sharks
Latest
'Maneater' and the simple pleasures of being a killer shark
Maneater is a game that finally lets you be a killer shark.
Hunt the high seas as a hyper-evolved super shark in 'Maneater'
Sharks have had a bad rap for years. Between Jaws, Deep Blue Sea (RIP Samuel L Jackson), and Shark Week, these apex oceanic predators have long been maligned as mindless killing machines. But in Maneater from Tripwire Interactive players will finally set the record straight... by cutting a bloody, televised swath of death and destruction across America's 50th most beloved state.
A VR film forced me to confront my fear of the sea
The first time I realized I was terrified of whales, I was surprised. I had been scrolling through Instagram and saw a picture of a boat adrift in the ocean with the gigantic shadow of a whale below it. The hairs on the back of my neck stood, and I was overcome with an unshakable sense of foreboding. Those animals are massive, and I know they're generally gentle (orcas aside), but the thought of such a large swimming creature gave (and still gives) me the heebie jeebies.
Researchers create a robot that can cling to shark skin underwater
Tracking sharks and dolphins in order to study their habits is tough. Doing so requires researchers to attach some sort of sensor or robot to the animal, but it has to be able to stay on underwater and withstand fast swimming speeds as well as twists, turns and bends. So far, that's been hard to accomplish. But researchers at Beihang University, Harvard University and Boston College have developed a robot that hang on to slick skin underwater and withstand high speeds and sharp movements. They did so by modeling it after an animal that does those things naturally -- the remora. Their work was published this week in Science Robotics.
ICYMI: Amazingly old sharks and drones for the sea
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: A new study just published in Science details the carbon dating process used to find the average age of Greenland sharks is 272, along with pegging one at a likely age of 512. Those engineered shark cell injections for longevity can't come soon enough. By comparison, the Reef Scouts from Ocean Lab are relatively new additions to the sea, with multiple water drones that flock together when only one is controlled. If you're interested in the animatronic shark suit in today's opening, that video is here. The video of a 43-week clean-up on a Mumbai beach is here; use it to get your somehow, still-not-recycling family members onboard. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
ICYMI: Underwater robot snake, Earth's ocean saving and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-54715{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-54715, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-54715{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-54715").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Princeton researchers discovered ocean currents can move most anything around the globe within 10 years; which could help replenish dying ecosystems... and also spread around pollution. Norwegian engineers came up with a mechanical snake for underwater sea inspection and simple repair jobs near oil drills. And Harvard wants to encourage kid programming with a new robot that can be used by kindergartners to high schoolers. Once that's conquered, the answer is clearly to make the MIT open-source duckcar. As always, please share any great tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
'Little Ripper' drones take flight to find sharks and save lives
After playing host to fourteen shark attacks last year, the Australian state of New South Wales has been eyeing up drones for help. The state government's new "shark strategy" calls for tiny aircraft to monitor the waters around southeast Australia, and that's what a $250,000 remote-controlled drone — affectionately named Little Ripper — will do for a six-month trial period.
Discovery launches short-form VR videos, starting with sharks
Discovery hasn't jumped the shark yet, but it's definitely gotten really, really close to a few ferocious sea beasts. Discovery VR is the company's new foray into virtual reality and 360-degree experiences, and it begins with a series of short-form, shark-infested videos from Mythbusters. It also launches with Gold Rush and Survivorman spin-offs, showcases of freeboarding and surfing, and tours through California's Half Moon Bay and Muir Woods. We first heard about Discovery shooting Mythbusters and other shows in VR back in May. The Discovery VR videos can be viewed online, via mobile apps for iOS and Android, and in Google Cardboard or Samsung Gear VR. Oculus support is "coming soon," though probably not before the Rift actually launches in Q1 2016.
Not even a sharknado will stop Google's conquest of the undersea internet
How's this for Shark Week? At a recent event, one of Google's product managers revealed just how far the outfit goes to protect its subaquatic infrastructure. Word is that Mountain View's shiny new internet pipeline crossing the Pacific is going to need a Kevlar cover to keep it safe from the jaws of your favorite Great White. It's believed that the apex predators are attacking these cables (video after the break) because they give off the same kind of electrical signals as those of wounded fish, according to Network World. That, or maybe the sharks are just trying to snuff out the untruths that Discovery Channel has apparently been spreading. [Image credit: Getty Images]
Swim with the fishes using Project Tango and a head-mounted display
For a few minutes, I saw the Moscone Center -- and everyone inside it -- under water. Sharks and small fish even swam past me as if I wasn't there. And then, all of a sudden, I stood up straight and discovered that I'd poked my head above the waves. This experience, which is a virtual fish tank developed by 360World, was made possible by Google's Project Tango tablet and the Durovis Dive 7, an Oculus Rift-like contraption. It utilizes Tango's cameras, motion detectors and sensors to give you a sense that you are floating around with the fishes -- no snorkel or SCUBA gear required, of course.
