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Qwiki: The Future of Information Technology?

Aside from the big news that AOL would acquire TechCrunch during their latest disrupt conference, there was another major piece of news that many of you guys I’m sure would be interested in knowing. Quite simply it can only be described as the future of information technology as we know it. Meet Qwiki, the first step towards technology that could revolutionise the way we look at information on the internet.

Internet users at the moment have a number of tools at their disposal ranging from a simple Google search to a perhaps little bit more in depth Wikipedia article summarising the search term in question. However the internet has evolved in such a way that it’s become so loaded with information that as normal human beings we simply do not have the mental capacity or the ability to process and take in all this information. It simply becomes an information overload.

In steps Qwiki, a technology that aims to transform experiencing information from a chore into an experience. Doug Imbruce, one of the co-founders and CEOs of Qwiki, describes it as transforming information into an art form. Check out their demo video at the TechCrunch Disrupt Conference below.

You can sign up to their Alpha program here and be first to test out the new system.

Source: OneCoolThingADay

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Star Wars Tractor Beam One Step Closer

In a Galaxy far far away, a lowly Corellion Corvette gets chased down by a daunting Imperial Star Destroyer which looms ominously into view. As it closes in on it's target, it fires and captures it's puny prey reeling it in on an invisible line through the emptiness of space. This as everyone knows is the beginning of Star Wars and as many will know, the weapon that the Star Destroyer fires is a tractor beam designed to capture other space vessels intact. Today Australian scientists have made a significant step towards the development of a real life actual Tractor Beam.

According to Inside Science:

The device works by shining a hollow laser beam around tiny glass particles. The air surrounding the particle heats up, while the dark center of the beam stays cool. When the particle starts to drift out of the middle and into the bright laser beam, the force of heated air molecules bouncing around and hitting the particle's surface is enough to nudge it back to the center.

A small amount of light also seeps into the darker middle part of the beam, heating the air on one side of the particle and pushing it along the length of the laser beam. If another such laser is lined up on the opposite side of the beam, the speed and direction the particle moves can be easily manipulated by changing the brightness of the beams.

This however won't work in the vacuum of space yet. So for now I guess we can only start dreaming of huge construction projects crane-free but with multiple tractor beams transporting heavy construction beams up to the top of large skyscrapers. That or at least I'll be able to pretend to be a Jedi once they make these mobile phone sized.

Source: Inside Science

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Robot Invasion Looms Closer

If you've dipped your toes into the deep waters of the tech world any time in the last decade, you'll know that technology has very slowly been stepping on the toes of doomsday plot lines from infamous sci-fi's. The story lines to much acclaimed sci-fi dramas such as Battlestar Galactica and the Terminator franchise is scarily and slowly coming true. Today it would appear that we've taken another step forward towards a cyborg apocalypse with the reports of an unmanned aerial drone going rogue over in Washington, USA.

A Northrup grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout UAV strayed into restricted US air space after it failed to adhere to it's built in failsafe protocols. Yup, that's right, it seemed to have ignored the safety guidelines hardcoded into it's software and decided to continue it's course into restricted airspace ... 23 miles that is, into restricted airspace.

It's believed that communications between the ground crew and the UAV "cut off" making the drone continue on it's path. Failsafe protocols were supposed to kick in at that point and make the drone circle the spot but it failed to do so. The error was put down in part due to a logic error in the software, something that most software engineers will agree is not the simplest thing to detect, especially on such high tech military hardware as is the case here. Just for your peace of mind, the MQ-8 UAV is in fact capable of not only performing surveillance tasks but also capable of carrying 70mm Hydra Rocket Pods or Hellfire Tankbuster missiles. That's enough to take out pretty much everything in a city block and then some. Now that's quite an example of software engineering gone horribly wrong. Here's a toast to the limited days of the human race. So say we all.

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Let the Battle of the Real World Mechs Commence!

Mechs are plain and simply the ultimate wet dream of any self-respecting kotaku or tech geek. There’s nothing that can describe the pure awesomeness of an armoured humanoid figure standing taller than the average building raining all amounts of hell on it’s intended recipient. Well it seems that our dear friends over in the Far East have taken this wet dream and decided to turn it into a reality with what appears to be little more than an arms race for the greatest mech ever constructed.

