Aviva Trivia

Not all of the world’s most brilliant innovations were intentional. In many cases, an accident or mistake led to some creative thinking, which eventually became a new, hot product.

Such is the case with these products.

The Post-It® Note
A 3M engineer named Spencer Silver was working one night in 1968. His goal was to invent a strong adhesive. Instead, he came up with the reusable “ but quite weak “ adhesive that a fellow 3M engineer by the name of Arthur Fry would eventually turn into a bookmark. That became the Post-It® Note.

By 1980, the Post-It® Note was available all over the world. Today, the 3M company markets some 200 products that contain Silver’s accidental invention: the adhesive that has made the company a sizable fortune.
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Take an organism and surgically install a backpack of electrodes and a microprocessor to its thorax. Now use a remote control to send signals to the backpack to control the creature’s movements. If you equip enough organisms in this manner, and if they are large and powerful enough, and your method of control contains enough accuracy, you could potentially use your robot-creatures to take over the entire Earth. But if the creatures you’re using are only cockroaches, the most you’ll be able to do is make them to crawl into tight spaces, do some surveillance work, and perhaps rescue a few victims of natural disasters – very important tasks.

In early 2006, researchers in the bio-robotic department of Tsukuba University in Japan (which consists of a microbiotics team and a group of biologists), were given a $5 million grant to conduct experiments in which the movements of cockroaches could be controlled. Their procedure went like this: First, the insects were gassed with carbon dioxide, then their wings and antennae were removed so small backpacks could be fitted to their thoraxes and electrodes could be placed over their antennae regions. Next, the researchers used remote controls to send signals to the backpacks, and the electrodes stimulated the roaches’ legs into moving wherever the researchers commanded.
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An autopsy is a procedure performed on a non-living body in order to learn valuable clues as to the cause death.  The word ‘autopsy’ comes from the Greek words ‘auto’ and ‘opsis’, meaning ‘to see for oneself’.  Who performs autopsies and how?  Why does it take so long to receive results, and how is the determination of death made?  To understand the answers to these questions, an explanation of the procedure known as an autopsy is helpful.

Before an autopsy is considered, of course, a death has to occur.  An autopsy is often required when a death seems to be from mysterious or suspicious circumstances.  Whether a murder, suicide, or natural causes, often these can be determined by autopsy.  The police, a coroner, or even the family of the deceased can request an autopsy.  An autopsy will not adversely affect the possibility of an open casket at the funeral.

A coroner is usually a medical doctor, or pathologist, who investigates suspicious deaths.  A pathologist or pathology assistant usually performs an autopsy.  A pathologist is a medical doctor who specializes in normal and diseased human tissue.  He or she is responsible for examination of the tissue and may oversee the medical professionals who perform testing on blood and body fluids.  Tissue will be obtained from several or all of the body’s organs, including the liver, kidneys, heart, brain, skin and others.
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In the last 30 years, the world has experienced an infusion of technology all stemming from the inception of the computer. Where were you when all this was happening?

1965  The first network experiment was directed by Larry Roberts at MIT Lincoln Lab, two computers talked to each other using packet-switching technology.
 
1972  The first basic e-mail programs was written by Ray Tomlinson.

1973  First international web connections were made to the ARPANET: University College of  London (England) and Royal Radar Establishment (Norway).
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Pheromones are a natural chemical occurrence in humans and animals that essentially attract a member of the opposite sex. This reaction happens instantaneously and can directly affect the other person with or without their knowledge.

This is because of a small ‘organ’ inside of the nose that picks up on these pheromones and tells your brain that this person is attractive.

Now there is much debate whether or not pheromones have any effect on humans and no one has really proven it one way or the other. The closest thing that has come to proof was the discovery that we, just like animals, indeed have this extra organ in our noses.
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Cryonics is the practice of storing human bodies in a deep freeze state in hopes that they can be revived sometime in the future. The mentality of scientists who practice cryonics is that if a human being dies of an incurable disease today, the body can be frozen until a cure is found. At that time, the body would be thawed, revived and treated. This type of preservation is called, “cryonic suspension.”

It is against the law to put a human being who is alive into a state of cryonic suspension. Before this can be done, the person must be declared legally dead by a physician or coroner, which means that the heart has ceased to beat. This doesn’t mean the person is totally dead, because the brain may still be active. When the person is placed in a state of cryonic suspension, brain cell function continues. This means that the legally dead body can be revived at a future date.
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Just the word NanoTechnology conjures up images of future technologies that will undoubtedly change the way of the world, and to some extent this is true. NanoTechnology will change the way of the world and in many different areas but it is already being developed and improved as you read this article. NanoTechnology is simply technology at its smallest. While microchips in computers, television, DVD players and other electrical and electronic equipment may seem small now you wait until you see a nanochip. That’s presuming you can see it.

NanoTechnology has some very obvious uses. As cell phone technology increases but size decreases the use of NanoTechnology very soon becomes glaringly obvious. Computers too will more than likely be one of the areas to benefit from any advances but when you consider that circuits and chips made in this fashion will not only be smaller they will be hundreds of times more efficient and infinitely easier to contain and protect you will realize that the possibilities are truly endless.
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Stem cells are individual cells that have a high level of plasticity. This plasticity means that they can grow or transform into not only other cells, but also tissue and even organs that the body requires. While a stem cell is initially useless, they act like a blank cell that can be converted to perform any number of tasks within the body. Stem cells are abundant in embryos and very young infants, and until recently it was believed that they were only present in bone marrow and skin within adults. However, recent research has shown that adult stem cells are also present in the brain randomly surrounded by millions of other cells that cannot be disturbed.

Pluripotent Stem Cells

After fertilization a single cell is produced called the zygote. This cell then divides into two, and each of the remaining cells also divide into two. This continues until there are approximately 150 cells about 5 days after conception. At this stage there are two types of cell present, the trophoblast and the inner cell mass. The inner cell mass, or embryonic stem cells, mature and form other cells, tissue and even organs. Because there are basically no limits to what these stem cells can become they are called pluripotent stem cells.
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Science is a broad term covering a myriad of subjects including weather, physics, chemistry, geology, biology, zoology, etc…  The following facts all relate to this larger world of science.

The Greek physician Hippocrates is believed to have been born 460 B.C.

Dmitri Mendeleev published the first Periodic Table of Elements in 1869.
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Hot Air Balloons have 3 basic compartments that make up their design. They are the envelope, basket, and burners.

The Envelope is used to store the heated air, which lifts the balloon. The most common materials used to make the envelope are rip-stop nylon and polyester. (The same materials used in parachutes.) The average size of these balloons is 50-90 feet, and hold between 19000-211000 cubic feet of air: although larger balloons can be found. These flying virtuosos can glide along at tree level or reach heights of 3000 ft.

The Basket is used to carry passengers, as well as hold navigational equipment and also to store the propane tanks which fuel the burners. These baskets are most often made with wicker because this material is strong while being lightweight. This material is flexible and thereby “absorbs” some of the impact of landings, making it easier on passengers. The basket is attached to the envelope with very secure cables that keep the basket level and prevents it from rocking which provides riders with a safe and smooth riding experience.
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Did you know there are different types of ice? Or that the area of ice in the Arctic is at a worryingly low level? It’s true – read on to discover this, plus more fascinating facts about ice!

In simple terms, ice is the solid form of water. It’s formed when water reaches below 0 degrees C in temperature (or 273.15K / 32 degrees F). In pressurized atmospheres it can, however, also be formed at higher temperatures.

Strangely, ice has a different density to water, despite being formed from the same liquid. When solid, it’s 8 per cent less dense than liquid water.
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