Degenerative disc disease - DDD
DDD predominantly occurs with aging. But there are other risk factors that accelerate the degenerating process of the disc - Cigarette smoking, repetitive mechanical lifting of heavy loads, trauma and failure to do exercise. Here's a short video of a presentation that i made stating the symptoms, treatments and methods used for detecting a degenerated disc. Questions, if any, can be asked and will be answered.
References - Internet, Youtube, Books by Dr Panjabi, Dr Adams, Dr Bogduk et. al.
References - Internet, Youtube, Books by Dr Panjabi, Dr Adams, Dr Bogduk et. al.
Why a Mac ?
Expensive, Less features when compared to an equally priced Dell or HP, Not an easy Operating System, Not all softwares run on a Mac - these are the reasons why you shouldn't buy a Mac..
That being said, now lets analyze all the above reasons..
Firstly, Expensive. Definitely a Mac is very expensive. That's majorly because it was Steve's dream project and he doesn't wanna give that for free.. 2) Its from Apple - the brand that stands solidly on quality, perfection and innovation.. 3) The people who don't buy a Mac actually don't get to know whats really in a Mac. Let me explain this in detail - People generally consider Mac to be just another Laptop less the Windows OS. But its more. It has a lot of applications that ordinarily a windows PC doesn't have. Examples being GarageBand, FrontRow, iPhoto, iMovie, Automator, iDVD and more.. These softwares individually cost more when you buy them separately for Windows - say Photoshop, Nero Burning software, a decent video editor.. FrontRow is an exceptional piece of an application - that gives you a theatrical iPod experience.. All these and more softwares comes with every new Mac.
I initially tried to assemble a custom made Dell Inspiron 14" laptop in the dell website (following some deal in deals2buy) and added a few very basic softwares and guess what the total came to - $789 [Remember this].. Statistics and the surveys from the marketing world say here , here and here that Apple tops the list of all manufacturers.. Also I read reviews that told that Dell's quality has been degrading over the years and the life of a Dell laptop is a meagre 1.5 years before it becomes garbage. On the other hand, a Mac is seen to be more reliable.. [How many times has your iPod crashed unexpectedly ?? Believe me - it has never happened for me.. Given that I had been using mine for the past 3 years] Thats the reliability of Apple !
Coming to the OS - a very tough operating system.. Who told ya ?? If you are someone who likes Mozilla over IE, then you are someone who'd love the Mac OS X over windows.. Its a very cool operating system - professional and sleaky.. I love the graphics - the way it minimizes, magnifies and the likes.. Mac is like a hidden treasure.. There are ways to do it and its fun to go about learning it in the intuitive way.. Its like working on VI.. [If you have ever worked on it, you'll know what i'm talking about] After 12 years with the windows, I'm liking OS X better..
Not all softwares run on Apple.. This, to a certain extent is true.. Especially Google has been reluctant to release the Mac versions of Google Talk and Chrome.. But Apple has nothing to lose - it has iChat and Safari (needless to say Mozilla) to replace it. More the time Google takes, more will be the fan following for Mozilla.. the power of open-source. But most companies release softwares for Mac.. but some doesn't - especially if someone is in the engineering field they may need loads of softwares. Here's the catch.. there is something called boot-camp and VMware Fusion - that allows you to run Windows on a Mac - so that you can install applications that work only on Windows.. And the prize is this - Windows runs faster and better on a Mac. There are loads of other links that reiterate the same fact..
Now all these being said, let me tell you one more reason why a Mac is way better than windows.
Who makes the software (windows) ??
Microsoft.
Who makes the hardware ??
Uhmm.. Dell, HP, Sony, Gateway, Toshiba etc..
Coming to a Mac,
Who makes the software (OS X)??
Apple !
Who makes the hardware ?
Apple !
Don't you think if the same guys do both the hardware and software, they would know the notebook very well and how it would behave ? This is the reason why a Mac doesn't crash or crashes less often.
