Robots are Taking Over!

By Ben Moon, Director of Space and Technology

Everyone knows (or should know) that robots will one day become autonomous, overpower man, and take over the world. We’ve seen it in movies like The Matrix, The Terminator, Battlestar Galactica, Eagle Eye, and I, Robot. With each real-world advancement and discovery in robotics and artificial intelligence, we edge ever closer to this fate.

Okay, maybe that’s a little science fictiony, but our metallic companions are becoming smarter, more lifelike and creepier every day.

Take for example, Robonaut: http://robonaut.jsc.nasa.gov/ . Robonaut is a humanoid robot designed by the Robot Systems Technology Branch at NASA's Johnson Space Center in a collaborative effort with DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). This centaur-like robot has a Bobba Fett mask-wearing torso of a man attached to a 4-wheeler and has ground breaking dexterous hands which have been developed over the past two decades. *Author’s note: Luke Skywalker hand eminent.* Watch the videos on the site and you’ll understand why I think it’s creepy.

DARPA has other creepy robotic collaborative efforts with robotics company Boston Dynamics (http://www.bostondynamics.com/). This company has developed several robots, one of which is a pack mule robot for the military named “Big Dog.” This thing will throw your brain through a loop as its movements and balancing ability look much too lifelike. Trust me when I say that Big Dog can walk on ice better than you can. Scary. There are many videos of Boston Dynamics’ robots on YouTube if you’re interested.

While these robots are pretty harmless on their own, there are robots in the battlefield that can pack a punch when needed. Foster-Miller’s SWORDS and TALON are remote controlled robots on tank treads and are armed with shotguns, machine guns and explosive charges which you can see in action at http://www.foster-miller.com/lemming.htm . The MQ-1 Predators are remote controlled, unmanned aircraft systems that have been taking out targets with laser-guided AGM-114 Hellfire missiles in Iraq and Afghanistan for years now. Check the stats here: http://www.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?fsID=122 and a video of Discovery Channel’s Future Weapons special on the Predator: http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/futureweapons-predator.html .

Other weird robots include Japan’s “Fashion Model” humanoid robot HRP-4C that walks, talks, recognizes speech and looks like a human (in silver Storm Trooper attire); the FESTO Airjelly http://www.festo.com/cms/en-us_us/5890.htm ; water-walking robots http://nanolab.me.cmu.edu/projects/waterstrider/ ; and a host of other robots inspired by animals http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tq8Yw19bn7Q.
But I suppose we’re okay as long as there isn’t a company called Cyberdyne working in the field of cybernetics….oh wait… http://www.cyberdyne.jp/english/robotsuithal/index.html or a satellite’s linked to Skynet….oh…wait again… http://www.loralskynet.com/template.asp?p=co_overview&m=m_co&sm=

Are we tempting fate here?

Contributor Profile:

Ben Moon is the Manager of Space and Technology at McWane. He is a total geek and loves space, shiny things, technology, gadgets, video games, sci-fi and zombies. He is married and is about to have his first kid! His favorite movie is The Rocketeer. He wishes he had telekinesis.

DON’T PROCRASTINATE LIKE DA VINCI!

By Dana Crisson, Educator

Only one more week remains to tour our fascinating exhibit, Leonardo da Vinci: Machines in Motion. Since it arrived February 7, over 40,000 visitors have toured the exhibit and marveled at his intricate machines. Visionary inventions such as the armored tank, the drive transmission, the printing press and the bicycle are on display, made with wood, rope and glue and other materials that were available in da Vinci’s era.

A number of special events have been scheduled for the final days of the exhibit. “Dads, Daughters and da Vinci,” a special Dad-Daughter Discovery Day held on April 11, featured Da Vinci’s parachute and glider, two of his inventions that focused on air and flight. And, since April is also National Kite Month, participants in this special program also built a kite to take home with them. Then on April 19 McWane hosted a “Happy 557th Birthday Leonardo!” party to celebrate his birthday on April 15, 1452. Visitors tested their invention and problem solving skills in the "What Would da Vinci Do?" Design Challenge; and in “Da Vinci Dissection,” visitors got the chance to think like Leonardo and dissected items like cameras and radios to find out how they work.

