April 2008/Issue 21 think. what you can be

OUCH! The path of pain from toe to brain

TRUE OR FALSE? Humans are getting smarterGO FRONTSIDE 360 Use maths to build your own ramp

INTELLIGENCEEXPLOR ING THE PUZZLE OF

INTELLIGENT ENTERTAINMENT HHP in the house • Smart gaming: don’t let the game control you

covers.indd 1 3/26/08 12:20:09 PM

SMART READS

Are you smarter than a fi fth-grader?_p 14

Multiple intelligences_p 16

Are we getting smarter?_p 17

Animal intelligence_p 18

Quiz: what’s your EQ?_p 20

Artifi cial intelligence: smart machines_p 22

Intelligent careers: meet the robot men_p 25

REGULARS

Ed’s note_p 2

Community of HIP: your news, your views_p 4

Brand Ambassadors: meet Ogo and Megan_p 6

Smart technology: who invented the Frisbee?_p 8

Deconstruction: look inside a microwave _p 10

Sci DIY: create ocean currents_p 12

Smart maths: Cartesian planes _p 30

Sport science: make a skateboard ramp_p 32

Body smart: skin-deep issues _p 36

Think tank: these will bust your brain_p 47

Simply science: fl ushing the toilet_p 48

INTELLIGENT ENTERTAINMENT

Press play: what not to miss_p 39

Music: put your hands in the air for HHP_p 40

Movies: AI in fi lms_p 42

Books: your views on Adrian Mole _p 44

Game lab: don’t let the game control you_p 46

CONTENTSYOUR CHALLENGE

Can you solve these puzzles, each testing a different type of intelligence?

EL C LN TT I E

AHOW MANY TRIANGLES ARE IN THIS FIGURE? (Logic Smart)

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WHICH IMAGE IS NEXT IN THE SEQUENCE? (Picture Smart)

WHAT’S THE TUNE? (Music Smart)

WHAT ARE THE WORDS? (Word Smart)

How many words of four or more letters – including one nine-letter word – can you make from the letters in the grid? Rules: no proper nouns, no hyphens or apostrophes. Each letter can only be used once in making a word, and each word must contain the central letter.

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contentsA.indd 1 3/26/08 11:52:51 AM

CHAT ROOM Editor Nevelia Heilbron

Art Director Anton Pietersen

Managing Editor Desireé Kriel

Editorial Assistant Nicklaus Kruger

Copy EditorSally Rutherford

Proofreader Fred Pheiff er

Publisher Helena Gavera

Creative Director Crispian Brown Executive Editor Ami Kapilevich

Production ManagerShirley Quinlan Reproduction

New Media ReproAdvertising Director

Aileen O’ Brien • Tel: 021 417 1228Advertising Executive

Nick Armstrong • Tel: 021 417 1188 New Business Enquiries

Martha Dimitriou • Tel: 021 417 1276Editorial Contributors

Nikki Benatar, Ellen Cameron, Erin Classen, Living Maths, Michelle Minnaar, Linda Pretorius, Anthony Samboer and Bruce Farthing, Eeshaam

September, Mark van Dijk, Mandy van Staden, Mandy J Watson and Kate Carmichael

Syndication ManagerGlynis Fobb

Educational ConsultantsWordwise

PUBLISHED ON BEHALF OF BSQUARE COMMUNICATIONS

Communications Manager Kate Evans

HIP2B2 PIONEERED BY MARK SHUTTLEWORTH<www.hip2b2.com>

Published by New Media Publishing (Pty) LtdTel: 021 417 1111 • Fax: 021 417 1112

<www.newmediapub.co.za>Managing Director Bridget McCarney

Business Development Director John Psillos Editorial Director Irna van Zyl

All rights reserved. While precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of information, the editor, publisher and New Media Publishing

cannot be held liable for any inaccuracies, injury or damages that may arise.

Printed by Paarl Print

ABC 124 687 PHO

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If I asked how many mistakes you’ve ever made I’m sure you’d be able to name quite a few. As human

beings we shall always err; more important is what we do to fi x our mistakes, and especially how we mend relationships with those

we’ve unintentionally hurt. What do you need to do to make your mistakes good? Perhaps you failed

an exam: it’s not too late to start studying again and set yourself achievable goals. Maybe your invention keeps failing, one experiment after the other. Keep

persevering – Thomas Edison perfected the lightbulb after countless attempts. Or it could be you’re not speaking to your best friend or your parents because of a bad argument or careless action. Don’t be scared to be the fi rst to build a

bridge of reconciliation. It won’t kill you – promise.One of our big questions in the Intelligence issue is, ‘Are humans

getting smarter?’ How quickly you make good your mistakes will help determine that answer.

iTHINK

HIP2B2 CHALLENGE

During National Science Week, 10 to 17 May, HIP2B2 will be hosting

the iThink HIP2B2 Challenge at schools in Jo’burg, Cape Town and Durban. It’s an

adventurous science challenge. The winners will be announced on the HIP2B2 TV show

on Monday 12 May, SABC 2 at 4:30pm. Click to <www.hip2b2.com> to

fi nd out more details.

NEVELIA

‘Intelligence is not to make no mistakes, but quickly to

see how to make them good.’

Bertolt Brecht (German playwright)

FROM THE MAG TEAM

NICKLAUS … getting away with the last chip and leaving someone else with the bag.

DESIREÉ … knowing the difference between exuberant and exorbitant.

ANTON … hard to explain, even for the pros.

INTELLIGENCE IS …HELENA … more than brains. It’s the complete understanding of ideas, concepts and emotions.

Chat room.indd 1 3/26/08 12:21:35 PM

36

JONATHAN DONICHEY

Grade 10, Westonaria High SchoolThe most intelligent person is Donald Trump: he is a self-made man. People who don’t read don’t feed their brains with information.Robots are mechanical structures made by human beings.

MARIETJIE VAN DER MERWE

Gr ade 10, Westonaria High SchoolAt the Sci-Bono Centre I liked the experiments on magnetism.The most intelligent person is Oprah Winfrey because she helps people.People who don’t read are not intelligent.Robots are uncool – they make us lazy.

CHRISTINA MALINDI

Grade 10, Dr Beyers Naude Secondary School The most intelligent people are mathematicians: they invented ways to calculate things we use in our jobs and in everyday life.People who don’t read will miss out on a lot.Robots are fun because we can get them to do different things.

MOLEBATSI LETLHAKE

Gr ade 11, Dr Beyers Naude Secondary SchoolThe most intelligent person is Bill Gates because of what he invented.People who don’t read have no knowledge.Robots are interesting things to have around.

We spoke to learners at the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre.

HIP IS A HIT

Congratulations on such a successful magazine. It will make you proud to know that each issue is greatly anticipated and appreciated by the students in my school. The magazines get whipped off the table as quickly as they are delivered. Your subject matter is relevant, practical and interesting to your target market and most importantly you have succeeded in making academics fun and cool.ROSANNA SCOTT

YOU SAID IT

RESPECTIn light of racism recently

making headlines again, Thierry Henry gets the thumbs-up. He was hailed as one of Time magazine’s ‘100 Heroes & Pioneers’ for his Stand Up Speak Up campaign to raise awareness of and wipe out racism. Many of us want to mimic his fi eld skills; let’s go full circle by chucking racist attitudes forever.

Who do you nominate for the HIP2B2 badge of respect, and why?

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Text us your opinions, ideas or role models. SMS HIPCOM followed by your comments to 34978. Each SMS costs R2.

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Grade 11, Westonaria High SchoolAt the Sci-Bono Centre I enjoyed the satellite-dish sound experiment. The most intelligent person was Albert Einstein; we are still trying to understand things he said.People who don’t read lack intelligence.Robots are the future … they can do things that we can’t.

NOKUTHULA SCIBISI

Grade 10, Dr Beyers Naude Secondary SchoolThe most intelligent person is Dr Phil, because he inspires everyone.People who don’t read don’t really have a future.Robots are our future because they can take care of us. For example, they can be used for security.

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EYEWITNESS

WIN AND LEARN

8 5 0 0 0 of your neocortical neurons (those are the ones in your cerebral cortex, the uppermost layer of your brain) are lost each day.

1 4 9 5 was the year that Leonardo da Vinci drew up plans for an armoured humanoid machine. More than 500 years later, NASA engineer Mark Rosheim created a functional version from Leonardo’s plans for NASA exploration of Mars.

1 0 0 0 0 0 copies of HIP2B2 magazine will now be printed (an increase from 80 000) and distributed to 1 500 schools in South Africa, making us the biggest youth publication in the country.

9 6 4 2 5 0 0 0 0 0 kg (or 9 642 500 tons) is the approximate weight of all the human brains on Earth (with 6,65 billion people in the world, with an average brain mass of 1,4 to 1,5 kg).

4 0 0 0 people are injured in teapot-related accidents every year.

1 9 2 6 was the year Einstein (yes, that Einstein) invented and patented a refrigerator that operates off alcohol gas.

NOKUTH

ULA

Follow the red cloverleaf and win. In the next few issues we’ll be featuring interesting articles on the science and wonders of milk and dairy products. Watch out for this special icon – it indicates a fascinating fact that could lead you to win a superb prize. For details on how to enter, see the centrefold pull-out in this issue.

LEBOGANG

MOHLALA AND

PRUDENCE

MAKOLOLO, both in Grade 11 at Taxila High School, recently attended the Wits Targeting Talent for Maths and Science development camp.

‘We were chosen by our school to enrol in the programme for two weeks. We learnt different things, from chemistry to maths transformations, and also how to approach obstacles by applying analytical, computer and writing skills. We got to know people from different places and backgrounds, and made a few friends. We were all sad when we had to leave each other as we had so much fun while learning new things.’

MARC

March 2008/Iss

ue 20

SAVING PLANET EARTH

IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO APOLOGISE - A

ND DO SOMETHING

SURVIVAL 101 Stay alive on a deserted island • stand up to a bully • get over being dumped

DEATH BY DEGREES Six gruesome ways to die, minute by minute

TRY THIS AT HOME Extract DNA from a banana

BIOMIMICRY Inspired by termites (and other pests)

think. what yo

u can be

2/18/08 3:46:29 PM

community.indd 3 3/20/08 1:14:32 PM

MEGAN’S PROJECT Research in Alzheimer’s, a disease leading to rapid brain degeneration.

AIM Alzheimer’s usually occurs in the elderly, but it’s recently been cropping up in younger patients. I want to fi nd out if this is caused by something in our diet and if there’s anything we as teenagers can do to help victims of Alzheimer’s, and the people who have to care for them.

My passion for acting makes me a better scientist because it gives me confi dence and

expression when doing research presentations. It also helps to develop my people skills, useful when I’m doing research.I’m working on a skit called ‘Elementary Dating for Men’. My advice to guys is, don’t even bother trying to understand women. We sure don’t understand you. But, just as a tip, if you’re ever asked if something makes her look fat, the answer is always ‘no’. Full stop. Ogo and I often share the prize-giving awards at our school. For example, I’ll get the prizes for English, History and Biology, whereas Ogo is the real artist and accountant. In subjects like Science and Maths, we just try our hardest, and each get a chance at the top.Science really fascinates me because of the way in which all things work together to create our amazing world. It also explores so many new ways in which we can help solve the world’s problems and make it a better place for all.When I grow up I want to be an adult! Then I can drive, and get take-aways whenever I feel like it. But I suppose as a job I’d love to do something in the fi eld of medicine. The human body fascinates me, and I’d love to help improve people’s lives.

