Bad news? Space travel will mess with your gut bacteria
Don’t go into space; it’ll wreak havoc on your gut. At least, that’s one possible takeaway from a piece of research coming out of Northwestern University, where investigators have been exploring the impact of spaceflight on the gut microbiome. Here's what they have discovered.
This scarily accurate blood test knows if you’re going to die in the next decade
Have you got another 5 or 10 years of life ahead of you? Researchers in Germany and the Netherlands have developed a blood test that can warn of impending mortality. In tests involving data from thousands of people, it’s proven to be around 83% accurate in its assessment.
Next-gen wearables will analyze your sweat, and UC Berkeley has prototypes
Your sweat can say a whole lot about you -- and a next-gen wearable skin sensor promises to tell you just what that is. Developed by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, this wearable sweat-sipper could have a surprisingly wide range of applications. Here's what it could reveal.
Philisophical Russian-built robot is headed to the International Space Station
The International Space Station is about to get its latest guest, in the form of a Russian humanoid robot that will fly to the ISS this week. From carrying out useful tasks to cracking jokes and chatting with crew about the philosophy of space, here's what it will be doing.
Move over Spot. There’s a new robo-dog on the block — and it’s waterproof
ANYbotics, the Swiss robotics company behind the four-legged, oil rig-inspecting ANYmal robot, has released its latest autonomous, legged robot. And it’s boasting a shiny new red coat of paint, and a plethora of other under-the-hood improvements, too. Check it out in action.
Autonomous robot deliveries are coming to 100 university campuses in the U.S.
Pioneering autonomous delivery robot company Starship Technologies is coming to more university campuses around America. The robotics startup announced that it will expand its service to 100 university campuses in the United States over the next 24 months. Here's how its tech works.
Wreckage, reefs, and robots: The high-tech quest to find Amelia Earhart’s plane
Over 80 years ago, aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart disappeared while trying to fly around the world. Now a cutting edge expedition is trying to find out what happened to her -- and it's calling in an impressive autonomous water-based robot to help find some answers. Here's how.
Eric Geusz: Apple engineer by day, spaceship designer by night
An Apple software engineer by day, artist Eric Geusz spends his nights drawing everyday household objects as amazing, science fiction-style spaceships. The results have cultivated him an impressive online community of fans. Geusz told Digital Trends how it all got started.
Artificial tree promises to suck up as much air pollution as a small forest
Mexico-based startup Biomitech has developed an artificial tree that it claims is capable of sucking up the equivalent amount of air pollution as 368 living trees. In doing so, it could be a game-changer for polluted cities lacking enough free space to plant a forest of real trees.
Astro the dog-inspired quadruped robot can sit, lie down, and… learn?
Move over Spot! Researchers from Florida Atlantic University’s Machine Perception and Cognitive Robotics Laboratory have built a new dog-inspired quadruped robot called Astro. Thanks to A.I. and some powerful onboard computers, it promises to be able to learn just like a real dog.
The U.S. Army is developing A.I. missiles that can choose their own targets
The U.S. military wants to equip itself with a new type of artificial intelligence-guided missile, which will use A.I. smarts to pursue its targets. Several contractors are hoping to win the Cannon-Delivered Area Effects Munition bid, with prototypes to be shown off in 2021.
Amazing app promises a full fitness checkup from a 30-second selfie
Researchers at the University of Toronto have developed a mobile app that's able to gather vital health information about users with nothing more invasive than a 30-second selfie. Here's what it's able to predict, how it works, and when you'll be able to get your hands on it.
Google’s soccer-playing A.I. hopes to master the world’s most popular sport
Think the player A.I. in FIFA ‘19 was something special? You haven’t seen anything yet! That’s because Google is developing its own soccer-playing artificial intelligence. And, if the company’s history with machine intelligence is anything to go by, it’ll be something quite special.
DARPA’s next robotics competition is an obstacle course in an abandoned mine
Kicking off this week, the DARPA Subterranean Challenge will put 11 robotics teams through their paces in a simulated disaster scenario in a defunct mine system in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The ultimate goal is to create robot rescuers able to navigate effectively underground.
Europe’s free land could house enough wind turbines to power the world
Think wind turbines aren't a realistic means of powering the world? An international team of researchers have worked out that there is, in fact, sufficient available land in Europe to house the millions of wind turbines necessary to do the job. All the way through 2050, too.
The best deepfakes on the web: Baby Elon, Ryan Reynolds Wonka, and beyond
Deepfakes, the A.I.-aided face-swapping technology that threatens the future of truth as we know it, are everywhere. But while some of the potential applications are pretty darn unnerving, some of them are just plain fun as well. Here's a selection of the very best we've seen.
