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US Army wants bullets that turn into plants over time
The US military may not seem like the greenest of organizations, but if rising seas and temperatures produce worldwide chaos, they're the ones that have to deal with that shit. Now, the Department of Defense is trying to tackle environmental problems caused by spent bullets and casings on its firing ranges by using composite materials laced with seeds.
Everlast and PIQ team up to bring data and AI to boxing
On the outside I'm a questionably healthy tech journalist. On the inside I'm a prizefighter. At least that's what I like to tell myself. So obviously my curiosity was aroused when I heard that PIQ and Everlast had teamed up to combine two of my favorite things: data and boxing. The companies are preparing to unleash what they say is the first AI-powered wearable for combat sports.
Fitbit now gives you credit for VR bike rides
Fitbit will soon log your biking miles even when you're on a virtual road stuck in your living room. The company has partnered with VirZoom, a company that turns dull old stationary cycling into a tank, sports car or Pegasus ride via VR. We thought that gamifying fitness was a nice idea when we tried it back in 2015, but Fitbit makes it possible to incorporate it into your regular routine. The device will not only capture and log your workout duration, distance pedaled and calories, but sync it to your Fitbit account and give you credit toward your goals.
Can VR help to reduce police shootings?
VR is already used to help juries understand crime scenes, so it's no surprise it could also be used to better educate police officers. That's the idea behind BEST, a VR police training simulator that's been built to try and reduce police-related violence. The company's Jed Merrill explained that on average, in 2016, close to 2.6 people are shot by officers every single day. His hope is that, with more immersive training, those incidents can be avoided.
'Pokémon Go' will add catch bonuses to make the grind worthwhile
As Niantic Labs keeps tweaking things to hold onto its Pokémon Go player base, it has revealed another new feature coming to the augmented reality game. Currently, player activities like catching Pokémon can level them up towards earning medals that toss off points, but not much else. Soon, there will be a catch bonus for earned medals that level up based on the type of Pokémon caught.
The best tech for college athletes
Look, there's clearly more to college life than studying and partying. There's also sports! Before you hit the field, gym, rink or court it's probably worth taking stock of how you can improve your game with a little help from modern technology. An Apple Watch or Vivosmart can count steps and track your gym sessions, while Polo makes a smart shirt that offers seriously in depth data about your body's performance. There's also sensors that can help you do things like improve your swing in golf or baseball. And, of course, after a long day of training, there's nothing better than unwinding by watching your hometown team make a run at the World Series on MLB.tv. Oh, and don't forget to check out the rest of Engadget's back-to-school guide here.
The NBA's fitness app gives you training tips from the pros
The options for fitness apps are seemingly endless these days, and now the National Basketball Association (NBA) is adding yet another. Thanks to a hand from Under Armour, the pro basketball league now has it's own exercise and training app: NBA Fit. The NBA says the mobile software combines Under Armour's Connected Fitness platform with fitness tips and videos from players in the league and the WNBA. There's also pointers from strength and conditioning coaches.
Garmin's latest running watch tracks your suffering
Garmin's latest running watch can track multiple sports, measure your heart rate and even give you a "suffer score," but the price might make you gasp. The Forerunner 735XT now occupies the top of the company's run tracker lineup next to the two-year-old 920XT with the same $450 price. For that substantial sum, you do get a lot: it packs the company's Elevate heart rate monitor and is the first sports tracker with Strava's Suffer Score. That app measures your heart rate compared to a baseline, so casual or serious athletes can see how much they're pushing it.
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.
Samsung-backed smart shoes will be your personal trainer
If you're still wearing plain old sneakers, Samsung wants to put a stop to that. The company is about to launch a new brand of smart athletic shoes called IoFIT from its in-house startup, Salted Venture. The shoe comes with numerous pressure sensors that measure your posture, balance and weight distribution. An app then crunches the data to help you improve your athletic performance in sports like weightlifting, golf and running. "There's so much valuable information coming from our feet, and it's being wasted," says Salted Venture CEO Jacob Cho.
