When blind people
are trying to navigate the city streets, they can get assistance from a
speaking GPS-enabled smartphone, just like everyone else. Once they
move indoors and lose access to the required satellite signals, however,
it’s a different story. While there are some indoor navigation systems that require things like radio-frequency tags
to be strategically placed around the building, it’s currently
unrealistic to expect to find such systems installed in many places. The
University of Nevada, Reno’s
experimental new Navatar system, on the other hand, just requires a
smartphone loaded up with a digital two-dimensional map of the building
in question. Read More
The United States may or may not be getting its own Nurburgring track, but it is definitely getting another German track import. Porsche is in the process of building a new "Experience Center" in the greater Los Angeles area, where it will headquarter its North American Motorsport division. Read More
You might think that a coal-burning locomotive
built in 1937 had nothing left to offer the modern rail industry, short
of being a nice museum piece. In the case of Locomotive 3463, however,
that appears to be far from true – now in the hands of engineers from
the Coalition for Sustainable Rail (CSR), it is set to become the
world’s first carbon-neutral higher-speed locomotive. It won’t be
electric, however. Instead, it will run on steam generated by the
burning of biocoal. Read More
Last year, Portugal's Catarina Mota was part of a New York
hackerspace team that created a toy piano made from Jell-O (and some
electronics) for a competition in Brooklyn, NY. Being a lover of mixing
electronics with low-tech materials like fabric and paper, she has now
created a paper box that opens up to reveal a 12-key touch
piano/synthesizer sporting some cool LED light action. The Piano Box is
built around an Arduino Mega board running the CapSense and Tone
libraries, and features twin speakers, capacitive keys made from
paper-covered copper tape, and some custom code that's available for
free download to allow anyone to make their own paper synth. Read More
After launching this Tuesday
at 3:44 Eastern Daylight Time, SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft is now in its
third day of low-Earth orbit. The company reports that everything has
been going smoothly so far, with “a series of milestones” having been
set as the vehicle approaches the International Space Station (ISS). Read More 
In a move likely to inflict a sudden
pang of inadequacy in bicycle clubs the world over, NL Architects has
cooked up a concept both radical and supremely simple: a bicycle club
with a velodrome on the roof. Read More 
Voyager 1,
which is now in the outermost layer of the heliosphere that forms the
boundary between the Solar System and interstellar space, is set to be
the first man-made object to leave the Solar System. It has taken the
car-sized probe over 35 years to reach its current point, but at its
current speed of about 3.6 AU (334,640,905 miles) per year it would take
over 75,000 years to reach our nearest star, Proxima Centauri. Despite
the mind-boggling distances involved, DARPA has just awarded funding to
form an organization whose aim is to make human interstellar travel a
reality within the next century. Read More
If there’s one thing that could be said about
Apple’s current product line, it’s that most of them play together
pretty well. But there’s at least one notable exception – the Apple
Remote. While the slimline remote lets users control a Mac or Apple TV
at a distance, Apple’s iOS devices are a different matter. Mobile
accessories manufacturer Satechi has provided a solution with its new BT
Media Remote for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. Read More
It's one of the most common and infuriating
dining problems everyone encounters: getting ketchup to pour smoothly
out of bottle and onto your plate. You've probably heard a number of
solutions from "tap the 57" to "spin the bottle between your hands," but
even those methods can still drown your fries in sauce in the end.
Luckily, science - or rather, a research group working at MIT - has
finally taken notice and concocted an impressive solution. By coating
the inside of any bottle with the slippery LiquiGlide coating, anything
from ketchup to mayonnaise to jam flows right out like water, barely
leaving a smudge behind. Read More
The airplane is arguably the biggest single
revolution in travel ever. Voyages that used to entail weeks of
dangerous, life-threatening navigation can now be done in the matter of
hours. No single invention has connected physical space like the plane.
