Story 2014-03-08

3D Printed Paper Microscope to Help Combat Malaria

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in hardware on (#3F9)
story imageThis oragami microscope can be folded in 10 minutes with 50 cents of materials. In addition to the 3D printed card-stock, the kit includes a small lens, an LED, and a watch battery. The goal of the project is to provide a cheap medical screening tool that could be widely used in the developing world.

Science TV Series Cosmos to Reboot

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in movies on (#3F8)
This Sunday, a reboot of Carl Sagan's "Cosmos" will premier on Fox. PBS aired the orginal series in the 1980's.

From the article:
Based on a preview of the first of 13 episodes, "Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey" is certainly trippy and visually dazzling, but it's also a big-thought-provoking series crammed with scientific and historical fact.
In an age when too many TV documentaries succumb to reality-style formats, and when so many reboots of old shows are little more than ratings ploys, and when special effects obscure or replace substance, MacFarlane and his partners have kept their eyes on the value of the material. They have created something that arouses wonderment, despite the fact that it's airing in prime time, in front of mainstream viewers.

The dawning of the age of genomic medicine, finally

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in science on (#3F7)
When I first started studying bioinformatics almost fifteen years ago (!) what drew me to the field was the promise that we might soon be able to provide effective, personalized treatments for a wide variety of diseases. There have been some successes along the way, like genetic tests for warfarin dosage, but for the most part our gains in understanding of basic biology haven't been matched by clinical advances. Now it looks like that's finally about to change, and it's about time.

Too many people suffer and die from too many diseases that we more or less understand, but can't effectively treat. I hated it when I worked in hands-on patient care, and I hate it now in the lab. We are, finally, getting there.

Should companies offering online services be required to maintain them?

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in games on (#3F6)
story imageThe latest weekly HumbleBundle is a select of games from PopCap including the popular Bejeweled and Plants vs Zombies games. The caveats at the bottom for Origin, EA's answer to Steam, includes a term stating:
EA MAY RETIRE ONLINE FEATURES AND SERVICES AFTER 30 DAYS NOTICE
I am wondering at what point this becomes unacceptable? If I have paid for a game which has online "features and services" then shouldn't the company selling this support the online side for as long as possible, or am I just living in a pipe dream?

On a side note, it is a pity that this HumbleBundle doesn't come with the Android version of these games; and that they don't offer a DRM free download of the games.