At one time or another, probably just about every
little boy has dreamed of having his own version of C-3PO or Robby the
Robot. Well, while affordable close-to-human-sized toy robots are still
not a reality, TJ* at least offers up the most expressive part of one –
the head. About three-fifths the size of an actual adult human head, TJ*
incorporates three user-controlled micro servos, that move its eyeballs
up and down, left and right, and that open and close its mouth. Some
interesting extra features are also in the works. Read More
Of all the “flying car”-type vehicles currently in development, Terrafugia’s Transition Street-Legal Airplane
is quite likely the one that’s closest to actual commercial
availability. Yesterday, the New York-based company announced that on
March 23rd, one of two production prototypes of the vehicle successfully
completed its maiden flight. Read More 
Camping in the wilderness may never be the same
after a “glamped” experience at Minaret Station. Located in the heart of
the Southern Alps in New Zealand, the site offers luxury tented glamping
amid a picturesque glacial valley. The remote location is only
accessible by air, where guests are flown in by helicopter before being
escorted to their luxuriously furnished tented suite. While the
accommodation is constructed from canvas tents and the property
classifies itself as a “camp," this nature retreat has little in common
with the traditional camping experience. Read More
West Indian Sir Garfield Sobers is
widely regarded as one of the best cricketers of all time. His career
sadly came to an end before the shorter forms of the sport (Twenty20 and
one-day) arrived, because Sobers could conjure up a storm with a bat
like few others. Even with the recent advent of 50 over and now 20 over a
side cricket, the feat of hitting every ball of a six ball over for six
has only been done four times, two of those in the shortened form of
the game more conducive to fast scoring. Sobers was the first to achieve
it in the longer form of the game (a feat only equaled once) and the
ball he hit over the fence six consecutive times in 1968 is to go to
auction. Read More 
The pieces in Joseph Larson's
3D-printable chess set fit together into what he describes as "the
ultimate chess fighting robot" - two of them, actually; with inverted
knights for feet and bishops for hands. Read More 
Nuclear-powered unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)
that would increase operational flight durations from days to months are
a technological possibility today, according to a feasibility study
undertaken last year by Sandia National Laboratories and Northrop
Grumman Systems Corporation. A nuclear power supply would additionally
double the availability of electrical power to onboard systems,
including weaponry, the study found. Read More
The Kaap Skil Maritime and Beachcombers Museum
constructed on the Dutch island of Texel opened to the public on Friday,
and it's a how-to of daylight design in architecture. The distinctive
vertical wooden slats that make up the museum's facades, unquestionably
the building's predominant feature, let in diffuse daylight lending the
museum a bright but softly-lit interior. But that's not the only trick
up its sleeve. Read More
Any film student will tell you that pulling
together the right equipment for a video shoot with little to no budget
is a daunting task. Most students don't have access to common
professional tools and end up jury-rigging their own to film a shot just
right - which is how Jeremy Canterbury first came up with the Revolve
camera dolly. While working in video production at the University of
California in Santa Barbara, Canterbury developed a concept for a
portable dolly that could hold almost any camera or iPhone along with
attachments while taking up about as much space as a shoe box. With its
wide range of functions and low price, the Revolve camera dolly could be
an invaluable device for filmmakers to capture smooth, dynamic video
from any location. Read More
Having provided DSLR owners with the
power to exercise some in-camera creativity for a little over a year,
Lensbaby has now announced new versions of its Composer Pro
lens to fit a variety of mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. The
latest Composer Pro mounts will ship with the Double Glass Optic
installed and, like the SLR version, are compatible with Lensbaby’s
Optic Swap System. Read More 
Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for
Molecular Biomedicine in Münster, Germany, have broken new ground by
reprogramming skin cells from mice into neurons without regressing the
cells through a pluripotent stage. The skin cells were reprogrammed
directly into multipotent neuronal stem cells - that is, into cells
which could only turn into new neurons. This procedure avoids the
significant risk that pluripotent stem cells, which can grow into any
type of tissue, may accidentally form tumors rather than the desired
replacement tissue. Read More
Very little is known about this
"single person transport system" concept dreamed up by the
enigmatically-named product design student Sanu K R from Ernakulam on
India's west coast, but one thing is clear: it's a head-turner. Read More
Japanese telecommunications giant
NTT is developing a videoconferencing system that literally turns heads.
