• U.K.'s Future Soldier / Science and Engineering Week a success

    Two events — Future Soldier and National Science and Engineering Week — took place in London, showing how government, industry, and academia can fruitfully cooperate to promote science, engineering, and technology education

  • World's largest caliber supersonic railgun successfully tested

    DARPA-sponsored railgun successfully launches a full-sized projectile, with size and weight similar to a 120 mm mortar, at speeds of 430 meters-per-second

  • New acoustic system locates snipers with accuracy

    System detects the sound of an initial gunshot then the shockwave from the muzzle of the weapon being fired; since sound travels faster than a shockwave, the system is able to pinpoint the position of the attacker

  • Intelligent wireless networks promoted by European consortium

    The proliferation of wireless communication-enabled embedded systems will have significant effects in areas from emergency management to critical infrastructure protection to healthcare and traffic control; European consortium to promote idea

  • Breakthrough: Dramatic increase in thermoelectric efficiency achieved

    Two hundred years ago scientists discovered the thermoelectric effect: Certain materials can convert heat into electricity and vice versa; trouble is, most materials which conduct electricity also conduct heat, so their temperature equalizes quickly; until now: Boston College, MIT researchers solve this vexing problem

  • Pencilbeam X-ray technology for more effective luggage inspection

    New luggage screening technology investigates suspicious material by penetrating the luggage with a pencilbeam X-ray; new approach reduces instances of false alarms

  • Cat's eyes locate things underwater

    A new underwater cat’s eye can reflect back a tuned signal, revealing its location, to existing sonar systems; new device does not use batteries — and it does rely on toxic chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

  • Ambient blue light resets tired workers' body clocks

    Tedious work during the “wrong” hours of the body’s biological clock — think truckers who drive through the night, or security officers monitoring CCTV screens during the graveyard shift — often leads to drowsiness; falling asleep behind the wheel or in front of a security monitoring screen can lead to catastrophes; researchers develop a way to “fool” the brain to think it is morning

  • UCSD researchers develop tiny explosive sensor

    Sensor works by monitoring the variability of electrical conductivity through thin films of metal phthalocyanines; “The detection capability of this tiny electronic sensor is comparable to current instruments, which are large, bulky and cost thousands of dollars each,” says William Trogler, UCSD professor of chemistry and biochemistry

  • FIRST robotics competition comes back to UC Davis

    Robotic competition among high-school students aims to promote and reward students’ engagement in innovation and engineering, and encourage youngsters to become curious and interested in science and mathematics

  • Scottish university to auction off AI software predicting future trends

    Scottish university tries a new approach: One of its researchers developed artificial intelligence software which predicts the future, and the school will auction it off at an IP auction in San Francisco next month

  • Six-inch, bat-like UAV to assist in urban combat

    U.S. Army awards $10 million to Wolverines researchers to develop a six inch, bat-like UAV to be used in urban combat; UAV would gather data from sights, sounds, and smells in urban combat zones

  • Growth of facial recognition biometrics, II

    Some twenty states already use facial recognition in their DMVs, and more states are planning to do so; the federal government incorporates facial recognition in some of its important initiatives; privacy advocates are concerned that the technology is becoming too pervasive

  • ORECon raises $24 million

    Innovative U.K. wave energy company raises $24 million in VC investment

  • Benefits and risks of close science-defense collaboration

    This week was National Science and Engineering week in the United Kingdom — and the London events and exhibit emphasized the contribution scientists and engineers make to the defense of the kingdom; a venerable engineering magazine says we should be just a bit cautious here lest we turn the battlefield of the future into a publicly funded industrial testing ground, where commercial pressure would overwhelm the sober considerations of defense decision makers