Most energy drinks and supplements only set you up for the inevitable crash. If you’re looking for an instant burst of energy without the usual disadvantages, then you might want to check out Sprayable Energy.
It’s a spray that gives you a dose of caffeine that’s absorbed through your skin so you can get that much-needed boost. According to the spray’s creators, it’s the world’s first topical energy spray and it’s a whole lot better than most other energy products because it doesn’t require you to ingest drinks filled with ingredients other than caffeine.
Its makers claim that since the caffeine is sprayed on, it enters your system gradually so you won’t get the usual energy shock (and crash) that come with using energy products.
Sprayable Energy is currently up for funding on Indiegogo, where a minimum pledge of $15(USD) will get you a single container that should last about 2 to 3 weeks. Just don’t mix it up with your pepper spray.
You might be twenty years old, but your body could be much older. There used to be no way to know, until some researchers from the Lancaster University in the UK came up with something called the “endotheliometer.”
They even go so far as to claim that it could become “the thermometer of the 21st century.” It’s essentially a device that people are supposed to wear on their wrists. It will then detect cardiac-induced pulse waves using LDF to measure the activity on the endothelium, which is the layer of cells that coat the insides of a person’s blood vessels.
Endothelial activity declines with age, so it can be used as a measurement to gauge a person’s relative longevity.
One of the professors working on the device, Aneta Stefanovska, explained: “Endothelial function declines with age, and diseases such as heart failureand hypertension have associated endothelial dysfunction… We can use it to check that the state of ageing is within healthy limits and can try to prevent possible complications leading to serious impairment and cardiovascular disease.”
You can find more information about the device here. One question: Would you really want to know how old your insides are?
I love burgers and I love steaks. I love vegetables (some of them) and I love the environment. Unfortunately, you can’t really love all of them at once (with the exception of veggies) because raising cattle is extremely taxing on the environment.
With the goal of producing beef that doesn’t entirely come from cows (yes, perplexing, isn’t it?), Professor Mark Post and his colleagues of Maastricht University set to work.
The results of their research has resulted in the first public tasting of a lab-grown burger that cost $330,000(USD) to make.
Post explains: “That we are trying today is important because I hope it will show cultured beef has the answers to major problems that the world faces. Our burger is made from muscle cells taken from a cow. We haven’t altered them in any way. For it to succeed it has to look, feel and hopefully taste like the real thing.”
So how the meat cultured? Muscle tissues were first taken from cows on an organic farm. These were then cultured in a nutrient solution, where they multiplied to form strands. Over 20,000 of these strands were collected to make a 5-oz burger.
The cultured burger was prepared by chef Richard McGeown. Among the tasters were Chicago-based author Josh Schonwald and Austrian food researcher Hanni Rützle.
On the burger, Schonwald commented: “The burger had a very bland, neutral flavor. The thing that made it most similar to real beef was the texture. When I bit into it, I was impressed with the bite and how it had a kind of density that was familiar.”
Post explains that it might take ten more years or so before cultured meat makes its way onto consumer’s plates.
What do you think? Would you take a bite of cultured meat or will you only eat the real thing?
The global human population is booming. Some studies predict that we’ll soon run out of resources (read: food) to feed everyone as this growth continues.
One of the proposed solutions? Breed insects and use them as an alternate protein source.
It might sound gross, but one day, that might be the unfortunate reality we’ll all find ourselves in.
Most people didn’t think that idea through further, but one who actually did is industrial designer Katharina Ungel. She came up with a concept called Farm 432 that’s basically a countertop breeder of insect larvae. That way, you can raise your own black soldier fly larvae (yes, she mentioned that species specifically because of its high protein content) without having to go to some farm or store to get them.
Ungel explains that the adult flies don’t need to be fed anything but bio-waste. Each batch of tasty bugs will be ready after 432 hours (hence, the name of the concept.)
Ungel writes: “Farm 432 enables people to turn against the dysfunctional system of current meat production by growing their own protein source at home.”
I’m not crazy of the idea now because I’d rather get my protein from beef, but if bugs are where we’re headed, then I think Katharina’s on to something.
This 15 foot-tall steel brain sculpture can be controlled by your brain waves. It is called Mens Amplio (that means “mind expanding” in Latin). The interactive brain and head has been embedded with LEDs in the branching structures that represent neurons. Those are made from clear light-diffusing acrylic. The built-in LEDs show a sequence of light displays, which are controlled by an EEG reader placed on your head.
Raspberry Pi and Arduino processors are used to translate your brain waves into light patterns in real time. The huge brain also has flames on the outside, triggered only when the participant can successfully meditate.
It will show up at Burning Man this year, and then they want to take the giant head to schools in California to demonstrate it to kids and get them excited about science. technology and fabrication. The video below shows a 3D rendering of what you the finished sculpture will look like (without the flames.)
The Mens Amplio project is seeking additional funds on Indiegogo, if you want to take part.
We’ve seen a 3D printer make objects out of soft materials, and one that uses titanium powder. This 3D printer made by researchers at North Carolina State University is somewhere in between: it uses a liquid metal alloy that is stable at room temperature.
