Hi Tech & Innovation news

Hi Tech & Innovation

Harnessing extended reality to reduce the fear of water

Monash University human-computer interaction researchers have developed a playful water-inspired extended reality system using floatation tanks to help reduce aquaphobia.

Energy & Green Tech

Proof-of-concept study develops battery that would use Martian atmosphere as fuel during discharge

Mars presents a highly complex natural environment, characterized by a variety of gas components—95.32% carbon dioxide, 2.7% nitrogen, 1.6% argon, 0.13% oxygen, and 0.08% carbon monoxide—as well as extreme temperature ...

Electronics & Semiconductors

There's two sides to this semiconductor, and many simultaneous functions

Gallium nitride-based semiconductors have been a boon for high-frequency and power electronics. They've also revolutionized energy-efficient LED lighting. But no semiconductor wafer has been able to do both at the same time ...

Other

Can we find hidden graves of murder victims with soil imaging? New Australian study gives it a try

To avoid being caught, murderers often attempt to hide bodies using various methods. This can include shallow or deep burials, submersion in water, encasing in concrete or even disposing of remains in rubbish bins and suitcases.

Engineering

New device simplifies manipulation of 2D materials for twistronics

A discovery six years ago took the condensed-matter physics world by storm: Ultra-thin carbon stacked in two slightly askew layers became a superconductor, and changing the twist angle between layers could toggle their electrical ...

Hi Tech & Innovation

Japan plans driverless bullet trains

Shinkansen bullet trains could be whizzing around Japan without drivers from the mid 2030s, one of its main rail operators said, motivated in part by the country's demographic crisis.

Engineering

Revolutionizing 3D printing through microwave technology

In the rapidly evolving world of 3D printing, the pursuit of faster, more efficient and versatile production methods is never-ending. Traditional 3D printing techniques, while groundbreaking, are often time-consuming and ...

Hi Tech & Innovation

Autonomous vehicles could revolutionise urban tourism

In the first study of its kind, academics from Surrey and the University of Oxford have examined how Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) may make a substantial impact on the future of urban tourism.

Hi Tech & Innovation

New technology breaks through sign language barriers

Opportunities once distant to the hard-of-hearing community will become a reality with a breakthrough sign language translator. Engineers from Michigan State University developed and patented a technology that – unlike ...

Hi Tech & Innovation

Five reasons why autonomous cars aren't coming anytime soon

In the world of autonomous vehicles, Pittsburgh and Silicon Valley are bustling hubs of development and testing. But ask those involved in self-driving vehicles when we might actually see them carrying passengers in every ...

Energy & Green Tech

Optimizing solar farms with smart drones

As the solar industry has grown, so have some of its inefficiencies. Smart entrepreneurs see those inefficiencies as business opportunities and try to create solutions around them. Such is the nature of a maturing industry.

Robotics

Adaptive locomotion of artificial microswimmers

Bacteria display remarkable plasticity by exploiting mechanics in response to locally changing physical and chemical conditions. Compliant structures usually assist their taxis behavior to navigate inside complex and structured ...

Hi Tech & Innovation

Tokyo airport tests driverless bus to shuttle visitors

Visitors pouring into Japan's Haneda airport for the Tokyo Olympics next year may find themselves ferried to and from planes on driverless buses, currently being tested at the major hub.