Articles in Science
Makers Wanted: Are You A Hardware Start-Up? Talk To Us
We’re about to launch a new video series called Makers here at TechCrunch and we’d love to hear from any and all hardware based startups. I want to hear about robots, toys, and railguns. I want to hear about new distilling methods, winemakers, and electric vehicles. I want to hear about anything that whirrs, chops, grates, goes, or crashes into a fireball. Over the next few months Jordan Crook, Josh Zelman, and I will try to cover every hardware startup we come across. If you think you’re ...
We’re about to launch a new video series called Makers here at TechCrunch and we’d love to hear from any and all hardware based startups. I want to hear about robots, toys, and railguns. I want to hear about new distilling methods, winemakers, and electric vehicles. I want to hear about anything that whirrs, chops, grates, goes, or crashes into a fireball. Over the next few months Jordan Crook, Josh Zelman, and I will try to cover every hardware startup we come across. If you think you’re ...
The Air Force’s secret 1970s plan to use 747s as aircraft carriers
Flying aircraft carriers are staples science fiction and steampunk. It's an idea that sounds like it would be completely crazy in reality, but it's not crazy enough to keep the Air Force commissioning a report on the idea from Boeing back in 1973.
Flying aircraft carriers are staples science fiction and steampunk. It's an idea that sounds like it would be completely crazy in reality, but it's not crazy enough to keep the Air Force commissioning a report on the idea from Boeing back in 1973.
Study: By 2050, we’ll live in a world with robot prostitution
A pair of researchers are forecasting that as early as 2050 robotic prostitution will be commonplace, and that it will be a good thing. Human trafficking, incurable sexual diseases and mental health could all be improved, but there's still one question none of us can really answer: what would be the emotional impact of sex with machines?
A pair of researchers are forecasting that as early as 2050 robotic prostitution will be commonplace, and that it will be a good thing. Human trafficking, incurable sexual diseases and mental health could all be improved, but there's still one question none of us can really answer: what would be the emotional impact of sex with machines?
Onavo Extend stretches your data plan, now with CDMA/LTE support
What's Onavo Extend you ask? It's a free app that lets you save money on your data plan by compressing unencrypted data between your device and the web. The result is that you consume up to five times less data -- convenient when you're on a tiered / capped data plan, when you're roaming abroad or when you're on a slower 2G network. In addition, the app keeps track ...
What's Onavo Extend you ask? It's a free app that lets you save money on your data plan by compressing unencrypted data between your device and the web. The result is that you consume up to five times less data -- convenient when you're on a tiered / capped data plan, when you're roaming abroad or when you're on a slower 2G network. In addition, the app keeps track ...
Physicists manage to break electrons into three quasiparticles
Electrons are generally known as "fundamental particles," meaning they're not made up of anything: you can't smash an electron to bits, because there are no bits to smash it into. Under the right circumstances, electrons can be broken up into quasiparticles, and the third one of these has just been identified: the orbiton.
Electrons are generally known as "fundamental particles," meaning they're not made up of anything: you can't smash an electron to bits, because there are no bits to smash it into. Under the right circumstances, electrons can be broken up into quasiparticles, and the third one of these has just been identified: the orbiton.
Kaz Hirai reveals ‘One Sony’ turnaround strategy, will cut 10,000 jobs
Freshly minted Sony CEO Kaz Hirai has revealed his plan to turn around Sony's fortunes and as rumored, it includes significant cuts. Two days ago, the company revised its projections for the 2011 fiscal year to reflect a $6.4 billion loss. The One Sony plan includes reducing headcount by 10,000 in the 2012 financial year, a number that also reflects jobs leaving Sony as businesses are sold or otherwise reorganized, and ...
Freshly minted Sony CEO Kaz Hirai has revealed his plan to turn around Sony's fortunes and as rumored, it includes significant cuts. Two days ago, the company revised its projections for the 2011 fiscal year to reflect a $6.4 billion loss. The One Sony plan includes reducing headcount by 10,000 in the 2012 financial year, a number that also reflects jobs leaving Sony as businesses are sold or otherwise reorganized, and ...
T. rex relatives may have been fluffy like baby chickens
Ah, the fearsome T. rex! Mighty carnivore of the cretaceous! Able to scarf down hapless cavemen in a single bite! Possibly snuggly soft and covered with fluff! Yeah, if there's one thing that utterly fails to make giant carnivorous dinosaurs more badass, it's the fact that they (or their relatives) were likely covered in soft, downy feathers.
Ah, the fearsome T. rex! Mighty carnivore of the cretaceous! Able to scarf down hapless cavemen in a single bite! Possibly snuggly soft and covered with fluff! Yeah, if there's one thing that utterly fails to make giant carnivorous dinosaurs more badass, it's the fact that they (or their relatives) were likely covered in soft, downy feathers.
Self-sculpting ’smart sand’ can assume any shape, create instant prototypes (video)
A new algorithm developed by the Distributed Robotics Laboratory at MIT's Computer Science could lead to an exciting fast prototyping tool, being dubbed "smart sand." Immerse an object in the sand, tiny cubes that send simple proximity messages to each other, which relay through the swarm and determine which blocks are adjacent to the object to be modeled, and those that aren't. Using this data, it's possible to create a map of the subject to be replicated. Initial tests ...
A new algorithm developed by the Distributed Robotics Laboratory at MIT's Computer Science could lead to an exciting fast prototyping tool, being dubbed "smart sand." Immerse an object in the sand, tiny cubes that send simple proximity messages to each other, which relay through the swarm and determine which blocks are adjacent to the object to be modeled, and those that aren't. Using this data, it's possible to create a map of the subject to be replicated. Initial tests ...
Navy predicts laser cannons on ships in four years
Every science fiction movie you've ever seen is about to come true. The Office of Naval Research claims laser cannons will be on ships in about four years. In fact, contracts for defense contractors to build them should go out this year.
How a 1932 patent could have seen us all living in spherical homes
An article published in Everyday Science and Mechanics magazine in 1934 titled "When Home Owners Roll Their Own" wasn't a startling op-ed arguing for the legalization of marijuana, but rather it was a radical vision inspired by a patent filed two years prior. That vision: taking your home with you, because your home is a giant, rolling ball.
An article published in Everyday Science and Mechanics magazine in 1934 titled "When Home Owners Roll Their Own" wasn't a startling op-ed arguing for the legalization of marijuana, but rather it was a radical vision inspired by a patent filed two years prior. That vision: taking your home with you, because your home is a giant, rolling ball. 
