Blog Moved to Google+

This blog has now been moved to Google+. Future post will appear at https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/116613528322378828436/

A Spray On Antenna?

Simple Wifi Booster For Free

Learn how to make a simple (basically free) wifi antenna booster using tin foil. Yes, it sounds crazy, but it actually works and significantly increases your wifi signal in the dead zones of your house. The video above is pretty lengthy, but does a good job walking you through a few optimal designs.

http://hacknmod.com/hack/dirt-simple-wi-fi-signal-antenna-booster-for-free/

Hip-Hop Basslines Could Power Implantable Medical Devices

Your favorite hip-hop artist could save a life someday — or at least control a person’s bladder — through the power of heavy bass beats, according to new research. Acoustic waves from rap music shudder through your body with ease, and can readily power a new implantable medical device.

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2012-01/bumping-rap-beats-could-power-implantable-medical-devices

Psychedelic Sphere of LEDs

The friend of a performer created this optical light display of 256 LEDs that can be programmed to create some fascinating displays.  The ball has 16 panels, which are not only the circuit boards, but the structural support of the ball as well. The central brain is provided by an Arduino powered by two AA batteries.  For more information, see the full project details (the site may be temporarily down).


 http://hacknmod.com/hack/psychedelic-sphere-of-leds/

An Aerial Drone That Could Recon the Skies Over Titan

Drones: they’re not just for controversial cross-border airstrikes anymore. Physicist Jason Barnes has designed a robotic aircraft that could cruise the methane skies of Saturn’s moon Titan almost indefinitely, beaming data and images back to Earth and terminating with extreme prejudice any terrorist threats it encounters there (we made that last part up).

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2012-01/aerial-drone-concept-could-recon-skies-over-titan-indefinitely

Five ways the digital camera changed us

BBC News : Photography firm Kodak has run into hard times, with critics suggesting it has failed to effectively adapt to digital. But four decades ago Kodak was credited with building the first digital camera, an innovation that has changed the world.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16483509

Samsung's 'future-proof' voice-controlled television

BBC News : A "smart" internet-connected television that has the ability to have its hardware upgraded every year has been unveiled by Samsung. It has an expansion slot allowing new kit to be added to boost processing performance and introduce new features.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16480712

New Train Tech Poses Hacking Risk

BBC News : A shift to a mobile communications technology could expose rail networks to hackers, according to a security expert.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16347248

Eye Controlled Computer

The eyeboard is an open source project that was built in order to help people with disabilities. His circuit detects the eye movements using the technology called "Electrooculography". Which consists in detecting the resting potential that exists between the retina and the cornea by using skin electrodes around the eyes.

£16 Computer Gets Close To Launch

BBC News : The eagerly anticipated Raspberry Pi home computer is about to go into production.

The $25 (£16) machine is being created in the hope that it will inspire a new generation of technology whizz kids.

The Pi uses an Arm chip similar to that found in mobile phones and is intended to run a version of the Linux open source operating system.

Test versions of finished devices are being checked and if all is well volume production will start in January.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16316439

Self-healing electronic chip tests may aid space travel

BBC News : Self-repairing electronic chips are one step closer, according to a team of US researchers.

The group has created a circuit that heals itself when cracked thanks to the release of liquid metal which restores conductivity.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16291943

The World's Most Useless Machine?

Sony's bio battery turns waste paper into electricity

 

BBC News : Sony has unveiled a paper-powered battery prototype in Japan. The technology generates electricity by turning shredded paper into sugar which in turn is used as fuel. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16288107

World's Simplest Motor Mk2?

World's Simplest Motor

A motor made only by a copper wire and a neodymium magnet. It uses one AAA battery but it can be done with AA one too. It's a simple motor, but unfortunately is not an efficient one, the battery drains quickly and heats up.

Samsung flexible, transparent AMOLED display

Is this the future of mobile phones? A paper thin sheet?

http://getandroidstuff.com/concept-video-samsung-flexible-transparent-amoled-display

Silicon rival MoS2 promises small, low-energy chips

BBC News : The first computer chip made out of a substance described as a "promising" alternative to silicon has been tested by researchers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16034693

Scientists at MIT replicate brain activity with chip

BBC News : Scientists are getting closer to the dream of creating computer systems that can replicate the brain.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have designed a computer chip that mimics how the brain's neurons adapt in response to new information.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-15772240

Build a POV Light Tube

With this POV light painter, you can paint the town red or any other color that suits your fancy. The LightScythe is a 2-meter long POV tube made up of multi-color LED strips.  POV stands for Persistence of Vision which describes how our eyes see motion blur when an object is moving quickly.  In this case, it enables us to see a message written with light.

An image is loaded onto a laptop which converts it to serial data, then sends it to an Arduino which controls the lightbar. A camera is set for 10 to 15 seconds of exposure, during which time the user walks across the frame, painting the image to be caught by the camera. 

http://hacknmod.com/hack/paint-the-night-with-giant-pov-tube