‘Minecraft.Print’ – Making the Virtual Real – take virtual creations, and bring them into the real world

Posted on December 17, 2016 by

Minecraft is a video game focused on creativity and building. Players build constructions out of textured cubes in a 3D world–everything from a hut, to a train station, to a fully functional computer. Why can't we take those virtual creations, and bring them into the real world? Minecraft.Print() is our attempt to do so by creating a bridge between Minecraft and the real world, via 3D printers. A Minecraft player defines a 3D space to be printed, after which the software extracts the object, ...

Universities of Liverpool and Bristol – Stem cell ‘living bandage’ for knee injuries

Posted on December 16, 2016 by

A ‘living bandage’ made from stem cells, which could revolutionise the treatment and prognosis of a common sporting knee injury, has been trialled in humans for the first time by scientists at the Universities of Liverpool and Bristol. Meniscal tears are suffered by over one million people a year in the US and Europe alone and are particularly common in contact sports like football and rugby. 90% or more of tears occur in the white zone of meniscus which lacks a blood supply, making them diff...

U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Maci (autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane) for the repair of symptomatic, full-thickness cartilage defects of the knee in adult patients

Posted on December 16, 2016December 16, 2016 by

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Maci (autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane) for the repair of symptomatic, full-thickness cartilage defects of the knee in adult patients. Maci is the first FDA-approved product that applies the process of tissue engineering to grow cells on scaffolds using healthy cartilage tissue from the patient’s own knee. Knee problems are common, and occur in people of all ages. Cartilage defects in the knee can result from an i...

Berkeley-Stanford team creates a system that can help us see Electrical Signaling in heart and nerve Cells

Posted on December 16, 2016 by

Scientists have enlisted the exotic properties of graphene, a one-atom-thick layer of carbon, to function like the film of an incredibly sensitive camera system in visually mapping tiny electric fields in a liquid. Researchers hope the new method will allow more extensive and precise imaging of the electrical signaling networks in our hearts and brains. The ability to visually depict the strength and motion of very faint electrical fields could also aid in the development of so-called lab-on-...

SISSA Trieste, Italy research on sense of smell during infancy and adolescence

Posted on December 16, 2016December 16, 2016 by

Psychologists and neuroscientists have thoroughly investigated olfactory behaviours in newborns and adults, but relatively little is known about the characteristics of the sense of smell during infancy and adolescence. SISSA - Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati - International School for Advanced Studies In a study carried out by SISSA in collaboration with the Please Touch Museum of Philadelphia (an interactive science museum for children), over 150 children aged 3 to 11...

Cyber Valley Germany-Science and industry form one of Europe’s largest research partnerships in artificial intelligence

Posted on December 15, 2016 by

Intelligent systems will shape our future: they could drive us as autonomous cars, help us out in the home on a daily basis or perform medical services as tiny robots. An initiative by the Max Planck Society and the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in the Stuttgart-Tübingen area is bringing together partners from science and industry to establish Cyber Valley where systems can be developed that will be capable of performing such feats. Winfried Kretschmann, Minister-President of Bade...

UCLA team makes step toward long-lasting, fast-charging and high-powered energy storage

Posted on December 15, 2016 by

UCLA research team has made a major advance toward developing oxide supercapacitors, energy-storage devices that would combine the longevity of a battery with the fast-charge times and high-power property of capacitors. To resolve the trade-off between batteries, which last longer, and capacitors, which charge faster and hold more power, the researchers altered the atomic structure of a long-lasting energy storage material, opening up atomic “lanes” for more energy-carrying ions and electrons...

IBM Multi-Purpose Elder Care Robot Assistant (IBM MERA)

Posted on December 15, 2016 by

IBM (NYSE: IBM) Research today announced the creation of the prototype IBM Multi-Purpose Eldercare Robot Assistant (IBM MERA) done in collaboration with Rice University. IBM MERA is a first of a kind Watson-enabled application designed to help assist the elderly and their caregivers. IBM Research also has plans to work with Sole Cooperativa, an independent healthcare provider in Italy, to instrument senior housing with sensors to monitor day-to-day activities of its residents. Accor...