According to the university’s press release, Dr. Michael Dickey, Colin Ladd, Ju-Hee Soand John Muth were able to make freestanding structures out of an alloy of gallium and indium. At room temperature, the alloy reacts with oxygen in the air, forming “a ‘skin’ that allows the liquid metal structures to retain their shapes.” Watch the video below, but I must warn you: it will make you want to play Sims.
According to the researchers, the printer can not only stack metallic beads together as shown in the video; it can also inject the alloy into a polymer template to assume a specific shape. The template can be dissolved to free the printed metal structure. The alloy is also conductive, meaning it can be used to connect electronics. I wonder if the alloy can be used with carbomorph to print complex gadgets.
Generally speaking, it’s not a good idea to put things in the microwave that don’t belong in there. But that doesn’t stop the curious minds of people like us from wanting to see what happens to other stuff when you jostle around its atoms in the microwave. Take, for instance, office supplies – more specifically, a fluorescent highlighter pen. Well, ask, and ye shall receive…
This amazing image of an exploding highlighter was captured by Redditor opticreason, presumably for some optic reason, or maybe just for fun. Either way, he’s going to have a whole lot of fun cleaning out the inside of his microwave after this mess. Never mind the fact that the next time he goes to heat up a Hot Pocket or pop some Reddenbacher’s, his food is going to be hot pink. This makes me wonder what might happen if you microwaved some of those scented markers. Could you make food taste like other flavors? I always had a thing for the grape scent.
Needless to say, I don’t recommend that you try this at home. Your office, on the other hand…
In times of great emergency, a flashlight is definitely one of the essentials to have, aside from food and water. When the electricity is out and it’s night time, you might have to stay in place and wait for the sun to rise if you don’t have a torch with you. Of course, you might have one but not the right batteries to power it up, but you have the Any Battery Light to depend on in that scenario.
But what if you don’t have any good batteries at all? What then?
15-year-old Ann Makosinski probably considered that situation well and hard, and it led her to create a flashlight that only needs some body heat to function; specifically, heat from your hands. The device was made using Peltier tiles, which can create energy when one side of it is heated while the other is kept cool.
Ann put it together with a store-bought circuit, which provided enough voltage, and voila! That’s how the Hollow Flashlight came to be.
In this case, your hand provides the heat while the air inside the flashlight acts as the cooling agent. The entire thing only cost Ann $26(USD) to make!
One thing that I’ve personally experienced from living the always-connected 21st century lifestyle – your gadgets can stress you out. Whether it’s the pressure that you constantly need to check email, or that your boss might text you at three in the morning, it’s become almost impossible to distance yourself from the stressors of work and life if you’re carrying a smartphone. Now, a group of technologists at Stanford are working on a program to help decrease the stress caused by technology – and by life in general.
The Stanford Calming Tech Center is focused on research and development of technologies which can help us better manage our stress, while decreasing the likelihood that gadgets become an added source of stress. I was recently introduced to this budding program while attending Further with Ford, an annual event which shares not only the auto manufacturer’s vision for the future, but provides access to technology and design thought-leaders to share their insights.
The Calming Tech program was founded by Neema Moraveji, who says that the stresses caused by our gadgets can affect your breathing. There’s even evidence that shows that checking your email can cause the same sort of irregular breathing caused by our fight-or-flight mechanism. So how can we decrease our stress levels in the connected world? While you could lock your devices away, that’s not always practical.
What Moraveji proposes is that we leverage our gadgets to help us live more consciously – through practices such as breathing exercises and meditation. His research shows that the introduction of “calmors” such as music, intentional distractions, and moments of mindfulness can make a difference. Among their projects, the Calming Tech team is working on a system called BreathAware, a biofeedback device that pairs with your wireless device to help you manage your breathing throughout the day.
In addition, the team is working on ideas for user interfaces which reduce stress, as well as tools which let users know how frequently they’re performing common tasks like reading emails. The lab also offers a regular course called “d.compress – Designing Calm,” which encourages students to create interactive technologies which reduce, rather than introduce stress.
It’s a very interesting field of study, and one well worth pursuing in my opinion. While I’m all for pervasive technology and connectivity, it is important that we don’t let them add new forms of stress to our lives.
Japanese toilet company Toto has a bike that runs on poop. If you want to save on fuel and produce your own fuel instead, this is the bike for you. The toilet you see there is just decorative, but the engine does run on poop.
It’s called the Neo and it took three years of research, development and design. It is basically a 250cc trike, with a built-in toilet for a seat. However, I was just kidding about you contributing to the fuel supply, which is actually purified and compressed livestock waste. So it still runs on poop – just not yours.
The bio-gas that it uses comes from the Shika-oi, in Hokkaido where waste and household water are converted to methane gas via fermentation. The methane gas is then converted to bio-gas by purifying. The bio-gas is what ends up in the bike, so there’s no actual manure anywhere, but it’s a fun design that gets the word out about alternative energy.
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.
The results of their research has resulted in the first public tasting of a lab-grown burger that cost $330,000(USD) to make.
