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Future cars: Auto bodywork composite doubles as a battery
18:41 February 7, 2010 PST
The problem is clear. Hybrid cars and EVs rely on batteries for power, but batteries are bulky and heavy, causing the car to use up more energy. But what if a car's bodywork was made of a strong, lightweight material that could store and discharge electrical energy just as a conventional battery does? In pursuing this goal, researchers at the Imperial College London are developing a key building block for the hybrid car of the future, and the implications go way beyond automobiles - think wafer thin mobile phones and laptops that don't need a separate battery because they draw power from their casing. Read More
Tech firm InteraXon to transmit brain waves across Canada
By Ben Coxworth
15:44 February 7, 2010 PST
If you’re attending the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Columbia this month, you’ll have the chance to transmit your brain waves across Canada. When they reach their destination, the province of Ontario, they'll produce a custom light show on one of three prominent Ontario landmarks - presumably to the amazement of thousands of onlookers. While this might sound like technology straight out of an X-Men movie, it is in fact the latest accomplishment of Toronto-based tech firm InteraXon... and it could be just the tip of the iceberg in the field of thought-controlled computing. Read More
Stem cell elimination offers ovarian cancer breakthrough
By Jeff Salton
23:03 February 4, 2010 PST
The medical profession has experienced much difficulty and frustration in detecting and treating ovarian cancer, but researchers at the Yale School of Medicine, Connecticut, believe they have made a major breakthrough. They say eliminating cancer stem cells (CSCs) within a tumor could hold the key to successful treatments. Read More
Running barefoot lessens impact - but don't throw your shoes away just yet
By Darren Quick
21:16 February 3, 2010 PST
New research has backed up the findings of another study we covered recently on Gizmag which found the average modern running shoe causes significant damage to the knees, hips and ankles compared to running barefoot. The new study found that people who run barefoot land on the ball or middle of the foot. This mitigates the potentially damaging impacts that can be equivalent to two or three times their body weight that shoe-wearing runners, who generally land on their heels, subject their bodies to. Read More
Hitachi to build tower to demonstrate fastest-ever elevator - 40.26mph
By Jeff Salton
22:14 February 1, 2010 PST
If you’re claustrophobic you probably want to spend as little time as possible in an elevator. Therefore, sufferers will no doubt rejoice at the news that Hitachi is undertaking to create the largest high-speed, high-capacity people-movers by completing the world’s tallest elevator research tower (213m). Named the "G1Tower", it will reside at the company’s elevator R&D and manufacturing base in Hitachinaka City, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, and is due for completion in April this year. Prior to this, the company used a 90m tower built in 1967 for its research. Hitachi says it will use the new tower to conduct verification tests on the world's fastest elevator, which has an ear-popping rated speed of 1,080m/min (40.26mph). Read More
Computer modeling indicates white roofs may be a cool idea
By Darren Quick
21:18 January 28, 2010 PST
Previous studies have indicated that painting the roofs of buildings white could be a low tech way to reduce global warming by reflecting the sun’s rays back into space. Now the first computer modeling study to simulate the impacts of white roofs on urban areas worldwide has added more weight to such a proposal indicating that painting every roof in a city entirely white could cool the world’s cities by an average of about 0.7 degrees Fahrenheit or 0.4 degrees Celsius. Read More
Video game prowess is all in your head
By Darren Quick
21:11 January 28, 2010 PST
If you’re the kind of person that seems to struggle every time you pick up a gaming controller you might need to blame your brain - which probably isn’t much of a consolation. Researchers say they can predict a person's performance on a video game simply by measuring the volume of a specific part of the brain. Read More
Wireless optical system offers one gigabit per second transmission
By Paul Ridden
19:31 January 28, 2010 PST
Sending and receiving data over a wireless network is generally undertaken via radio waves. But that's not the only method. Using the optical spectrum offers the advantage of better security and blisteringly fast transfer rates to boot. Engineers from Pennsylvania State University have now succeeded in moving data outside the usual line of sight restrictions at speeds of over one gigabit per second, more than double that achieved by Siemens recently. Read More