In an attempt to more accurately give the feeling of a face-to-face
conversation between more than two people, the MM-Space system features
displays that physically mimic the head movements of the person being
displayed on screen. Read More
With the internet connecting not
just billions of computers but billions of creative minds, the news that
Citroën UK was collaborating with Facebook to "crowd-source" the design
of a new C1 variant at first appeared very exciting. The reality of the
situation though, is that participants "choose" the number of doors (2
or 4), the interior and exterior colors and ... just six multiple choice
options to configure the "C1 Connexion". Read More
Rattlesnakes, beware! The next time
you spot a succulent-looking squirrel, it might actually be a
cold-hearted robot. More specifically, it might be a “robosquirrel,”
created by UC Davis professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering
Sanjay Joshi. He built the robot squirrels as part of a study on
rattlesnake behavior – a study which yielded some interesting results.
Read More
... or more accurately, the company will allow you to put a 3D-printed model of your head on one. All you have to do is send in some snapshots. Read More
Ideabox, an architectural firm from
Portland, Oregon, has launched its "Aktiv" line of prefabricated homes
which will be equipped with IKEA furnishings and appliances. The
one-bedroom modular homes are claimed to be eco-friendly, and are
designed with no wasted space. Read More
Big- and medium-budget film-makers
looking for smooth tracking shots will soon have another alternative to
laying down tracks for hand-pushed camera dollies. T3 Motion, the maker
of the T3 electric standup vehicle, is launching a new version of its
EV, designed specifically for use by cinematographers. Read More
Despite technology's best efforts,
headphones and sports just don't mix that well. Loss of awareness of
your surroundings, uncomfortable earphones and tangled wires make them
less than a perfect solution and it's these shortcomings that The Sonic
Walk aims to address by providing a more natural, ergonomic way of
listening to music and exercising. Read More
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche,
Grandson of the founder of Porsche, the designer of the Porsche 911, the
founder of the Porsche Design studio and the architect of Porsche
design culture, passed away yesterday, April 5 in Salzburg, aged 76. His
design credo was that “design must be functional and functionality has
to be translated visually into aesthetics, without gags that have to be
explained first.” Some of his other well known statements on design
include, “a coherently designed product requires no adornment; it should
be enhanced by its form alone”, and “Good design should be honest.”
Vale F.A. Porsche. Read More
Guitar tablature is a powerful form of musical
notation, where learners are shown where to place a finger on the neck
of an instrument, and in what order. Such things as timing, note
duration and playing force are not given, so unless a student knows or
has access to a recorded version of the song being learned, the result
may be somewhat different from what the composer intended. Usefully,
such missing elements can be included in software like Guitar Pro
to show users exactly how a song should be played. Two projects have
now appeared on crowd-funding portal Kickstarter that take this idea and
put it directly onto the guitar, so that learners won't need to keep
switching views from screen to instrument. Tabber and the LED Sleeve
guide players to the correct finger positions via LED lights on the
neck. Read More
Italian sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro, who created
the famous "Sphere Within Sphere" located at the Vatican, has
constructed his first-ever architectural sculpture. Titled “The
Carapace,” the structure reflects its name by taking on the shape of a
tortoise shell. The building, which will be inaugurated this June, is
located on the Castelbuono Estate in Umbria, Italy. It marks the first
time that the Italian master has created a work on such a grand scale.
Read More
Boeing and Bigelow Aerospace conducted a series of tests in September 2011 that saw the Crew Space Transportation (CST)-100
mock capsule dropped from a specially designed horizontal rig to test
the capsule’s airbags. These airbags are designed to cushion the
capsule’s impact on landing and work in conjunction with three main
parachutes that are deployed before the airbags are inflated. These
parachutes were included in the latest test in which the capsule was
dropped from an altitude of around 11,000 ft (3,353 m) to test these
parachutes. Read More
Very little is known about this
"single person transport system" concept dreamed up by the
enigmatically-named product design student Sanu K R from Ernakulam on
India's west coast, but one thing is clear: it's a head-turner. Read More
A graphene sensor effectively tattooed onto a
tooth can be used to detect bacteria and so wirelessly monitor oral
health, research has shown. Graphene printed onto water-soluble silk can
be "bio-transferred" onto organic materials such as tooth enamel. By
incorporating antimicrobial peptides and a resonant coil, individual
bacteria cells can be detected without need of an onboard power supply
or wired connections. Read More
While developers are plugging away on Windows applications for Microsoft’s Kinect thanks to the release of the official Kinect for Windows SDK,
Mac users can also get into the gesture control game – albeit in a
much, (much) more limited way. Not requiring any additional hardware
because it works using a Mac's built-in webcam, Flutter registers hand
gestures – well, a hand gesture – to control playback in iTunes and
Spotify. Read More
Fisker Automotive has revealed the shape of its
future with the unveiling of a new design prototype - the Fisker
Atlantic. The wraps were taken off the four-door Atlantic - which Fisker
sees as the "next step in its transition from start-up automaker to
mainstream American manufacturer" - in a preview event on the eve of the
New York Auto Show. Read More
Japanese telecommunications giant
NTT is developing a videoconferencing system that literally turns heads.
