Virginia's Space Port at Wallops Island

At Wallops Island on the Virginia Eastern shore, at 0700 EST this morning, the first successful rocket launch from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Space Port took place.  "Rocket soars into space from Wallops Island before dawn"  This successful launch represents the birth of the space launch industry in Virginia and hopefully another future commercial space port. . What's cool about this is that I live a few hours drive away from Wallops Island so if launches from there become more common place, I will be able watch a few in the future!  Mid-Atlantic commercial spaceport makes 1st launch

Evidence of Water Flowing on Mars

This caught my eye, "Scientists believe they found evidence of recent water on Mars". What they mean by recent is just a few years ago. "Water flowed 'recently' on Mars". "Evidence suggests liquid water on Mars: NASA".

Ultraman

When I was a kid, I was really inspired by this show while living in Japan called Ultraman. Well, I found this decent article, "Ultraman...forever", describing the 40-year old phenonmenom at JapanTimes online. It is good to see that this show is still in production and for two generations has been entertaining young kids and parents alike. Now, I just need to find the DVDs so can watch and relive these shows. I don't think they are broadcast much in the US.

Silent Aircraft Initiative

This is a cool concept, a virtually silent passenger aircraft. I saw in this CNNTech article and the conceptual picture looks like the blended-wing aircraft concepts being explored by Boeing. Imagine a future with much less jet noise from commercial airliners.

Bionic Dolphin Speed Boat/Submarine

This one just looks cool. It is a hybrid speed boat/submarine marine machine who's design is inspired by dolphins. "Bionic-Dolphi".

Invisbility Cloak

An invisibility cloak that works in the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum has been unveiled by researchers in the US. The device is the first practical version of a theoretical set-up first suggested in a paper published earlier in 2006. "Working invisibility cloak created". This is somewhat simlar to the optical camouflage project at Tokyo University,

New 14Tbps Data Transmission Speed Record

NTT just announced that they have achieved a new speed record of transmitting data over fiber. "New Data Transmission Speed Record - 14 Tbps". Wow!

Battle Extraction And Retrieval (BEAR) robot

For future battlefields, this conceptual robot and working prototypes has many possibilities for defense and the private sector. "BEAR robot carries injured soldiers to safety". In the private sector, for assisting the disabled and elderly would be a practical application of this idea. VECNA Technologies is the company researching BEAR.

Electromagnetic Propulsion using Microwaves

Imagine hovering vehicles that do not have wings. I just bumped across an posting on Slashdot "Thrust from Microwaves - The Relativity Drive" that mentions this. Roger Shawyer calls it emdrive and NASA and China are serioulsy looking into this for a future space propulsion system. The orignal NewScientist article "Relativity drive: The end of wings and wheels?" describes it in more detail and has an interesting conceptual picture of what may be possible.

Japanese WWII Sen Toku Secret Submarines

In August 2006 I saw a History Channel special on the secret Japanese WWII attack submarine called Sen Toku (secret attack submarine). Prior to seeing this documentary, I had never even heard about this huge submarine because it was intentionally kept a secret by both Japan and US governments. What surprised me is the size of the submarines (Sen Toku I-400 submarine class). Up until the 1960s, these were the largest and most sophisticated submarines built by man. I think to this day they are the only submarines capable of launching bombers. Each of these submarines carried 3 full size naval bombers and spare parts for a fourth.

Here's some additional info about the Sen Toku. Promare 2004 exploration, "Ambitious Ideas" Japan's Submarine Warfare".

Area 51 Recent Increased Activity

Activity has been increasing at the most famous secret US air base. I initially saw this at CNET "Are these planes flying at Area 51". Popular Science recently published an story discussing this, "The Top Secrect Warplanes of Area 51". There are some pretty cool pictures at the Popular Science site of these exotic aircraft.

