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Technology

A wolf-like robot dubbed "Monster Wolf" photographed in 2017. An updated model was recently installed in the town of Takikawa on Japan's northern island of Hokkaido. The robot's motion sensor triggers flashing red LED eyes and a selection of 60 sounds aimed to frighten animals back into the wild.

Robotic ‘Monster Wolf’ Protects Japanese Town From Bears

No bear interactions have been recorded in the town since the robots’ installation in September

The Norwegian Joy is one of several cruise ships equipped with air lubrication technology.

Tiny Bubbles Under a Ship May Be the Secret to Reducing Fuel Consumption

A technology called air lubrication offers a way to make large ships more efficient

Camels stay cool through a combination of sweat and insulating fur.

Why This New Technology Inspired by Camel Fur Is Super Cool

A two-layered material that mimics the animals’ sweat glands and insulating fur chills surfaces 400 percent longer than traditional methods

This artist's rendering shows the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft descending towards asteroid Bennu to collect a sample.

NASA Snags Its First Asteroid Sample

On a mission more than 200 million miles away from Earth, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft grabbed rocks from Bennu

Remoras aren’t necessarily hanging on for dear life. In fact, the suckerfish could freely move around on the whale, feeding and socializing even when their ride raced through the ocean at five meters per second.

How Surfing Suckerfish Stick to Whales

Scientists discover the secret behind remoras’ ability to cling to their hosts in fast-flowing waters

Those who missed the site-specific version of artist Koo Jeong A's density can now conjure it up at home, hovering over the couch or floating over their beds.

Innovation for Good: Game Changers

With Augmented Reality, You Can Now Superimpose Publicly Exhibited Artworks in Your Home

Art institutions are embracing AR during the Covid-19 pandemic—and making art more accessible in the process

Five to ten percent of people will read an email, but 80 to 90 percent of people will read a text.

How the 2020 Presidential Race Became the ‘Texting Election’

Campaigns took full advantage of text-to-donate technology and peer-to-peer texting to engage voters this election cycle

Fireflies in a forest at night in Tennessee.

How Fireflies’ Dramatic Light Show Might Spark Advances in Robot Communication

Researchers say understanding the brilliant display could help them create groups of drones that operate without human control

The Santa Claus and Rudolph puppets are expected to sell for between $150,000 and $250,000.

Iconic ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’ Puppets Are Up for Auction

You could own the Santa and Rudolph figurines featured in the classic 1964 holiday special

The moon seen from the International Space Station.

Future Moon Walkers Will Get 4G Cell Reception

NASA taps Nokia to install the first ever cellular network on the moon as part of a plan to establish long-term human presence on the lunar surface by 2030

In 1943 the all-wing and jet-propelled Horten Ho 229 promised spectacular performance and the German air force (Luftwaffe) chief, Hermann Göring, allocated half-a-million Reichsmarks to brothers Reimar and Walter Horten to build and fly several prototypes.

Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction With Horten’s All-Wing Aircraft Design

New research dispels some of the myths behind the world’s first jet-powered flying wing

The Original Selfie Craze Was the Mirror

Today’s social media obsession has its roots in the development centuries ago of the reflective material

NASA's new $23 million Universal Waste Management System

NASA Just Sent a New $23 Million Space Toilet to the International Space Station

Astronauts will test out the expensive commode, which is better designed for “dual ops,” before its eventual use on deep space missions

CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology has the power to improve the lives of millions of people.

Trending Today

Two Scientists Receive the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for Their Discovery of CRISPR

The award-winning researchers, Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier, harnessed the power of gene-editing technology and revolutionized biology

The moon at night, as seen from Germany

Why Astronomers Want to Build a SETI Observatory on the Moon

Researchers say the location would offer a quiet spot from which to hear a signal from an intelligent civilization

Researchers test out Curly, an AI-powered curling robot, in 2018.

Curly the Curling Robot Can Beat the Pros at Their Own Game

An AI-powered robot was able to beat professional curling teams 3-out-of-4 times, a new study shows

The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is name after NASA's first chief of astronomy.

How NASA’s New Telescope Will Help Astronomers Discover Free-Floating Worlds

The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will be able to detect small, distant planets without stars

A humpback whale breaches off the coast near Alameda, California. Ships collide and kill an estimated 80 endangered whales a year off of the West Coast.

Innovative New Whale Detection System Aims to Prevent Ships From Striking Animals

Whale Safe launches in Southern California waters to help reduce deaths of the iconic marine mammals

Teaching computers to assess the emotional tone of a piece of writing—a task called sentiment analysis—is becoming more widely used as researchers, companies and even mental health professionals delve into people’s social media musings for insights.

How Algorithms Discern Our Mood From What We Write Online

While sentiment analysis is far from perfect, it distills meaning from huge amounts of data—and could one day even monitor mental health

The courtyard at Mexico City's Museo Nacional de Antropología could be a good model for a socially distant lobby space in future museums.

Covid-19

How Will Covid-19 Change the Way Museums Are Built?

The global pandemic will have long-lasting effects on the form and function of future museums

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