Futuristic bandage can monitor wounds and deliver drug treatment
Researchers have developed a smart bandage that's capable of monitoring a wound and delivering periodical drug treatments. It could someday help transform medical treatment, enabling a doctor to more closely monitor her patient’s condition, while more actively treating the condition.
MIT’s Cheetah 3 robot doesn’t need sight to navigate stairs
By developing the Cheetah 3 to get around without cameras, its engineers hope to create a robot that can “feel” its way through a room, no matter how dark an environment may be. In the real world, this ability could make the robot suited for reconnaissance and search and rescue missions.
Who controls the tech inside us? Budding biohackers are shaping ‘cyborg law’
We live in a society of cyborgs. This newfound technological power and vulnerability may need a whole new set of laws and regulations aimed at protecting individuals (their data and enhancements) in a society of heightened surveillance and digitization.
Police used facial recognition software to identify the Capital Gazette shooter
After capturing the Capital Gazette shooting suspect, authorities had trouble figuring out his identity. To determine who he was, Maryland police had to employ some very sophisticated tactics.
Fishy surveillance system could keep tabs on ocean animals
Researchers are developing a unique system that can autonomously monitor schools of fish using sight and sound. Symbiosis is a system that uses optical and acoustic technologies to detect and identify entire schools, and could offer a noninvasive means of protecting environmental interests.
This algorithm identifies the key ingredients to winning a debate
A team of researchers at Northeastern University have taken on the task of predicting debate “winners” by deconstructing their arguments, hoping to encourage more meaningful conversations. They’re concern isn’t with fancy rhetoric or theatrics but with sound reasoning and strong arguments.
Amazon employees call on Jeff Bezos to end controversial tech contracts
In the wake of recent protests from Google and Microsoft workers, employees at Amazon are circulating a letter to CEO Jeff Bezos, urging the billionaire to stop selling facial recognition software to law enforcement and remove the big data firm Palantir from Amazon Web Services.
Wetsuit filled with heavy gas could increase divers’ survival time by hours
A innovative new technique could help make wetsuits more insulated. Developed by engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the treatment technique entails stuffing a standard wetsuit into a pressure tank, which displaces its air pockets and pumps them full of gas.
‘Surgery in a pill’ may offer diabetics an alternative to bypass surgery
A study may offer a viable and less-invasive alternative to bypass surgery. Simply by swallowing a pill before each meal, patients who have type 2 diabetes may be able to coat their intestines with a thin layer of material, protecting them from blood sugar spikes that exacerbate the condition.
Probiotics for the brain? Study could pave the way for anti-stress injections
In a recent paper, researchers were able to show that a particular bacterium can encourage a rodent’s brain into a state that resists inflammation, potentially paving the way for a probiotic immunizations that would be able to treat stress-related mental disorders like PSTD and anxiety.
Electrified ‘fog harp’ could make power plants more sustainable
Developed by a team of MIT engineers, the system improves on the design of “fog harps,” devices that act as nets to capture water vapor. The researchers show how this system may allow plants to function more sustainably, by reusing the water themselves, or to help provide water to surrounding regions.
Shot to the heart: Device carries drugs directly to injured internal organ
A new device developed might help make some of these treatments more seamless by delivering medication directly to the heart. Dubbed Therepi, the device includes a tube connected to an outside entry point, providing a sort of express lane from the abdomen to the internal organ.
Even in the desert, an innovative device pulls fresh water out of thin air
Berkeley researchers demonstrated a unique approach to water harvesting that let them extract drinkable water from the air without the need for external energy. The proof-of-concept device could pave the way for cheaply supplying clean water to arid regions.
3D-printed mini-submarine can move in water without a motor
A motorless minisubmarine has been created by researchers from ETH Zurich and the California Institute of Technology. The 3D-printed vessel moves using a new propulsion concept designed for swimming robots, enabling it to briefly paddle without requiring electrical engine power.
With artificial bone marrow, scientists aim to decode blood disease
Researchers from University of Basel, University Hospital Basel, and ETH Zurich have engineered an artificial bone marrow that overcomes the limitations of previous models. The new model offers the possibility to better understand how blood forms and how blood diseases can be treated.
