Smart News Ideas & Innovations

Drones, paired with 3-D printing technology, could autonomously carry out building projects.

These 3-D Printing Drones Could Alter the Future of Construction

Like bees and wasps, the flying robots can build a structure while in mid-air

The project uses public surveillance footage from popular tourists destinations. 

Art Meets Science

This Controversial Artist Matches Influencer Photos With Surveillance Footage

'The Followers' uses artificial intelligence and facial-recognition technology to comment on the surveillance state

The U.S. State Department ran two pilot programs to test the online renewal option.

Online Passport Renewal Is Almost Here

In early 2023, qualifying American travelers will be able to skip the lines

Heart Aerospace's ES-30, a regional electric airplane with seats for 30 passengers

Electric Planes Are Taking Flight

More airlines are ordering battery-powered aircraft to help reduce their environmental impact

Human composting transforms corpses into nutrient-rich soil.

California Has Legalized Human Composting

By 2027, Golden State residents will have the choice to turn their bodies into nutrient-rich compost

The artificial intelligence has looked for patterns between audio recordings and the brain activity of people listening to those recordings. 

By Reading Brainwaves, an A.I. Aims to Predict What Words People Listened to

The research is a long way off from practical use, but researchers hope it might one day aid communication for people who experienced brain injuries

A visitor at the Seattle NFT Museum in Washington, one of the first states to tax non-fungible tokens

Two States Start Taxing NFTs

Washington and Pennsylvania wade into a largely unregulated marketplace

One of the iterations of Loab

Who Is the Woman Haunting A.I.-Generated Art?

Now known as "Loab," she pops up repeatedly in a series of creepy images

An inhaled Covid-19 vaccine is displayed at the CanSino Biologics booth at the Hainan International Health Industry Expo in November 2021.

Needle-Free Covid-19 Vaccines Approved in China and India

Doses inhaled through the mouth or nose might provide better protection against mild infections and transmission, preliminary studies show

The Coradia iLint

Hydrogen-Powered Passenger Trains Are Now Running in Germany

They're expected to keep some 4,000 tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere each year

A produce farm on the Rural Studio campus in Newbern, Alabama

These Are the Winners of the National Design Awards

This year, Cooper Hewitt honored innovators in climate change, clothing design and more

Royal Caribbean tested SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service on its ship called Freedom of the Seas

SpaceX's Starlink Satellite Internet Is Coming to Cruise Ships

Royal Caribbean says it will begin installing Starlink terminals across its entire fleet immediately

Members of NASA's Mars 2020 project lower the oxygen-producing instrument, called MOXIE, into the Perseverance Mars Rover in March 2019.

A Lunchbox-Sized Device Is Making Oxygen on Mars

By scaling up the technology, NASA could allow future astronauts to breathe on the Red Planet

Théâtre D’opéra Spatial by Jason Allen

Art Made With Artificial Intelligence Wins at State Fair

Artist Jason Allen placed first in a Colorado contest, generating debate about A.I.'s role in art

A mannequin named after Arturo Campos is headed into space on NASA's now-postponed Artemis 1 mission.

How Artemis 1 Honors an Apollo 13 Hero—and a Champion for Diversity in Space

A mannequin that will orbit the moon is named for Arturo Campos, a Mexican-American electrical engineer who worked on several NASA missions

The Alfred Merlin, France’s new high-tech underwater archaeological exploration ship

Archaeologists From Eight Countries Team Up to Explore the Skerki Banks

Coordinated by Unesco, the project will examine the underwater site between Sicily and Tunisia

Under the federal Clean Air Act, other states may follow California's lead in banning gas-powered vehicles by 2035.

Other States May Follow California’s Lead in Banning Gas-Powered Cars by 2035

Washington, Massachusetts, Virginia and others appear likely to adopt the Golden State's ambitious plan for phasing out internal combustion engines

So far, pedestrians have mixed feelings about the experimental new lights in Hong Kong.

Can These Lights Make Crosswalks Safer for Pedestrians Distracted by Their Phones?

Hong Kong has launched an experimental initiative to remind walkers to look up before crossing the street

Breadfruit grows on trees.

Is Breadfruit the Climate Change-Proof Food of the Future?

New research suggests it will fare better than our current staple crops under warming conditions

Four pairs of "human doubles" included in the study

Art Meets Science

Doppelgängers Don't Just Look Alike—They Also Share DNA

New research finds genetic and lifestyle similarities between unrelated pairs of "virtual twins"

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