universities

One of the biggest bugbears of smartphones is just how much juice they drain -- and how long they take to recharge. Batteries are also the reason many devices can't be smaller; after all, the batteries have to fit somewhere (although, given the burgeoning phablet market, that's not exactly a huge problem).

Scientists have made several recent attempts to build a better lithium ion battery. In the latest push, a team of researchers led by mechanical science and engineering professor William P. King at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign has developed a new type of lithium ion battery that's just a fraction of the size of the batteries we use now -- and that can out-power the best supercapacitors. … Read more

Studying the brain can be a tricky business.

The interesting stuff, such as neurons and how they communicate, is obscured by things like fatty tissue. Usually, scientists just cut it up into paper-thin slices to study, like with Einstein's brain, but a team of scientists at Stanford University, led by Karl Deisseroth and Kwanghun Chung, have found what the director of the National Institute of Mental Health Thomas Insel is calling "one of the most important advances for doing neuroanatomy in decades."

The new technique lets researchers leave the brain intact, which puts an end to the damage that slicing can cause. It involves infusing the brain with acrylamide, which binds the proteins; once heated, it polymerizes, preserving the important molecules. Then, the brain is rinsed with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) detergent, which strips the fatty lipids, leaving intact the proteins that the researchers wish to study. … Read more

STANFORD, Calif.--When I walked onto the Stanford University campus this week and into the Volkswagen Automotive Innovation Lab, I was greeted by a short, gray robot waving his two long arms -- he was looking for a high-five.

All around me robots of all sizes were roaming the floor. I was trapped -- in the future. … Read more

Now that winter has passed, those of us who live in cold climes can once again appreciate the beauty of snowflakes without feeling the urge to curse them for making us dig out the shovel. And if ever snowflakes looked lovely, it's in these images shot by a high-speed camera system developed specifically to photograph them in 3D as they fell.

"Until our device, there was no good instrument for automatically photographing the shapes and sizes of snowflakes in free fall," says Tim Garrett, an associate professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Utah and one of the developers of the cam known as MASC, or Multi-Angle Snowflake Camera. "We are photographing these snowflakes completely untouched by any device, as they exist naturally in the air."

MASC -- under development for three years -- takes 9- to 37-micron-resolution stereographic photographs of snowflakes from three angles while simultaneously measuring the speed of their fall, a highly influential factor in the location and lifetime of a storm. … Read more

Japan is already known for integrating robots into everyday life, whether it's giant fembots in Tokyo's red-light district or shampooing robots that handle salon duties. Now, students from the University of Tsukuba have created a robotic girlfriend coat for lonely fellas.

The Riajyuu Coat features a belt around the midsection. Motors on the back tighten the belt, squeezing the wearer to replicate a girlfriend coming up from behind and giving him a hug. A set of headphone lets the guy listen to a high-pitched woman talking at him, apologizing for being late, and just generally coming off as cute, in an anime sort of way.… Read more

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- "FireWriter" is a far sexier way to describe an inkjet printer.

- What do gangsters do on the Internet?

- New Brad Paisley, LL Cool J song "Accidental Racist" sparks controversy.

Bathroom break video: Slacktory Supercut: The best fake Web sites from TV shows.… Read more

STANFORD, Calif. -- Self-driving cars are expected to save lives: a vehicle driven by a human will experience, on average, a crash every 160,000 miles or so. It's only a matter of time, advocates say, before robots become better drivers than us.

That is, if the lawyers let them. Industry insiders are already fretting about a host of legal problems that could bedevil robot car makers once a sufficient number of their creations take to the roads. Product liability, tort law, negligence, foreseeable harm, patent encumbrance, and design defects are only some of the concerns.

"The longer … Read more

In the wild, sea lions are kept busy with hunting prey, caring for young, and swimming about in the great big ocean. In captivity, they have more time to devote to activities like sunning themselves, playing, and rocking out.

Ronan the California sea lion lives at the Long Marine Laboratory at the University of California in Santa Cruz. University researchers have studied Ronan's ability to keep the beat of musical tracks by nodding her head. She seems to particularly enjoy upbeat, jazzy disco numbers.

Ronan was first trained to bob her head to a simple metronome-like sound. Once she figured that out, she was able to find and keep the beat of more complex music all on her own. Previously, this ability has only been observed in parrots and humans.… Read more

Violence against women in India has come under the worldwide spotlight following the emergence of high-profile cases such as the gang-rape of a young woman in December. She later died from her injuries. In an effort to stem the violence, the Indian government is working on developing a wristwatch that would send out alerts for help. Three Indian engineering students also have joined the cause, creating an anti-rape undergarment that could provide a layer of protection for women.

Manisha Mohan, Niladri Basu Bal, and Rimpi Tripathi attend SRM University in Chennai. Their project is called SHE (Society Harnessing Equipment). The device is like a slip, to be worn under clothes. It has sensors and an electric shock circuit board built into it. The circuit is attached near the bosom and is designed to deliver an electric shock when an assailant comes into contact with it.… Read more