BRAND AMBASSADORS

In every issue, we’ll introduce you to two Brand Ambassadors and tell you more about their projects.

OGO’S PROJECT Create a solar-powered carbon-monoxide alarm. AIM More people are purchasing electricity generators but they are usually unaware that carbon monoxide is one the main exhausts emitted by generators. This poses a serious risk when they’re kept in an area with inadequate ventilation. My alarm will alert people to the danger and activate an area’s ventilation system.

Science requires practical thinking, while art allows me to express myself. As with science, there are rules in art that must be followed for a successful outcome.

Formula One in Schools is an international competi-tion in which teams must design, construct and race a scaled-down Formula One car. Our team at school consists of Matthew Bray, Ricky Bowman, Christopher Fleming, Michael Crooks and myself. We’ve chosen GEARS as our name: Graphics, Engineering And Racing Sciences. I’m the graphics manager and design the team logo.I’d like to pursue a career in actuarial science. It’s a

challenging fi eld, so any success is worth being excited about.I love maths because there is no speculation; there is always only one answer. I enjoy science because it is applied to everything we do and it’s behind everything we see around us. In science, everything happens for a reason. I once gave a speech at school, ‘A Generation in Transition’, which interrogated the validity of the question, ‘Where do you come from?’ Our generation can’t answer this because we no longer come from a specifi c place. The question today should be, ‘Who are you?’

ARTISTIC SCIENTIST

6

Spotlight on MEGAN and OGO

For more on the Brand Ambassadors, their project ideas and activities, check out <www.hip2b2.com>. BY N

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the science of everyday things

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Search engines are supposed to, erm, search, right? You may be surprised to fi nd that Google has a few secrets, such as a built-in calculator. You can ask it to do conversions – try ‘what is 100 ̊ C in Fahrenheit?’ or ‘what is 6 feet 7 inches in centimetres?’ – or input maths sums – try (234 x 27) + 788. Next time you need a quick answer for a project you know where to go. No more fumbling with zillions of weird buttons on your scientifi c calculator.

Nintendo’s DS Lite handheld console is fi nally here. It was launched with games including Mario Kart, New Super Mario Brothers and Nintendogs,

but the one you’ll want is Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training – How Old Is Your Brain? It has a number of maths and word exercises designed to awaken your brain’s prefrontal cortex* so you can ace

exams. The exercises use the console’s abilities to the max: you input your answers on the touch screen and the voice-recognition

software will recognise what you’re saying when you’re doing the Stroop Test.

Everyone wanted a hoverboard after Michael J Fox jumped on one in Back To The Future II in the ’80s, but the closest most people have come was to buy the PS2 game Airblade. But

an Australian company has been manufacturing a product called the Airboard for years – it was even used in the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games

in 2000. The Arbortech Airboard 2000, designed by Kevin Inkster, looks more like a fl attened infl atable cushion than a skateboard deck but it’s a step towards that dream. It hovers a few centimetres above any solid surface on a cushion of air and you control its movement by shifting your weight. It runs on 85 octane unleaded petrol but can be tuned to run on 95 octane. Want one? It’ll set you back about R110 000!

TRAIN YOUR BRAIN

*The prefrontal cortex is one of the most important parts of your brain. Its functions are linked to your personality and your ability to make judgements.

FAST FACT

The Stroop Test appraises mental fl exibility. A word is printed in a colour different from the colour it names – such as red – and you have to say the colour of the word aloud (in this case ‘blue’).

RIDE ON AIR

HIDDEN ANSWERS

DID YOU KNOW?

Google also has some fun hidden features – pick the name of your favourite actor or musician, such as Gary Dourdan (from CSI), and type ‘how tall is Gary Dourdan?’ in the search fi eld.

smart technology2.indd 2 3/26/08 11:54:12 AM

SMART TECHNOLOGY

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Ever wondered who invented the Frisbee?It really depends who you ask as many people like to claim the credit for the invention.

Many years ago an American company, the Frisbie Pie Company, made pies that were popular with college kids and someone soon discovered that the pie tins could be fl ung rather spectacularly. However, the invention is offi cially credited to American Walter Frederick Morrison, who threw a popcorn-can lid at Thanksgiving in 1937, which gave him the idea. In 1946 he developed the ‘Whirlo-Way’, which was made of plastic and became the fi rst fl ying disc that was manufactured to be sold. Over the years he perfected the design (and continued to give the product fun, odd names) and in 1957 his business partner, Richard Knerr, trademarked the name ‘Frisbee’.

WHOSE IDEA WAS IT ANYWAY?

Ladies love strumming their stuff but sometimes holding an average guitar is just plain awkward. Luna Guitars <www.lunaguitars.com> makes guitars especially for women, with shorter necks that are more comfortable to play. The shape of a guitar

and what it is made of affect its sound, so it’s not just a case of making it smaller. Designers have to experiment with different manufacturing

techniques to see how they can make changes without compromising on sound. After all, a professional musician can’t go on stage with a guitar that sounds ‘sort of right’.

GUITAR FOR GALS

You open a can of Coke and you get Coke, right? A can of Pepsi … Pepsi. Fanta … Fanta. There’s no surprise, unless you count the silly urban legends about rat bits and people’s fi ngers. Yuck. A company in Singapore recently came up with a great idea to throw some fun surprises into buying a drink. The company, Out Of The Box, launched two cool-drink ranges, called Anything (carbonated drinks in the fl avours apple, cloudy lemon, cola, cola

with lemon, fi zz up and root beer) and Whatever (noncarbonated iced tea in the fl avours apple tea, chrysanthemum tea, ice lemon tea, jasmine green tea, peach tea and white grape tea). The fun bit is you don’t know what fl avour you’re getting when you buy a can. What a great way to give your taste buds a workout.

LOW-TECH MOMENT: MYSTERY CAN

Awaken your inner artist. Design your own guitar – and you could win it. Keep visiting <www.hip2b2.com> for more details.

FAST FACT

The shape of a Frisbee allows it to generate lift as it rotates and moves, which is how it fl ies.

smart technology2.indd 3 3/26/08 11:54:52 AM

we take it apartDECONSTRUCTION

THE INNER WORKINGS

We’re so used to nuking everything: chances are you’ll be late for school because your stove took ‘forever’ to heat your meal. The latest microwave ovens are intelligent enough to determine exact cooking times by scanning the barcodes on food packaging.

So what happens when you switch your microwave on? For starters your current household power of 220 volts is not suffi cient to power the microwave. The transformer in combination with the capacitor boosts your voltage to the required 3 000 volts. This power is fed through to the magnetron. The waveguide feeds the energy into the cooking area.

The microwaves generated by the magnetron cook your food by vibrating water molecules at high frequency (2 450 Mega Hertz or MHz). This constant vibration generates heat that, in turn, cooks your food. Foods that have a lot of water, like fruits and vegetables, cook more quickly. Foods high in fat and sugar also cook more quickly. A motor rotates the food through the waves of energy on a revolving carousel to ensure even cooking.

The microwave oven has a series of switches and fuses to ensure your safety. A device called a triac (an electronic switch) monitors these switches and fuses. When you open the oven’s door, the triac will detect that the interlock switch is activated and switch off the microwave. The cavity thermal fuse will in turn switch off the microwave if it senses any overheating. A fan blows cool air on to the magnetron to help keep temperatures in check.

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Cooling fi ns

Anode with cathode located in the centre

Magnetron housing

Power terminals

Filter box

Filter-box cover

CLOVER FACT

When you warm milk in the microwave, you may notice some parts are warmer than others. This is because microwaves bouncing around inside the oven experience interference – when crests of waves ride up on top of each other they increase the crests (constructive interference) and make that region hotter, and when crests ride on troughs they cancel each other out (destructive interference) and don’t heat that region up as much. Turntables or fans help prevent the uneven heating this causes.

MAGNETRON

decon.indd 2 3/26/08 1:56:49 PM

11

THE MICROWAVE OVEN

OUR FAVOURITE BIT

The magnetron does all the hard work, ensuring it takes 30 seconds instead of fi ve

minutes to warm your milk so you can get to school on time. It also consumes three to six times less power

than a conventional oven.DID YOU KNOW?

The microwave oven was a by-product of another technology. During a 1940s radar-related research project, Dr Percy Spencer, an engineer with the Raytheon Corporation, was testing a new vacuum tube called a magnetron when he found that the candy

bar in his pocket had melted. Intrigued, he placed popcorn kernels near the tube and watched as they sputtered, cracked and popped all over his lab. In 1945 Raytheon

fi led a patent for Spencer’s microwave cooking process, and a test oven that heated food

using microwave energy was placed in a Boston restaurant.

Cavity thermal fuse Wave guide

Power inlet

Magnetron

PCB with integrated fuse and triac

Fan motor

Fan blows cool air onto magnetron

High-voltage capacitor

Light

High-voltage transformer

Timer and power-setting control box

Door button

Timer dial

Interlock switch turns off microwave when door is opened

Turntable motor

Glass tray on top of carousel

Fine metal mesh contains microwaves inside but is still transparent

Turntable coupling

SHOCK HORROR

Don’t heat your baby brother’s or sister’s bottle of formula or breastmilk in a microwave. The bottle may feel like it’s the right temperature, but the milk inside can be boiling hot. Also, heating a bottle in a microwave oven can turn trans-amino acids in formulas into toxic chemicals, and valuable vitamins, nutrients and antibodies in breastmilk can be destroyed.

decon.indd 3 3/26/08 11:57:43 AM

12

SCI DIY

MAKING currentsCREATING OCEAN CURRENTS

YOU’LL NEED

• A bottle each of red food colouring and blue food colouring • A glass of water • An ice tray • A freezer • A kettle • A heat-proof transparent container

WHAT TO DO

1. Add a few drops of blue food colouring to the glass of water.2. Pour the resulting mixture into the ice tray and pop it into the freezer.

3. When that’s frozen, boil some water in the kettle.4. Pour the boiled water into the transparent container, and add a few drops

of red food colouring.5. Now add the blue ice to one end of the container.

6. Watch the two colours swirl over and around each other, until they fi nally merge.

SO WHAT’S GOING ON?

The red-dyed water and the blue-dyed ice cubes are at different temperatures, and so have different densities (can you guess which is which?). When the two water bodies meet, they move around each other without much mixing, until they reach the same temperature, at which point they mix and the dyes run together.

Let your inner Poseidon* come to life and cause some real-life waves.

*In Greek mythology, Poseidon was the god of the sea.

FAST FACTS

The Red Sea is the saltiest sea in the world, with 41 parts of salt per 1 000 parts of water. Salty water freezes at a lower temperature than water with low salt content. Sea water freezes, on average, at -1,91 ºC.

sasol.indd 2 3/25/08 3:52:47 PM

OCEANOGRAPHYOceanography – or marine science – is, you guessed it, the study of the oceans. More formally, it’s the branch of Earth science that deals with Earth’s oceans and seas, and the things that affect and are affected by them. Oceanographers may study a wide range of topics, including marine organisms and ecosystems, ocean currents and waves, the movement of the ocean fl oor, storms and the ocean atmosphere, the fl ux and cycle of chemicals in the seas, and anything else sea-related. If you love the ocean and want to spend more time getting to know it, this is for you. Make sure you can handle it, though – getting seasick is no joke.WHAT DO YOU NEED TO STUDY THIS?You’ll need to write an admission exam at a tertiary institution and you’ll also need to score at least a 4 in mathematics as well as in physics or biology to register in 2009. Several universities (those that are near the coast) offer three-year Bachelor of Science degrees in topics relevant to oceanography, but only UCT offers a three-year BSc in oceanography, and you can study for a fourth year to qualify for a BSc Honours degree. CPUT also offers a three-year diploma in oceanography, with a fourth year to earn a Masters in technology.