Lockheed Martin 12-seat Supersonic Jet

Supersonic flight is not only for the military. Check out what Lockheed Martin has in conceptual stages, "Lockheed Martin 12-seat Supersonic Jet". This would allow flying from LA to New York in 2 hours at Mach 1.8. If they decide to build and sell it, we could be seeing these by 2012.

JAXA Supersonic Jet Testing Resumes

JAXA plans to resume its testing of supersonic jet designs in Sep/Oct 2006. "Japan to Resume Supersonic Jet Test" I wrote about this earlier in this blog. The new goal is produce a supersonic jet by 2012 that can fly from Tokyo to LA in about four hours.

China and Russia Plan Joint Mission to Mars

For space exploration, China and Russian are making plans to jointly go to Mars! (article) The space of the 20th century is back. Now it appears that USA, China, Russia and Japan are in this 3-way race. It was good for innovation in the 20th century so I would have to say it will be great for 21-century innovation this time around for the next 20-30 years. Assuming we do not destroy ourselves in some type of large global war.

First Petaflop Supercomputer

Japan is ready to unleash the world's first petaflop supercomputer. I just saw this on Slashdot posting which references the news release here.
This was all done with a $9million investment and approx a 4,000 processor system. Whoa! There may be some breakthroughs with this machine.

First Flying Car Accepting Pre-Orders

Well, at least I can say that you can now pre-order your own flying car. This is as per reported in this i4u article, "Get Ready For the Flying Car, Courtesy of Terrafugia". They plan on delivering these in 2009 so you have 3-years for planning purposes. You will need a pilot's license to fly.

Honda Fuel Efficient MicroJet Aircraft and Engines

Honda has been working on their jet aircraft engines for a while now. It just announced a jet engine in partnership with GE. Honda has been very hush about its plans but here are some facts and news from Honda.

Mobile Tactical High Energy Laser

The Mobile Tactical High Energy Laser (MTHEL) is a future weapons system that is designed to shoot down rockets and mortars to protect troops. Given current events, this system will definitely give our troops an edge in the battlefield. The conceptual pictures of it are pretty cool also.

Nanotube Supercapacitor Battery

What ever happened to all the breakthroughs in battery technology? Well, here is yet another nanotube based battery technology that may spell the end of the battery as we know it. "MIT research may spell end for the battery Supercapacitor could make electric car viable". The article states that in 5-10 years we may see these types of products.

Supersonic shape-shifting assassin

The Pentagon is continuing research and development into advanced unmanned attack flying machines. Check out this concept, "Pentagon developing supersonic shape-shifting assassin". Thisis aa plane that could loiter just outside enemy territory for more than a dozen hours and, on command, hurtle toward a target faster than the speed of sound. And then level it.

Rhino Linings Uses By U.S. Military

Rhino Linings and Line-X are being used by the U.S. Military to protect everything from Humvees, tanker trucks, buildings to body armor against explosions. "Bedliner companies start getting defensive". Here is another article mentioning the use of Rhino Linings, "U.S. Military Goes to War With the #1 Sprayed-on Liner, Rhino Linings(R)".

Steven Hawking says Humans Must Go To Space

In order to survive the next 50-100 years, humans must go to space and seek out new homes. "Hawking says humans must go into space to survive". This makes sense since we will either polute the Earth so that is becomes a dangerous place or we will find a way to destroy ourselves by nuclear, genetic, or some other man-made form of technology.

Finger Implant Provides EMF Sensory Perception

The merging of man and the machine is getting closer. For body-modification for new capabilities check out what this graduate student has done, "A Sixth Sense for a Wired World". Adding the device to your fingertip was a result of an accident however, it provided the student with a new perception, detection of electromagnetic fields in his fingertips! Pretty cool... just a few more years of research and who know what is possible.

Contact Lenses for Sports

Nike and Bausch & Lomb have designed contact lenses for athletes that improve your vision and contrast for tennis, football, soccer, golf. Read about it here. This is a positive innovation for athletes that do not require use of drugs.