University of Minnesota has developed a prototype that allows people to control a robotic arm using only their brain.

Posted on December 15, 2016 by

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have made a major breakthrough that allows people to control a robotic arm using only their minds. The research has the potential to help millions of people who are paralyzed or have neurodegenerative diseases. The study is published online today in Scientific Reports, a Nature research journal. View a University of Minnesota video of the research subjects in action. “This is the first time in the world that people can operate a robotic arm t...

What sets us apart from other species

Posted on December 14, 2016 by

Earlier this year, the Royal Institution invited the philosopher AC Grayling, along with Igor Aleksander, professor of neural systems engineering at Imperial College, London, and the historian Felipe Fernandez Armesto, to discuss the question 'What makes us human?' Igor Aleksander claims to have built a robot that has consciousness - he was there to address the ways in which human intelligence differs from artificial intelligence. Fernandez Armesto has written a book called So You Think You're H...

‘C’ by GE LED lamp with ‘Amazon Echo’ that has voice controlled light source with microphones and a speaker.

Posted on December 14, 2016 by

Amazon debuted Alexa last year for handling what Amazon calls “skills” like checking the weather, turning on lights, reading news, playing music from Amazon’s streaming music service, and the latest sports scores. GE has announced that it has developed voice-controlled lamp with embedded 'Alexa' and that it will be able to do everything that its Echo home automation cousin can do. For example, owners of the new lamp can ask for NFL scores by saying, “Alexa, tell me the latest score of the Bal...

Trinity College Study on ‘Identities in Transformation’. The study examines the relationship between globalization, culture and identity

Posted on December 14, 2016 by

Identities, both on the level of the individual and the collective, are formed and develop in complex processes that negotiate attitudes, values and behaviours, and shape our social and cultural practices. Identity debates are occurring through reflection on the decade of commemoration and the wider re-evaluation of Irishness, and also in the context of massively changing migratory patterns in both Ireland and Europe. These transformations are embedded within the context of greater global inter...

Key Findings Of Trinity College Dublin Study On Ageing

Posted on December 13, 2016 by

The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) is a large-scale, nationally representative study of people aged 50 and over in Ireland. It is the most ambitious study of ageing ever carried out in Ireland and represents a step-change in terms of data, knowledge and understanding of ageing with which to inform policy and novel research. TILDA is designed to maximise comparability with other well-established international longitudinal studies. More than 8,000 people aged 50 and over accepted th...

Diabetes patients can now draw blood without discomfort using ‘Genteel Lancing ‘ device which uses a combination of depth control, vibration & vacuum.

Posted on December 13, 2016December 13, 2016 by

Testing blood glucose levels 5-10 times daily is a daily requirement for those living with Type 1 Diabetes. There is no way around it. With Genteel Lancing Instrument, you can test painlessly anywhere on your body, giving your fingertips a break! By using a combination of depth control, vibration, vacuum, people with diabetes, can now get test blood without fear or the pain of the dreaded finger-stick. Genteel® Lancing Device allows diabetics to draw the perfect drop of test blood without ...

MIT’s research on ‘glasses-free 3-D TV’ technology.

Posted on December 13, 2016 by

Currently, all 3D TV viewing available for consumers has to be done by wearing 3D glasses. However, there are technologies in various stages of development that can enable you to see a 3D image on a TV or other type of video display device without glasses. The main issue with regards to viewing 3D on a TV (or video projection screen) is that humans have two eyes, each separated by a couple of inches. This physical state is the reason we are able to see 3D in the real world as each eye sees a...