Choose a great career in science

ADVERTORIAL

REACHING NEW FRONTIERS

Sasol is not just another fuel company. It is innovative beyond belief, going right back to the company’s origins, which grew out of the wacky idea of turning coal into petrol. Sasol uses science to create magic and improve lives – it is an established market leader in the energy industry.

Sasol is well known as an excellent employer. They offer exceptional opportunities to talented people. The Sasol bursary scheme is highly sought-after and aims to attract outstanding individuals to the organisation – especially students with a genuine interest in maths and science. So, the goal is to provide students with the curiosity, enthusiasm and energy necessary to appreciate maths and science as subjects of learning for everyone – not just scientists.

Do you have what it takes to work for this dynamic, market-leading company? To fi nd out whether you qualify for the bursary scheme, visit <www.sasolbursaries.com> or call 0860 106 235. They offer bursaries for full-time university studies in BSc Engineering, BSc and BCom. Sasol is an equal-opportunity employer and awards bursaries to deserving students of all population groups.

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Smarter than a fi fth-grader?A high IQ and MENSA membership are usually thought of as the true measures of genius.

Now it seems there are too many clever people around for us to fi nd one defi nition of intelligence.

Intelligence is a bit like the quicksilver* of the mind: it’s useful, but getting a grip on it is tricky. Even a group of really clever people from the American Psychological Association years ago conceded there will be as many defi nitions of intelligence as the number of experts asked.

But despite the buzz around exactly what it is, most intelligence (or is it intelligent?) researchers agree that it can be described broadly as the mental capability to solve problems the world throws at us. And to do so, you need to know and understand stuff, use it in a practical way, be able to change it to make something new, and at the end be able to judge your success.

SETTING THE SCORE

Although the sum of human intelligence is much more than academic performance, the concept of IQ, or intelligence quotient, sprouts from that very setting. In the early 1900s French psychologist Alfred Binet and his colleague Theodore Simon developed the Binet-Simon Scale to identify children with special-education needs. It rated children’s performance relative to their peers on various tasks involving memory, attention and verbal skills. This test has been revised many times and is now known as the Stanford-Binet test. Way back in 1912

William Stern suggested that an individual’s test score can be expressed as the ratio between his mental and true age. This means that your score on an intelligence test may be more similar to that of someone a bit older than to that of a friend your age. Performance on intelligence tests levels off during teenage years (use it before you lose it!).

The Wechsler test calculates IQ in terms of the test group’s mean and the variability of individual scores, making it more appropriate to use for adults. An average IQ lies somewhere between 90 and 110. Scoring around 130 would make you gifted; anything above 160 positively genius.

WHAT’S YOUR BRAIN’S STRATEGY?

IQ tests measure the combined ability to solve problems using symbols (like words and numbers) and nonsymbol-based skills as an indication of general intelligence. But some researchers believe intelligence is not a single quality. Howard Gardner suggested the theory of multiple intelligences in 1975 (see page 16). He reckons that intelligence comprises logic, language ability, spatial skills, musical potential, body-movement awareness and intelligence about oneself and others.

Critics, though, feel that these are merely subcategories of general intelligence. Specifi c tests to confi rm these intelligences are diffi cult to conduct, but people who score high on standard IQ tests tend also to do well in most intellectual tasks.

The last word on intelligence has defi nitely not been said. But whatever defi nes your spark, it’s sure to be a clever debate.

* quicksilver (n) the liquid metal mercury (Hg). Used in similes and metaphors to describe something that moves or changes very quickly, or that is diffi cult to hold or contain.

what is intelligence1.indd 2 3/26/08 12:16:37 PM

DORIT HOCKMAN MSc in Molecular Biology (Evolutionary development

and genetics), UCT‘Intelligence can be either passive or active. In the passive sense I’d defi ne it as the ability to comprehend and interact with one’s surroundings, and to fi gure out how things

work by observing them. Intelligence requires the ability to recognise there is something more

to the world outside our own personal experience (the ability to recognise oneself is also important).

In a more active sense, I think intelligence is the ability to learn from our mistakes – to modify behaviour based on past experience.’

SIYABULELA XUZADeveloper of fuel propellant for rockets‘It’s all about the ability to take complicated

theories and concepts and simplify them, and explain it so that the man in the street can

understand, and maybe even the smart guys will see it in a new way or understand it better. A lot of people

think it’s about being brainy like Einstein, but there are a lot of different kinds of intelligence: you can be a really intelligent musician, for example, or a poet. It takes all kinds.’

IAN LEWISSenior specialist psychiatrist , Groote Schuur Hospital

‘Intelligence is the ability to reason, to solve and to overcome problems, and to use our experience and that of others to improve our lives. There are various

kinds, or facets, of intelligence, including social intelligence, spatial intelligence and numerical intelligence.’

ALBERT EINSTEIN Nobel Prize-winning physicist (1879–1955)‘The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge

but imagination … intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death.’

DEFINING INTELLIGENCE

BY LINDA PRETORIUS • INTERVIEWS BY NICKLAUS KRUGER • PHOTOGRAPHS: GALLO/GETTYIMAGES.COM15

EXPERT OPINIONS

FAST FACT

A recent study found that many genes linked with intelligence are located on the X-chromosome. Having two copies of the chromosome doesn’t make you cleverer, though. Sorry girls!

WHAT’S YOUR INTELLIGENCE?

IQ tests alone no longer have the fi nal say. Take a free online test to fi nd your strongest intelligence.

Click to <www.intelligencetest.com> or <www.allthetests.com>.

what is intelligence1.indd 3 3/26/08 12:16:51 PM

16

DEFINING INTELLIGENCE

DID YOU KNOW?

Einstein’s brain was slightly smaller than the average person’s, but the area important for spatial

reasoning and maths was wider than normal. It also looks like his brain

lacked a specifi c groove found in most people’s brains – scientists think this improved communication

between different parts of his brain.

WORD SMART is having a way with words,

making them say exactly what you mean. Poets, writers,

journalists and editors tend to be language intelligent.

MUSIC SMART

is to have the world as your symphony. You can recognise

tones and understand pitch and rhythm patterns. Composers, musicians, instrument tuners and DJs usually have high

musical intelligence.

PICTURE SMART is to see objects from

another angle and to have a feel for their position in a space. Spatial thinkers are usually good

architects, graphic designers, photographers, landscapers

and surgeons.

SELF SMART is to know yourself pretty well. You’re likely to be

independent, determined and happy to be on your own.

Entrepreneurs, researchers and actors often fi t this bill.

PEOPLE SMART

is to be a people’s person. You usually make friends easily, love being with other people and understand their feelings. Psychologists, doctors, nurses, teachers and social workers are

usually good at this.

LOGIC SMART is to be good at solving

problems, seeing patterns and making connections between

concepts. Programmers, scientists, mathematicians, accountants

and engineers are usually logical thinkers.

BODY SMART is to be aware of your body movements. You have good

hand-eye coordination and love physical activity. Dancers, athletes and lifeguards are

clever in this way.

You d

on’t h

ave to be an academic genius to be considered intelligent. In which of these areas are you the strongest link?

Multiple intelligences

Take the EQ quiz on page 20.

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SMART READ

Are we getting smarter?In the mid 1980s an intelligence researcher, Prof James Flynn, noticed that world IQ scores seemed to be on the rise. Are

we really cleverer than our great-grandfathers? There are convincing arguments either way. You be the judge. • Not only one number counts. Final IQ consists of various scores.

Dr Raegan Murphy of the Department of Applied Psychology at the University of Cork says IQ scores may be pushed up by tests that don’t measure only general intelligence. ‘So it’s likely a case of specifi c abilities improving,

rather than getting smarter altogether.’• It’s a bit one-sided. Not all people’s IQ scores are

rising. The distribution of a population’s IQ scores forms a bell-shaped curve. About two-thirds are around the middle, while the rest form the tails above and below. Reports have shown that it is mostly IQs at the lower end of the bell that are rising; upper-end scores seem quite stable.

• Technological advantage. Some scientists believe that continuous exposure to technology strengthens specifi c skills that often form part of an IQ test. ‘People are probably getting test-wise, which is partly a learnt skill,’ says Dr Murphy.

• End of the road. Reports have shown that IQ scores have stopped rising in some countries since the mid ’90s. In fact, in these countries it looks like they may even be dropping.

• Over-nourished brains. ‘On average humans are getting smarter,’ says Prof. Ian Lewis of UCT. ‘While the genetic blueprint of our

brains has changed very little, in many communities there has been a dramatic improvement in the environment, favouring brain development; our brains are better nourished both before and after birth, and we are exposed to astonishing

opportunities to learn from the experiences of others through schooling, books, media and the Internet.’

• Collective cleverness. Humans have developed the means to distribute information. Even if you don’t know it all, you can tap into someone else’s cleverness to help you work things out.

• Brainy babies. Studies have shown it’s not the volume of grey matter that matters, but the way it develops. Chances are that if you’re a bright baby, you will seek out stimulating surroundings. This input feeds back to your brain to help strengthen developing neural paths even further.

• Instant thoughts. To survive in today’s complex society we have to think on our feet. Our brains have adapted to being bombarded with information, making sense of it and repackaging it for output, all in an instant.

YESNO

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INTELLIGENT CELEBS

NATALIE PORTMAN

She skipped the premiere of The Phantom Menace to write her fi nal high-school exams and earn a place at Harvard. Here she was

a research assistant in a psychology lab. By the time she graduated, she had published two papers in scientifi c journals and could speak six languages.

BRYAN ‘DEXTER’

HOLLAND

Dexter graduated as valedictorian from his high school, and went on to earn a masters degree in

molecular biology from the University of Southern California. He was on his way to earning a PhD when he dropped out to become an idol for The Offspring.

KERISHNIE NAIKER

Kerishnie has an honours degree in Pharmaceutics from the University of Durban Westville, and was on her way to obtaining

a masters degree when family tragedy forced her to quit. After winning Miss SA, she dedicated her time and pharmaceutical expertise to the fi ght against TB.

Whether or not we’re getting smarter, the bottom line is we are quite smart to start with. How we use our cleverness is a different matter altogether. Garth Zietsman, national testing offi cer of MENSA South Africa, says: ‘Too often cleverness is wasted. Make the best of your gift by focusing on something that inspires you.’

17

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18

ANIMAL INTELLIGENCE

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hen applied to animals, intelligence describes the mental capacity of animals to use information from their surroundings to allow them the best chance of survival. Specifi c abilities that indicate intelligence include learning, memory, sensory perception, communication, problem solving, tool use and self awareness. Recognising animal intelligence as a true form of intelligence helps us to improve our understanding of what intelligent behaviour involves.

Research from the last 50 years or so suggests that the wise old owl will probably have to step down as the king of clever.