Lightweight Personal Mono-Wing

For the Special Forces, check out this personal mono-wing which will allow elite special forces to fly up to 120-miles when dropped from high-altitude. "New Personal Mono-Wing". This is too cool and I am sure is quite a rush to use. Here's the article with a picture of it.

Wireless Camera Hunter

This is one cool device for hunting for hidden wireless cameras or snooping on someone's wireless camera emissions. The wireless camera hunter has a built-in 2.5" TFT display which is nice.

Universal Software Radio Peripheral

Imagine a radio device that could receive AM, FM, GPS, HDTV, Satellite and uses software to decode channels! Check out "GNU Radio Opens an Unseen World" which this exact device that you can buy for about $550 today at Ettus Research, LLC! Pretty cool stuff for the near future. Here's another article with a good circuit board graphic.

Matrox Multiple Display Technologies for Notebook

If you want a tripe multiple display for your notebook computer, Matrox provides a really cool device, TripleHead2Go that adds up to three additional displays to your single output notebook computer. They also have a DualHead2Go that is based on the same technology. These palm-sized in-line devices gives you the ultimate in surround video capabilities and with the increased display real estate will improve your video experience and productivity.

Cure for Cervical Cancer

For years I have wondered why the pharmaceutical companies have not provided cures for viruses since the Polio vaccine. Well, just this month, Merck's Gardisil is a cure for the HPV virus which is believed to cause most cervical cancer cases. This is a major medical breakthrough which appears to be getting very little coverage. So here are a few articles mentioning the significance of this medical news. "HPV Vaccine Could Save Future Generations, Too", "Federal advisers back cervical cancer vaccine". Things that make you go hmmm.

Laser Optical Incapacitator

Iraq and Afghanistan continue to be the the proving grounds for new non-lethal defense technology. The Pentagon is now issuing laser optical incapacitators for use at checkpionts in Iraq. It causes temporary blindness when used against offenders. "Laser 'optical incapacitator' issued in Iraq". This non-lethal technology will hopefully prevent tragic civilian deaths at checkpoints.

FDA Approves New Drug for Parkinson's

For people with Parkinson's the FDA approved a new drug to help patients in the early stages of the disease. "FDA OKs new drug for Parkinson's". The FDA recently approved a drug that cures cervical cancer so this raises hope that one day there will be a cure for diseases like Parkinson's, ALS, MS and other neurological disorders.

Largest Dam Ever Completed in China

The largest man-made dam in the world was completed across the Yangtze River in China. This was a 13-year project and is the largest engineering project since the Great Wall of China. "China Completes Dam Across Yangtze River".

More Cancer Research Progress with Mice

At Wake Forest University, researchers have able to cure cancer in mice. "White Blood Cells From Cancer-resistant Mice Cure Cancers in Ordinary Mice". This is promising research that may one day be able help humans. Here's another article, "Study Probes Cancer Cure in Mice". Maybe we will see a cure in the near future.

Smokeless Propulsion Engine

I found this article describing another propulsion system based on Mach's principle. This is kind of of like Star Trek impulse engines. "Smokeless rockets launching soon?". It sounds intriguing just not sure when or if we will ever see any products using this technology.

Fusion Progress in Japan

Research into sustainable fusion is making progress. "Japan's JT-60 Tokamak Sets New Plasma Record". According to the article, they are projecting that by 2016 a sustainable fusion reactor is possible. For more information goto the Japan Fusion Plasma Research site.

TorPark, Anonymous Web Browser

"TorPark: A secure, anonymous, and portable Web browser". This web browser based on Mozilla Firefox 1.5 can be run from a USB drive. Nice if you need anonymous web browsing anywhere or anytime.

