The 1st Question - 31 Jul 2011 - Questions

1) Emotional manipulation is responsible for lots of behavior – and you don't need to have a Jewish mother to know this. Now an article of clothing has been invented that will induce a state of anxiety, and it’s not a bikini. Its designer, Dan Watson studied criminal behavior patterns to get a clear insight into risk-taking, and then he built a suit that can actually induce psychological discomfort. What is this article of clothing called? And can you wear it to fright night at the movies?

2) The human brain is amazing piece of engineering. Is it because we are imperfect that scientists keep trying to recreate a perfect one? Artificial Intelligence took a huge step forward when researchers at this school created a DNA-based artificial neural network with advanced recognition capabilities. This technology could ultimately be used for creating biochemical systems with artificial intelligence. From what school?

3) Animations and mocap are very important in the real time animation / machinima film making community. I'm looking forward to this one – a humanoid miniature 3D motion-capture figure with freely movable limbs and a number of movement-tracking sensors which connects to a PC via a simple USB plug. The physical movements of the doll's appendages are precisely reproduced. The doll has been in development since 2009 and it’s not finished yet. Still from where I sit it’s a fascinating object. Developed by a Japanese company SoftEther, what is the 4 letter name this interaction figure known as?

4) When finished it will be double the height of the Empire State building, a massive solar tower built in the Arizona desert whose output has already been presold. Going live in 2015 and costing $750 million Its capacity will reliably feed the grid with its 200-megawatt generation, enough for 150,000 US homes, producing clean, renewable power with virtually no maintenance for 80 years. The tower will pay off its purchase price in just 11 years - It’s a very sound economic proposition that competes favorably against other renewable sources. What company, that could not build in its native Australia is acquiring land and undergoing site-specific engineering as we speak?

5) This company built the worlds cheapest car named the Nano for $2500 now it will try to build the world’s cheapest house. A 20 sq. meter dwelling for 715USD that would instantly go into production for the over 800 million people that live in poverty in India. What is the name of this company determined to bring inexpensive housing quite literally, to the masses? 

6) More on electricity! Why? Because we need it for our dreams! Wave power has been a challenge to capture out at sea, as permanent floating energy-harvesting systems have costly underwater cables. This center for manufacturing has recently unveiled a dynamic and exciting new way to accumulate and store that is ship-mounted, consisting of floating buoys over the sides of a ship. No cables required and offloads onto the grid at dockside. It is estimated that the system could generate electricity at a cost of 15 cents per kilowatt-hour, which is half to a third lower than existing costs. The research center is a favorite of ours. What is its name?

7) It has been described as "the world's most mysterious manuscript. With around 240 pages, dating most likely to the early 1400's, it's author, script, and language remain unknown. It has been owned at various times by the daughter of George Boole who was left the book by her deceased husband, by Petrus Beckx, one-time head of the Jesuit order and is now known as Beinecke MS 40 at Yale, where it rests in the eponymous rare book and manuscript library. It has never been deciphered though it has been studied by many, including codebreakers from both World Wars. The book is named after the Polish-Lithuanian-American book dealer who acquired it in 1912. The book has pages of Flora and fauna and some certain astrological references. What is this most mysterious of ancient manuscripts called?

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