Stanford researchers create algorithm that makes wind turbines more efficient
Could an algorithm make wind turbines more productive? It may sound crazy, but the answer is a resounding yes. Researchers at Stanford University recently used a proprietary optimization algorithm to model the most efficient yaw angle for turbines. Here's what they found.
MIT and IBM’s new A.I. image-editing tool lets you paint with neurons
Imagine Photoshop for the deep fake generation. No, we're not quite there yet, but researchers at IBM and MIT have created an amazing demo showing how cutting-edge A.I. is going to power future image-editing tools. Check out their demonstration -- and have a go for yourself.
Smartglasses use eye-tracking to make sure whatever you look at is in focus
Researchers at Stanford have developed a pair of experimental smartglasses which could be used to treat a variety of vision defects -- using depth-sensing cameras and eye-tracking technology to make sure whatever you look at remains in perfect focus. Here's how they work.
Thought-controlled robotic hand can play games of rock-paper-scissors
Researchers at Japan’s Hiroshima University have developed a robotic prosthetic hand, controllable using only a wearer’s thoughts. The low-cost 3D-printed creation can perform a wide variety of hand gestures, and even engage in a game of rock-paper-scissors. Check it out.
Grub’s up? Lab-grown insect meat could be the future of food production
Would you switch to eating a lab-grown insect flesh diet for the good of our planet? As far as future foodstuffs are concerned, it’s not out of the question. At least, that's what a team of researchers from Tufts University believe. And they're far from alone in their conclusions.
Harvard’s tiny, insect-inspired RoboBee X-Wing can fly using solar power
Harvard University’s Wyss Institute's new RoboBee X-Wing is an impressive solar-powered winged flying robot that stands just 6.5 centimeters high, weighs only 259 milligrams, and can fly completely untethered. Check out it this minuscule flying milestone in aerial action.
This artificial muscle is powered just like the real thing, no battery required
Researchers from Germany’s Linköping University have developed an artificial muscle that's powered by glucose and oxygen, just like real biological muscles in the human body. That means, significantly, that no batteries are required for it to function. Here's how it could be used.
Crawler robots and imaging drones will monitor wind turbine blades for damage
By spotting signs of damage early, wind turbine blades can be kept in service for longer. To assist with this task, researchers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed special blade-crawling robots and flying inspection drones. Here's how they could be used to help.
A Netflix data scientist taught an A.I. to recognize smooching scenes in movies
A senior data scientist at Netflix has taught an A.I. to recognize kissing scenes in movies. Amir Ziai developed the tool as part of his work to obtain an A.I. graduate certificate from Stanford University. Here's why it turns out to be a surprisingly difficult task to automate.
Marsy McMarsface? NASA gives students the chance to name its next Mars rover
Could there be a bigger brag than the fact that you named the next Mars rover? That’s exactly what NASA is promising K-12 students in the U.S. by launching a new contest that will allow some lucky kid to be the one to name one of humanity’s greatest technological achievements to date.
Swish! Toyota’s basketball bot earns a Guinness record with 2,020 perfect throws
After years of trial and error, a humanoid robot built by Toyota (yes, the car company!) set a Guinness World Record for its impressive basketball shooting abilities. The robot, known as CUE3, earner its record by sinking 2,020 free throws in a row, without ever missing a shot.
Self-assembling microrobots can be programmed to form a tiny steerable car
Researchers at Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems have developed a new type of self-assembling mobile micromachine that can be programmed to assemble into different formations -- ranging from a tiny car to a miniature rocket. Here's what's next for the project.
U.S. Navy is working on making its fleet invisible to computerized surveillance
The United States Navy’s ever-innovative Office of Naval Research is working on a way to turn the nation's military fleet invisible. Well, to cutting-edge image-recognition systems, at least. Here's what it has planned -- and how far along it is with these high-tech plans.
Hormone boosts could help astronauts from losing muscle on long space journeys
Space travel isn't exactly easy on the human body. New research highlights how reduced gravity conditions during space flight missions can cause extreme muscle loss. But while that sounds pretty bad, researchers may have found a solution in the form of special hormone treatments.
New snail-inspired super glue can switch between sticky and non-sticky states
Developed by an international team of researchers, this snail mucus-inspired super glue can switch between adhesive and non-adhesive states. You know, like a snail being able to grip onto a surface while moving. Here's why the new glue-like material could prove so useful.
