• New titanium alloys offer better IED protection

    Titanium deforms and retains damage from strong impacts and fast applied forces — such compression on the metal can happen when it is hit by bullets or explosives; metallurgy theory provides a greater understanding of the material at the atomic scale — an understanding which will lead to the production of more resilient titanium

  • Scientists develop self-healing surface material

    The human skin, when scratched or cut, heals quickly, in most cases leaving no trace of a scar after just a few days; German scientists develop surface material with similar qualities

  • Universities, businesses offer solutions for dealing with hurricanes

    Three universities are busy offering solutions which better predict hurricanes and cope with the damage they cause; a Bill Gates-supported company is more ambitious: it proposes to kill hurricanes by placing giant ocean-going tubs in the paths of storms

  • Flying motorcycle likely to take off next year

    California company shows designs of a flying motorcycle; the bike is able to pop out a pair of wings and take to the skies; estimated price tag: $80,000

  • Patent systems may discourage innovation: study

    The traditional view is that patents foster innovation. A new study suggests instead that they may hinder technological progress, economic activity, and societal wealth

  • Short-range communication company benefits from growing market

    The Near Field Communication (NFC) market is growing, and Companies in the NFC market benefit; the latest: Innovision Research & Technology raises £5.4 million from existing and new institutional investors

  • DARPA searches for instant repair of soldiers' injuries

    DARPA is soliciting proposals for a device that can use adult stem cells for a regenerative free-for-all, producing whatever needed to repair injured body parts, including nerves, bone, and skin

  • Millimeter-wave imaging comes to Cleveland, Houston airports

    TSA expands its testing of millimeter wave and backscatter imaging systems, deploying them in Cleveland and Houston; TSA claims passengers’ privacy is guaranteed, but passengers can opt out of being screened and choose body pat instead

  • New technology locks up Biometrics

    Communication encryption relies on authentication being symmetric to work: the user’s password or PIN must match the password or PIN stored by the recipient (online shop, bank, etc.) to lock and unlock the data; biometric may be used for encryption — but biometrics is not a symmetric process; South African researchers now show how biometrics can nevertheless be used to make a consistent secret key for encryption

  • Soldiers, first responders will self-power their gear

    Soldiers and first responders will soon power electronic devices such as personal radios using just their own movements

  • Life-saving location device to help in rescuing trapped disaster victims

    There is usually a 24-hour window when people that are injured and trapped can be saved, followed by a three-day window for those that are unhurt; by analyzing the levels of carbon dioxide and ammonia, chemical sensors could detect whether a trapped person is still alive faster than traditional methods

  • TSA's new lab tests new bomb detection technologies

    The Transportation Security Laboratory in Atlantic City uses the latest intelligence from the military, CIA, FBI, and friendly foreign governments to manufacture improvised explosive devices like those being built by terrorists — in order to defeat them

  • Biometrics tunnel helps identify individuals' unique walking patterns

    The University of Southampton’s biometric tunnel provides the technology to analyze the way people walk as a unique identifier; university researchers have developed a technology which captures the unique walking patterns, and then characterizes and records them to a database

  • South Korean researchers turn science fiction into fact

    The state-financed Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) was set up in 1971; its new leaders wants it to lead the nation in innovation and education; among the center’s projects: a computer screen that folds up like a pocket handkerchief, a harbor that goes out to a ship, and a road which recharges electric vehicles

  • Israel successfully tests anti-ship missile defense

    During the summer 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, the Shi’ia organization almost sank an Israeli ship with an advanced Iran-made anti-ship missile; Israel has now successfully tested a sophisticated defense against anti-ship missile — a defensive system which should be of interest to U.S. Navy ships on patrol at the Persian Gulf