Geek Out
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The Stubborn ‘Nail Houses’ That Refuse To Get Demolished
In 1914, the government of New York City took ownership of a Manhattan apartment building belonging to one David Hess. The city used a legal power called eminent domain, allowing governments to seize private property for public use — in this case they wanted to expand the subway system. Hess fought them and lost, and…
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The US Army’s Laser War Truck Can Now See (and Shoot) Through Fog
The problem with the current iterations of combat laser prototypes is they can easily be foiled by suspended condensation, smoke, fog and other obscurants that deflect and diffract the beam as its en-route to its target. The HEL MD, however, proved earlier this year that the solution is simple: Just increase the power of the…
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This Cocktail Concocted By IBM’s Watson Isn’t Half Bad
The surreal strength of IBM’s famous supercomputer, Watson, is now available to the public (for a fee). And to mark the occasion, the company threw a little party last week and served a very blue cocktail. Naturally, I whipped up my own slight variation when I got back to the office. I call it the…
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In 1966, The Angels Landed In Anaheim’s Futuristic Baseball Stadium
How could the Angels call any place but Los Angeles their home? After all, the club’s name directly referred to the city, and there had been a team named the Los Angeles Angels since the first decade of the 20th Century, when the minor-league Los Angeles Looloos wisely opted for a more dignified nickname. So…