Traditionally, the goal of high power conversion efficiency in thin film solar cells
has been compromised by opposing optical and electrical constraints –
while a cell needs to be thick enough to absorb adequate amounts of
light, it must also be thin enough for the extraction of current. Rising
to this “thick and thin” challenge, researchers at Boston College have
designed a nanoscale
solar cell based on the age-old technology that created the coaxial
cable, promising a higher conversion efficiency than any thin film solar
cell yet seen. Read More
The Michelin Challenge Bibendum
has just finished its tenth staging in Brazil, and thanks to
championing what was an unfashionable cause when it started, has become
the major annual sustainable mobility event as environmental concerns
have grown. One of the highlights of the event this year was Michelin's
release of a 145 page book entitled “Driving in the future – towards
sustainable road mobility” and it's a great resource for understanding
the challenges we face collectively, and the ways in which are likely to
overcome them. Even better news is that you can download the entire book for free in PDF format and that it's available in English, French and Portuguese. Read More
With its T3 Series electric standup vehicle
(ESV), California-based company T3 Motion took aim at the police,
security and site management markets with a no-noise, no-pollution,
fast-response, one-person vehicle that delivers long battery run time,
short recharge time and operating costs of around 10 cents per day. It
expanded its line up with the four-wheel CT Micro Car that is designed
to service similar markets to the T3 Series ESV. Now the company is
adding to its fleet with the GT3, a two-passenger, plug-in consumer
electric vehicle that features a single, wide-stance, rear wheel with
two tires sharing one rim. Read More
A competition in London has designers vying for
the attentions of a type of lodger not usually considered when drawing
up the plans for a hotel: insects. British Land and the City of London
Corporation chose to celebrate the year of biodiversity by holding a
competition to see who could design the best "hotel" for insects. It's
narrowed the list of entrants down to five finalists, with one winner to
be selected by public vote and another to be selected by a panel of
experts. Read More
If you find yourself going to meetings,
presentations or trade shows a lot then DocExpress from Taiwan's New
Image could just help ease the burden of carrying away reams of paper
handouts. Instead of lugging all that paper around, pop the document,
photograph or even real object under the high speed, portable document
camera solution and zap a digitized version instead. The solution can
even be used to project, copy, fax, email or record images or video.
Read More
Two years ago we reported that London’s iconic black cabs would be getting a green makeover
with a fleet to be fitted out with zero local emissions hydrogen fuel
cell power systems in time for the Olympics in 2012. Now the first
prototype fuel cell black cab has been unveiled. It is powered by
hydrogen fuel system hybridized with lithium polymer batteries that
allow the vehicle to operate for a full day without the need for
refueling. Read More
A study by Australian scientists has resulted in
the development of a test for blood type that can be performed using
antibody impregnated paper manufacturable for a few cents per test,
which is significantly cheaper than existing tests of a similar nature.
This could make all the difference in the developing world, considering
it's essential to test for blood type before performing a blood
transfusion on a patient whose blood type is unknown. The test
essentially allows blood type to be determined based on the distance the
blood travels along the channels in the paper from the point where it
is dropped. Read More
Head-up displays (HUDs) first appeared on
production vehicles way back in the late 1980’s, and add-on HUDs have
been around for quite a while too - and not just for cars but also for motorbike helmets.
But Taiwan-based Springteq says its WeGo HUD Navigator is the first
product to integrate GPS satellite navigation and a HUD in an all-in-one
design. The device projects navigation information onto the windshield
to provide a virtual readout out that appears roughly one meter
(3.3-feet) in front of the driver. Read More
You can’t not like an invention called the Baby
Bubbler. Even if it were called the Pontiac Aztek, you’d still have to
like it, as it’s doubtless going to save many young lives. A team of
five seniors from Houston’s Rice University developed the Bubbler,
officially known as the Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP)
device, for use on infants with respiratory infections in developing
nations. Given that around 20 percent of deaths in children under five
are caused by lower respiratory infections, that could make for a whole
lot of saved babies. Read More
With the damaged Deepwater Horizon oil well
continuing to spew oil into the Gulf of Mexico there’s no shortage of
suggestions coming from those concerned about the environmental
disaster. We’ve already looked at a number of clean-up options,
and now a University of Pittsburgh engineering professor has developed a
technique that looks very promising. His filter for separating oil from
water not only cleans the water, but also allows the oil to be
recovered and stored for the use BP originally intended and the filter
to be reused. Read More
The now ubiquitous iPod docking station
continues to appear in an ever more imaginative number of guises, with
the iCrystal from Speakal being no exception. Serving up a stylish dose
of retro aesthetics with a futuristic twist, it combines unique looks
with multiple control options and portability. Read More
As summer kicks in for our readers in the
northern hemisphere, their thoughts may turn to camping. Where to go...
what to do... and what gadgets to take! Well, we kinda like
gadgets – and camping – so we looked back through the cream of camping
kit covered recently on Gizmag and compiled a list of some of our faves.
