ANBARASUASOKAN

If you live near the Mediterranean Sea, you might be familiar with little balls of seaweed that regularly wash up on the beach. These come from the Posidonia oceanica  plant (better known as Neptune grass), and are generally thought of as a nuisance. Now, however, Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology is involved in a project that’s converting the little balls into high-quality building insulation. Besides being plentiful, renewable and not wanted for anything else, the dead seaweed is reportedly mold-resistant, almost completely non-flammable, won’t rot, and doesn’t require the addition of any other compounds – good news for people who are chemically-sensitive. It can also absorb water vapor and release it again, without compromising its own insulation value. Converting the “Neptune balls” into a more easily-applicable form of insulation proved to be challenging, however. In its rolled-up form, the seaweed harbors a lot of sand, and its fibers tend to catch on

NASA is taking an enforced holiday of sorts in April as it suspends Mars exploration missions for 17 to 21 days. This isn't due to budget cuts, but rather because Mars will be in conjunction with the Sun during April, which will make direct communications with the probes difficult, if not impossible. During this time, mission control will place NASA’s unmanned Mars spacecraft on low activity and will not send any new command signals.In April, Mars and the Earth will be on opposite sides of the Sun. Because of the different orbital speeds of the two planets, this occurs every 26 months and because Mars is so close to the powerful radiation of the Sun, this can disrupt communications with spacecraft orbiting the Red Planet or on its surface. This is especially true this year because Mars will pass at an angle of only 0.4 degrees away from the Sun’s disk on April 17. What is worse, this is during at the peak of the Sun’s active phase of its 22-year cycle. Though the Sun isn'

The oil and gas fields of the North Sea have been meeting the power needs of the UK population for a number of years but such things have a finite lifespan and there are different ways to get power from the sea. The world's largest and most powerful tidal power turbine has just been unveiled by Atlantis Resources Corporation ahead of installation at a special berth at the European Marine Energy Center (EMEC) in Orkney, Scotland. The AK1000 will shortly be secured to the seabed off the choppy waters of Orkney and connected to the grid at EMEC. The company claims that the turbine is capable of generating enough electricity for 1,000 homes and is the first of a series of turbines to be deployed. Atlantis Resources Corporation  unveiled the AK1000 turbine at Isleburn Engineering in Invergordon, Scotland, where the system assembly took place. It will be transported from there to EMEC in Orkney later in the summer. Designed to withstand harsh weather and rough open ocean environme

The skyrocketing popularity of smartphones and compact video cameras over the past several years has resulted in a certain class of products starting to show up a  lot  on Kickstarter – rigs for stabilizing video shot with the devices. We’ve recently covered models such as the  Circle Thing , the Stabil-i Case , and the  SteadeeGo . One of the latest such products, Steadibitz’ amazingly-named MojoFloCam, looks like it does a pretty good job at smoothing out the shakes. Unlike the curved   Steadicam Smoothee   and its various clones, the MojoFloCam (from hereon in to be referred to as the Mojo) is based around a straight vertical metal pole. At the top, a smartphone or camera (weighing up to 11 oz/342 g) is attached using either the designers’ universal phone mount, or simply a threaded screw mount. Below that is a pair of horizontally-extended counterweights, followed by the gimbal-mounted handle. Finally, another couple of counterweights are located at the bottom, at an axis perp

For the past few years, a consortium of six European research institutes has been collaborating on a project known as  RoboEarth . Essentially a “worldwide web for robots,” the idea is that it will allow robots to access a shared online database of each others’ software, thus allowing them to learn how to perform new tasks from one another. The first phase of the project, Rapyuta: The RoboEarth Cloud Engine, is now up and running. Named after a fictional castle in the sky inhabited by robots, Rapyuta’s main purpose is to allow robots’ data-processing functions to be performed in the cloud. This means that the robots themselves won’t require as much onboard computational hardware, and will thus be lighter, less expensive and more robust. Each robot using the service has its own secure cloud-based computing environment. Using a wireless connection, the robot uploads data to that environment, where it’s processed at a rate that’s reportedly much faster than would be possible usin