Key Findings Of National Eye Institute (NEI) and the Department of Defense (DoD) Limited 2009 LASIK ‘Quality Of Life’ Study

Posted on December 13, 2016December 13, 2016 by

In October 2009, the National Eye Institute (NEI), and the Department of Defense (DoD) launched the LASIK Quality of Life Collaboration Project (LQOLCP) to help better understand the potential risk of severe problems that can result from LASIK. The project aimed to develop a tool to determine the percent of patients who develop difficulties performing their usual activities following LASIK, and to identify predictors for those patients. At the time FDA developed our project, there was a limi...

SISSA RESEARCH STUDY SUGGEST THAT FOOD KNOWLEDGE IS RESILIENT EVEN IN ALZHEIMER’S, IT IS A COGNITIVE CATEGORY THAT “RESISTS”

Posted on December 12, 2016December 12, 2016 by

A SISSA research study published in a special issue of the journal Brain and Cognition, completely dedicated to the cognitive neuroscience of food, analyzes the lexical-semantic deficits of the food category in patients suffering from neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's. The study shows that knowledge about food is preserved more than other categories of stimuli, even in the case of severe syndromes. Further, perception of caloric intake affects a person’s ability to remember the na...

H&T Presspart, Cohero Health launch connected metered-dose inhaler

Posted on December 12, 2016 by

H&T Presspart and Cohero Health said today that the companies have launched a connected metered-dose inhaler designed to improve adherence and optimize care for patients with asthma and COPD. It is the 1st connected inhaler integrated with Cohero Health’s BreatheSmart comprehensive respiratory disease management platform. The 2 companies developed the metered-dose inhaler over the course of a multi-year agreement. Improving patient adherence is vital, the companies said, as less than half...

Lego Inspired Watch Strap

Posted on December 12, 2016 by

It's surprisingly hard to design a watch band that's perfect for everyone. Leather watchbands might feel good against the skin, but since they close like a belt, they can be hard to cinch just right. More sophisticated watches, like a Milanese loop, might use a magnetic clasping mechanism to get a just-right fit, but these clasps can pull at hairs, or even pinch skin. Designed by Benjamin Hubert at Layer, Labb is made of a stylish new material that could also make belts, jewelry, and purses e...

Max Planck’s reserach discribes, how eyes form pictures at a cellular level by arranging neurons into distinct layers

Posted on December 12, 2016 by

How cells set the stage for the visual world Researchers reveal the crucial first step that forms the different layers of the retina The retina consists of different layers of neurons. Emerging neurons have to migrate to find the right position in the appropriate layer. However, how these migration events are executed and orchestrated is poorly understood. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG) in Dresden now studied how the first layer of neur...

Berkeley National Laboratory researchers have new understanding of metastability clears path for next-generation materials

Posted on December 11, 2016 by

They say diamonds are forever, but diamonds in fact are a metastable form of carbon that will slowly but eventually transform into graphite, another form of carbon. Being able to design and synthesize other long-lived, thermodynamically metastable materials could be a potential gold mine for materials designers, but until now, scientists lacked a rational understanding of them. Now researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have published a ...

Michigan State University researchers have created a new way to harvest energy from human motion. Soon you will be able to charge cellphones with finger swipes and power Bluetooth headsets simply by walking.

Posted on December 11, 2016December 11, 2016 by

Michigan State University engineering researchers have created a new way to harvest energy from human motion, using a film-like device that actually can be folded to create more power. The research, funded by the National Science Foundation, suggests "we're on the path toward wearable devices powered by human motion," said Nelson Sepulveda, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and lead investigator of the project. The completed device is called a biocompatible ferroel...

Researchers at the University of Tokyo found that a protein called parafibromin acts like a computer logic board within the cell by integrating and converting multiple disparate signals from the outside into appropriate responses.

Posted on December 11, 2016 by

Newly discovered protein converts multiple signal inputs into appropriate cellular outputs Study finds molecule that functions as cellular “logic board” Researchers at the University of Tokyo found that a protein called parafibromin acts like a computer logic board within the cell by integrating and converting multiple disparate signals from the outside into appropriate responses. This finding paves the way for the development of innovative therapeutics and preventive measures against cancer...