Here's a little suggestion if you are still concerned about the price.. Go for a refurbished Mac. When it comes to Apple, a refurbished laptop is just as good as new. It comes with the same 1 year warranty as the new one, the finish looks exactly the same as a new one. Believe me you can't spot a difference between a new mac and a refurbished mac. Except that the price would be 200$ lesser than the new one.
Last but not the least, there is one major reason for the vast popularity and the general tendency of people to prefer Apple - VISTA - read this post by Ab to know more..
If you want to learn more about the Mac - visit the Apple website.. Their site market themselves way better than any other site. These are just my views on why I sought to a Mac rather than a Dell.
That being said, now lets analyze all the above reasons..
Firstly, Expensive. Definitely a Mac is very expensive. That's majorly because it was Steve's dream project and he doesn't wanna give that for free.. 2) Its from Apple - the brand that stands solidly on quality, perfection and innovation.. 3) The people who don't buy a Mac actually don't get to know whats really in a Mac. Let me explain this in detail - People generally consider Mac to be just another Laptop less the Windows OS. But its more. It has a lot of applications that ordinarily a windows PC doesn't have. Examples being GarageBand, FrontRow, iPhoto, iMovie, Automator, iDVD and more.. These softwares individually cost more when you buy them separately for Windows - say Photoshop, Nero Burning software, a decent video editor.. FrontRow is an exceptional piece of an application - that gives you a theatrical iPod experience.. All these and more softwares comes with every new Mac.
I initially tried to assemble a custom made Dell Inspiron 14" laptop in the dell website (following some deal in deals2buy) and added a few very basic softwares and guess what the total came to - $789 [Remember this].. Statistics and the surveys from the marketing world say here , here and here that Apple tops the list of all manufacturers.. Also I read reviews that told that Dell's quality has been degrading over the years and the life of a Dell laptop is a meagre 1.5 years before it becomes garbage. On the other hand, a Mac is seen to be more reliable.. [How many times has your iPod crashed unexpectedly ?? Believe me - it has never happened for me.. Given that I had been using mine for the past 3 years] Thats the reliability of Apple !
Coming to the OS - a very tough operating system.. Who told ya ?? If you are someone who likes Mozilla over IE, then you are someone who'd love the Mac OS X over windows.. Its a very cool operating system - professional and sleaky.. I love the graphics - the way it minimizes, magnifies and the likes.. Mac is like a hidden treasure.. There are ways to do it and its fun to go about learning it in the intuitive way.. Its like working on VI.. [If you have ever worked on it, you'll know what i'm talking about] After 12 years with the windows, I'm liking OS X better..
Not all softwares run on Apple.. This, to a certain extent is true.. Especially Google has been reluctant to release the Mac versions of Google Talk and Chrome.. But Apple has nothing to lose - it has iChat and Safari (needless to say Mozilla) to replace it. More the time Google takes, more will be the fan following for Mozilla.. the power of open-source. But most companies release softwares for Mac.. but some doesn't - especially if someone is in the engineering field they may need loads of softwares. Here's the catch.. there is something called boot-camp and VMware Fusion - that allows you to run Windows on a Mac - so that you can install applications that work only on Windows.. And the prize is this - Windows runs faster and better on a Mac. There are loads of other links that reiterate the same fact..
Now all these being said, let me tell you one more reason why a Mac is way better than windows.
Who makes the software (windows) ??
Microsoft.
Who makes the hardware ??
Uhmm.. Dell, HP, Sony, Gateway, Toshiba etc..
Coming to a Mac,
Who makes the software (OS X)??
Apple !
Who makes the hardware ?
Apple !
Don't you think if the same guys do both the hardware and software, they would know the notebook very well and how it would behave ? This is the reason why a Mac doesn't crash or crashes less often.
Here's a little suggestion if you are still concerned about the price.. Go for a refurbished Mac. When it comes to Apple, a refurbished laptop is just as good as new. It comes with the same 1 year warranty as the new one, the finish looks exactly the same as a new one. Believe me you can't spot a difference between a new mac and a refurbished mac. Except that the price would be 200$ lesser than the new one.
