industry

Some high-end audio designers see themselves as artists. They might invest years of their life into perfecting an audio circuit or devising a turntable that's immune to disturbance from external vibrations from people dancing nearby. I'm fascinated by the sort of people who advance the art of audio design, but I'm also intrigued by designers exploring the aesthetic of high-end audio.

Case in point: Mateusz Glówka's Block tube amp; I think it's a stunning industrial design. The stainless steel tube amp is a functioning prototype, but may eventually be put in limited production. … Read more

Despite rising prices at the pump, many consumers are still reluctant to purchase vehicles with alternative power trains because of cost and misunderstandings about the new technologies available.

That's according to the J.D. Power and Associates "2011 U.S. Green Automotive Study," whose primary findings were released today.

The J.D. Power and Associates study was conducted in February and included interviews with over 4,000 U.S. consumers planning to buy a new vehicle within one to five years. It estimates that alternative vehicles will make up less than 10 percent of the market by … Read more

For months, we've known that Microsoft's Kinect could help make video games fun. But who knew that it projects such beautiful light?

Until San Francisco Bay Area artist Audrey Penven and some friends started taking pictures of themselves playing Kinect games, no one. But when Penven looked at the images, she realized she was on to something special.

In normal light, you can't even see the light put out by the Kinect, Microsoft's new motion control system for the Xbox 360. But with the help of a roommate's camera, which is modified to shoot infrared, … Read more

I devoured Tape Op magazine's interview with Jack White III (the White Stripes), mostly because the man is as obsessed with sound quality as I am. The interview was conducted by Tape Op's editor, Larry Crane, but it sounds more like a freewheeling conversation than an interview. Crane founded the magazine 15 years ago, and it now has a circulation of 55,000 print copies.

White never takes the easy way with his music and recording, and prefers analog tape machines, "I like the constriction of 8-track. I like knowing in the back of my head that … Read more

The U.S. solar market grew 67 percent from a $3.6 billion market in 2009 to $6 billion in 2010, according to "U.S. Solar Market Insight: 2010 Year in Review," a report released this month by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and GTM Research.

California installed the most photovoltaics last year, with 258.9 megawatts of direct current (MWdc), followed by New Jersey in second place with 137.1, and Nevada with 61.4. Others on the Top 10 list in order of greatest installations included Arizona, Colorado, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Florida, North Carolina, and … Read more

The U.S. solar power sector grew 67 percent in 2010 but still lagged European markets by a wide margin in installing solar systems, the industry's trade group said today.

The American market for solar energy reached $6 billion in 2010, up from $3.6 billion the previous year, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, or SEIA. But the U.S. share of worldwide photovoltaic solar installations slipped to 5 percent last year from 6.5 percent in 2009 due to booming growth in Germany and Italy, where solar players enjoy generous government incentives.

Photovoltaic, or PV, solar … Read more

Green Automotive, an electric vehicle importer and distributor, today announced that Roush Industries will "provide structural and vehicle engineering support" during the testing and confirming process of shaping an all-electric SUV to meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for the U.S. market.

According to Green Automotive, Roush will begin testing an electric version of the Chinese-made Zotye SUV.

The testing will include an evaluation of safety features such as airbags, seat belts, and other safety design elements, "mapping the vehicle data against the required safety standards," and a report that "details the test findings … Read more

The inventors of the digital camera, the industrial robot, public-key cryptography, and the barcode are just some of those being inducted into this year's National Inventors Hall of Fame.

Today, the National Inventors Hall of Fame announced its latest selections of the people responsible for some of the key technologies that we use and rely on today.

In 1975, a Kodak engineer named Steve Sasson built a device that was able to capture an image, convert it to an electronic signal, and then digitize and store that image, leading to the world's first digital camera, according to the … Read more

SAN FRANCISCO--When he started making his new film "Rango," director Gore Verbinski knew he wanted it to look and feel much like many of the Westerns it evokes: gritty, dirty, and sweaty.

"He wanted to be able to smell the breath of the characters," said Kevin Martel, the film's associate animation supervisor. "The feeling was that if you were to take a deep breath, you'd inhale all that dust and dirt, and you'd probably start coughing."

All joking aside, creating the look of a traditional Western was one of the biggest … Read more