Design
Building greener ships, to keep the sea from rising
With its cavernous cargo holds and gleaming white superstructure, the 730-foot Perla del Caribe, which is nearing completion at a shipyard here, looks like any midsize container ship. But at the stern, visible through cutouts in the superstructure, are two huge steel tanks that show this is no Read More...
Chinese researchers unveil brain-powered car
China’s first mind-controlled car has been developed by researchers in the north-east port city of Tianjin. Chinese researchers have developed what they say is the country’s first car that uses nothing but brain power to drive. The research team from Nankai University, in the Read More...
How mobile tech is improving global disaster relief
When war or natural disaster causes havoc around the world and millions of people are displaced or rendered homeless, communications and power infrastructures are often damaged or non-existent. Yet people are desperate to let their loved ones know they're safe and to find out what's going on. "The Read More...
Pioneering new urban design for Stockholm includes a soaring green sky walk park
As people flock to cities for new opportunities, designers around the world are faced with the challenging task of creating new places for them to live, work and play - without degrading quality of life. In Sweden, Anders Berensson Architects have devised a brilliant new plan that includes maximum Read More...
Six ways nature has inspired technological innovation
Whale fins and cow udders, wasp appendages and gecko feet - just some of the natural phenomena that have inspired technological innovation over the years. The field, known as biomimicry or biomimetics, has already given us well-known practical applications, such as cats' eyes for the road and Read More...
You may soon access the internet via ordinary light bulbs
Getting the entire world connected to the internet may soon be as easy as changing a light bulb. German physicist Harald Hass and his team have created a technology called Li-Fi that uses light waves from LED light bulbs to deliver internet connectivity that is 100 times faster than broadband Read More...
Can nature provide solutions to our cybersecurity problems?
They lurk in the dark alleys of the Internet; they keep you awake at night; they are relentless and quite successful. They are the agents of cyber crime, cyber espionage, hacktivism and cyber terrorism. They find and share zero-day vulnerabilities; they patiently research your organizations and Read More...
Six million dollar plant: Scientists grow cyborg roses
When you think of cyborgs, plants probably aren't the first thing that pops into your head, but it's time for that to change. A team of researchers at the Laboratory for Organic Electronics at Linköping University in Sweden has managed to grow living roses with electronic circuits threaded Read More...
This house runs on poop and food waste
An abandoned farm in rural Spain, a mile from the nearest tiny village, is the unlikely site of cutting-edge energy technology. The new farmhouse under construction on the property will eventually be powered partly by the owners' poop. The mini waste-to-energy system takes organic Read More...
Small artificial kidneys may free patients of big dialysis machines
If you suffer from kidney failure, you're confined to visiting a hospital or clinic several times a week, to be hooked up for hours to a dialysis machine. Doing so, you're likely to develop buildup of fluids and minerals, which can result in high blood pressure and breathing problems and require Read More...