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ICYMI: Sound wave sewer checks, the feminized phone and more
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: A town in Maryland is checking for clogs in sewer lines with a sound wave system funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation. And a Chinese-made smartphone is geared towards women in the most condescending of ways. In TL;DR, be sure to read up on Tesla's newest, 'low-cost' car. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
Urban Mole robot could deliver your mail via insane network of underground tubes
Designer Phillip Hermes has come up with a new system to transport packages which, if ever instituted, could probably be much faster than any of today's available options (trucks, mailmen, airplanes, ponies). The Urban Mole -- which recently placed second in the Vision Works contest -- enables the use of "existing networks" of underground pipes (yes, sewer pipes) to transport packages up to about the size of a shoebox, which are put in capsules to fully protect the contents from the surrounding sewer water. The packages would be moved via a system of electric rails within the pipes, creating a robotic underground highway for transporting goods to drop off points, or "Mole Stations" where people can pick up their goods. Hermes estimates that an average cross-town trip could take less than ten minutes. Sounds a lot more eco-friendly and way faster than the grumpy mailman, right? It doesn't sound like there are any plans to bring this project to fruition, but we sure will keep hoping. [Via Wired]
Sewer-bot apprehends naked fugitive
It could be argued that most people who break the law -- especially the type to commit petty crime, like purse snatching in this case -- aren't especially bright. But you know it's got to be a pretty humbling moment getting caught by a sewer-bot after escaping from the police bare-ass nekkid into a mucky, freezing cold, 3.3-foot wide sewer system. Really, was that little old lady's purse worth the trouble? We hope she was holding the medallion to the staff of Ra or something, because yo ass got busted. Sewer-bot: 1, criminal: 0. (Video after the break.)[Via GoRobotics and Pink Tentacle]
