Crave

When Apple turns over part of its oh-so-important Worldwide Developers Conference keynote address to an unknown startup, you can be sure Tim Cook and Co. think they're dealing with some very cool technology.

That was very much the case with Anki, which was handpicked for a coveted slot as the poster child for what unknown developers can do with iOS. During its time onstage, Anki showed off what at first appears to be a simple toy car racing game, but what in reality might be the most advanced intersection of consumer-grade artificial intelligence and robotics ever.… Read more

Animals can do amazing things, and their behaviors and physical properties have inspired some groundbreaking tech. But what if we could do more with what animals make? Spider silk, for instance, has a tensile strength similar to that of alloyed steel -- and some fascinating potential uses.

But the silkworm is by far one of the most productive animals we rely upon. The silk it produces is strong, lightweight, soft, and beautiful -- and perhaps there are ways to use the creatures in new ways.

To explore the potential relationship between digital and biological fabrication, MIT Media Lab's Mediated Matter research group has created the Silk Pavilion -- a 12-foot-diameter dome that's a collaboration between human designers, machines, and grubs. … Read more

To the delight of many gamers at E3 on Monday, EA DICE showed off Star Wars Battlefront -- a next-generation "Star Wars" video game that uses the Frostbite 3 graphics engine. DICE uses the same graphics engine in Battlefield 4.

As the 30-second trailer kicks off, you can clearly see a snowy tundra on the ice planet Hoth, presumably set during the battle seen in "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back," or perhaps a different time in the canon. … Read more

A forgotten anniversary can add a lot of friction to a relationship. Apparently, setting a calendar alert is just too much effort for some people. Those same people might need a Remember Ring, a concept ring from Alaska Jewelry that heats up as an anniversary approaches.

The ring is designed to give a 24-hour heads-up notice about the impending anniversary. It does this by heating up to 120 degrees, enough to be noticeable, but not enough to make you scream. … Read more

MONTREAL -- Guitar-strumming astronaut Chris Hadfield is hanging up his spacesuit and quitting the astronaut biz, with plans to pursue "private interests." Does that mean a Leonard Nimoy-style album?

Heralded as the most popular spaceman since Neil Armstrong, the social-media phenom announced his retirement Monday at Canadian Space Agency headquarters outside Montreal, his first Canadian appearance since returning to Earth in May after five months on the ISS.

"I've decided to retire from government service after 35 years of serving our country," Hadfield, 53, told a press conference, adding that he's making good on a promise he made to his wife 30 years ago. … Read more

Nowadays breathalyzers are being used to detect far more than just how much alcohol one has imbibed. Researchers in Sweden are working on one that can spot marijuana and cocaine. Scientists in Germany are exploring one that can sniff out heart failure. And researchers in the U.S. are hard at work on one that can detect diseases such as diabetes.

And now, a group of chemists at the University of Pittsburgh is unveiling new sensor technology that could lead to a breathalyzer for not just the detection of diabetes, but the ongoing monitoring of it as well.… Read more

Now that Google Glass is in the hands of developers, it seems like everybody wants a smartphone connection on their specs. That pesky $1,500 price tag is a little annoying, though. Let's say you don't need all the fancy Glass features, like an eyeball-level display, camera, directions, search, and voice commands. If you're satisfied with just notifications, then you may soon be able to connect your smartphone to your glasses for $25.

The NanoGlass Indiegogo project from EmoPulse consists of a small Bluetooth device that attaches to the side of a pair of glasses. A fiber optic strip extends toward the front, just enough to show up in your peripheral vision.… Read more

Apple may not be able to do anything to stop a mugger from stealing your iPhone, but changes in iOS 7 will prevent the thief from trying to sell the phone as new.

At its Worldwide Developers Conference here on Monday, Apple unveiled several security enhancements. Activation Lock is the most interesting. Though the company didn't go deep into detail on the new feature, Apple's head of Mac software engineering, Craig Federighi, said the feature prevents unauthorized resetting of an iPhone or iPad.

Basically, if the Find My Phone tracking utility has been deactivated, or if the phone … Read more

It's official: iOS 7 arrives this fall, bringing with it a Cook's ransom in new features and a fairly radical new design.

I suspect the latter will spark the most conversation, with some users no doubt finding the much-ballyhooed "flat" icons just plain flat. (My take: They've transformed from pretty to ugly. I like the new fonts and overall design, but those icons look really amateurish.)

Ah, but on the feature front, iOS 7 doesn't disappoint. Apple packed in so many badly needed updates and improvements, it's hard to know where to tap … Read more