Cosmos Computed

Monosodium glutamate, commonly abbreviated MSG, is a very common chemical used to enhance flavors in food. MSG works by activating the "umami" receptors on the tongue, effectively enhancing flavors and making food taste a lot better. This is similar to the way sodium chloride (table salt) works, but MSG is much more powerful, so sodium content can be reduced by adding MSG to food. For this reason, many food companies use MSG as a food additive. Despite these apparent advantages, most people would agree that MSG is unhealthy and should be avoided. Sensitive individuals even experience negative side effects after consuming food containing MSG. But what exactly is wrong with MSG? If a person is not MSG sensitive, is it okay for them to consume it in their food? Virtual model of monosodium glutamate Before answering these questions, it would be best to start with the molecular structure of MSG. Monosodium glutamate, also known as sodium glutamate, is an ionic compound with the f

I recently created a couple of nature-themed animated GIFs. (Click the images to view larger.) The first image is a blossoming tree. I thought the tree looked pretty, but I realized that part of the beauty came from the gentle swaying in the wind. So I decided to animate the image. To do this, I snapped a quick series of photos. Then, I used GIMP to reduce unwanted noise and scale them down. Finally, I saved the images as a looping animated GIF. The result takes a while to load, and seems kind of jerky, so I'm not sure whether I like it. My next image is a late snowstorm. In many snowstorm photos it is difficult to tell the difference between the falling snow and the already-fallen snow. Again, an animated image seemed necessary. In this case, however, a series of photos wasn't quick enough, so I took a video instead. I then grabbed a sequence of 10 still frames from the video. Again using GIMP, I scaled them down and saved as a GIF. The problem with animated images like this i

Edit: April Fool's. The article completely fails to answer for the benefits of math and science (including medicine and natural disaster prediction). It grossly exaggerates the negative aspects of math and science. Incidentally, math and science have made a large positive difference in my life. Good morning, everybody! I decided to write a blog post to say that I will be completely changing the way I view knowledge and the purpose of life. Photo credit: my sister Basically, "higher" knowledge (including logic, science, mathematics, etc.) is completely useless. There is no point in learning these subjects, which is why I have dropped all my college classes and will not be going to school today. Instead, we should go to the fields, with a shovel and a rake, and grow crops. I will therefore end my blog and begin life as a worker at a ranch in Wyoming. Why this sudden change, you might ask? A few days after my last post (which nobody seemed to read), I came upon a realizatio