Items of Interest

Musical Chemical Detector

Researchers at the University of California, Riverside have discovered the chemical detection abilities of an African musical instrument called a mbira. The instrument uses metal times connected to a wooden sounding board which produce a musical tone when plucked. The research has discovered that using a hallow U-shaped tine filled with different liquids produce notes of different frequencies. These differences can be used to detect different liquid samples such as sodium chloride or non-toxic glycerol.

Croke Park Hawks

The Irish Times has an interesting feature on the hawks used before, during and after events at Croke Park to deter seagulls from entering the ground and in particular to stop them from raiding the litter left by us filthy humans. They also use kites, acoustic systems and lasers to dis-incentivise the gulls. I can't wait to see phase 2, where they put the lasers on the hawks!

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