I’ve posted in the past about the real life Gundam in Tokyo before on T.U.S but it appears other inventive individuals have taken to this as a geek off challenge. Ever since the mega Gundam was built in Tokyo in 2009, there have been many many models built since to rival this behemoth. So below are just some of my favourite to date (click to enlarge any of the photos):

Bandai’s RX-78-2 Gundam, Tokyo Japan

On March 11th 2009, in order to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Gundam anime series, Bandai built this mammoth of a 1:1 real size scale of their famous RX-78-2 model Gundam. This epic figure that towered over Tokyo reached a staggering 60 feet into the air which approximates to the same height as a decent sized city block. However it doesn’t just stop there, the head of this Gundam actually moved and emitted lights and lasers from over 50 different places on it’s exoskeleton along with 14 jets of mist for special effects. Quite an awesome feat to live up to. (NB, it must be noted that this mech was only up for a few months but is due to be relocated to another place in Japan, now equipped with a Saber!)

UPDATE (10/08/2010): A very cool time HD time lapse video has been thrown out onto the internet and wow is it stunning.

Chinese student Bi Heng’s ‘Kwansformer’, Beijing China

This 9.7 meter tall giant of a mech was constructed from the remains of a “Jiedang CA10 military truck”. It in fact was constructed by a 26 year old student for his class project at the China Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA) and took just one semester to complete. The Mech was designed and based around the famous Chinese general, Guan Yu and copies the same “Green Dragon Crescent Blade”. Heng now aims to create a series of Kwansformers which include the Monkey King and the Beijing Olympic Torch. So far he has been offered money for his current Kwansformer but has rejected it citing, “Trasformers are a cherished memory of the post-80s generation, but these people are still not rich enough to buy my work.” However at a cost of around $43,000 to build, if this at least doesn’t get him an A then I’m not sure what will.

Tetsujin 28, Kobe Japan

The 60 foot tall Tetsujin 28-go was erected in honor of it’s creator Mitsuteru Yokoyama for which Kobe is his birthplace. This mech aside from it’s sheer awesomeness has done more than just look awesome. It’s apparently having a profound effect in Kobe, a city devastated by the Great Hashin Earthquake (1995), as that it’s bringing in millions of tourists that would not otherwise have come. So mechs really can be a force for good.

Optimus Prime, Beijing China

Now for a mech with a more western twist, there now stands a 40 foot tall Optimus Prime looming over Beijing. Built across from the Green Dream Park in the Northwest of the city, this Optimus Prime was built entirely from recycled parts, that’s 5 truckloads of recycled parts apparently and weighing in at over 6 tonnes. So yup, think of this as the environmental mech helping to save the world one tin can at a time.

Shoichi Nakamoto’s Z-Gundam, Okayama Japan

Another product of an inspired youth was born in the hillside of Okayama. Shoichi Nakamoto’s largely unknown Gundam is impressive in that not only was it built single handedly, it’s large and complex enough a structure to house it’s own little cockpit. Yup, that’s right, you can actually sit in this mech and with a number of gears and levers, may one day pilot the giant suit.

So which is your favourite? Let me know on Twitter, Facebook or in the comments section below. Personally, my favourite is still the RX-72 in Toyko. It’s a mammoth of a beast and if rumours are true that they’re adding a Saber to it’s hand, well that’ll do me just fine.

Sources: Weird Asia, Pink Tentacle, Bitter Swee, AsianBeat, Danny Choo, Mechadamashii

Technorati Tags: mech,gundam,tokyo

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Lagoa Multiphysics 1.0 Engine will blow your mind

A guy by the name of Thiago Costa over at Lagoa Technologies Inc have released a “teaser” video of it’s very promising graphics engine, Lagoa. This demo video shows off a multiphysics simulation performed by the engine and I must say it looks to be a very very impressive piece of kit. It’s definitely one of those “seen, to be believed” type of demos.

This isn’t your average pre-rendered video either. Instead all the tasks are performed virtually on the fly and solely relying on the calculations of the Lagoa engine. The types of things simulated in the engine are things like plastic deformations, liquid movement and things generally breaking apart and/or melting. What’s for sure is that in the not too distant future, we’ll be creating physics engines that will be so realistic, we won’t be able to tell them apart.

