization of the technology.

“This research is very promising because it presents an entirely new method for energy conversion that’s never been done before,” said University of Minnesota aerospace engineering and mechanics professor Richard James, who led the research team.”It’s also the ultimate ‘green’ way to create electricity because it uses waste heat to create electricity with no carbon dioxide.”

To create the material, the research team combined elements at the atomic level to create a new multiferroic alloy, Ni45Co5Mn40Sn10. Multiferroic materials combine unusual elastic, magnetic and electric properties. The alloy Ni45Co5Mn40Sn10 achieves multiferroism by undergoing a highly reversible phase transformation where one solid turns into another solid. During this phase transformation the alloy undergoes changes in its magnetic properties that are exploited in the energy conversion device.

During a small-scale demonstration in a University of Minnesota lab, the new material created by the researchers begins as a non-magnetic material, then suddenly becomes strongly magnetic when the temperature is raised a small amount. When this happens, the material absorbs heat and spontaneously produces electricity in a surrounding coil. Some of this heat energy is lost in a process called hysteresis. A critical discovery of the team is a systematic way to minimize hysteresis in phase transformations. The team’s research was recently published in the first issue of the new scientific journal Advanced Energy Materials.

via Generating ‘green’ electricity: Waste heat converted to electricity using new alloy.

Freakish fires terrorise South Africa family

Mysterious fires that apparently ignite spontaneously have over the past two weeks destroyed the homes and belongings of a family in Hopewell near Thornville.

The freakish fires have burned through the Mthembu family’s main house, two low-cost houses in the yard and another low-cost house belonging to the children, across the street from the main family home.

The charred remains of some of their possessions – beds, sound system speakers, plastic and steel wash basins, food and clothes – lay in the yard on Sunday.

The steel basins had melted.

The remaining furniture that the family managed to pull out of the fire was strewn across the lawn as they kept watch over it.

Neighhbours, fire-fighters and managers from the Richmond municipality and uMgungundlovu district disaster management teams agreed that this was the first fire of its kind they have witnessed.

They said they had seen the fire start spontaneously and burn through things that had been pulled from the house.

Mashoba Mthembu, the owner of the house, said at least 13 family members are squatting together in one room because they have nowhere else to sleep and that the children are fearful of sleeping in the main house.

… “One female fire-fighter just about wet herself when the fire started right in front of her eyes and said she had never seen anything like this. Just this morning we have put out at least three different fires,” he said.

Joe Nzimande, a community leader said, “The problem is that no other community members want to accommodate the family because they think this fire will follow them there.”

Musa Ndlovu, of the Richmond municipality disaster management team, said the team has organised counselling for the family.

He added, “This family has been heavily traumatised.

“This kind of fire is not a normal fire. It is something that we have never seen before.” …

via Freakish fires terrorise family: News24: South Africa: News.

 

Owner of the house Mashoba Mthembu said the fires begun almost two weeks ago on her bed.

“It first burned througfh my bed and it burnt it halfway.”

She said that after her bed was burnt, the fire raged through each of the bedrooms, consuming mattresses first and then the whole rooms.

So far it has burned about four bedrooms in the main house.

“At first we thought that it was children who were just playing with fire and accidentally caused it, but the matter came to a head on Sunday when the fire became uncontrollable.

“It burned through everything. If you put it out here, it will start somewhere else.

link

Sounds like the bed they purchased was build from some spontaneously combusting material which became airborne or stuck to the bedding which was then moved to the other beds.  See “Nano Metals Burn on Contact with Air”

Cemetery of giant creatures found in Central Africa

A team of anthropologists found a mysterious burial in the jungle near the city of Kigali Rwanda (Central Africa). The remains belong to gigantic creatures that bear little resemblance to humans. Head of research group believes that they could be visitors from another planet who died as a result of a catastrophe.

According to the scientists, they were buried at least 500 years ago. At first, researchers thought that they came across the remains of ancient settlements, but no signs of human life have been found nearby.

The 40 communal graves had approximately 200 bodies in them, all perfectly preserved. The creatures were tall – approximately 7 feet. Their heads were disproportionately large and they had no mouth, nose or eyes.

The anthropologists believe that the creatures were members of an alien landing, possibly destroyed by some terrestrial virus to which they had no immunity. However, no traces of the landing of the spacecraft or its fragments were discovered.

This is not the first such finding. In the summer of 1937 a group of Chinese scientists led by Professor Chi Putei surveyed the caves of Mount Bayan-Kara-Ula. Inside they found skeletons with excessively large heads and puny bodies. Nearby there were 176 stone plates. In the center of each plate there was a hole from which a spiral groove spread out to the perimeter with some characters on it.

In addition, the cave walls were covered with pictures of the rising sun, moon and stars, with many painted dots or small items, slowly approaching the mountains and the earth’s surface.

Experts in deciphering ancient written characters have been puzzled over the disclosure of the secret spirals from the cave Bayan-Kara-Ula for two decades. Finally, the professor of Beijing University Zum Umniu deciphered several inscriptions.

The grooved letters narrated that approximately 12 thousand years ago some flying objects crashed in these mountains. Chinese archaeologists found a mention of the peoples who lived in the mountainous caves of Bayan-Kara-Ula.