So, if you have put off touring the exhibit until now, don’t worry—there is still time. Actually, the fact that you procrastinated gives you something in common with da Vinci himself. According to W. A. Pannapacker, a professor at Hope College, da Vinci was a world-class procrastinator. In his article in The Chronicle Review titled “How to Procrastinate Like Leonardo da Vinci,” Pannapacker describes Leonardo as a man whose mind was so filled with new and exciting ideas that he rarely had time to complete one project before he was racing ahead with another. We know that Leonardo spent over 35 years writing in his notebooks, drawing designs and schematics for thousands of revolutionary designs and inventions, so his home must have been crowded with half-finished projects. “Some of Leonardo's entries are short jottings; others are lengthy and elaborate. The notebooks give the impression of a mind always at work, even in the midst of ordinary affairs,” Pannapacker writes. “He returned to some pages intermittently over many years, revising his thoughts and adding drawings and textual elaborations.”

Unfortunately, Leonardo rarely found the time to actually complete many of the great projects that he sketched in his notebooks. “Not only did Leonardo fail to realize his potential as an engineer and a scientist,” Pannapacker continues, “but he also spent his career hounded by creditors to whom he owed paintings and sculptures for which he had accepted payment but — for some reason — could not deliver, even when his deadline was extended by years.”

Missed deadlines? Demanding creditors? This small tidbit of information was very comforting to me. If Leonardo da Vinci, arguably one of the most famous and gifted minds of all time, was plagued by looming deadlines and angry creditors, then I feel much better about my own stack of unfinished projects and unpaid bills. This knowledge is almost enough to make be want to join the local chapter of Procrastinators Anonymous (if and when I get around to it). Hey, if procrastination was good enough for daVinci, it is good enough for me!

Pannapacker sums up da Vinci’s amazing talent this way: “If there is one conclusion to be drawn from the life of Leonardo, it is that procrastination reveals the things at which we are most gifted — the things we truly want to do. Procrastination is a calling away from something that we do against our desires toward something that we do for pleasure, in that joyful state of self-forgetful inspiration that we call genius.”

So, if you haven’t had a chance to visit the exhibit yet, don’t be a procrastinator like its namesake—come appreciate the wonders of Leonardo da Vinci: Machines in Motion, by April 26.

Contributor Profile:
Dana Crisson is a former Discovery Guild member who clocked many volunteer hours at the science center before joining the McWane staff in the Education Department. She and her husband, Dwight, a CPA, and their entire family follow in the proud Leonardo da Vinci tradition of procrastination. Their garage and basement are both filled with unfinished projects, and their daughters, Rachel, 20, and Christina, 17, routinely wait until the last minute to finish their term papers and other assignments.

WOW: Jellyfish!

Hi there! My name is Adele, and I am one of the other aquarists in the World of Water (aka "WOW"). The jellyfish is one of my favorite animals. What normally comes to mind when you think of a jellyfish? A dangerous predator, or perhaps a memory of a bad sting? Well, while jellyfish do sting, there is actually much more to them than that. They are beautiful, graceful animals and have a fascinating life cycle.

Jellyfish, along with corals and anemones, are found in the Phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are not really fish, they are actually invertebrates, like corals and anemones.The name Cnidaria comes from the Greek word “cnidos,” which means stinging nettle. While all jellies have the ability to sting, there are very few species that can actually harm us. All jellyfish have stinging cells known as nematocysts which are found in the tentacles and outer surface of the jellyfish bell. These nematocysts are harpoon-like in structure and contain a neurotoxin. When something brushes up against the tentacles of the jellyfish, the nematocyst is triggered and neurotoxin is injected into the jelly’s prey. Luckily, the stinging cells of most jellyfish often do not have the ability to penetrate through our skin, since these types of jellies use their stingers to feed on very small invertebrates and other soft bodied animals. Jellies with powerful nematocysts, strong neurotoxins, and long tentacles, such as the Portuguese Man-of -War, are the ones we need to look out for. Their prey consists of adult fish and crustaceans, so it would make sense that they need a sharper “harpoon” to penetrate these animals. Unfortunately, however, these animals can not see who or what they are stinging- they do not have eyes.

