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Sound location inspired by bat ears could help robots navigate outdoors
Researchers have developed bat-inspired, AI-guided sound location that could help robots navigate outside.
Big tobacco's new marketing push: Smartphones, style and EDM
This article was produced in partnership with Point, a YouTube channel for investigative journalism. British American Tobacco (BAT) -- the third-largest publicly traded tobacco company in the world -- is engaged in an elaborate and ethically questionable online-marketing strategy across Europe and Asia. A joint Point and Engadget investigation has found that several BAT brands sponsored music events and created entirely new lifestyle brands that initially seem unrelated to cigarettes. But on closer inspection, they are used to raise awareness of cigarette brands in markets where overt tobacco advertisements are forbidden. Dunhill and Kent cigarettes are among the BAT labels benefitting from spinout brands in South Korea, Romania and Switzerland. However, BAT is not unique in using these tactics in the tobacco industry. When it comes to advertising its tobacco products, BAT's own international-marketing principles are clear about its ethical approach: "We do not engage in undercover marketing activities which seek to disguise the source of the advertising message, or the fact that it is intended to advertise a tobacco brand." In the same document, BAT also promises only to market its product to adult smokers. Separately, in an article on BAT's website, the tobacco company denies pursuing nonsmokers. "We never set out to encourage people to take up smoking cigarettes, or to smoke more."
Privacy browser Brave pays 'crypto tokens' for watching its ads
Ad-blocking browser Brave is getting ready to test its Basic Attention Token (BAT) platform, which has been designed to reward users for looking at adverts. The company, founded by Mozilla's controversial former CEO Brendan Eich, launched the first phase of its model last year, allowing users to anonymously distribute contributions to their favorite creators. Now, it's testing a version of the browser that shows around 250 prepackaged adverts to users that sign up for early access -- a move that's angered newspaper giants that claim the feature is a violation of copyright.
Saving bats from wind turbines is easy
Renewable energy like wind power is touted as a great way to reduce our impact on the environment. Tech companies like Google and Tesla, along with cities like San Francisco, understand the need to go green. Still, even renewable sources of energy can have hidden effects on local animal populations. The world's largest solar power plant, in fact, kills thousands of birds annually at its Ivanpah, California site. A new study in Sweden found that the country's wind turbines kill tens of thousands of bats annually -- an average of 10 to 15 bats per turbine. The answer? Halt the spinning of the fans during the summer evenings when wind is low anyway.
Six innovative wind turbine designs
By Cat DiStasio The International Energy Association (IEA) announced last week that renewable energy capacity around the globe has eclipsed coal power for the first time ever. Wind power makes up a large percentage of global renewable energy, and with all the recent technological innovations in wind turbine design, it's no mystery that it's become the fastest-growing form of clean energy. With refined technology, engineers have developed new devices that are more efficient and safer for birds. Some wind turbines can even generate energy while the air is still.
ICYMI: A space-based full service stop, bat drone and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-426380{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-426380, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-426380{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-426380").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Today on In Case You Missed It: DARPA's own AAA satellite service to service satellites orbiting Earth could launch in about five years, if all the testing goes as planned. A new drone is based on the form of a bat and the resemblance is uncanny. And Google is helping robotic graspers learn hand-eye coordination by giving them new objects to pick up. If you've followed along with some of the 3D-printed prosthetics we've done stories on, you'll want to see this glitter shooting, darling girl. And as always, please share any great tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
6 high-flying clean energy generators
By Cat DiStasio Dirty fossil fuels come from the ground, but the future of energy is in the sky. Thanks to innovative engineers in the renewable energy industry, the world of high-altitude wind and solar generators is booming. Not only are these devices cleaner than fossil fuel alternatives, but they have the potential to generate more usable energy at a lower cost. High-altitude wind turbines can take advantage of faster wind speeds, and positioning solar arrays above the clouds yields better sun exposure without shadows blocking the rays.
Zepp and Old Hickory debut bat with integrated swing sensor
Zepp tipped its hand on integrated swing sensors for baseball bats and tennis rackets back at CES. With MLB Spring Training in full swing, now's as good a time as any to pull the wraps of the finished version. The sports-tracking company teamed up with wood bat manufacturer Old Hickory for the Mike Trout Old Hickory Smart Bat. If you're unfamiliar, Mr. Trout is one of the best hitters in Major League Baseball over the last few years and a long-time fan (since high school) of Old Hickory's sticks.