CLEVER CREATURESAnimals defi nitely are smart – ‘How smart?’ and ‘Smart how?’ are the questions facing us.

Scientists study brain structure, the ratio of brain weight to body weight, and behaviour

on specifi c intellectual tasks to determine how clever an animal is. Although there’s no single test that applies to all animals, combining information from such studies shows that apes like chimpanzees and gorillas are probably the cleverest

animals around. Monkeys and dolphins follow closely in second and third

position respectively.

WARNING: ANIMALS USED IN EXPERIMENTS The terms ‘lab rat’ and ‘guinea pig’ have become synonymous with medical research – with good reason. Mammals like these are biologically similar to humans and are often prone to similar health problems. They are thus likely to respond to medicines in a similar way we would. Mice are especially good candidates for testing safety and effi cacy of new medicines because they have short life cycles and the effects can thus be tracked during different life stages. Genetically, chimpanzees are our closest animal relatives and their behaviour offers valuable insight when it comes to cognitive research. But animals are not selected lightly for research. Animal studies are only performed if there is no other option, and then only according to very strict ethical guidelines.

TOP OF THE CLASS The clever things animals do continue to amaze us. • In a study of the ability of chimpanzees to communicate, a chimp

called Washoe mastered American Sign Language to

communicate with scientists at the Chimpanzee and Human

Communication Institute at the Central University of Washington.

• Even more amazing is a young chimp at the same laboratory. Loulis was adopted by Washoe’s family and picked up on signing without any human instruction.

• Alex, an African Grey parrot at Brandeis University in Massachusetts, had a vocabulary of more than 100 English words that he could use and understand correctly. He could also count.

• In Japan, crows have been seen placing walnuts in front of waiting cars at a traffi c light and then returning to the pavement. Once the cars have driven off, the birds retrieve the cracked nuts.

• Bottlenose dolphins off the western Australian coast have been seen to place sea sponges over their beaks to protect them from spiky sea urchins when they’re foraging in shallow sea beds. Very, very clever.

w

FAST FACT

An adult human brain weighs about 1,4 kg. An elephant brain tips the scale at about 4,7 kg.

animal intelligence.indd 1 3/20/08 1:58:18 PM

1 A friend borrowed something of yours that is very special to you. You’ve asked for it to be returned, but you haven’t got it back yet. You:

a. let it go. Friendship is more important than material items.

b. ignore your friend until he or she returns the item.

c. admit to your friend how important the item is to you and why you’d like it back.

2 You’re walking down the street, suddenly trip, and almost land fl at on your face. Do you:

a. turn red with embarrassment, put your head down, start walking and hope no-one noticed?

b. regain your poise, laugh at yourself and continue on your way?

c. get mad and swear at ‘the idiot’ who put the stone there?

3 You are on a fi rst date, and you notice that your date seems very uncomfortable. You:

a. make an effort to get your date involved in a conversation and fi nd out more about him or her.

b. assume the person isn’t interested in you and start fl irting with someone across the room.

c. start to wonder if there is something wrong with you. BY

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You might ace your tests and exams but do you r

Emotional intelligence is how well you understand your emotions and those of others, and how you act in social situations (are you supersmooth or loser-ish?). In the past a person’s IQ was thought to be the best measure of their potential, but now research has discovered that your EQ (or Emotional Intelligence Quotient) is responsible for as much as 80% of your success. To fi nd your EQ, tick your responses and add up your scores.

4 You were hoping to make captain of the hockey team but the position was given to someone else. Do you:

a. lock yourself in the bathroom and cry about it?

b. obsess over what the other person had that you didn’t and compare yourself to him or her?

c. continue to do your best, knowing that your turn may come next season?

5 You’re hanging out with a group of friends and one of them starts to gossip about a friend who isn’t there. Do you:

a. add a few negative comments of your own?

b. keep quiet and don’t say anything?c. tell your friends you don’t feel

comfortable gossiping about someone who isn’t there and change the subject?

6 Your best friend has just been dumped and is taking it rather hard. You:

a. ask your friend what you can do to help him or her get through this.

b. start to worry about your own relationship and whether you too might get dumped.

c. take your friend out for a fun night to help take his or her mind off the break-up.

DO YOU KNOW YOURSELF?

20

EQ quiz.indd 2 3/20/08 1:59:16 PM

QUIZ

u really ‘get’ yourself and other people? Find out …

DID YOU KNOW?

EQ is measured in a variety of ways but psychologists prefer a test

developed by Dr Reuven Bar-On called the Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory

(EQ-i). You rate your response to 133 statements on a scale of 1 to 5;

a scientifi c formula is then applied to determine

your EQ .WHICH IS THE GREATER GIFT?Is a high IQ or a high EQ more important? Join our Forum discussion under General Discussions at <www.hip2b2.com>.

SCORE

1. a = 1; b = 0; c = 22. a = 1; b = 2; c = 03. a = 2; b = 0; c = 14. a = 1; b = 0; c = 25. a = 0; b = 1; c = 26. a = 2; b = 0; c = 1

HOW DID YOU SCORE?

0 - 4

It’s time to tune in to your own feelings and those of the people around you. This will help you manage your emotions. If you battle to control yourself in stressful situations or if you are easily upset it may be a good idea to see a school guidance teacher or psychologist. This doesn’t mean there is something wrong with you; it simply means you may need someone to talk to.

5 - 8

Although you do care about other people and respond well in some situations, you need to watch that you don’t focus too much on yourself. It is far more important to live with integrity, sticking to your own principles and values, than to look for your friends’ approval. In the end your friends might not always like what you have to say, but when you stand for what is right, you will earn their respect.

9 - 12

This is a great score and it seems that you are emotionally balanced. You respond well during social interactions and take other people’s feelings into consideration when making decisions. Take a look at where you scored fewer than 2 points to highlight areas where you may need to work a bit on how you deal with specifi c situations. If you scored a perfect 12 (and were honest about your answers!) you are a well-rounded and mature young adult. Well done.

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The term ‘artifi cial intelligence’ was coined by Stanford computer scientist John McCarthy in 1956 and defi ned as the science and engineering of making intelligent machines. Artifi cial intelligence (AI) is also the name given to the study and design of intelligent agents (affectionately known as robots or programs).

According to Alan Turing, one of the founders of the computer age, ‘If a machine acts as intelligently as a human being, then it is as intelligent as a human being.’ Simply put, if it seems to be intelligent in the way we think of ourselves as intelligent, there’s no reason for us to call it anything else.

For agents (let’s use robots in this example) to be considered intelligent, they need to exhibit planning and learning skills. Planning means robots must be able to set goals and strive to achieve them. If the goal is to make a cup of tea, the robot

needs to know when the water has boiled and must predict what will happen if a tea bag is dunked in the water once it has boiled. Learning refers to the ability of intelligent agents to modify behaviour based on past experience. If the robot took the tea bag out too soon last time and the tea wasn’t very good, next time it would need to try something different.

AI researchers also work on giving agents other human properties, like the ability to read and understand human language, how to move and manipulate things (this relates specifi cally to robotics), and even social intelligence (see page 20). The Holy Grail of AI researchers is to design an agent that displays greater general intelligence – all the skills above – than that of humans. But that’s a long way off. For now you can still feel secure that, all in all, you’re probably smarter than your computer.

We’ve come to a degree of acceptance that machines can ‘think’. So is it man against machine?

Machines with brains

art intelligence.indd 2 3/26/08 12:15:20 PM

COMPUTER CHATROOM One way to determine whether a computer is truly intelligent was proposed in 1950 by Alan Turing. The Turing Test goes like this: a human ‘judge’ holds a ‘conversation’ with one machine and another human being, and tries to determine which is which. If the judge can’t fi gure it out, the machine passes the test. The conversation should be limited to some form of text-only channel. For example, these days instant messaging, email or IRC (Internet relay chat) would be ideal, with the three conversationalists in separate rooms (or even on separate continents).

A problem with this test is that it’s incredibly easy to fool naive judges, and practically impossible to fool discerning ones. A program might convince a teenager that he or she is talking to a psychologist by asking a lot of emotion-related questions and responding with vague encouragements, but might be less capable of convincing a professional (human) psychologist.

More importantly, the Turing Test doesn’t evaluate intelligence as much as the ability to mimic human conversational abilities. So it can’t quite tell us whether a machine is intelligent or not, but at least it opens the communication channels between humans and intelligent agents.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

CHECKMATE: CHESS IN AI Chess has almost always been a big part of AI. In 1947, before there were true computers, Alan Turing (yep, him again) designed the fi rst chess-playing program, testing it out on himself using pen and paper. Four years later, Dr Dietrich Prinz wrote the fi rst chess program, a limited one that couldn’t even play a full game.

By the end of the 1960s, chess programs were good enough to win occasionally against amateur

players. By 1988, the supercomputer Deep Thought could beat a chess grandmaster.

And in 1997 Garry Kasparov, then world champion of competitive chess and

possibly the greatest human ever to play the game, lost to IBM’s supercomputer Deep Blue II.

Since then, chess programmers have created programs that use what might be described as true intelligence – almost cleverness – to battle their human opponents. Nowadays, chess programs that are far less powerful (but more intelligent) than Deep Blue are the

top-ranked players in the world. Just goes to show that it’s not the

size of the memory banks that counts.

23

CHESS AND THE TURK

In 1770, a chess machine called The Turk was introduced, and went on to tour Europe and beat master chess players. Eighty-fi ve years later, Edgar Allen Poe discovered the secret behind its success: a skilled human player hidden in the box beneath the Turk.

TWINKINTELLIGENCE

In 1995, scientists at Rice University, Texas, conducted a Turing Test on some Twinkies (that’s the American version of the sweet treat) and concluded that ‘Twinkies are not sentient in any way we can understand.’

ANANT THE CHESS CHAMP

HIP2B2 Brand Ambassador, Anant Dole, is a national chess champion. Read his blog in

the Brand Ambassadors section under HIP2B2 at <www.hip2b2.com>.

art intelligence.indd 3 3/26/08 12:15:33 PM

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HUMANOIDS: WALK LIKE A MAN Humanoid robots are built to resemble human beings: two arms, two legs, a head, sometimes even a face. They imitate the physical performance of humans – they walk, they jump, they dance.

The most advanced humanoid robot around today is Honda’s ASIMO (Advanced

Step in Innovative Mobility). This little guy can walk, run, dance, climb

stairs, and even run at 3 km/h, which is fast for a 1,2 m-tall robot. Various kinds of recognition

technology enable it to recognise and distinguish between moving objects, faces, sounds, potential hazards, gestures – and it’s

at least as capable of using these skills to stay out of trouble

as an average teenager. ASIMO can even connect to the Internet to provide news and weather

updates.If you really want one,

there are over 40 ASIMO units around today, some of which are available for hire at around a million rand!

WHY ASIMO WALKS FUNNY If you see ASIMO walk, you’ll fi nd he shuffl es along with an odd bent-kneed gait. One reason for this is that it doesn’t use its vision to help it walk. This is like

Robots and AIA robot is any machine that performs humanlike tasks, automatically or on command.

Some are for fun; others for saving lives.

trying to fi nd your way to the bathroom in the middle of the night with your lights off – walk slowly and carefully or suffer the consequences.

WARBOTS: TIN SOLDIERS Robots are ideal for situations that are too dangerous for humans, such as wars. They were used extensively in the aftermath of 9/11, with the fall of the World Trade Center, to search for people.