Yet, there's still much room for improvement in terms of cost,
efficiency and comfort. With this in mind a team of U.S. designers is
developing what they believe is a better solution for flying: the
Synergy aircraft. Read More
IRCRAFT
Yet another world auction record
fell during the week when a 1991 Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato Sanction II
Coupé was sold for GBP1.23 million (US$1.93). One of just four cars
built 30 years after the first batch, the car was previously owned by
singer Phil Collins' manager Tony Smith and had just 4,748 miles on the
odometer. Read More
The fascinating lead-up to the Le
Mans 24 Hour race in three week's time is a technological smorgasbord as
usual, with new technologies being used to gain infinitesimal
increments of seconds per lap in the hope that it will lead to a winning
margin over 350+ laps and 24 hours. A new addition to the dominant Audi
R18 cars for this year's race will be an AMOLED digital rear view
mirror - how can a better rear view mirror make you go faster? Read More
Next-generation airships are notorious for always being just around the corner, almost but not-quite ready to take to the skies. According to a report in Wired, however, Northrop Grumman’s military Long Endurance Multi-Intelligence Vehicle (LEMV) has been scheduled to make its maiden flight early next month. Read More
Carrying spare tubes and extra
clothes for cycling, transporting a laptop, books and files to the
office and lugging camera gear ... those are just a few random examples
of things that you might need a backpack for on any given day.
Typically, you might need to get a separate backpack for each activity
or series of activities, but Mission Workshop's Arkiv Field backpack
utilizes modular compartments to transform into the pack you need every
time. One backpack can take on limitless functions without compromise.
Read More
IRCRAFT
The human implications for living in a world with
UAVs are very much dependent on one's latitude and longitude at any
given time. Though the term is likely to conjure images of covert
military operations, it's not a connotation that the term, or the
technology, necessarily implies. Fundamentally, a UAV is merely an
unpiloted flying machine, and that's a potentially useful thing to have
for all sorts of civilian applications. It's already happening. Exhibit
A: research at the University of Granada into using small UAVs, equipped
with cameras, that scan buildings in order to construct 3D models. Read More
Yet another world auction record
fell during the week when a 1991 Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato Sanction II
Coupé was sold for GBP1.23 million (US$1.93). One of just four cars
built 30 years after the first batch, the car was previously owned by
singer Phil Collins' manager Tony Smith and had just 4,748 miles on the
odometer. Read More
The fascinating lead-up to the Le
Mans 24 Hour race in three week's time is a technological smorgasbord as
usual, with new technologies being used to gain infinitesimal
increments of seconds per lap in the hope that it will lead to a winning
margin over 350+ laps and 24 hours. A new addition to the dominant Audi
R18 cars for this year's race will be an AMOLED digital rear view
mirror - how can a better rear view mirror make you go faster? Read More
Doping graphene with
trifluoromethanesulfonyl-amide (TFSA) has enabled researchers at the
University of Florida (UF) to set a new efficiency record for graphene
solar cells. While the record-breaking efficiency of 8.6 percent is well
short of the efficiencies seen in other types of solar cells,
it is a big improvement over previous graphene solar cells that saw
efficiencies ranging up to 2.9 percent. The development provides hope
for cheaper, durable graphene solar cells in the future. Read More
Weeds are pesky things. They grow everywhere and,
by definition, where they’re not wanted. Whether a large-scale farmer
or a weekend gardener, everyone who has tried to raise crops has wished
that there was a ray gun that could just blast the wretched things out
of existence. Now, thanks in part to researchers from the Laser Zentrum
Hannover (LZH) at the Leibniz University of Hannover, Germany, that
frustrated daydream is closer to reality. Through the use of low-powered
infrared lasers, the team has found a way to inhibit weed growth
without harming neighboring plants, providing an alternative to
expensive, hazardous and environmentally-damaging chemicals. Read More
While UAV’s continue to reshape the theater of
war, they are also finding more and more non-military applications, from
gathering atmospheric data to delivering supplies to remote villages.
Now Aerovironment is examining the potential for its UAVs to rapidly
re-establish communications when existing communications networks are
knocked out following a natural or man-made disaster. Read More
Last year, we looked at three potential “tractor beam” technologies
being evaluated by NASA to deliver planetary or atmospheric particles
to a robotic rover or orbiting spacecraft. At the time, the third of
these, which involved the use of a Bessel beam, only existed on paper.
Researchers at Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research
(A*STAR) have now proven the theory behind the concept, demonstrating
how a tractor beam can be realized in the real world – albeit on a very
small scale. Read More
Those of us with an aversion to needles can soon
go to the doctor with a little less trepidation. That is if a new device
developed by a team of MIT researchers becomes available at your local
medical facility. The device uses a Lorentz-force actuator to create an
adjustable high-pressure jet that is ejected out of a nozzle as wide as a
mosquito's proboscis, penetrating the skin to deliver highly controlled
doses at different depths. Read More
Next-generation airships are notorious for always being just around the corner, almost but not-quite ready to take to the skies. According to a report in Wired, however, Northrop Grumman’s military Long Endurance Multi-Intelligence Vehicle (LEMV) has been scheduled to make its maiden flight early next month. Read More
Carrying spare tubes and extra
clothes for cycling, transporting a laptop, books and files to the
office and lugging camera gear ... those are just a few random examples
of things that you might need a backpack for on any given day.