Adidas' RBZ baseball bat can boost your swing speed and power
There are plenty of gadgets out there to help you improve your baseball skills, including motion-sensing connected sensors. But Adidas wants to take that to a whole different level, for recreational players and college-level athletes alike. Meet the EQT X3 RBZ, a bat designed to increase the speed and power behind a player's swing. To make that possible, the sporting goods company is relying on materials like carbon composite and precise weight distribution throughout the bat, while a new EQT grip tape control aims to provide a tighter fit in players' hands. For being a baseball bat, the EQT X3 is as sleek as it gets -- and it would probably look great next to your Nike Vapor 360 glove. Adidas is launching the RocketBallz bat tomorrow for $400, in celebration of this year's College World Series.
Link steps up to bat in new Super Smash Bros. screenshots
In the latest pictorial tease from Super Smash Bros. director Masahiro Sakurai, we're introduced to the new, black home-run bat. According to Sakurai, this new bat is "so powerful that your eyes might bug out," a sentiment that would seem hyperbolic if it wasn't for Donkey Kong amply demonstrating exactly that kind of ocular ejection. While this image doesn't tell us much about the latest incarnation of the home-run bat, it's good to see the classic weapon return. No matter which Smash Bros. entry you pick up, you can always depend on the bat to be an intuitive weapon that doles out huge amounts of punishment and has a tendency to launch characters into the stratosphere. Past the break you'll find a second image which shows just that. Now that the bat has been confirmed the question becomes whether or not the upcoming Wii U and 3DS Super Smash Bros. sequels will feature the fan-favorite Home-run Contest. Unless Sakurai generously reveals the game mode in an upcoming screenshot dump, we may not see an answer until those games debut later this year. [Image: Nintendo]
WRUP: In the Arms of a Bat
Bats are clearly the superior totem animal, as proven by the absolute dominance of Batman over every other superhero ever. So while we were canvassing your intrepid WoW Insider staff to find out what thye're doing with our weekend, we had to ask about bats. Is the Armored Bloodwing the coolest mount ever, or just the coolest mount to exist so far? Also, if you somehow believe the Armored Bloodwing isn't the final word in best mounts ever, what mount tickles your fancy? What about you folks? When you feel that gripping need for speed, which mount is your go-to choice? No matter what you choose; no buzzing the tower.
The Perfect Ten: Stock fantasy enemies from lamest to coolest
One theory of MMOs is that they represent several parallel universes, each with similarities and differences. This may explain why so many of them claim to be boldly original and yet carry the same monster DNA that exists everywhere else. Today we're going to carefully unpack our ancient collector's edition of stock fantasy enemies. Blow off the dust and smell that nostaglia, mhmm. Sure, they've seen better days, but they're still good, right? Still solid. Still capable of entertaining us, even if we've slaughtered their kin a thousand times over. Let me show you my collection of 10 stock fantasy enemies that we encounter all the time in MMOs. Just for fun, I'm going to order them from lamest to coolest. I would be number 11, by the way.
Hyper Ping Pong is like real table tennis, only without the ball, table or opponent (video)
Microsoft and Nintendo might already have the motion-based table tennis simulation market locked down, but there's one thing their consoles need that the new Hyper Ping Pong paddle doesn't: a TV. That's right, this motion sensor-equipped bat lets you play without the superfluous need for something to look at -- it comes with a speaker that plays back the sound of a rally and all you need to do is "go with the rhythm." A button integrated into the handle lets you put a little extra sauce on your volleys and accurate timing will win you points, awesome sound effects, and the admiration of all your friends. The Hyper Ping Pong kit will start selling in Japan this October for ¥2,000 ($25).
Batcopter UAV observes anti-collision bat behavior, crashes into ground (video)
If you wander out into a gaggle of fellow humans in total darkness, chances are you're going to bump into one or two. Such is not the case for bats, which do much of their hunting after the sun sets. Boston University's Intelligent Mechatronics Lab launched operation Batcopter to better understand how bats can fly in clusters large enough to be detected by radar without colliding. Equipped with a GoPro 3D HD camera, GPS, and OpenPilot's CopterControl system, the 1.8-pound quadcopter UAV joined Brazilian free-tailed bats in the skies of South Texas, capturing some pretty cool footage along the way. A trio of high-speed infrared cameras positioned on the ground photographed the aircraft's interactions with the flying mammals, which seemed to maneuver around the man-made intruder without incident, until a rotor failure resulted in a Batcopter inversion and subsequent ground collision. Even so, the craft still managed to take to the skies. Jump past the break to see the crippled UAV in action, and hit up the source link for some awesome infrared footage and stills.
