Plasma Bullets On Target

Art © Tom Bagley

Abstract [edit]. Recently several investigators reported on various means of generating cold plasma jets at atmospheric pressure. More interestingly, these jets turned out to be not continuous plasmas but trains of small high velocity plasma packets/bullets.

We show that their time of initiation, their velocity and the distance they travel are directly dependent on the value of the applied voltage. We also show that these bullets can be controlled by the application of an external electric field. Using an intensified charge coupled device camera we report on their geometrical shape, which was revealed to be 'donut' shaped, therefore giving an indication that solitary surface ionization waves may be responsible for the creation of these bullets.

In addition, using emission spectroscopy, we follow the evolution of various species along the trajectory of the bullets, in this way correlating the bullet propagation with the evolution of their chemical activity.

Ref.: Experimental investigations of plasma bullets. 2009. N. Mericam-Bourdet et al. J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys. 42 055207 (7pp)

This Day In History: Bikini Atoll Hydrogen Bomb Test

Miss Atom Bomb 1954

In 1954, the hydrogen bomb code-named Bravo was exploded in a test over the Bikini Atoll of the Pacific Ocean. With explosive power of about 20 megatons of TNT it was the most powerful of all U.S. thermonuclear bomb tests. Radioactivity made the islands an unsafe wasteland, preventing the evacuated indigenous people from returning for many decades to follow. link

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The 1st Adventure of Turok, Son of Stone (Pt 2)

Four Color #596, Dell, December 1954.
Script by Gaylord DuBois; Art by Rex Maxon
Turok © current copyright holders

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Dell maximized their page count so the second to last page was printed on the inside back cover which was always printed in B&W, while the final page was actually the back cover of the book.

Will wonders never cease? Apparently Dark Horse has started an archival collection of the original Turok stories starting with the very one presented here. You can order Turok: Son of Stone Archives Volume 1 from the usual on-line sites, or, better yet, buy it from your local comic shop.

The 1st Adventure of Turok, Son of Stone (Pt 1)

Turok © current copyright holders
Cover by Robert C. Susor
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Four Color #596, Dell, December 1954.
Script by Gaylord DuBois; Art by Rex Maxon

The Diet of Giant Moas

A treasure trove of information about pre-human New Zealand has been found in faeces from giant extinct birds, buried beneath the floor of caves and rock shelters for thousands of years.

Researchers have published their analyses of plant seeds, leaf fragments and DNA from the dried faeces (coprolites) to start building the first detailed picture of an ecosystem dominated by giant extinct species moa, which ranged up to 250 kg and 3 m in height. Some of the faeces recovered were up to 15 cm in length.

"Surprisingly for such large birds, over half the plants we detected in the faeces were under 30 centimetres in height," says Dr Wood. "This suggests that some moa grazed on tiny herbs, in contrast to the current view of them as mainly shrub and tree browsers. We also found many plant species that are currently threatened or rare, suggesting that the extinction of the moa has impacted their ability to reproduce or disperse." link

Ref.: Coprolite deposits reveal the diet and ecology of the extinct New Zealand megaherbivore moa (Aves, Dinornithiformes). 2009. J. Wood, et al. Quaternary Science Reviews 27: 2593-2602.

Lois Lane #47 (Feb, 1964) © DC Comics

Father of The Robots Born Today

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Jacques de Vaucanson (Feb. 24, 1709 - Nov. 21, 1782) was the French inventor of 'automata' - robot devices of later significance for modern industry. In 1737-38, he produced a transverse flute player, a pipe and tabor player, and a mechanical duck, which was especially noteworthy, not only imitating the motions of a live duck, but also the motions of drinking, eating, and "digesting." link