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ICYMI: This rock-armored insect could change medicine
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley discovered that an insect called the caddisfly spins strong, stretchy silk that works like a biological sticky tape. The caddisfly uses it to attach stones to its body to protect it underwater; humans are more interested in the fact that the waterproof adhesive might have medical applications. The publication Deep Look made a great video of the bug's underwater life that's worth a full watch if you're interested.
Free for All: What I am thankful for
Here in the United States we are gearing up to celebrate well, whatever it is exactly that we give as the reason to get together with friends and family and eat more than humanly possible on the last Thursday in November. To be honest, Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because I truly do use the occasion to take stock of how good I have it and to decide what is important to me and my future. I wanted to take similar stock with you all, my readers. After all, work can be a major part of our lives, and this is my work. Over the year and a half I really have learned a lot and became a better writer through the experience. So I am thankful for a lot. Click past the cut and I'll tell you just what I am thankful for.
New electrowetting technique could do e-paper on real paper, lead to disposable Kindles
Wahey, another day another theoretical display that will revolutionize the world, this time one that fits right in with your disposable, capitalistic lifestyle. Researchers at the University of Cincinnati have found a new way to utilize electrowetting, modifying the water repellency forces of a given surface to move colored ink and create a reflective display -- a technique that has long been the domain of Liquavista. This new version of that technique enables the creation of e-paper on actual paper, requiring no glass or fancy circuitry and, in theory, creating displays nearly as cheaply as magazines are printed today, opening the door to disposable e-readers and the like. No word on when such devices might be available outside of a lab, but we'll go ahead anyway and take this opportunity to remind you should always recycle your high-tech future e-readers.
Gateway's MD / UC Series laptops get reviewed
The ink is still drying from Gateway's introduction of the MD / UC Series, but already both machines have been thoroughly tested and reviewed. Starting with the more mainstream MD7801u, Gateway trimmed a number of features in hopes of producing a lower-cost machine that bargain-minded buyers would take interest in. To that end, there was nothing really remarkable about the MD, but that's exactly what the company was going for; all in all, it ended up as a solid, well-rounded rig that should handle basic tasks with ease. Moving down (size wise, anyway), the UC was deemed "incredibly stylish," and it was found to be impressive in pretty much every testable aspect. Of course, it won't handle gaming or hardcore video editing, but given the $799 price tag, we know you weren't expecting it to. Feel 'em both out in the read links below. Read - MD Series review Read - UC Series review
Model changes for Varimathras and Alexstrasza
We certainly enjoyed the model changes to Varian Wrynn and Sylvanas Windrunner, and now Blizzard's finished the unique models for Alexstrasza (human form, that is; you can see her dragon model update here) and Varimathras, as befits their key roles in the storyline for Wrath. I'm a tiny bit disappointed with Alexstrasza's model; her armor is mostly a red copy of Sylvanas' new threads, which are admittedly all sorts of awesome but makes me wonder if there's some kind of Armor Barn in Azeroth for hipster bosses. Alexstrasza does, however, show even more skin than Sylvanas does, so from some peoples' perspectives this might be a feature rather than a bug.Varimathras is a nice update although he retains his old animations and emotes (you can't really see it from the perspective of the screenshot above, but I think his legs and hooves are a significant improvement on the shaky anatomy of the current dreadlord model). Both he and Alexstrasza's changes are somewhat less shocking than the complete overhaul to Wrynn and Sylvanas, but we're still pleased to see Blizzard taking an interest in the visual badassery of major faction leaders and NPC's. I would tend to agree with Zach Yonzon's contention that it would be amazing to see an update to all the faction leaders if Blizzard could swing it at some point, although I have the sneaking suspicion, judging from what CM's have said about the difficulty of programming in new Druid forms, that this is a fairly lengthy process. However, after seeing the model changes in the beta, I don't think anyone's going to argue it's not worth it, and a number of people have argued for player model changes as well. The extraordinary design work in Northrend will probably add fuel to that fire.%Gallery-33165%