One of the most interesting warbots being developed is the 1,83 m-tall Battlefi eld Extraction-Assist Robot (BEAR to its friends), that can carry more than

200 kg in its arms, can kneel down to gently

scoop up a wounded soldier, and has computer-controlled gyroscopes to help it stay upright. Also important is

the development of LANdroids, tiny robots

that can be dispersed to form a wireless radio

communications network in the fi eld. The invasion of Iraq saw a marked

increase in the use of warbots, including search-and-rescue robots, reconnaissance bots, bomb-disposal units and even independent attack units. In fact, 4 000 robots were serving in the US military in April 2007 – this means that approximately 1 in every 355 personnel in the military was a robot.

17th and 18th century: Many philosophers speculate about the possibility of intelligent devices, some as metaphor for what it means to be human (René Descartes), some as a means of using rules of logic to settle debates (Blaise Pascal).1822: Charles Babbage invents his difference engine, a machine that could store and manipulate numbers (that is, calculate).1863: Samuel Butler writes his essay ‘Darwin among the machines’, about the idea that machines could evolve intelligence by natural selection.1950: Alan Turing publishes the landmark paper ‘Computing machinery and intelligence’, putting forward ideas that are to guide AI research for decades to come.1956: The founding fathers of AI, John McCarthy, Marvin Minsky, Allen Newell and Herbert Simon come together at the Dartmouth College Conference to launch AI as a viable fi eld of research. 1963: Edward Feigenbaum and Julian Feldman publish Computers and Thought, the fi rst book collecting descriptions of working AI programs.1997: The world’s best chess player loses to the computer Deep Blue II.2007: Polaris, the world-champion poker program, loses to human poker professionals.

Heard about the robot who ran away from his owner? Read all about it in the Robotics section at <www.hip2b2.com>. Want to learn how to build your own robot and take that fi rst step towards mad-scientist status? Visit the Society of Robots at <www.societyofrobots.com>.

INTELLIGENCE, ARTIFICIALLY: A TIMELINE

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ROBOTICSINTELLIGENT CAREERS

What kind of robots do you work on? We’re one of

16 teams worldwide taking part in the RoboCup World Cup in China (July 2008) in the new humanoid standard

platform robot soccer league. We’re also involved

in other leagues, such as the RoboCup F180 (small-size league)

and RoboCup Rescue. The rescue robot is designed to be deployed in areas that are dangerous for humans. What will the role of

robots be in 50 years’ time? They’ll be doing

the drudge work that humans don’t want to do any more: vacuuming, mowing the lawn, washing the dishes, driving cars, building stuff. Humans will still have to do ‘intelligent’ tasks – there’ll still be plenty of work around, it’ll just be a different kind of work. Will we ever see that robot rebellion science fi ction has been promising? A robot rebellion would require a certain level of awareness; we’d only really have to worry if some AI system becomes truly self-aware. If that happened, its happiness about being a slave would drop off quite considerably, and we’d have a problem on our hands, both in ethical and political terms. But we’re a long way away from that.The coolest robot around? GMP: The little Sony QRIO robot – it’s a little humanoid robot that can run, throw a ball, dance and so on. Really cool.

SM: In terms of coolness factor, I’d agree, but what the Mars Rovers are capable of doing is simply amazing. They can independently explore other planets. Now that’s impressive.Advice to aspiring roboticists? Building a robot is a highly skilled task, that requires diverse talents. If you want to work in robotics, you must do well in maths and science, and computer science would be an advantage. Most importantly, you must be disciplined, have a good dose of creativity and an open mind.

Dr Graeme McPhillips and Dr Stephen Marais, Intentional Agents and Robotics Lab, Cape Town

Graeme McPhillips,

Senior Lecturer

Stephen Marais,

Chief Scientifi c Offi cer

Professor of Zoology, Dr Justin O’Riain

What does your job entail? It’s the study of how the ecology and behaviour of an

animal contributes to its survival and reproduction.

What are your research interests? I’ve studied the naked mole rat, the world’s ugliest but arguably most social mammal, and the Kalahari meerkat, which is much cuter. At present I’m researching the Cape Peninsula baboon population.The smartest animal? There’s a border collie living in Germany that appears to outsmart traditional animal boffi ns such as dolphins and chimpanzees when it comes to understanding human language. There’s also a crow that can make tools to get at elusive food items – so much for being bird-brained!How do you measure intelligence in animals? Is a crow that can make a tool to get food more intelligent than a dolphin that uses a sponge to protect its beak when looking for food in areas with sharp objects? Biologists can only infer true problem-solving ability, one of the hallmarks of human intelligence. Intelligent animals in zoos: right or wrong? It’s important not to put animals hard-wired to travel fast or over great distances (such as eagles, cheetahs and wild dogs) in zoos, irrespective of intelligence. On the other hand, humans are supposedly intelligent yet are happy to confi ne themselves to a couch provided they are stimulated (TV) and have access to food (chips) and mates. Career advice? You must enjoy the outdoors and fi nd animal behaviour fascinating. Ecotourism is a huge industry and it thrives on fi rst-hand experiences of people who’ve spent time exposing the secret lives of the animal kingdom.

TigerBot Explorer Robot

Watch the fascinating feature on robots on the HIP2B2 TV show at 16:30 on Monday, 26 May, on SABC 2.

MIA Rescue Robot

BEHAVIOURAL ECOLOGY

intelligent careers.indd 1 3/20/08 2:00:48 PM

W H Y PA I N I S A G O O D T H I N GImagine you couldn’t feel pain. Sound good? Think again. Pain is more useful than you think. Its most important function is to let you know when something’s wrong. Some people are born with a rare genetic mutation that makes them immune to pain. This is called congenital insensitivity

to pain with anhidrosis, or CIPA. Most people born this way die young, not because they’re overly clumsy or cut their own limbs off – they die of overheating. Their bodies don’t feel the

discomfort of heat and they don’t take steps to cool themselves down.

FAST FACT

You are born with all the brain cells you will ever need. During the fi rst three years of life there is an explosion of connectivity in the brain as you start to make sense of the world around you. As you grow older, neurons you don’t use are pruned away. Glial cells are responsible for removing the dead neurons.

Ouch! That hurts Ever wondered what happens when you stub your toe? Probably more than you think.

body science toe2.indd 2 3/20/08 2:01:59 PM

D O E F ! Between the moment you stub your toe and the instant you yell out loud, there’s a whole chain reaction. Firstly, nociceptors (no-see-sep-ters), the tiny nerve endings concentrated in areas prone to injury like fi ngers and toes, react (1). Big time. They send an electrochemical signal up to the nerves in your leg.

P E R I P H E R A L N E RV O U S S Y S T E M ( P N S ) Your body contains an intricate network of peripheral nerves that pass electrochemical messages from your body via your spinal cord to the brain. Nerves are made from neurons. There are tiny spaces between each neuron called synapses. Messages are passed between these synapses by special chemicals called neurotransmitters. To move any muscle in your body, for example, you use a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine. In this case, the pain message passes along peripheral nerves in your leg (2) to your spinal cord and brain.

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MBODY SCIENCE

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C E N T R A L N E RV O U S S Y S T E M ( C N S ) Your central nervous system consists of the spinal cord – the main nerve network that runs up your spine – and your brain; it is protected by bone (your spine and your skull), but it isn’t just made up of neurons, though. About half the CNS is made up of glial cells, support cells that look after the neurons by feeding and protecting them. The nerve fi bres that transmit pain messages enter the spinal cord (3) where they release neurotransmitters that activate other nerve cells in the spinal cord (4), which process and transmit the information up to the brain.

T H A L A M U S The news of your stubbed toe arrives at the thalamus (5). Found right in the middle of your brain, the thalamus controls everything from your senses to movement. Scientists think it also acts like a ‘distributor’ of signals to other parts of the brain.

R E F L E X A refl ex is an immediate, unconscious reaction to physical stimuli. The brain sends signals back down through your neurons to protect your injured toe.

R E A C T I O N If the damage is really bad, and your toe starts to bleed, in addition to the simple refl ex of jumping around on one leg, the cells in the impact area will also release a number of chemicals and hormones to allow you to cope with the trauma. For example, the brain and spinal cord (6) will release opioids to ease the pain, and the damaged cells in the toe (7) will release prostaglandins (causing blood to clot) and potassium (calling more neurons to action).

B O T T O M L I N E ‘AAAARGH!’ You clutch your toe, and stumble about, probably saying words we won’t print in this magazine.

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DID YOU KNOW?

You have no nociceptors in some of your internal organs or in your elbows – try pinching them.

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Feeling lost?

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CARTESIAN COORDINATES are an integral part of modern mathematics. A cartesian plane is defi ned by two perpendicular number lines (that is, they meet at 90º to each other): the horizontal x-axis and the vertical y-axis. Using these axes, you can describe any point in the plane using an ordered pair of numbers.

THE COORDINATES of a point in the plane are measured in relation to a central point, the origin: fi rst along the x-axis and then along the y-axis. The cartesian plane is divided into four quadrants, numbered anti-clockwise from I to IV. Points that lie on an axis (that is, those which have at least one coordinate equal to 0) are said not to be in any quadrant. Coordinates of the form (x; 0) lie on the horizontal x-axis, and coordinates of the form (0; y) lie on the vertical y-axis.

GREAT ADVICE When working out gradients, remember another word for gradient is slope. There are two main components to a slope. Imagine a ramp. The greater the height of the ramp, the steeper it is, but if the ramp’s length is stretched out, the slope becomes less steep. So slopes need two important bits of information, namely height and length.

Start by getting your equation into standard form (y = mx + c) and then look at m. So for example, y = x + 4 is standard form. m means you have a height of 2 and a length of 5 units. When compared to m = , you will see the slope is shallow. However, if the slope is , then clearly this would be steep. Don’t forget the sign of the gradient will tell you which direction the line should go: a positive means the line will move towards the direction of the top right-hand corner of your graph; if it’s negative, it will move towards the bottom right-hand corner.

When two lines are parallel to each other, their gradients will be equal. When two lines are perpendicular to each other, their gradients will be inverted and the sign is swapped (for example, m = - and m = 2).

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2gentle slope

5

2steep slope

Cartesian planes are your best navigator

y

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(0; 0)

(-4,5; -4,5)

( ; -3)

y = x+c y =- x+c y = x+c

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QUESTIONSIN THE REAL WORLD Cartesian coordinates are used just about everywhere in everyday life. Here are just a few examples:• Wheelchair ramps are installed in all newer

buildings. If your gradient (slope) is not calculated correctly, wheelchair users could injure themselves. Architects must check that the lengths are greater than the heights to ensure the right angles.

• Cartesian coordinates are used to plot information on graphs – useful for comparative analysis.

• You use coordinates on a map to locate an address, or pinpoint a location.

• GPS units make use of lines of latitude and longitude to identify your location.

SOLUTIONS

31

QUESTION 2

Find the equation of graph 1 that is perpendicular to graph 2, whose equation is y = x – 5 and goes through the point (4;5).

QUESTION 3

Find the point of intersection of the two straight lines y = 3x – 9 and y = -4x + 2.

QUESTION 1

State the coordinates of each of the points shown on the cartesian plane:

TRY THIS AT SCHOOL

Look at the mechanics of making your school wheelchair friendly. Look at the steepness of the ramps and fi nd out what the building regulations are that control how steep a ramp should be. Can you fi nd innovative ways of making a ramp more shallow?

