Computing
- Tech
Build the drone of your dreams
Drone fans can now use new computer software to design and ‘test’ their own customized flying machines before putting time and money into building them.
- Computing
LEDs offer new way to kill germs in water
Growing ultraviolet-light-emitting diodes on thin, flexible sheets of metal holds promise for water disinfection and other applications.
- Computing
Computer hackers take to the cloud
People use cloud computing for storing files online. A new study shows the dark side of the cloud: These services can harbor malware.
- Physics
Wind power gets downsized — but in a good way
Two young scientists have developed ways to tap into wind power on a small scale.
- Computing
Two numbers set a record — and not just for being book length
Twin primes are prime numbers that differ by just 2. The largest known twins have just been discovered — each 388,342 digits long!
- Tech
Star Trek technology becomes more science than fiction
On Star Trek, the characters used devices that seemed wild, futuristic and impossible. But those sci-fi gadgets are inspiring real-world, useful inventions.
- Science & Society
How computers get out the vote
Increasingly computers play a role in voting. Here’s why that concerns scientists, even as they acknowledge that computers may be increasingly essential.
- Brain
Cool Jobs: Video game creators
Meet an engineer who worked on StarCraft II, an expert building a new kind of reality and a neuroscientist who uses games as brain therapy.
- Brain
Explainer: How to read brain activity
Electricity underlies the chattering of brain cells. Here’s how scientists eavesdrop on those conversations.
- Computing
Self-designed tattoos are fashionable technology
Researchers have created do-it-yourself temporary tattoos. They’re a fashion-forward way to control electronic devices.
- Tech
Moral dilemma could limit appeal of driverless cars
Driverless cars will have to be programmed to decide who to save in emergencies — passengers or pedestrians. Many people aren’t yet sure they are ready to choose cars that make the most moral decision.
- Tech
Clear, stretchy sensor could lead to wearable electronics
Researchers have combined plastics and metal to make a transparent, stretchable sensor. It could soon find use in touchscreens, wearable electronics and more.