BeyondTV Tivo-like PVR

Here's something about which Linlu sent me an email. (Thanks Linlu) BeyondTV is a Tivo-like personal video recorder device that does not require subscription fees. There are pretty good details about it at the BeyondTV site. The user manuals are available as PDF for perusing. It records in MPEG-2, DivX and other formats. Only down side I see if that is for Windows only (XP, 2000) and the FAQ at the site says there no plans for Mac or Linux versions. On the up side, it will work with any Windows machine that have the direct video interface. For notebooks you can get these on PCMCIA or USB cards now. Anyway, this looks quite impressive.

Bluetooth Laser Keyboard

This is pretty interesting device, Bluetooth Laser Keyboard. It uses lasers to project an image of a standard QWERTY keyboard on a flat surface and tracks your fingers for input.

The Missing Link Solved

The missing link in human evolution was sort of a holy grail of anthropology. Well, this link appears to be solved. "Missing Link Found Between Human Ancestors". Wow! Here's another article discussing the same, "Fossil connects human evolution dots".

Bio-engineered Bladder Success

Advances in the bio-engineering field continue to amaze me. Here is a scenario where bladder tissue from the patient was used to grow a new bladder and transplant that back into the patient. "Bio-engineered bladders successful in patients". This is a major milestone in the continuing advances in the bio-engineering field.

X-37 Experimental Spaceplane Test Flight

The X-37 successfully completed a test flight using the Scaled Composites White Night as its drop ship. (Slashdot article) This is the same mothership used for the SpaceShipOne. Scaled Composites is working under a DARPA contract. Saw this in this MSNBC article (04/07/2006). Here's additional info about the X-37 experimental military spaceplane built by Boeing.

Open Source and Space Exploration

This is a good article at OnLamp.com with lots of good info about how open source software is playing a big part with Space Exploration. "The Software of Space Exploration".

Free ASP Web Bulletin Board System

If you want to setup a web-based bulletin board type of system, check out Snitz Forums. It is an ASP based an interactive discussion environment that allows different people on the Internet or an Intranet to leave messages for each other, and then reply. It works wish Access, MySQL and SQL Server. ASP source is provided for free and has an active community supporting it.

Elemental Security Platform

If you need automated HIPAA, Sarbanes-Oxley type compliance for your organization check out the Elemental Security Platform. It is developed by Elemental Security which is small security company that created a product in a growing niche industry. The product also supports customized policies. There's the FAQ about this product.

Sony PSP Updated with Camera, VOIP etc

Sony had a major press conference in Tokyo yesterday, 3/15/2006. As everyone already knows the PS3 will be delayed until Nov 2006 to work out specification details with Blu-Ray. The more interesting part of the press conference is what is in store for the Sony PSP. ("PSP price cut to $199, future features unveiled") A $50 reduction in price to $199, a EyeToy like USB camera, upgraded firmware with Flash support, and VOIP through their service. Here's another spin on this from the CNET angle, "Sony wakes up". This will make video phone calls on your PSP possible this fall! Talk about cool! I can't wait!

Seven-ounce Wrist PC Runs Linux

The wearable computers are getting smaller and more practical. I just saw this on the web at SlashDot ("Seven-Ounce Linux 'Wrist PC'") and the diagrams and pictures in the article are quite impressive. I purchased a WristPDA (Fossil/Abacus) in January 2006 and it has turned out to be quite invaluable as a wearable computer. A full blown computer on my forearm that runs Linux and/or Windows CE would be the next logical step.

I can see quite a few practical uses for this type of computer to complement carrying a lightweight notebook computer. Here's the LinuxDevices original article, "Seven-ounce wrist PC runs Linux".

Sony Memory Stick Video Recorder

I just saw this posted at Gizmodo, "Sony Introduces MSVR-A10 Memory Stick Video Recorder". This is a new device that simplies what you can already do with your PC. Difference here is that it is a setup top like component and looks relatively easy to use. If you want or need a PC free solution, then this looks like it will be good for you. The article says it will be on sale in April 2006 for about $215.