Cornell’s lionfish-inspired robot uses artificial blood to stay powered up
Cornell University has developed a swimming robot, modeled on the lionfish, which uses a circulating liquid electrolyte likened by its creators to a kind of robot blood. This allows it to store up energy for use powering itself during long-duration tasks. Here's why that matters.
A cardiac arrest-detecting smart speaker could save your life
Smart speakers are great for everything from playing music to operate our smart homes. But could they soon also help save lives as well? An innovative research project from the University of Washington could help smart speakers detect cardiac arrest while you sleep.
This humanlike synthesized speech could be the future of audiobooks
You probably wouldn't want Siri or Alexa reading you an entire audiobook. But a new startup called DeepZen has developed a text-to-speech A.I. that sounds impressively human when it talks. It can even pick up on necessary emotional cues in text and voice them correctly.
A tiny magnet accomplishes enormous feat, sets a new world record
A magnet housed at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee, Florida, has set a record for the strongest continuous DC magnetic field ever recorded with a 45.5-tesla rating. Here's what that means in everyday terms -- and what makes it such a useful discovery.
Live long and prosper? Experimental compound could slow down the aging process
Want to extend your natural lifespan beyond its current limits? While the fountain of youth remains out of reach, researchers EPFL and the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics have discovered a metabolite of biomolecules which could help slow the aging process. Here's how.
This crazy-looking robot uses microspines on its legs to climb up walls
Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have built a bioinspired robot called T-RHex, which uses microspines on its feet to grip onto rough surfaces. This allows it to climb up very steep gradients in a way that very few robots have previously been able to do. Check it out.
This drone with hands looks like a nightmare straight out of Black Mirror
This unlikely drone-with-hands creation is the work of Federico Ciccarese, the brains behind YouBionic, a bionic hand project that has evolved far beyond its original remit of offering a pair of 3D-printable robot hands. Check it out in all its slightly unnerving glory.
This lifesaving wearable could diagnose strokes more accurately
Researchers from the Army Medical University and China Academy of Engineering Physics have developed a new wearable device that uses two different light measurement techniques to track the body's blood circulation -- and accurately predict deadly strokes in the process.
A giant new solar farm in Texas will harness the sun’s rays to … brew beer?
Brewing beer is surprisingly energy intensive. To help make alcohol production a bit more eco-friendly, the world’s largest beer manufacturer is behind efforts to build a new solar farm in Texas. In doing so, it promises to brew 100% of its beverages using renewable energy.
Custom 3D-printed heads let doctors practice delicate brain procedures
The highly skilled radiotherapists who operate to remove brain tumors could still benefit from being able to practice on specific patients ahead of time. That's where a new 3D-printed head, created using a patient's actual CT scans, comes into play. Here's how it works.
Want your very own genuine Diplodocus skeleton? It’ll cost you
Have you ever dreamed of owning your very own dinosaur? This could be your lucky day, because a genuine bona fide dino skeleton, described as a cousin of the Diplodocus family, is now up for auction. But you'd better be ready to spend some big bucks to get your hands on it!
Hypnotic spinning top throws out crazy optical illusions as it rotates
Remember that never-ending spinning top in the movie Inception? Mozmocoin is a new kind of spinner which not only promises to spin for well over 10 minutes at a time, but to also throw out some mind-bending optical illusions while it’s rotating. Here's how you can get one.
A medical superglue alternative is made from Chinese giant salamander goo
Forget medical superglue! Harvard medical researchers have discovered a special natural adhesive that's able to seal up wounds effectively, made from goo that's excreted from the skin of Chinese giant salamanders. Here's why it could prove to be a very promising alternative.
Mars lander simulator lets you take Opportunity rover for one last spin
It was a sad moment earlier this year when NASA officially called it quits on its 15-year-old, record-setting Mars rover Opportunity. Thankfully, a new update for a Mars rover simulator lets you take the deceased Opportunity for one more ride around the Martian landscape.
Top Oxford researcher talks the risk of automation on employment
The threat of robots and A.I. stealing jobs is hotly debated. In a new book, titled The Technology Trap: Capital, Labor, and Power in the Age of Automation, Oxford professor Dr. Carl Benedikt Frey sorts the truth from the fiction. Dr. Frey spoke with Digital Trends about his findings.