The board game V2.0
By Ben Coxworth
13:58 January 28, 2010 PST
Board games aren’t necessarily bound to become obsolete - at least, not if researchers at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada have anything to say about it. They will change, however. Queen’s Human Media Lab (HML) recently unveiled a prototype board game that uses traditional flat cardboard tiles (i.e: cards), but the images on those tiles are projected onto them by an overlooking digital projector. The images stay on the tiles as they’re moved around by the players, courtesy of an overlooking camera that tracks their movements. This means that the tiles could display moving video, that their display could change entirely depending on what’s happening in the game, or that it could be customized by the players. Monopoly night may never be the same. Read More
Jaguar's Gas Turbine Electric Vehicle Project wins funding
By Paul Ridden
12:37 January 27, 2010 PST
The UK government-backed Technology Strategy Board recently announced the recipients of carbon reduction technology research project funding which sees a consortium made up of Jaguar Land Rover, SR Drives and led by Bladon Jets taking a GBP 1,103,392 (about US$1,790,000) slice of the multi-million GB-pound cake to develop "the world’s first commercially viable - and environmentally friendly - gas turbine generator designed specifically for automotive applications." Read More
NEPTUNE Canada - world's largest cabled seafloor observatory goes live
By Ben Coxworth
20:00 January 26, 2010 PST
Deep-sea research is great and everything, but man, those submersibles can get pretty cramped. The other, bigger problem is that it requires going off and traveling on a ship, which is costly and can therefore only be done a few times a year. Fortunately, however, there’s now a way of obtaining real-time undersea data without leaving your office. NEPTUNE Canada, the world’s largest and most advanced cabled seafloor observatory, officially started going live to the Internet last December, giving anyone with an Internet connection free access to what will become an absolute mountain of data from the bottom of the sea. Read More
Wireless data transfer record smashed
By Ben Coxworth
21:41 January 25, 2010 PST
If you’re like most people, you probably think that 200 megabits per second for wireless data transfer is just too darn slow! What are we, cavemen? Not anymore, apparently, as electronic engineering company Siemens just broke their own record by achieving 500 Mbps using white LED light. Read More
The remarkable migratory patterns of the Arctic Tern
By Ben Coxworth
01:52 January 23, 2010 PST
It’s official: the Arctic tern has the longest migration of any animal in the world. The Arctic Tern Migration Project recently discovered that the tern flies over 70,000 kilometers (43,496 miles) annually, from its breeding grounds in the Arctic to its winter quarters in the Antarctic. That distance is more than twice what was previously estimated. Over the lifetime of one bird, it travels approximately 2.4 million kilometers, the equivalent of three trips to the moon and back. For a bird that weighs just over 100 grams (3.5 ounces), that’s fairly impressive. Read More
Consumers in emerging economies twice as likely as developed economies to buy consumer technology this year
By Ben Coxworth
17:47 January 19, 2010 PST
Despite the reputation that First-World populations have for consumerism, a new study has shown that citizens of emerging countries are twice as likely to purchase and use consumer technology within the next year. They are also more willing to pay a premium for environmentally-friendly consumer electronics, and value innovative new products over brand loyalty. The study was conducted by Accenture, a global management consulting firm, and its findings will have profound implications for the consumer tech marketplace. Read More
Biosensor paper strip test for safe drinking water
By Jack Martin
16:19 January 18, 2010 PST
Engineers at the University of Michigan have developed a strip of paper infused with carbon nanotubes that can quickly and inexpensively detect a toxin produced by algae in drinking water. The paper strips perform 28 times faster than the complicated method most commonly used today to detect microcystin-LR, a chemical compound produced by the blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) commonly found on nutrient-rich waters. Microcystin-LR is among the leading causes of biological water pollution and is believed to be the culprit of many mass poisonings going back to early human history. Read More
Older drivers - Safe or unsafe?
