Praying mantises aren’t just unusually large insects; they’re extremely efficient predators that have even been known to catch and eat birds. This requires both a lightning-quick strike and the visual acuity to direct the strike towards the prey. Researchers at Newcastle University, led by Jennifer Read, want to test out the limits of the mantis’ vision. To do that, they’ll try to determine how the animals reconstruct a 3D scene…

< … Read More → "Lab gets funding to put 3D goggles on praying mantises"

President Obama is in Japan on a state visit right now, and he’s been making some high-tech new friends. Honda’s humanoid robot Asimo was on hand at Tokyo’s Miraikan science museum — previously host to the colossal Kuratas mech — to demonstrate its soccer abilities. After offering a bow and exchanging a few words with Asimo, Obama said its ball … Read More → "President Obama plays soccer with a Japanese robot"

Rediscovered artwork like a napkin Picasso or unearthed Matisse can be identified on sight, but pieces crafted in the digital age by pop-artist extraordinaire Andy Warhol and encoded in an outdated format are far more difficult to ascertain. In fact, it took the retro know-how of Carnegie Mellon University’s Computer Club and a team of artists, archivists and curators to wrangle some of Warhol’ … Read More → "Lost Andy Warhol artworks discovered on Amiga floppies from the ’80s"

I wouldn’t say I’m a hard-core nerd, but I definitely lean that way. Yet I come from one of the least nerdy states in America (New York) and currently live in an even more nerd-barren land (North Carolina). That’s the conclusion I drew from real-estate site Estately’s just-released ranking of “The Nerdiest States in America.”

If I wanted to … Read More → "Want to live in nerd paradise? Head to this state"

The bionic human is nearly a reality. In recent years, scientists have been able to develop everything from bionic eyes to bionic hands. Yet these machines are still largely dependent on the existing human structures to which they connect. If a person’s nerve endings are damaged, for instance, the usefulness of these machines becomes limited. Scientists might soon be able … Read More → "Ear implant uses electrical impulses to regrow auditory nerves"

This small home may look plain, but it represents a significant achievement in rapid construction. A Chinese company has demonstrated the capabilities of its giant 3D printer by rapidly constructing 10 houses in less than 24 hours. Built from predominantly recycled materials, these homes cost less than US$5,000 and could be rolled out en masse to ease housing crises in developing countries.
via Read More → "Chinese company uses 3D printing to build 10 houses in a day"

Two artists have revealed Conversnitch, a device they built for less than $100 that resembles a lightbulb or lamp and surreptitiously listens in on nearby conversations and posts snippets of transcribed audio to Twitter. Kyle McDonald and Brian House say they hope to raise questions about the nature of public and private spaces in an era when anything can be broadcast by ubiquitous, Internet-connected listening devices.</ … Read More → "An eavesdropping lamp that livetweets private conversations"

Joyce Lin, a design student at RISD, has produced a wonderful set of kinetic sculptures made from popsicle sticks and other media, produced in spare time during the semester. They’re incredibly fun to watch and I’m sure they’re a delight to play with in person.
via Boing Boing

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Scientists have long suspected that monkeys are capable of mental arithmetics and a new study is helping them prove it. A research team led by neurobiologist Margaret Livingstone trained three rhesus macaques to identify symbols representing the numbers zero to 25. They then taught the test subjects how to perform addition. To eliminate the possibility of rote learning, the team had the … Read More → "Study confirms monkeys can do math"

We’re all familiar with ant colonies, where every tiny creature is running around doing just what it needs to. Well it looks like SRI International has taken inspiration from the giant mounds of insects, to create their own swarms of tiny worker robots that can put together mechanical assemblies and electronic circuits.

Diamagnetic Micro Manipulation (DM3) uses tiny magnets that move under a circuit board, to get the micro-robots to follow a … Read More → "Watch as swarms of micro-robots run around making stuff"