Typically, you might need to get a separate backpack for each activity
or series of activities, but Mission Workshop's Arkiv Field backpack
utilizes modular compartments to transform into the pack you need every
time. One backpack can take on limitless functions without compromise.
Read More 
When we think of invisibility cloaks, probably
the first things that come to mind are Harry Potter-like contraptions
that allow people or large objects to instantly disappear. Scientists
from the University of Maryland and nearby Towson University, however, today announced their development of something a little different – little being the key word.
They have crammed 25,000 tiny “invisibility cloaks” onto a gold sheet,
which itself only measures 25 millimeters per side. While the resulting
biochip array may not allow any young wizards to vanish from sight, it
could allow them to identify biological materials. Read More
German tuner Gemballa has announced
an innovation that should lead to many cars that surpass the gaudiness
of even its own gold-splashed Mirage GT Gold Edition. It's a car finish
made from crushed diamonds. Read More 
LG unveiled the world's largest and slimmest
55-inch OLED (organic light-emitting diode) TV at the Salle des Etoiles
in Monaco earlier this week. First given a U.S. showing at CES 2012, the OLED TV's four-color pixel
technology and Color Refiner work together to offer vibrant, natural
and comfortable Full 1080p HD viewing in both 2D and 3D. Cutting edge
technology doesn't come cheap though, so be prepared to gasp as the
price is revealed after the jump. Read More
After over a year of Mac dominance, the first
Intel desktop PC motherboard featuring Thunderbolt I/O technology has
been – somewhat quietly – announced. Based on the latest Z77 Express chipset, the DZ77RE-75K has been optimized for the new Intel -K Core processors. It features a new GUI BIOS, comes with integrated HD audio and video, and benefits from RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 support. Read More
Smartphones are quickly replacing the need for a
camera. The phone is always within arm's reach, and ready to capture any
subject worth documenting with a digital still or video image. The
reason we're still toting around cameras is the resolution and a few
other features such as focus for a sharp image.
The Smartphone may soon catch up, however. OmniVision just released
details on two new 16-megapixel CameraChip sensors for use in digital
still cameras, digital video cameras and high-end smartphones. Read More
Solar power is up there as the quintessential
clean energy and there’s a race worldwide to develop better solar cells
to overcome current challenges related to cell efficiency, manufacturing
costs, durability and materials, among other things. One of the latest
developments in the sector comes from Northwestern University where
researchers have developed a stable dye-sensitized solar cell that may
one day prove cheaper than silicon-based cells. Read More
The international football friendly (the
association kind) between England and Belgium scheduled for June 2 may
not be burning a hole in your diary, but it will be notable in at least
one respect. The match, to be held at London's Wembley Stadium, will be
the highest profile match to date to make use of so-called goal-line
technology, designed to detect whether or not the ball has crossed the
line (and therefore whether a goal should be given). The goals at
Wembley have been fitted with a Hawk-Eye system similar to those now
officially used to assist umpires in tennis and cricket. However, though
the system will be up and running for the entire match, it will not be
used to help adjudicate in the event of a difficult goal-line decision.
Read More
Well, it’s official. Just moments
ago, the SpaceX Dragon became the first-ever privately-made spacecraft
to reach the International Space Station (ISS). “The International Space
Station Expedition 31 crew successfully captured the SpaceX Dragon
capsule with the station's robotic arm at 9:56 AM EDT,” NASA has stated.