In an attempt to more accurately give the feeling of a face-to-face
conversation between more than two people, the MM-Space system features
displays that physically mimic the head movements of the person being
displayed on screen. Read More
NASA's Innovative Advanced Concepts Program
provides funding to study a small number of highly advanced spaceflight
concepts, with the goal of understanding the technological possibilities
which will guide the development of future space missions. Under this
program, a JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) researcher has proposed the
use of a pair of CubeSats for an autonomous mission to retrieve samples
from Phobos, Mars' larger moon. Read More
Already, people are pretty excited at the idea of
being able to create inanimate objects using a 3D printer. Imagine,
though, if you could create and print an actual moving robot, using a
printer-like device in a store. If a group of scientists taking part in a
new project are successful, that’s exactly what you will some day be
able to do. Read More
An international team of scientists has created a
handheld, battery powered device that has been shown to effectively rid
skin of bacteria in an instant by blasting it with plasma. The plasma
flashlight, which shouldn’t be confused with a plasma torch that will
damage much more than bacteria if used on the skin, could provide a
convenient way for paramedics and military personnel to deal with
harmful bacteria in the field. Read More
Google X (Google's futuristic technology
development lab) has pulled back the curtain on Project Glass, its
program to develop truly useful augmented reality "Google glasses."
Project Glass aims to design and refine augmented reality technology to
help a user explore and share their world armed with a wealth of
relevant information - not at their fingertips, but rather at the end of
their nose. Read More
When we reviewed the HP TouchSmart 610-1030a
all-in-one last year, we questioned just how useful most users would
find the touch interface on a desktop PC. Thankfully HP has provided a
non-touch alternative for those not likely to find much benefit from
(and aren’t willing to pay extra for) a touchscreen-packing desktop
unit. The Omni 27 Quad is also the company’s first 27-inch all-in-one
model ... read on for our hands-on review. Read More
For generations, campers and backpackers have
been relying on poles and guy lines to form the taut, wind-breaking
structure of tents. With its new Hoopla 4, Mountain Hardwear has a
different idea: rely on the tent fabric itself to create the main
structure with minimal hardware involved. Read More
A giant flower has recently sprung up near the
southern Spanish city of Almeria. Measuring 35 meters (115 feet) high,
the Tulip is the product of Israeli company AORA, and it uses heat from
the sun to generate electricity. Work began on the hybrid concentrating
solar power technology back in the 80s and the first Tulip pilot plant
was installed at Israel’s Kibbutz Samar in 2009. That setup has been
pumping electricity into the country’s power grid every year since. The
Spanish plant was completed this January. Read More
With the internet connecting not
just billions of computers but billions of creative minds, the news that
Citroën UK was collaborating with Facebook to "crowd-source" the design
of a new C1 variant at first appeared very exciting. The reality of the
situation though, is that participants "choose" the number of doors (2
or 4), the interior and exterior colors and ... just six multiple choice
options to configure the "C1 Connexion". Read More
Pushing wood down grassy gradients can be quite a
challenge for standard wheeled boards. There are of course oversized or
chunky options available to help smooth over some of the bumps and
dips, but hybrid scooter maker Rockboard will shortly be releasing a new
all-terrain skateboard called the Descender, that features tank-like
treads instead of wheels. While it's clear that you're not going to get
the butt-clenching thrill or the hairline-raising speeds offered by
adult off-roaders like Scarper's powerboard or the DTV Shredder, with some considered course planning you could still be in for quite a ride. Read More
Rattlesnakes, beware! The next time
you spot a succulent-looking squirrel, it might actually be a
cold-hearted robot. More specifically, it might be a “robosquirrel,”
created by UC Davis professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering
Sanjay Joshi. He built the robot squirrels as part of a study on
rattlesnake behavior – a study which yielded some interesting results.