The future has arrived. Want proof? Check out these amazing robotic exoskeletons
From Aliens’ Power Loader to the Combat Jackets from Edge of Tomorrow, science fiction is full of amazing assistive robot exosuits that can be worn by humans to increase their capabilities. But real life is fast catching up with sci-fi. Here are some of the most exciting real examples.
Why tech companies are ill-equipped to combat the internet’s deepfake problem
How do you solve a problem like deepfakes? It’s a question that everyone from tech companies to politicians are having to ask with the rise of A.I. manipulated video and images. Here's why it's such a major challenge -- and whether or not there's any way of answering it.
Clever new language-learning app lets you practice speaking with an A.I. tutor
Many people would like to be able to speak another language. But being self-conscious about making mistakes and getting judged for it can put plenty of people off. That’s where an A.I.-powered voice recognition language app called Rype GO enters the picture. Here's how it works.
Meet Astro, the next-gen spacesuit designed for the moon, Mars, and beyond
The company responsible for designing the classic spacesuits for NASA’s Apollo program has just unveiled its next-generation prototype astronaut suit for future space missions to the moon and beyond. Here's what makes the new Astro spacesuit so cutting edge and exciting.
You can get your hands on the Drone Racing League’s latest aerial speedster
The Drone Racing League has unleashed its latest aerial speedster, the next-generation DRL Racer4. Capable of accelerating from 0 to 90 mph in less than a second, this may be the zippiest drone yet. Here's how can get your hands on a consumer version to put through its paces.
An ultrathin wood membrane can help filter the salt out of salt water
Looking for a sustainable way to filter the salt out of salt water to make it drinkable? Researchers at Princeton and other universities have found a groundbreaking way to carry out this process with the help of an ultrathin membrane of ordinary wood. Here's how it works.
Biologists create an ‘eyeball on a chip’ that actually blinks
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering and Applied Science have developed a human eye replica that’s actually capable of tearing up and blinking. Here's why they've created it -- and, no, it isn't because they're building a Terminator-style robot.
Don’t speak: This wearable lets you give voice commands without saying a word
Imagine if you had a smart A.I. assistant in your head, capable of silently feeding you external information whenever you required it, without you needing to say a single word? That's exactly what MIT postdoctoral researcher Arnav Kapur has developed. Here's how it works.
Want a robotic tail? Well, Japanese scientists built one for you anyway
Ever wanted a robot tail? Developed by researchers at Keio University in Japan, this artificial biomimicry-inspired tail is designed to help improve the balance of wearers. Here's how it works -- and why its creators think it could one day be used as a serious work tool.
CGI faces will soon be indistinguishable from real ones. Here’s how
British computer graphics company Cubic Motion has developed a breakthrough way of doing high fidelity motion capture without requiring markers and a motion capture suit. Here's how it works -- and why the company's dream of next-gen motion capture goes way beyond video games.
Has science gone too far? This invincible robo-cockroach is impossible to squish
A new cockroach-inspired roachbot can withstand weights of up to 1 million times its body weight. It can also carry heavy loads, climb slopes, and move at speeds of seven body lengths per second. Here's how its creators believe it could one day be used to help save lives.
This robotic ping-pong trainer is basically a mechanized version of Forrest Gump
Table tennis is not a sport that’s particularly easy to practice on your own. That’s where the new Infinity Smart Table Tennis Training Robot, created by iPong and table tennis company veteran Joola, literally comes in to play. Here's how it works -- and where you can get your hands on it.
Biologists recovered RNA from a frozen prehistoric wolf. Don’t freak out, though
Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have managed to successfully isolate and sequence the RNA genetic information of a 14,300-year-old mummified wolf from the Pleistocene era. Just try and tell us that this doesn't sound like the first act of a great horror movie!
In the future, hackers could cause traffic chaos by stalling self-driving cars
Think self-driving cars will solve all our traffic problems? Not if hackers have anything to do with it. Physicists at Georgia Tech University say that hackers could wreak havoc on cities by seizing control of a limited percentage of autonomous cars and causing them to stall.
CRISPR gene editing to take on inherited blindness in U.S. study
A new study in the United States will use CRISPR gene-editing technology to attempt to treat LCA, a retinal condition that is one cause of inherited blindness. The study, which will take place later in 2019, is currently open for would-be patients to enroll. Here's what you need to know.
Saudi prince is planning a futuristic city with robot dinosaurs and flying cars
Want to live in a city featuring drone taxis, A.I. maids, glow-in-the-dark beaches, artificial rain, and robot dinosaurs? It sounds like something straight out of a Michael Crichton techno-thriller, but it’s actually a real proposal by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Micro machines: How the next big thing in robotics is actually quite small
Think that robots need to be the size of a dog or even a full-grown person to be exciting? Not so, as the fast-developing field of micro-robotics demonstrates. As it turns out, in some cases the world's most innovative robots may even be too small for many of us to see.