9/27/2013 Weekly Tech Article

Crowdfund a $65 Robot That  Runs Like a Maniac Cockroach 

• The Dash, created by Dash Robotics, is an insect-inspired simple robot kit that runs like the fastest, most rectangular cockroach ever. There's a crowdfunding campaign and beta test, with 27 days left to get one of the first 1,000 robots available.
• Dash's springy body can keep it running even after a fall from over 90 feet, and it can run straight at 1.5 meters per second, up to a mile. After years of development, the robot is entering a beta testing stage.
• Made largely of cardboard and plastic, the key to the robot is a special polymer layer sandwiched between layers of cardboard, giving the body something of an organic flexibility while still remaining cheap to produce. Dash's creators say the $65 kit can be assembled in about in hour, and an already-assembled version can be ordered for $100.
• Right now, it might just be a fast robotic cockroach that can fall 90 feet. If the crowdfunding project goes well, it will be a fast robotic cockroach that can fall 90 feet and then chase people around a quad while being remotely controlled by smartphone app.

9/20/2013 Weekly Tech Article

Robo-Maggots Will Munch Through Brain Tumors

(Gross, but great for minimally invasive surgery)

• Neurosurgeon J Marc Simard of the University of Maryland School of Medicine has been developing a prototype for a larvae-esque robot that could get inside and eat away at a brain tumor from the inside.
• The bendy maggot-bot can zap tumors with a electrocautery tool, then suction out the dead tissue. It can be controlled remotely, making it possible for the surgeon to monitor the tumor and direct the robot to certain tissue while the patient is undergoing an MRI.
• The challenge is that controlling the robot remotely can't be allowed to interfere with the magnetic field that's integral to the imaging process, so it can't have an electromagnetic motor. Right now, the robot uses this system of pulleys and and strings to move around: 

• However, this device is still being tested on both pig and human cadavers, so it'll be awhile before this bug makes it to a hospital near us.

• http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-09/robo-maggots-will-munch-through-brain-tumors

Multimedia Blog Post

Mr. Colarusso's AP Biology Class

  

       Mr. Colarusso teaches AP Biology 5th period. He is a great teacher but is very difficult. His class is very challenging and requires a lot of time and energy. I expect to learn more in depth of Biology at a college level. I have always like Biology so AP Biology is harder but worth the challenge to receive college credits. Mr. Colarusso's grading policy is 30% Tests, 10% Quizzes, 10% Homework/Participation, 30% Laboratory Reports, 10% Research Projects, and 10% Informal Assessments.

       Even though his class is challenging, it is surprisingly interesting. All the information we are reviewing/learning is interesting information. The upcoming topics range from cell biology to evolution to even anatomy. With a difficult class like this, it helps that our upcoming topics are mostly all interesting opposed to dull. We will probably be using technology if we ever do virtual labs. In order to do virtual labs you need to use computers/laptops.

9/13/13 Weekly Tech Article

The Surprise in Apple’s Cheaper iPhone? In China, It’s Expensive

 

• Apple's new iPhone took a step closer on Wednesday to being offered by the world's biggest cellphone carrier, China Mobile, when the Chinese government approved of it.
• Analysts expected the price of the iPhone 5C in China to be about $400 in an effort to attract new customers in mainland China, where the company has been struggling, but they were completely wrong.
• Instead of celebrating of the new product's soon arrival, Chinese people were skeptical of buying this new product because of it's outrageous start price, 4,488 renminbi ($733).
• The price is roughly 33% higher in China than the full unsubsidized $549 cost in the United States.
• The iPhone 5C comes in a plastic case, and its hardware is nearly identical to that of the iPhone 5.
• http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/12/technology/the-surprise-in-apples-cheaper-iphone-in-china-its-expensive.html?ref=technology&_r=0

Do Now: September 11th

September 11th is a day that will never be forgotten by Americans. It was a tragic event that in turn brought us closer as a country. Even though I was only in Kindergarten when this devastating event occurred, I will never forget it. I hope those innocent lives lost during that event rest in peace.

Welcome!

Hi, I'm Erick Peralta and I am a local senior at Wood-Ridge High School. I plan to soon major in Pre-medicine/Biology in college in the hopes of becoming an ER Doctor. My tops colleges/universities to attend are: Montclair, Rutgers, or Seton Hall.