GoPro Flyover of Apple's Spaceship HQ Build Site Gives You The Scenic Tour Read more: http://hothardware.com/News/GoPro-Flyover-of-Apples-Spaceship-HQ-Build-Site-Gives-You-The-Scenic-Tour/#!bNzZfl#ixzz3C1SDzihy

When GoPro's versatile cameras first hit the market, they became an instant hit. Finally, ordinary users were able to capture some cool lifestyle footage without having to break their bank accounts. Now, drones have hit the market in a big way, and when combining them with a GoPro, some truly fascinating footage can be captured. In case you missed it, we talked about one such example of this in early July, after an owner of a drone and GoPro took advantage of his local Independence Day fireworks. Interestingly, I saw someone do the exact same thing in my eastern Canadian town for Canada Day fireworks, so this solution is one that's really catching on fast. Now, it's Apple's upcoming "Spaceship" campus that's been treated to this high-flying GoPro action. This Cupertino-based campus is far from completion, but that doesn't make this footage any less interesting. Cupertino really isn't a big city, so to see a campus this enormous situated there is quite something - it looks like it'd take a solid 4 or more minutes to drive the perimeter of the blocks it dominates.

The video really doesn't show that much outside of a top-view - it doesn't fly near the ground at any point, probably in fear of the existence of Apple iTurrets. Even if you're disinterested in the campus itself, this kind of video really shows what's possible with a GoPro and a drone. This is really only the beginning. As for the campus, it's going to be quite the thing to behold once it's completed.

Dodge previews Mopar Challenger dragster

When it comes to drag racing in the US, Dodge and Mopar go hand-in-hand. Mopar (a simply contraction of the words Motor and Parts) began life in 1937 and is today Chrysler group's creator of factory-authorised after market parts. The latest iteration is the 2015 Mopar Challenger Drag Pak test car built on the Dodge Challenger platform. While it isn't equipped with the fearsome Hellcat engine, it instead is running a massive 7-litre Race Hemi V8 engine with an aluminum block, steel liners and custom engine calibration. It also boasts a Chrysler-based 727 automatic transmission, a race-style stick shifter with integral line lock, and an aluminum driveshaft. The interior is currently based on the 2015 Challenger SRT with the addition of Mopar gauges, driver and passenger lightweight racing seats, along with safety nets, five-point harnesses and a full roll cage built to US National Hot Rod Association specs. The test car runs on 15-inch front and rear wheels, 28-inch diameter drag style front tyres (4.5 inches wide) and 30-inch diameter rear tyres (9-inches wide). It also has performance front and rear brake rotors, calipers and master cylinder. At the back of the car, racers will find a four-link rear suspension with Panhard bar, rear solid axle with 9-inch aluminum third member, rear shocks with adjustable compression and rebound, and an anti-sway bar. All specifications are still preliminary and being evaluated, as they are pending US NHRA approval.

Fly 11 days non-stop? Now that's long-haul

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Airbus has moved a step closer to introducing a new class of unmanned solar-powered aeroplanes with unlimited range after one of this new breed of aircraft completed an 11-day non-stop flight. The company’s defence and space division has just finished the test of its High Altitude Pseudo Satellite (Haps) Zephyr 7 vehicle for the Ministry of Defence, paving the way for a new range of capabilities for the military. These vehicles could in the future provide surveillance and communications capabilities similar to satellites – but at a fraction of the cost of launching rockets into space and from any conventional runway rather than a dedicated spaceport.

