Scientific Innovation

Will the Ford EVOS remain just a concept car?

A Preview of CES: When Cars Become Smartphones

Is the day coming when your car will talk to your alarm clock and also check your heart rate?

How does free will function in the brain?

Just How Free is Free Will?

Researchers are finding that our behavior may be more hard-wired than we'd like to believe. If so, can we handle the truth?

The X-Box Kinect is one of the ABCs to watch in 2012

The ABCs of 2012, Part II

Here are more of the terms you should know if you want to feel plugged into innovations changing the way we live this year

Laborers working at the face of the Thames Tunnel were protected by Marc Brunel's newly-invented "Shield"; behind them, other gangs hurried to roof the tunnel before the river could burst in. Nineteenth century lithograph.

The Epic Struggle to Tunnel Under the Thames

No one had ever tunneled under a major river before Marc Brunel began a shaft below London's river in the 1820s

Will 2012 be the year the electric car takes off?

The ABCs of 2012, Part I

Here are terms you should know if you want to show you're already plugged into the new year

The Zeo sleep manager

The Twelve Days of Gadgets

In their day, maids a-milking and pipers piping might have made for one fine gift. But it is the 21st century. A replacement list is in order

How close are we to living to 150 years old?

One Step Closer to Beating Old Age

Thanks to medical innovations and research breakthroughs, living past your 100th birthday will one day not be such a big deal

The kindness of strangers can pay dividends.

A Game Where Nice Guys Finish First

Researchers found that when it comes to building social networks, people much prefer someone who likes to cooperate over a person who looks out for himself

New smart phone apps highlight the importance of good sleep.

Snooze Science Yields Doze Apps

Now you can reportedly track what your brain has been doing all night, all in the name of a good night's sleep

The Silver Lining Project that pumps sea water into the sky to create sun-reflecting clouds.

Engineering the Climate

The idea of manipulating the Earth's atmosphere has been derided as too risky and too arrogant. That may be changing

What causes fear?

Where Fear Lives

Scientists are testing innovative ways to keep frightening memories from controlling people's lives

Hand gestures could replace your house keys.

Nine Inventions Whose Time Has Come

Some are ingenious, some long overdue and some a bit strange. But all provide a glimpse of a different future

Makerbot shot glasses

3D Printers Are Building the Future, One Part at a Time

Don't just download music. Download sculpture. Or a bicycle. That's the promise of 3D printing

What do we have against creativity?

Why We Don’t Like Creativity

Everyone talks about innovation, but most people seem uncomfortable with the creative forces that make it happen

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Edison vs. Westinghouse: A Shocking Rivalry

The inventors' battle over the delivery of electricity was an epic power play

"Greetings, Britons and everybody." Queen Victoria at about the time she made her Graphophone recording.

In Search of Queen Victoria’s Voice

The British monarch was present when a solicitor demonstrated one of the earliest audio recording devices. But did she really say "tomatoes"?

Are these machines making us stupid?

Are Machines Dumbing Us Down?

The idea that technology is causing us to lose our mental edge won't go away

Solyndra offices

Can Solar Survive the Solyndra Swirl?

Following the collapse of the ballyhooed solar firm, these are dark times for renewable energy. But big players are betting it's treehugger fantasy

The smart helmets of the future?

Football Tech to Protect Players

From "smart helmets" to "intelligent mouthguards," football tackles the challenge of high technology to reduce injury and improve the game

Hurricane Irene makes landfall.

Can We Do Something About This Weather?

Most climate scientists say we should expect extreme weather to happen more often in the future. Do we have to be satisfied with just being prepared?

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