Last but not the least, there is one major reason for the vast popularity and the general tendency of people to prefer Apple - VISTA - read this post by Ab to know more..
If you want to learn more about the Mac - visit the Apple website.. Their site market themselves way better than any other site. These are just my views on why I sought to a Mac rather than a Dell.
Touch no-more..
With so much of excitement I'm beginning to write this post. Reason being I found this amazing piece of software from the Apple website. Its actually the Magic Jungle's Fluid Tunes. It can be operated by just gesturing your hands in the air. (i.e) you don't need a keyboard or a mouse to give your input to the computer. It recognizes your gestures and it takes the input and the controls are activated accordingly. Stunning ! Isn't it.. Its more like a sci-fi movie - say the likes of Minority Report. Though it comes as a separate s/w that works on top of iTunes, it would be highly appreciated if it came as an addon for iTunes itself.
It stumps me to even think how people go about implementing things which were once just on a paper that would most likely end up in trash following a sarcastic laughter. It does work pretty well, given that you need to spend a little time fixing your position and taking care that your other body parts don't interfere with the controls triggering false inputs (highly likely).
But there is no reason to be disheartened. As this is just the beginning, I hope it doesn't stop here and this will definitely be one software that is going to see exponential downloads in the near future. It might not be the s/w you need, but its definitely something that you might want to try your hand at. I guess it works only on Mac (ha !). Requires itunes. Check it out !
It stumps me to even think how people go about implementing things which were once just on a paper that would most likely end up in trash following a sarcastic laughter. It does work pretty well, given that you need to spend a little time fixing your position and taking care that your other body parts don't interfere with the controls triggering false inputs (highly likely).
But there is no reason to be disheartened. As this is just the beginning, I hope it doesn't stop here and this will definitely be one software that is going to see exponential downloads in the near future. It might not be the s/w you need, but its definitely something that you might want to try your hand at. I guess it works only on Mac (ha !). Requires itunes. Check it out !
Itunes 8 Visualisations
When the audio players are concerned, I guess Itunes have revolutionized the entire interface experience, something that WMP has failed to do in its 12 versions so far. A glaring thing that i had noticed about itunes was its visualizations in itunes 7 and previous versions.. It didn't quite match the style and quality of Apple. Whereas these ones have not only catchy to the eyes, they would be best suited in Disco party or dance fests conducted in places where they don't have proper DJs or lightings but yet they can still get that experience.
If only Apple could get itunes to play movies of .avi and .mov formats, it would even more boost the publicity of Apple among movie-mongrels like me :)
These Visualizations were taken from Itunes 8 (Windows version).
And the visualizations below were taken from a Mac..
If only Apple could get itunes to play movies of .avi and .mov formats, it would even more boost the publicity of Apple among movie-mongrels like me :)
And the visualizations below were taken from a Mac..
Job description : Biomedical Engineer
When I first declared that I have chosen my field as "Biomedical Engineering", many were shocked or rather taken back. And quick came the reply - You ? Why ? Why not this and why not that ? And yeah, I was expecting that. Coz, in India, Biomedical is not a popular field, or rather its considered something on the same line as medicine and many (including me) consider it 'not a next step' after doing a UG course in Engineering, until i did a search on the various aspects of it before diving into it. Yeah ! its a bit obfuscating but they were always a part of my reveries. So what is the job of a biomedical engineer ? Here's a video that just gives an overview of it.
A cool simulation tool..
There were times when i was skeptical about going to the US for studies.. I always believed that the education standards in India were on always on par with many institutions there. But time and again, I am being proved wrong by something or the other. Be it their innovation in teaching things and making the students understand it practically or be it coming up with something like the one here..
