University of Maryland When you think of four-legged walking robots, chances are that you picture something like Boston Dynamics’ various dog robots. But while Spot and his large siblings may be the world’s most famous quadruped robots, there’s plenty of innovation going on at the smaller end of the spectrum as well. At the University […]
Siping Zheng It might sound like something out of a techno-thriller, but it’s not: Scientists in China really have developed an unmanned submarine that is designed to travel into potentially deadly typhoons and other extreme weather types and fire off weather-monitoring rockets. One of these “rocketsondes,” designed to perform weather analysis in situations that would […]
Coffee lovers have been known to go to some impressive extremes for a cup o’ joe and there are a million tools, gadgets, and gizmos to help you brew the perfect beverage. But here’s a concept that will raise eyebrows of even the most dedicated java enthusiast: coffee beans that are shot hundreds of miles […]
Futurists and tech companies often use the idea of freedom to promote products, but as technology gets ever more complicated and spreads into every facet of life, it provides authorities with ever more tools and opportunities to observe the populace and potentially infringe on those freedoms. Law enforcement agencies, in particular, are rapidly incorporating cutting-edge […]
Boeing had problems in the development of their spacecraft, the Starliner, when a propellant leak occurred during testing last year. But now those problems have been overcome and the craft is ready for its first test flight, according to the company. Boeing was one of two private companies (along with SpaceX) that was contracted by […]
The brainchild of Hong Kong-based Hanson Robotics, Sophia is the Audrey Hepburn-inspired humanoid robot who has met all manner of politicians and celebrities, and once promised to, err, destroy all of humanity. Now Sophia has a precocious little sister — and she’s ready to teach kids all about STEM subject (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) and coding. […]
San Francisco is one of the tech capitals of America, but that doesn’t mean that every kind of technology is welcome there. This week, a San Francisco lawmaker introduced legislation that could see San Fran become the first city in the United States to ban the use of facial recognition technology. The bill, referred to […]
[embedded content] Not content with getting freakishly good at cerebral games like chess and Go, it seems that artificial intelligence is now coming for the kind of fun games we played as kids (and childish adults). With that in mind, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a robot which uses the […]
If you’re trying to get rats off an island without damaging the native animals or plants, what’s the best way to go about it? If you’re anything like the brains behind a recent initiative on two islands in Ecuador’s Galapagos archipelago, the answer is simple: Use drones that dispense rat poison. The North Seymour region […]
SpaceX When you really think about it, isn’t it mind-blowing that SpaceX can land a rocket back on the ground after a mission? Upright. The private space company, led by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, has pretty much perfected the landing procedure of its first-stage booster for its reusable rocket system. But it’s having a much harder […]
Roslin Institute You may have heard the children’s story about the goose who laid the golden egg, but have you heard the very real story about the genetically modified chickens who laid the cancer-fighting eggs? This latter project is something that researchers from the U.K.’s University of Edinburgh have been working on. After splicing a […]
About a month ago I flew (and landed) a plane. Thing is, I’m not a trained pilot. Not even close. I have no aviation experience whatsoever and have logged exactly zero hours of flying time outside of that crappy flight simulator that you can play inside Google Earth. But despite my grotesque level of inexperience, […]
BAS/BEAMISH A team of scientists and engineers from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) have successfully drilled a hole more than one mile deep in the western Antarctic, hoping to uncover more information about the effect of climate change on the region. Rather than using deep drilling equipment, which can suffer problems in the harsh, low […]
[embedded content] Remember the first time you had to parallel park a car? Docking a boat isn’t too much different — with the difference being that, chances are, a boat costs a heck of a lot more than your first car. Docking mishaps in a boat can be both embarrassing and very expensive. Could smart […]
What’s the best way to communicate with a person when they’re outside of normal speaking distance? Call them on their phone, obviously. But what if the person either doesn’t have a phone with them — or you’re just looking for a high-tech communication method that’s a little more James Bond in its nature? Researchers from […]