3D printing shows why sharks are so deadly efficient
A shark's fearsome teeth don't end in its mouth, as its skin is also made up of millions of sharp, microscopic "denticles." That roughness helps sharks slip through the water more efficiently by reducing drag, but how exactly? To better understand, Harvard researchers studied a Mako shark's skin, then figured out how to 3D print a simulated version onto a flexible substrate (see below). As expected, the faux sharkskin reduced drag significantly at slower speeds, but surprisingly increased drag in faster currents. After adding a simulated swimming motion, however, efficiency improved dramatically -- showing that denticles only work in concert with a shark's sinuous movement. All that helps them swim seven percent faster and burn six percent less energy than if their skin was smooth. That might not seem like a lot, but let's see you hunt down and kill a seal with your bare teeth. (A decoy seal is pictured above.) [Image credit: Discovery Channel]
Jaws: The Text Adventure eats yachts in your browser
Over the years, we've found that sharks are pretty awesome, and that text adventure games are equally great. A new browser-based game called Jaws: The Text Adventure seeks to combine the two. Created by indie developer Matt Round for UsVsTh3m, the HTML5 game has players controlling the infamous shark on a quest to fill its stomach with whatever it can find. It's a funny little excursion that offers multiple endings and a few hidden references to the 1975 Steven Spielberg-directed film.
Five fact-filled apps for Shark Week
It's Shark Week -- that time of the year when sharks take center stage on the Discovery Channel and beyond. This year's shows have been marred by the Megalodon controversy, but that doesn't mean you still can't enjoy learning about the shark species. Below you will find five shark-related apps to supplement your knowledge of the finned fish. Discovery Kids Sharks [iPad; Category: Education; $4.99] A fact-filled app from Discovery that teaches children about sharks. The app also includes interactive games and digital trading cards. Expedition White Shark for iPad [iPad; Category: Education; $3.99] Expedition White Shark allows you to receive near real time Great White Shark tracking data thanks to the scientists at the Marine Conservation Science Institute (MCSI). Data is collected from tagged sharks when they surface and are relayed via satellite to MCSI. Discovery Kids Readers: Sharks [iOS Universal; Category: Books; $1.99] Discovery Kids Readers: Sharks brings sharks to the little ones in your household. The book includes vivid photographs, fun facts and a quiz. Targeted for children 4 to 8 years old. Shark Net - Predators of the Blue Serengeti [iPhone; Category: Education; Free] Another shark-tracking app that allows you to follow sharks as they migrate off the coast of California. Data is compiled from the collaborative shark research of Stanford University scientists and the GTOPP -- the Global Tagging of Pacific Predators project. Learn Sharks Now! [iOS Universal; Category: Education; Free] Learn Sharks Now! includes 30 shark cards with pictures and facts about our this fish. A quiz mode will test your knowledge of the shark. And one bonus app for you gamers out there! Hungry Shark Evolution [iOS Universal; Category: Games; Free] Play as a shark and feed on sea creatures, swimmers and fisherman. Eat and grow from a pup into a full-grown Great White Shark.
Hungry Shark Evolution swims back to life with 3D graphics
For a long time, one of my favorite games on iOS was Hungry Shark. It's a simple but addictive game that allows you to control a shark that swims around a wonderfully inventive undersea world eating as much as you can -- whether that was other fish, swimmers or even mad scientist villains straight from a James Bond movie. Hungry Shark spawned a series of sequels and went on to be downloaded more than 40 million times. Now Future Games of London, the company that brought you the original Hungry Shark, has released Hungry Shark Evolution, a complete revisioning of the undersea world. Hungry Shark Evolution has ditched 2D graphics for some eye-catching 3D ones, which makes the game visually stunning. The game also adds some cool new features such as a massive free-roaming undersea world, 45 missions and the ability to unlock other sharks including a Mako, Hammerhead, Tiger and Great White. Hungry Shark Evolution hits the App Store today. For US$2.99 it's worth the fun. It's also formatted to fit the iPhone 5's new screen.
