Archive for the 'Technology' Category
Solar Wind Downdraft Towers
May 7th, 2014Via: Physorg: The tower that SWET has in mind is located in a hot dry area. The tower structure is a hollow cylinder reaching skyward into the dry atmosphere heated by the solar rays of the sun. The water introduced by the injection system near the top of the Tower evaporates and is absorbed by […]
Scientists Create 1st Living Organism From Artificial DNA
May 7th, 2014Via: U.S. News and World Report: Move over, Frankenstein! Your 21st-century counterpart has just been announced. In true sci-fi fashion, a team of researchers from The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) in La Jolla, Calif., has created a brand-new bacteria based on a genetic structure found nowhere on Earth. According to lead researcher Floyd Romesberg, the […]
Eyes Over Compton, “We Basically Kept it Pretty Hush Hush”
May 6th, 2014Via: The Atlantic: This is the future if nothing is done to stop it. In a secret test of mass surveillance technology, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department sent a civilian aircraft* over Compton, California, capturing high-resolution video of everything that happened inside that 10-square-mile municipality. Compton residents weren’t told about the spying, which happened […]
Robots Are Caring for Elderly People in Europe
May 6th, 2014Via: Vice: Judging by recent surveys, most people seem to think that robots that are actually useful will lead to some sort of apocalyptic machine uprising. But look past the military bots and automated job-stealers, and one of the most obvious applications of a service robot is an entirely unthreatening task humans are increasingly failing […]
‘Bitcoin A Terrorist Threat?’
May 6th, 2014Via: International Business Times: After attracting attention from law enforcement, financial regulators and old-school Wall Street investors, bitcoin is now on the U.S. military’s radar as a possible terrorist threat. Friday was the deadline for submissions to a counterterrorism program seeking vendors to help the military understand state-of-the-art technologies that may pose threats to national […]
Norway: Oculus Rift Helps Norwegian Soldiers Drive Tanks
May 6th, 2014Via: Vice: As it usually happens, video games are designed to mimic real-world fighting. Now it seems the model’s being flipped on its head—the battlefield, for better or worse, is bearing an increasing resemblance to a game. Look at Norway, where the Army has started using Oculus Rift to drive tanks with increased visibility, according […]
Volvo Testing Self Driving Cars on Public Roads in Sweden
May 5th, 2014Via: Volvo: Volvo Car Group’s groundbreaking project ‘Drive Me’ – featuring 100 self-driving Volvos on public roads in everyday driving conditions – is moving forward rapidly. The first test cars are already rolling around the Swedish city of Gothenburg and the sophisticated Autopilot technology is performing well. An autonomous drive car was also shown in […]
U-2 Spy Plane Caused Widespread Shutdown of U.S. Flights
May 5th, 2014Update: FAA Confirms Spy Plane Scrambled Air Traffic Control in California Via: NBC: The Federal Aviation Administration has confirmed an exclusive NBC News report that a Cold War-era spy plane scrambled the computer systems of a major air traffic control system in Southern California, resulting in region-wide air travel delays affecting hundreds of flights and […]
Black Hawk Helicopter: Pilot Optional
May 3rd, 2014Via: Wired: The Army’s most iconic helicopter is about to go pilotless. The U.S. Army and defense contractor Sikorsky Aircraft demonstrated hover and flight capability in an “optionally piloted” version of the Black Hawk helicopter last month. It’s part of the Army’s effort to reduce troops and costs, in this case by letting the five-ton […]
Stephen Hawking: Artificial Intelligence Doom
May 3rd, 2014Via: Independent: Success in creating AI would be the biggest event in human history. Unfortunately, it might also be the last, unless we learn how to avoid the risks.
