Braingate patient uses thought to control robotic arm

2012/05/17

A quadriplegic woman has used a robotic arm to take a drink, operating the arm with her thoughts. The Braingate system uses a 96-pin chip implanted in the brain’s motor cortex to sense neuron activity, which is converted into electrical signals and sent to a computer. Researchers hope one day it will This animation explains the Braingate system. SOURCES: BBC, MSNBC

Virus generates electricity when squeezed

2012/05/17

Scientists in the US have developed a way to use benign viruses to convert pressure into electricity. When a M13 bacteriophage, which only infects bacteria, is squished, an electric current flows along the virus in a process called piezoelectricity, or electricity due to pressure. The technology could be used to make tiny devices that generate power from mechanical forces, such as using the beating of a heart to power a pacemaker. Source: Nature Nanotechnology

Somali pirate camp attacked by EU forces

2012/05/16

European Union naval forces carried out their first ever inland attack on Somalian pirates as part of the force’s mission to protect international shipping lanes. An EU NAVFOR helicopter destroyed several pirate skiffs at a pirate camp along Somalia’s central coastline, according to a NAVFOR press release. The attack also targeted a weapons dump and fuel supplies. Sources: NY Times, EU NAVFOR

Virgin Atlantic rolls out in-flight mobile-phone calls

2012/05/16

Virgin Atlantic is rolling out in-flight mobile-phone calls, beginning with its London to New York route. The airline will use technology from AeroMobile, which has installed similar in-flight mobile-phone systems for airlines such as Emirates. Up to six passengers can access the system simultaneously. Users must roam onto the plane’s AeroMobile network, which is a small mobile-phone base station. This base station connects with a satellite, which then re-transmits signals to ground stations.

Woman survives three days trapped in car

2012/05/16

Veronica McFoy, 41, from West Virginias Monongalia County, lost control of her vehicle last Monday and crashed down a 30-foot embankment. Heavy vegetation meant her car was not visible from the road. She broke her vertebrae, ribs and her chest bone and was trapped for three days. McFoy survived on sodas and rain water, eventually escaping through a window after breaking it with a wrench she found inside the car. She is expected to make a full recovery. Sources: CBS, Metro News

Seattle skier falls into crevasse in Canadian mountain, unharmed

2012/05/16

Nicopas Popov of Seattle was skiing in Decker Mountain near Whistler, British Columbia when he came upon a crack in the snow. Popov fell 50 meters down into a 70-meter-deep crevasse. He was rescued two hours later, unharmed. This animation also explains how crevasses are formed. Sources: Christian Science Monitor, National Snow and Ice Data Center

Smart fishing hook uses magnets to repel sharks

2012/05/16

US scientist Eric Stroud has invented a special kind of hook coated with rare-earth metals that he says acts as shark repellent. It’s believed that sharks use what’s called the Ampullae of Lorenzini, jelly-filled pores on a shark’s snout that sense electricity. Such a tool would not only protect humans from shark bites, but also protect sharks from accidentally being caught by humans fishing for tuna. Source: BBC

May 20: rare ring of fire annular solar eclipse

2012/05/16

A solar eclipse happens when the moon passes before the sun, blocking the sun's rays and casting its shadow on the Earth. The May 20 eclipse is called an annular solar eclipse, or ring of fire eclipse, as the moon will not completely block the sun's rays. The eclipse will be visible in the western part of the US. It begins in Asia and reaches its greatest extent in the Pacific Ocean.

British duo to row across North Atlantic

2012/05/15

British rowers Andrew Morris and Roz Savage will set out on a cross-Atlantic journey to highlight environmental awareness. The duo aim to complete the gruelling 2,600 mile New Foundland to London route in just 60 days, arriving in the British capital ahead of the London Olympics. Source:OAR2012.com

Disney unveils touch-screen technology that brings everything to life

2012/05/15

The Disney Research Lab at Carnegie Mellon University recently unveiled Touche, a new touch-screen technology that can potentially turn anything into a touch panel. While current touch-screen technology monitors a single frequency using binary commands - on or off, Touche monitors a range of frequencies so that pinches, touches or grabs can all mean different things. Applications include touch-screen sofas that turn on the TV when you sit and dim the lights when you lie down. Sources: The Verge
< 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 >