“The feat came 3 days, 6 hours, 11 minutes and 23 seconds after the
mission's launch. The station was 251 miles over northwest Australia
when capture occurred.” Read More 
It's fifty years ago since the Renault Alpine
A110 Berlinette was introduced as one of the most beautiful road cars of
its time, embodying light weight and sweet handling and furthering the
long and successful Renault motorsport heritage by winning rallies all
over the world. Not surprisingly, such a memorable automotive birthday
has precipitated a very appealing concept car. The Renault Alpine
A110-50, is a reinterpretation of the original Alpine's key features in a
thoroughly modern way, all cloaked in stylish Alpine Blue carbon fiber
bodywork, with a 400 bhp Mégane Trophy power train. All up weight is
880 kg. It seems like a recipe for a very stylish rocketship. Read More
The LED-meisters at macetech LLC seized upon this
week's Maker Faire to unveil an eye-catching pair of prototype "LED
matrix shades" that light up in a variety of dynamic patterns. When the
shades hit the market in six to eight weeks, users will be able to
program patterns of their own, thanks to the Arduino-compatible
electronics from which they're made. macetech's Garrett Mace gave Gizmag
an exclusive insight into the development of the shades, which look
like they've fallen through a portal from some future urban dystopia.
Read More
The new Visitor Center at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens
officially opened its doors earlier this month and was inaugurated with
a ribbon cutting ceremony with Mayor Bloomberg. Designed by the New
York based architectural firm Weiss/Manfredi, the center merges modern
architecture with landscape design that blends together Brooklyn’s urban
and garden environments. Read More
There's little doubt that since being founded in 2002, Sonos has consistently delivered quality wireless Hi-Fi systems. After writing about the Zoneplayer S5 (now known as the PLAY:5) in 2009 I managed to grab a little one-on-one time with the all-in-one music streamer
in the sound room of my local Hi-Fi specialist and walked away suitably
impressed. While this model has its own subwoofer driver, the smaller
PLAY:3 does not and those who love their bottom end to shake the room
may be left a little wanting. The latest addition to the range, the SUB,
promises to more than fill any bass booming void in an existing Sonos
setup. Read More
When the last American astronauts blasted off
from the Moon in 1972, it seemed as if they were leaving behind
monuments that would stand for all time. On a lifeless, airless
satellite there would never be any scavengers or souvenir hunters, no
wind to bury or wear down the abandoned spacecraft and artifacts, and no
air to corrode metal. Even the footprints
would still be there millions of years from now. Or so everyone
thought. Now, with more and more nations and private organizations
planning manned and unmanned missions to the Moon, NASA is worried that
the Apollo landing sites and others could be endangered by the next wave
of lunar explorers. To prevent this, the space agency issued a set of guidelines that politely asks everybody to keep their distance. Read More
A new ultra-sensitive test developed by scientists from the Imperial College London
and Spain’s University of Vigo has the potential to detect the earliest
stages of a disease, thereby giving any treatment the best possible
chance of succeeding. The researchers claim their new biosensor test is
capable of detecting biomarkers (molecules which indicate the presence
of a disease) at concentration levels much lower than is possible with
existing biosensors. While the new test has already proven capable of
detecting a biomarker associated with prostate cancer, the team says
their biosensor could be easily reconfigured to detect biomarkers
related to other diseases or viruses. Read More
After a tense few months that has had many in
Australia and South Africa anxiously awaiting word on whether their
particular site will be chosen to host the world’s largest and most
sensitive radio telescope, the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) Organisation
has finally made its decision. And it’s good news for both bids – or
bad news, if you’re the glass half empty sort - with the organization
opting for a dual-site solution that will see the SKA telescope shared
between Australia and South Africa. Read More
The so-called "Jailbreak Dream Team"
- which includes members of both the Chronic-Dev Team and iPhone Dev
Team camps - has released a new iteration of the Absinthe Jailbreak tool
that boasts the ability to Jailbreak almost every fully updated iOS
device out there without the need for SHSH blobs, tethered booting, or
any other complex hacks. Read More 
Apple has submitted an application
to patent an "optical stylus" for use with future touch based devices,
leading to speculation that the next iPhone or iPad could include stylus
support. Competitors HTC and Samsung have both released devices
featuring stylus control, but Apple's potential product is far more
complex, featuring haptic feedback, an on-board speaker, and an optical
sensor, all transmitting data back to the device via short range
wireless communication. Read More 
As you might appreciate, I spend quite a chunk of
my free time pacing the aisles of my local consumer electronics store.
On my latest visit I was pleasantly surprised to see a sales assistant
carrying a tablet computer around to advise customers on current stock
levels, access detailed product information or to match the best online
prices - but folks still had to head for the checkouts to pay. DLI's
9000 Rugged Mobile Tablet has been designed with the retail and
hospitality sectors in mind and is available with a 5-in-1 mobile
payment module that attaches to the back of the device to offer
customers secure payment options at the point of sale. Read More
Some people argue that technology makes us lazy
couch-potatoes who spend all day sitting in front of various screens.
