Hasta La Gadget!

This week in our time capsule round-up we have reminder after reminder that burying things in the ground is the absolute worst way to preserve something for the future. Oh, and also zombies.

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Drones have been in the limelight recently, where at least one of the stories do not actually bring any kind of comfort to us ordinary folk. After all, who would want a drone to actually crash into you while you are outdoors? Those things aren’t exactly the lightest devices around, and from a great height at a certain velocity, it might even maim or kill rather than give you a nasty shock. For all you know, it could be a staged assassination attempt that has been disguised as an “accident”. Enough daydreaming for now – back to the topic at hand, a drone which can fly around indefinitely without ever returning to base simply because it can recharge itself by landing on a power line.

Yup, researchers have worked on ‘bird’ drones which actually land on power lines so that they can recharge themselves, and a working prototype has already been developed as you read this. Such drones could come in handy by the military in a long-running surveillance campaign, where the drone would rely on the magnetic field in order to land in the perfect spot. Apart from that, the Air Force, too, is working on something similar which might even hunt in swarms. Now that’s a scary thought, don’t you think so? The birds aren’t gonna be too happy to share their power lines with robots though, but what other options have they?

Drones That Recharge Themselves On Power Lines , original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Robots, drone,

Freedom, an endangered green sea turtle, does not really live up to his name, since he lost his left flippers four years back when he got all tangled up in a fishing net. At a rescue center that is located north of Tel Aviv, Freedom managed to cross fins with Shlomo Gez, who happens to be an industrial design student that has thought up of an ingenious method to give the disabled green sea turtle another shot at life.

Freedom actually has a new artificial fin that is attached to his back by Gez, and Gez has this to say about the new appendage, “It’s based on fish biomimicry, in fish the back fin of the fish it does just balance.” Of course, Gez had to make sure that Freedom’s shell is completely dry prior to gluing the new prosthetic fin into place. Gez continued, “There’s still a long way but it’s getting better and better and I can say today that when he has the fins on him, he’s much calmer, he doesn’t get into panic, he doesn’t have any problems anymore.”

So much so that Freedom is actually dating with Tzurit, whom everyone is rooting for them to mate, as she too, remains a captive turtle after she lost her eyesight in a boating accident.

Disabled Sea Turtle Gets Artificial Fin To Move Around , original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Gadgets, science,

You’ve just woken up to a muffled sound that is familiar, but distant. It’s your alarm, trying its best to disturb your slumber, but has been moved to a new location since last you remember. The frantic search then begins of trying to find it, not only to see the time but to shut off the unyielding alarm. Sometimes this scenario is how we end up waking up and starting the day.

If you often find yourself scrambling to find your phone in the mornings, then the Percale Pocket Sheet Set might be of interest to you. It doesn’t have any built-in sensors or LEDs that point you in the right direction. It does, however, have a pocket within reach when laying in bed for you to slide in your phone, ear buds, remote and more. This may be a small thing, but it would certainly save a lot of hassle in the mornings.

Of course, this does have a target demographic, and that would be college students. It’s only available in Twin or Twin XL, and comes in color options of blue, grey, orange, pink, and red. It’s a 230 thread-count cotton that is machine washable, and while it is a good idea for those who have their phone in their hands until they fall asleep, the $90 price tag is a huge deterrent. You may as well sew a pocket into the sheets you have now, and spend that money elsewhere.

Available for purchase on JCPenny
[ The Percale Pocket Sheet Set will make sure your phone can’t escape at night copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Samsung’s developer-aimed version of the Galaxy S5 has been revealed for Verizon users this week. While we’re not entirely sure when the device will be released in full, today it’s … Continue reading