The Zephyr is an ultra-light aircraft weighing in at just 50kgs. It has a wingspan of 75ft and flies at altitudes of 65,000ft – almost twice as high as passenger jets – filling the gap between conventional drones and satellites. Although still in development, it carries up to 5kg of payload and can be equipped with video cameras and infrared sensors, giving its commanders on the ground real-time surveillance capabilities from a platform that remains on station almost indefinitely. It has also been kitted out with communications equipment, meaning it could in the future provide long-range radio and internet connections in areas that lack the required infrastructure, making it a low-cost alternative to satellites. Using Haps as a relay station, in tests handsets 400 miles apart have been able to communicate with each other. Paul Brooks, Haps head of business development and sales (pictured below), said the recent test was significant because the more than 250-hour flight was conducted through winter conditions at a secret location in the South Hemisphere. “It’s easier to do long flights in the summer when there are 15 hours of light and nine hours of dark,” he said. “We flew in winter conditions which was a real test.” Zephyr’s solar arrays on its wings provide 1,000 watts for each kilogram they weigh. These power the vehicle’s motors and two propellers, driving it along at 30 knots at altitude, using about 450 watts, about three times as much as a lightbulb, and also charge its lithium-sulphur batteries. However, the challenge comes when the sun goes down, he said: “Zephyr’s batteries store about 350 watt hours for each kilo they weigh meaning that flying in the dark is a major test. The latest test was also flown in winter weather which is more challenging.” As well as Zephyr being able to pilot itself with only minimal input from its controllers, the designers have had to overcome major challenges developing the system. “This is less of an aircraft and more of a satellite,” said Mr Brooks. “We are dealing with issues most aircraft designers don’t. The temperature it operated in during the last test got down to -80 Celsius and batteries don’t work so well in the cold, we’re also working in a radiation environment at that height.” Ultimately it is hoped that Haps will be operated in a similar way to satellites, with teams able to control many of them from a centralised base, unlike today’s drones. “Conventional unmanned aerial vehicles can be almost as expensive to operate as normal aircraft, requiring teams of pilots for each one,” said Mr Brooks. “With Haps, it will cheaper because you can have lots of them operated centrally and send one to an area of operations and it will stay there for months at a time until you tell it to come back.” Mr Brooks said Zephyr was “born out of the UK”, with Airbus buying the system from FTSE 250 defence research group QinetiQ last year, and a team of 40 Airbus staff are now developing Haps at the company’s bases in Farnborough and Germany. Zephyr already holds the record for flight duration having clocked up 14 days in the air in 2010 – more than 336 hours – and the programme has clocked up almost 1,000 of flying time. Mr Brooks said this put it ahead of the competition by a factor of 10 but Airbus could face competition in the sector from some unexpected rivals. In March social media company Facebook bought Somerset based solar-powered drone business Ascenta for $20m, and the company’s chief executive has revealed plans to use high flying aircraft to provide broadband connections from altitude.

Competition: Google bought Titan Aerospace in April A month later Google bought New Mexico-based Titan, which is also in the solar drone business. The web search giant has already started work on Project Loon, a network of balloons on the edge of space that are designed to provide internet connections in rural areas, fill coverage gaps and restore communications after disasters.

Cat cafe in Montreal opens its doors; claims to be North America's first Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/cat-cafe-in-montreal-opens-its-doors-claims-to-be-north-america-s-first-1.1985046#ixzz3C1OhUXsM

A new Montreal cafe is hoping plenty of people do. The Cafe des Chats, which opened its doors on Saturday, is a lot like a regular coffee house -- except it's home to eight cats. Along with the usual tables and chairs designed for human clientele, the space is filled with scratching posts, plush toys, and a special multi-level window perch for the felines-in-residence. Nadine Spencer, who helped set up the business along with her partner, said the concept is a big hit in Asia and, more recently, has gained popularity in Europe. "We thought, 'why not bring this to Montreal?' I think it's a city that could definitely use it," she said Sunday. "There's a lot of places that don't accept cats these days and there are a lot of students here for a short time. And it's also great therapy." According to Spencer, the cafe is the first of its kind in North America. But not for long. There are plans to open cat cafes in several cities, including Vancouver and Toronto. There's even another one set to open a few blocks away in Montreal. The crowd of people packed into Spencer's cafe on Sunday suggests there's plenty of demand. Michelle Lau made the trip from Toronto for the opening weekend. "We're big cat lovers and I can't wait until one opens in our city," said Lau, 24, explaining that she has a dog at home and is reluctant to bring a kitty into the mix. "I think it's just a nice environment. You sit down, you have a coffee, and you play with the cats." Part of the goal was to give a few cats a second chance. They were all adopted from the SPCA and quickly made themselves comfortable in their new home, Spencer said. The cats have their own private quarters at the back of the shop, for when they want some quiet time or need to use the kitty litter. "Personalities are already coming out," she said. "There's definitely The Godfather, who kind of oversees everything. There's the big boss, Big Foot, and the Three Little Rascals, as I like to call them. I think they're going to be the ones to be in charge eventually." Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/cat-cafe-in-montreal-opens-its-doors-claims-to-be-north-america-s-first-1.1985046#ixzz3C1Os1pbr