Synthetic DNA Genome
Getting techie once in a while wouldn't be a grave crime !! With the hope that I am not driving you guys berserk, here's something that I had perceived to see in the near future and now a reality ! U.S. scientists have taken a major step toward creating the first ever artificial life form by synthetically reproducing the DNA of a bacteria, according to a study published Thursday.
The move, which comes after five years of research, is seen as the penultimate stage in the endeavor to create an artificial life form based entirely on a man-made DNA genome -- something which has tantalized scientists and sci-fi writers for years.
"Through dedicated teamwork we have shown that building large genomes is now feasible and scalable so that important applications such as biofuels can be developed," said Hamilton Smith, from the J. Craig Venter Institute, in the study published in Science. The research has been carried out at the laboratories of the controversial celebrity scientist Craig Venter, who has hailed artificial life forms as a potential remedy to illness and global warming. However, the prospect of engineering artificial life forms is highly controversial and is likely to arouse heated debate over the ethics and potential ramifications of such an advance. You can see the rays of light shining through the DNA double helix in the picture above.
It is one of the Holy Grails of science, but also one that stirs deep fears as foreseen in Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel "Brave New World" in which natural human reproduction is eschewed in favor of babies grown artificially in laboratories. This extraordinary accomplishment is a technological marvel that was only made possible because of the unique and accomplished team.
The researchers had dedicated the last several years to designing and perfecting new methods and techniques that we believe will become widely used to advance the field of synthetic genomics. The team had completed the second step in a three-step process to create a synthetic organism. In the final stage of their research which they are already working on, the Maryland-based team will attempt to create a bacteria based purely on the synthetic genome sequence of the Mycoplasma genitalium bacteria.
The bacteria, which causes certain sexually transmitted diseases, has one of the least complex DNA structures of any life form, composed of just 580 genes. In contrast, the human genome has some 30,000. The chromosome which the team has created is known as Mycoplasma laboratorium and, in the final step of the process, will be transplanted into a living cell where it should "take control," effectively becoming a new life form. The new bacteria will therefore be largely artificial, though not entirely, because it is composed of building blocks from already existing organisms.
The move, which comes after five years of research, is seen as the penultimate stage in the endeavor to create an artificial life form based entirely on a man-made DNA genome -- something which has tantalized scientists and sci-fi writers for years.
"Through dedicated teamwork we have shown that building large genomes is now feasible and scalable so that important applications such as biofuels can be developed," said Hamilton Smith, from the J. Craig Venter Institute, in the study published in Science. The research has been carried out at the laboratories of the controversial celebrity scientist Craig Venter, who has hailed artificial life forms as a potential remedy to illness and global warming. However, the prospect of engineering artificial life forms is highly controversial and is likely to arouse heated debate over the ethics and potential ramifications of such an advance. You can see the rays of light shining through the DNA double helix in the picture above.
It is one of the Holy Grails of science, but also one that stirs deep fears as foreseen in Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel "Brave New World" in which natural human reproduction is eschewed in favor of babies grown artificially in laboratories. This extraordinary accomplishment is a technological marvel that was only made possible because of the unique and accomplished team.
The researchers had dedicated the last several years to designing and perfecting new methods and techniques that we believe will become widely used to advance the field of synthetic genomics. The team had completed the second step in a three-step process to create a synthetic organism. In the final stage of their research which they are already working on, the Maryland-based team will attempt to create a bacteria based purely on the synthetic genome sequence of the Mycoplasma genitalium bacteria.
The bacteria, which causes certain sexually transmitted diseases, has one of the least complex DNA structures of any life form, composed of just 580 genes. In contrast, the human genome has some 30,000. The chromosome which the team has created is known as Mycoplasma laboratorium and, in the final step of the process, will be transplanted into a living cell where it should "take control," effectively becoming a new life form. The new bacteria will therefore be largely artificial, though not entirely, because it is composed of building blocks from already existing organisms.
It's a type of genetic engineering which would allow people to make much bigger genetic changes, which means that in the future you could create organisms with new gene sequences. Now, this is something that we all should watch for..
