Global Hawk,
Northrop Grumman’s sophisticated unmanned high altitude surveillance
aircraft is finding its niche in unexpected areas. In April, 2010, in
consort with NASA, a Global Hawk fitted with scientific instruments
completed 82.5 flight hours cruising at latitudes ranging from the
Arctic Circle to just near the equator as part of an ongoing civilian
research program known as GloPac, or Global Hawk Pacific Program, which
aims to study atmospheric conditions over the Pacific and Arctic oceans.
Read More
In the early days of PC gaming most people got
their gaming fix from games delivered by mail order. As sales increased,
retail distribution of games on media such as floppy disks, CDs and
eventually DVDs took over. Now further evidence of the changing gaming
market landscape has been provided by market research company, The NPD
Group. According to its PC Games Digital Downloads: Analyst Report,
digital distribution is close to overtaking retail as the most popular
form of distribution of PC games. The report says that 21.3 million PC
full-game digital downloads were purchased online in the U.S. in 2009
compared to 23.5 million physical units purchased at retail in the same
period – a difference of just 2.2 million. Read More
Before you proudly go posting photos of your Ming
vase online, you should be aware that computer-savvy burglars can
likely use that photo to find out where you live. The same goes for
photos or videos of your kids, yourself, or anything else that you don’t
want strangers knowing how to locate. The practice of tracking people
via their posted images is an example of “cybercasing”, and is possible
because many digital cameras and smart phones, including the iPhone,
automatically geotag their images by embedding the longitude and
latitude at which they were taken. Even when uploaded to a website, the
images still retain this information. By plugging the coordinates into a
service like Google Street View, getting an address or an identifying
landmark is entirely possible. Read More
Mosquitoes could be having a tough time of it
before too long. First, scientists announced an experimental new
technology that utilizes gene-silencing nanoparticles
to keep mosquito larvae from fully developing their protective
exoskeletons. This leaves them much more vulnerable to insecticides,
once they become adults. Now we have word of another study, in which
researchers have identified a natural, environmentally-friendly chemical
compound that causes female skitters to go elsewhere to lay their eggs.
Read More
Fujitsu has announced the release of multi-input
resistive touch panels with the ability to detect simultaneous inputs.
This means that potentially you could have input coming from your finger
and from a stylus at the very same time. While multi-touch is nothing
new to most readers (especially those with a taste for Apple products),
it should be clarified that this functionality is normally associated
with capacitive touch screens and not resistive panels like these new
ones from Fujitsu. Read More
The second Edison 2 vehicle has just completed
the 200 mile range test in the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE – with
fuel left in the tank. Nothing is official at this stage and some
further hurdles remain before the official presentations in September,
but given that Edison 2 is the only team remaining in its class and that
the successful completion of Monday's Dynamic Safety testing is almost a
formality for the vehicle, it's likely that Oliver Kuttner and his team
will become the winners of the $5 million prize for the Auto X PRIZE
Mainstream Class. Read More
It's very much down to the pointy-end for the remaining twelve teams in Progressive Automotive X PRIZE
with the finals stage underway at the Michigan International Speedway.
As we write this article teams are taking part in the critical range
test where they must achieve 100 miles without charging or refueling
(200 miles for the mainstream class) – perhaps the most challenging
hurdle remaining for those still in the running for a share of the $10
million prize. Read More
Seagate has unveiled a new centralized wireless home storage and backup addition to its FreeAgent GoFlex
hard drive solutions. The single-drive GoFlex Home storage system is
said to benefit from easy setup and use, the ability to connect and
wirelessly share USB printers or other devices, remote file access and a
modular approach to higher capacity upgrades. Read More
The world’s longest ever WRC rally jump took
place during April’s Rally of Turkey, when Sebastien Loeb's Citroen C4
left terra firma for an incredible 85 metres during the ultra-fast