Source: TechCrunch

Technorati Tags: Lagoa,multiphysics engine,graphics

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The Taranis: Prepare to Soil Yourself

The MoD (Ministry of Defence) today released the most advanced and possibly scariest looking aircraft to date. Looking from something that came out of the Stark Expo, this new fighter plane is called the Taranis and what makes this such a big deal is that it’s an unmanned stealth jet plane. That’s right, it’ll fly it’s merry little self to a land far far away and bomb the merry daylights out of it and be done and home before you even knew it left. OK so that’s a slight exaggeration, but it will be piloted by a crew back home and it’ll mostly be used for surveillance, but come on, how cool does it look!

Hit the jump for more photos, videos and information on this beast of a bird.

Below is a rather informative video from the ITN news broadcasting station showing off the announcement ceremony as well as some ~~crap~~ generic CGI to go along with it.

The Press Release taken from the BAE Systems website:

Named after the Celtic god of thunder, the concept demonstrator will test the possibility of developing the first ever autonomous stealthy Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) that would ultimately be capable of precisely striking targets at long range, even in another continent.

Should such systems enter into service, they will at all times be under the control of highly trained military crews on the ground.
Speaking at the unveiling ceremony at BAE Systems in Warton, Lancashire, Minister for International Security Strategy Gerald Howarth said: “Taranis is a truly trailblazing project. The first of its kind in the UK, it reflects the best of our nation’s advanced design and technology skills and is a leading programme on the global stage.”

Representing the pinnacle of UK engineering and aeronautical design, Taranis is an informal partnership of the UK MoD and industry talents including BAE Systems, Rolls Royce, QinetiQ and GE Aviation.

Speaking on behalf of the industry team, Nigel Whitehead, Group managing director of BAE Systems' Programmes & Support business, said: "Taranis has been three and a half years in the making and is the product of more than a million man-hours. It represents a significant step forward in this country's fast-jet capability. This technology is key to sustaining a strong industrial base and to maintain the UK's leading position as a centre for engineering excellence and innovation."

The Taranis prototype will provide the UK MoD with critical knowledge on the technical and manufacturing challenges and the potential capabilities of Unmanned Combat Air Systems.

Flight trials are due in 2011.

Source: BAE Systems

So whether or not you believe this is the beginnings of Cylon Raiders or Doomsday by Terminators, the plane isn’t due for testing until next year and I guess there’s nothing we can do about that. By the way, I love how on their website, the only item they have in the sidebar is “Military Air Solutions”. Oh I believe this is so much more than just a solution ...

Source: Geekologie

Technorati Tags: BAE,Taranis,Stealth Fighter

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G-Speak: The First step to the Future of Operating Systems?

Ever since the release of Minority Report (2002), Steven Spielberg’s vision of a wall-sized display which merged gesture recognition and floating panels has been a geek’s wet-dream of an operating system. Now Oblong Industries have developed G-Speak, in which they describe it as a “Spatial Operating System”. It’s a very cool combination of using very intuitive hand motions to control the screen in front of you. A lot of this is aimed at being used for data analysis and large data sets but who knows, it could easily be something we could find on our home PC’s in the next decade.

Check out the awesome demo after the jump.

Some of the SOE's core ideas are already familiar from the film Minority Report, whose characters performed forensic analysis using massive, gesturally driven displays. The similarity is no coincidence: one of Oblong's founders served as science advisor to Minority Report and based the design of those scenes directly on his earlier work at MIT. Other foundational components are less directly visible but as crucially transformative. The g-speak platform braids development arcs begun in the early 1990s at MIT's Media Laboratory, where Oblong's principals produced radical user interface advances, distributed and networked language designs, and media manipulation technologies.

Source: Oblong Industries Introduction

Also check out LukeW.com’s article on other projects that have tried to create this Minority report like interface with companies including Microsoft and Sun Microsystems here.

Source: Oblong Industries

LiveJournal Tags: minority report,oblong,sun,microsystems

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Tiny Robots to crawl through your veins

Scientists at the Israel Institute of Technology have created a robot designed to crawl inside the human body. Specifically, through your veins. The ViRob measures at a measly 1 millimetre by 4 millimetres will be able to crawl through everything ranging from water to blood to bile in order to treat diseases, specifically at cancer.

