Posted by Alex Bigman on Saturday, July 04, 2009 04:28 pm
You science-y people will understand this–the rest of us will dream up outlandishly awesome but completely unfounded visions of ‘Star Wars”-esque laser battles. Brace yourselves: Particle accelerators are going micro, at least if the BELLA team at our trusty Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have anything to say about it. They’re working on condensing the gargantuan physics instruments into a “desktop” form that will shoot particles inches, not miles. Take what you will from this mumbo jumbo: read more »
Alright, so this video is kinda walking the fine line between nerdy and nerdier, especially since puppets and science are involved–but we figured, hey, who seriously turns down the chance to learn stuff about obscure topics by way of kid-friendly, nostalgia-inducing musical number? That’s right, no one.
Also, vote for “The Nano Song,” in ACS Nanotation’s NanoTube Contest and support your Berkeley brethren. (Sistren? Kinfolk? Compadres? You get the idea … )
The books will not burn in Berkeley. With the passage of Measures FF and GG, Berkeley will witness a long overdue renovation for public libraries and a halt on fire station closures, at the sake of an additional $100 annual property tax for Berkeley homeowners. [TMCnet]
Berkeley’s Measure KK was rejected by 77 percent. It’s implications leave many happy, but most are just confused. The voters have spoken: we don’t want the right to vote. [SFGate]
UC Berkeley saves the world again, this time by offering free downloads (two words that are made for each other). Bay Area commuters look forward to the new cell phone program that will save their souls from Bay Area traffic hell. [CBS5]
In the e-mail world, UC Berkeley and UCSD feed us spam, and learn that about 1 out of every 12,500,000 asks for seconds. Dear reader, if you’re that guy, we judge you. [PC World]
UC Berkeley professor Richard Karp is awarded a prize in advanced technology today in Japan. His work allows for the measurement of difficulty of other computational programs. Three cheers for Karp! [KMPH FOX]
Posted by Christine Borden on Thursday, December 13, 2007 01:58 pm
Merriam-Webster seems behind the times in proclaiming 2007 as the year of “w00t.” An online poll on the dictionary’s Web site determined the word, and the Clog thinks some 1337 haxor pulled something on dear Merriam-Webster.
Besides, wasn’t “w00t” so high school? You’d think that being bloggers we’d be up on the nexus of technology and language … but we think we’ve gone beyond the phase of 1337 speak.
Merriam Webster’s president, John Morse explains the trend behind the word of ‘07:
bq. It’s a term that’s arrived only because we’re now communicating electronically with each other.
Yes, that makes sense. Pagers, cell phones, computers, text messaging, instant messaging, e-mail and blogs didn’t really peak until 2007. Man, to think that only a year ago we were still using carrier pigeons. What a n00b. Or is it “nub” now?
Posted by Mustafa Shaikh on Sunday, December 09, 2007 06:36 pm
Surprise surprise, Berkeley is going to break ground on another ridiculous technology venture (doesn’t this seem to occur every week or so?). This time the school will shoot for the stars by building the world’s largest telescope.
So what changes can you expect on campus with this monster of an announcement? None, of course, as most students will never have access to or require the services of this machine.
Without fail, Berkeley’s campus tour guides will make sure to mention this accomplishment to high school juniors and seniors who will undoubtedly be awe-struck. Come to think of it, it’s kind of sad that on the majority of campus tours students are sold on things that will have absolutely zero effect on their campus lives. Seriously, how many of you have actually went to a Nobel Laureate’s office hours or worked on some top secret project up at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory?
Posted by Nate Tabak on Wednesday, April 25, 2007 07:42 pm
We at the Clog are big proponents of technology, especially when it allows us to make asses of ourselves.
So when the G-Tech iPod-Enabled Messenger Bag with built-in speaker arrived recently for our reviewing pleasure, our task became immediately clear: walk through Sproul Plaza while blasting Peaches’ “Fuck the Pain Away.”
Sadly, as you can see in the video, our display of hubris did not seem to warrant a second glance from the masses on Sproul. The bag’s volume just isn’t enough for a bustling plaza.
That’s a bit of a deal breaker for us, but for the sake of others we’ll give you a more conventional analysis.
h1. The What What
With a list price of $129, the bag merges a messenger bag with a battery-powered speaker, allowing you to haul around your shit and get your groove on. It has a variety of pockets and compartments, including ones for an iPod, laptop and cell phone. The bag features a special iPod control within the strap made from some crazy touch-sensitive fabric. Sounds sexy.
h2. The Fresh Factor
At first glance, it looks like your typical nylon messenger bag—resembling a tricked-out Timbuk2. Brown, tan with red trim, our model had a pretty fresh appearance. It’s got a shit load of pockets and things, which make it a little busy-looking, but some may like that. The only thing that suggests something a bit different is the controller built into the strap, which looks a little dorky. While we think there are some other bags that are a bit more fly, this one still comes out a winner.
But let’s face it, you’re not shelling out $129 just for the bag. The whole point of this thing is so you can use your bag as a music player.
h3. The How It Do
Inside the main compartment is both a stereo mini-plug that can go into almost any portable audio source—MP3 player, laptop, CD player, etc. It also has a iPod dock connector, which connects to the in-stap control unit. The connections are fairly straight forward, and there’s a nice little pouch for an iPod. That’s fine and dandy, but the cable situation is a little chaotic for iPods since most have their dock connectors and headphone jacks on opposite sides.
The speaker is hidden under a flap in front, powered by three AA batteries and easily activated by a little switch. Once that’s on, you’re ready to party. Theoretically you can use the controls on the strap, which allow for pause, play and track navigation. But we found them pretty unreliable, often just not responding. We found ourselves doing all the controlling on the iPod itself. Assuming the controls did work, they’re probably best suited for shuffle or a playlist.
As far as the sound is concerned, it’s pretty disappointing. Both insufficiently loud and of poor quality, the speaker is about what you’d expect for something imbedded in a messenger bag.
h4. Word to Your Mother
This bag is a cool idea, but it’s more of a novelty than anything else. While a competent and sort of cool looking messenger bag, the whole audio portion of it is pretty disappointing both in terms of speaker quality and flaky controls. Since that’s the whole point of this beast, we’d have a hard time recommending it unless you have a strong urge make your own elevator music.
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The books will not burn in Berkeley. With the passage of Measures FF and GG, Berkeley will witness a long overdue renovation for public libraries and a halt on fire station closures, at the sake of an additional $100 annual property tax for Berkeley homeowners. [