Read More
The average gadget (think big screen TVs and
video games) may cause your health and physique to suffer, but heart
rate monitors and GPS fitness computers combine high-tech gadgetry with
healthy intentions. The latest fitness gadgets do more than just track
your fitness, they actively inspire you to do better. The Pear Sports
Square One is the latest gadget that serves as tracker and digital
personal trainer. Read More
Seizures can be very scary experiences for people
who suffer from them, especially since they may sometimes result in the
need for medical attention. Unfortunately, they often come on so fast
that the people getting them aren’t able to get out a call for help
beforehand – they simply have to ride out the seizure on their own, and
hope for the best. Now, however, two new technologies may be able to
help. One is a watch that alerts caregivers when it detects movements
associated with seizures, while the other is a system that could stop
seizures before they start, by sending electrical impulses to the brain.
Read More
On April 14, 1912, the luxury liner RMS Titanic,
just four days into her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York
City, struck an iceberg and sank with the loss of 1,514 lives. At the
time, the massive, state-of-the-art ship was the largest vessel afloat
and considered by many to be "virtually unsinkable." Built in Belfast,
Northern Ireland by shipbuilding firm Harland and Wolff for the White
Star Line at the then-astronomical cost of US$7.5 million (US$171
million in 2012 dollars), the ill-fated Titanic has been a
source of pathos and fascination for nearly a century. To bring the
remarkable ship's story to countless more future generations (and
presumably give the local economy a shot in the arm) the government of
Northern Ireland, the Belfast City Council and numerous private groups
have pooled resources and created Titanic Belfast, a futuristic, US$160
million, nine-gallery museum - the world's largest exclusively dedicated
to the ship and its only voyage. The facility finally opened late last
month – just in time for the centennial of the tragedy coming up in a
few days. Read More
While electric cars are often touted as being
less mechanically complex than their internal combustion-engined
counterparts, there is at least one way in which they’re considerably
more “involved” – their radios. Because electrical signals emitted by
the car can potentially interfere with incoming radio signals,
manufacturers must do things such as insulating the motor and shielding
the cables. This adds time and material expenses to the production
process. Now, however, researchers from Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute
for Reliability and Microintegration have developed technology to help
minimize the problem. Read More
Video game developer, Epic Games, is known for
giving players realistic experiences thanks to its popular Unreal Engine
platform. But while games like Batman: Arkham City and Gears of War
are certainly entertaining, virtually beating up thugs and fighting
subterranean creatures doesn't exactly translate into real world skills.
However a new agreement with teaching software developer, Virtual
Heroes, could see Epic's platform used to create more practical
experiences and train medical staff and law enforcement officers to
handle high-stress situations. By using Epic's Unreal Engine 3, some
United States government agencies like the FBI and US Army are hoping to
give their employees tools for virtually practicing their skills in a
more realistic environment and better prepare them to save lives. Read More
Thermoelectric materials are able to generate an
electrical current, via a temperature gradient within themselves. If thermoelectric fabric
were used to make a jacket, for instance, the temperature difference
between that garment’s cool exterior and warm interior might be enough
to charge devices carried in its pockets. A current could also be
generated by a vehicle’s thermoelectric exhaust pipe,
due to its hot interior and the cool air surrounding it. Now,
entrepreneurs David Toledo and Paul Slusser have developed a line of
thermoelectric cooking pots, that use the heat of a fire to generate
electricity when camping. Read More
... or more accurately, the company will allow you to put a 3D-printed model of your head on one. All you have to do is send in some snapshots. Read More
Last week, Grace Digital announced the forthcoming release of its FireDock charging speaker dock specifically designed for Amazon's Kindle Fire.
We said that this was one of the first to reach the market. Well,
here's one of the others. The FireStation from Readerdock is not only
going to hit the marketplace well before July, but it's a good deal
cheaper too. The company has also created a dedicated speaker dock for Nook Color users called the N-Station, that's due for release at the same time. Read More
In order to surf those massive walls of salt
water known as big waves, brave surfers usually need to get towed in by a
personal watercraft (PWC). This presents some logistical problems
(i.e. having to bring a buddy along to tow you around all day). The
WaveJet gives you the power you need without requiring a large tow-in
vehicle or separate person. Read More
For me, the satisfaction of completing a
thousand-piece jigsaw puzzle is relatively short-lived. True that I may
have managed to bring together thousands of tiny colored sweets in one
poster-sized mass of loveliness, or worked my way through miles and
miles of blue sky without having a nervous breakdown – but what now?
Germany's Ravensburger has the answer in the form of augmented reality.