By Gizmag Team
15:28 January 18, 2010 PST
The world's population is aging rapidly, with implications in numerous areas, not the least of which is that the number of male drivers over the age of 70 will double in the next 20 years, and the number of female drivers over 70 will treble. Does this pose a greater risk on the roads? A new in-depth report released today by the UK's IAM (Institute of Advanced Motorists contradicts the common assumption that older drivers are a danger on the roads, comprehensively proving that drivers over 70 are no more likely to cause crashes than any other driver, and are indeed, considerably safer than younger drivers. Read More
Researchers show off tiny piezoelectric energy capture sensor
By Paul Ridden
19:21 January 7, 2010 PST
Working within the Holst Centre program on Micropower Generation and Storage, researchers have developed a small piezoelectric device capable of harvesting 85 microwatts of electricity from vibrations. Fabricated using MEMS technology, the fully autonomous temperature sensor generates enough power to wirelessly measure and transmit environmental data to a base station every 15 seconds. Read More
The key to Obesity? Mayo researchers find mechanism that adjusts fat burning
By Gizmag Team
23:07 January 6, 2010 PST
Mayo researchers collaborating with investigators at the University of Iowa, University of Connecticut and New York University (NYU) have discovered a molecular mechanism that controls energy expenditure in muscles and helps determine body weight. Researchers say this could lead to a new medical approach in treating obesity. The findings appear in the journal Cell Metabolism. Read More
Consumer interest in Google Android soars
By Tim Hanlon
21:09 January 4, 2010 PST
More consumers than ever are considering the purchase of an Android-powered smartphone according to ChangeWave Research, who surveyed 4,068 consumers in December. The research shows that 21% of consumers who plan on buying a smartphone in the next 90 days would prefer their smartphone to run Android, up from 6% in September 2009. Read More
Microscopic 'ants' can transport objects inside a microchip
04:16 December 29, 2009 PST
A collaboration between MIT, Boston University and German researchers has produced a new system that could soon be used to move tiny objects inside a microchip. The system is self-assembling, can be controlled via software and can transport particles up to 100 times the size of the beads carrying them. The objective is to give scientists new insights as to how cells and other objects are transported by tiny cilia throughout our bodies. Read More
Silica nanoparticles make wool even more wonderful
By Darren Quick
21:54 December 22, 2009 PST
Already regarded as a “wonder fabric” for its lightness, softness, warmth even when wet, and other qualities, scientists from China say they have been able to improve on the natural properties of wool. They say their discovery could give wool a “brain,” placing it among other “smart” fabrics that shake off wrinkles, shrinkage and “breathe” to release perspiration. Read More
Hybrid biological machines powered by bacteria
By Darren Quick
18:49 December 21, 2009 PST
Researchers have discovered that common bacteria suspended in a solution can be made to turn microgears. This opens up the possibility of building hybrid biological machines at the microscopic scale. The researchers say the discovery demonstrates how microscopic swimming agents, such as bacteria or man-made nanorobots, in combination with hard materials, can constitute a "smart material", which can dynamically alter its microstructures, repair damage, or power microdevices. Read More
Going 3D for more powerful and environmentally-friendly microchips
20:26 December 16, 2009 PST
We've seen vertically oriented transistors, now it's time for entire chips to explore the z-axis. Collaborating with Swiss research institutes EPFL and ETH Zurich, IBM has made another important step toward creating faster, higher-efficiency "3D" processors stacking their cores vertically to increase the number of interconnections and sensibly reduce heat. Read More
Philips offers new e-ink possibilities in color
By Paul Ridden
15:43 December 14, 2009 PST
Rather than using e-paper technology just for displays, the research arm of Dutch technology company Philips Electronics has developed a relatively cheap, light, thin and energy efficient means of turning the whole of the surface of a device into a digital canvas. E-skin technology could be used to change the color of a mobile phone when a call comes in, alter the appearance of a kettle when the water is boiling or even be applied to wallpaper so you can redecorate your room at the flick of a switch. Read More
Intelligent blood bags optimize supplies and prevent dangerous mistakes
17:35 December 13, 2009 PST
During high-risk medical operations surgeons keep blood supplies at hand so that they are ready to face possible emergencies; but blood bags can only be reused if the cold chain has been maintained, meaning that a portion of such a precious and limited resource routinely goes wasted. To face this problem, researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany have proposed intelligent blood bags with an embedded a radio chip that constantly monitors temperature and checks for blood type compatibility with the patient, avoiding possible mistakes. Read More
windykites1
- February 9, 2010 @ 19:22 UTC