But tech can also make us better athletes by providing us with
information about our sporting performance - whether it's shoes which log a basketball player's jumps, or outfits which give dancers feedback
about their moves. Tennis players could soon be getting in on the
tech-helping-hand action with the introduction of an interactive
racquet. Read More
Our lives are very connected these
days. You can check in on friends and family, your car and your home
within seconds by typing a few words and pushing a few buttons. Despite
this, there are still many pieces that remain cut off from our networks
by physical space. The Knut sensor hub aims to connect a few more of
those pieces. Read More 
Max Payne, the eponymous gravel voiced
"anti-hero" has returned after a hiatus of nearly a decade. Developed by
Rockstar Studios, the latest game features a change of location, a new story and a number of fresh elements. So does Max still have the skills to pay the bills? Read More
For its entry in the 2012 Solar Decathlon Europe,
a group of Brazilian architects, designers, students and researchers
has taken its cues from the native Tupi-Guarani people, one of the
largest aboriginal nations in Brazil. Called Ekó House, the project
scales up Ikea’s self-assembling concept and combines it with solar power, rain collection, natural lighting, a dry toilet and a system to turn sewage into garden fertilizer. Read More
It looks like Triggertrap
is getting some competition. Like that product, ioShutter is a
remote-control app/device that allows you to control how your DSLR takes
photos, via your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. The app allows a camera
(which is hard-wired to the phone) to be triggered in a number of ways.
Read More 
Most people associate vacuum tubes
with a time when a single computer took up several rooms and
"debugging" meant removing the insects stuck in the valves, but this
technology may be in for a resurgence with news that researchers at NASA
and the National Nanofab Center in South Korea
are working on a miniaturized "vacuum channel transistor" - a
best-of-both-worlds device that could find application in space and
high-radiation environments. Read More
One of the great features of the GoPro HERO
actioncam is the fact that it is waterproof down to 197 feet (60
meters). Unfortunately, should you lose hold of your non-floating camera
in the water ... well, even if it survives its trip down to the bottom
of the ocean/lake, you’ll likely never see it again. That’s why The
Bobber exists. Read More 
Some inventions are born of necessity while others arrive as a result of an individual having a Eureka! moment. The Kuru-Kuru Nabe is, to some degree, a mixture of both. The name is Japanese for "Round-Round Pot"
and is highly descriptive. The Kuru-Kuru Nabe is, in essence, a
self-stirring saucepan, and it was invented by a humble Japanese
dentist. Read More
Inventor William Mace used to live aboard a small
boat, where he tried his best to cast and mold custom parts. If you’ve
ever worked with resins or other two-part materials, however, you’ll
know just how messy and involved the process can be – the two component
liquids have to be poured in a precise ratio into a mixing cup, stirred
thoroughly together, poured, and then the left-over mixture, cup and
stir stick have to be disposed of. Instead, Mace created the Dra-gun – a
power drill-mounted system that automatically mixes the liquids in the
desired ratio, and that produces virtually no waste. Read More
After making history last Friday
by becoming the first private spacecraft to ever reach the
International Space Station (ISS), SpaceX’s Dragon capsule was
successfully boarded by ISS astronauts the following morning. The
interior of the craft was reportedly in good condition, and according to
astronaut Don Pettit, it smelled like a new car. Read More 
The automobile has been with us for more than a
century and while road laws, traffic management and automotive
technology in general have constantly evolved during that time, the act
of driving remains essentially the same - it's all up to the person
behind the wheel. That's what makes the SARTRE
(Safe Road Trains for the Environment) project so significant - it
represents the beginning of a new era where the organized chaos of
individual drivers can be blunted by a semi-autonomous
"follow-the-leader" approach that has clear benefits for road safety,
congestion and vehicle fuel consumption ... not to mention being a bonus
for those of us who would rather read the paper than concentrate in the
road ahead. As demonstrated by a platoon of Volvos driving
automatically along a public motorway outside Barcelona recently, this
reality may be closer than you think. Read More
Created by app designer Maybe It’s
The Lighting, Stilla is a new iPhone photo app that allows users to
transform photographs into striking multi-dimensional images. Read More 
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