Watch LeBron James' training on your Gear VR
Did you get a shiny Gear VR headset as a gift? If so, you already have something new to try with it. Oculus, Samsung and Uninterrupted are launching Striving for Greatness, a 12-minute Gear VR "experience" that shows what training is like for basketball superstar LeBron James. As with the Patriots' football practice, this probably isn't going to go too deep -- the teasers hint at a look-at-how-good-my-life-is vibe. All the same, it's worth a peek (in the Oculus Store or Milk VR store) if you're a hoops fan eager for some more immersion.
Step inside NASA's astronaut training simulators
To honor past orbital pioneers and future planetary explorers, we look at some of the simulators and mockups that real astronauts used in preparation for launching themselves off this blue orb and into the well-studied, yet unpredictable vastness of space.
Soul Electronics' new sport headphones double as a walkie talkie
App-based personal trainers are great, but they usually lack the yelling abilities of a real live human. Soul Electronics has a solution for that, and it allows you to keep your headphones on. The company is leveraging Kickstarter for its Combat+ Sync wireless headphones that not only keep you from getting tangled in a cord during your bench press sets, but they also pack in a walkie talkie feature. So when your pal needs a bit of extra motivation, you can do just that as the cans have a built-in microphone to capture your cues.
Jameis Winston will use VR to prepare for his first season in the NFL
Jameis Winston, the NFL's top draft pick, will have a number of tools at his disposal as he prepares for his first professional season. According to a report from Fox Sports, virtual reality is on that list. His team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, plans to purchase a VR system to use for quarterback development. Among other things, the tech allows simulations to be rewound and watched as many times as needed to understand how to perfect each play. This isn't the first time an NFL team dipped its toe in the VR waters. The Dallas Cowboys already implemented a system for QBs that gives them a 360-degree view of the line of scrimmage. Players can get extra practice reading defenses and making pre-snap calls to teammates. Virtual reality also offers backups who generally get less time at practice another opportunity to prep in case they're needed, and a number of college teams are using it, too. As for Winston and Tampa Bay, the team is meeting with vendors to find the right fit, and more importantly, tech that's ready to be put through its paces. [Image credit: Don Juan Moore/Getty Images]
Runtastic's latest workout app puts more junk in your trunk
Runtastic already offers dedicated apps for ab and bun workouts, and now the company takes aim at your lower half. Leg Trainer delivers over 50 exercise videos that'll allow you to select activity based on goals and fitness level. There are pre-selected routines -- like the 7-Minute Workout or Junk in the Trunk (yes, seriously) -- or you can choose individual exercises to build your own. Get ready to squat, lunge and kick your way to toned legs. Similar to the Six Pack and Butt Trainer apps, a 3D avatar guides you through the process so you know exactly what you should be doing. The Leg Trainer app also works with the Apple Watch, so you can follow the virtual trainer there or keep tabs on progress and workout stats. It also leverages the wearable to let you know when to start/stop a set and when the rest time between sets is over on tops of tracking heart rate. Perhaps the real question is what you gon' do with all that junk? All that junk inside your trunk?
Navy AR goggles turn a golf course into a battleground
Marines on a sunny golf course in Quantico, Virginia, this week demonstrated a pair of augmented reality glasses that simulate combat scenarios. The Office of Naval Research recently completed development of the goggles and this week hooked them up to a larger training system known as the Augmented Immersive Team Trainer for the first time. Representatives from the Army, Navy and Marine Corps showed up at Marine Corps Base Quantico to see the AITT in action. The AR glasses themselves have a wider field of view than similar products on the commercial market, and the full AITT experience incorporates real-life weapons props, binoculars and other physical equipment necessary in a potential combat zone. "For Marines, this system increases their situational awareness, whether for training or operations, giving them a wider aperture for information to help make better decisions," ONR action officer Le Nolan said.