CARTESIANS

ON THE CEILING

René Descartes, born in 1596, is known as the Father of Modern

Mathematics. It is alleged that one night while he was lying in bed he noticed a fl y walking around the ceiling and thought to

himself, ‘How can I best describe the location of the fl y on my ceiling?’ Descartes decided

to describe the spot using the shortest distance from two perpendicular walls. That night the cartesian

coordinates were born.

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QUESTION 1

• A is (3; 2) • B is (5; 5) • C is (7; 8) • D is (–6; 5) • E is (–3; 7) • F is (–4; –6) • G is (–8; –8) • P is (9; –9) • Q is (6; –5)

QUESTION 2

Graph 1: y = mx + cy = x + c (since m has its sign swapped and is inverted)Now substitute the points (4;5) into this equation to fi nd c5 = (4) + c5 = - + cc = – c = -

Therefore, the fi nal equation is y = -x –

QUESTION 3

The point of intersection is the coordinates where the two graphs are equal. This is the one dot that both graphs share.

Make both graphs equal to each other, fi nd the value of x and then put this value into either equation and it will give you the corresponding y-value.3x – 9 = -4x + 27x = 11x = Therefore, using the fi rst equation:y = 3 () – 9

= – = -

The point of intersection is (; )

smart maths.indd 3 3/26/08 3:18:05 PM

Go frontside 360

Skateboarding has no thrill without a ramp. Use your knowledge of cartesian planes to build your own ramp.

sport science 2 3/26/08 12:00:37 PM

In reality, the ramp would take the shape of a parabola or hyperbola. Click to the Out There section at <www.hip2b2.com> or visit <www.ramprage.com>.

33

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efore you source the materials to build a ramp and follow the design, there are a few considerations.

DECIDE WHAT TYPE OF RAMP YOU WANT There are plenty of websites that offer free ramp designs for download. If you’re making a wooden ramp you’ll need some heavy power tools – make sure you get help from a relative with the equipment you need. STORAGE A ramp can’t stay in the driveway or lounge all the time. Find a safe place to store it. DESIGN IT How big do you want the jump? How much wood will you need? What sort of budget are you working with? Are you storing it indoors or out? Be smart and consult with your local skate shop – they’ll give you invaluable advice. SIZE COUNTS Work out how large you want the base (bottom) to be and then add a few centimetres at the base so you can have extra centimetres in depth at the top. Calculate the dimensions: how long, wide and tall will it be. If it’s a jump ramp then it will probably be small. SKETCH Draw a sketch on the plywood of the basic curve of your ramp and add an extra fl at spot at the top, a little shorter and a little longer for distance, and taller for height.

WORK IT OUT From a graph point of view, you’ll notice that the gradient is not exactly along a straight line, since it is curved slightly. We can determine a rough estimate of the gradient by looking at the length of the base (167,8 cm) and the height (59 cm). Using the formula for gradient: m = = change in height change in length

m = 59 cm 167,8 cm

= 0,35 cm

As you know, this is close to , which is a gentle gradient – this makes sense when building a ramp. If the ramp was much higher, then the gradient would be steeper and this would make your launch more diffi cult. You can actually draw this ramp on a cartesian plane; this will help you to easily visualise it.

START BUILDINGHelpful hints:

• Screws are better than nails – they’ll stay in place longer.

• To better visualise your ramp, you can use 3D-modelling software to design your ramp and place

a mock-up of it in your backyard. Check out Google’s free Sketchup software.

• Warning: be sure you have a safe location and a sturdy ramp. Taking the time to make

the ramp correctly will result in better performance and safety.

1. 2 x 200 cm-long by 122 cm-wide by 1,9 cm-thick sheets of plywood (and once these have been placed you can cut off the excess as more surface will be used for the hypotenuse of the right-angled triangle)

2. 7 x 118,2 cm-long by 8,9 cm-deep by 3,8 cm-wide wooden struts

3. 2 x 167,8 cm-long by 59 cm-wide by 0,95 cm-thick sheets of plywood

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yx

The delta symbol is commonly used in mathematics to mean ‘difference’ or ‘change’.

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34

MATHS IN ACTION

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Biometrics = the science of measuring life.Go bio-llistic for statistics

For example, architects and designers use statistics to make sure everything from the houses we live in and chairs we sit on to the sports equipment we use are designed to fi t our bodies. The Medical Research Council Biostatistics Unit uses biological statistics to keep track of the HIV pandemic, choose the correct treatment plans for illnesses and even to monitor our environment to ensure we have clean water. When it comes to agriculture, biometrics has helped in the development of new plant cultivars that are resistant to disease and are available all year round. In forestry, statistical data is used to manage delicate ecosystems that have come under threat due to global warming and deforestation.

Biostatisticians are highly sought after. With a planet in crisis, illnesses that are becoming drug resistant and huge discoveries on the horizon in the science sphere, these biological number crunchers are the key to our future.

LOCAL BENEFITS

In South Africa, biological statistics are used in sea fi sheries, nature conservation and many more areas of interest. Annalene Sadie from the University of Stellenbosch says the methods used by biometricians are adopted frequently in business, engineering and even education. She says that most people who venture into biometrics start off with an interest in the biological sciences and then discover the exciting world of statistics. The rest is history.

FAST FACT

Biological data on human measurements is used in the clothing manufacturing industry so that clothes are made to a standard number of sizes.

the Greek roots of the word biometrics and you get bios – ‘life’ and metron – ‘measure’. If you want to be fancy you could call it biological statistics. The International Biometrics Society defi nes it as applying mathematical and statistical methods to the biological sciences.

In a nutshell, it’s using maths, equations and lots of facts to help understand and analyse data in areas such as medicine, agriculture and wildlife conservation. (There’s a second fi eld of biometric study, focusing on identifying people through physical or behavioural traits ... but that’s for another issue.)

The earliest form of biometrics was called anthropometry. Anthropometry involves using body measurements to study human physical variations. It was used in Europe in the late 19th and early 20th century to identify criminals. Unfortunately, this ended up being misused as a statistical means of attempting to prove that certain races were inferior to others.

NUMBER CRUNCHING

So why should we care about long lists of numbers, banks of data and decades’ worth of research that proves, for example, that global warming is really happening? It’s quite simple: the numbers don’t lie. And without even knowing it, we are affected by the application of biometrics every day.

Explore

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Flaky skin, stretchmarks or acne ruining your

looks? Help is at hand.

When your skin turns

against you ...

body smart.indd 2 3/20/08 2:05:04 PM

BODY SMART

FAST FACT

Ever seen those tiny white bumps that babies have around their noses? That’s a type of acne called milia.

ECZEMA No, it’s not a rare type of fungus. Eczema is a skin condition that causes your skin to become red, itchy and irritated, and it may even ooze. It happens when your body produces an immune reaction (or allergic reaction) to something around you that it sees as a threat. All sorts of chemical signals are transmitted,

ACNE All over the surface of our skin are tiny pores that secrete an oily substance called sebum. The secretion of sebum is a natural occurrence, but during puberty (due to raging hormones) your oil glands secrete excessive amounts of sebum.

When your pores get clogged up by excess sebum it creates a haven for bacteria to breed in, causing zits to appear. A whitehead appears when this bacteria-fi lled sebum stays just below the surface of the skin. A blackhead occurs when the sebum-fi lled pore is slightly open and turns black because of melanin (your body’s pigment) and exposure to the sun.

ACTION PLAN

In general you should wash your face twice a day (and no, dude, 100 times a day isn’t going to help) with an oil-free or medicated cleanser. Look out for the term ‘noncomedogenic’ as this means it won’t clog your pores and aggravate acne.

Serious acne is a different story and needs to be treated. Ask your family doctor to refer you to a dermatologist, who’ll prescribe medication suitable for your skin.

resulting in infl ammation (the process that causes swelling and redness). It’s quite common (1 in 10 people experience eczema).

ACTION PLAN

Try to fi gure out what triggers your eczema and then avoid it – if you can. In most cases your doctor will be able to help you with treatments like an ointment that helps reduce the itching and stops the reaction.

The hard part about suffering from eczema isn’t only the fact that you’re embarrassed to walk around with red patches behind your knees, but it’s also very frustrating to be itchy all the time. Get your mind off your itch by joining in on school activities – this may even combat stress, which could be causing your eczema in the fi rst place.

STRETCHMARKS Stretchmarks occur when your skin is stretched suddenly because of growth spurts or rapid weight gain. The layer of skin just under the surface thins and tears, and the blood vessels that lie just beneath show through. Eventually the reddish-purple colour of these marks fades to a whitish colour.

When you hit a growth spurt in your teen years, your skin can’t keep up with the pace of growth and stretchmarks can appear. For guys it is often on the shoulders (as they get broad and hunky) and for girls on the thighs, the hips and even the breasts.

CLOVER FACT

The nutrients in milk help to give you a glowing complexion. Clover competition question: which vitamin listed on our centrefold found in a glass of milk maintains healthy sight and skin? See the centrefold for competition details. Email your answer to <hip2b2@newmediapub.co.za>.

DID YOU KNOW?

Up to 70 per cent of children with eczema grow out of it by their mid-teens. Hold thumbs.

SOLAR KERATOSIS This shows up as small lumps on the skin caused by excessive sun exposure. Keratosis refers to the excessive keratin produced by the skin as a result of sun damage. The lumps vary in size and colour (from pink to brown), but are usually seen in areas that are frequently exposed to the sun’s rays, such as your face or neck.

The affected areas normally itch or give a prickling sensation. It is not skin cancer – but does have the potential to turn into a malignant skin condition.

ACTION PLAN

Get sun smart. Don’t spend hours at a time in the sun and always avoid the midday sun. Always wear sun block, even when the weather is cloudy, and a wide-brimmed hat. If the lumps get bigger, consult a doctor or dermatologist.

37

ACTION PLAN

Preventing stretchmarks isn’t too hard – just keep your skin well moisturised, exercise and eat a balanced diet. This way you shouldn’t lose or gain weight too rapidly. There are plenty of products on the market that claim to remove stretchmarks, but they don’t do the trick for everyone and they merely minimise the appearance of stretchmarks, not make them disappear completely.

body smart.indd 3 3/20/08 2:05:42 PM

Get a smart subscriptionWhy wait? Have your copy delivered to you hot off the press!

For details on how to subscribe for yourself or your school phone us on 021 417 1218 or visit the Contact Us section at <www.hip2b2.com>.

