Thursday, May 27, 2010

An early mobile phone from 1922


Video of a very early mobile phone ... fire hydrant not included.

As almost everyone and their dog has already mentioned ... it doesn't support flash, either :)

But you can stream music from the early iTunes store ...


It's no iPhone 4G, but it is in black and white... - Computerworld Blogs
Here's something you don't see every day: a 1922-vintage mobile phone. Pathé News has discovered a silent, black and white movie of this pre-historic device being demonstrated, somewhere in America. Let's take a peek at this (ahem) distant cousin of the iPhone 4G

Friday, May 7, 2010

Meet the in-laws ...


These are not new results, but more details are emerging.   Neanderthal genes occur randomly at the 1%-4% level in non-African humans, yet there is no sign of modern human genes in the Neanderthal samples.

Neanderthals and humans interbred, fossils indicate - USATODAY.com
Stocky, thick-browed and heavy-boned, the Neanderthals last shared a common ancestor with the African precursors to modern humans about 500,000 years ago. The Neanderthals populated the Near East and Europe until they vanished from the fossil record about 30,000 years ago. The gene maps produced by the DNA analysis of the bones found Neanderthal genes scattered randomly among non-Africans, Paabo says, indicating they don't account for any racial differences between modern-day Africans and anyone else. Also, the study finds no sign of human genes intruding into the Neanderthal lineage.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

The Museum of RetroTechnology


Pneumatic networks, hot-air gramophones, monowheels.   Find it all at this site. 


The Museum of RetroTechnology
This elegant monowheel cycle- the word "bicycle" seems somehow inappropriate, though there are certainly two wheels involved- dates back to 1869. It was built by Rousseau of Marseilles.
"In 1869 the craftsman Rousseau of Marseilles built this monocycle, which perches the cyclist on the inside of a 2 1/2 yards-high wheel. As there is no steering mechanism, it makes uncommon demands on the rider's sense of balance."