Here’s what we came up with... Read More
Who said film photography was dead? Definitely
not Lomography, whose Lomography Spinner 360-degree camera lets
shutterbugs take a full 360-degree photo with a flick of the wrist. The
camera uses standard 35mm film to capture super-wide-angle images that
are four times longer than standard landscape pictures, with a standard
36-exposure roll capable of capturing around eight shots. Read More
Tired of cranking that wind-up torch? Perhaps it's time to grow some algae. Inspired by recent research into harnessing energy directly from plants, Netherlands-based designer Mike Thompson has come up with a concept for an algae powered lamp that runs on only sunlight, water and your breath. Read More
Twenty-seven stroke victims are alive and well
today because of a new tool that vacuums clots out of blood vessels in
the brain. Known as the Penumbra System of Continuous Aspiration
Thrombectomy, the technology has been assessed at the Seaman MR Research
Centre at Canada’s University of Calgary. If used within a few hours of
a stroke, it can restore blood flow to the brain, thus reversing the
effects of the stroke and preventing any permanent brain damage. Read More
When it comes to TVs, size really does matter.
Panasonic is taking this theory to extremes by announcing the release of
the world’s biggest Full HD 3D plasma display. The Japanese
manufacturer showed a prototype of the 152-inch behemoth
at CES this year where it was understandably drawing quite a crowd.
Back in January Panasonic wasn’t confirming whether the TV would ever be
commercially available, but it has now announced that it will start
taking orders from July, with shipments starting in Japanese and
American markets later this year. Read More
First things first – yes, with a name like the Stealth Toilet, it should
be matte black, not glossy white. It gets its name, however, from the
fact that it flushes very quietly. More importantly, it could also be
considered stealthy because conventional radar will barely be able to
detect the amount of water it uses - at just 0.8 gallons per flush, it
is touted as the world’s most efficient toilet. Read More
Professor Derek Leinweber has been studying
soccer balls. He’s interested in the physics behind them, and is
particularly intrigued by the design of the official ball for the 2010
FIFA World Cup South Africa, the Adidas Jabulani. He thinks it will
behave in a much different fashion than the previous World Cup ball,
throwing goalkeepers for a loop - all because of the ridges on its skin.
Read More
Most songwriters will agree that when inspiration
hits, it's vital to get it down fast. Roland's new MP3/WAV handheld
recording device, the R-05, could help capture that magic moment before
it slips away forever. Having the ability to record and playback in high
quality uncompressed stereo, with onboard editing features and a 16
hour continuous recording battery life, the pocket recorder will
obviously appeal to musicians. That said, Roland sees it being useful in
non-musical applications, too. Read More
One of the first all-in-one desktop computers I
ever laid eyes on was a widescreen beauty from Sony. Nearly seven years
later, the company's latest entry into an increasingly crowded market
brings multi-touch, high definition multimedia entertainment in a
powerful and attractive package. The VAIO J Series sports the latest
Intel Core processors and GeForce graphics, backed up by generous system
memory and a good sized hard drive. It also brings an adaptive and
intuitive media application to the party, along with an easy launch
program bar across the top of the desktop screen. Read More
After five years in production, the Bugatti Veyron still remains the epitome of the modern supercar
– an incredible engineering feat that's both ridiculously fast and
ridiculously expensive. In that time we've seen a number of
mouth-watering versions of the supercar including the open-top Grand Sport and the paint-less Pur Sang.
