It’s rare for meteoroids falling to Earth to remain intact—only five to ten make it each year—but the ones that do could contain the secrets of the universe or, even better, clues about the origins of life. And it looks like the meteorite that lit up the California sky last year did just that.
     |
If you’ve ever listened to a recording of yourself and thought you sound completely different, you’re not alone. But more than that, you were also correct. Here’s why it sounds different.
| |
We’ve all heard of wireless charging before, but most solutions still require your phone to come in touch with a base station. Well, Cota is a technology that aims to power your mobile device completely wirelessly — without any physical contact at all. Hatem Zeine, a physicist and CEO of Ossia Inc, demonstrated the technology on stage at TechCrunch Disrupt when he successfully charged his iPhone when plugged with a Cota prototype, seen above, while holding it several feet away from a charging station.
It all seems like voodoo, but the secret lies in sending a magnetic charge over the same 2.4GHz spectrum that WiFi and Bluetooth already use. If you’re concerned about safety, Zeine assures us that only one watt of power is transmitted — that’s a third of what cell phones already transmit. Line of sight isn’t required, and Zeine claims that one station can power multiple devices at once. Just like a WiFi hotspot, you can set it so that it only works with certain devices or simply open it up so that power is available to all Cota-enabled handsets within range, which is around 30 feet.
Filed under: Cellphones, Science, Mobile
Via: TechCrunch
Source: Cota by Ossia
Over 200,000 would-be space explorers applied for the first round of Mars One‘s Astronaut Selection Program, though there’s still several years – and a few more screenings – before the mission goes ahead. Not-for-profit Mars One opened up for applications earlier this year, offering the chance of a one-way trip from Earth to the red […]
It’s no secret that finding yourself outside and exposed during a thunderstorm greatly enhances your risk of being struck by lightning. But it turns out there are some simple tricks you can use to increase your chances of survival if the clouds do decide to strike you from above.
| |
All human existence is a meaningless blip in the grand scheme of time. Nice thought for a Monday, right? But you knew that already, so here’s another way to think about it: All the grand monuments we build are made of rock thousands of times older than the historical blips they commemorate.
| |
When we talk about license plates, it would be common for most of us (except for the very artistic or futuristic out there) to think of these as metal plates that tell the world the legal identification number of your ride. Well, it does seem that the golden state of California might have something that would definitely tickle the interest of many – that they might offer electronic license plates. California’s senate recently approved a bill that would allow the creation of the country’s first electronic license plate, although it seems to be more focused on the creation of a pilot program that is due to be completed before the year 2017 arrives.
Surely there are benefits to an electronic license plate, don’t you think so? It is meant to induce savings from the DMV (and hence, the state of California) which happen to amount to approximately $20 million in postage. After all, renewal stickers do need to be sent out to a sizable population that will cost some serious coin, don’t you think so? Smart Plate Mobile happens to be the company that holds the patent on the electronic license plate, and it also boasts of the ability to show off advertisements at stops despite the fact that the current bill does not support such an action.
California Set To Implement Electronic License Plate Program original content from Ubergizmo. 
| |
Forget Mother Nature: when it comes to all matters matter, the sheer ingenuity of the human mind can give rise to some of the most insane—and useful—new materials you’ve ever encountered. Here are five crazy new man-made materials whose uses could be practically limitless.
| |
Infinity is one of those mind-boggling concepts that even manages to confuse some of the smartest scientists. But when it comes to the universe, is it infinite or just… big?
| |
Did you ever think that during your lifetime you would witness an organ
transplant that was made by a 3D printer? That if you desperately needed
a liver or a
kidney transplant, you would not have to be at the top of a national
list of recipients, and then be lucky enough to find a compatible donor? That time is coming very soon if the British TTP Group has anything to say about it. It’s got the patents on the new Vista 3D Nozzle.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
