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Comment Re:wirefree not quite the same as wireless (Score 1) 75

The main bullshit is in the reason they listed that, not in the tech. This is not a wireless charging solution, it "merely" has a few of the advantages of wireless charging and does not have some of the disadvantages like efficiency and triggering the EM radiation allergy tinfoil hatters.

It merely eliminates the need for precise orientation when plugging in. Therefore it should be relatively easy to use it to charge a car automatically, with a charging pad under the car (with automatically retracting protection cover) and a self-raising charging pad on or in the floor of your parking spot. Park your car and walk away. The charging pads connect and the car will be charged. If the GPS in the car detects that the car should be in a charging spot while it does not detect a charger send an SMS to the owner so they can plug in the cable and/or fix the reason it doesn't work.

Comment Re:one thing to note (Score 1) 94

Usually parts break off from concrete when there was a small crack to begin, then either one of the next cases happens:
1. water enters the hole-> freezes (expands) -> crack gets bigger -> more water enters -> freezes-> crack gets bigger -> etc -> part breaks off.
2. Dirt and water enters the crack -> plant grows in crack -> roots crack the concrete further -> part breaks off.

This self healing concrete prevents both scenarios as it heals the initial small crack, preventing water and dirt from entering. It stops the crack in it's early stages.

Comment Re:Crack Filling = Hiding Critical Flaws? (Score 1) 94

TFA has pictures. The cracks are very visible, they have a different color.
Open cracks are almost always structural weak points as water, dirt and plants get in them, further cracking the concrete and rusting the reinforcement (which, incidentally, cracks the concrete). If cracks form to make the reinforcing take a normal load then there should have been (more) pre-tension on the reinforcing. It is a clear cut case of bad building practice.
If the and all similar bad building practices have been removed then there are still loads the concrete was not designed for. For example an unusually strong storm or mechanical damage (a truck crashing into the bridge). These events are not frequent and can only to some extent be accounted for. The cracks formed by these could be healed by this self healing concrete.

Comment Re:This is a ridiculous way to make concrete. (Score 1) 94

Those "cracks" (technically they are expansion joints) are not made by mechanically cracking hardened concrete. They are made before pouring, by placing spacers that are poured in. Therefore the process should not crack the outer shell of the "healing agent" capsules. Thus the bacteria will not fix the expansion joints.

Comment Re:not completely physics defying (Score 1) 480

Granted, I was a bit semantic. You overstated things and I called you upon it. If you want to cal that semantics I can't nor do I want to stop you.

It is physics defying because the current theories do not allow for the drive to work. If it does that means our current theory of physics is wrong, which is not a major problem because we know our current understanding is not complete.
It is however, very interesting. If it works.
The theory of how the EM drive works is simply wrong, relativistic effects don't allow you to ignore conservation of momentum.

Submission + - Mysterious osmosis lets spiders weave graphene-reinforced webs (thestack.com)

An anonymous reader writes: Italian researchers in Trent have enabled 15 Pholcidae spiders to spin graphene-strengthened dragline silk just by spraying them with a solution containing carbon nanotubes and graphene flakes. The resulting fiber is as strong as Kevlar 49, and ranks among the most resilient and ductile in the world of manufacturing. But Emiliano Lepore’s research [http://arxiv.org/pdf/1504.06751v1] has not succeeded in understanding by what process the spiders are able to incorporate the ambient materials into their webs. Since spider-farming is historically unproductive, the possibility of continuing the research on silk-worms has been presented.

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