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Meet the robot called Hadrian, developped by an australian investor can Hadrian lay 1‘000 bricks an hour an work 24/24 and could apparently build 150 homes a year.

The robot (pictured), called Hadrian, was developed by an Australian inventor. It can lay 1,000 bricks an hour and work around the clock, 24 hours a day. A robotic 'hand' lays the brick, and it can also apply mortar. It 3D scans its surroundings to work out exactly where to place bricks

Called Hadrian - named after the wall - the…

The rumour mill has it that Google is working on another version of its high-tech specs, after taking Google Glass off the market earlier this year. And thanks to a patent that has just been awarded to the company, we have an idea what Google Glass mark two might look like.

The patent, spotted by Quartz, shows a slim pair of specs, and while not exactly fashionable, the design is definitely an improvement on the original. Gone is the third, blinking eye that was the module perching on top of t…

Researchers say it may be possible to create small, portable CO2 sensors for scuba divers or mountain climbers using their new energy-efficient design.

A new sensor that measures carbon dioxide (CO2) is much smaller than existing sensors, is easier to assemble, and uses much less energy. The new sensor consists of a recently developed composite material that interacts with CO2 molecules and changes its conductivity depending on the concentration of CO2 in the environment. ETH Zurich scientists …

Airbus Helicopters has just announced the launch of the concept phase of its planned X6 heavy-lift helicopter. Over the next two years, the company will be seeking input from corporate customers and evaluating different designs. Possible applications for the aircraft could include oil and gas missions, or search and rescue operations.

The twin-engine X6 will be the latest member of Airbus' H family, which already includes the recently-announced H160 medium-lift helicopter. Sharing some feature…

Devices produce electricity from spores resting on water’s surface, but practical applications remain distant.

Harnessing the power from a fundamental process that’s happening constantly, all over the world, a team of scientists at Columbia University have devised tiny engines powered by evaporation. The devices generate electricity from the energy produced by bacterial spores known as Bacillus subtilis, which exhibit strong mechanical responses to changing relative humidity.

The spores expand…

FANUC, a Japanese provider of robotics and automation, has unveiled what it claims is the world’s strongest robot, capable of lifting 1.7 tonnes (1,700kg) – the equivalent of two small cars or 24 people.

LOS ANGELES — Farmers with rights to California water dating back more than a century will face sharp cutbacks, the first reduction in their water use since 1977, state officials announced Friday. The officials said that rights dating to 1903 would be restricted, and that such restrictions would grow as the summer months go on, with the state facing a prolonged drought that shows few signs of easing.

Gino Celli drew a water sample to check the salinity of an irrigation canal that runs through …

This is the fifth episode in a Bits video series, called Robotica, examining how robots are poised to change the way we do business and conduct our daily lives.

Matt McMullen has proved that some people are willing to spend thousands on sex dolls.

Mr. McMullen, the creator of the RealDoll, says he has sold over 5,000 customizable, life-size dolls since 1996, with prices from $5,000 to $10,000. Not only can his customers decide on body type and skin, hair and eye color, but on a recent day in th…

Aviation history is in the making -- no fossil fuels necessary.

Solar Impulse 2, the revolutionary airplane powered exclusively by sunlight, is about to depart on the longest leg of its around-the-world journey.

The Solar Impulse 2's maiden flight.

Solar Impulse 2 is mostly made of carbon fiber. It has 17,248 solar cells on the wings that recharge four lithium polymer batteries. It is extremely light at 5,070 pounds, about the weight of a Ford Explorer, but has a 236-foot wingspan, which gener…

People with Parkinson’s disease may soon be able to treat their own tremors and muscle stiffness without invasive therapy or even a trip to the doctor’s office.

A headband-shaped device can deliver daily, noninvasive brain stimulation at home and tamp down Parkinson’s symptoms.