Jellies have a very simple body type - they do not have circulatory, respiratory, or nervous systems. What passes for a nervous system consists of a bundle of nervous on the outside of their bodies known as a “nerve net,” and only a few jellies have light sensitive organs, known as ocelli, which can detect light. Their digestive system is what scientists describe as an “incomplete gut,” meaning that they have a mouth but no anus. So, any food that the jellyfish eats that is not digested is actually expelled back through the mouth. Yuck! The jellyfish’s reproductive system, however, is fairly well developed.

Jellyfish are dioecious, meaning that there are male and female jellyfish. The jellyfish’s gonads, or reproductive organs, are located inside the bell of the jellyfish, next to the baglike stomach. When mature, the eggs or sperm break into the stomach cavity and exit the jellyfish through the mouth. If the jellyfish is female, she will store her eggs on the outside of her body until they are fertilized. The males will release their sperm into the water. After the eggs are fertilized, they will start their unique life cycle.

The life cycle is fairly complicated. In the first stage after fertilization, the free swimming larva is small, oblong, and fuzzy. This is known as a planula. It then settles onto a hard surface on the ocean floor and becomes a polyp. The polyp is non-swimming and begins a process of growing into a stack of small disks. This process is known as strobilation, and each of these small disks will become a jellyfish. Each of these small disks will break off and swim away. The newly released jelly is known as an ephyra, and takes the form of the jellyfish that we are the most familiar with.

If you have visited McWane Science Center recently, you have probably noticed our display of jellies in the World of Water. These are moon jellies, or Aurelia aurita. They are found all over the world, from the North Pole to the South Pole, and are quite numerous in the Gulf of Mexico. If you have been to the beach and saw a jellyfish, it was probably this species. It’s most distinguishable characteristic is the four horseshoe shaped rings that are on top of the bell. These are gonads, and they even change color depending on what type of food the jellyfish is eating. A moon jelly’s diet consists of plankton, which are tiny animals found in the water column. We feed our moon jellies a type of plankton known as brine shrimp, and occasionally they will also receive Cyclopeez, a red frozen plankton. And believe it or not, other aquatic creatures such as sea turtles, the ocean sunfish and even other jellyfish consider the moon jelly a delicious meal! This species is almost completely harmless to us. Contact with one of these guys will cause a mild itchy rash that will go away in a couple of hours.

So what does it take to keep jellyfish in captivity? Jellyfish require specialized equipment and excellent water quality. In the simplest jelly system, there is a reservoir for holding water, known as a sump, and then a display tank for the jellies. In the wild, jellyfish require water currents for feeding, movement, and oxygen intake. We are able to replicate this environment in captivity by using a U-shaped tank known as a kriesel, which allows a constant flow of current throughout the tank. Water re-enters the display tank through two spray bars found at the very top of the tank, and flows downward creating a circular current. The speed of the current must be very carefully adjusted- jellies need a “lava lamp” speed current, not a “washing machine” speed!

When water circulates out of the display tank, it leaves through a hole at the top that is covered by a screen, and then pumped into the sump. Water in the sump is then sent to various parts of the life support system just like a heart pumps blood to different parts of the body. Some of the water is sent to a chiller, which is used to cool the water, and some is also returned to the jellyfish display tank. And still some is sent through mechanical, chemical, and biological filtration, and then re-circulated back to the sump. All of these components together help not only to maintain excellent water quality, but also make our work much easier. We carry out small water changes and scrub the tank for algae on a weekly basis, in addition to maintaining our brine shrimp colony to feed to the jellies. As you can see, keeping jellyfish is a lot of work! If you would like to learn more about jellyfish husbandry, there is a wonderful book written by the senior jellyfish aquarist at Monterey Bay Aquarium. How to Keep Jellyfish in Aquariums: An Introductory Guide for Maintaining Healthy Jellies is written by Chad L. Widmer.