Astronomers Discover A Planetary Impact Outside Our Own Solar System

In a study published in the latest issue of Science, astronomers led by graduate student Huan Meng, of the University of Arizona in Tucson, announced the discovery of remains of a mammoth planetary collision. The team made its observations using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and several different ground-based instruments. The collision occurred between two planets orbiting a sunlike star called NGC-2547 ID8, which lies about 1,140 light-years from the earth. The star is a young one, with a system of planets still in the process of formation. The collision, which may have occurred as recently as two years ago, left a ring of dust and debris circling the star. "This is the first detection of a planetary impact outside of our own solar system," said Meng. It provides a glimpse into the earliest era of the formation of our own solar system, since NGC-2547 ID8 is the same mass and size as our parent star, and, at just 35-million years old, the same age our sun was when its planets were accreting from the material that circled it. "We think two big asteroids crashed into each other," said Meng, "creating a huge cloud of grains the size of very fine sand, which are now smashing themselves into smithereens and slowly leaking away from the star." Previous observations of NGC-2547 ID8 had already recorded variations in the amount of dust around the star, hinting at possible ongoing asteroid collisions. In the hope of witnessing an even larger impact – which is a key step in the birth of a terrestrial planet – Meng and his team turned to the Spitzer space telescope to observe the star on a regular basis. "Spitzer," said co-author Kate Su, "is the best telescope for monitoring stars regularly and precisely for small changes in infrared light over months and even years." Beginning in May 2012, the telescope began watching the star, often on a daily basis. The collision occurred sometime in the five months between observations that took place in 2012 and those that took place in 2013. Collisions between rocky bodies create a lot of dust, which in turn shine brightly in the infrared A dramatic increase in infrared light from NGC-2547 ID8 suggested the recent formation of a cloud of fine dust particles. Computer modeling work suggested that the increase—which gradually faded over the following year—was caused by the impact of two large, rocky objects, perhaps similar to the asteroid-like protoplanetary bodies in our own early solar system that eventually coalesced to form planets like the earth and Mars. "We are watching rocky planet formation happen right in front of us," said co-author George Rieke. "This is a unique chance to study this process in near real-time." The collision would have created a gigantic mass of incandescent, vaporized rock. Out of this a thick cloud of silicate spherules condensed that were then ground into dust by collisions. "I can't imagine something else," Meng explains, "that could produce so much dust just within four months." "The signal is fading," Su said, "as the cloud destroys itself by grinding its grains down so they escape from the star. Expelled from the system by radiation pressure from NGC-2547 ID8 (explaining the spike in the infrared—caused by the dust formed immediately after the collision—and its rapid decline) the dust cloud will be gone entirely in just a year or two. Illustration by Ron Miller

NASA Opens Media Accreditation for Orion Move in Preparation for First Flight Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2154935#ixzz3BzMzm9Ty

NASA managers will be available to discuss the progress being made on Orion during the move, the exact date and time of which will be announced as soon as possible. The event will not be carried live on NASA Television, but highlights of the move will air on NASA TV's Video File segments and the agency's website. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, the Orion spacecraft will be fueled with ammonia and hyper-propellants for its mission. It will later be moved again for the installation of its launch abort system. Orion is undergoing preparations for its maiden flight in December, an uncrewed flight that will take it 3,600 miles above Earth on a 4.5-hour mission to test the systems critical for future human missions to deep space. After two orbits, Orion will reenter Earth's atmosphere at almost 20,000 miles per hour before its parachute system deploys to slow the spacecraft for a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean. International media without U.S. citizenship must apply for credentials no later than 4:30 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Sept. 2, and are required to submit a scanned copy of their "I" visa and passport to access the event. Green card holders must submit a scanned copy of their card. All scanned documents must be emailed to jennifer.p.horner@nasa.gov for credential request processing. The deadline for U.S. media is noon Sept. 5. All media representatives must present two forms of legal, government identification to access Kennedy. One form must be a photo ID, such as a passport or driver's license. Media accreditation requests need to be submitted online at: https://media.ksc.nasa.gov Questions about accreditation should be addressed to Jennifer Horner at jennifer.p.horner@nasa.gov, 321-867-6598 or 321-867-2468. The Orion spacecraft will carry astronauts farther into the solar system than ever before,. It will provide emergency abort capabilities, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space. For more information about the Orion Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/orion Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2154935#ixzz3BzNNq6S6

