Richard Leis

Month: September 2004

  • Methane, Water Vapor Point to Something Interesting on Mars

    A few months ago, scientists announced preliminary data indicating the presence of methane gas in the atmosphere of Mars. The same team has now announced that this methane appears to be coming from three specific regions on the planet that also have a higher concentration of water vapor than the planetary atmospheric average. On Monday,…

  • 3D on the Web – Where is it?

    In 1994, Tony Parisi and team invented VRML to bring 3D graphics to the web. The demise of VRML has been well documented. Eventually, it evolved into a second standard called X3D that is currently under development. Unfortunately, X3D hasn’t taken off either. In a recent blog entry, Parisi suggests now is the time for…

  • Hamlet in 1603, 1605, 1611, 1622, and 1637

    The British Library has recently digitized 93 pamphlet editions of Shakespeare’s plays that were printed during his lifetime and a few decades after. His manuscripts no longer exist but these quartos are the closest record of his original work, and there are variations that make comparison between editions interesting. For example, according to Professor Ann…

  • Image of an Exoplanet?

    The European Southern Observatory’s (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) recently took near-infrared images of a body apparently orbiting the brown dwarf 2M1207 that could be the first image of an exoplanet. The reddish object is calculated to be about 5 times the mass of Jupiter. Water was detected in its spectra, suggesting it is too…

  • Your Wildest Desires, Captured on Video

    Ever since consumers got their hands on personal camcorders they have been making movies, but production values have kept wide the chasm between amateur and professional video. In the past few years many of the tools professionals use have dropped significantly in price. New consumer electronics have brought more and more capabilities to customers each…

  • Cell Phone with a Spin

    Spinning inside the Samsung SPH-V5400 cell phone is a 1.5GB hard drive, an industry first, according to the company. The cell phone can be used as an organizer, Korean-English dictionary, MP3 player, camcorder, and, well, a cell phone. Koreans will be able to purchase the device in mid-September. By now you should know the exercise:…