Robot arm learns to use hammer, mocks pathetic human's attempt to fight back (video)
This guy had a pretty natural reaction upon discovering that the DLR Hand Arm System has learned to use a hammer: he took a bat to the thing. Rather than curbing the inevitable robotic uprising, however, the whole thing just demonstrates exactly how durable the mechanical appendage is, as it resumes normal functionality after the swift blow. The arm contains 52 motors and super strong synthetic tendons, and is the work of the German Aerospace Center, the electronic sadists who also recently took a hammer to one of their robot hands. Videos of the mayhem after the jump -- we're sure they'll be Skynet's Exhibit A. [Thanks, Joseph]
Troll druids get unique bat flight form
Troll druids just went from best druids to the best druids, as their unique flight form has been revealed -- a bat with tiki shoulders wearing an awesome mojo necklace. Check out a high-res picture over at MMO Champion. The video is after the jump.
NC State gurus build remote control bats, freak out Dukies and Tar Holes
Micro-aerial vehicles, or MAVs as they're called in the elusive underground, are far from new, but a team from NC State University is hoping to advance the field with an all new critter. The Robo-Bat is a remote controlled creature that relies on a super elastic shape-memory metal alloy for the joints, which is said to provide a full range of motion while enabling it to "always return to its original position -- a function performed by many tiny bones, cartilage and tendons in real bats." The crew is also utilizing other "smart materials" in the muscular system, giving it the ability to react in real time to environmental changes such as sudden wind gusts. Ideally, this bionic chiropteran would be used to chivvy those who dare step foot on Franklin Street or inside Cameron Indoor Stadium, but in less malicious situations, it could help well-meaning scientists get the bottom of that whole "aerodynamics" thing.
LotRO Lorebook updates players on ancient horrors
We've always enjoyed Turbine's regular The Lord of the Rings Online Lorebook updates. The Lorebook is essentially a wiki that contains both gameplay information and Middle-earth lore. Some of the entries are made by players, and some are official. They usually focus on a particular character or place that Turbine has extrapolated or expanded from J.R.R. Tolkien's book trilogy.The North American LotRO site hadn't been updated with any featured Lorebook entries in a while, but a couple new ones have finally arrived. First up is Bolgrukh -- a half-woman, half-bat horror who picks of hapless adventurers near Carn Dum. Apparently she was enslaved by Morgoth, and if you know your Middle-earth lore, you know that makes her really old. And old monsters are usually scarier than young ones!The second entry is the Rogmul (Balrog slave) Udúnion, a level 52 Nemesis boss who will most certainly annihilate almost everyone he ever sees. He too is extremely old; the entry lists several historical events he's witnessed. And you know something's badass when its classifications are "Ancient Evil" and "Nameless." Fear!
Scattered Shots: Pet talent trees in the Wrath Beta
Welcome to another edition of Scattered Shots, the other WoW Insider weekly Hunter column. Daniel Whitcomb is your guest host again this week. So, we theorized about talented pets a bit quite a few installments of Scattered Shots ago, but now we have the actual trees live and testable on the Wrath Beta, and they seem to be firming up nicely. There's a few promised changes yet to come, such as the removal or lowering of focus costs on many major abilities and talents, and it's still very possible that Blizzard may make changes here and there before live, but I think they're solid enough at this point that we can look at each tree and make some solid predictions about how people will use them and how various talent builds might look.
Wrath Hunter Talent Analysis, Part I: Marksmanship
Hunter talents are out, and there's definitely a lot to say about them, both good and bad. While we have discussed some of the changes to the lower Survival tree, what we haven't touched on is all the new talents and the talent changes in other trees. If I was to sum it all up in one sentence, I'd say this: The 51 point talents look lackluster, but most of the rest is downright drool inducing. Marksmanship's early tiers are now full of easily obtainable goodies for any Hunter, Survival's gained even more group and raid buff utility, and Beastmastery has even more amazing pet synergy. There's a lot to cover, so we'll tackle it one tree at a time. First, we'll look at Marksmanship, which was once premiere Hunter tree, but has fallen a bit to Beastmastery in Burning Crusade. It's certainly seen some marked improvement for Wrath so far, and even if you don't plan to spec Marksmanship, you'll at least want to know about the first few tier talents, as you'll probably want to grab many of them anyway.