Scientists hope to unlock medical marvels with a 100-million fps camera
The high-speed camera would enable researchers to capture video in unparalleled detail, enabling them to witness and study processes that were previously imperceptible. One of the noteworthy applications for the instrument is in exploring how light and sound can be used in innovative treatments.
One fish, two fish: A.I. labels wildlife photos to boost conservation
Researchers have trained a deep learning algorithm to automatically identify, count, and characterize animals by reviewing images. The system used photographs captured from motion sensor camera traps, which unobtrusively snap pictures of the animals out in their natural habitat
Homes in the Netherlands are concrete example of 3D printing’s potential
A small community of 3D-printed concrete houses is coming to the city of Eindhoven in the Netherlands. Dubbed Project Milestone, the construction project will include five homes built sustainably and energy-efficiently using some of the latest techniques in 3D-printing technology.
Meet the Australian ‘techno-artist’ growing a web-connected ear on his arm
Ear on Arm is an ongoing endeavor by the artist Stelarc, whose eccentric performances put his squishy body in the indifferent grip of technology. Stelarc sees the modern body as a “chimera of meat, metal, and code,” and uses it both as the vessel of exploration and the uncharted territory to be explored.
World’s first 3D-printed cornea made from algae and human stem cells
Researchers have mixed stem cells, collagen and algae molecules to create a bio-ink, which they used to 3D-printed an artificial cornea. The research is currently just a proof-of-concept but lays the groundwork for future techniques to create low-cost, easy-to-produce bionic eyes.
50,000 Las Vegas workers set to strike, demand protection from robots
Fifty-thousand workers are set to strike across Las Vegas. Among the Culinary Workers Union's demands are higher wages, better job security, and protections from automation. The workers, whose contracts are up on June 1, are employed by more than 30 of the city’s most well-known resorts.
For these researchers, building a ‘smart cockpit’ means reading a pilot’s mind
In a bid to develop a “smart cockpit," where pilots and plane become one, researchers have shown they can measure a pilot’s brain activity in real time. They hope to design advanced technologies and training plans to help pilots overcome stressful mid-flight situations.
To train robotic servants, scientists built a virtual world where chores never end
The goal of VirtualHome is to help robots learn tasks by first experiencing them in a virtual system. In the current system, an avatar can perform 1,000 separate actions, broken down as subtasks, in eight different settings, including a living room, kitchen, and home office.
A.I. scans social media to predict when protests will turn violent
In a new study, researchers at the University of Southern California created an artificial intelligence algorithm that scanned posts and correlated their content with impending violence. Such a tool could be used to better prepare for demonstrations that are prone to escalation.
Electric cars can serve as mobile power storage, save billions on infrastructure
A new study out of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California shows how EVs may also have an added benefit for consumers and society at large, bolstering the energy grid by providing mobile power storage.
A Swiss weedkiller robot could curb our dependence on herbicides
A Swiss company called ecoRobotix recently unveiled its contribution to automated agriculture -- a robotic weeding machine. The four-wheeled robot doesn’t look like much more than a mobile table top, but the unassuming machine may reshape the way we approach agriculture.
CRISPR gene-editing could help feed future generations
By making mutations in 13 genes, scientists from the United States and China produced a strain of rice with 25-31 percent high yield. Without the aid of CRISPR the crop would’ve taken trial and error with millions of plants to reach a similar goal.
‘Don’t buy electric!’ — car dealerships dismiss electric vehicles, study finds
Car dealers in Scandinavia have something against electric vehicles. That’s the conclusion of an investigative study conducted by Nordic researchers, who visited car dealerships and found agents actively discouraging them from going electric.
From BigDog to SpotMini: Tracing the evolution of Boston Dynamics robo-dogs
Launched in 1992, Boston Dynamics has introduced some of the most advanced robots around, especially when it comes to replicating the movement of animals -- the most well-known of which are its series of canine-inspired machines.
Stewie the robot offers horseback therapy without the stable fee
A team of undergraduates from Rice University have developed a robotic horse to offer therapies for patients with neurological and movement disorders. The robot, named Stewie, was developed to provide a cost-effective alternative to sessions with a living, breathing creature.
Solar-powered devices pull water vapor straight out of thin air in Australia
People across Australia may soon be drinking purified water pulled straight out of thin air. The water will be supplied by an array of solar-powered devices developed by Zero Mass Water, an American company specializing in technology that extracts water from the atmosphere.