Now the team at Racer X Design has drawn on the Veyron platform to
produce a luxurious 2 + 2 Bugatti concept design with ample luggage
space that not only looks beautiful but borders on being practical...
well, almost. Read More
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s IKAROS space yacht which launched last month
has successfully unfurled its solar sail. The accomplishment marks the
first time a solar sail has been successfully deployed in space. Read More
American Michael Czysz has been building
two-wheeled masterpieces for many years, though the cruel reality of
racing has meant that the distinctly proletarian budgets he has had at
his disposal have always been directly compared to the hundreds of
millions spent by the likes of Honda, Yamaha, Ducati et al. Widely
considered the “man most likely” for almost too long, his electric
motorcycle took its first BIG win in the Isle of Man TT Zero race a few
hours ago when it blitzed the competition, demonstrating 135 mph top
speeds and went within a whisker of the GBP10,000 prize for the first
100 mph lap of the Island circuit. Most significantly, the MotoCzysz
team demonstrated the massive performance leap electric bikes have taken
over the last 12 months as the second IOM electric race, albeit under a
different guise (original creators of electric racing, TTxGP now has several international series running) saw the average winning speed jump more than 10% from 87.434 mph to 96.820 mph. Read More
In a finding that could well revolutionize
cooling technology as we know it, researchers at Oregon State University
and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have discovered a way to
achieve near-optimal heat dissipation by applying a nanostructured
coating. Because of performance, versatility and economy of materials
used, their method could soon lead to better electronics, heating and
air conditioning. Read More
NFL football fans will no doubt be familiar with
Mitsubishi's world-record HD displays at Dallas Cowboy's stadium, the
largest measuring 22 m high by 49 m wide on the sidelines. This week the
company announced the installation of another enormous Diamond Vision
screen, this time at Hakodate Racecourse at home in Japan. Read More
Last week, Texas-based Skyonic Corporation was
granted a U.S. patent on its SkyMine technology, which is said to remove
CO2 from smoke stack emissions by mineralizing it into sodium
bicarbonate. That bicarbonate (also known as baking soda) can then be
sold for use in glass manufacturing, algae biofuel production, and other
areas. Skyonic claims that not only will its process remove carbon and
other harmful substances from flue gases, but also that companies using
SkyMine will financially profit from the sale of bicarbonates. Read More
UPDATED June 14, 2010: Portable solar kits aren't
new, but the performance and design of these off-the-grid power
solutions is continually improving. iSolar's
20 and 40W kits are the latest examples to come to our attention... and
with even the 40W kit folding down to only 30 x 25 cm, this is getting
into seriously portable territory. Read More
As recent scares with the avian and swine flu
have so vividly reminded us, influenza can involve a lot more than just
feeling lousy and throwing up. In fact, according to the World Health
Organization, 250,000 to 500,000 people die annually from the virus. We
should be glad to hear, therefore, that researchers believe they are
closing in on a cure for the flu. Scientists at Mount Sinai School of
Medicine have discovered a component of the virus that may hold the
secret to keeping it from being able to self-replicate. Read More
On November 17, 1970, the Soviet spacecraft Luna
17 delivered the lunar rover Lunokhod 1 onto the surface of the moon.
For 11 months after, controlled in real-time by a human team in Moscow,
it explored seven miles of the lunar surface. Sending back reams of
data, it was considered to be one of the biggest successes of the
little-known Soviet lunar exploration program. And then, it disappeared.
It wasn’t abducted or anything, it just ceased transmitting, as space
probes have a tendency to do. This spring, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
spied it on the moon’s surface. The really neat thing: it can still
reflect laser beams back to Earth as if it were brand new. Read More
At last, a product is on the horizon which
combines two of my passions - playing guitar and fiddling with
computers. Renowned amplification specialist Orange Amps has just
announced the forthcoming availability of its OPC. Users will not only
get a genuine 15W per channel stereo Orange guitar amplifier, but also a
fully working personal computer running Windows 7, with some top music
software thrown in for good measure. Read More
Call me old fashioned but when I see the
comforting glow of a vacuum tube I know that I'm in for some sonic
pleasure. And that's precisely the thinking behind the aim AS301DTS USB
audio tube headphone amplifier. OK, so the vacuum tube doesn't actually
work, it's designed that way to trigger the very mental connection I
opened with. That done, the tiny device then promises to deliver
bass-enhanced surround sound to just about any pair of headphones
attached to it. Sweet. Read More
OK, you’re right, it 's impossible to actually beam “nothing” across a room. It is,
however, possible to beam light across a room, sending information in
the form of extremely short dips in that light. That’s what America’s
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has been doing
