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href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/steve-jobs/20063/" title="Steve Jobs dead at 56"></a></li> <li id="top_story1"><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/us-military-throwable-robots/20052/" title="U.S military to field-test “throwable” robots in Afghanistan"></a></li> <li id="top_story2"><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/solar-collector-runs-air-conditioner/20029/" title="Solar thermal collection system uses Sun's heat to keeps things cool"></a></li> <li id="top_story3"><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/invisibility-cloak-mirages/20048/" title="New cloaking device is no mirage – but it's like one"></a></li> <li id="top_story4"><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/f-35b-jsf-vertical-landing-at-sea/20051/" title="F-35B completes first vertical landing at sea"></a></li> </ul> <ul id="titles"> <li><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/steve-jobs/20063/">Steve Jobs dead at 56</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/us-military-throwable-robots/20052/">U.S military to field-test “throwable” robots in Afghanistan</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/solar-collector-runs-air-conditioner/20029/">Solar thermal collection system uses Sun's heat to keeps things cool</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/invisibility-cloak-mirages/20048/">New cloaking device is no mirage – but it's like one</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/f-35b-jsf-vertical-landing-at-sea/20051/">F-35B completes first vertical landing at sea</a></li> </ul> <div class="clear_both"></div> <a id="more" class="orange" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/top_stories/">MORE TOP STORIES » </a> <div class="clear_both"></div> </div> <div id="content" class="narrow_content"><h1>Good Thinking</h1> <div class="summary_item noback"> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floating-tsunami-capsule/20043/">Floating tsunami capsule is designed to save lives</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/bridget-borgobello/">Bridget Borgobello</a></p> <p><em>09:27 October 4, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p></p> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/image_modernist.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floating-tsunami-capsule/20043/picture/143909/">7 Pictures</a></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floating-tsunami-capsule/20043/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/cosmopower.jpg" title="The floating Noah capsule is designed to be used in the event of earthquakes or tsunamis (..." alt="The floating Noah capsule is designed to be used in the event of earthquakes or tsunamis (..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>New Cosmopower, a small Japanese company, has created a floating capsule to be used in the event of earthquakes or tsunamis. Following the devastating loss of life during the Tohoku earthquake in March this year, the "Noah" capsule was designed to preserve life in the face of another major catastrophe - just like its biblical namesake. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floating-tsunami-capsule/20043/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mathematical-model-for-plastics/20006/">Mathematical model could streamline the development of new plastics</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>13:03 September 30, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mathematical-model-for-plastics/20006/#comments">2 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mathematical-model-for-plastics/20006/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/plasticsmodel.jpg" title="A newly-developed mathematical model could make the development of new plastics much more ..." alt="A newly-developed mathematical model could make the development of new plastics much more ..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>When it comes to the development of new plastics, two things have generally happened – a plastic is created and then a use is found for it, or a long trial-and-error process is undertaken in order to create a plastic with specific qualities. In a move that has been described as “comparable to cracking a plastics DNA,” however, scientists at the University of Leeds and Durham University have created a mathematical model that should allow specialty plastics to be created much more quickly and efficiently. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mathematical-model-for-plastics/20006/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floxx-mapchat-social-network/19906/">New entry into social media market makes Real Business Future 50</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/grant-banks/">Grant Banks</a></p> <p><em>23:30 September 29, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floxx-mapchat-social-network/19906/#comments">1 Comment</a> </p> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/image_modernist.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floxx-mapchat-social-network/19906/picture/143143/">4 Pictures</a></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floxx-mapchat-social-network/19906/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/floxx.jpg" title="Floxx.com is a new social media site that maps the best looking people in their area, allo..." alt="Floxx.com is a new social media site that maps the best looking people in their area, allo..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>The team at Floxx Media Group are attempting the unenviable task of trying to crack into the social media market. Recently named in the Real Business Future 50, the young and ambitious company from London's Silicon Roundabout have two apps in the market, its namesake application - Floxx (aka the new FitFinder) and the more recently released MapChat. Does Floxx Media Group have what it takes to crack the seeming impervious social media market held so dominantly by Facebook and the fresh competition of heavyweight Google? Here's a look at what the Group has to offer. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/floxx-mapchat-social-network/19906/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/nist-dragon-fire-tests-decks/19995/">Flammability of wooden decks to be tested by fire-breathing 'Dragon'</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>11:09 September 29, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/nist-dragon-fire-tests-decks/19995/#comments">1 Comment</a> </p> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/image_modernist.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/nist-dragon-fire-tests-decks/19995/picture/143749/">2 Pictures</a></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/nist-dragon-fire-tests-decks/19995/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/nistdragon-2.jpg" title="The NIST Dragon is a device that creates burning embers, to test how well building materia..." alt="The NIST Dragon is a device that creates burning embers, to test how well building materia..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>Thousands of people were left homeless this May, when over 40 percent of the town of Slave Lake, Alberta, Canada was destroyed by a wildfire that started in the adjacent forest. This is just one example of the devastation that can result when fires occur in what is known as the wildland-urban interface. While some buildings are destroyed when the wildfire itself reaches them, others can catch fire due to wind-borne embers <em>from</em> that fire. In an effort to test how well wooden decks are able to resist such embers, America's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) created something known as the Dragon - it's a device that sucks in tree mulch, and "breathes" it out as firebrands. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/nist-dragon-fire-tests-decks/19995/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/led-wrench/19949/">Wrenches with embedded LEDs make light of dimly lit fixit jobs</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/darren-quick/">Darren Quick</a></p> <p><em>23:22 September 26, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/led-wrench/19949/#comments">8 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/led-wrench/19949/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/led-wrench.jpg" title="LEDs embedded in the heads of the wrenches to shed a little light on those hard to reach, ..." alt="LEDs embedded in the heads of the wrenches to shed a little light on those hard to reach, ..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>Homer Simpson's advice when his brother Herb shows him the baby translator he has invented is that Herb "should have just taken an existing product and put a clock in it or something." These days the "or something" could easily be a light or, more specifically, an LED as their tiny size, low cost and low power needs has seen them wedged inside a plethora of devices ... and not because it necessarily provides any real benefit. However, in the world of LED-embedded devices, this wrench set is far from the worst idea we've seen and could actually come in very handy. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/led-wrench/19949/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/typewriter-makes-cocktails/19957/">Drink-mixing typewriter lets you taste your words</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>15:32 September 26, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/typewriter-makes-cocktails/19957/#comments">4 Comments</a> </p> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/image_modernist.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/typewriter-makes-cocktails/19957/picture/143478/">9 Pictures</a></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/typewriter-makes-cocktails/19957/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/cocktailtypewriter.jpg" title="A Russian tinkerer has created a typewriter that mixes drinks based on the keys that are p..." alt="A Russian tinkerer has created a typewriter that mixes drinks based on the keys that are p..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>Hoo boy, you just know Hunter S. Thompson would have loved <em>this</em>. A Russian tinkerer going by the name of morskoiboy has created a typewriter (?) that squirts a different type of syrup or liqueur into a glass with every keystroke. That same liquid is used in a big single-character LCD-like display, that shows users what letter they’re typing. This means that different cocktails can be created, simply by typing in different words. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/typewriter-makes-cocktails/19957/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/pitcher-plant-slippery-surface/19935/">Carnivorous plant inspires new super-slippery material</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>15:09 September 23, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/pitcher-plant-slippery-surface/19935/#comments">3 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/pitcher-plant-slippery-surface/19935/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/slips.jpg" title="Scientists have created an inexpensive, robust, liquid-repellent surface material, inspire..." alt="Scientists have created an inexpensive, robust, liquid-repellent surface material, inspire..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>Who doesn't like carnivorous plants? They eat pesky bugs, they look like something out of <em>Flash Gordon</em>, and now it turns out that one of them has inspired a new type of liquid-repellent surface. The inspirational flora is the pitcher plant, which is shaped like - well, like a water pitcher, or perhaps a wide-end-up trumpet. When insects step onto its slippery inner surface, they lose their footing and fall down into a pool of collected rainwater in its base, where they are digested. Scientists from Harvard University's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have copied the structure of that inner surface and come up with a material that resists not only most liquids, but also ice and bacteria, and it does so under a wide range of conditions. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/pitcher-plant-slippery-surface/19935/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/paypal-billionaire-invests-in-floating-autonomous-cities/19915/">Paypal founder invests in floating autonomous cities</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/bridget-borgobello/">Bridget Borgobello</a></p> <p><em>09:35 September 22, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/paypal-billionaire-invests-in-floating-autonomous-cities/19915/#comments">23 Comments</a> </p> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/image_modernist.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/paypal-billionaire-invests-in-floating-autonomous-cities/19915/picture/143216/">21 Pictures</a></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/paypal-billionaire-invests-in-floating-autonomous-cities/19915/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/seastead-5.jpg" title="Paypal founder Peter Thiel is investing in a project that hopes to create floating cities ..." alt="Paypal founder Peter Thiel is investing in a project that hopes to create floating cities ..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>When creating new companies has become passé, why not start creating countries? So is the case for Paypal co-founder and billionaire Peter Thiel, who is currently the Seasteading Institute's "most generous funder." His support constitutes a bold move towards creating floating autonomous states. The initiative is inspired by the idea of creating cities that are free from political agendas and social construction. These "floating cities will allow the next generation of pioneers to peacefully test new ideas for government," says the Seasteading Institute. "The most successful can then inspire change in governments around the world." <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/paypal-billionaire-invests-in-floating-autonomous-cities/19915/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/foldit-players-advance-aids-research/19892/">Crowd-sourced gamers advance AIDS research</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/ben-coxworth/">Ben Coxworth</a></p> <p><em>16:45 September 20, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/foldit-players-advance-aids-research/19892/#comments">2 Comments</a> </p> <p></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/foldit-players-advance-aids-research/19892/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/folditplayers.png" title="Players of the online game Foldit have helped determine the structure of an enzyme, which ..." alt="Players of the online game Foldit have helped determine the structure of an enzyme, which ..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>It was a puzzle that had thwarted scientists for almost a decade, but a collection of gamers was able to solve it in just three weeks. What the scientists wanted to know was the structure of retroviral proteases, a class of enzymes that play a key part in the maturation and proliferation of the AIDS virus. The mystery was crowd-sourced to the gaming community within an <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/foldit-scientific-discovery-computer-game/15957/" target="_blank">existing online game known as Foldit</a>, by researchers from the University of Washington. The game challenges players to collaborate and compete in predicting the structure of protein molecules. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/foldit-players-advance-aids-research/19892/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <div class="summary_item "> <div class="summary_details"> <div class="sd_top"> </div> <div class="clear_both"> <h2><a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mits-1k-house-project-first-prototype/19887/">MIT's affordable housing project builds first prototype in China</a></h2> <div class="summary_details_left"> <p>By <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/author/bridget-borgobello/">Bridget Borgobello</a></p> <p><em>07:01 September 20, 2011</em></p> </div> <div class="summary_details_right"> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/comments.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mits-1k-house-project-first-prototype/19887/#comments">7 Comments</a> </p> <p><img src="/web/20111006122920im_/http://www.gizmag.com/images/icons/splashyIcons/image_modernist.png" alt=""/> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mits-1k-house-project-first-prototype/19887/picture/142981/">6 Pictures</a></p> </div> </div> </div> <center><a class="noback" href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mits-1k-house-project-first-prototype/19887/"><img src="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920im_/http://images.gizmag.com/hero/pinwheel-1.jpg" title="The design incorporates a modular layout with hollow brick walls, steel bars for reinforce..." alt="The design incorporates a modular layout with hollow brick walls, steel bars for reinforce..."/></a></center> <div class="summary"> <p>Launched in 2009, MIT's "1K House" project challenges designers to come up with affordable, sustainable housing solutions that can improve conditions for the billions of people in the world living on less that $1 per day. The "Pinwheel House" designed by MIT graduate student Ying chee Chui is the first prototype. <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/mits-1k-house-project-first-prototype/19887/">Read More</a> </p> </div> </div> <center class="snap_noshots"> <div class="next_prev"><strong> <span>1</span> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/goodthinking/2/">2</a> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/goodthinking/3/">3</a> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/goodthinking/4/">4</a> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/goodthinking/5/">5</a> <a href="/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/goodthinking/2/">Next </a> » </strong></div> </center> <div class="dotsontop">  <div id="search_form_bottom"> <form action="https://web.archive.org/web/20111006122920/http://www.gizmag.com/search/" id="cse-search-box-bottom"> <span class="title">Looking for something? 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