Ballica stage. Citroen has now chosen ten of its most spectacular
gravity defying jumps ahead of next weekend’s Rally Finland – the home
of the big YUMP. A pic of Loeb's world record jump is inside, but look
at what he had to beat. Read More
Barring mishap, QinetiQ will set a significant
milestone in aviation history later today. After 14 days and nights in
the air, the solar-powered Zephyr unmanned aircraft
we wrote about last week is set to land, claiming a raft of world
records for flight duration and the title of the world's first truly
persistent aeroplane. Read More
Now that you’ve got that Air Deck balcony for your private jet, which is no doubt decked out with a suitably opulent interior,
you’re probably looking for a way to get around on the ground in
similar luxury. Thankfully, design consultancy Design Q has you covered
there as well with its Q-VR. It’s a stretched Range Rover that boasts
all the luxury embellishments associated with private jets to allow VIPs
to travel in the same level of comfort on the ground as they enjoy in
the air. Read More
The purpose of the Automotive X PRIZE
is to stimulate development of real-world, practical
environmentally-friendly vehicles and the resulting designs make for a
wildly varied collection. Of the 12 vehicles currently left in the
competition, some look like they rolled straight out of Blade Runner
while others – like the RaceAbout – would hardly raise an eyebrow in
today's car showrooms. But despite its mainstream looks, this thing
definitely makes a strong visual – and technological – statement. Read More
When a baby is born preterm – between 20 and 37
weeks – it can cause significant health risks for the child as well as
emotional and financial hardship for the family. Until now, doctors have
mostly relied on a external device attached to the abdomen to detect
premature labor, but a new internal system - developed by Johns Hopkins
graduates – could detect uterine contractions very early in the
pregnancy which could assist doctors to prolong the pregnancy. Read More
The latest FinePix compact camera releases from
Fujifilm offer either 12 or 14 megapixel sensors, between 5x and 18x
optical zoom lenses with both wide- and super wide-angle varieties
available, and both touchscreen and non-touchscreen LCD displays.
Panoramic image sweep and 720p high definition video feature on all four
models, and one unit lets users not worry about forgetting to pack the
charger by offering power in standard AA battery format. Read More
The upright bicycle riding position offered by
the familiar diamond-shape frame has been completely abandoned by
designer Nick Foley in favor of a semi-recumbent driving pose. His Etta
3-speed prototype is claimed to offer users a more comfortable, natural
ride whilst also providing better all-round visibility and a built-in
storage compartment. Gizmag's Paul Ridden takes a closer look. Read More
A combination of nanotechnology and adult stem cells has been shown to destroy arterial plaque (atherosclerosis)
in the heart of pigs. Pigs that received stem cells also showed signs
of new blood vessel growth and restoration of artery function according
to the study reported at the American Heart Association's Basic
Cardiovascular Sciences 2010 Scientific Sessions – Technological and
Conceptual Advances in Cardiovascular Disease. Read More
It might not have been setting a cracking pace,
but a Cornell University robot named Ranger set an unofficial world
record on July 6 when it walked 14.3 miles in about 11 hours on a single
charge. The untethered, four-legged robot was steered around the
1/8-mile indoor track in Cornell’s Barton Hall by a human operator
using a standard toy remote control some 108.5 times. On its record
setting journey Ranger made 65,185 steps, beating the former record for
an untethered legged robot of 12.8 miles set by Boston Dynamics’ BigDog. Read More
New York-based alternative energy supplier
Terra-Gen Power has secured $1.2 billion in financing for the
construction of what it says will be the largest wind farm in the U.S.
The funds will deliver four projects at the company's Alta Wind Energy
Center in Kern County, California, with a capacity of 570 megawatts. A
total of 190 3.0 MW Vestas-American Wind Technology turbines will be
used in the new initiative. These will be added to the already underway
150 MW Alta Project I which uses GE turbines. Eventually it's envisioned
that the Alta Wind Energy Center will deliver 3,000 MW of wind power.
Read More
In an effort to persuade the UK Government to
move forward with the project as soon as possible, design studio,
Pristmanngoode, has unveiled its high speed train concept, the Mercury.
