Technology, features and articles | Educational Science

Feb 28, 2014

Chinese Satellite Spies Possible Malaysia Jet Debris (Photo)

A Chinese satellite orbiting Earth has captured a new photo of possible debris from the missing Malaysian Airlines jet that disappeared with 239 people aboard earlier this month. The new Chinese satellite photo was captured by one of China's Earth-observation satellites on Tuesday (March 18) and released today (March 22)...

Dec 31, 2013

Smarter, Deadlier Drones Mapped Out in Defense Plan

Drones that can decide for themselves how best to complete a pre-programmed mission — that's just one of the many advanced capabilities the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) wants to develop over the next 25 years as part of its Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap. The roadmap, released last week, lays...

Dec 31, 2013

Hot New Wood Stoves: High-Tech & Eco-Friendly

Ever since the first caveman threw a log on the first fire, burning wood for heating and cooking has helped to define human civilization. But wood as a fuel source has some inherent drawbacks, especially the gases, particulate matter and other pollutants produced by burning logs. A new generation of...

Dec 31, 2013

Computer Algorithm Seeks To Crack Code Of Fiction Bestsellers

(ISNS)--The English novelist W. Somerset Maugham once said that there are three rules for writing novels. Unfortunately, he added, no one knows what they are. Three computer scientists at Stony Brook University in New York think they found some rules through a computer program that might predict which books will...

Dec 31, 2013

US Navy's Huge Triton Drone Will Provide 360-Degree Surveillance

The U.S. Navy's next-generation surveillance drone is a whopper, with an incredible wingspan that stretches 130 feet (40 meters), about the same as a Boeing 757 airliner. The drone, dubbed Triton, recently completed its ninth flight test earlier this month. The unmanned surveillance vehicle, built by defense giant Northrop Grumman...

Dec 31, 2013

Turkey-Inspired Sensors Could Detect Toxins

Sarah Yang is a public information officer at the University of California, Berkeley. This article was adapted from a piece on the Berkeley website. She contributed this article to LiveScience's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Some may think of turkeys as good for just lunch meat and holiday meals, but...

Nov 30, 2015

Register Your Drones Online: FAA Site Launches Today

It just got easier to register your recreational drone, as the Federal Aviation Administration's online registry launched today (Dec. 21). The Web-based FAA registry is free (after rebate) for the next 30 days, but it will cost $5 for each registration after that. The U.S. government made registration mandatory for...

Nov 30, 2015

From Blood Rain to Green Poo: 10 Weirdest Science Stories of 2015

The rain in Spain seemed to turn a gory shade of blood red. A scientist revealed he hadn't showered in more than 10 years. Somehow, tapeworms got even worse. These are just a few of the weird things that happened this year around the world. Here are the strangest (and...

Nov 30, 2015

Computers Plus Crowds Could Tackle World's Toughest Problems

The world's most dire problems, such as climate change and global conflicts, could be solved using a combination of human and computer intelligence, researchers say. Human outperform machines at many tasks, such as recognizing images and thinking creatively. So, with the help of computers, crowds of people could collaborate in...

Aug 31, 2015

Drones Save Lives in Disasters, When They're Allowed to Fly (Op-Ed)

Robin Murphy directs the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue at Texas A&M University. She contributed this article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Hurricane Katrina saw the first deployment of drones in a disaster, setting the stage for such drone deployments worldwide — from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear...

Jun 30, 2015

Mean Machines: US & Japan Mega-Robots to Battle

If watching giant robots fight to the death sounds like your idea of a good time, then you're in luck. Two huge, Transformer-type bots — one from Japan, the other from the United States — could soon be facing off in the ultimate futuristic duel. Last week, the geeks over...

Jun 30, 2015

Stephen Hawking on Reddit: Ask Him a Question on Artificial Intelligence

If you have any questions about Terminators, Cylons or other human-robot hybrids, now is the time to ask them. For the next nine days, Stephen Hawking will be taking the Internet's queries about all things related to artificial intelligence (AI). Hawking is answering questions via Reddit's Ask Me Anything (AMA)...

Jun 30, 2015

Delivery Drones Could Be on Your Doorstep in a Decade, Google Says

MOUNTAIN VIEW, California — Delivery drones could be arriving to your doorstep in a decade, one Google executive says. The Google concept, called Project Wing, would enable people to get products delivered in short order, even in the most populated areas, Dave Vos, the project's leader, said here today (July...

Apr 30, 2015

Back to the Future! Real-Life Hoverboard Breaks Record

A hoverboard rider recently soared into Guinness World Records after flying a record distance on the futuristic, flying skateboard. Catalin Alexandru Duru, the inventor of the prototype hoverboard, traveled the length of two-and-a-half football fields (about 905 feet or 375 meters) to achieve the world record title before landing gently...

Apr 30, 2015

Clearing Hurdles: Cheetah Robot Shows Off New Trick

One four-legged machine is making great leaps in the field of robotics: Researchers have developed a cheetahlike bot that can run at impressive speeds and even jump over obstacles in its path. The mechanical cheetah first made a name for itself last fall, when researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of...