Posts Tagged ‘Toronto’

Algae use Quantum Mechanics

Thursday, February 4th, 2010

algae knew about quantum mechanics nearly two billion years before humans

Now THAT is some kinda statement by the University of Toronto Professor Greg Scholes.  In a paper published in Nature he goes on to explain how the Algae seem to be using “classical” quantum mechanics to transfer sunlight from their receptors to their storage areas.

We were astonished to find clear evidence of long-lived quantum mechanical states … the energy of absorbed light resides in two places at once – a quantum superposition state, or coherence – and such a state lies at the heart of quantum mechanical theory.

OK, my job seems a lot less significant this week.  I guess I’ll have to feel a bit better by using the Weenie joke, that McMaster launched the career of a Nobel Prize winning researcher, Scholes.  He’s known for the Black and  Scholes forumla. I wonder if Greg will be known for the Light’n’ Sholes theory.  Ba dum dum!

More found here: http://fwix.com/toronto/share/e6c1cc90a6/Scientists_find_quantum_mechanics_at_work_in_photosynthesis

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Cure for Colour Blindness

Thursday, September 17th, 2009

We all have a bucketlist – I don’t actually call mine that, but I do have one. One of the top 5 things is to see the fall colours that Canada is famous for.

You see — I don’t see them. I have red-green colour blindness – it’s a pain with traffic lights, a lot of professions are closed to me and I can even dress right.

But gene therapy for humans doesn’t seem that far off. They’ve got it down in Monkey. By that I mean they can use insert genes that help guide the cone cells to become “proper” cone cells. They are using human genes in the Monkeys so they have the right genes even.

To me, if this does actually occur, this is wonderful gift far more important than any work of art, any opera, any form of creativity — it’ll let me SEE the creativity of thousands of years of human works.

For now tho, I can’t. If you want to read the full article, here ya go.

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Toronto Mayor Messes Up Streetcars?

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

No, Mayor Miller didn’t lose his biscuits after a night on the town, but he did seriously endanger Toronto’s chances of getting some much needed infrastructure repairs done in a timely manner. And under Federal Largess.

From the mayors point of view, Toronto did not need any work done on parks, repairs on bridges, upgrading 70-year-old sewers or even new roofs on dare care centers. And in fact the city did not even seem to want to get their much balloho’d and very expensive streetcars.

By submitting only one project that was sure to be rejected by Ottawa, our fine city of Toronto made sure it cannot get access to the federal anti-recession package. Was this personal issues or good negotiating or political gameship? Or a mix of them.

So instead of getting funds, the city will be giving funds to Thunder Bay from 2011 to 2018 for the streetcars. And tying up funds from Ontario that could be earmarked for Toronto during that time.

Karen Stintz, a Toronto Councilor said: “With the streetcar contract, we’ve seen the province has been caught off guard. Now, the federal government has been caught off guard.”No wonder John Baird muttered that Toronto should f off.

You know, if Toronto wanted a better transit system it should consider reducing the interaction between streetcars/busses and cars. And to be fair they have; but wouldn’t this funding have been best used asking for say garages to park cars in near streetcar routes; allowing cars to be taken off the streets? That way it’s the best of both worlds as then cars can zip in the outside lane, and street cars move in the inside lane.

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