Monday, January 4, 2016

gizmag

ENVIRONMENT
Cheap, waterless toilet that turns waste into clean water and power to be trialed in Africa
​A cheap, easy to maintain, toilet that uses no water and turns human waste into electricity will be trialed in 2016, possibly in Ghana. The “Nano Membrane Toilet” could help some of the world’s 2.3 billion people who have no access to safe, hygienic toilets. read more
DIGITAL CAMERAS
Phase One and Sony develop 100 MP full-frame medium format CMOS sensor
Phase One has announced that in conjunction with Sony it’s developed a 100-megapixel full-frame medium format CMOS sensor for use in its high-end XF 100MP Camera System.   read more
ARCHITECTURE
Plan hatched to build modern successor to Colossus of Rhodes
Ancient Greece's Colossus of Rhodes was listed as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Now, a group of architects and engineers want to build a modern successor.  read more
SCIENCE
Deciphering dolphin echolocation - researchers create eerie image of a diver as it may appear in a dolphin's brain
​A private dolphin research organization has released an image of an underwater diver that was created using data extracted from the high frequency clicks that dolphins emit when they perform echolocation. The image might reveal how certain animals “see” in underwater environments.  read more
DRONES
DJI launches new software to block drones wandering into dangerous areas
To prevent a drone-related disaster, and perhaps an act of goodwill in light of the FAA's tightening rules around unmanned flight, DJI has started rolling out a new geofencing system designed to block its aircraft venturing into restricted airspace. ​​  read more
DRONES
Palm-sized Axis Vidius drone offers first-person flying in one tiny package
Billed as the world's smallest FPV drone, the Axis Vidius is capable of live-streaming vision from the aircraft to the pilot's mobile device.  read more
ARCHITECTURE
Porta Palace takes the tiny home on the road in the Netherlands
Dutch designer and tiny house enthusiast Daniel Venneman, who previously bought us the DIY Hermit House, has recently completed a new tiny home on wheels. Dubbed Porta Palace, the 194 sq ft home was specifically designed for Venneman's building partner, Jelte Glas.  read more
MOTORCYCLES
Power, control and safety: The year's best motorcycle tech and what to expect in 2016
From turbo-charged commuters to overpowered race specials, and from electronic safety equipment to smartphone integration, motorcycle technology in 2015 had something for every taste.  read more
SPACE
Elon Musk says Falcon 9 ready to go again 
According to SpceX CEO Elon Musk, the Falcon 9 booster that made the historic first powered controlled landing of a space rocket is good to go again.  read more
SPACE
Potential delay for first test flight of India's spaceplane demonstrator
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) may have to delay the first test flight of its experimental Reusable Launch Vehicle-Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD) spaceplane, with technical difficulties potentially putting back the flight to the first week of April.  read more
AROUND THE HOME
Automist Smartscan puts a targeted fire-fighting mist jet in the wall
With ceiling-mounted sprinkler systems, the whole room gets soaked when fire is detected. London-based tech firm Plumis, however, is out to change that. The sprinklers for its Automist Smartscan system are located in the walls, and they only target areas where fire is present.  read more
URBAN TRANSPORT
Velomobile fans could soon have a real Ego
​Early next year, velomobiles such as the Pedalist, e-fox, Elf and Tripod could all be in for some competition. That's when Eliel Rojas plans on launching a Kickstarter campaign to fund production of his human/electric hybrid vehicle, the Ego Urban Transporter.   read more
WEARABLE ELECTRONICS
Panasonic's stretchy resin film may find use in wearable electronics, and more
​Before flexible electronic devices can become commonplace, there needs to be a practical way of manufacturing reliable stretchable circuitry. While some solutions are already in development, Panasonic recently announced one of its own – a flexible polymer resin film.​  read more
AUTOMOTIVE
General Motors and Lyft plan to develop autonomous ride-sharing vehicles
With the likes of Google moving into the auto industry by way of autonomous driving tech, General Motors (GM) has bet big on Lyft. The carmaker will invest US$500 million to help grow the ride-sharing service. The "long-term strategic alliance" will include the development of autonomous vehicles.  read more
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Volvo and Ericsson want to make life a stream in autonomous cars
Volvo's recently unveiled Concept 26 is its vision for the autonomous car of the future. Its "Relax Mode" would allow occupants to watch video content while the car takes care of driving. Working with Ericsson, Volvo is now developing the tech to stream that content to a car on the move.  read more
AUTOMOTIVE
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come to Ford vehicles
Ford has been updating its Sync in-car communications and infotainment system apace, with the Connect remote control and monitoring app, new AppLink apps and Siri integration. Now it's putting iOS and Android on the dashboard and expanding connectivity in other ways.  read more
CHILDREN
Back to the Future DeLorean model floats in mid-air
While a real hovering DeLorean might still not be available until some time in the future, Kids Logic of Hong Kong has created a scale model replica that may be the next best thing  read more
WEARABLE ELECTRONICS
Oculus Touch controllers for Rift now expected to launch in mid/late 2016
We already knew that Oculus' Touch controllers, which give you hands inside virtual worlds, wouldn't be shipping alongside the Rift in Q1, but today the Facebook-owned company announced a delay in the ship date for the wireless accessories.  read more
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