49779143
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fangmcgee writes:
Researchers at the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology at University College London have found that a collection of ancient jewelry is out of this world. The 5,000-year-old Egyptian beads, previously thought to be made from iron from Earth have been found to be made from hammered pieces of meteorite. Strung together with gold, gemstones, and other minerals, the beads pre-date iron smelting, showcasing the metalworking mastery of fourth millennium B.C. Egyptians.
49275199
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fangmcgee writes:
The end may not be nigh, but with vicious storms, severe flooding, and rising temperatures becoming the new normal, the apocalypse might be closer than we think. In the case of a cataclysmic event that could displace thousands, if not millions, of people, the availability of emergency shelter becomes a pressing concern. Here are 10 "wearable shelters" that serve as protective all-weather garments in the day and insulating dwellings at night.
42227345
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fangmcgee writes:
Rethink Robotics invented a $22,000 humanoid robot that could give cheap offshore labor a run for its money and return manufacturing jobs to U.S. soil.
38832279
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fangmcgee writes:
Reno-based First Warning Systems is working on a new bra that could detect if you are developing breast cancer. Integrated sensors and a data controller regularly monitor your breasts and can watch for irregularities which may signal the growth of tumors. Tests so far are showing that the bra is far superior and may be able to detect cancerous growth up to 6 years sooner than self-exams or mammograms.
37999285
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fangmcgee writes:
Lab-grown leather apparel could hit the runways in as little as five years—all without harming a hair on a single animal’s head, according to Andras Forgacs, co-founder and CEO of Modern Meadow, a Missouri-based startup that’s approaching meat-and-leather production from an tissue-bioengineering, rather than farming, point of view. Backed by Breakout Labs, the grant-awarding foundation headed by PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, Modern Meadow seeks to combine regenerative medicine with three-dimensional printing to synthesize leather and ultimately meat. Just one question: Will animal-rights advocates bite?
35383039
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fangmcgee writes:
Archaeologists have unearthed several 500-year-old bras that some experts say could rewrite fashion history. While they’ll hardly send pulses racing by today’s standards, the lace-and-linen underpinnings predate the invention of the modern brassiere by hundreds of years. Found hidden under the floorboards of Lengberg Castle in Austria’s East Tyrol, along with some 2,700 textile fragments and one completely preserved pair of (presumably male) linen underpants, the four intact bras and two fragmented specimens are thought to date to the 15th century, a hypothesis scientists later confirmed through carbon-dating.
28315654
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fangmcgee writes:
Before anyone asks, no, it’s not bulletproof. But that doesn’t mean that the glistening yellow cape—the world’s largest garment made entirely from spider silk—isn’t a massive feat of engineering to be marveled. Now on public display for the first time at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the textile gets its unearthly gleam from the undyed filaments of the golden orb spider, a species of arachnid commonly found in Madagascar.
23639170
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fangmcgee writes:
What did people from 1930s think we'd be wearing today—an electrical belt that adapts to climate changes, headlights to "find an honest man," jumpsuits with integrated telephones and radios? Find out what they got wrong, and sorta right.
23046494
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fangmcgee writes:
By now, with films like Iron Man, its sequel, and Avatar, Hollywood has made us thoroughly familiar with the idea of the robotic exoskeleton. Less well known, however, is that researchers are actually building robotic exoskeletons like the ones envisioned by Hollywood and the comic book visionaries from whom Hollywood pilfers its most lucrative ideas. Among the developers of real-life Iron Man suits (of which there are many, the world over) is a group called Raytheon Sarcos. And as IEEE Spectrum reports in this month's issue, its impressive second-generation exoskeleton robotics suit, dubbed the XOS 2, is nearing production.
22888804
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fangmcgee writes:
London could soon be covered with a free public WiFi network as Virgin Media moves to challenge BT's Openzone network.
Virgin Media's network would be freely available to anyone at 0.5Mbps, and to subscribers to its home broadband at speeds up to a blistering 10Mbps.
The proposals would see WiFi routers installed in each of the company's street-side cabinets, which distribute its cable network to homes and businesses
22103254
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fangmcgee writes:
Forget X-ray specs; a pair of lightweight, inexpensive glasses could soon help the visually impaired 'oesee,' according to scientists at Oxford University. Equipped with technology found in smartphones and game console (video cameras, position detectors, face-recognition software, et al.), the high-tech eyewear will make it easy for the blind navigate streets, negotiate traffic, even 'read' newspaper headlines.
21930294
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fangmcgee writes:
DEFCON hackers will share their skills with the next generation at a first-ever children's version of the infamous gathering of software renegades, lock pickers and social engineers.
21050260
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fangmcgee writes:
Could the Internet mean the end of snow days? Some schools think so, and they are experimenting with ways for students to do lessons online during bad weather, potentially allowing classes to go on during even the worst blizzard.
21012918
submission
fangmcgee writes:
Printers, which can produce three-dimensional objects have been available for years. However, at the Vienna University of Technology, a printing device has now been developed, which is much smaller, lighter and cheaper than ordinary 3D-printers. With this kind of printer, everyone could produce small, taylor-made 3D-objects at home, using building plans from the internet – and this could save money for expensive custom-built spare parts.