with its dark pulse laser. Whereas regular lasers transmit information
by using darkness as a zero point and light pulses as data, this one
uses light as a zero point, with darkness as the data. Read More
A Canadian researcher is hoping that within ten
years, people will be able to regrow tendons, spinal cords or heart
valves lost to injury or disease. Dr. Brian Amsden, a chemical
engineering professor from Queen’s University, is developing a technique
wherein cells from a patient’s body would be placed on a polymer
prosthetic that stimulates cell growth. After the cells had established
themselves sufficiently, the prosthetic would be implanted in the
patient’s body. The polymer would then biodegrade, leaving behind
nothing but the patient’s own tissue. Read More
It’s not often you see a company giving away a
free supercar with a product purchase, but this is exactly what Strand
Craft plans to do with its 122 luxury yacht – a 38-meter Open super
yacht packed with the very latest in state-of-the-art technology and
engineering. Read More
After a disappointing year of sales for the
industry’s leading rhythm games it would seem as though it’s time for a
bit of a shake up, and from what we’ve read so far, Rock Band should be
getting the upper hand. Following Harmonix’s announcement of Rock Band Network beta,
it has now revealed details of Rock Band 3. Set to bring a whole new
level of realism to the genre, the most immediate and exciting
improvement is its compatibility with “real instruments," thereby
offering budding musicians an exciting interactive platform on which to
learn. Read More
Huge, heavy reference tomes are still a major
part of modern study and research. If you've ever wished that those
textbooks in front of you could come to life and offer a more engaging
experience than just reading through reams of text, then the Kno could
be what you're looking for. Weighing in at 5.5 pounds, the dual-screen
electronic textbook will offer students access to a wealth of published
educational material as well as wireless access to the internet and
multimedia content such as high definition video. Just like with its
paper cousin, the Kno will also allow for note-taking, highlighting and
bookmarking. Read More
The largest concentrated solar power (CSP) plant
in the Middle East is to be built in Madinat Zayed, approximately 120 km
(75 miles) southwest of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
When it becomes operational in 2012, the plant, dubbed Shams 1, will
feature some 6,300,000 square-feet of solar parabolic collectors, cover
741 acres of desert and will produce enough electricity to power 62,000
households. Read More
As Casio
Europe notes, "the perfect moment pays no attention to ideal photo
conditions." The company has released a couple of new cameras which aim
to crash through common barriers that stand in the way of good photos,
such as moving objects in the distance or poor lighting conditions.
Wide-angle lenses and mechanical image stabilization have been included
on both new additions, the EX-H5 benefiting from 10x optical zoom and
the EX-FH25 combining high speed technology with a new "high sensitivity
CMOS sensor" for quality shots. Read More
With increasing pressure on global food supplies requiring ever more intelligent use of technology, urbanized vertical aeroponic
methods are shaping up as a promising alternative to traditional
farming. Aeroponics requires less space, less water and no pesticides
and the AeroFarms system takes things further by using LEDs in stacked
units to maximize efficiency and use of available space. Read More
Diabetes is an enormous global problem... and it
is on the rise. Despite decades of research and advances in technology,
the methods of accurately measuring glucose in the body are still quite
primitive. A new type of blood glucose monitor being developed at MIT
could not only eliminate the need for finger pricks, but could also
offer more accurate readings by way of a “tattoo” of nanoparticles
injected below the skin. Read More
Japan’s national public broadcaster, NHK, has
developed a “millimeter-wave TV camera” that operates under the same
principle as radar, taking images using radio waves instead of visible
light. The technology allows objects hidden behind obstacles such as
smoke, fog or even plywood to be captured as live, moving images. Read More
Audi has already set a high standard in terms of
in-car audio systems through collaborations with premium suppliers Bang
& Olufsen and Bose. Now its development engineers are looking to
usher in the next revolution of in-car hi-fi with the Audi Sound
Concept. To help bring a physical principle called "wave field
synthesis" to the automobile, the company has crammed a standard Audi Q7 with 62 speakers - five woofers and five tweeters plus 52 mid-range speakers. Read More
Helmetcams, lipstick cameras, action cameras -
whatever you call them, there’s something endlessly fun and fascinating
about tiny, rugged video cameras that can be mounted just about
anywhere, put through all sorts of abuse, and then proceed to output
first-person videos that put your viewers right in the action. We’ve
valiantly tried to cover the various makes and models as they’ve come
out, and they’ve all had their good points and their compromises. With
Drift Innovations’ new HD170, however... well, let’s just say it sounds like one of the best so far. Read More
For the past several years, debate has been
brewing amongst cross-country skiers as to the merits of ski-waxing.