LinkedIn's latest acquisition will train you for your dream job
LinkedIn has always been helpful if you're seeking a job, but now it can train you for one too, thanks to a $1.5 billion deal to acquire Lynda.com. That site offers nearly 3,500 courses by subscription on subjects ranging from web design to leadership body language, all taught by industry experts. Citing the obvious synergy between the companies, LinkedIn said that the deal would help job-seekers "know what skills are need for available jobs in a desired city... and then be prompted to take the relevant and accredited courses to acquire this skill."
Improve your 10K run time with 10K Forever
The 10K Forever app is intended for runners who already are able to run a 10K distance or about 6.25 miles. The goal of the app is to take the users through an eight week training program designed to improve their 10K times and overall fitness. This universal app costs US$3.99 and requires iOS 8.0 or later to operate. It is part of a series of apps by Clear Sky Apps for runners. The others are 5K Runner, 10K Runner, and 21K Runner. Each of these apps are set up to take runners first from being a novice to be able to run 5K, then stretching 5K runners out to 10K and finally pushing 10K athletes out to 21K. Those apps are all available through iTunes. 10K Forever works differently. Rather than extending the distances you run during the training program, the app utilizes a special sequence of warm-up, walking, running at normal pace, and fast running to improve your overall speed. The app breaks down the training into eight individual weeks with sessions set for three different days each of the weeks. As you progress in the training program, the times for segments change. For example in Week 1, Day 1 the program wants you to do a 5 minute warmup followed by a 20 minute run, then a 6 minute walk, and ending with a 12 minute run at a faster pace than normal before ending with a 5 minute cool down. In Week 2, the sequence changes to a 20 minute run, an 8 minute walk and finally a 16 minute faster than normal run. Each segment is accompanied by an audio coach that tells you when to go from a run to a walk and then to a faster run and provides updates as you run like half-way. In the settings you can choose a male or female voice and whether to accompany the voice with distinctive beeps. If the audio coach is not enough to motivate you, the app provides motivational quotes and images to assist your efforts. Users can also earn wins and badges plus share your victories via Facebook, Twitter, and email. The company also operates a Facebook page where users can meet others using the program and interact. 10K Forever integrates well with other apps. The developer claims it is compatible with all running GPS apps. Users can also playback their favorite music while running. Users start their favorite music app then 10K Forever and on-screen controls become available for the music app. I am not a runner so I wasn't able to actually see if 10K Forever really works. However the principles are sound and fit with other training programs I researched. If you have already stretched out to 10K and want to improve your times, give this app a try.
Boston Children's Hospital preps surgeons with custom 3D-printed models
Undoubtedly, 3D printing has taken root in a variety of disciplines, and medicine is no stranger to leveraging its tool kit. At Boston Children's Hospital, surgeons are using printed models to prep for the operating room. "With 3D printing, we're taking a step that allows experienced doctors to simulate the specific anatomy of their patients and allows the best of the best to become even better," says Peter Weinstock, MD, PhD. Dr. Weinstock is working on an in-house service that's capable of constructing the models in short order. Using scans from the hospital's radiology department and a 3D printer capable of super high-resolution output (16 microns, to be exact), the models allow doctors to examine details of a baby's skull or brain. What's more, the machine can use multiple materials to sculpt the final result, simulating the unique facets of bone, skin and blood vessels individually. For surgeons-in-training, the custom-made prints can illustrate the details of a medical condition rather than an average look.
Virtual reality training for rescuers may save your life in a crisis
While some soldiers have virtual reality training to familiarize themselves with the battlefield, paramedics and other rescuers are out of luck; their first crisis is frequently all too real. Intelligent Decisions isn't happy with that lack of preparation, so it's developing a VR system that gives first responders a taste of what it's like to handle major emergencies. Its upcoming Medical Simulation thrusts trainees into chaotic situations like natural disasters and terrorist attacks, teaching these people to maintain focus and treat those who need the most help. The hardware can incorporate actors and mannequins into computer-generated scenes, and it will have sensors for blood pressure, heart rate and gaze to verify that crews are staying cool under pressure.