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Continue reading Microsoft shutters Pioneer Studios, we pour one out for J Allard

Microsoft shutters Pioneer Studios, we pour one out for J Allard originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 May 2011 05:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Austin Whitney hasn’t been able to walk since a 2007 car crash left him paralyzed, but on Saturday the 22-year-old triumphantly strode across the stage to accept his degree from UC Berkeley. He had a little help, in the form of a specially crafted robotic exoskeleton developed by Berkeley engineering professor Homayoon Kazerooni. Kazerooni and his team designed the exoskeleton with lightness and affordability in mind, resisting the urge to load it up with expensive hardware and tethering the mechanized walker to a backpack that houses a computer and a rechargeable, eight-hour battery. As a result, the Austin walker won’t enable the kind of acrobatic leaps that would make Lt. Rasczak proud, but its reduced mobility comes at a reduced cost of just $15,000. That’s certainly not an impulse buy, though it’s a welcomed alternative to other exoskeletons that retail for $100,000 or more. Walk past the break for a video of Whitney’s momentous steps, along with a clip of Kazerooni describing his creation.

Continue reading Paralyzed student uses robotic exoskeleton to walk at college graduation (video)

Paralyzed student uses robotic exoskeleton to walk at college graduation (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 May 2011 08:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google finally decided they’ve outgrown the Googleplex and tossed $30 million at the city of Mountain View for some space to build a new 10-acre campus. Who’s gonna design it? Ingenhoven, one of Germany’s biggest architectural firms. More »

Long before Gore-Tex or Patagonia’s H2No, people kept the rain off their backs with the most obvious of repellants: oil. It was a trick gleaned from mariners in the 1500s. Sails slicked with grease and oil better navigated nasty storms by beating back water. Between then and now, fabric impregnated with various oils and then waxes have become time-tested water proofers. More »

There was a royal wedding today? You don’t say!

I’m not too much for pomp, circumstance, or royalty, but if the princely couple came out in this carriage, I think I might actually care (a little).

Reza Esmaeeli, a London-based designer and architect, sought to throw out the traditional, old-fashioned carriage the royal couple rode in and imagined something significantly more awesome: an avante-garde pod of glass marbled with white glass-reinforced plastic.

From the overhead view, it looks a bit like a tadpole with wings. The designer describes the carriage as “like a shining bird, a super-fictional transparent globe with a ceremonial tail.”

As far as transportation goes, Esmaeeli envisions it with a light engine onboard. I envision it with a pair of twin turbo jet packs.

It doesn’t look like the royal family will adopt a design like this any time in the foreseeable future, but it’s fun to pretend anyway.

Royal Wedding Carriage [Reza Esmaeeli via Arch Daily]

Images Courtesy of Reza Esmaeeli