The company has previously worked with Chinese rolling stock
manufacturer, Sifang, to design high speed trains for China and other
parts of the world and now believes that a new high speed train is vital
for the future of Britain. Perhaps taking London’s famous buses as an
example, the Mercury is a double-decker train that incorporates a
flexible, open plan design that Priestmanngoode says allows passengers
to interact without compromising privacy. Read More
It would be a huge understatement to say that the 12 vehicles remaining in the Automotive X PRIZE
are pretty unusual. One of the things that was particularly fun for
those of us recently attending the Finals Stage in Michigan, in fact,
was observing all the different forms and configurations that the
different teams’ automobiles have taken. One standout (and they’re all
standouts really) has been the TW4XP, representing the team of the same
name. The vehicle is a sneak-peek of the next generation of Twike, a
production electric three-wheeler built and sold by some of the team
members back home in Germany. One of the things that makes regular
Twikes special is the fact that they have pedals, so you can extend
their range by giving the battery a break and pedaling on the easy
stuff. While other X PRIZE contenders such as the Aptera may be sexier
than the TW4XP, it represents an already-available vehicle that could help you work off those unwanted extra pounds. Read More
Gizmag is seeking editorial contributors in the
New York area. Applicants need to be able to recognize significant
developments in the technology space, initiate stories, be
self-motivated, work autonomously and be capable of delivering
high-quality, authoritative original content in a fast paced online team
environment. Read More
The EDGE packs a lot of home into a little house
By Ben Coxworth
July 27, 2010
If small is beautiful, then the 320 square-foot
EDGE house from Wisconsin’s Revelations Architects is absolutely
gorgeous. EDGE stands for Experimental Dwelling for a Greener
Environment, and true to that acronym, the award-winning little modular
home includes Earth-friendly features such as rainwater collection,
geothermal heating and cooling, air-to-air heat recovery, passive solar
windows, and insulated exterior shutter doors that minimize nighttime
heat loss. Making the most of every square inch of interior space, the
house has multi-functional transformable furniture, plus two overhead
bedrooms. It's also made for easy construction and relocation, to the
point that the prototype has been assembled, taken apart and moved three
times in six months. Read More
Apple has added a US$1000 27-inch LED model to
its Cinema Display range, slotting it in between the US$800 24-inch LED
Cinema Display and range-topping 30-inch HD Display. With a resolution
of 2560 x 1440 pixels the 27-incher offers 60 percent more screen real
estate than the 24-inch Display, and an ideal compromise if you shy from
the hefty USD$1800 price tag of the 2560 x 1600 pixel 30-incher and can
wait until September for the 27-incher to hit the shelves. Read More
While news of the Magic Trackpad leaked back in
June, and was later confirmed by the FCC, Apple today made things
official. The US$69 device might be just the thing for those of you who
don't like the Magic Mouse but still crave a little multi-touch action
on the desktop. Read More
A whopping 511 days after the last Mac Pro update, Apple has finally
unveiled the latest Mac Pro, which uses the latest quad-core and 6-core
Intel Xeon processors in speeds of up to 3.33 GHz. Read More
A few days ago, I managed to get up close and personal in Shanghai
with one of the most interesting concept cars the world has yet seen.
SAIC's Yez concept car is the first automobile, concept or otherwise,
that's ever been conceived to have a negative carbon footprint. That is,
it removes more pollution than it creates. Read More
Samsung has announced that the time has come to add a couple of new flagship cameras to its Dual View range.
The new models benefit from even bigger LCD's at the front and rear,
some interesting photo modes and both sport 5x optical zoom lenses, one
of which has internal zoom functionality. At the same time, the company
has also unveiled a feature-rich budget point-and-shoot model capable of
recording high definition movies. Read More
Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) manufacturer, ICON
Aircraft, has announced two major design enhancements aimed at to
simplifying aircraft complexity and increase safety in its A5 amphibious, two-seat, composite carbon fiber plane.
The first improvement for the plane,which is edging closer to
production, is the elimination of wing flaps, which will simplify pilot
operations, while the second is a spin-resistant design that will
include, amongst other things, the addition of wing cuffs to lower the
stall speed of the aircraft. Read More
This Friday, June 30, sees the release of Apple’s iPhone 4
in an additional 17 countries. And the big question being asked is will
the recent hoopla about the device’s antenna problems affect the
launch, or will Apple’s recent announcement of free bumpers
for all new and existing iPhone 4 customers mean it’s the standard
frenzy that has gone hand-in-hand with the launch of Apple products in
recent times? Read More
Laparoscopic gastric banding is a common surgical
treatment for morbid obesity and the most critical factor in the
success of the operation lies in the hands of the surgeon - who needs
the proficiency and skill to insert slender, handheld tools into the
body of the patient. A team of interdisciplinary researchers, led by
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has recently won a US$2.3 million
federal grant to develop a touch-sensitive virtual reality simulator
that will realistically replicate how performing a gastric band
operation feels - making it ideal for developing and teaching
fundamental surgical skills and for assessing physicians wanting to be
certified as a laparoscopic surgeon. Read More
If someone had suggested 20 years ago that a
fully working computer with up to 1GHz of processing power would fit on a
board the size of a SODIMM memory module (2.66 x 1.44 x 0.2 inches),
some lighthearted mockery may have followed. Yet embedded hardware
specialist Toradex is about to do just that with its new Tegra T20, a
teeny computer module based on NVIDIA's latest Cortex A9 processor that
offers full high definition video support, 256MB of onboard memory and a
gigabyte of Flash storage. Read More
It’s not uncommon to see children attempt to
reach out and touch objects the first time they don 3D glasses and sit
down in front of a 3D TV.
