Aesthetic amp

Mar 4

Clean retro design. Some knobs and a couple switches is the kind of simplicity that often works the best. Notice the lack of any digital displays, fitting for a Class A amp. Made by Burriss.

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Zooming in

Feb 17

A cool tech demo from TED (I didn’t get to attend this year). Fluid immersive interaction with a model of the real world, swooping down from a satellites view to being at street level and then inside a market. Simply great. It shows the increasingly recognized (by me and others) importance of geo-based data integration and the possibilities if offers. This is just the tip of the iceberg.

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Mega-crystals

Feb 2

An amazing subterranean Fortress of Solitude found in 2000 deep below a Mexican desert has been photographed. The massive unearthed cavern feature bus-size translucent crystals jutting at odd angles. Simply stunning and apparently quite a deadly hot and humid environment.

More photos here.

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iPad

Jan 31

This is a technology blog, sort of. So I would be remiss to leave Apple’s latest creation unmentioned. It’s a larger version of the iPod touch, called the iPad. Nothing more to add at this time.

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Encouraging experimentation

Jan 18

If you are looking for a great way to discourage kids exploring science and technology on their own a great way to do it is this. Works like a charm. The recommended therapy is a nice touch.

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Gravity wells

Jan 6

Clever infographic displaying the gravitational wells in the solar system. Amusing asides upon closer inspection. An interactive version would be cool that allows launching projectiles and rockets on different trajectories.

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Earth as art

Jan 4

Dry riverbeds in Jordan, as seen from far above. One of a large set emphasizing the artistic from two orbiting satellites collecting geo-data. So much colorful fractal-y goodness.

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Happy new year

Dec 31

A big Happy New Year to all my loyal readers. I don’t keep very detailed analytics data about my site visitors so as far as numbers go it’s very possible you number in the millions. So thank you, you are what this is all about and will continue to be during the glorious new year, 2010. Big plans are underway so stay tuned, there will be something for everyone to marvel at.

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Sun-powered plane

Dec 10

I’ve been watching it’s development for a while and it’s nice to see it finally take off, albeit for a short distance and as you can see only a meter off the ground. But it’s progress for the 200-ft wingspan Solar Impulse towards the goal of creator Bertrand Piccard of “a solar aircraft capable of flying day and night without fuel”.

While still many steps lie between this and being able to fly through the night it is still remarkable that it’s even possible. It’s one more avenue being explored in the holy grail of sorts: to have aircraft stay aloft indefinitely (or nearly so), a budding area of research of mine.

More photos.

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Autonomous heli

Dec 8

More good work from the brains at MIT. This is kind of like my ongoing quadrotor project, except in a working state. Made by a group out of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab, CSAIL, the focus is more on the autonomous aspect of navigating an indoor environment, one where GPS in not available, a so-called GPS-denied environment. It’s tricky but doable as they demonstrate using LIDAR to construct a model of the space from a whole bunch of laser measurements. Throw in some A.I. and you’re good to go.

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