• Towing icebergs to provide fresh water for parched regions

    A third of the world’s population — more than two billion people — lives without access to clean drinking water, and studies show that the situation will only get worse; a French innovator has an idea: towing icebergs from the Greenland and Antarctica to regions most in need of fresh water; a computer simulation shows this solution to be viable and affordable

  • Solar-based method to provide safe water

    A revolutionary low-cost technique that uses sunshine to provide safe drinking water; solar disinfection (SODIS) of drinking water is an effective way of preventing water-borne diseases such as cholera, dysentery or polio — especially important in developing countries, where safe drinking water is often a precious rarity

  • U Maryland students design record-breaking helicopter

    University of Maryland students flew past a world record after their human-powered helicopter hovered more than twelve seconds inside a campus building; the team’s goal is to win the Sikorsky Prize, a $250,000 reward given by the American Helicopter Society; in order to win, a human-powered helicopter must fly at least thirty seconds, hover at least three meters above ground, and not drift outside a ten-meter square

  • Beachball-like observation UAV developed

    A beach ball-size drone can fly down narrow alleys, hover on the spot, take off vertically, bounce along the ground like a soccer ball — all the time transmitting live images from a video camera; it can travel above traffic or spy on a target through a window — and can also be used in search and rescue in disaster zones, where it could fly through buildings and even up and down stairways

  • Innovative biosensor for rapid virus field tests

    Relying on a novel DNA-based bio-chemo-physical conversion method, a new bio-detection device is able to detect harmful bacteria, such as E. coli, salmonella, and staphylococcus, on site, within thirty minutes; it can be adapted to cover such deadly viruses as SARS, H5N1 flu, and swine flu viruses; it can also be designed to monitor possible biological attack from anthrax, smallpox, cholera, and more

  • Making runways safer

    Airplanes undergo significant stresses during take-off and landing, and parts often become detached, putting subsequent runway users at risk; until now, airport staff have had to monitor runways without technical assistance — an activity that is prone to errors; a new radar system is set to increase safety at airports

  • New device identifies unknown liquids instantly

    Materials scientists and applied physicists have invented a new device that can instantly identify an unknown liquid; the 3D-nanostructured chip offers a litmus test for surface tension (and doubles as a carrier for secret messages); the researchers are currently developing more precisely calibrated chips and conducting field tests with government partners for applications in quality assurance and contaminant identification

  • Solving cold case by recovering old fingerprints

    Researchers are developing a novel method for recovering old fingerprints using gold-antibody nanoparticles; the new fingerprinting method that could make it possible to recover previously unusable or undetected prints from old evidence and from surfaces long considered too difficult by crime scene investigators

  • Listening to the sound of bullets

    ShotSpotter systems relies on a system of acoustic sensors to identify the location from which a shot has been fired; the alerts are immediately conveyed to police dispatchers, 911 operators, and sometimes to officers in the field via laptops in patrol cars; the system includes a computer program which displays a comprehensive bird’s-eye view of the area, marking the location of the incident with a red dot and indicating the time and number of rounds fired

  • Blast gauge gives medics, doctors critical information

    Researchers are working to enhance the safety of soldiers in the field through the development of a device that monitors the physical impacts of exposure to an explosive blast; 188,270 service members have suffered a traumatic brain injury in the last decade; the extent of injury is often difficult to discern, making diagnosis and selection of appropriate medical treatment challenging

  • How smartphones are fighting floods

    A new smartphone app is helping the Army Corps of Engineers to strengthen its levees and fight floods in Kansas;filing reports is as simple as using a smartphone to take a picture, adding a note, and uploading the information to a database, which only takes a few seconds; this new system helps reduce the time it takes to gather critical information about levees by as much as thirty-six hours, giving engineers valuable additional time to detect and save a failing levee

  • Averting bridge disasters: new sensors could save hundreds of lives

    One of every four U.S. highway bridges has known structural problems or exceeded its intended life-span. Most only get inspected once every one or two years; University of Maryland researcher has developed a new sensor that measures indicators of a bridge’s structural health, such as strain, vibration, flexibility, and development of metal cracks; the sensors are expected to last more than a decade, with each costing about $20

  • Tiny flying machines revolutionize surveillance work

    Tiny aerial vehicles are being developed with innovative flapping wings based on those of real-life insects; incorporating micro-cameras, these revolutionary insect-size vehicles will be suitable for many different purposes ranging from helping in emergency situations considered too dangerous for people to enter, to covert military surveillance missions

  • Micro-robots emulate water-striding insects

    Researchers are working on building nimble micro-robots that are able to skim across the surface of water; the prototype devices emulate water-striding insects such as mosquitoes and water spiders, and could be used for military spy missions, water-pollution monitoring, and other applications

  • The world’s first "printed" aircraft flies

    Engineers have designed and flown the world’s first “printed” aircraft, which could revolutionize the economics of aircraft design; the plane is a UAV whose entire structure has been printed, including wings, integral control surfaces, and access hatches; it was printed on an EOS EOSINT P730 nylon laser sintering machine, which fabricates plastic or metal objects, building up the item layer by layer