So the next time you visit McWane Science Center, be sure to make a stop in the World of Water to check out our jellyfish tank. Keep an eye out for the next blog from the World of Water- all about Buddy the moray eel!

Contributor Profile:
Loretta and Adele's backgrounds are in the life sciences. They both love their jobs as well as all animals. Adele grew up here in Birmingham and is into yoga and gourmet cooking. Loretta grew up in Florida and just had her first child YESTERDAY!

Educator's Perspective: HIGH CYCLE HIJINKS

By: Dana Crisson, Educator at McWane Science Center

For those of you who have never experienced the fun of the High Cycle, it is quite a trip, giving riders a birds-eye perspective of the world for a few moments. The High Cycle a high-wire bicycle attached to a cable stretched across McWane’s grand atrium. After you are securely strapped on the bicycle, you pedal backward out of the loading platform until you are suspended 20 feet in mid-air across the lobby. A 210-lb counterweight underneath the bicycle allows you to experience the center of balance first-hand; if you want, you can stop in the middle of the cable and slowly shift your weight from side to side causing the bicycle to rock. The swaying is offset by the counterweight, which will straighten you up, bringing you right back to the center.

This ride brings a little bit of an adrenaline rush to everyone. After manning this ride for awhile, it is fun to try to predict who will enjoy the ride and who won’t. Every day I see surprises.

Riders must be at least 45” tall, and weigh less than 225 lbs. to ride the High Cycle. There is no age limit—all you need is a willingness to hop on and enjoy the adventure. Some of the smallest, youngest children are absolutely determined to ride; I have seen these kids stand on their toes and fluff up their hair in an effort to make themselves “big enough” to meet the height requirement. Once we know you meet all the requirements, we strap you in and the fun begins.

Children usually run up in big groups, many boasting to their friends about how fast they are going to pedal and how far they are going to sway on the cable. Some kids are completely confident, pedaling out and back with swift assurance. Other riders are a little timid at first, pedaling very slowly, but by the time they reach the middle of the wire they relax and enjoy it. Most really enjoy the sensation; as they pedal out, a big smile will creep across their faces; they relax, wave excitedly to their friends, look down at the lobby full of visitors below them, and pose for cell phone pictures.

Some kids have the opposite reaction; they think they will enjoy it but then they suddenly freeze mid-pedal. “Do I have to go any further?” a shy little girl asked me, adding in a very timid voice, “I’m kind of afraid of heights. “Of course not,” I assured her, telling her to pedal back in and bragging on her bravery. Another little boy pedaled out to the middle of the wire and listened dutifully to the instructions on how to make the bike sway; most kids move too jerkily, but he finally mastered the gentle rocking motion. Once he started rocking, he kept it up for several minutes, rocking back and forth as his friends cheered him on—then all of a sudden his face turned pale and he said, “I think I’m going to be sick.” As soon as he pedaled back in, however, his color returned and he boasted to his buddies, “I wasn’t really feeling sick--I was just teasing you.”

“How many people have fallen?” asked a swaggering 10-year-old boy as I strapped him in. “This ride is completely safe. There is no way you can fall,” I told him. “Oh yeah? If you can’t fall, why is there a big net under the ride?” he shot back. “To catch flip-flops, sunglasses, cell phones, and other items that might accidentally fall,” I replied. That is a story in itself. We have long hook to retrieve dropped items from the net. Shoes are pretty easy; cell phones require a wad of duct tape and a very steady hand.

Of course, this ride isn’t just for children and teens; adults love it too. Sometimes it takes a little coaxing, but many times after watching their children ride, the mother or father will ask to ride, too. One of my favorite moments happened when a charming gray-haired grandfather, looking dapper in a sport coat and navy-striped tie, walked up with his three grandchildren and asked if they could ride. The grandchildren peered down at the lobby below and decided they didn’t want to ride, but to their complete surprise he said, “I do!” I strapped him in and he pedaled out as his grandchildren watched, open-mouthed. He stopped in the middle of the wire and shifted his weight, swaying from side to side, with his navy tie swinging to and fro. “Be careful Granddaddy!” piped up his youngest granddaughter. He grinned broadly and said, “You don’t have anything to worry about--this is great!” When he got off the bicycle, I saw his grandchildren look at him in awe, seeing him in entirely new light.