Cancerous tumours are notorious for being difficult to target and effectively kill. Think of whole body irradiation as carpet bombing your body. The good and the bad and the ugly get killed. With this type of technology, robots could crawl into your veins, identify a tumour and directly treat it with the correct drugs.

Here is an extract from Discovery magazine detailing the ViRob:

… thanks to tiny arms that help it grip vessel walls , ViRob is the first microbot that can tunnel between different body cavities. It’s controlled by an electromagnetic field outside of the robot that creates a vibration that propels ViRob forward.

In lab tests, the robot has traveled up to nine millimeters per second and can commute through body fluids ranging from blood to bile, making it a versatile tool that can race through a vein and burrow into an organ. Its designers even hope to accessorize it with equipment such as a wee camera and a mini pair of tongs, to get that close-up view of those alveoli at work.

Obviously this type of technology is in it’s infancy but with promising research being done, maybe this robot could pave the way to more advances in treating patients through technology. That’s of course before we get to the era of nanobots whereby the irreversible grey goo of death descends upon us and wipes out humanity.

Oh and also, the image at the top isn’t what’s going to be crawling through you, it’s a Replicator from Stargate. Just so none of you freak out if you think that things going to be inside you.

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Awesome Yachts travel back from the Future

I know lately I’ve posted a lot of tech which are way beyond the boundaries of my (and in all likelihood your) wallets but here’s the sexiest form of transportation if you can afford it and happen to own an island by the ocean. Mind you, that’s also considering that Terminators haven’t gotten to us yet and that the future that these yachts are coming back from is something of an idyllic paradise.

Oculus

This is Schöpfer Yachts’ first model yacht, the Oculus. This 250 ft beauty of a vessel can accommodate 12 passengers and even has an elevator, here’s an extract from the company’s website:

The exterior styling is representative of the jaw and eye socket bone structure of large oceanic fish and mammals. Featuring a dramatic reverse bow configuration, the yacht’s armature balances an elegant expression of symmetry and structure.

In addition to the bow, Oculus also features a “low rider profile”. This slightly lowered surface allows for new side recreational areas, alternate dockage access and light cruising openness. Lateral retractable side panels close this area when heavier wave action is indicated.

The interior features of Oculus focus on a 12 foot high ceiling in the main salon, a cylindrical double height dining room, central stair and elevator tube, and seemingly anatomical ceiling and floor lighting extensions giving definition to the seating areas.

The second level is the dedicated Owner’s suite. Living areas and bedchambers are divided by a series of four freestanding tubes, which house bath and storage necessities.

In addition to the main common stair, the second Owner’s stair connects to the third level aft private salon and deck / water feature.

Infinitas

Schöpfer Yachts’ second model are for those who didn’t believe the first one was quite spacious enough and measures in at 300 ft long. It holds the same 12 passenger capacity, and the design was taken from the symbol for infinity. Here is another extract from the description from the company’s site:

A central structural “spine” holds the loop together allowing the yacht’s superstructure to seamlessly flow within itself. The added benefit of “infinity” is the realignment of traditional functional areas.

Within this realignment, the main deck living room, and dining room are detached. The dining room moves forward and is separated from the living room by a massive pool deck.

This new deck location allows for the first time, direct access to dining room and kitchen for expanded activities, in combination with the living room/salon.

There are three methods to traverse the pool deck. First is a direct outside bridge / walkway which bisects the pool itself. This walkway has underwater openings in its support system, allowing swimmers to dive from one side to another. The pool has the option of being covered for larger venue needs.

The second method of crossing the pool deck is an overhead sky bridge which connects to the main stairs and elevator. The “sky” bridge is clear glass floor and ceiling allowing natural light to penetrate the pool below.

The third method is through a lower level lounge which features glass portals into the pool.

The main level contains the two aforementioned decks, living room, dining room, kitchen, storage, and bow deck (with helicopter pad).

The interior design of the space, and others, reflects an intense minimalist palette with a dash of attitude.

The main salon also features generous 12 foot ceiling height and fully glazed walls creating an island within the yacht.

The second level up is reserved for a series of guest suites and secondary bow deck. The owner’s suite occupies the third level with “sky bridge,” pilot house, and upper deck.

