flying

Buzzworthy: Houseflies can now tweet

Anyone out there speak fly? Because I'd really like to know what these houseflies were saying when they tweeted the following last week:

``F`CZHGF`CZHGF`XZHGFDS`XZHFDS`XZHFDS`ZFD`ZFD`ZHGFD`HGFD`HGFD`HGF` HGF`HGF`HF`HF`HF``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````

The flies have joined the social-networking masses thanks to artist David Bowen, who created fly tweet, a device that sends tweets based on the activities of a colony of houseflies with too much time on their wings. The flies live and tweet inside an acrylic sphere that also contains a computer keyboard.

As the insects fly over the keyboard keys, their subtle movements trigger not-so-subtle tweets (really, flies, tweeting in all caps? Not cool).… Read more

iPhone 5 gets soaked filming FlyBoard ad, survives

It's not often that the story behind the filming of a commercial is worth my time, but this spot for what's basically a levitating wakeboard filmed entirely on an iPhone 5 caught my attention.

According to Sparkhouse, the marketing geniuses behind the whole campaign, the ad for the FlyBoard from Fly Jet Sports was filmed entirely using an iPhone 5 coated in a water-resistant coating made by Liquipel.… Read more

Declassified: Air Force plans for a flying saucer

Even if you're not a conspiracy theorist, and you don't believe that aliens have visited us or the U.S. government has developed alien-grade technology, recently declassified images from the National Archives are like a giant WTF.

They reveal Air Force plans to build a flying saucer. Also, it was going to outsource the work. And not to aliens, to Canadians.

A 1956 document entitled "Project 1794, Final Development Summary Report" from the Records of United States Air Force Commands, Activities, and Organizations includes several remarkable schematics. … Read more

Robot airplane flies by itself and maneuvers without GPS

Imagine a robotic plane flying without a pilot -- or GPS. A team at MIT has just unveiled its latest prototype.

So, how does it work?

It's able to maneuver with the implementation of a new algorithm that can calculate its location, orientation, velocity, and acceleration.

And the implications are many. For example, your FedEx packages could be transported by autonomous planes, or autonomous helicopters could swoop down and rescue injured soldiers in battlefields. You might even find yourself on a commercial flight sans pilot -- well, maybe.

Another pass at the FlyGrip: Yes, it's better

Two weeks ago I told you about the FlyGrip, a unique smartphone accessory that's designed to let you navigate your handset with one hand.

Shaped like a plastic H, it attaches to the back of your phone and gives you a place to rest your index and middle fingers. You then can text like mad on a crowded train and not have to worry about someone bumping your device out of your grasp.

Indeed, I saw how it could be useful for some people, but I wasn't into it. I didn't like how the FlyGrip caught on my clothing when I removed it from my pocket and I loathed the idea of sticking something to the back of my pretty phone with adhesive.… Read more

Friday Poll: Do you choose the TSA body scanner option?

The glamor days of great meals on airplanes, no luggage limits, and easy boarding at airports are long gone. Those Pan Am dreams have disappeared into a maze of airline money-saving efforts and increasingly personal TSA security checks.

Ever since the TSA rolled out its revealing body scanners, we've been in the midst of a contentious privacy versus security debate. … Read more

Marty McFly and Mattel lend a hoverboard to The 404

The hoverboard floated onto the big screen in "Back to the Future II" and broke the hearts of geeks worldwide when director Robert Zemeckis announced that the technology would not be available until the year 2015. Decades later, we're all still waiting for power laces, hydrator machines, power laces, and a real hoverboard, but Mattel was on-hand at Comic-Con 2012 to show off the next best thing: a 1:1 scale replica of the original hover board ridden by Marty McFly.

While it's still unacceptable that the thing doesn't actually glide through the air (don't even think about water), the prop retains the exact look and feel of the real thing, replete with a scooter handle hole, Velcro ankle strap, motion sensors, and "whooshing" sound effects pulled directly from the movies.… Read more

Watching a pilot crash-land, from his point of view

I would no more pilot a plane than I would wear a lampshade on my head to dinner.

This remarkable -- and, as it turns out -- very instructive footage is a case for my defense.

It was posted to YouTube by Larry Hockensmith, who takes full responsibility for everything that happens in it.

This includes his sailplane's wing crashing into someone's mailbox.

I am grateful to Gadling.com for directing me to this beautiful and very slightly disturbing footage, which, I suspect, may not disturb regular pilots at all -- or even regular people with mailboxes.

Hockensmith'… Read more

Tiny Wings 2 flaps into the App Store

Last year, Andreas Illiger's Tiny Wings came out of nowhere to challenge the likes of Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja for App Store dominance.

Since then, legions of fans have been waiting for the inevitable sequel -- and their patience has finally paid off. Tiny Wings 2.0 ($0.99) has arrived, but it's not exactly a sequel. Instead, it's an expanded version of the original -- and a free update for those who already own it.

The core game remains the same. An adorable little bird slowly propels himself across the hills and valleys of the … Read more