The next time you visit the McWane Science Center, be sure to save time for a ride on the High Cycle. It is guaranteed to be an experience you will never forget.

Contributor Profile:

A Birmingham native, Dana Crisson remembers visiting the McWane building in its original incarnation as the former Loveman’s Department Store. She has a BA in English/Journalism from UAB and has worked as freelance writer for The Birmingham News & Over the Mountain Journal for over 15 years. She is also a former Discovery Guild member and has clocked many volunteer hours at the science center before joining the McWane staff in the Education Department. She is an avid reader, a cat lover, a concert junkie, and a part-time backup singer in a local cover band. She and her husband, Dwight, a CPA, have two daughters, Rachel, 20, and Christina, 17.

Awesome Money-Saving Deals – Just for McWane Science Center Members!

By: Lara Wheeler, Memberships

I know I’m always looking to stretch a buck. Buy-one-get-one night at local eateries, my pet food purchase point card, and just about any dry-cleaning coupon I can get my hands on – these are incredibly meaningful savings to my household budget. So I want to remind you how as a McWane Science Center Member, there is much more value in your membership than just free admission to Adventure Halls. Or even free parking.

Here are a few perks you may want to take advantage of over the next few months…

· With our current Member- Get- A- Member offer, we will give you an additional two free months of membership for each nonmember friend you successfully encourage to join. No limit!

· Our new member benefits include 20% off purchases in the Smart Café and gift shop.

· Another new benefit is that Family and Grandparent members get $2 off all IMAX and simulator tickets (except on Sundays, when IMAX tickets are already discounted to $5!)

· Don’t forget about camp discounts! Members get anywhere from $25 to $50 off each week-long summer camp. Plus, lunch and snacks are included in the camp price.

· And if you do have some happy campers, keep in mind that before and after care (both with supervised activities with McWane Science Center staff) is absolutely FREE to members! That’s a $25 value!

· On Member Day, coming up on July 18, you will be able to get in free to other local attractions, such as the Birmingham Zoo, Vulcan Park, The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, even the Jazz Hall of Fame! Show your McWane Science Center member card!

· Members save too with discounts on fun-for-the-family special activities like Dinner and a Mission, Daddy-Daughter Days, and Camp-Ins!

· Feel like a road trip? Our members get free general museum admission to both the US Space and Rocket Center and Sci-Quest in Huntsville, and the Gulf Coast Exploreum in Mobile plus free or discounted admission to more than 250 other museums in the U.S.

· Last but not least – take advantage of our Free Members-Only Preview Parties! Snacks, awesome activities, and a very special look at our latest exhibit make for a great night for the whole family.

And of course, if there are other benefits you value, let me know about them here! We’re always open to suggestions…thanks for your support that helps us continue to offer these exponential experiences!

All About IMAX – Part 1: The Projector

By: Jeff Smith, IMAX Theater Director

Hi Everyone! I'm Jeff Smith, the IMAX Theater Director here at McWane Science Center. Today we're going to learn some things about the IMAX Projector, and what makes it special.

First off, most of you have probably heard a thing or two about IMAX recently, but did you know its actually been around since 1967? That's right, 40 plus years ago, a trio of Canadians wanted to make a giant movie screen. Up to this point, the only way to get a gigantic picture on a giant screen was to use several smaller projectors, align them perfectly, and point them at different parts of the screen. You can guess just how bad of an idea this is to try and keep all of the projectors running at the same speed, aligned properly, etc.

Once they decided they wanted a single projector solution they decided to use 70mm film running through the projector horizontally in a "rolling loop" motion that had been patented in Australia a few years earlier. The rolling loop is very kind to the film as it advances each frame into position, and its not uncommon for a single copy of an IMAX film to be shown 3000 times without noticeable wear. This is good, since each copy of an IMAX Film can cost up to $25,000!