A corpse of another “alien” was found by Turkish cavers. A mummy of the ice age was resting in a sarcophagus made of crystalline material. The height of the humanoid male creature did not exceed 1 meter 20 centimeters, his skin was light green, and he had large transparent wings on his sides.

According to the researchers, in spite of the unusual appearance the creature looked more like a person rather than an animal. His nose, lips, ears, hands, feet, nails, were very similar to human. Only his eyes were very different, three times bigger than those of a human, and colorless, like reptile’s eyes.

Not that long ago in one of the ancient Egyptian tombs a mummy of a man 2.5 meters tall was found. It had no nose or ears, and its mouth was very wide and had no tongue.

According to archaeologist Gaston de Villars, the age of the Mummy is approximately 4 thousand years. It was buried as an Egyptian nobleman – carefully mummified and surrounded by servants, food and art objects designed for the afterlife. However, as it was discovered, not all objects around the finding belong to the Egyptian or even Earth’s culture. For example, among the finds was a round polished metal disk covered with strange characters, a costume made of metal with the remnants of something resembling plastic shoes, and many stone tablets filled with images of stars, planets and strange machines. The Shrine where a strange mummy was found also looks unusual. The burial was made of the material unknown in antiquity. The stone was literally carved from the rock so that the walls were smooth, like polished marble. It looked as if it was cut by a laser. Incidentally, the stone’s surface was fused. The tomb was decorated with a substance resembling lead. …

via Cemetery of giant creatures found in Central Africa – English pravda.ru.

I added this photo because there are no photos backing up this wild claim on the Pravada web site. Show us the aliens!

New old Crystal Skull discovered in Berlin

Only a few days ago, photographer Bux Dean made an astonishing find at a flea market in the German capitol Berlin: If confirmed to be authentic this newly discovered crystal skull could once have been owned by the eminent German art historian and curator Arnold Wilhelm von Bode, one of the most influential figures for modern science museum curatorship.

“It was remarkable, but this skull was standing between antique objects and was without a box” its finder Bux Dean told the German paranormal and fringe science newsblog “grewi.de”.

The “Bode-Skull” measured 7 x 12 x 7 cm and its shape obviously differs from that of a precise anatomical depiction of a human skull. Most obvious details are the low cheekbones, prominent brow ridges and elongated back of the head that can create a nearly Neanderthal-like idea when viewed from some perspectives. Another remarkable feature is the thin and strongly flattened (Neanderthal-unlike) lower jaw and an in the same way flattened lower side of the back of the head. Viewed from the side it is also obvious that the facial side of the skull is crafted nearly as one flat surface into which the eye-sockets and nasal-cavity were engraved. While some parts appear very smooth, others are crafted more rough just as the some sort of base that connects the lower jaw with the back of the head. Compared to some other historical crystal skulls that were made of nearly clear crystal this one shows a more foggy quality. However it is just this quality that – according to Bux Dean – creates very intensive and colourful light reflections within the skull (see: Images).Also eye-catching details are traces of what looks like signs of restoration attempts and most prominently a black writing on the backside saying “Jav. 23. J 1917 A. v. Bode”. It is very likely that this is written in French referring to January (Janvier) 23 Day (=Jour) 1917″. “A. v. Bode” likely refers to its former owner or even discoverer that in this case could have been famous historian and curator Arnold Wilhelm von Bode (1845-1929).

via grenz|wissenschaft-aktuell: New old Crystal Skull discovered in Berlin.

Xenotyphlops mocquardi, a rare blind snake rediscovered after 100 years

A rare blind snake has been rediscovered in Madagascar a century after its last sighting. The snake, which looks like a long, skinny pink worm, was known only from two other specimens, both discovered in 1905.

“They’re really rare because they’re subterranean,” said blind-snake expert Van Wallach of Harvard University who described the new specimen. “You can’t just go out anytime you want and collect these things. You can dig forever and never find them.”

Scientists captured the snake, called Xenotyphlops mocquardi, alive in 2005 during an expedition to collect reptiles and amphibians in northern Madagascar. The specimen was approximately 10 inches long and about as thick as a pencil.

There are about 15 species of blind snakes on the island, so the unique nature of the team’s find wasn’t apparent until the blind snake specimen was sent to museum experts for identification and possible comparison with dead specimens in their collections.

“They sent it to me and I immediately recognized what it was,” Wallach told LiveScience.

Vincenzo Mercurio, a scientist on the expedition that discovered the snake, said he didn’t think anything special about the catch at the time. “It was just routine field work,” said Mercurio, who is from the Forschungsinstitut und Naturhistorisches Museum Senckenberg in Germany.

Blind snakes, as their name suggests, have poor vision.They hunt mainly by smell, which they detect via a combination of their tongues and an organ located on the roof of their mouths called Jacobson’s organ.

“They basically see shadows and back and forth movements,” Wallach said.

Blind snakes, and a related group, called worm snakes, live underground or beneath a layer of rocks or sand. The two snake families are negatively phototaxic, meaning they avoid light whenever possible. …

via Blind snake rediscovered after 100 years – Technology & science – Science – LiveScience – msnbc.com.