Extracting Gasoline from Cattle Dung

Scientists in Japan have perfected a technique for extracting gasoline from cattle dung according to the CNN article "Scientists extract gasoline from cattle dung". This is definitely innovative and who would have thought that it was possible? Talk about recycling, this is an extreme but useful technique that could help alleviate the need to import oil.

Ear Infection Vaccine?!

It looks like someone has finally making progress in the medical industry. A potential vaccine has been created for childhood ear infections. "Vaccine could end children's ear infections GlaxoSmithKline has developed a vaccine that may help prevent ear infections, an ailment that has plagued children and their parents forever." As a parent having to deal with ear infections with my young kids, this would be a welcome advancement in the medical industry. I can't believe that a vaccine was actually created instead of yet another means to treat the symptoms which is well known to be much more profitable than actually creating a vaccine. I guess in this scenario, the vaccine had much more benefit from a social, medical and business viewpoint.

Robotic Pack Mule

Leave it up to DARPA to fund innovation. This one actually looks like it could be useful in the non-level terrain. The pictures look like something from Star Wars. "Robotic 'pack mule' displays stunning reflexes". The cool part about this new gas-powered robot is that given a few more years, it could be put to good use in moutains of Afghanistan. I wonder if there are any early prototypes already in use in Afghanistan.

Lost Civilization, Tambora, Found

According to the CNN article, "Scientists uncover lost civilization", the civilization of Tambora is found. It perished in 1815 with Mount Tambora's cataclysmic eruption on April 10, 1815, buried the inhabitants of Sumbawa Island. Ground penetrating radar was used for the discovery.

Discovery in Prostate Cancer Research

A discovery was made in prostate cancer research that implies that it may be related to a virus. "'Exciting discovery' in cancer research". The implications of this are enormous.

Cormorant, Navy's experimental swimming spy plane

This is another one of those DARPA projects. Saw this at CNN Science & Space page. "The Navy's swimming spy plane" Pretty cool picture. What else is in the works?!

US Army Stryker Robot Vehicle

If you are familiar the the agile US Army Stryker vehicles, you'll get a kick out of this. They are making it autonomous. Saw this at Engadget "US Army testing Stryker robot tank". Pretty spooky. We are getting closer and closer to the Terminator.

New Stealth Ship with M-Hull, Stiletto

I saw this on yet another Discovery Science Channel show. Over at Gizmodo, they describe this stealth ship technology and provide link to more a detailed article. "US Defense Department Finds New Way to Quickly and Quietly Kill People". The detailed article is posted that GizMag site, "Stiletto Experimental ship with carbon fiber M-hull design tops 50 knots (60mph)".

H2-A Rocket Successful Launch, second in a month

JAXA has successfully launched a weather satellite using its H2-A Rocket. This is the second successful launch in a month (BBC article) and plans to launch another satellite next week.

Flexible Body Armor

The US skiwear company, Spyder, has developed a new material that is being tested by Olympic skiers at the Turin Winter Olympics 2006. The material is flexible and stiffens upon impact according to the New Scientist article "US and Canadian skiers get smart armour". This technology has a lot of future implications both private and military.

Flying Hotel of Tomorrow

I was wondering when this concept would finally come to be. I found this at CNN's site (article) and has a nice looking picture of the flying hotel concept. This would be a pretty cool cruise of the future in the sky.

Magnets to replace transistors?

Looks like Moore's Law has more life to it. With advances in computer engineering using magnets, "New magnetic chips could offer higher speeds at lower power", faster chips will be on the horizon in the future.

More Evidence that Gaming is Good for the Brain

The evidence continues to mount that playing video games has significant long-term benefits for the brain. "Better living through video games?" discusses this and how multitasking also improves your brain functionality later in life. The surprising part is that the initial study was focusing on bilingualism and observational correlations were made about multitasking, playing video games, and multilingualism. Spotted this initially at Slashdot this morning. "Videogaming Keeps the Brain From Aging".