In a move that brings back memories of the  R.O.B.  (Robotic Operating Buddy) that was available for the original Nintendo Entertainment System, Japanese hobbyist Izumi Ninagawa has simplified the controls of a modern fighting robot to work with a Famicom (8-bit NES) game pad – which has one of the most basic button configurations around. The NES-styled robot even competed in a robot boxing tournament earlier this year Ninagawa's XEMNES robot is based on a lightweight kit sold by De Agostini called  ROBO-XERO , which weighs less than one kilogram (2.2 pounds) and is powered by 24 Futaba servo motors. By attaching a Bluetooth dongle to the robot with a special micro controller, Ninagawa was able to take advantage of various wireless controllers, including the Nintendo Wii remote. The remote was then hidden inside the shell of a Famicom, and attached to the Famicom controller using an adapter to complete the set-up. Despite the NES pad's limited number of buttons, various comb

In November 2009, Norwegian state owned electricity company Statkraft opened the world’s first  osmotic power plant prototype , which generates electricity from the difference in the salt concentration between river water and sea water. While osmotic power is a clean, renewable energy source, its commercial use has been limited due to the low generating capacities offered by current technology – the Statkraft plant, for example, has a capacity of about 4 kW. Now researchers have discovered a new way to harness osmotic power that they claim would enable a 1 m 2  (10.7 sq. ft.) membrane to have the same 4 kW capacity as the entire Statkraft plant. The global osmotic, or salinity gradient, power capacity, which is concentrated at the mouths of rivers, is estimated by Statkraft to be in the region of 1,600 to 1,700 TWh annually. Electricity can be generated through the osmotic phenomena that results when a reservoir of fresh water is brought into contact with a reservoir of salt w

Renesas Electronics has announced its new SuperSpeed Universal Serial Bus (USB 3.0) to Serial ATA (SATA) Revision 3 [Note] bridge SoC (system on chip, part number µPD720231) that enables the reduction of the total BOM significantly. The µPD720231 enables effective multi-gigabit per second (Gbps) data transfer between a USB 3.0 host system and a SATA device used in widely adopted external USB hard drives and solid state drives (SSD). USB 3.0 technology delivers more than 10 times the data transfer performance of the commonly used USB 2.0 peripheral interface. As the demand for media storage capacities and data transfer speed increases, the µPD720231 offers a fundamental building block to create an improved user experience for external USB storage. The new µPD720231 device was developed to respond to the need to reduce the number of components and to simplify printed circuit board (PCB) controller design. It can control BD/DVD drives by supporting ATAPI command. It facilitates design

Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have created a device known as a PoNS, that shows promise for the treatment of traumatic brain injuries, strokes, or the effects of diseases such as Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis. Researchers at the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command are now conducting a study on the device, which works by stimulating the patient’s tongue. The battery-operated PoNS consists of a control/power box, and a flat electrode-covered oral portion that the patient holds in their mouth, against their tongue. In a typical 20 to 30-minute PoNS session, the patient performs a set of physical, occupational, and cognitive exercises, tailored toward their disability. Each of those exercises are paired with specific patterns of electrodes being activated on the PoNS, which in turn stimulate individual nerve endings on the tongue – the stimulation process is referred to as cranial nerve non-invasive neuromodulation, or CN-NiNM. By learning to

If you spend much time outdoors in the summer, then you doubtless know how important it is to wear sunscreen. That said, you probably also know that just applying it once before you first go outside isn’t good enough – for sufficient protection from the sun’s ultraviolet rays, periodic  re applications are also necessary. The UVeBand is a new wearable device, that’s designed to let you know when it’s time for those reapplications. First of all, you might be thinking that you could just use the timer on your watch or phone as a reminder. Well, you could, although many people probably just wouldn’t bother. Additionally, the UVeBand isn’t simply a timer – it actually keeps track of the intensity of UVA and UVB rays, so its alert time will be recalculated if the sun goes behind the clouds, or if you move to a shadier area. The device itself is a silicone-coated water-resistant band, that the user simply slaps onto their wrist. The band’s capacitive switching technology turns the device

