Heat-activated “smart material” debuts in 2014 Corvette

Welcome to the newsletter for Gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine. These are the headlines for February the 15th, 2013. Heat-activated "smart material" debuts in 2014 Corvette Chevrolet is taking some major steps to improve and evolve the Corvette. The automaker is bringing back the beloved Stingray and adding a 6.2L V-8 LT1 engine with over 450 horsepower (335kw). Now, Chevy has revealed its intentions to incorporate heat-activated "smart materials" into the 2014 Corvette. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Vuzix adds 3D augmented reality capabilities to Wrap 1200AR glasses Adding to its previously released set of video eye-wear glasses, the Wrap 1200, Vuzix is now shipping the Wrap 1200AR. The AR (Augmented Reality) part of the tag is thanks to the addition of a stereoscopic camera pair mounted on the frames, which support VGA video capture at 30 frames per second and enable the display of 3D or 2D AR content. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Archos goes Platinum with three new quad-core tablets When you talk about tablet manufacturers, you might mention names like Apple, Samsung, Asus, and Amazon. Once you get past the big names, though, there is an oft-forgotten tier of businesses battling for your dollars. One of those is Archos. Its new line of tablets takes some cues from the iPad, though their price tags are more akin to bargain bin tablets. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Zero G Soccer teaches players to use their heads ... and feet To be truly world class in any sport requires an innate ability coupled with years of training, usually starting at a very young age. While it's still impossible to engineer what you're born with, it is possible to train until you improve your skill level to a reasonable level. Training aids can be a useful tool, both for building fitness levels and increasing confidence. The people behind the Zero G Soccer Trainer claim their system does just this for aspiring soccer stars. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Cross training helps humans and robots work better together Like many people, I spend most of my time worrying about the inevitable robot uprising. MIT is doing its bit to put off that day with its experiments in teaching robots and humans to work together peacefully. Using cross-training techniques, the researchers got robots and humans to swap jobs so they could see things from the others' point of view and carry out tasks more efficiently when working together. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Lagos' flood-beating floating school nears completion Design and urbanism practice NLÉ, led by Nigerian architect Kunle Adeyemi, is building a new multilevel school in Makoko – a region of Nigeria's most populous city, Lagos. While that doesn't sound too unusual, the difference here is that in an effort to address the issues of land scarcity and poor waste management that affect the flood-prone area, this school is being built on floating platforms. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Analysts say renewable energy now cheaper option than new fossil fuels in Australia In 2008, the Garnaut Climate Change Review ranked Australia as the highest per capita emitter of greenhouse gases of any OECD country and amongst the highest in the world. One of the reasons for the country's high carbon footprint is its reliance on coal for electricity generation – 54 percent of it, according to the Australian Coal Association. But a new study by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) points to a cleaner energy future with the claim that unsubsidized renewable energy is now a cheaper option for electricity generation than new coal- or gas-fired power stations. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Grillbot – the new BBQ cleaning king? It doesn't matter if it's called a BBQ, a grill or a Barbie; those char-grilled steaks leave a thick layer of grease and grime behind. And while cooking is fun, cleaning is not. What you need is a neat little R2D2 to scrub the filth away, leaving you to crack a beer and get ready to fire up the next BBQ. Enter the Grillbot, a cute, single button operated bot that perches on your grill and lives to clean. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile New technique holds promise for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis A team of scientists at Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has developed a new technique to treat autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. The approach, which is based on the infusion of cells that regulate immune responses, has been demonstrated to to be effective in mice, even weeks after the disease was initiated. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Boomerope loops ropes over high objects If you've ever tried to loop a rope over a high branch, girder, pole or whatnot without using a ladder, then you'll know that it can be pretty frustrating. As with most frustrating tasks, however, someone has invented a gizmo to make it easier. That gizmo is the Boomerope. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile BMW Z4 GTE takes over American Le Mans duties With the American Le Mans season drawing near, BMW announced that it will be shifting ALMS duties to a new car. With four years under its belt, the M3 GT is stepping aside to make room for the new Z4 GTE. The car is more svelte than its predecessor, and while BMW expects to have some wrinkle ironing to do during its debut season, it is optimistic about what it can do. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile The Vertu Ti: a $10,000 Android phone Technically, Android is a free and open source mobile operating system, but there's still plenty of opportunities out there to pay gobs of money for an Android phone. The most exorbitant way to show you're both a member of the Android faithful and a big spender is with the new Vertu Ti. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Silicon nanoparticles used to create a super-performing battery In some peoples' opinion, electric cars won't become truly viable until their batteries offer a lot more driving range, and can be recharged much more quickly than is currently possible. Well, those people may soon be getting their wish. Scientists at the University of Southern California have developed a new type of lithium-ion battery, that they claim holds three times as much energy as a conventional li-ion, and can be recharged in just ten minutes. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile CADScan3D desktop scanner generates accurate full-color virtual models Computer models are typically created by specialists using dedicated CAD software or animation packages. The more detailed the object, the more time and experience it takes to make it. One shortcut would be to scan a real life version of the desired object (if it exists), but 3D scanners are generally expensive, bulky machines that aren't practical for the average person. The advent of affordable, desktop-sized 3D scanners like the CADScan3D could change all that – and presents troubling legal issues for the growing maker movement. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Barefoot-leguano socks/shoes feature massaging bubble soles After seeing a barrage of ever-changing styles over the past few years, we've become sort of numb to the weirdness of barefoot shoes. But, every once in a while, a manufacturer manages to introduce a design that shocks and awes. The barefoot-leguano that we spotted at the recent ISPO sports show is one such design. Sort of a Swiss Protection Sock with a mild Reebok ATV-style bubble sole, these shoes aim to fill that lessening void between full shoes and bare piggies. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Sony patents universal 3D glasses Sony has filed a US patent for 3D glasses that can be used with any 3D TV set. The glasses use a variety of downloadable software and interchangeable modules that hold out the promise of cheaper 3D glasses that aren't tied to a single receiver model. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Ultra-high capacity battery lands on Kickstarter Lately, there has been an influx of products designed to charge your phone or tablet without an outlet. One of the latest offerings has found its way to Kickstarter, and it promises high capacity in a form factor that's quite a bit smaller than most on the market. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Edgeland Residence: A modern take on the Native American Pit House Edgeland Residence is a modern dwelling designed by the Bercy Chen Studio which sees the company rehabilitating land once considered unsuitable for occupation. Claimed to set a new standard for sustainability, it draws inspiration from the Native American Pit House, and is designed to impact the environment as little as possible. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Eyes-on with the Oculus Rift's jaw-dropping virtual reality system The Oculus Rift VR system has been steadily gaining more attention in the past several months, thanks to glowing endorsements from some major figures in the the video game industry and a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign that brought in almost US$2.5 million. We've been following the development of the Oculus Rift for some time now, so finding out the company had its virtual reality goggles available to try on at CES was an especially pleasant surprise. Naturally, we simply couldn't resist giving the Rift a test drive to see if it lived up to all the hype. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Trick Kick – like foosball with real people Can't get your proper fill of football (or, if your prefer, soccer) by living vicariously through the Ronaldos and Messis of the world? Consider table foosball frat boy play? Perhaps the new Trick Kick mini soccer game will do the ... trick. Billed as the world's one and only original indoor mini kick soccer game, Trick Kick provides a new way of experiencing the world's most popular sport. 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) 2013