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Space Tractors and Paper Furniture
Feb. 17th, 2007 07:43 amSource: PhysOrg  NASA suggests that a "spce tractor" could be used to move potential earth-killer asteroids off their collision course. They suggest this may be a better solution than blowing them up, which could result in multiple huge pieces still hitting the earth and wreaking havoc. |
Source: Technology Review  Scientists at the University of Southern California are preparing to test a new retinal implant that may provide 4 times the resolution of previous models. These previous models have been tested in humans and have enjoyed some success in restoring limited vision to those with retinal-degenerative diseases. The new device still depends on an external camera and imaging processing. They predict that the third-generation devices will have 10 times the resolution of the new model. |
Source: Transmaterial  Softseating is a series of paper chairs that are designed with a honey-comb structure that allow them to be folded up and stored when not in use. The seats are expected to improve with age because constant use will soften the paper fibers. They are also flame-retardent and recyclable. |
Source: SlashDot  A student at MIT emulated an XOR (shown here) gate and and AND gate using only water, sufficient to build a half-adder. Although not likely to win the Nobel prize, the logic circuits he designed are useful for demonstrating how logic gates work. |
Source: BBC News  Japanese researchers have exploited the human eye's inability to process the colour yellow well (I was surprised to hear that) to hide printed text in images. The text can then be read by software on a call-phone's camera by filtering out everything in yellow. They can currently store 12-bits of information, about the same as the average bar code. They hope to use this technology to connect printed material to online material. |
Kodak shows that, despite the virtual replacement of film cameras with digital cameras, they are far from dead in the water. They have entered the challenging market of inkjet printers with an "All-in-one" printer, capable of producing colour documents and photos far cheaper than those currently on the market. The new system uses Kodak proprietary ink; however, that ink is $10(US) for black-and-white and only $15(US) for colour. This means that a 4x6 print can be generated for as little as 10 cents. The printers themselves are relatively inexpensive, ranging from a $150(US) base model to a $300(US) model with duplexer and fax machine.
The Oneida Indian Nation in New York State are upgrading their story-telling big-time. They plan to use 3D animation to tell their traditional stories. The tribe created a multimedia company, Four Directions Media, Inc., four years ago for purpose like this, as well as for creating CDs of music by native artists.
Scientists have learned how to use optical flow (rate of change of the contents of a sequence of images) to land a miniature helicopter using a very simple software system. Optical flow is believed to be used by insects to control their height above a surface, a task that requires massive computational power for robots. They trick, they discovered, was to keep the optical flow rate constant. They were able to control the height and speed of the helicopter gracefully using a simple feed-back network and no special hardware or software to determine height or speed. The system may be adapted to commercial helicopters to improve their maneuvering.
Zink Imaging has developed a new way to generate photos without using ink. The key is a special photopaper that changes colour when heated. Specifically, the paper consists of a plastic base covered with a thin layers of thermally-activated dye crystals. Heat causes the crystals to amorphous glass, releasing the dye. by controlling the temperature and heating time, they can control which colour crystal (yellow, magenta or cyan) is affected. This may allow them to make ultra-portable printers for the next generation of Polaroid-like cameras. Not surprising, given the company is a spin-off from Polaroid. They hope to get the cost of paper down such that photos could be generated for less that 25-cents each.
Iris On the Move (IOM) takes 30 pictures per second of people from various angles to obtain sufficient information to reconstruct the patterns of your iris. Unlike current systems, not only do you not have to stop to have the scan taken, you don't even need to know that it is there. Expect to see these things in airports to screen for suspected terrorists or people wanted for criminal offenses. The system is even undeterred by sunglasses or other eye-covers. Essentially, if you can see out, it can see in. The only deterrent may be semi-silvered mirrors as glasses.
Richard Branson is at it again, this time offering a $25 million prize for anyone who can demonstrate a technology that reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Get your thinking caps out, the money's on the table.
For those interested in astronomy, or seeking an excuse to look at the stars, a lunar eclipse will be visible to people in North America just after sunset on March 3rd. Those on the East Coast are expected to have the best show.
For those of you paranoid about what goes on in your house when you're away, LukWerks offers a $330(US) spy camera that is hidden inside a digital desk clock.
Own your own radio-controlled dragonfly for only $50(US). This device flaps its wings like a real dragonfly and is able to achieve sustained flight, along with some of the ariel maneuvers you can see in the real thing.
This device mounts high on the window and, in the event of an accident, maintains a record of the car's current speed, rate of acceleration, and a video of the last few seconds prior to detecting an impact... assuming the back box doesn't become a flying projectile of its own. The memory is continuously reused as it operates.
This annoying little device is powered by ambient light, and hums various tunes throughout the day. Just to add to the fun, it tweets occasionally when it senses motion.
These robot dogs are capable of interacting with their owner, eventually learning up to 650 words. Apparently they also sing karaoke. And here I though they were house-broken.
This High-Definition camcorder can generate video at 1920x1080 and measures just 1.5 inches by 3 inches. Expect to see these things showing up anywhere an extreme sport enthusiast wants you to "be there" with them.
This device is designed to let soldiers know, silently, what the people behind them are trying to tell them (things like, sniper up ahead). The vest can create 15 distinctive patterns as a tactile display on a soldier's back. And in a situation where betraying your position could be a life-or-death matter, silent communication is a good thing.
Scientists have predicted the existence of ocean worlds: planets completely covered in water as much as 100-km deep. In fact, they predict that such worlds should be more common than those like earth. With the upcoming launch of the Kepler spacecraft in 2008, along with data collected from CoRoT and ground-based observations, such worlds should soon be detectable within the habitable zones of nearby stars, if such planets even exist.
Scientists gave an amputee the ability to feel "touch" using her prosthetic by rewiring nerves from her shoulder to sensory nerves in her chest, which acted as surrogates for the sensory nerves in the lost limb. This surgery is allowed her to regain her sense of touch and temperature, enhancing the functionality of her prosthetic. To the amputee, the feeling actually appear to come from missing limb because the information is following the original neural pathway through the shoulder. In addition to the sensory nerves, they rewired her control nerves to muscles in her chest. After several months, the muscles begin responding to the new sensory input. Add MEG (muscle motion sensors) and signal processing, and she is now able to control here arm using the same mental instructions she using the same mental commands she used to control the original limb.
Researchers have harnessed the power of folding to create a 5-mm thick flat lens with the resolving power of a 38-mm standard lens. The trick is in collecting light over a wide area and re-reflecting it within the lens until the light reaches the photodetector array. This lens could be used in the next generation of light, thin, high-resolution imaging systems.
Scientists have developed a "portable" (size of a small moving van) generator that converts food, paper, and plastic waste into electricity. Although initially designed for the military, an extension of this technology may find its way into businesses or homes as a way to convert certain types of waste into energy.
Researchers at Brown University have developed a high-resolution, high-speed system for imaging bones while they are in motion. This should have immediate benefit to orthopedic surgeons and physiotherapists who can finally observe exactly what bones are doing during certain activities. The picture shown here is a duck flying in a wind tunnel, being x-rayed in real-time.
