Author Archives: matt
Geckskin
Scientists have long studied geckos, fascinated by the amazing holding power of their feet and continuously attempting to replicate that with human technology. Well, we’re a step closer now thanks to researchers at the University of Massachusetts, who developed a pad that mimics the pads and tendons of a gecko’s feet, with the result able … Continue reading
Google AR Glasses
The web is abuzz lately with rumors that Google is not only developing augmented reality glasses, but that they’ll actually be for sale later this year! Features are expected to include a camera and small display (obviously), though also a cellular data connection and multiple sensors (including GPS), for under $1k (closer to $500-600 is … Continue reading
ESL Lightbulbs
Vu1 has developed a new, energy-efficient lightbulb that’s a bit different….not like the LED and CFL bulbs you see on the shelves today. They’re using a technology known as Electron Stimulated Luminescence, or ESL for short. ESL bulbs emit electrons which hit a phosphor coating inside the bulb, which then emits light. Pretty simple in … Continue reading
Object Removal in Photographs?
So here’s the problem…you want to take a picture of a person in a public space, but all the strangers walking by keep cluttering up the image! The solution? Use a soon-to-be-released app from Scalado to just ‘exclude’ those random people from the picture. I’m not completely certain how the technology works, but believe it’s … Continue reading
Matterhorn Glass
As a scotch drinker and mountain lover, I love this artistic glass concept from Tale Design in South Korea. Embedded in a relatively normal-shaped glass is a mountain-like protrusion, inspired by the Matterhorn. Tale Design has done some other creative glasses as well, such as this moon glass where the surface of the liquid changes … Continue reading
Water Shortages in the Forecast
Water supplies in our country are not only facing pressure from an increasing population, but climate change is likely to make the problem worse. So bad in fact, that by 2050 more than one in three counties in the US could face either a high or extreme risk of water shortage. Most likely, this will … Continue reading
Smart Parking
Finding a parking spot in a crowded city just got a whole lot easier! San Francisco has embedded magnetic sensors under 8200 parking spaces throughout the city, to detect the presence of a car, and has made this information available to all at the SFpark website. It doesn’t show individual spots, but gives a block … Continue reading
Solar power…from grass?
Can we generate solar power from grass? Researchers at MIT think this might be a possibility. While efficiency is low, the real metric to look at is energy per unit cost. Watch the video below for some really interesting information on this.
Solar Power in the Developing World
Watching the propagation of technology throughout our global society can be fascinating. Case in point, the telephone. First world telephone users started with hard wired phones, which transitioned to cordless phones (still using the wired infrastructure), and are only recently transitioning en mass to cell phones. In developing countries, the infrastructure for a wired phone … Continue reading
Light-trapping nanoshells
Scientists at Stanford are exploring an unusual method of increasing solar cell efficiency – they’re using hollow silicon spheres to help trap the light that would otherwise be reflected. Trapping the light in this manner allows more of it to ultimately be absorbed, increasing overall effectiveness. You can even stack up multiple layers of these … Continue reading