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INTELLIGENT ENTERTAINMENT

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39

THE DAYS The theme of World Health Day on 7 April is ‘Protecting health from climate change’, so do your bit to take care of our world and your body. • Celebrate our country’s democracy on Freedom Day, 27 April. THE FESTIVAL Grahamstown goes geek with Scifest, from 16 to 22 April. There will be over 600 events, including workshops, sunset shows, science Olympics, laser shows and even a fi lm festival. For more information, check out <www.scifest.org.za>. THE GAME Pimp your PS3 with the latest instalment in the Gran Turismo franchise when it speeds into stores on 3 April. GT5 Prologue doesn’t disappoint with another dose of true-to-life graphics, a choice of up to 80 different cars, four race tracks and an online racing option. THE SHOWS The Sarah Conner Chronicles, which sees the Conners (of Terminator fame) fi ghting against the birth of the evil Skynet, debuts on M-Net on 6 May, just after Mother’s Day (if only our moms were that tough). • A computer geek accidentally downloads important government secrets into his brain, and turns into the secret agent Chuck, premiering on M-Net on 27 May. THE EVENTS The annual Durban Motor Show hits the Durban Exhibition Centre from 10 to 13 April. Enjoy displays of the latest cars on the market as well as a ‘Glow in the Dark’ competition, demonstrations, trick motorcycle riding and a sound off. Cruise to <www.durbanmotorshow.co.za> for all the specs. • MTV and 5FM bring you the Live iT: Urban Lifestyle Experience, showcasing fashion, music, wellness, technology and culture, from 26 to 28 April, Coco-Cola Dome, Northgate, Jozi; <www.liveitjozi.com>. • The DigitalLife Expo 2008 is on at the Sandton Convention Centre from 18 to 20 April. With the latest and greatest gadgets, gizmos and toys, this event aims to allow everyone to experience the digital life. Visit <www.digitallife.co.za>. THE MOVIES In The Nanny Diaries, Scarlett Johansson is Annie Braddock, a college graduate who takes a job as nanny for a wealthy couple with a mischievous son. Her decision has hilarious consequences, and she falls for a guy nicknamed Harvard Hottie. • Imagine having to leave the bright lights of the city to live in a creepy, run-down house deep in the countryside, where strange accidents keep happening and you fi nd yourself pulled into an alternate world full of faeries and other creatures. This is exactly what happens to the Grace family in the fantastical Spiderwick Chronicles. THE CONCERT Catch Louise Carver at the last of the Old Mutual Summer Sunset Concerts at Kirstenbosch in Cape Town on 6 April.

pp opener.indd 1 3/20/08 2:09:49 PM

OPINION: MUSIC Hip Hop Pantsula (aka HHP) shares his thoughts on other lyrical heavies.

I’M CURRENTLY LISTENING TO • Amy Winehouse: ‘Love is a Losing Game’• Keyshia Cole: ‘Losing You’ • Kanye West: ‘Good Life’ • HHP: ‘Waza’ • Prokid: ‘Bazogcwala’.Catch HHP on Rhythm City on eTV from 4 April at 18:30 – starring as himself in 11 episodes.

Like this? Try Usher and, locally, Loyiso and Danny K.

CHRIS BROWN

ExclusiveWhen I fi rst saw this 18-year-old in a music video, his image put me off. He seemed young, good-looking and boy-bandish, and his content was so predictable: all that ‘my girlfriend left me’ stuff. But when he sings, he’s cool, and his music is colourful and textured and contains many different spectrums of sound, ranging from old-school ’80s hip-hop to modern punk-rock infl uences. My favourite song is ‘Hold Up’ – a collaboration with Outkast’s Big Boi. The song-writing and arrangement are bubblegum to the ears, perfect for jogging or travelling.

WYCLEF JEAN

Carnival Vol. IIThis album has made me fall in love with Wyclef’s music all over again. I love artists who break their own mould and broaden their style, which Wyclef does so well; he’s unpredictable. His music has depth and is open to interpretation. It has a worldly feel: he mixes Cuban guitar and percussion with reggae to create a Caribbean-island vibe. There are also electric guitars, giving it a grunge-rock edge. His sound is so diverse – he could collaborate with any artist. My favourite track is ‘What About Baby’.

Like this? Try Gnarls Barkley, Outkast and, locally, 340ml.

LUPE FIASCO

The CoolI’m not one to judge an artist’s new material according to his previous work. That said, many Lupe fans were disappointed with this album, perhaps because he’s approached it from another level. I think it is genius. He’s a wordsmith who turns concepts into songs so well. On ‘Paris, Tokyo’, he sings and raps. The fact that he’s not the world’s best singer is irrelevant; he hits a pitch and holds his audience’s attention. It’s a clever album in that it appeals to both types of hip-hop listeners: the conscious as well as the beat-seekers. For example, ‘Baba says cool for thought’ has a political message but a commercial beat.

Like this? Try Kanye West and, locally, Proverb.

HHP: IN HIS OWN (WISE) WORDS

My recent success is the result of years of hard work. That said, I believe in smart work too, but it’s hard work that gives you experience. Be conscious of every step you take. Learn from yesterday; tomorrow’s not promised to us. Stand your ground, and you won’t fall for anything.An idle mind hardly does any good. Some of my best songs were inspired during maths classes at school. When your mind is occupied with theories and formulas, you open yourself up to other kinds of formulas, like music.Meeting Amerie was amazing. When I was in Germany last year for the EMAs [European Music Awards] I, unbeknown to me, won a viewers’-choice SMS competition, which hooked me up with a well-known international music-video director. I only found out about it, and the fact that Amerie would be in the music video for ‘Music And Lights’, on my return to Jozi. She called me Jabba. She had Googled me to fi nd out what kind of guy I was and noticed that my friends called me Jabba not HHP.On my latest album Acceptance Speech, I could have gone the party route, but Lucky Dube’s sudden death got me thinking: ‘If I die tomorrow, do I have a repertoire I can be proud of?’ And the answer was ‘no’. So I thought ‘if this is my last album, I’ve got to do what I want to do.’ The smartest decision I’ve ever made was to go to varsity. The music industry is run by the people I was at university with – which was a benefi t when I was trying to score a record deal. I’m thinking of going back to study Portuguese or French.

40

pp music1.indd 2 3/26/08 11:41:43 AM

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the scene, hip-hop becomes more than merely black protest music. Female rappers (Lauryn Hill, Salt ’n Pepa and TLC) start spreading messages of safe sex, inner peace and harmony. >>>2000 Bling it on Latino singer Jennifer Lopez gets a ghetto-fabulous makeover and emerges as J.Lo, wearing designer gear, fur and jewels and singing about her material acquisitions. L’il Kim, Missy Elliot, 50 Cent, Usher, Pharrell Williams and LL Cool J, to name a few, hop on board the bling train. Pop stars such as Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears take part in the bling action, collaborating with

hip-hop artists such as The Black Eyed Peas, The Ying Yang Twins and Nelly. >>>2004 The mash-up Hip-hop master Jay-Z collaborates with rap-metal band Linkin Park to create rap-rock. >>>2007 Rapper Nas declares, ‘Hip-hop is dead.’ >>>2008 At the 50th annual Grammy Awards, fi ve-time-award-winner Kanye West performs his latest hit ‘Stronger’ – an electronic-dance hip-hop mash-up featuring a Daft Punk sample – and declares hip-hop is alive and kicking in new and innovative incarnations. Watch this space.

HIP-HOP AND HAPPENING

A TIMELINE OF HIP-HOP (aka rap), a musical genre consisting of a rhythmic style of speaking (or rapping) to the beat of a turntable.

>>>Late 1970s In the beginning … Hip-hop originates in the slums of New York City among impoverished African-American kids as a means of expressing anger and political frustration. >>>1980s Gangsta Rap Hip-hop artists such as KRS-1 and Ice-T are criticised for promoting violence, gangsterism and anti-establishment messages in their lyrics. This causes a fl urry of media attention and ‘gangsta rap’ becomes a huge global industry. >>>1990s The revolution At the forefront of the hip-hop explosion are old-school hip-hop heroes, Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg. Stars, such as Diddy, Tupac, Busta Rhymes and Notorious B.I.G, are born. Hip-hop goes pop When white rappers such as Vanilla Ice and Eminem enter

pp music1.indd 3 3/20/08 2:11:08 PM

., MOVIES

42

AI in fi lm: man vs machine.

Do the phrases ‘Take me to your leader’, ‘Never send a human to do a machine’s job’, or ‘Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated’, mean anything to you? If so, you’ve probably watched 10 or more science-fi ction fi lms by now, and you understand that artifi cial intelligence (AI) is a computer or some other sort of synthetic machine with the ability to think and learn (see page 22). Though the term was coined by John McCarthy in 1956, ‘the science and engineering of making intelligent machines’ has been fl ying around the imaginations of sci-fi writers and fi lmmakers for decades.

LOSING THE HUMAN TOUCH

Science-fi ction author (and scientist) Isaac Asimov is responsible for the stories behind recent AI masterpieces, I, Robot (2004) and The Bicentennial Man (1999). Many of his stories have dealt with AI as a central plot device, and he published the famous The Three Laws of Robotics in 1950, now central to robotic theory within science fi ction in fi lm and literature.

BUT WHO WAS THE FIRST?

One of the fi rst representations of AI in fi lm was in the 1927 movie Metropolis, in which a robotic clone of a human activist is created by the villain in order to control workers on the verge of revolting against an oppressive regime.

One of the central themes of AI in fi lms is the idea of human beings recognising our own destructive tendencies, or those of other biological beings, and then handing over authority to supposedly impartial mechanical or digital systems with the ability to reason.

AI allows fi lmmakers to explore the human fear of our own creations taking over our lives and making us their servants, as shown in the Matrix fi lms. Another classic theme of AI in fi lm is that by creating systems to serve us, we lose our humanity (our ability to care and capacity to love), while our creations strive for humanity.

Director Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is considered one of the most important sci-fi fi lms of our time: the intelligent, self-aware computer HAL turns on its human masters and kills them during a space voyage. Every roboticist’s nightmare.

The robot Maria from Metropolis (1927)

Terminator 2’s T-800 (1991)

pp movies.indd 2 3/20/08 2:12:05 PM

45

• 1927: METROPOLIS Human villain makes robotic clone to control workers’ revolution.

• 1951: THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL Robot acts as ‘interplanetary police offi cer’ in order to prevent war.

• 1965: ALPHAVILLE Supercomputer controls every aspect of human life and one man leads a revolt to free humanity.

• 1968: 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY Supercomputer goes insane during space voyage and attacks human masters.

• 1969: COLOSSUS: THE FORBIN PROJECT Military supercomputer seeks to control planet in order to protect humankind from their own violent tendencies.

• 1982: ANDROID Android servant set to be destroyed defi es humans and fi ghts to survive.

• 1982: BLADERUNNER In the near future, most of the work is done by android Replicants – and they’re not very happy about it.

• 1986: SHORT CIRCUIT Child-like robot seeks acceptance in human society.

• 1991: TERMINATOR 2 Deadly cyborg travels back from the future to eliminate the boy who will one day lead the human resistance in a war against the machines.

• 1995: GHOST IN THE SHELL Law enforcement offi cers track a mysterious hacker in a hi-tech future in which humans, cyborgs and AI coexist.

• 1999: BICENTENNIAL MAN Robotic household servant seeks self-improvement towards achieving humanity.

• 1999: MATRIX AI uses humans as batteries, resulting in a war for liberation.

• 2001: AI – ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE Android child seeks validation of humanity through search for human.

• 2004: I, ROBOT Robot seeks to protect mankind from evil AI.

• 2005: ROBOTS Humanoid robots live their ordinary (to them) lives in a world of machines.

• 2005: STEALTH An experimental artifi cially intelligent fi ghter plane goes crazy and launches a one-robot war on humanity.

TIMELINE OF AI FILMSThe most successful current feature fi lms to use

AI are AI – Artifi cial Intelligence (2001) and I, Robot (2004). But the fourth instalment in The Terminator series is set to start shooting this year, and will once again deal with the story of Skynet, a military computer that achieves self-awareness and decides to destroy humankind as a means to prevent any future war.