New limited-edition coins have super power Series unveiled at Fan Expo

The Royal Canadian Mint on Friday unveiled four limited-edition Superman coins, reproducing colourful iconic images from DC Comics' book covers. Three of the new coins have been minted in silver, T with face values of $10, $15 and $20, and the fourth is in gold with a face value of $100. The mint is only producing 10,000 of each silver coin, and the gold coin is limited to a run of 2,000. The coins were unveiled at Fan Expo Canada in Toronto by a federal minister who said he grew up with the "fantastic" adventures of Superman. House Leader Peter Van Loan was also quick to point out the Man of Steel's Canadian roots, saying Superman's co-creator was Joe Shuster of Toronto. "Folks of my generation will know him as a cousin of the famous comedian Frank Shuster of the Wayne and Shuster duo, and Joe Shuster was, of course, born in the city," said Van Loan, who brought his daughter and son along to the unveiling. The new coins are based on art that graced comic book covers in 1938, 1972, 2001 and 2012, including Action Comics No. 1, which features Superman hoisting a green car above his head in "arguably the most famous comic book of all time," the mint stated. The other coins feature images including Superman's alter ego Clark Kent pulling back his shirt to reveal the S-Shield and Superman in the "classic iteration of his costume," taking to the skies with his cape fluttering behind. Their launch follows the release last year of seven Superman coins to mark the hero's 75th anniversary. "By celebrating Superman, we are highlighting the fact that many Canadians share a love of comic books and admiration for one of the world's greatest pop culture heroes," said Patrick Hadsipantelis, vice-president of marketing at the mint. He said the new coins exemplify the mint's internationally renowned craftsmanship. The coins are on sale online now and will be available in Canada Post outlets and at other distributors.

Sask. man who smokes a lot of pot found not guilty of drug trafficking Read more: http://regina.ctvnews.ca/sask-man-who-smokes-a-lot-of-pot-found-not-guilty-of-drug-trafficking

CTV Regina Published Wednesday, August 27, 2014 9:48AM CST A marijuana trafficking case against a Saskatchewan man has gone up in smoke after he argued in court that he simply tokes a lot of pot. Devon Douglas Lavallee was charged after RCMP found about a pound of marijuana in his vehicle during a traffic stop near Weldon, southeast of Prince Albert, last August. During the trial, an RCMP constable testified that Lavallee possessed the two half-pound bags of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. However, Lavallee said he is a heavy marijuana user, having smoked between five and 13 grams of pot a day for 13 years, and argued that the large amount of pot was for personal use. He told the court he uses it recreationally and to relieve chronic back pain. In a decision released online earlier this week, provincial court Judge Felicia Daunt said while Lavallee is “prone to exaggeration,” she accepted his assertion that he smokes at least five grams of marijuana a day. The judge noted that Mounties didn’t find a scale, cellphone, small plastic bags or other paraphernalia associated with drug trafficking during a search of Lavallee’s home. Daunt found Lavallee not guilty of possession for the purpose of trafficking, but guilty of the lesser offence of simple possession. Read more: http://regina.ctvnews.ca/sask-man-who-smokes-a-lot-of-pot-found-not-guilty-of-drug-trafficking-1.1978890#ixzz3Bydywx00

Ottawa shredding monthly paper bill fees

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Industry Minister James Moore says the practice of companies charging extra for paper invoices is unfair. Photograph by: Sean Kilpatrick, The Canadian Press Files, The Canadian Press The big telecom companies may have agreed to exempt some customers from fees charged for paper invoices, but the federal government says it's going to end the whole practice. Industry Minister James Moore says the government will introduce legislation to end what is called pay-to-pay, the practice of charging people extra for a monthly bill on paper. "We do not believe that Canadians should pay more to receive a paper copy of their telephone or wireless bill," Moore said Friday. The telecom firms met under the auspices of the Canadian Radiotelevision and Telecommunication Commission Thursday and agreed to exempt some people, including seniors, the disabled, military vets and people without Internet access. The CRTC said it wasn't enough and called for another round of discussions, but that seems to have been overtaken by Moore's announcement. The minister says the practice of charging extra for paper invoices is unfair and Canadians expect lower prices and better service from the telecoms. "That is why our government committed to ending this unfair practice and putting the interests of Canadian consumers first," he said. The Thursday meeting included telecom giants Bell, Rogers and Telus. Billing practices and fees are a patchwork in the industry. Cogeco, which supplies cable, Internet and phone services in Ontario and Quebec, has never adopted the practice, although it does encourage customers to go paperless. MTS Allstream, SaskTel and Shaw Communications, also don't charge extra for paper invoices. Other companies, however, do charge for paper bills - up to $6 per month in some cases, plus tax - and both the fees and exemption policies vary widely. Rogers, for instance, has been known to waive its $2 fee if customers object for various reasons. The Public Interest Advocacy Centre has estimated consumers pay $734 million every year in fees to get bills on paper. That's the motivation for the telecom giants to keep the fees in place for as long as possible, said NDP critic Andrew Cash.

