World's first 3D printing photo booth set for scan

Welcome to the newsletter for Gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine. These are the headlines for November the 12th, 2012. World's first 3D printing photo booth set for scan Ever wanted a life-like miniature of yourself or loved ones? Now's your chance, thanks to Omote 3D, which will soon be opening what's described as the world's first 3D printing photo booth in Harajuku, Japan. There, visitors will have their bodies scanned into a computer, a process which takes about 15 minutes. Then the company prints your statuette on their 3D color printer in one of three sizes. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Microwave-packing EatWave vending machine delivers cold food and hot Aside from items with a lengthy shelf life, such as candy bars and potato chips, purchasing any more substantial food from a vending machine is generally a recipe for disappointment. While devices like the pizza vending machine take a specialized approach in an attempt to improve the quality of food on offer, the shotgun approach of traditional vending machines means almost every "fresh" item ends up being anything but. But that could change at least a little bit with the EatWave, a new vending machine that stores refrigerated food and drinks and can microwave specific items before they're delivered. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile First pressure-sensitive, self-healing material developed Our largest bodily organ is also one of the most remarkable. Not only is our skin pressure sensitive, it is also able to efficiently heal itself to provide a protective barrier between our insides and the world around us. While we've covered synthetic materials that can repair themselves or are pressure senstive, combining these properties in a single synthetic material has understandably proven more difficult. Now researchers at Stanford University have developed the first pressure-sensitive synthetic material that can heal itself when torn or cut, giving it potential for use in next-generation prostheses or self-healing electronic devices. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Build your own Robi robot with weekly magazine subscription The Japanese arm of De Agostini, an Italian-based publishing house known worldwide for magazines that drip feed buyers model components on a weekly basis, has chosen something a bit different for its latest offering. Instead of the traditional model car or boat, the company is letting subscribers build their own robot. After 70 issues, which cost JPY¥1,990 (US$25) apiece, buyers will have a fully assembled Robi that stands 13.4 inches (34 cm) tall and weighs just 2.2 pounds (1 kg). Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Transcend Wi-Fi SD cards give cameras a wireless boost While many cameras now pack Wi-Fi connectivity for the wireless sharing and transferring of captured images, those owning cameras without such capabilities need not necessarily have to shell out cash for an entirely new camera to get wireless connectivity. Transcend has announced a new range of Wi-Fi SD memory cards that add wireless capabilities to SDHC-compatible digital cameras, along with a companion app for iOS and Android devices that allows users to browse the contents of the card, instantly view images on their mobile device as they are taken, and share content online. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Medieval manuscripts go digital The 10th century is meeting the 21st with the University of Exeter announcing the development of an app that will make medieval manuscripts available to the public. The app, which is being developed in collaboration with interactive museum technology company Antenna International, will allow students and the general public to study manuscripts that until now have been too fragile to be even exhibited. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Resurrected process converts sugar directly into diesel Researchers at the Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI) are generating bio fuels from renewable sources, such as sugar and starch, using a process that could be commercialized in as little as five to ten years. Although the fuels are currently more expensive to produce than those made from petroleum, they contain more energy per gallon than ethanol and the researchers say that, if adopted, could help to cut greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Autonomous Audi almost matches veteran race car drivers' lap times Stanford's autonomous Audi TTS research vehicle is gaining on the performance of its human-piloted counterparts. In contrast to its slightly pedestrian /www.gizmag.com/audis-autonomous-audi-tt-conquers-pikes-peak-how-long-before-it-betters-a-human-driver/17001/" target="_blank">romp up Pikes Peak back in 2010, the self-driving car known as Shelley has recently hit speeds of 120 mph and posted lap times only just behind those of expert race car drivers at Thunderhill Raceway in California. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Home-made gymnast robot "sticks" the landing After years of trial and error, a Japanese hobbyist has built a gymnast robot that can perform a somersault off a horizontal bar in his living room and stick the landing. The man, who goes by the handle Hinamitetu on YouTube, built the first version of the robot out of boredom after being laid off from a job back in 2010. Since then, the robot has gone through twelve revisions. Although somewhat crudely made, the robot incorporates sensors to automatically clamp onto the bar, and an accelerometer to determine when to let go. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Nook HD vs. Kindle Fire HD We can thank Amazon and Barnes & Noble for making tablets more affordable. B&N created the cheap seven-inch tablet with 2010's Nook Color. Amazon took the concept to new levels with last year's Kindle Fire. Now the two companies are back with improved models. How does the Nook HD compare to the Kindle Fire HD? Let's take a look. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Revolights LED bike wheel lights now available Cyclists have never had so many options when it comes to being seen. A number of lighting products like the Torch T1 helmet and Flux backpack have hit the market in recent months. We've even seen glowing bike frames. Revolights – a system that sees the lights pulled off the handlebar and seat post and put onto the wheels – can now be added to the list. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile NASA using 3D laser printing to create complex rocket parts NASA engineers are using a 3D laser printing system to produce intricate metal parts such as rocket engine components for its next-generation Space Launch System (SLS). The method called "selective laser melting " (SLM) promises to streamline fabrication and significantly reduce production costs. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Drift Innovation releases the souped-up Drift HD Ghost actioncam Christmas must be coming. No sooner do GoPro and Contour release new actioncams, than we now see an updated camera from Drift Innovation. Called the Drift HD Ghost, it's a feature-laden alternative to the company's existing Drift HD – which is already a pretty nice sports video camera. