Batman: Arkham Origins

“Batman: Arkham Origins features an expanded Gotham City and introduces an original prequel storyline occurring several years before the events of Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City. Taking place before the rise of Gotham City’s most dangerous villains and assassins, the game showcases a young, raw, unrefined Batman as he faces a defining moment in his early career as a crime fighter that sets his path to becoming the Dark Knight. As the story unfolds, witness identities being formed and key relationships being forged.” (YouTube)

Epic cinematic trailer for the new Batman game, Arkham Origins. No gameplay as of yet, but this trailer is enough to whet the appetites of fans and undecideds alike. I wonder how much gliding Batman will do in this game though…

Onwards!

Tour Of The ISS

“In her final days as Commander of the International Space Station, Sunita Williams of NASA recorded an extensive tour of the orbital laboratory and downlinked the video on Nov. 18, just hours before she, cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko and Flight Engineer Aki Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency departed in their Soyuz TMA-05M spacecraft for a landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan. The tour includes scenes of each of the station’s modules and research facilities with a running narrative by Williams of the work that has taken place and which is ongoing aboard the orbital outpost.” (YouTube)

This is an insightful and amusing tour of the ISS, given by Commander Sunita Williams. One of the first things that stuck me was the noise of the place. In Commander Chris Hadfield‘s videos, the background noise doesn’t really come into effect. The second thing that I noticed… it’s very cramped in there!

If ever I ended up on the ISS, I’m pretty sure I’d spend most of my time in the cupola. Every single time I see the Earth from that position, it just takes my breath away. Such a humbling and beautiful sight.

Onwards!

Solving Three Rubik’s Cubes Whilst Juggling Them

Solving a single Rubik’s cube is tough for most people. Some people have got it down to an art, and can quickly solve one. Others like more of a challenge, solving it with their feet or blindfolded. Others use technology to solve a Rubik’s cube, or cheat.

This guy here? He solves not one, not two, but THREE Rubik’s cubes, whilst juggling them. It’s rather mental and mesmerising to watch. He’s got a good technique, solving one cube at a time, and using his left hand to perform each turn.

Onwards!

Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag – True Golden Age Of Pirates

Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag – True Golden Age of Pirates.

“The year is 1715. In the Caribbean, desperate sailors with ideals of true freedom assemble to establish the Republic of Pirates. But far from idyllic, their life is brutal, filled with betrayal and debauchery. Here at last are their true stories.” (YouTube)

A short history of pirates, accompanied by great animation, and snippets of gameplay of Assassin’s Creed IV. Some more gameplay footage can be found here.

Defy Order. Onwards!

Idiot Pilot – Lucid

Idiot Pilot – Lucid.

Beautiful song by a very underrated band, Idiot Pilot.

Onwards!

Earth And Sky Photo Contest 2012

“The winners and notable photos of the third International Earth and Sky Photo Contest, (twanight.org/contest), a program by The World at Night (TWAN) in collaboration with the Global Astronomy Month (astrowb.org) and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO). The contest theme is Dark Skies Importance. Similar to TWAN itself, the contest also aims to reclaim the natural beauty of starry sky and to help preserving the dark skies which are not yet dominated by artificial lights.” (Vimeo)

The photographs in this collection are truly stunning, and show the lengths and dedication photographers go through to catch that perfect image. Do you have a favourite image?

Onwards!

Water Spirals

What do you think of when you see this video:

1. Magic? 
2. Witchcraft? 
3. Trickery?
4. Science? 

If you answered 1 or 2, I’m sorry, that’s the wrong answer. If you answered 4, with a little bit of 3 thrown in there, huzzah, you’re correct! What you’re seeing here is a direct result of science and camera and light trickery.

To explain what’s going on, you can check out the video below:  Read the description it gives, and, for a more in-depth analysis of the actual science, head on over to Bad Astronomy.

The basic gist of it is that you have the strobe light strobing at a slightly lower frequency than the vibration of the table on the oil. In the experiment with the water, the speakers are vibrating at 24 vibrations per second (or 24 Hz), and if you set the camera speed to 23 Hz, the water appears to move back up into the pipe. In the exhibition with oil experiment, the strobe light replaces the camera. You can see this illusion for yourself by looking at the hubs of car wheels (or bicycles) as they’re driving along.

I love how everyone talking at the exhibition is just utterly wrong with what they’re saying. Amuses me no end! Next time you see this illusion, you’ll be able to explain it to your friends, and I’m sure they’ll be mightily impressed! Unless they firmly believe it’s magic, in which case, get new friends. Onwards!