Liquidware team crafts laser tripwire that tweets intruder alerts, keeps fake sharks at bay (video)
Laser tripwire security systems can be expensive propositions that don't always work as planned -- just ask Raytheon, which saw its $100 million Perimeter Intrusion Detection System for JFK International Airport undermined by one wayward jet skier. Taking that as a form of dare, Justin Huynh and teammates at Liquidware have devised a much cheaper (if also much smaller) tripwire of their own. Any interruption of a laser pointer's beam is caught by an Arduino light sensor that promptly sends the alert to an Android-running BeagleBoard xM; if a toy like Bruce the shark dares cross the line, the BeagleBoard sends a Twitter message to let the authorities, or at least Huynh, clamp down on the trespasser. The invention won't replace Raytheon's handiwork anytime soon, although Huynh notes that additional or more powerful sensors could theoretically catch real, muscle-bound sharks and not just their plastic counterparts. The supply checklist and source code are waiting on the company's project page below, so those who'd like to ward off miniature invasions can get started today.
Autonomous Wave Glider bot launched to track sharks, beam real-time data to your iPhone and iPad
When they're not breaking world records, fuel-hating Wave Glider seabots like to indulge in other hobbies, like shark tracking. One of the vessels has just been launched off the coast near San Francisco (vid after the break), adding a mobile worker to the existing local network of buoy-mounted receivers. They monitor the movements of electronically tagged sea life, including the fearsome Great White, picking up signals within a 1,000-foot range while researchers from Stanford University analyze the data from the safety of the shore. Better still, the free Shark Net iOS app gives anyone the chance to track these things, and activity should increase as the monitoring network (hopefully) expands along the west coast and more bots are introduced. You didn't think the world's fascination sharks was limited to only a single single week, did you?
Google dives deep to bring underwater photos of the Great Barrier Reef this September
Your next trip to the Great Barrier Reef could be from the comfort of your home now that Google's partnered with Catlin SeaView Survey, the University of Queensland's Global Change Institute and the Underwater Earth organization to document this amazing ecosystem. Equipped with a special underwater camera capable of withstanding depths of 328 feet, the survey aims to photograph 50,000 shots in 360-degree panoramic view and incorporate them into Google Earth and Google Maps. Dubbed "Google SeaView," it seeks to open opportunities for increased conservation as well as a free look for wanna-be world travelers who can't afford a plane ticket down under. As an added perk, the collected data may also be used to help future ship captains navigate through the treachery of the intricate coral highways. Check past the break for more info on the survey and plenty of footage teeming with aquatic wildlife.
23rd Shark Week starts Sunday, sends slow mo HD cameras into the jaws of a great white
Do you really have to check the calendar to know what time of year it is? That's right baby, it's Shark Week, and as usual, Discovery's taking a midsummer break to bring everything shark related to its prime time lineup. This year, Discovery follows up on one of the most-watched Shark Week specials of all time, Air Jaws, with Ultimate Air Jaws August 1 at 9 p.m., with 2,000 fps HD footage of great white sharks leaping out of the water to attack seals. Even if that's not enough details (and time, with one second of footage expanded to an entire minute) to count every tooth in the shark's mouth as the press release breathlessly claims, then check out Into the Shark Bite, where they inserted high speed HD cameras -- where else -- directly into a shark's jaws.%Gallery-98502%
Skate 3: Good times with product placement
Self-identification through product choice is a mainstay of the skateboarding scene, from t-shirts to shoes to skate decks to the soundtracks on skate videos. It's all part of the culture, so it's only fitting that a skateboarding game – say, Skate 3 – shares in that. To celebrate this common thread, let's play spot the product placement after the break!
Seiko Ocean Theater alarm clock brings the life aquatic to your bedroom
If you're anything like us, you're terrified of whales for pretty much no reason. Seiko's newest alarm clock -- the Ocean Theater -- probably isn't for you then. Fair enough, but plenty of people are not maladjusted, and we're willing to admit that it's pretty cool, even if it's terrifying. The clock, which responds to touch, can project various marine life upon your walls, and we imagine it'll be a huge hit with children. As you'll see in the video after the break, if this thing works as advertised, it's really rather impressive. The Ocean Theater also doubles as an iPod dock, and will be available from Japan Trends; it's up for pre-order now and runs $235. Like we said, definitely check out the video after the break.