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, have created a
new virtual reality device that enables users to do just that. The
relatively low-cost device called the Heads-Up Virtual Reality device
(HUVR) combines a consumer 3D HDTV panel and a touch-feedback (haptic) device to enable users not only to see a 3D image, but “feel” it too. Read More
Source R&D has just announced that its Warpia Easy Dock
Wireless Laptop Docking Station has now been made available for online
purchase. The system offers the convenience of a laptop and the comfort
of a desktop in one package by enabling laptop users to wirelessly
connect to any traditional desktop setup. Read More
If you’re interested in shooting 3D
but don’t want to go to the expense of shelling out cash for a new
camera then Panasonic could have just the thing – provided the camera
you’ve got is compatible with Panasonic’s Lumix G Micro System.
The company has announced it will offer the first digital
interchangeable twin-lens before the end of the year, making it possible
to shoot 3D with an interchangeable lens system camera. Read More
We know our canine companions like to walk and
run and go for a ride in the car but how many of us would consider
taking to the skies with our dog? If you’re a dog owner who likes to get
airborne with your furry friend you might find that the Supplemental
Oxygen Supply Hood is a handy piece of equipment to have on board. It’s
an air system for dogs traveling at altitudes of 8,000 feet and above,
and it’s currently on display at Oshkosh 2010. Read More
For those in the U.S. looking to be the first to get their hands on the Chevrolet Volt
GM has announced that it is now taking orders for the vehicle that is
due at the end of the year. The Volt will initially be available to
customers in California, New York, Washington, D.C., Texas, Michigan,
Connecticut and New Jersey, but will be available nationwide in about
12-18 months from the start of production this winter. Read More
As the number of portable electronic devices we
carry around has multiplied, so too have the chargers we need to keep
them running. Over the last couple of years wireless chargers such as
the PowerDisc and Powermat
have started popping up to save users the hassle of dealing with a mass
of charger cables, but these require specific adapters for the
different devices being charged. A business alliance of 20 firms has
banded together to form the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) to develop
open standards for wireless charging and has just finalized its Qi low
power standard that is aimed at delivering wireless charging stations
that can charge a range of compatible devices. Read More
If you’ve ever sold something on eBay or Kijiji,
you’ll know how surprisingly difficult it can be to get a clean,
well-lit shot of even the simplest of objects - you don’t want a
distracting background, insufficient light, or overly asymmetrical
lighting. Or, perhaps you’re required to get a large number of
on-location shots for something such as a catalog, but you don’t want to
drag along a lot of gear. In either case, the Simp-Q is what you need.
Putting it simply, it’s a self-contained photo studio. We had a chance
to check it out at this year’s China International Consumer Electronics
Show (SINOCES), and were pretty impressed with the shots it allowed us
to take. Read More
Terrafugia unveils next-gen flying car design
July 27, 2010
Terrafugia has released specifications and computer graphics of its next generation flying-car design. The company made use of the world's biggest aviation industry platform – AirVenture 2010 – to detail the future shape of its Transition Roadable Aircraft
which sports automotive-style crash safety features, a touch-screen
interface, improved wing design and a folding mechanism that can be
activated from inside the vehicle... plus sleeker lines than the proof
of concept vehicle we've seen previously. Read More
When a caterpillar crawls, its internal organs
slide forward inside its body before its legs move. Does that matter? It
does if you’re a caterpillar, but it also does if you’re a designer of
soft-bodied robots. A team of researchers working at Massachusetts'
Tufts University used an X-ray to observe large, opaque-bodied
caterpillars, then backed up their findings by examining smaller,
translucent caterpillars under a microscope. In both cases, it was
observed that the caterpillar’s internal center of mass moved forward
first, while its middle legs remained attached to the substrate. In a
paper on their findings, the team wrote that the so-called gut-slide is
“unlike any form of legged locomotion previously reported and represents
a new feature in our emerging understanding of crawling.” Read More
The average custom chopper is something most
motorcyclists find puzzling – they're heavy and cumbersome, with
terrible handling and mediocre performance, they're hard to ride and
they cost unbelievable amounts of money. This fully custom 850cc Batpod
replica takes all those traits to the max – it looks downright scary to
ride, there's almost no way to turn a corner with any sort of dignity,
and may God help you if you want to pull a U-Turn. But for owner Pankaj
Shah it's a tribute to his love of the Dark Knight movie where the
BatPod first appeared – and beyond the neck-snapping appearance of the
thing, it's also quite an amazing bit of rolling metalwork. Click
through for several videos and photos of the PS-Pod under construction.
