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ICYMI: One day, devices will charge when they're pushed
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Michigan State University engineers built a handful of devices that have one thing in common: They all charge when they're pressed on or otherwise pushed because the silicone wafers inside have ions in each layer that create energy when folded or manipulated. If the phone Gods care a thing about us, this could mean that one day our devices won't need to be charged at all-- except by being used.
ICYMI: Surviving an island disaster and self-bagging stores
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: The National Institute of Informatics in Tokyo created a game called Everscape to both study and teach people in a gamified world who are trying to escape a tsunami following an earthquake. The goal is to use the gamers' playing style to figure out how people will try to survive similar events in real life. Meanwhile, the Panasonic and Lawson store team up in Japan should roll out machines that can determine what products are in a shopping basket, then automatically bag them for an easy check-out experience. If you're looking for the propane soap bubbles video, that's here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Godspeed to astronaut John Glenn
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Astronaut and Senator John Glenn died this week at the age of 95 and we couldn't let the first American to orbit the Earth go without a look back at some of his greatest achievements. Meanwhile, MIT researchers were able to show that light therapy broke up Alzheimer's causing plaque in the brains of elderly mice; such promising work. Dinosaur fans will need to see this amber-encased dinosaur tail covered in feathers (not scales!). The tumor video is here. If you want to read up on the NSA phone call listening issue, that story is here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Birds the magical flying machines
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: There are three main theories of flight and it turns out, Stanford has poked holes in them by simply training a mini parrot to wear tiny safety goggles, then fly through a laser sheet. The video is more adorable than you could probably imagine so feel free to get your fix here. Meanwhile, NASA's new jet engine could make waves in both increased fuel efficiency and plane design since it relies on slower-moving air currents. The Arctic Sea Ice video is here, but the must-watch in this scenario is the Weather Channel take-down of Breitbart News. The video of the lawn picture maker is here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Using brain power to move a game character
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: University of Washington researchers were able to use a magnetic coil at the base of test subjects skulls to watch them play a simplified 2D computer game with just the power of their thoughts. Meanwhile UC Berkeley researchers built a small robot called the SALTO that weighs only 100 grams but is based on the jumping abilities of kangaroos. Google just created a bit of fun on its Twitter account, where users can tweet at the search engine with emojis, then get a response from the account show the nearest location for whatever taco or burger you need asap. 'Cause typing into a search bar is passé now, I guess. For your reminder that: Scientists, they're just like us!-- be sure to check out CERN's silly Mannequin Challenge. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Amazon wants to revolutionize grocery shopping
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Today on In Case You Missed It: Amazon created a smart store in Seattle which is currently open to just employees but next year will open to all. It lets people saunter in, grab whatever they need, then leave without formally checking out. The trick is in using the Amazon Go app and all the sensors within the store, which track which items are placed in a basket and charges shoppers accordingly. Meanwhile, Georgia Tech created a 'TuneTable,' an interactive table with moving coaster-sized tiles people use to both program and then play music. If you're interested, the Guinness Book of World Records video for candles is here, and the behind-the-scenes video from Rogue One is here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: A new form of whale communication, found
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: A new Marine Mammal Science publication found that humpback whales slap the surface of the water to communicate with one another, although what they're actually saying is still a mystery. Meanwhile MIT's CSAIL lab created a CAD-like program to create UAVS. The best part of the software is testing it virtually to see if your creation would fly in real life. The Tesla Coil video by SmarterEveryDay is pretty great and for fun, you may want to watch the Turkish satellite heading up to space. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Crowdsourcing the space poop problem
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Today on In Case You Missed It: NASA and HeroX are asking for help from the public to try to create a bathroom that can be used for up to six days, inside space suits. Previously astronauts have worn diapers during missions in space suits, but that's only a short-term solution that won't work for the US goal to get to Mars. You can read more about the request here.
ICYMI: Pinchers more powerful than dog jaws
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Scientists looking into the strength of the pinchers in Coconut crabs found that they exert a force of 3,300 Newtons, which is more than the average dog's jaw and far stronger than any other crustacean. Meanwhile, NASA's plan for the Cassini spacecraft involves getting closer and closer to Saturn's rings as it uses the last of its fuel reserves, then making a fiery plunge into its atmosphere in April of next year. If you're feeling brave, feel free to watch the video of the bike going across the top of a dam, although a personal favorite is the salmon launcher. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Eye surgery, bot style
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-2").style.display="none";}catch(e){}try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: The Axsis microsurgery robot is designed to work remotely so that doctors can more minutely control the removal of cataracts. The machine can't cut too deeply into the cornea since it's designed to avoid that most common of human pitfalls. Meanwhile, the big news in the Ukraine is that nuclear accident site Chernobyl just got a massive building to block radiation placed over its exploded reactor, funded by more than 40 countries to the tune of $1.5 Billion. The hijinks of crazyRussianHacker are here and Google's time-lapse photos of Earth; here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: The DroneGun aims to patrol the skies
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: DroneShield has been touring airports across the country to test out its DroneGun, a rifle-sized UAV jammer that disables a drones' GPS and GLONASS positioning from over a mile away. While it hasn't received FCC certification yet, the DroneGun aims to force UAVs to land -- unharmed -- and could possibly lead authorities to the pilot and launch point, which could prove to be helpful in removing drones from air space or protecting soldiers against drone bombs.
