In 2007, officials from Berkeley, California shut off the electricity to an artists space known as the Shipyard. That action, which forced the artists there to seek a new way to power their flamethrowers, is the origin story of a company that now produces what it says is the world’s only carbon-negative power source.
Continue reading… “Carbon-negative energy now a reality”
Aeromobil
Stefan Klein, a designer from the Slovak Republic, has announced the first flight of his Aeromobil Version 2.5, a flying car prototype he has been developing over the last 20 years. This vehicle is a strikingly beautiful design with folding wings and a propeller in the tail. But will its flight capabilities match its looks? (Photos and video)
Continue reading… “Aeromobil flying car prototype makes its first test flight”
BitLock
BitLock, a keyless bike lock, is a U-lock that can be opened electronically by an iPhone or Android app. With that electronic aspect comes other features, such as a GPS tracker and a fitness tracker that can record miles biked, calories burned, and CO2 emissions avoided. Whoever has admin-like status can grant or revoke access to the lock. Making things even simpler, it all connects via Bluetooth, so you don’t even need to have your phone out to open it: proximity works just as well.
Continue reading… “BitLock – a keyless bike lock connects to your phone via Bluetooth”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07XPEqkHJ6U[/youtube]
On the TV quiz show, Jeopardy!, IBM’s Watson defeated two grand-champions. Watson is the world’s smartest computer and it was matched up against two really smart humans. The quiz-show win captured peoples’ attention, but, these days, as we identify uses for Watson throughout society, it’s becoming clear that these technologies will be used primarily to augment human intelligence, not compete with people or replace us.
Continue reading… “WatsonPaths: New project let IBM’s Watson work with doctors”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1_mPe8Y0V4[/youtube]
Solar power is a great way to keep robots running indefinitely, in theory. And it’s absolutely possible to do it, provided your robot doesn’t need to do anything urgently, you have a ludicrously powerful light source, or your robot is very efficient and spends a lot of time in the sun. That last category has potential for solar powered micro air vehicles, including the University of Maryland’s Robo Raven, which has just gotten kitted out with solar panel wings.
Continue reading… “Robo Raven – the first solar-powered robotic bird”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJTl2oqaWPs[/youtube]
All of that electricity in a thunderstorm. All that lightning, all those kilojoules of power, just waiting to be harnessed, if only we knew how do it! Could we really harness the electricity from lightning?
Continue reading… “Will we ever be able to harness the power of lightning?”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPjatYDHJKo[/youtube]
The U.S. Army has just commissioned an Iron Man-like suit, called the Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS) that will be strong enough to withstand a barrage of bullets.
Continue reading… “U.S. Army envisions Iron Man-like suit to protect troops”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9poznjfOLA[/youtube]
MIT has had a number of off-the-wall discoveries, so it takes something truly unexpected to throw the researchers there for a loop. MIT researchers have recently discovered the self-healing properties of metal. If their discovery means what we think it means, we could just have witnessed to the birth of the T-1000.
Continue reading… “MIT researchers discover self-healing metal”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE3fmFTtP9g[/youtube]
WildCat is the newest creation from Boston Dynamics. With a frame that’s somewhat reminiscent of their previous quadruped robot, LS3 (also referred to as mule), WildCat is actually more closely related to a cheetah. Either way you look at it, WildCat is a step forward for robotics.
Continue reading… “WildCat: Boston Dynamic’s new robot that can run and gallop”
GE rolls out their vision of the future. Sometimes we often wind up with a bunch of design concepts that have zero chance of making it to market because those design concepts are usually designed for “the home of 2050” or some other far-off date that nobody’s really thinking about yet. With GE’s “Home 2025” design concepts, they have made it their goal to stay within the realm of possibility. (Photos and video)
Continue reading… “GE reveals vision of what our homes will be like in 2025”
Nest
The smoke detector screams, people panic, arms and hands flail and someone with a towel furiously fans away smoke in the kitchen. Then you need a chair to reach the ceiling to hold down that impossibly tiny red button, which never seems to silence the wailing device. So you rip out the batteries–and maybe don’t put them back for days or weeks. (Video)
Continue reading… “Nest reinvents the smoke detector”
DeepFlight Super Falcon
The DeepFlight Super Falcon (DFSF) is a sleek vehicle that flies, but it’s not flying in the air, it’s flying through the water. It is shaped like a stout fighter jet with two stubby 8.8-feet wide “wings” at each side, with a super slim chassis and domed semicircle waterproof windows. The 20.11 feet DFSF soars through water instead of simply sinking like traditional submarines. (Video)
Continue reading… “DeepFlight Super Falcon flying submarine”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.