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We're already seeing humanoid robots entering the workplace in limited trials, but when will we be able to kick back and let the service droid take care of household chores? A new video from Germany's Neura Robotics shows this dream is inching ever closer to reality.Continue ReadingCategory: Robotics, TechnologyTags: Humanoid, NVIDIA, Artificial Intelligence, Robot, Assistive Technologies, assistant robot

If you love all things concrete then you'll find a lot to like with the Shire, by Atelier Matias Mosquera. The extraordinary home blends into its lush surrounding landscape and offers self-sufficiency in power, water and food.Continue ReadingCategory: Architecture, LifestyleTags: House, Home, Building and Construction, Solar Powered, Off-grid

In a completely different kind of germ warfare, researchers have tested out a way to drop mosquitoes infected with disease-fighting bacteria over populations prone to outbreaks of dengue fever. It's an ingenious way to scale up a proven solution.Continue ReadingCategory: Drones, TechnologyTags: Dengue, Mosquito, Disease

Brain parasites are something that most people would naturally want to avoid, but maybe they can be used for good. A new study has found that a common brain parasite could be engineered to deliver drugs past the blood-brain barrier.Continue ReadingCategory: Biology, ScienceTags: Brain, Blood-brain barrier, Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease, University of Glasgow, Parasites

Touch is a vital sense in human survival and experience, not for just how it informs personal connections but as an important early warning system for identifying harm. Yet not all touch is equal. Scientists recently discovered how men have lower touch sensitivity than women do, which comes down to biology. In a creative experiment using 3D imaging and biomechanical observations, we now know...

Kairos Power has broken ground at Oak Ridge on the first officially approved Generation IV reactor ever in the US and the first non-light-water reactor in 50 years. It is being constructed alongside a non-nuclear demonstration unit that will help inform the design of the new reactor facility.Continue ReadingCategory: Energy, ScienceTags: Nuclear, Reactors

Vantablack, which is the world's darkest material, could be in for some competition. Canadian scientists have created a super-black substance that has the potential to be cheaper, hardier and easier to manufacture … and it's made out of wood.Continue ReadingCategory: Materials, ScienceTags: Vantablack, Wood, University of British Columbia, Texas A&M Universty, Plasma

Hearing tell of a steering wheel-free Volkswagen bus reminds us of the original 2017 ID Buzz concept and the autonomous future it portended. The steering wheel-less Klv-20, however, doesn't hail from the future, but from the past ... 70 years ago, to be exact. Converted into what must certainly be one of the most timelessly stylish rail cars in history, the Klv-20 is all...

Rather than cut a chunk of skull away to install a brain-computer interface like Neuralink, Synchron feeds electrodes up through the jugular vein to the motor cortex. Now the tech has enabled an ALS sufferer hands-free control of Apple's Vision Pro.Continue ReadingCategory: TechnologyTags: Brain-computer interface, Assistive Technologies, Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Headset, Control

If you're paying up to $550 for a GoPro actioncam, you'd better be sure that you're allowing it to deliver the best footage possible. The ActionBox Cine housing is designed to make that happen, with an adjustable lens shade, quick-mount filters and more.Continue ReadingCategory: Photography, TechnologyTags: GoPro, Actioncam, Filmmaking, Kickstarter

Tulip trees have been around for millions of years, but a new analysis of their structure has revealed a previously unknown type of wood. The finding could explain why the trees are great at sequestering carbon and help our efforts to do the same.Continue ReadingCategory: ScienceTags: Tree, Carbon capture, Carbon Dioxide, Carbon Sequestration, Cambridge University, Forest, Wood

Around this time last year, Chinese robotics company Unitree caught our attention with the impressive circus tricks and GPT chat capabilities of its $1,600 second-generation robot dog. Now the company has wheeled out an all-terrain upgrade.Continue ReadingCategory: Robotics, TechnologyTags: Unitree, Quadruped, Agility, Wheel, Robot

A new materials technique has taken cues from Grandma's yarn bag and cutting-edge technology, and it could see us 'solid knitting' whole furniture sets, as well as the fabrics that cover them. What's more, it can be unraveled to use again in a completely different form, making it sustainable, versatile and a whole lot of reconfigurable fun.Continue ReadingCategory: Materials, ScienceTags: Carnegie Mellon, Robotics, Furniture,...

