After more than 30 years of experimenting, the US navy has fired a laser gun from a ship. In a test off the coast of California, the ray gun successfully ignited the engines of an inflatable boat. It’s the first time a High Energy laser has been used on a Naval ship and fired at […]
Physicists in Illinois have found something that is at least a little unusual and at most a new force of nature. Or to put that another way, the blue bump on the right-hand graph above could mean the entire rulebook of physics needs to be rewritten. The findings came at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory […]
Big news for mineral scientists or collectors — a 4.5-billion-year-old meteorite discovered in Antarctica in 1969 contains a mineral previously unknown on Earth. Dubbed Wassonite after John T. Wasson, a UCLA professor known for his achievements in meteorite and impact research, the tiny crystal comprises sulfur and titanium in an interesting new structure. From the Live […]
Scientist recently discovered that a rabbit as large as the Easter Bunny actually existed. Although it didn’t poop candy or give people type 2 diabetes, it was over six times the size of nature’s current cuddly little throw pillows. A recent study published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology reports that fossils of these tubby […]
After finally producing the much debated “PlayStation phone”, Sony is now said to be working on a branded tablet device, possibly debuting as early as the fall. Though there have been previous rumors of such a device, it now looks as good as official. The Nikkei newspaper in Japan quoted Sony’s CEO Howard Stringer (pictured) […]
Time Warner narrowly avoided a lawsuit over including TV channels on an iPad app last week, but has responded by putting a dozen new channels on the service. The stance appears to have inspired at least one cable provider rival to follow suit. The app involved is considerably more limited that you might expect given […]
Microsoft is testing a new disc format for the Xbox 360 that should mean more room for game content. It will also allow what are intended to be improved anti-piracy measures. The new format will still involve the dual-layer DVDs as opposed to a larger capacity format such as Sony’s Blu-ray or the unsuccessful HD-DVD. […]
An MIT scientist claims he has achieved “one of the Holy Grails of science”: an artificial leaf that stands up to practical application. The device simulates photosynthesis to generate electricity using just sunlight and water — reputedly doing so 10 times more efficiently than a real leaf. Daniel Nocera acknowledged that his team’s output is […]
The Guitar Hero series has received its death sentence, but one company thinks it’s come up with a creative new way to revive the genre: using real guitars. To be precise, Ubisoft’s RockSmith isn’t billed as purely a game, but rather a “musical experience.” It’s less a case of a rhythm game that happens to […]
Microsoft is said to have abandoned plans to release any new Zune hardware. It will still work on the underlying media player, including versions running on Windows Phone 7 handsets. The news comes from Bloomberg, quoting a “person familiar with the decision.” Microsoft hasn’t disputed the claims, simply noting that there is nothing to announce […]