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.