Looking like a set of bridge supports that were accidentally installed on a cargo ship, a new wind-driven system by startup CoFlow Jet promises to reduce ship fuel costs by up to 90% using stationary cylinders with no moving parts.Continue ReadingCategory: TransportTags: Shipping, Sail, Wind Power, Marine Innovations

Exercise’s positive effect on depression is well-known, but not how it produces its anti-depressant effects. After reviewing a broad range of studies into how depression and physical activity affect motivation, researchers have now come up with a hypothesis.Continue ReadingCategory: Health & Wellbeing, LifestyleTags: Depression, Exercise, University College London

Nightmare fuel? Maybe – but in a historic moment for the dental profession, an AI-controlled autonomous robot has performed an entire procedure on a human patient for the first time, about eight times faster than a human dentist could do it.Continue ReadingCategory: Health & Wellbeing, LifestyleTags: Dental, Robotics, Surgical robot, Autonomous, Teeth, Surgery

Researchers have developed technology that creates nanoscale sacs containing a compartment within a compartment, like a Russian matryoshka doll. The novel tech is capable of delivering two drugs simultaneously or at different times.Continue ReadingCategory: Health & Wellbeing, LifestyleTags: Drug delivery, Nanoparticles, Imperial College

The Hardkorr Xplorer was already one of the smallest, most feature-packed off-road micro-campers out there, and now Hardkorr has gone and made it smaller. More accurately, it's made it lower, dropping down the total ride height so that the trailer stores easily in the average garage. While that means a little less overall cargo volume, Hardkorr makes sure the Xplorer 2.0 "Shorty" doesn't skip...

Toyota and Stanford University have been pushing self-driving technology beyond the limits of traction for several years now, and they've now released video of two autonomous cars drifting in tandem, getting very sideways with extreme precision.Continue ReadingCategory: Automotive, TransportTags: Autonomous Vehicles, Artificial Intelligence, Stanford University, Toyota Research Institute, Toyota, Drifting

There could soon be a non-toxic, longer-lasting and less-smelly alternative to DEET for repelling mosquitos. Scientists have created genetically engineered human skin bacteria that are decidedly unappealing to the irritating and disease-spreading insects.Continue ReadingCategory: ScienceTags: Mosquito, Genetic engineering, Bacteria, Microbiome, UC San Diego, Stanford University

BC8 superdiamonds are harder than any known material, but they likely only exist in the cores of giant exoplanets. Now, the Frontier supercomputer has unraveled the secret of their formation, a finding that could lead to their production on Earth.Continue ReadingCategory: Materials, ScienceTags: Diamonds, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, University of South Florida, Supercomputer, Simulations, Carbon

Lithium is a finite resource, and the more we lock inside rechargeable batteries, the less we have to use. A new speedy method to free the element from such sources could be a game changer in terms of the material's availability.Continue ReadingCategory: Energy, ScienceTags: Batteries, Battery, Battery Technology, Lithium-ion, Lithium metal, Rice University, Green+Energy, Recycling

Trek has announced the launch of the "most requested trail ride of the year." The high-end bike maker's new Slash+ enduro model treats dedicated rough riders to a little motor assist and a brand-new battery so they can stay in the saddle longer.Continue ReadingCategory: Bicycles, TransportTags: Trek, ebikes, Enduro, Mountain Bikes, Pedal-assisted

Australian builder Häuslein Tiny House Co. recently updated its Grand Sojourner model to create the all-new GrandHaus. Featuring a similar overall design but with an improved interior layout, it could be a good fit for a family of four looking to embrace small living.Continue ReadingCategory: Tiny Houses, LifestyleTags: Building and Construction, House, Home, Micro-House, Tiny Footprint