These days the most complex limited AI systems can be found in video games in which programs have to cope with a wide variety of possible inputs from players. In fi lms, the fi lmmakers already know what is going to happen in every frame and therefore only need systems that can cope with specifi c parameters – preferable in order to keep costs down.

The truth of the matter is that, in reality, people are still quite far from developing true AI, so the prospect of robot servants or a war between humans and robots is seriously unlikely for the next few decades.BY

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Bicentennial Man (1999)

I Robot, Will Smith (2004)

pp movies.indd 3 3/20/08 2:12:24 PM

ERIN RUTH MAARTENS

Grade 11, St George’s Grammar High

This book is about Adrian Mole, an antihero of sorts: a rather creepy, pseudo-intellectual and socially inept adolescent. There are other subplots throughout the book, such as his relationship with his disobedient dog, his dysfunctional parents, and his relationship with a girl called Pandora. I liked the way the book is written. The voice is authentic and it seems as though he really exists.My favourite part was how Adrian pursued Pandora and how, out of pity more than anything, she ends up going out with him. The series of bizarre things that happen to them is very entertaining. It all seemed very true to the craziness of adolescence.My least favourite character was actually Adrian, though I love him and hate him. He is such a loser. He is more worried about whether he will appear in the newspapers with spots on his face than that he will be in the news because his parents are going to get divorced. I love the fact that he hates smoking; at least in that way he isn’t trying to be cool. If I were writing a secret diary, I’d try to make it funny. Serious books are very taxing. I would also try to portray the eccentricities of everyday life and would try not to idealise it. I suppose my diary would be just as strange as Adrian’s: most people’s lives are strange when you take a closer look. I hope, though, that my diary wouldn’t be as creepy. No ways would I want to be Adrian, not even for fi ve minutes.

JAMES GOWANS

HIP2B2 Brand AmbassadorGrade 11, St George’s Grammar High

The book is about a nerdy, intellectual teenager trying to understand what to do with his life. My least favourite part was when Adrian sent his love poems to the BBC to have them published, and was rejected by a nasty bureaucrat. The poor guy … he poured his heart and soul into those poems.My favourite character was Adrian Mole, of course! I liked him because he always tried to do what was right, made smart decisions, could cook, and ended up with the girl in the end.If I had to write The Secret Diary of James Gowans (Aged 13¾), it would be much the same as Adrian’s, except a lot less interesting. I’m sad to say that when I was 13¾ there were no wars, my mother didn’t run away, I had no dilemmas about the state of society and I was depressingly devoid of the love triangles he had to contend with.I wouldn’t ever want to trade places with Adrian. Although his life was interesting it was rather terrible. I imagine he will land up a rather insecure, eccentric guy later on in his life.What I’ve learned from the book is to not send the BBC my love poems and ask for them to be read on air. It will only end in humiliation. Also, when it’s Mother’s Day, always buy her something special.This was an easy-to-read book. It’s strangely enjoyable to laugh at the misery of a fi ctional character, and misery he certainly had plenty of.

In Sue Townsend’s classic book, Adrian Mole is 13 (and ¾) and in his diary he records the daily struggle of an intellectual (no matter what the BBC says) who has to deal with a crazy mom and an equally crazy dad, helping out senior citizens, and the diffi culties of life, love, dances, bullies, crazy adventures and, most terrifying of all, spots.

Would you like to review a book for us? Write to: HIP2B2 book reviews,

PO Box 440, Green Point 8051 or email: <talk2us@hip2b2.com>.

Please include your name, contact details, address, school and grade.CO

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OPINION: BOOKSThe Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾ by Sue Townsend

pp books.indd 1 3/26/08 12:12:49 PM

IS GAMING BAD FOR YOU?

It doesn’t have to be. In 2002 the UK group, Teachers Evaluating Educational Multimedia (Teem), found that simulation and adventure games like Sim City and RollerCoaster Tycoon actually help gamers develop strategic thinking and planning skills. And in 2003 researchers at New York’s University of Rochester in the USA found that even shoot-’em-up games like Medal of Honor help train your brain to process visual information. But, if you let it get out of hand, gaming can be fatal.

LIKE HOW?

A 2001 study by Japan’s Tohoku University found that while doing maths stimulates the parts of your brain associated with learning, memory and emotion, playing Nintendo only stimulates the parts associated with vision and movement … and it doesn’t do anything for the part of your brain that keeps behaviour in check.

CAN GAMING LEAD TO VIOLENT

ACTIONS IN REAL LIFE?

Sometimes. In 2003 American teen Devin Moore shot and killed three police offi cers after being arrested for driving a stolen car, while Joshua and William Buckner used a rifl e to shoot at vehicles on a Tennessee

GAMES Intelligent gaming Are you in control?

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highway, killing a man and wounding a woman. All three teens said they’d been inspired by Grand Theft Auto III.

SURELY THOSE ARE

JUST ISOLATED CASES?

Ask the Greek government. In 2002, it passed a law banning all electronic games. The law has since been suspended – but they wouldn’t have passed it in the fi rst place if people weren’t having problems with gaming.

LIKE ADDICTION?

Yes, like addiction. And it gets pretty bad. In 2005, a South Korean man Lee Seung Seop died in an Internet café after playing Starcraft for 50 hours, nonstop.

SERIOUSLY?

Yes. And like all addictions, it starts out small, and then – if you let – it gets completely out of hand. Ask Elizabeth Woolley. In 2001, her 21-year-old son Shawn committed suicide while playing Everquest. ‘I think the way the game is written is that when you fi rst start playing it, it is fun,’ she told CBS News. ‘And then the further you get into it, the longer you have to stay on it to move onward, and then it isn’t fun any more. But by then you’re addicted, and you can’t leave it.’

SO CAN IT BECOME LIKE

A DRUG ADDICTION?

‘Addiction is all the same,’

according to German researcher Sabine Grüsser-Sinopoli of Berlin’s Charité Medical University. He reckons that if you start

using any one activity exclusively to deal with

adversity, that activity (let’s call it gaming in this case) will become

the only behaviour that can activate your brain’s dopamine system (dopamine is a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood and emotions). And if only one activity controls your dopamine system, that means you have an addiction.

SO HOW CAN I GAME SMARTLY?

Very simply, make sure your gaming doesn’t disrupt your schoolwork or your family life. Dr Maressa Orzacl, Director of the Computer Addiction Studies Center in Massachusetts, USA, says that the most effective way to deal with or avoid gaming addiction is to identify the problem, solve the problem and learn coping skills to prevent the problem coming back. Bottom line: don’t spend too much time gaming.

HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?

Anything more than two hours a day and you’ve got a problem, according to the American Medical Association. Try to fi nd another hobby – preferably one that gets

you outdoors, and gets your eyes away from fl ickering electronic screens. Take up a sport or outdoor activities like walking or hiking. The fresh air will do you good … and it’ll count as one of

the ‘coping skills’ Dr Orzacl is talking about.

46

pp games.indd 1 3/20/08 2:13:10 PM

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Each new letter in the word ‘INTELLECT’ has a numerical value from 1 to 6 associated with it (that is, I, N, T, E, L and C correspond with one of the numbers from 1 to 6), so that the sum total of the entire word is equal to 31. Using the words made from these letters and their total sum scores, work out which letter corresponds to which number. Example: nettle (n + e + t + t + l + e) = 17Tin 9cell 17tent 8lentil 23tint 10cent 10tell 15lent 12I = ____ N = ____ T = ____ E = ____ L = ____ C = ____

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Each of the numbers from 1 to 7 must appear only once in any column or row. Some numbers have been provided already, but additional clues in the form of greater than and smaller than symbols will help you along. Hint: start at the top-left corner of the puzzle.

GREATER THAN, SMALLER THAN ...

INTELLIGENCE VS INTELLECT

Figure out how this works, and impress your friends with your mind-reading abilities. Think of ANY number. Double that number. Add 22. Halve your total. Now subtract your original number. The number you are left with corresponds with a letter in the alphabet, for example, 1 = A; 2 = B; 3 = C; and so on. Work out what the corresponding letter is. Think of an African country that starts with that letter. 1) What is the capital city of that country? 2) Using the same alphanumerical key as above, what is the number that

corresponds with the fi rst letter of that capital city?

You have three beach balls of different sizes, and a tank containing 1 m3 of air. Using all the air, you infl ate all three beach balls completely. The diameter of the largest beach ball is three times that of the smallest, and the diameter of the second largest beach ball is twice that of the smallest. Calculate the radii of all three beach balls when fully infl ated, in centimetres, to one decimal place.

BAMBOOZLER

FLEX YOUR CEREBRUM

INTELLIGENCE VS INTELLECT

I = 6; N = 2; T = 1; E = 4; L = 5; and C = 3.FLEX YOUR CEREBRUM

Radius A = d/2; Radius B = 2d/2; and Radius C = 3d/2Volume of a sphere = 4/3πr3Volume A + Volume B + Volume C = 1m3

Answers: Radius A = 18,8 cm; Radius B = 37,6 cm; and Radius C = 56,4 cm.BAMBOOZLER

1.) Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. Why? Because this secret number trick will always result in an answer of 11. The 11th letter of the alphabet is K; the only African country that starts with a K is Kenya. 2.) 14.

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brainbuster.indd 1brainbuster.indd 1 3/20/08 2:14:55 PM3/20/08 2:14:55 PM

48

SIMPLY SCIENCE

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TAKING THE PLUNGE

In the old days a toilet trip meant doing your business in a bucket and then throwing it away when it was full. Nowadays, we just push a button or pull a handle and, like magic, it all disappears.

Or so it seems. What really happens, though, is that when you fl ush the toilet, the water (along with your smelly stuff) travels down into your erf-connection sewer line (your home sewer line) and from there into the main municipal sewer line. The sewage fl ows downhill with gravity to a waste-water treatment plant. If necessary, it stops at sewer pump stations along the way, which pump the sewage to a higher point from which it can gravitate further down the sewer line.

POO TREATMENT

At the treatment plant, it undergoes a series of steps to separate the solids from the grey water (which includes urine), which is passed through a series of fi lters.

The solid waste is treated as garbage – it’s compressed and buried, with geofabrics to act as lining so that no seepage occurs to contaminate the ground water.

The grey water is then passed through tanks of algae, which feed on what we would consider liquid waste. Once the algae have eaten all the waste in the grey water, the water moves to a settling tank and the

YOU F LUSH THE TO I L E T?

algae fall to the bottom. The water on the top is then taken to large shallow pans, where exposure to the sun is used to kill any further pathogens (dangerous elements) in it. From here the water is transferred into river systems.

So, yes, you have drunk that water before …

In the throne room

Toilet paper was invented in China in 1391, when the Bureau of Imperial Supplies began its annual production of 720 000 sheets of toilet paper for the Emperor’s use.

The fi rst fl ush toilet was invented by Arthur Giblin in England in 1819.

DON’T MISS IT

Heard about the waterless toilet? Find out more on the

HIP2B2 TV show, Monday 14 April on SABC 2 at

16:30.

DID YOU KNOW?

Most toilets fl ush in the key of E fl at.

Notice how all toilets and sinks have this S-shaped curve? It’s called a siphon. It acts as a water seal that prevents bad odours coming back up the pipes from the sewer. When you fl ush, you displace the soiled water up and through the siphon and replace it with fresh water.

Siphon

simply science.indd 1 3/20/08 2:14:06 PM