Back when all skis had a wooden base, adding wax was essential in order
to get them to glide across the snow. Many skiers still swear by waxing
today, even though skis now have supposedly “no-wax” polyethylene
gliding surfaces. Waxing can be a tricky process, though - if you use a
wax with the wrong temperature rating, you can end up sticking to the
snow, or slipping back and forth in one spot. It’s also time-consuming,
and requires the skis to be periodically stripped of their built-up wax
layers. Now, a researcher from Mid Sweden University (MSU) claims to
have proof that modern skis work better without wax, and says that “those who claim otherwise are practicing voodoo and not science.” Read More
Morgan has released a teaser image of an upcoming
four seater Coupe to be known as the EvaGT. Taking its inspiration from
the British sports saloons of the early 1950s such as the Bristol 400
series and the Frazer Nash BMW 328, the EvaGT will run a direct petrol
injection, twin turbo 3.0 liter BMW six-cylinder motor producing 306bhp
and 400nm torque. Though power is modest in terms of supercar figures,
the EvaGT uses aluminum body panels and its bonded aluminum chassis is
developed from the Morgan Aero SuperSports, where it is used
successfully in European GT3 racing, meaning that the car tips the
scales at just 1250 kg (2755 lbs). This gives it a top speed of 170 mph
(273 km/h), a 0-100 km/h time of just 4.5 seconds and distinctly
un-supercar-like fuel economy of 7.06 liters/100kms (40 mpg) along with
Euro 5 and 6 emissions compliance at 200 gms Co2/km. Read More
Not all that long ago, the mere thought of
running a diesel in any form of motorsport would have had you laughed
at. Diesel victories are now commonplace in long distance races thanks
to the excellent power characteristics, reliability, the low fuel
consumption of diesel engines and a battle between the two main
TDI-engined cars in the form of the Peugeot 908 and Audi's R15. Audi
Sport Team Joest added to the diesel legend on the weekend with a 1-2-3
victory using newly developed Variable Turbine Geometry (VTG)
turbo-chargers on the R15's 440 kW V10 engine. The Peugeot 908s locked
out the first two rows in qualifying and led the race until the 16 hour
mark, but one by one, they suffered engine failure, and after 24 hours,
Audi took all three steps on the podium. It wasn't exactly a rerun of
the hare and the tortoise though, as the winning R15 racked up more
5,410 kilometers - more distance than has ever been achieved in 78 prior
runnings of the French endurance classic. This was all the more
remarkable in that it eclipsed a record set in 1971 by a Porsche 917
when the Hunaudières straight had no speed-slowing chicanes. Well done
Audi! Read More
From bricks to jackets,
it seems just about anything can be made using plastic nowadays. The
latest items to get a plastic fantastic makeover are antibodies –
proteins produced by the body’s immune system to recognize and fight
infections from foreign substances. Scientists are reporting the first
evidence that a plastic antibody works in the bloodstream of a living
animal, opening up the possibility of plastic antibodies being custom
tailored to fight everything from viruses and bacteria to the proteins
that cause allergic reactions. Read More
A few weeks after the customary rumors spoilt everyone's surprise, Sony
has confirmed the specs for its new entry level α290 and α390 digital
SLR cameras. Both cameras feature a brand new grip design and share a
host of features including a 14.2 megapixel sensor, SteadyShot in-camera
stabilization, compatibility with Sony's Alpha mount lenses and
user-friendly on-screen guides to help users new to digital SLRs. The
α390 also benefits from a tilting LCD display with the option of live
image preview. Read More
Lead is a toxic substance, and it’s in your
mobile phone. It’s also probably in your TV, your computer, and just
about any other electronic appliance where mechanical movement is
transformed into an electrical signal. All those devices utilize PZT, a
substance which contains lead, and that generates an electrical charge
when subjected to pressure. While lead has been phased out of most
consumer goods, a suitable alternative has never been found for use in
electronics... until now, perhaps. Researchers at the Norwegian
University of Science and Technology (NTNU) have developed an innocuous
material with PZT-like qualities, and it’s made in a fashion somewhat
like cookies. Read More
Part of the reason for the drop in popularity of
rhythm games in recent times may be because the appeal of the plastic,
button-oriented peripherals is starting to wane, and indeed avid fans of
the genre have been crying out for a way to play "real instruments"
alongside a game. The solution could already be here in the form of You
Rock Guitar, a multi-use peripheral that acts as a MIDI controller, can
be plugged into an amplifier, headphones, or directly to a computer via
USB for use with software like GarageBand and Cubase. Most interestingly
it's compatible with Rock Band and Guitar Hero on all three platforms.