ICYMI: CERNs robotic inspectors ride a monorail
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Pairing an Arduino with a skateboard produces the Sick Ollie Machine, capable of measuring angular and X-,Y- or Z-axis accelerations to measure who is hitting their tricks the hardest. Courtesy of Josh Sheldon, the ollie machine uses an Arduino beneath the trucks of the board paired with a relay to measure the stats of each trick. Those who are producing truly sick ollies are rewarded with a chime from the attached cowbell. Meanwhile, over at CERN a set of robot twins have been enlisted to provide live video feeds and environmental measurements for the massive underground complex. The robots, called TIM twins for Train Inspection Monorail, move along a -- you guessed it -- overhead rail that runs throughout the facility in order to monitor stats like oxygen concentration and radiation emissions. Also, don't forget to check out what happens when a frog is run through Google's Deep Dream project (which is easily the weirdest sentence I've written yet today). As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Genetically-modified mosquitoes are coming
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Voters in the Florida Keys may have passed a measure to use bioengineered mosquitoes to combat the Zika virus and Dengue fever, but it's still a battle to get a community to accept the insects. The FDA has approved use of altered bugs that are designed to mate, which would then result in offspring that would quickly die. You can get caught up on the back-and-forth, here.
ICYMI: The internet-connected chessboard of your dreams
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: A Kickstarter campaign for a chessboard that uses a robotic arm underneath to magically move magnetic game pieces has surpassed its funding goal -- and let's be real, that's probably mostly Harry Potter fans. Meanwhile, an Autodesk robotic arm is 3D printing with a stainless steel welder and some great software, that video is here. If you need some Thanksgiving motivation, the dog chopping veggies video is here and the drone is here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: The balloon bot that can actually stand upright
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: A scientist at UCLA's Robotics & Mechanisms Laboratory is experimenting with a way to get around the fact that robots have a difficult time maintaining a high center of gravity, aka they always fall down; so he's built something that looks like a balloon on stick insect legs. It's still very much a prototype but perhaps the idea will remain in future walking bots. Meanwhile, scientists at SLAC came up with a way to spot photosynthesis at room temperature, using an X-ray laser. Previous tests had always relied on freezing leaves to track it. If you're getting your projects in order for the coming weekend, we recommend the DIY fire tornado. If you're looking for the Rubix Cube solving bot, that's here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Wildland firefighting is about to get an AI assist
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Lockheed Martin just demonstrated its AI aircraft system that can spot fires and put them out independent of human intervention, while also checking to see if any humans were left behind near danger. The system is supposed to be in service within five years. Researchers discovered that Goffin cockatoos are smart enough to make tools from various materials, judging how long and narrow they need to be each time to pass through a hole and also reach a treat. Meanwhile, if you're interested in the rapid repair of a sinkhole in Japan, the timelapse video is here. There have been a lot of interesting stories this week but people will be talking about the judge's decision to allow a dying girl to be cryogenically frozen for quite a while. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Augment yourself with video glasses and exosuits
Today on In Case You Missed It: Between Snap Inc.'s more-buzz-than-Google-Glass sunglasses and exoskeleton suits for the workplace, we are officially future-living. Spectacles cost $130 and are dispensing in randomly placed vending machines. Meanwhile, SuitX, a robotics company from California, created three exosuit options designed to help physical laborers do their jobs and stay injury-free. Stanford researchers have a system that uses chemicals rather than electrons to send text messages, and Texas A&M's gymnastics team created an amazing mannequin challenge that must be seen to be believed. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Virtually globetrot in Google Earth
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Google Earth just released an update that supports virtual reality, letting users teleport all around the globe, easily. So far it's free in Steam so anyone with an HTC Vive: Get going. Meanwhile Urban Aeronautics took its first pre-routed flight with a autonomous flying machine meant to be the air taxi first foretold in The Fifth Element. The 'ticking a GoPro on things' video from Sam and Niko is here, 'Quick, Draw!' is here (and God have mercy on your self-esteem if you ever play it). As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Basketball is about to get even more stats-heavy
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: The National Basketball Association signed a seven-year agreement to use a computer-vision, artificial intelligence system that analyzes on-court action in ways average viewers couldn't spot as they watch.
ICYMI: Charging lights with foot power
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: EnGoPlanet is testing streetlights powered by both kinetic footpads and solar panels, placed in a plaza in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, the Panther is a military-style drone that can both drive on the ground and fly through the air, while carrying up to 15 pounds of gear. The guys and girls of Engadget video are stoked about the Beauty and the Beast live-action movie reboot from Disney; the new trailer is here just fyi. The determined garbage kid is here and the AP video of stranded cows is here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for mskerryd.