At the time of this posting, there’s no news on when this’ll be available or the pricing but I could get my house that it’ll cost you a bomb. Still, what price would you pay for the ultimate ego massager?

BuzzNet Tags: yacht,sailing,boat

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DARPA now looking to create Terminators

The worst of all possible AI scenarios: the Te...

Image via Wikipedia

DARPA, the extreme arm of the Pentagon’s military technology research are fully underway in creating the world’s first Terminator. Or at least they’ve started to.

DARPA are in the second stages of a 5 month old project into creating solid’s that can fold themselves and build themselves into shapes without the need of human interaction. Akin to origami. Except this is for military purposes.

The project is being headed up by researchers in Harvard University, MIT and DARPA themselves and looks to have a working model of a “morphable object” ready by Spring 2010.

For the sciencey part and the applications of such technology, here is a section from Wired.com’s article

One day, that could lead to “morphing aircraft and ground vehicles, uniforms that can alter themselves to be comfortable in any climate, and ’soft’ robots that flow like mercury through small openings to enter caves and bunker complexes.” A soldier could even reach into a can of unformed goop, and order up a custom-made tool or a “universal spare part.”

One team from Harvard is working on a kind of “generalized Rubik’s Cube” that can fold into all kinds of shapes. Another is trying to order large strands of synthetic DNA to bind together in a “molecular Velcro.” An MIT group is building “self-folding origami” machines that “use specialized sheets of material with built-in actuators and data. These machines use cutting-edge mathematical theorems to fold themselves into virtually any three-dimensional object.”

So who’s to say that Skynet isn’t in fact bang on time? Who knows. Either way, I say this is bad for humanity. Especially if DARPA, a military research corporation is backing in.

BuzzNet Tags: terminator,darpa,military

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Lacoste envisions the Future of Tennis

Image via Wikipedia

Short of actually being able to rip apart the Space-Time Continuum, Lacoste has released what they envision tennis will be played like in 75 years time. Now I’m the last person to comment on the dynamics of tennis but doesn’t it look more like the Matrix meets Squash?

Read on for more photos and the video vision

From the looks of the environment, it appears to be a simulated room resembling a holodeck. With the cool suit of armour which resembles the one in Haze and the transformable racquet, anybody think this looks less of a sport and more of a video game? Anyways check the cool video out.

And now for anybody who didn’t get my Haze reference, imagine this soldier’s suit but in white. See what I mean?

Technorati Tags: Tennis,Lacoste,Futurism,Tech

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Tokyo School to get World’s First Robotic Teacher

The latest addition to the staff at this Tokyo Primary school won’t be another stern faced teacher but an android capable of teaching young children. The Robot named Saya (oddly translated roughly to “Swift Arrow”) will be capable of speaking multiple languages, do the morning register and give out homework.

Saya is the brainchild of one Professor Hiroshi Kobayashi at the University of Tokyo, and has been under development for the last 15 years. The robot can even express “emotion” through it’s 18 facial motions which tries to mimic human emotions, including anger.

This is part of an initiative by the Japanese Government to extend Robotics into every home in Japan by 2015 and has thrown financial bulk behind the move with around $35 million of investment. The argument for this is that with an ageing population being a worry for the short to medium term future, it aims to cut down on the welfare bill with the help of robots. By their estimation, 1 in 4 Japanese people will be aged 65 and over and no economy can run with this weighing it down.

Already in Japanese society, robots are being used to help direct traffic on the streets, lure graduates to university with fancy robots, robots that strut their stuff down a catwalk and one that simply provides company for the ~~bored~~ and elderly.

One step closer to having Terminators overrun the Earth? Someone get me John Connor on the phone. Pronto.

Technorati Tags: Saya,Robot,Teacher,Education,Japan,Technology

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The Urban Shogun

Qwiki: The Future of Information Technology?

Star Wars Tractor Beam One Step Closer

Robot Invasion Looms Closer

Let the Battle of the Real World Mechs Commence!

Lagoa Multiphysics 1.0 Engine will blow your mind

The Taranis: Prepare to Soil Yourself

G-Speak: The First step to the Future of Operating Systems?

Tiny Robots to crawl through your veins

Awesome Yachts travel back from the Future

DARPA now looking to create Terminators

Lacoste envisions the Future of Tennis

Tokyo School to get World’s First Robotic Teacher

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