Berlin-based start-up ‘ubitricity’ makes charging electric vehicles flexible (at any public outlet)and economical

Posted on December 10, 2016 by

E-mobility challenges the tradition of stationary energy metering and billing. At present, charging stations are not available in all of the locations users need to recharge their vehicles. Additionally, until now, creating an adequate charging infrastructure for electric cars has been very costly and utilities have had few incentives to install charging stations. ubitricity allowed the Iserlohn public utility to introduce a new electric power product: the Sauerland PowerMobil. It compris...

Mint Automatic Floor Cleaner is designed exclusively for sweeping and mopping hard surface floors. Using dry and pre-moistened cleaning cloths

Posted on December 10, 2016 by

The Mint Automatic Floor Cleaner from Evolution Robotics is designed exclusively for sweeping and mopping hard surface floors for you. Using dry and pre-moistened cleaning cloths, Mint picks up the dust, dirt and pet hair that constantly accumulate on floors. Mint's compact design gets into tight spaces, under furniture and into other areas that are hard to reach with traditional mops and sweepers. Evolution Robotics 'Mint' is a floor cleaning robot with mopping (wet) and sweeping (dry) modes...

Dobot M1. First Industrial Robotic Arm for Small Business and Home

Posted on December 10, 2016 by

Dobot M1 is a Professional SCARA based robotic arm with interchangeable heads for small business, educators and Innovators. You can program the arm to do various automated function in a manufacturing plant, it can enhance your efficiency in production line with picking and placing feature, visual system and more. Innovators can use it for 3d printing, double color 3d print, 3d print on rail, laser engrave on wood, plastic, paper, leather, soldering, drawing, painting, picking...

Create tomorrow’s innovators and idea-makers with littleBits electronic building blocks, a platform for large and small inventions for kids

Posted on December 10, 2016 by

'LittleBits' is a platform for large and small inventions for kids. The kit includes electronic building blocks that snap-on with magnet and allow kids to build projects in minutes. We spend more than eleven hours a day with technology, but most people don’t know how it works, and spend the majority of their time consuming media. We believe people are born creative, and our electronic building blocks help to unleash the inventor within by engaging them in an incredibly powerful, exhilarating ...

Germany’s algae-based renewable energy house

Posted on December 9, 2016December 9, 2016 by

The BIQ House in Hamburg, Germany, is the first building in the world with a dynamic, algae-based, bio-reactive façade. With 200 square meters of integrated photo-bioreactors (PBRs), this passive-energy house generates high-value biomass and solar thermal heat as renewable energy resources. At the same time, the innovative façade system also integrates additional functionalities, such as adaptive shading and noise reduction. In total, 129 SolarLeaf bioreactors have been installed on the southwes...

Cambridge Consultants non-invasive, non-contact ‘Skintuition’ technology that allows you to visualize the secrets of your skin

Posted on December 9, 2016 by

New technology unlocks the ability to analyse and understand the secrets of our skin Today’s imaging and sensing technology can reveal important information about our bodies – from our bone structure to our brain activity. But what about tapping into the health and wellness information hidden within our skin? Product design and development firm Cambridge Consultants has harnessed this possibility with a multispectral imaging technology demonstrator called Skintuition. It offers a non-invas...

Imperial College London and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology Research suggest handful of nut consumption each day linked to reduced risk for wide range of diseases

Posted on December 9, 2016 by

A large analysis of current research shows that people who eat at least 20g of nuts a day have a lower risk of heart disease, cancer and other diseases. The analysis of all current studies on nut consumption and disease risk has revealed that 20g a day - equivalent to a handful - can cut people's risk of coronary heart disease by nearly 30 percent, their risk of cancer by 15 percent, and their risk of premature death by 22 percent. An average of at least 20g of nut consumption was also ass...