Over the years, the mechanics of how the IMAX Projector runs have changed very little. The film runs through the projector the same way, but it has better lenses, and is now controlled by a computer instead of relays and switches. Other than those minor changes, everything is very similar to the very first IMAX system. The first IMAX System premiered at Expo '70 in Osaka, Japan, and my projector here in Birmingham, can still show Tiger Child just as that system did all those years ago.

Stay tuned: Next time we'll learn about the IMAX Sound System, and its ties to Birmingham.

NOW SHOWING: Under The Sea & To The Limit

Contributor Profile:
Jeff is an all around techno-geek. He went to college to become a rocket scientist, but is now an IMAX Theater Director. If it plugs in, or has moving parts, he wants to rip it apart and learn more about it! He doesn't read books, but will read anything online or watch it on TV. His wife was his opposite, but now has all the modern necessities, like a cell phone and MacBook, and doesn't understand how she lived without them.

Back to the Cheese…er…the Moon

By Ben Moon, Space and Technology Director

Earth’s Moon is made of cheese. There is a man in the Moon. We never actually landed on the Moon. My name is Ben Moon.

Only the last statement above is true. However, my last name is not why I am interested in the Moon. The Moon is quite interesting all by itself, and NASA agrees. As a matter of fact, NASA agrees so much that manned missions to the Moon are being planned as we speak. This July they’re actually going to test-launch a nearly full size version of the rocket that will take us there.

But why go back to the Moon? We know there is no life there, it’s not exactly “comfortable” with temperatures ranging from -387°F to +253°F, we’ve already sent over 70 spacecraft and 12 men there, and we’ve even brought back 842 pounds of moon rock to earth. Well, the old saying “It’s what’s inside that counts,” rings just as true for the Moon as it does for people.
The Moon is not just a stepping stone on our way to a manned voyage to the planet Mars;, it might just play an important role in helping solve our energy crisis here on Earth.

Under the Moon’s surface are two very important things: water ice and helium-3. Water ice is important not only because astronauts can drink it (after melting and purification of course), but also because we can split the H20 into oxygen for breathing and hydrogen for rocket fuel. Harvesting this valuable resource from beneath the lunar surface is a great alternative to shipping the water to the Moon which would cost $2,000 - $20,000 per kg. Ridiculexpensive. Can you imagine drinking a $10,000 bottle of water? If we ship water to the Moon, that is about how much it would cost. Using the hydrogen from the water as a fuel source also means you can launch from Earth with less fuel on board the spacecraft, which leaves room for more food, experiments, etc.

While the water on the Moon is very valuable, it’s nothing compared to helium-3. Helium-3 is an isotope of helium, which means the helium-3 atom consists of two protons but only one neutron, in contrast to two neutrons in ordinary helium. It’s very rare on Earth, but the Moon is estimated to have around 1 million tons of it trapped in the outer layer of its soil (it was implanted there by solar winds). Why is it so valuable? Well, helium-3 is not radioactive and can be used in nuclear fusion reactors with almost no radioactive waste. In other words, helium-3 could give us nuclear power with almost no radioactive waste! It’s potent energy too. One space shuttle load (25 tons) of helium-3 could power the United States for one year! The Moon contains 10times more energy in the form of helium-3 than all the fossil fuels on earth. It will last lifetimes.

Commercial-sized helium-3 nuclear fusion reactors are most likely 50 years away, but at a projected value of $40,000 per ounce, investors should see the profit-potential of mining helium-3 for our future energy needs. Startup costs, including rockets, mining and constructing fusion plants, would be about $25 billion. America spends 17 times that much during Christmas.

Contributor Profile:
Ben Moon is the Manager of Space and Technology at McWane. He is a total geek and loves space, shiny things, technology, gadgets, video games, sci-fi and zombies. He is married and is about to have his first kid! His favorite movie is The Rocketeer. He wishes he had telekinesis.