Triton Respirator Concept Works Like Gills

Harry Potter has gillyweed, while non-magical folks like you and me have the Triton respirator. The concept device is a contraption that lets a person “breathe” underwater by functioning as gills.

If you read Harry Potter, then you’ll know how crucial gillyweed was for him during the Twi-Wizard cup tournament. If you didn’t, well, it’s basically a magical plant that gave the person who ate it temporary gills.

While Triton won’t make gills sprout out of your neck, it works in a similar fashion.

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The concept design was thought up by Korean industrial designer Jeabyun Yeon and it essentially would work like the gills on a fish. Its wearer simply has to bite down on the device’s mouthpiece. It will then strip oxygen from the surrounding water and let you breathe as if you were on land and not underwater.

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The Triton uses a series of filters woven together so water molecules can’t pass through. It’s also fitted with a micro-compressor that, in theory, will be able to pull dissolved oxygen out of the water and into its wearer’s breathing tank.

This concept might seem far off now, but who knows? It might turn into a reality in the future.

[via Inhabitat]

Polar Bear! The 4 Best Places to Take a Frigid Dip This New Year’s Day

Polar Bear! The 4 Best Places to Take a Frigid Dip This New Year's Day

It’s New Year’s morning—you’ve got a champagne hangover and half an ill-advised Meat Lover’s pizza on your nightstand. What could possibly make this day better? For some, it’s jumping into an ice-fringed ocean.

Read more…


    



This Pressure Picture Reveals Why Jellyfish Are So Damn Efficient

This Pressure Picture Reveals Why Jellyfish Are So Damn Efficient

Jellyfish are amazing creatures, travelling in massive blooms and pulsating mesmerically to drive themselves through the water. But how does that simple motion manage to push them through the water so quickly?

Read more…


    



Want to Be a Mermaid? There’s a School For That

I’m sure a lot of little girls wanted to become mermaids at some point in their lives. I’m guessing probably after they watched The Little Mermaid or some other movie which featured the mythical creatures.

There’s no way you can actually become a mermaid, but now you can learn how to be one (or at least, swim like one) at an actual school located in Manila, Philippines.

Mermaid SchoolThe school is called the Philippine Mermaid Swimming Academy and they’ll basically teach you how to swim like a mermaid. Students will be outfitted with “mono-tails” and will be taught basic mermaid moves like dolphin kicks and handstands.

The classes are being taught by professional divers and swimmers, with each 2-hour lesson costing approximately $62.

Through the lessons, instructor Annabelle Jimenez hopes to impart the playfulness and beauty that’s often associated with mermaids to her wards.

[via The Telegraph via TAXI]

Robot Octopus Hits the Water: Doc Ock Junior

I don’t know about you, but I hate swimming in the sea. Why should I risk getting eaten by a shark or strangled by an Octopus when I can be safe on land? Now there is another reason to fear the sea. Robot octopi.
octopus robot legs
Scientists are studying the cephalopods because they are great swimmers, with a strange swimming technique known as sculling, which uses all eight of their legs. Researchers are working to replicate this movement in robots. A European team working to build a robotic octopus is trying to recreate the movement from the ground up.

They tried a number of motions using rigid legs to determine the success or failure of different strokes. Probably the weirdest part of the demo video is at the end, when it has soft legs. It looks eerily like a real octopus. Hopefully they don’t have the strength to strangle us.

[IEEE Spectrum via Geekosystem]

RHex Robot Can Jump, Swim, Climb Stairs: Nowhere to Run to, Nowhere to Hide

Jumping robots must really be in demand I guess. RHex uses six curved leg-scoops to propel the robot into some incredible jumps. This 15-pound machine can even hoist itself up a vertical wall that’s taller than itself.

Rhex
The RHex robot has a simple yet rugged design too. It can be completely submerged in water. And those legs are perfect for swimming too. The video here also shows it hop precisely to the end of a platform so that its front legs can catch the edge and launch off for a long horizontal jump over a gap.

It’s also creepy as hell too, thanks to those legs. It’s like you are watching some oversize insect that you just want to take down before it evolves to kill you. Maybe that’s just me. I’m always thinking ahead to our eventual robopocalyptic downfall. I mean, this thing can jump, swim and climb. Where the hell can you hide from it?

[via Geek]

AquaLung Dreamlab Oceanwings: For Flying Underwater

I’ve seen wingsuits used in basejumping and skydiving, but I guess it makes sense to use something akin to those suits underwater, since some animals like ray fish use their “wings” to fly underwater.

aqualung dreamlab oceanwings wingsuit

The Oceanwings neoprene suit from AquaLung Dreamlab is supposed to help humans in their subaquatic activities. The suit was created by French designer Guillaume Binard and Frédérique Gouin. It looks like the suit lets you sort of “fly” through the water without much energy expense, though it will probably take some time to get used to the way that it makes the water flow around your body.

aqualung dreamlab oceanwings wingsuit flying

You can see the suit in action in this underwater video directed by Jérôme Espla, featuring Pierre Frolla as he dives into the abyss.

[via designboom]

Grace the Robofish Goes for a Swim

OK, so maybe ‘underwater gliding’ is the technical term, but to me, it looks like this robot fish is swimming. As Grace (short for Gliding Robot ACE), the robot fish glides through the water, it strives to conserve energy.

grace robotic fish

Developed by Associate Professor Xiaobo Tan and a team of engineers at Michigan State University, Grace can flap its tail to swim, but this could deplete its batteries in a few hours. To increase travel time, Grace relies on pumping water out of its body, as well as rhythmically moving its battery to control its direction.

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There are apparently plenty of underwater gliders already in the oceans, but this robotic fish is about a tenth of their size and weight, and it also has an energetic swimming mode. It’s hoped that robots such as these can help monitor the quality of our seas. On its maiden voyage, Grace’s crude oil sensor was able to detect increased oil levels in the Kalamazoo River, presumably linked to a spill back in 2010.

[via New Scientist]

Sony NWZ-W273 Waterproof Walkman Lets You Swim with Your Tunes

If I didn’t have my music when I was running, I probably would have trouble with boredom and motivation, especially because I usually run by myself. So I can imagine the same holds true for any sort of distance swimming. Swimmers rejoice and check out Sony’s new sports MP3 player, that’s completely waterproof.

sony waterproof nwz z27 music player

The Sony NWZ-W273 Walkman is an integrated headphone/MP3 player with 4GB of internal memory. Even if you swim more than a few laps, that should be plenty to load up your favorite tunes for a lengthy workout. Its IPX8 rating means it’s waterproof to up to 2-meters (~6.56 feet) in depth. The device delivers up to 8 hours of music playback, and has a quick-charge option which will juice it up in 3 minutes for an extra hour of playback.

sony waterproof nwz z27 music player device

I can already see hardcore triathletes using this in the water, because they will be easily able to use this on their bikes, and then in the water directly. Assuming, that is, that their particular triathlon allows the use of music players.

sony waterproof nwz z27 music player chilling

The NWZ-W273 Walkman is available in black, white, pink or blue. It’s coming soon to the Sony Store, and sells for $99.99(USD).

This Robotic Sea Turtle Moves Through the Water With Breathtaking Grace

Mankind’s attempts to create robotic humans that move exactly like us have so far been far from perfect. They usually stumble around, desperately trying to keep their balance like a toddler taking its first steps. But recreating the natural motions of underwater creatures like sea turtles? We’ve damn near perfected that. More »