An image has been released of what looks set to become Google's new California HQ. Named Bay View, the nine-building campus is designed to maximize the likelihood of innovation-friendly chance encounters between the workforce. "You can't schedule innovation," Google's David Radcliffe tells  Vanity Fair . "We want to create opportunities for people to have ideas and be able to turn to others right there and say, 'What do you think of this?'" This philosophy has fostered the design's angular office blocks, arranged back to back like nodding clergy. Despite the 1.1 million sq ft (102,000 sq m), employees will be a maximum of a 2.5-minute walk away from one another, Vanity Fair  reports. Perhaps most remarkable is that this is Google's first build. In its 15-year history, Google has only ever occupied buildings previously used by others. "We've been the world's best hermit crabs: we've found other people's shell

As one of the most densely populated cities in China,  Shenzhen  has been dealing with a sudden population boom for years now, leaving urban planners scrambling for  innovative building designs  that manage resources and space more efficiently. There have been a few unusual proposals, but the latest design from French architectural firm, Vincent Callebaut Architects, probably takes the cake. The group recently revealed its concept for "Asian Cairns," a series of six sustainable buildings that resemble a stack of pebbles and produce their own food.VCA is no stranger to unconventional structures, having previously designed a  floating city modeled after a lilypad , and the architectural group's latest project is just as unusual. Tasked with creating an urban structure that addresses the growing population of Shenzhen while producing more energy than it consumes, VCA decided to model a set of six buildings after cairns – man-made stacks of small rocks typically built by

The idea of living life on the road in an RV can be appealing. Unfortunately, most RV’s aren’t very environmentally friendly, nor are they self-sufficient. However, the Tricycle House isn’t like most RV’s, as it relies on pedal power to move between destinations, and boasts several pieces of clever folding furniture to provide those much-needed home comforts. Conceived by architectural firm People’s Industrial Design Office (PIDO) for 2012’s “Get It Louder” Exhibition in Beijing, the Tricycle House addresses the fact that private ownership of land is not permitted in China. The pedal-powered RV envisions a future in which individual Chinese people are able to more fully connect with their land, while living simply and sustainably, on their own terms. The Tardis-like house structure is affixed to a tricycle and constructed from polypropylene (a thermoplastic polymer). The polypropylene is cut with a CNC router, before being folded and welded into shape, retaining its strength but ga

The SIM cards that fit into those tiny slots in your cell phone and tell your cellular network to whom your calls are to be charged come in four different sizes. With the only real difference between them the amount of excess plastic on which the circuitry is housed, MicroSIMcutter's new SIM card cutter can cut either mini- or micro-SIM cards into the nano-SIM form factor, allowing a user switching phones to recycle their existing card. All SIM cards have basically the same circuitry – a microcontroller and small amounts of permanent, rewritable, and random access memory. They come in four sizes, ranging from the credit card sized original SIM card to the nano-SIM card, which measures 12.3 mm x 8.8 mm (0.48 in x 0.35 in). Despite the different sizes, they have the same size and pattern of electrodes, and the electronics are buried under the electrodes. The only difference is how much excess plastic is attached to the active part of the card. The SIM cards are designed to b

3D printing pioneer  MakerBot  is on a mission to make it easier and more affordable to create all sorts of objects, one extruded layer at a time. But being able to print in three dimensions isn't worth too much right now if you don't have some pretty serious CAD skills or access to the printable data you need to render the object you want. MakerBot founder Bre Pettis kicked off the first day of the South By Southwest Interactive festival (SXSW) running from March 8-17 in Austin, Texas, by introducing one possible solution to this chicken or the egg dilemma – a desktop 3D scanner dubbed the MakerBot Digitizer. “It’s a natural progression for us to create a product that makes 3D printing even easier. With the MakerBot Digitizer Desktop 3D Scanner, now everyone will be able to scan a physical item, digitize it, and print it in 3D – with little or no design experience," said Pettis. At this point the Digitizer is just a prototype that uses lasers and cameras to scan

