Hasta La Gadget!

This month a set of researchers from the University of Warwick have submitted a report on “Healthier Fruit Juice Infused Chocolate Confectionary”, this study revealing chocolate with far less fat than common forms of chocolate and with no “white chocolate” death. The death is also known as “sugar bloom” and is essentially negated by the process these researchers have made a reality. What they’ve done is to infuse a form of fruit juice into a mixture of chocolate, this replacing the fat that normally gives chocolate its “chocolaty” features.

Study researcher Stefan Bon said in a statement from the University of Warwick that “it’s the fat that gives chocolate all the indulgent sensations that people crave – the silky smooth texture and the way it melts in the mouth but still has a ‘snap’ to it when you break it with your hand.” Assuming this is entirely true, the new mixture works with different types of fruit juice to make chocolate just as chocolaty as its always been, but with far less fat.

This mixture is able to create chocolate with a “slightly fruity” taste in white, milk, or dark. The researchers also note that they’re able to use a vitamin C solution (ascorbic acid) instead of the juice to make this mixture. When the vitamin C solution is used, the “fruity” taste is also removed, and the chocolate essentially tastes as it would have without the new solution.

We’ve found a way to maintain all of those things that make chocolate ‘chocolatey’ but with fruit juice instead of fat,” Bon said. “Our study is just the starting point to healthier chocolate – we’ve established the chemistry behind this new technique but now we’re hoping the food industry will take our method to make tasty, lower-fat chocolate bars.” – Bon

Sound good to you? We’re waiting for the University of Warwick to make the move and bring this chocolate to the world – and we’ll eat it all!

[via University of Warwick]

Fat-free immortal chocolate created by University of Warwick is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

People who study Google Satellite images have found curious objects in the images on more than one occasion. People have thought satellite images showed Atlantis, and we’ve seen images in the past that looked to be some sort of giant grid on the ground. A new batch of Google Earth satellite images have unveiled what some are saying are lost Egyptian pyramids.

What is believed to be two separate pyramid complexes may have been discovered using satellite imagery. The complexes are located about 90 miles apart. The satellite images show unusual groupings of mounds that have unusual features and orientations. The features were discovered by a satellite archaeological researcher named Angela Micol from Maiden, NC.

One of the sites is in upper Egypt 12 miles from the city of Abu Sidhum along the Nile River. This site has four different mounds each with a larger triangular-shaped plateau. At this particular site, the two larger amounts are roughly 250 feet wide with a pair of smaller mounds measuring roughly 100 feet in width. The entire complex is arranged in a clear formation with the large mound extending the width of 620 feet, nearly 3 times the size of the Great Pyramid.

90 miles north of the first site near the Fayoum oasis is the second pyramid complex believed to contain a four sided truncated mound approximately 150 feet wide. This particular site has a distinct square center, which is unusual for a mound of the size. 1.5 miles southeast of an ancient town called Dimai three smaller mounds were discovered in a very clear formation similar to the diagonal alignment of the Giza Plateau pyramids. Micol says that both sites discovered using Google Earth images have been verified as undiscovered by Egyptologist and pyramid expert Nabil Selim. The next step after the discovery using satellite images will be field research.

[via Discovery]

Google Earth satellite images may have discovered new Egyptian pyramids is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

When the robots come for you, at least they won’t scratch the walls. MIT research into autonomous flight has delivered a robotic plane that can thread its way, at speed, through enclosed and indoor conditions, without requiring preconfigured flight plans or GPS navigation. The plane has significantly longer flight time than autonomous helicopters, though introduced a fair few problems of its own.

Unlike helicopters, which can hover, rotate on the spot, easily travel in three-dimensions and go sideways, planes must keep moving and have reduced flexibility in where they can redirect themselves. MIT’s solution was a custom-designed aircraft with shorter, chunkier wings that combine tight turning, the possibility of relatively low speeds without stalling, and reasonable cargo capabilities for the AI smarts and camera equipment.

Inside, along with the cameras which allow for the bird’s-eye view in the video below, the plane has a laser rangefinder, accelerometers and gyroscopes to track whereabouts in the room it is, what speed it’s traveling, acceleration, and more. At any one moment in time, the plane is figuring out 15 different values, MIT says, and part of what makes the new system special is a duo of algorithms – one fast and rough, the other slow and accurate – to first filter out the most relevant data and then crunch only that.

It’s not all magic, at least not yet. The plane must be preloaded with a high-res digital map of the area, unlike helicopters which are capable of building their own maps. That’s next on the MIT team’s agenda, however, boosting the algorithms and building in more visual information to the other sensors.

Of course, an alternative approach might be pairing the best of helicopters and planes, using both in sequence. An autonomous helicopter could enter an unknown area and quickly gather reconnaissance data of the environment, taking advantage of the flexibility of movement to be more comprehensive, and then be followed by an autonomous plane using that fresh data but bringing greater flight time to the table.

[via Gizmodo]

MIT robot plane deletes the pilot is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

A quintet of researchers funded by the National Science Foundation have envisioned a new internet architecture, one where features could be purchased à la carte. The proposed framework would allow users to fine tune their experience by choosing from a variety of connection services. Let’s say, for example, that a customer’s connection is fine for browsing the web, but it doesn’t pass muster for streaming content — a service dedicated to video delivery could be added to close the gap. “Ultimately, this should make the internet more flexible and efficient, and will drive innovation among service providers to cater to user needs,” report co-author Rudra Dutta told The Abstract. A piecemeal next-gen web is no easy feat, however, as it would require revamping the web’s infrastructure with new protocols for choosing particular features, completing payments and monitoring network performance. The group’s rough blueprint will be presented at a conference next week, but you can thumb through their short paper at the source.

Filed under: Internet

Researchers propose à la carte internet services, overhaul for web infrastructure originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Aug 2012 07:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Many wonderful things have come out of the US Military’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency—or DARPA—incuding the internet. But none are as insanely awesome as its new CAAT (Captive Air Amphibious Transporter) which is essentially a tank that floats on water thanks to its oversized inflatable treads. More »