Read More
A design studio based in San Francisco has
produced a conceptual vision for an autonomous passenger vehicle for the
year 2040. Able to comfortably seat seven people, the designers see the
Autonomobile taking care of all that tedious driving from A to B while
those onboard sit back on the curved sofa and watch a movie, play games
or catch up with the news on a large touchscreen display. And if the
mood calls for some refreshments, the vehicle can even take care of that
too. Read More
I’ve always thought of rats as being quite small
and lightweight creatures – even verging on dainty. Well someone forgot
to tell the rats in East Timor to keep an eye on their calorie
count…archaeologists have discovered rodent bones that suggest the
biggest rat that ever lived weighed about six kilograms. That’s about as
much as a three month old baby! Read More
There are businesses that let you glaze your own
pottery, cook your own steak or pick your own strawberries, but when it
comes to the hands-on experience, a new offer from General Motors has
them all beat. If you order a 2011 Corvette Z06 or ZR1, you have the
option of traveling to GM's Performance Build Center in Wixom, Michigan,
and hand-assembling your car’s LS7 or LS9 engine. It’s called the
Corvette Engine Build Experience, and is believed to be the first
program of its kind (if any readers would like to dispute that claim,
please do so). If you don’t like the idea of providing GM with your
mechanical expertise for no cost, don’t worry - you’ll have to pay an
extra $US5,800 for the privilege. Read More
Well, it’s hard to believe the day is finally here, but the on-track testing phase of the Automotive X PRIZE
Finals stage is finally over. Of 136 vehicles representing 111 teams
that originally entered the competition, just 9 vehicles representing 7
teams remain. All that the cars need to do now is pass the Validation
stage, then the winners will be announced in September. Here’s a quick
look at what happened over the past few days, at the Michigan
International Speedway. Read More
It seems that barely a day goes by without some new 3D
product hitting the shelves. With 3D technology having obvious
applications for engineers, designers, architects and computational
chemists it’s not surprising to see NVIDIA
is set to bring out a new 3D stereoscopic solution aimed at just these
markets. The company’s 3D Vision Pro brings true stereo 3D to the
desktop along with support for LCD panels to offer a practical way to
provide a 3D viewing experience for large scale visualization
environments like video walls and collaborative virtual environments
(CAVEs). Read More
Criminals across America could be just about to
see the light… the Dazer Laser, a non-lethal weapon that shines
disorienting, nauseating bursts of intense green laser light into a
target's eyes, has gone into police trials across the Northern states.
It's been shown to have no lasting effects (unlike previous infra-red
versions that could cause permanent blindness), it's as easy to use as
shining a flashlight in somebody's eyes, and it offers police the
ability to temporarily blind a threat as they move to subdue it. At the
very least, if the Dazer Laser joins the Taser in operation, it'll make
the average cop's equipment list sound a bit more like a Dr. Seuss poem.
Read More
Users of Google Street View
and Bing Maps Streetside will be familiar with the stop-start effect as
they navigate along a street. This is because as the user moves along
the street the viewpoint jumps from one discreet 360-degree panorama, or
‘bubble’, to the next . A new street-level imaging system developed by
Microsoft called Street Slide allows users to smoothly navigate along a
street by creating a seamless transition between bubbles using
multiperspective strip panoramas that provide an overview of the street.
Read More
The case for 3D just got stronger with Panasonic
announcing the release of the world's first 3D consumer camera for the
AVCHD standard. Panasonic has positioned itself at the forefront of 3D camcorder technology
and this latest news is significant because previously available
professional 3D models are far more expensive, and as a result have not
made it into the hands of the general public. The company's new
HDC-SDT750 camcorder is likely to be the first of many 3D cameras to
reach home movie makers. Read More
A bunch of space-saving, ultra-thin LED monitors has just been announced by Acer.
The trio of stylish LED displays benefit from a huge contrast range,
brisk response times and a movie-friendly aspect ratio. The S1 series
also has the green check-box covered with low power credentials and a
manufacturing process which the company says does not use harmful
substances. Read More
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