Search results for

How does a spider's web remain taut after being warped out of shape by winds and intrusive insects? Scientists have now unraveled this little mystery and used it as the basis of a self-spooling liquid wire they say could be used in a variety of applications.

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have come up with a novel way of improving robots' inspection and manipulation skills. The team fitted a small camera to the hand of the machine, allowing it to quickly track its environment and the position of the hand in real time.

In the five years since Google launched Art Project in early 2011, it captured around 200 ultra-high resolution images of artworks from around the world. Keen to kick things up a notch, the firm has captured five times that number this year alone, courtesy of a new gadget it calls the "Art Camera."

Brace yourselves: Huawei is breaking out of China, with the P9 its most elegant flagship phone yet. It's partnered with famed camera maker Leica on a supercharged, dual-lens camera, as well as promising big things in terms of performance and battery life. Does it stand a chance?

European airline easyJet has made getting around the continent easier and cheaper, and now it's given wings to an idea that would make it easier for its passengers to get around when they reach their destination. Its new "Sneakairs" prototype smart shoes vibrate to provide wearers with directions.

The more circuits and connectors flex, the higher the likelihood they'll break. While we've seen self-healing chips, gels and microcapsules before, a new material out of Pennsylvania State University brings auto-repair to dielectrics – the materials that insulate electric currents.​

We’ve seen microfluidic devices used for everything from creating organ-on-a-chip systems, to diagnosing ebola. Now, scientists have created a device that uses acoustic vibrations to sort cells, paving the way for faster and more convenient blood test machines.

A piloted Audi A7 research car nicknamed "Jack" has become a smart, courteous defensive driver that should be a pleasure to drive beside, whether you're handling the wheel or rolling in an autonomous car of your own. Audi calls it a "research car with social competence."

BeBop Sensors has developed a smart fabric that is meant to make car seats smarter and thus safer by monitoring the size, weight, and movement of both drivers and passengers, whether they sit in the front row or back.

Much of the Australian Outback has no mobile signal, but it does have more than a few Toyota LandCruisers. A plan has now been hatched to take advantage of this fact, which would see vehicles kitted out with Wi-Fi, UHF and other technologies to form a roving network for emergency communications.​

The US military may soon welcome some new additions to its fleet of unmanned aircraft, with the Navy revealing plans to purchase a set of small drones that can be launched into the air from submarines and other underwater vehicles.

​Inspired by modern ski binding systems, Italian entrepreneur Paolo Piumatti figured that scuba divers could benefit from something just as convenient. The resulting Finclip system lets divers get their fins on with no awkward bending over.​