While the prototype, developed by biomedical engineering graduate students at Johns Hopkins University, hasn’t yet been tested on humans, it’s seen as a promising first step toward helping Parkinson’s patients safely rel…

As Google edges closer to the dream of self-driving cars, Chinese search giant Baidu is trying to beat it to the finish line. The Chinese company — which has been working on self-driving vehicles for the past few years — first announced it had entered a partnership with BMW in 2014. It seems that collaboration has already paid off: this week, Baidu senior vice president Wang Jin said that his company would launch of a new self-driving car with the German car manufacturer before the end of the y…

We expect our phones, tablets, and sometimes even our watches to be connected. The next great platform, however, is about connecting everything in your home — from lights and windows to coffee machines and slow cookers. The Internet of Things is the catch-all phrase used to discuss a vast array of various now-connected objects that may or may not want to talk to one another. That's why Apple has HomeKit and Google introduced Brillo / Weave: everyone wants to own that common language for your li…

Jaguar Land Rover claims that potholes cause

When it comes to creating surfaces, it's a simple task to either make ones that are smooth or ones that are bumpy. But now researchers at MIT have created one that can be both. The 3D-printed surface they have created can be either smooth, bumpy, ridged, or channeled and can dynamically change texture through the application of pressure.

Researchers create a dynamically changing surface textures by 3D printing one material inside another (Credit: Felice Frankel)

Mutable surface textures are i…

Gizmag has covered a wealth of remarkable architectural projects involving 3D printing – including a backyard castle, a number of small homes and a room with 260 million surfaces – but a project in Amsterdam, Netherlands, is set to be particularly impressive. 3D printing R&D firm MX3D is planning to print a bridge across a canal. It is hoped that the robots used will print their own supports and gradually move across the water, creating the bridge as they go.

MX3D will use multi-axis industria…

Empa, ETH Zürich and Bucher Municipal have developed a hybrid-electric powertrain for road sweepers that's said to consume half the energy of diesel-hydraulic vehicles and reduce emissions by more than 60 percent.

The design replaces conventional hydraulic power distribution with a more efficient electric drive system. A small natural gas engine with a power generator acts as the drive source

The design replaces conventional hydraulic power distribution with a more efficient electric drive sys…

Soon the skies will be cleaner. Thanks to Boeing's ecoDemonstrator, an inaugural flight test program that's already improving airplane performance and bringing environmentally friendly technologies to life sooner.

http://www.boeing.com/innovation/#/environment/cleaner-skies-ahead

NASA awarded Boeing $4.2 billion Tuesday to build and fly the United States' next passenger spacecraft.

“Boeing has been part of every American human space flight program, and we’re honored that NASA has chosen us to continue that legacy,” said John Elbon, Boeing vice president and general manager, space exploration. “The CST-100 offers NASA the most cost-effective, safe, innovative and proven successor to the Space Shuttle.”

Boeing built the spacecraft for NASA, but it hopes to take commercia…

NASA’s Leading Edge Asynchronous Propellers Technology (LEAPTech) project is part of an initiative to develop a more efficient, electric-powered plane.

An image of the proposed wings for LEAPTech has been circulating around the Internet lately because they look awesome, to say the least.

NASA

A total of 18 small engines sit along the 31-foot wingspan in order to lift and propel the plane forward.

The propellers, which are all electric, are powered by lithium iron phosphate batteries, each with…

Die Evolution der Windkraft; aus dem Meer, über das Land in die Stadt: Das wollen zwei Ingenieure aus Saarluis mit einer flüsterleisen Windenergieanlage schaffen.

Dirk Schul und Dominique Ouamri nutzen dazu das sogenannte Savonius-Prinzip: Zwei Schaufeln sind dafür an einer senkrecht drehenden Achse gegenüber liegend befestigt. Der Wind fängt sich, woher er auch weht, in den Schaufeln und lässt die Achse rotieren.

Die Nennleistung von drei Kilowatt erreicht die Mühle erst bei einer relati…