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Smartphone-enabled automatic transmission developed for bicycles In recent years, both Shimano and Campagnolo have introduced electronic gear-shifting systems for bicycles – instead of relying on steel cables, the systems wirelessly transmit signals from the user-operated shift levers to powered shifting actuators on the front and rear derailleurs. Now, a group of engineers from UK-based Cambridge Consultants are taking things a step further. They've developed a smartphone-based electronic automatic transmission for bikes. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile DMC Tuning to build Lamborghini Aventador J-inspired model The question of the hottest, most beautiful new car of the year is never an easy one. So many beautiful sports cars, ultra-luxury sedans and design studies are born during any year, it's hard to come up with a definitive answer. Yet, ask the question about 2012, and all the red sports coupes, unconventional concepts and bulging off-roaders would jostle for position for mere milliseconds before ceding to two instinctive selections: "McLaren P1" and "Lamborghini Aventador J." While the P1 novel still has many chapters to be written, the Aventador J was but a fleeting one-of-a-kind short story that came, enthralled and retired. But it looks like it will live on through tuners like Germany's DMC Tuning. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Review: LG Optimus G smartphone After toiling in obscurity with low to mid-grade smartphones, LG has returned to the high-end. The new Optimus G is a powerhouse flagship designed to make geeks drool. Is this beast of a phone right for you? Or are you better off with its sibling, the Nexus 4? We put it through the paces, in our review of the LG Optimus G. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Recent discovery could save peoples' sight There could be new hope for people facing vision loss due to conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa or wet age-related macular degeneration. Scientists from the University of Southampton have discovered that easily-gathered corneal cells may be able to take the place of degraded retinal cells, thus preventing or curing blindness. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile LG announces 21:9 UltraWide Monitor with four-screen split feature Since unveiling the very first cinema-proportioned HD TV back in 2009, Philips has been leading the charge to get the distinctly oblong screens into our living rooms. Yet despite the powerful draw of immersive movie-theater-like viewing goodness, the buying public's cash (for the most part) continues to be thrown at 16:9 aspect screens. LG is trying another approach to kick start the ultra-widescreen invasion, by launching the world's first 21:9 aspect computer monitor. In addition to its obvious appeal to digital film buffs, the 29-inch EA93 is also being pitched at power users who currently multi-task across multiple displays (in my case a hotchpotch setup of 4:3 and 16:9 mixed displays). Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile A $1,100+ thumb drive, straight from outer space Who says that USB flash drives have to be simple little plastic items designed for carrying around data? ZaNa Design certainly doesn't think so. As such, it's launched a thumb drive called the Apophis that starts at US$1,100 and is made with authentic and certified meteorite. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Qugo urban transporter is "like skiing on the road" Dutch company Urban Mobility Europe has created a personal electric transporter that offers a silent and eco-friendly mode for getting around the city or parklands. Named Qugo, the three-wheeled transporter has a top speed of 25 km/h (15.5 mph) and features a patented construction that offers a flexible and smooth ride, which according to the makers is "like skiing on the road." Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Green Throttle to unleash gaming potential of the Android in your pocket Come March or April, when the US$99 Ouya games console should see release, Android will have stepped out of the mobile sphere and into a dainty little cube residing in the broad proximity of the television. But even before Ouya has had a chance to assert itself in the market, Charles Huang, co-creator of the Guitar Hero series of games, has muddied the water with a different approach to putting Android games on the TV – one that assumes millions of us already have the console itself in our pockets: an Android smartphone. It's called Green Throttle, and it's about as simple as an app and an analog controller. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile CapoSonic - the world's most innovative capo? The latest guitar invention is a capo unlike any other. The CapoSonic can hold down notes directly under the capo, or a fret above or below it, allowing guitarists to quickly and easily arrive at "open tunings" – or new sound configurations – without having to relearn the entire fretboard in the process. Gizmag had a chance to speak to CapoSonic inventor Ben Ryan about his new device. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile PatrolBot Mark II surveys your backyard and sprays unwanted visitors Steve Norris, a software engineer with a knack for robotics, has built himself a remote-controlled robot in his spare time that could give professional bots a run for their money. The aptly titled PatrolBot Mark II trundles around on wheels and sends its operator a live video feed from its night vision camera. Of course, being a hobby project it isn't designed to be dangerous – but its 100-db car horn and water gun might put a scare into trespassing raccoons. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile NANA touchscreen computer system to tackle malnutrition in older people Researchers across a number of UK universities have developed a touchscreen computer system to help tackle the growing yet relatively unknown problem of malnutrition in older adults, and particularly those that live alone. The system combines specially-developed easy-to-use touchscreen software with the remote monitoring made possible by a simple webcam. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile FocusMaker brings follow focus to any DSLR lens If you've ever tried changing focus between subjects while shooting a video with your DSLR, you'll know that auto-focus will often leave you with a stuttering and noisy clip, while using your hand on the lens in manual focus can be tricky. Follow focus systems try to make this easier and better by adding a handle to change focus smoothly, and marker points to move between. The newly-launched FocusMaker is the latest example, which promises the fastest and most accurate focusing of any affordable rack focus system. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile You are receiving this email because you signed up for our daily newsletter at http://www.gizmag.com. If you would like to switch to our weekly newsletter, click here If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter please click here to unsubscribe. COPYRIGHT GIZMAG (C) 2012