Read More
Daimler has announced that its smart fortwo electric drive
will cross the Atlantic later this year. The tiny two seater, which has
a rear mounted 30 kW electric motor producing 120 Nm of torque, a range
of 100 km to 135 km and can be parked pretty much anywhere, is slated
to reach cities in USA and Canada in Q3. Read More
Today is a day that you will probably tell your
grandchildren about – the day they released the first affordable,
pocket-sized fuel cell for personal usage. As with flying cars, personal
jet packs and a usable voice recognition computer interface, the
promise of a safe, affordable, personal power plant was entering the
realm of perpetual vaporware. Now it's finally here! Whatsmore, at
US$100, the Horizon MiniPak might well prove to be the “disruptive”
technology the press release claims it to be. By producing electricity
from hydrogen at the point of use and offering effectively unlimited
run-time for personal electronics, it will almost certainly be the
public's first experience of the coming Hydrogen Economy. Read More
Watermarks, bar codes, RFID tags and holograms
are all used on various products to make them harder to copy. One
limitation that these things have in common, however, is that they are
all added to just part of the product. Researchers from the
Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research have now developed an
anti-counterfeiting measure that is applied to the entire
product - fluorescing dyes. Needless to say, counterfeiters will have a
much more daunting task when a whole product serves as its own
authenticity label, as opposed to one small part of it. Read More
Despite its obituary being written numerous times
in its five-year lifetime, Apple has shown it thinks there’s still some
life left in its small form factor desktop with the company unveiling a
completely redesigned Mac mini today. The update sees a new HDMI port
and SD card slot along with up to twice the graphics performance of the previous model crammed into its compact aluminum enclosure. Read More
The new era in gaming which began when Wii
remotes started showing up in living rooms just four years ago is about
to be taken to the next level. That’s because Microsoft has premiered
its Kinect for Xbox 360 – a motion control system that allows players to
take part in full-body physically-interactive games without the use of any remote. First coming to light a year ago under the code name Project Natal,
it utilizes a CMOS camera, infrared projector and multi-array
microphone to track the movements and voices of players. Kinect is set
for release later this year. Read More
Billed as “the first truly portable internet
radio on the market,” View Quest’s WIFI200 lets you listen to over
12,000 radio stations and 7,000 podcasts, wherever you can get WiFi.
Pretty cool. The wallet-sized gizmo even won an International Forum
Design Award, so it must be doing something right. The bottom line is,
you need never listen to Top 40 again... unless you really want to. Read More
As well splitting a guitar input over three
separate fuzz pots, the variable frequency control and resonance switch
of Fairfield Circuitry’s new Four Eyes Crossover Fuzz pedal help make it
one versatile fuzz box. It gives users more control over the tones
produced, which range from the "extreme to relatively subtle; from super
thin to ridiculously fat." Read More
If your bike has a hub dynamo, the BioLogic
ReeCharge Power Pack lets you run portable USB powered devices while you
ride. Whilst we've recently seen bicycle recharge kits,
the ability to charge via USB is pretty novel. Basically it's a battery
with a USB port that charges from the energy generated by your dynamo
and then tops-up your device when you plug it in. That means you can
charge the battery and then charge your device when you arrive at your
destination, or, if it's practical, charge your device on the go,
allowing you to use your smartphone's GPS function whilst riding. Read More
It has been a long-standing dream to fabricate
superconducting nano-scale wires for faster, more powerful electronics.
However, this has turned out to be very difficult if not impossible with
conventional superconductors because the minimal size for the sample to
be superconducting - known as the coherence length - is large. A group
of scientists has now fabricated thin films patterned with large arrays
of nanowires and loops that are superconducting when cooled below about
30 kelvin (-243 degrees Celsius). Even more interesting, they found they
could change their resistance by applying a magnetic field. Read More
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter
(JSF) program continues to rack up the milestones with the F-35B short
takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) variant breaking the sound barrier for
the first time. The F-35B, which completed its first vertical landing
in March, hit Mach 1.07 (727 miles per hour) in an off-shore test on
June 10 and will be put through a series of supersonic flights that will
gradually take the aircraft towards its top speed of Mach 1.6. The
F-35B STOVL marks the first time in 100 years of military aviation that a
plane has combined radar-evading stealth, VTOL and supersonic speed and
may go some way towards justifying the program's other milestone
achievement of being the most expensive weapons program in military
history. Read More
0 comments:
Post a Comment