Technology & Space

Google founders Eric Schmidt, Sergey Brin and Larry Page in their company's driverless car

Google Hits the Road

The Department of Innovation logo by Jamie Simon

Welcome to the Department of Innovation

An introduction to our new blog about people and ideas that likely will shape the way we will live one day

Legendary bicycle builder Craig Calfee working on a handmade bamboo bicycle.

Turning Bamboo Into a Bicycle

A cycling entrepreneur has turned to the durable plant as a low-tech and affordable option for building bikes

The issue of juiced baseballs surfaces every couple years during the month of April due to a high rate of home runs hit.

The Physics of Cheating in Baseball

Corked bats and juiced balls have long plagued baseball, but do they really help a player’s game? Four scientists found surprising answers

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Watch a Trombone’s Shock Wave

Scientists have generated the first video of a shock wave from a trombone

Engineer Tad McGeer, at his company's headquarters near Bingen, Washington, played a key role in getting the civilian drone industry off the ground.

Drones are Ready for Takeoff

Will unmanned aerial vehicles—drones—soon take civilian passengers on pilotless flights?

Investigators with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey have created the biggest 3-D map of the distant universe ever made.

A 3-D Map of the Universe, No Glasses Required

Investigators at the Sloan Digital Sky Survey track changes in the sky and some of the universe’s great mysteries

The Moon landing conspiracy theory has endured for more than 40 years, thanks in part to a thriving cottage industry of conspiracy entrepreneurs.

Ten Enduring Myths About the U.S. Space Program

Outer space has many mysteries, among them are these fables about NASA that have permeated the public’s memory

When a coronal mass ejection reaches Earth, solar particles stream along magnetic field lines, energize gases in the atmosphere and shine as norther lights.

Something New Under the Sun

Scientists are probing deep beneath the surface of our nearest star to calculate its profound effect on Earth

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What's the Most Important Invention?

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A Robot That Tells Jokes

The center of our Milky Way galaxy is even more breathtaking when seen as a composite made of data from three space-based instruments sensitive to different wavelengths.

Brilliant Space Photos From Chandra and Spitzer

Two unsung space telescopes create eye-opening images of the universe from light we can't see

Jane McGonigal, 33, creates "alternative reality games," which take place in virtual environments yet encourage players to take real actions.

Jane McGonigal on How Computer Games Make You Smarter

The "alternate reality game" designer looks to develop ways in which people can combine play with problem-solving

Movies, such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and conspiracy theorists insist we are not alone.

Ready for Contact

Humans have searched for extraterrestrial life for more than a century. What will we do when we find it?

Improved telescope technology, the New York Sun reported, allowed an astronomer to see fantastic lunar life-forms.

Lunar Bat-men, the Planet Vulcan and Martian Canals

Five of science history's most bizarre cosmic delusions

The cavernous Super-Kamiokande detector in Japan is lined with 13,000 sensors to pinpoint signs of neutrinos.

Looking for Neutrinos, Nature's Ghost Particles

To study some of the most elusive particles, physicists have built detectors in abandoned mines, tunnels and Antarctic ice

Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger and the crew of US Airways Flight 1549 were awarded the 2010 Current Achievement Trophy.

Q and A: Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger

The pilot of US Airways Flight 1549 talks about that fateful day, being a pilot and his future

Several months ago, the Hope Diamond was taken from the National Museum of Natural History for an overnight stay in the mineralogy lab.

Testing the Hope Diamond

Scientists at the Natural History Museum search for the elusive "recipe" that endows the famed gem with its unique blue color

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Robot Swan Dances Swan Lake

Angela Belcher got her powerful idea from an abalone shell.

Invisible Engineering

Chemist Angela Belcher looks to manufacture high technology out of viruses

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