Watches made from spare space parts

Posted in Watches by Conner Flynn on November 16th, 2008

Watches made from spare space partsSwiss watchmaker Romain Jerome has released something new and amazingly awesome in the “Moon Dust-DNA” collection. It’s a collection of 1969 timepieces that includes watches made from such things as moon dust, parts of the Apollo 11 rocket and even pieces actual spacesuits. Why 1969 timepieces? That was the year of the first moon landing.

The dials feature tiny craters with dust in them from moon rocks, the cases include bits of steel from the Apollo 11 space shuttle and the strap gets the same treatment, containing fibers from a spacesuit worn during the ISS mission. So if you want to get yourself several pieces of things that have actually been in space, this is a good way to do it. Pricing for the Moon Dust-DNA watches is also out of this world, starting at $15,000 and goes as high as $500,000.

Check your DNA with your cellphone

Posted in News by Conner Flynn on July 2nd, 2008

Check your DNA with your cellphoneGenetic testing isn’t something you can do in a few minutes. It’s an involved process, requiring special chemicals and instruments that aren’t commonplace everywhere. But now some scientists at Berkeley have created a technique that uses electrostatic tech instead, which simplifies everything.

The DNA is prepared in a lab first and put on a microarray. Negatively charged microspheres are spread across the surface, which push themselves into clumps as they move away from the like-charged DNA areas. It’s an easier and simpler way as well as less costly than current techniques we use now. Apparently the resulting clumps are large enough to be recorded by simple imaging devices like your cellphone camera. It means that in the near future DNA testing could be super quick and accessible.





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