Flexible OLED Display

Remember the movie 'Red Planet' with Val Kilmer and the flexible dispalys they used? Anyway, this concept has made to the real world according to the article "Flexible OLED Display by Universal Display Corporation". The pictures of it look very cool.

New 3-D Display Technology

Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology uses lasers to project "real" 3D images into the ether. Saw this at Engadget in this article. Check out the picture! Looks like Star Wars holographic displays are just around the corner.

A Real Transformer Robot

This is pretty cool... remember the Transformers? Check this out.

Hacker Takes Down Russian Stock Exchange

Last week a hacker attacked the Russian Stock Exchange and took it down for an hour. "Hacker Takes Down Russian Stock Market". This is not good news for network security in 2006. As I forecasted, 2006 is going to be worse than 2005. Remember, 2005 was the worst year for network security ever.

Experiment US Special Forces Boat

This experimental boat looks cool and is designed for US Special Forces and produces a very small wake. "Experimental US Special Forces Boat Launched". This type of defense technology is the continuing transformation of US forces to be lighter, faster, quieter, and stealthier.

10th Planet is bigger than Pluto

According to the CNN article, "Scientists: New 'planet' bigger than Pluto", the unofficial 10th planet is bigger than Pluto. This opens the debate of what is a planet?

Artificial Gills

Innovations continue on all fronts. "Artificial gills extract oxygen from water". I figure a device like this will make underwater habitats much more practical in the future.

Sony TalkMan for PSP

Sony has developed a real-time language translator called TalkMan that can translate between English, Japanese, Korean and Chinese. It uses the built-in microphone of the PSP. "Sony Unveils PSP Translator". Looks pretty cool if you have a need for it (travel) or want to learn some conversational language with a bit of digital assistance from your PSP.

Honda Accord auto drive system in the UK

Check this out, "Honda Accord ADAS auto-pilot system takes the reins"! Honda has equipped its UK Accords with Advanced Driver Assist System or ADAS that completely regulates your speed and steering if you are on a freeway! This is one step forward towards auto drive as it should be! I wonder if we'll see this anytime soon in the US?

PSP's Other Audio Capabilities

Gizmodo posted an article, "PSP Audio Roundup", about PSP audio capabilities, hacks and what you can do with it. Some of the more interesting stuff is the text and pdf to MP3 techniques. Very interesting. Need yet another purpose for your PSP, this is a good place to start.

Another Oil Solution That We Will Not See In 2006

Our oil dependency is by choice. Here is yet another alternative to oil that would eliminate our dependence on Middle East oil and runs in current engine designs, ethanol. The Fortune magazine article "How to Beat the High Cost of Gasoline. Forever!" discusses this solution in simple terms. Brazil has rid itself of importing an estimated $69 billion of Middle East oil annually by producting and using ethanol instead of imported oil. The biotech industry has even made breakthroughs that can turn plant cellulose, the cellular walls, into simpler carbohydrates (sugars) that can be processed into useable ethanol. This makes too much sense and that is why we will not see it in 2006 or 2007.

Another Japanese Robot, Kawada HRP-2

The Kawada HRP-2 is another Japanese robot that looks cool. I spotted this at the i4u article, Kawada HRP-2 Promet Anime Robot Ready to Serve You. It looks like one of the Japanese anime giant robot characters I grew up watching. Here's the Yahoo News AP article and the USAToday article. Maybe in the next 5-20 years, we will all have one of these in our homes as personal assistants!

Stem Cell, Parkinson's and Cancer

Recent discoveries with stem research may yield future therapies or a cure for Parkinson's or cancer. I saw this in a ScienceDaily (another one of my favorite sites about science) article, Discoveries May Advance Stem Cell Therapy For Parkinson's, Cancer Patients. This research is occurring in Sweden. The ban on this type of research in the U.S. is making us fall behind.

