Science

An innovative clothing line includes workout garments designed to help athletes correct their form and posture while exercising. The prototype shirt is called 'Move' and looks like any other article of clothing. Move features four sensors woven into ... the front, back, and sides of the garment. These sensors monitor the body position and movements of the wearer. Through feedback components built into the hips and shoulders, the shirt prompts users to correct their body positions. The shirt is able to notify the wearer, through vibrations, the second it detects that the body position of the ... (view more)

New, high-tech mobile services are being designed to help drivers in congested cities find parking spaces. It's hoped these services will help save time and reduce pollution throughout the United States. These innovations are made possible through ... communications between a host of mobile applications and sensors planted into parking meters and parking spaces. This new form of technology has even been given a name: "smart parking." Meter Time, Parking Space Info Available Among the more prolific services available is "Streetline," which embeds wireless sensors in parking spaces ... (view more)

It appears telepathy, or speaking to one another with our minds, could soon become a reality. Possessing the ability to control certain machines via brain activity is not entirely new. In recent years, specialists have been able to help amputee ... patients overcome their disabilities using bionic limbs moved by specific thoughts. But up until now, such innovations have come following invasive surgeries that involve, above all else, penetrating the skull. And while the possibilities for such advancements are seemingly endless, those without life-altering disabilities are not readily willing to ... (view more)

Vancouver General Hospital is testing a new, super-efficient robotic machine capable of ridding small- and medium-sized rooms of bacteria. Called Tru-D SmartUVC, the device uses powerful ultraviolet light to sanitize an enclosed area. It measures ... 1.65 meters tall and has long bulbs running vertically up a round, clear shaft (it resembles an illuminated R2D2). When the machine is activated, a mechanical voice gives a 15-second countdown. While this is happening, Tru-D measures reflections from the ultraviolet light to determine the size of its surroundings and calculates how much exposure will ... (view more)

European researchers have made it possible to store coded data in the form of DNA, officially creating the most compact form of digital storage ever in existence. UK-based EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) recently announced the ... successful storage of encoded data in DNA format. The files include an MP3 of Martin Luther King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech, a .jpeg photo, and several other text files. Millions of Data Stored in a Cup of DNA The innovative encoding method makes it possible to store over 100 million hours of high-definition video in just a cup of DNA. Among its ... (view more)

US-based aerospace and defense firm Boeing is working to improve the WiFi Internet service on its commercial aircraft. Surprisingly, the company is using potatoes as a low-tech solution to a high-tech problem. Recently, Boeing loaded passenger seats ... on a grounded aircraft with 9,000 kilograms (kg) of potatoes in sacks for several days, as technicians meticulously checked WiFi signal strengths. Because of their overall chemistry and high levels of water content, potatoes absorb and reflect radio wave signals much the same as human bodies. This makes standard spuds a suitable substitute for ... (view more)

An entrepreneur says he has a response to the intensifying debate about gun control in the US. He says that by utilizing innovative computer technology, he can ensure that only the rightful owner of a weapon can fire it. The technology requires a ... radio chip in the handle of the gun. The gun's owner would wear a corresponding chip, in the form of a ring or a bracelet. Some observers even suggest the chip could be implanted directly into the gun owner's hand. Robert McNamara, who owns the company TriggerSmart, patented this radio chip technology last spring. Smart Gun Tech Not New Of course, ... (view more)

A prototype car offers self-driving technology with a twist: valet-style parking. The Nissan vehicle, which is codenamed NSC-2015, can also foil thieves by streaming live footage of a potential break-in. This new model was recently shown off by ... Nissan at a tech conference in Tokyo. Several companies are already working on driverless cars. However, in the few locations where their use is or will be allowed, laws say a driver must be inside the vehicle to take over in case of a malfunction. Nissan could circumvent these laws if the feature is used only on private land, such as driveways and ... (view more)

A recent study by Swedish researchers has led to claims that it is possible to erase emotional memories from the human brain. It's an idea that appears to come straight from the 2004 movie "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." The startling ... assertion is related to a new theory that suggests memories (predominantly those associated with fear) can be turned into benign memories and remain that way for a lifetime. Emotions Altered Before Becoming Long-Term Memory Scientists agree that a long-term memory is formed when individuals learn new information through the process of ... (view more)

A team of researchers in Cambridge, Massachusetts, have created the world's first batch of stretchable electronics. The researchers say they're hoping to use the new stretch polymer skin patches to help doctors and nurses monitor a patient's vital ... signs. MC10, the startup firm behind the stretchable electronics, is the same company now in the process of commercializing electronic sutures , which are said to be capable of healing deep wounds much faster than present technology. Stretchable Polymer: A Worldwide Pursuit To be considered "stretchable," technology must contain electronic ... (view more)