The notorious traffic of Los Angeles could generate electricity via crystals in the road surface. A pilot study aims to replicate existing set-ups that turn footsteps into power. The study will try to exploit piezoelectricity, which takes advantage of the fact that mechanical stress applied to some materials including crystals will build up an electric […]
We’ve seen several computers built into USB sticks, but a new design puts an Android computer in an Ethernet cable. The InnCable designed mainly for hotel travellers but could well be adapted for other uses. The cable has an Ethernet plug at one end for plugging into a hotel wall Internet socket; there’s also support […]
Nintendo has revealed details of the Classic Mini SNES, which will ship with 21 games. The company says there’ll be a much bigger production run than with the Classic Mini NES, but scalpers are already cashing in. The console, officially titled the Nintendo Classic Mini: Super Nintendo Entertainment System, launches on September 29 and costs […]
Amazon has released a wand, though it’s far from an essential right now. The Dash Wand is effectively a version of the existing Dash button with a built-in barcode reader. The Dash buttons are simply Wi-Fi connected buttons that perform a specific action when pressed. In the case of most of the buttons available right […]
Facebook reports that artificial intelligence bots can not only learn to negotiate, but can do so while using what could be described as a “non-human language.” The study from the Facebook Artificial Intelligence Research lab aimed to get chatbots to use conversations to negotiate. One negotiation involved splitting up a set of objects (books, hats […]
The FBI gathered a list of D&D players as part of the Unabomber investigation, newly-published files reveal. The suggestion players were involved appears to have come from a particularly paranoid player. The documents were published by the Muckrock site, which specializes in obtaining documents under the Freedom Of Information Act. They include a memo written […]
Sega is launching a range of classic games to play on iOS and Android. They’ll be free to play with ads, or $1.99 ad-free. While the Sega Forever games will be a mix of straight ports and emulation, they’ll also have some more contemporary features such as game saves, an online high score leaderboard, and […]
Netflix has unveiled the first three shows to offer an interactive story mode. There’s bad news for Android and Apple TV users though. Reports about the concept broke back in March when rumor had it Netflix would test the idea with a children’s show before extending it to adult stories. The first show, Puss in […]
Atari has confirmed it’s making a new console. As with the NES Classic, it’s hardware design is modelled on a retro original, namely the Atari 2600. The company put out a teaser trailer showing the familiar wood grain styling, albeit with a major sheen, along with the name Ataribox. While that prompted some debate about […]
Take-Two has forced the shutdown of one of the most popular ways of modding Grand Theft Auto. It says it ordered the removal of the OpenIV tool because it was enabling player harassment in GTA Online. The developers of OpenIV say they received a legal letter from Take Two earlier this month demanding a shutdown. […]