DNA Shows History of Paleo-Eskimos in North American Arctic, New Study

A new study has been released exploring the DNA of current and ancient people of places like Alaska, Greenland, and Siberia, revealing that a number of cultures survived the harsh climate for thousands of years. The study conducted by an international team headed by the Centre for GeoGenetics at the Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, showed that the Paleo-Eskimo, who lived in the Arctic from about 5,000 years ago until about 700 years ago, represented a distinct wave of migration, separate from both Native Americans. Lundbeck Foundation Professor Eske Willerslev from Centre for GeoGenetics at the Natural History Museum, University of Copenhagen, said that the Paleo-Eskimos were the first people in the Arctic, and they survived without outside contact for over 4,000 years. Dr. Maanasa Raghavan of Centre for GeoGenetics and lead author of the article, asserted that the Paleo-Eskimos, after surviving in near-isolation in the harsh Arctic environment for more than 4,000 years, disappeared around 700 years ago about the same time when the ancestors of modern-day Inuit spread eastward from Alaska. Co-author Dr. William Fitzhugh from the Arctic Studies Centre at the Smithsonian Institution said that ever since the discovery of a Paleo-Eskimo culture in the North American Arctic in 1925, archaeologists had been mystified by their relationship with the ‘Thule’ culture ancestors of the modern Inuit. Agencies/Canadajournal

NEW DRUG EFFECTIVE IN TREATING HEART FAILURE

New York: An experimental drug has reduced deaths from chronic heart failure by 20 per cent compared with an existing treatment, a new study has claimed. The drug, being developed by the Swiss pharma giant Novartis, could reach the patients in the US and Europe by next year. In a large clinical trial, the drug reduced both the risk of dying from cardiovascular causes and the risk of being hospitalised for worsening heart failure by about 20 per cent. "I think that when physicians see these data, they will find it compelling, and what we will see is a paradigm shift," said Dr Milton Packer, a professor of clinical sciences at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre in Dallas and one of the two principal investigators in the study. According to Novartis executives, the company will file for approval of the drug, called LCZ696, in the US by the end of the year and in Europe in the first quarter of 2015, 'The New York Times' reported. That means the drug could get to patients as early as next year. "It's very rare that a drug like this comes along, one where people live longer, have less hospitalisations and other costs and feel better," said David Epstein, the head of Novartis's pharmaceutical division. The research involved more than 8,400 patients in 47 countries who were randomised to receive either LCZ696 or enalapril, one of a class of drugs called ACE inhibitors that have been the standard treatment for heart failure. The patients were followed for a median of 27 months. By that point, 21.8 per cent of those who received LCZ696 had died from a cardiovascular cause or had been hospitalised for worsening heart failure, the report said. Researchers found that figure was 26.5 per cent for those receiving enalapril. That represents a 20 per cent relative reduction in risk. The reductions in risk for both cardiovascular death alone and hospitalisation alone were also about 20 per cent. About 32 patients had to be treated with LCZ696 to prevent one death from cardiovascular causes. The research was published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

I'm an old dude, a bit of cynic, and alarmingly, I find myself getting increasingly jaded. I used to be all about peace and love and joy and truth. These days the news is really crushing my groove. I'm not about to stick my head in the sand and pretend that the world isn't going to hell in a handbasket. Ain't no denying that. What I am going to do however, is direct my focus to the more pleasant stories I find in the news and on the web. As a junkie news reader, I can tell you, this represents roughly 7% of stories from day to day. Not here. Here, 100% of what you'll find should make you smile, give you hope or enlighten you in some way. Here, you'll see that despite all the crap, as a species we're still growing, evolving and innovating. Enjoy!