The company has released four puzzles that, upon completion, can be
transformed into jaw-dropping video animation and sound effects on an
iPhone or iPad via a free-to-download app. Read More
Ideabox, an architectural firm from
Portland, Oregon, has launched its "Aktiv" line of prefabricated homes
which will be equipped with IKEA furnishings and appliances. The
one-bedroom modular homes are claimed to be eco-friendly, and are
designed with no wasted space. Read More
Cessna seized upon the frankly unmissable
opportunity to make a major announcement at this year's Sun 'n Fun
International Fly-In at Lakeland, Florida, by announcing that its luxury
single-pilot aircraft, the Cessna Corvalis TTX, has entered production.
The new aircraft, proclaimed by Cessna to be the "world's fastest
fixed-gear aircraft," will replace the old Corvalis TT. Read More
Researchers from Purdue University in Indiana are
testing a compound found in red wine that has the ability to block the
processes of fat cell development. The research into the compound known
as piceatannol may lead towards finding a simple method to combat
obesity. Read More
X-ray computed tomography – or CT – scanners are
designed with people of an average build in mind. When obese patients
require a CT scan, the additional layers of body fat will produce blurry
images if the scanner’s regular settings are used. Clinicians typically
address this problem by turning up the power of the scanner.
Unfortunately, doing so results in overweight patients receiving
higher-than-normal doses of radiation. A new computer modeling system
developed at New York’s Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, however, could
help bring those levels down. Read More
Big- and medium-budget film-makers
looking for smooth tracking shots will soon have another alternative to
laying down tracks for hand-pushed camera dollies. T3 Motion, the maker
of the T3 electric standup vehicle, is launching a new version of its
EV, designed specifically for use by cinematographers. Read More
We've seen plenty of innovative ways to keep beer cold in recent months, with everything from a refrigerator with a built-in blast chiller to a can that cools itself at the push of a button.
But these have all involved cooling the beer's container, leaving the
liquid inside to warm up at the same rate as any other beverage. That's
why Japanese beer maker Kirin has gone a different route, and developed a
method for cooling the beer directly and, more importantly, keeping it
chilled for much longer. The company's new Ichiban Shibori Frozen Draft
stays at a low temperature thanks to a specially-developed machine that
dispenses a topping of frozen beer foam like soft serve ice cream. Read More
In an extraordinary move, Jaguar has announced it
will produce an all-new sports car to go on sale in mid-2013, named the
F-Type. Announced but not exhibited at the New York International Auto
Show, Jaguar has released images of the vehicle with camouflage paint.
Given the iconic status of its previously letter-designated sports cars
(the C-type, D-type and E-type), the Jaguar F-type can be reasonably
expected to be spectacularly good. Here's what we know so far: Read More
The first complaint about current mainstream
electric vehicle options is that they don't offer enough range. The
second is that they only come in small and, some might say, unattractive
packages like the Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi i-Miev. Infiniti may not
have solved the former problem, but it's done its best to solve the
latter with the LE concept. The concept gives the Nissan Leaf a
sportier, more upscale brother. Read More
Take one piece of software that can stitch 2D
photos into a 3D model, one camera-carrying UAV (unmanned aerial
vehicle), and mix well to impress and inspire. This was the recipe used
by Autodesk's Director of Strategic Research, Gonzalo Martinez, when he
set about modifying an Octo-Copter UAV for use with Autodesk's 123D
Catch software to simplify the process of making 3D models of large
real-world objects, while also having some fun. Read More
Despite technology's best efforts,
headphones and sports just don't mix that well. Loss of awareness of
your surroundings, uncomfortable earphones and tangled wires make them
less than a perfect solution and it's these shortcomings that The Sonic
Walk aims to address by providing a more natural, ergonomic way of
listening to music and exercising. Read More
One of the problems of using GPS chartplotters on
a sailboat is that it is extremely difficult to calculate accurate
arrival times given the amount of tacking often involved. Now there's a
purpose-built Sailing GPS that not only accounts for the tacking that
sailboats do, but can can tell you the optimal tacking angles and your
Tacking Time to Destination (TTD). Read More
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche,
Grandson of the founder of Porsche, the designer of the Porsche 911, the
founder of the Porsche Design studio and the architect of Porsche
design culture, passed away yesterday, April 5 in Salzburg, aged 76. His
design credo was that “design must be functional and functionality has
to be translated visually into aesthetics, without gags that have to be
explained first.” Some of his other well known statements on design
include, “a coherently designed product requires no adornment; it should
be enhanced by its form alone”, and “Good design should be honest.”
Vale F.A. Porsche. Read More 
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