Gamers aren’t just playing games any more. Now we’re solving scientific problems.
Online gamers have been brought together and in a surprisingly short period of time – three weeks – were able to generate an accurate model for the monomeric retroviral protease, a virus from the HIV family, which had stumped scientists for the last decade.
Limited by the traditionally two-dimensional depictions of these viruses, the University of Washington in 2008 developed Foldit and open sourced their research efforts.
The culmination of which is a fun-for-purpose video game which organizes online players …

Because it went up in Toronto – and frankly because it’s kinda cool – I thought I’d put up a quick post about a new brand of marketing utilizing a biological medium.
Capitalizing on the ramp up to this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, two billboards made from live bacteria were mounted in an abandoned storefront at 409 Queen Street West in the downtown to promote the upcoming release of Contagion
This one-of-a-kind advertisement was the brainchild of the Toronto advertising agency Lowe Roche, who teamed up with the …

Ever wonder about the actual history behind some of Hollywood’s biggest hits?
Take the Great Escape for example. Starring Steve McQueen, this movie tells the story of the Allied prisoners at Stalag Luft III who lead a mass escape and the resultant massacre of 50 prisoners – an event that saw British Intelligence smuggle in instructions to the remaining POWs not to make another attempt.
But as the Allied forces drew closer, fear of SS reprisals grew, leading many to chance discovery as they continued digging.
Named George – a ruse which allowed …

Every year we end up debating where to spend our Canada Day. But as some of our relatives live out by Ottawa, the Capitol often tops the list.

There certainly is something to being in the capitol as Canadians of all backgrounds converge on Parliament Hill.

And of course an appearance by the Snowbirds.

However when this celebration also includes a state visit by the Queen of England, the crowds can get especially large.

And if you look closely, you can even make out that the bridges between the buildings are packed full of …

During our stay in Marrakech we tried to wander the city as far as we could on foot from the Jemaa el-Fnaa. And while a bit of a hike from our riad – though I suspect that might have had more to do with us getting lost a couple of times navigating the warrens that make up large parts of the market district then it being that far away – we were able to make our way over to the el Bahia Palace.

At the time it cost us about a …

Many of us who work for the private sector or the government are by this point well acquainted with officially issued technology being the only thing you’re authorized to access your work on, but inevitably ignore for your preferred personal devices and applications.
And the many of us who have, as a result run into various technical issues accessing our work files, but because your IT has already said this is forbidden, you can’t go to them for support when you run into these difficulties.
More importantly you’re also circumventing the …

Understandably you’d think there’s something to the suspense of not knowing the outcome of a story.
And often getting “spoiled” ruins the suspense you might have otherwise enjoyed. However despite the lengths some might go to not get “spoiled” on a given movie or television show, few seem to consider our ability to return to a favorite book, or re-watch something numerous times with undiminished pleasure.
So is there something to the idea that a suspenseful outcome may not be critical to your enjoyment of the story?
A recent study at University …

Recently I’d mentioned that Caltech had made some breakthroughs in light manipulation, and its use for running a computer.
Well it seems the traditional idea of the computer is going to be going through another evolution with the advent of “memory crystals” a la the Superman films and the work of lead research Martynas Beresna from the Southampton University optoelectronic research centre.
Like the Fortress of Solitude, researchers have figured out a way to alter glass with laser beams to allow it to act like a conventional hard drive, but with …

Recently Nic got me this book as I’d some how managed not to read it while I was going through high school. Apparently it’s an important book from 20th Century Canadian literature.
Unsurprisingly my teachers didn’t get the memo.
Though it’s funny I didn’t manage to stumble upon it on my own to this point.
I’ve been an avid sci-fi fan for as long as I can remember, and have read all manner of Post-Apocalyptic fiction. Interestingly after reading it I felt as if there was a strong Black Adder sensibility …

Game of Thrones wrapped up its first season with blood, fire and dragons – and as we book-readers know winter might be coming, but you have to wait a little while for the story to continue. In the meantime, here’s another filming location you can visit that will make you feel like you’re part of the story in Westeros or Essos – or where you may catch a glimpse of shooting if your timing is right… the island nation of Malta!
We’re now visiting Malta on November as a stop …