  Bringing the concept of an "artificial leaf" closer to reality, a team of researchers at MIT has published a detailed analysis of all the factors that could limit the efficiency of such a system. The new analysis lays out a roadmap for a research program to improve the efficiency of these systems, and could quickly lead to the production of a practical, inexpensive and commercially viable prototype. Such a system would use sunlight to produce a storable fuel, such as hydrogen, instead of electricity for immediate use. This fuel could then be used on demand to generate electricity through a fuel cell or other device. This process would liberate solar energy for use when the sun isn't shining, and open up a host of potential new applications. The new work is described in a paper this week in the  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences  by associate professor of mechanical engineering Tonio Buonassisi, former MIT professor Daniel Nocera (now at Harvard Un

While Japan is gearing up to send  a miniature humanoid robot  to the International Space Station, the DFKI Robotics Innovation Center and the ZARM (Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity) are working on a pair of robots that may one day help explore craters on the Moon in search of water ice. The RIMRES (Reconfigurable Integrated Multi Robot Exploration System) project combines a six-legged robot that can be picked up and moved with a faster wheeled transporter. View all The SHERPA rover, a 2.4-meter (7.8-foot) long, 200-kg (440-pound) transporter moves using a hybrid wheel-leg system with adaptive suspension. It is therefore able to quickly move over bumpy terrain on its wheels, but can lift each of its four legs independently to climb over boulders or free itself should it become stuck. Its primary duty is to transport a scout robot to and from lunar craters, which it can lift and carry under its belly or with a 1.8-meter (5.9-foot) long arm. The CREX (

Over the last five years, the touchscreen has supplanted the mouse and keyboard as the primary way that many of us interact with computers. But will multitouch enjoy a 30-year reign like its predecessor? Or will a newcomer swoop in and steal its crown? One up-and-comer, Thalmic Labs, hopes that the next ruler will be 3D gesture control. Like  Microsoft Kinect  and the upcoming  Leap Motion , MYO lets you control a computer with  Minority Report -like gestures. But unlike those devices, which rely on optical sensors, MYO employs a combination of motion sensing and muscular activity. The actual MYO device is an armband. When worn, it senses gestures, and sends the corresponding signal (via Bluetooth 4.0) to a paired device. The company claims that the muscular detection (via proprietary sensors) “can sense changes in gesture down to the individual finger.” Uses In the company’s promo video (which you can watch below) we see people controlling iTunes tracks, playing  Mass Ef

Imagine if you could treat pain the same way you treat a cut: throw a bandage on it and let it heal. Thimble Bioelectronics is working on a patch based on Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) that's designed to provide this type of portable pain relief. TENS is a type of treatment that uses low voltage electrical stimulation to alleviate certain types of pain. The treatment is typically performed via a small machine, but Thimble Bioelectronics is busy designing a wearable application of the technology designed to adhere to the problem area and provide TENS treatment for the pain. Details of the exact form the TENS patch will take haven't yet been revealed, but the company says it will include integrated Bluetooth connectivity that works with an accompanying smartphone app for pain tracking and management. As the saying goes, necessity is the mother of invention. Thimble Bioelelectrics CEO and primary founder Shaun Rahimi began work on the device when dealing

Once upon a time, the analog cassette tape was king. And for those that remember the time, chances are you might also recall having made a mixtape or two as well. Australian-based start-up venture Sharetapes is looking to recapture a little of that old-school magic, albeit with a modern twist, by launching a line of physical cards that you can load-up with playlists from websites like YouTube, Spotify and 8tracks. Users can then share their saved lists with other people’s smartphones using near-field communication (NFC) technology or quick response (QR) scanning codes. View all Near-field communication on mobile devices is becoming ever more commonplace, and the potential for it to become an essential part of everyday life is huge. We are already tapping our bank cards against a screen at the supermarket checkout, and new examples of NFC-enabled products for use with smartphones, such as  business cards  and  door locks are highlighting the innovative potential of the t