Category: Techie

Posted on

From Engadget: China conducts its first crewed spaceship docking, gives southeast Asia its place in space

China docks its first crewed space capsule, gives southeast Asia its place in space

Believe it or not, the only countries to have docked a human-helmed spacecraft in the first 50 years of spaceflight were Russia and the US. That small community just got bigger, as China’s Shenzhou-9 has successfully docked with the Tiangong-1 module put in orbit for just such a test. The link-up is being used for experiments in the short term, but it’s a key step in a program that will ultimately lead to a full-fledged Chinese space station. On top the wider ambitions, the docking also marks a victory for gender-neutral space travel: Liu Yang, one of three crew members, is the country’s first female spacefarer. China’s space program has a long road ahead, but it’s clear the International Space Station won’t be alone for much longer.

 

from Engadget

Posted on

From Geeks are Sexy Technology News: This is Amazing: LEGO Inception

 

An academic team project, spanning 12 weeks, representing approx 1000 hours work. This project represented approx 120-160 hours per person, and one quarter of their final semester workload.

All content originated by BA(Hons) VFX : Visual Effects + Concept Design students, Pedrom DADGOSTAR, Hollie PRICE, Jack MILTON, Simon STIRRUP, Sam SERRIDGE, Jack BOSWORTH and Sidney THIBAULT.

A great project people, especially given the challenges the film posed. Fantastic team work, great technical solutions and professional approach throughout.

Rendered on Workstation Specialist’s great WS2610 systems… Including dynamic / particle effects simulations…

[VFX]

 

from Geeks are Sexy Technology News

Posted on

From Geeks are Sexy Technology News: How Lasers Work

In the following video, Bill Hammack, the engineer guy, shows how the three key characteristics of laser light – single wavelength, narrow beam, and high intensity – are made. He explains the operation of a ruby laser – the first laser ever made – showing how electronic transitions create stimulated emission to give coherent light, and then how the ends of the ruby cavity create a narrow wavelength highly collimated beam.

[The Engineer Guy]

 

from Geeks are Sexy Technology News

Posted on

From Engadget: Orange San Diego review: Intel does phones, finally

Orange San Diego review: Intel does phones, finally

The first generation of Intel-powered Android phones has arrived, and while the chip maker doesn’t appear to be claiming that its initial efforts are world-beaters, we’ve been promised a chipset that prioritizes what people want most: capable web browsing, strong camera performance and robust battery life. Although we’ve sampled plenty of incremental versions of this Medfield tech, Orange UK’s San Diego is the first finished device to land for review. Priced at £200 ($308) it joins a large spread of wallet-friendly, entry-level smartphones in Orange’s lineup. With a (1024 x 600) 4-inch LCD, 8-megapixel camera with flash, micro-HDMI port and 1GB of RAM, it looks to be a respectable, if middle-of-the-road, Android device. But the focus here lays with the 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z2460 CPU and whether it delivers on those performance and battery life promises. Does Intel have a handle on mobile processors? Is the San Diego, near-identical to Intel’s own reference model, going to be attractive enough for buyers? You’ll find our verdict after the break.

 

from Engadget

Posted on

From Engadget: MIT engineers develop glucose-based fuel cell to be used in neural implants

MIT engineers develop glucose-based fuel cell to be used in neural implants

We’ve seen fuel cells used in a variety of gadgets — from cars to portable chargers — and while medical devices aren’t exactly at the top of the list, they’re yet another application for these mini power sources. MIT engineers are turning to sugar to make fuel cells for powering brain implants. The scientists developed cells that use platinum to strip electrons from glucose molecules found in a patient’s cerebrospinal fluid to create a small electric current. The fuel cells are fabricated on a silicon chip so they can interface with other circuits in a brain implant. The prototype can generate up to hundreds of micro watts, which is enough to power neural implants used to help paralyzed patients move their limbs. Mind you, this technology is years away from making it to market. The next step will be proving that the devices work in animals, which reminds us of one Ricky the rat, who survived a biofuel cell implant back in 2010.

 

from Engadget