Transparent OLEDs

Transparent OLEDs will yield many new applications. Like glass that has display technology sandwiched between layers. No more need for heads up displays. This is is discussed in the Displays that give a clear view posted at a German site. This could create some very interesting display design and technologies in the future.

Canon SED flat screen TVs are coming

Canon and Toshiba have created a new flat screen display technology called surface-conduction electron-emitter display, or SED. Canon has invested $1.7 billion in this new technology. The new TVs they will produce are brighter, sharper and use less energy than current LCD or Plasma TVs according to the "Canon's Big Gun" article. Expect to see these on the market in 2007. I can't wait. I wonder how much the first ones will cost? That cost factor will be a challenge but it is nice to see that innovation in display technology continues.

Fossil Palm PDA Wristwatch for Cheap

I just saw this at that cool gadget site i4u. Remember the Fossil Palm PDA wristwatch? Well, apparently the price has been reduced to $79. If you use a Palm PDA, this is yet another way to always carry it and for a decent price! Check out the i4u Fossil Dropped PALM OS PDA Wristwatch Price to $79.

Wireless USB Hub

The USB cables spaghetti will be going away shortly. This is actually going to be on the market in Spring 2006 from Belkin. The device is to be around $130 and uses ultrawideband (UWB) technology. Like everything else that is going wireless, this opens a lot of new possibilities and I am sure will be competition for Bluetooth.

South Korea to develop Army and Police Robots

I saw this on the Discovery channel and though it was incredible. These robots will help with patrolling the DMZ. Slashdot had a posting about this here.

Super Portable PowerFilm Solar Charger

Gizmodo has a posting about a extremely portable and light solar charger made for the US military is now available. "Never Be Without Electricity Again". Looks pretty cool. At $299 a pop, is not bad for a solar product. They have these at Sundance Solar which is one of my favorite solar sites.

Disposable Micro Fuel Cell for Gadgets

i4u reports on a Disposable Fuel Cell Coming this Year from Medis Technologies. Sounds interesting however, given the fact that it is disposable and you must constantly replace them, it doesn't sound any better than disposable batteries. We'll see how these do later this year. Personally, I would prefer refillable micro fuel cells that can be refilled even while running. This means you don't have to turn off your device to refuel.

World's first maglev elevator

This is pretty neat. "Tokyo to get world's first 'maglev' elevator". Wonder if we'll ever see these in the USA?

Auto Tuning Guitar System, The Performer

Over at News.com they published an article about an auto tuning guitar system. "Tuning tech catches on with guitarists". This is a pretty solution to a very low-tech problem. I happen to play guitar and this is the #1 problem with string instruments. Especially in a performance or studio recording scenario. Now I just need to test drive it somewhere to see how it feels.

Radar Scope for DoD sees through concrete

Here is a pretty cool DARPA device that will be fielded this year in Iraq, called Radar Scope. Spotted this at Slashdot, "Military Will Sense Through Concrete Walls". Pretty amazing stuff.

Install a touchscreen for Linux

I read this when it was posted at IBM DeveloperWorks in Dec2005. Just noting here for future reference. It uses the LCD from the Sony PSOne. "Install a touchscreen for Linux".

Warp Drive theoretical physics

I thought I would not see this in my lifetime. "Warp engines in development?" The U.S. government is actually funding research into this theoretical area. This is based on some theoretical physics from the 1950s. Imagine going to Mars in 3 hours. If the research is successful that may be a possibility. The time frames mentioned in the article for this is probably 5-10 years away to even determine if the theories are sound.

Slingbox

The Slingbox device is a pretty neat device at initial viewing. The downside is that the required proprietary software requires Windows to run. PCMag reviewed this on 06/30/2005. I saw the Slingbox at my local BestBuy and the video quality is not as good as I would like. It is a bit choppy. Anyway, is an innovative device letting you view your video from anywhere in the world. Looks interesting but I think the Sony LocationFree technology is better since I can use my PSP for it.