Battery goo is like gas for electric cars, but better

Vial of battery goo with a prototype battery behind

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Electricity is nothing like gas. You can't just pump a tank full of it into your electric car, which means that we're reduced to lengthy charge times or inefficient compromises likebattery swap stations. MIT researchers may have come close to solving this problem with a battery goo that you can pump just like gas.

They're calling this black sludge "Cambridge crude," and it's really two different types of goo, each holding charged particles suspended in semi-liquid electrolyte, sort of like how quicksand is comprised of sand particles suspended in water. There's anode goo, and there's cathode goo, and when the two goos are separated by a goo-separating membrane, charge moves from one goo over to the other goo, generating current to power your car.

When all the charge has been used up, you can pull over to a goo station, which will suck out your used goo and pump new goo back in. Or, when you get home, you can plug your car into a wall socket and recharge your goo that way. So it's like having all the advantages of being able to pump gas, with the added advantage of being able to fill up at home, too.

And it gets better. The goo batteries are cheaper to build than conventional lithium-ion batteries, and they're not dependent on any particular goo chemistry, so as we get better at cooking up more efficient and tastier goo, we can just pump that in instead. The MIT team received a DARPA grant to make this all happen, and by 2013, they should have a reduced-scale system operational and serving as a prototype replacement for electric car batteries.

Levitating train flies like a plane, no magnets involved

Prototype of the proposed levitating Aero Train.

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This week at the at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics in Shanghai, China, a bunch of Japanese researchers led by Yusuke Sugahara at Tohoku University showed off a prototype transport that hovers inches above the ground without maglev rails. To put it into geeky Star Wars speak: this is the Landspeeder you're looking for.

Categorized as a "ground-effect vehicle," the unmanned plane-train uses fast-moving air and several plane wings to levitate itself above the ground. The plan is to use this prototype vehicle to create an Aero Train (below) that's capable of traveling at 124 miles per hour in a "U-shaped concrete channel."

As shown in the demo video (without the safety channel), the "train" looks wobbly a few times, but is generally stable at its slow speeds. Crank that speed up and stuff this sucker into a channel and who know's what it'll feel like eating dinner on this thing.

The prototype train has been in the works for a year and was presented at the IRCA 2011 in China as part of a study. I think it's incredible that people are still experimenting with ways to kill the wheel. No matter how you look at it, hover vehicles still make up a majority of the concept ideas that litter sci-fi entertainment. With that said, the first one to create a hover train or car that isn't rinky-dink will have DVICE's everlasting respect.

Yusuke Sugahara, via Spectrum

For the latest tech stories, follow us on Twitter at @dvice

UV light heals scratched polymer paint in 30 seconds flat

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Go ahead, get your car and your laptop and your sunglasses all scratched up. A new "metallo-supramolecular polymer" can switch from a solid coating to a liquid under UV light, magically repairing scratches in less than 30 seconds.

Researchers at Case Western Reserve have developed a special polymer that changes its structure when exposed to UV light. It's specifically intended to be used on stuff that people own, from cars to furniture to gadgets. The polymer is made up of lots of tiny molecular chains, held together with a glue of metallic ions. When you shine a UV light on it, the metallic ions stop acting like a glue, and the chains separate into a liquid that fills in any cracks. Take the light away and everything turns solid and smooth again.

This process happens fast enough that you can just wave a handheld light over the surface you want to fix and it'll be good as new in about 30 seconds. And because of the properties of the polymer, you're not "using up" its fixing power every time you do this: you can scratch the same spot over and over and it'll just keep fixing itself right up.

The good news is that from the sound of things, the researchers are already in talks with a few different companies to get this stuff into the commercial market as soon as possible. When exactly that's gonna be is anyone's guess, especially considering that we've heard about this kind of thingonce or twice before, but hey, progress is progress.

A bottle of wastewater could be powering your house by next year

Water plus sunlight equals hydrogen plus oxygen equals electricity, in this efficient artificial plant.

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By mimicking the essential process that allows plants to produce energy, an MIT researcher has managed to create electricity out of water more efficiently than conventional solar cells, to the point where one and a half bottles of wastewater could power an entire house for a day.

Plants, being extremely clever, somehow manage to use sunlight to crack water into oxygen and hydrogen. They combine the hydrogen with carbon dioxide to make sugar (which is what I would do, 'cause sugar is good stuff), but we humans have been trying to figure out for about a century how to skip the sugar step and just recombine that oxygen and hydrogen back into water to generate electricity.

Daniel Nocera, a chemistry and engineering researcher at MIT, has come up with an artificial "leaf" that uses cobalt and phosphate to split water molecules using nothing but sunlight. When the oxygen and hydrogen are recombined, they make electricity at an efficiency higher than that of traditional solar cells, and it's easy to just store the gases to be recombined later in a fuel cell when the sun doesn't happen to be shining.

Nocera has just teamed up with Tata Group to work towards commercializing this technology. By sometime next year, the goal is to have a cheap power plant about the size of a refrigerator that could generate enough power with some sun and a bottle and a half of water (wastewater, even) to power a small home for a day. And it only scales up from there, apparently:

"Nocera estimates that the world consumes 14 terawatts (TW) of power today. By 2050, it will need 16TW. If his solution works, said Nocera, it would need a swimming pool full of water every day to meet the world's electricity needs."

While I'd really like to believe that, I'm not entirely sure how you get from one and a half bottles of water per house to a swimming pool for the entire planet short of using antimatter. Hmm, maybethat's the secret that plants have been hiding for a billion years.

Live Mint, via Fast Company

Teleportation may be taking over your internet connection

We picked our jaws off the floor when we heard about tiny particles being teleported just a foot or two away, but now scientists have topped that by 10 miles. This tech won't be transporting Kirk and his Away Team to the surface of some distant planet anytime soon, but it has seriously practical applications to communications.

Quantum physics says photons can, in some ways, occupy two places at once. When one photon gets entangled with another, whatever happens to one of those particles also happens to another, even if it's TEN frickin' miles away! Now THAT's a fast connection.

The good news: The researchers were able to send this info with 89% fidelity. The bad? Information transmitted in this way will be hard to encrypt. But they're working on that. There's good reason to work on it; if they can get this right, the communication would be completely secure. Since there's no physical medium for the transmission to travel through — not even

5 real Iron Man prototypes in the making

Iron Man 2 hits theaters today, telling a tale about a man in a suit of armor who flies around like a jet and shoots energy bolts from his palms. In the real world, we're not quite there yet, but you may be surprised just how close we are to an Iron Man of our own.

Powered exoskeletons are mostly sought after to enable the soldiers of tomorrow, who will be able to lift hundreds of pounds and run for miles without breaking a sweat. Beyond that, though, they could save lives in the wake of a terrible disaster, or even perform smaller miracles such as helping the paralyzed walk again.

Continue reading to check out five exoskeletons that do all that and more.

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1. HULC

Creator: Lockheed Martin

Powered by: Four lithium ion batteries, 48-hour operation

What it does: Officially the Human Universal Load Carrier, Lockheed Martin's HULC system would allow a soldier to travel 10 miles an hour, even while carrying a 200-pound load. The best part? He would barely feel the excess weight.

The future: Soldiers in the future will be able to carry more complicated and powerful equipment without having to feel the added strain. Lockheed envisions soldiers being able to carry more than just weapons in that they could field more complex electronics to increase their awareness in the field.

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2. HAL-5

Creator: Tsukuba University (Japan)

Powered by: Waist-mounted 100-volt battery pack

What it does: The Hybrid Assistive Limb, or HAL-5, distinguishes itself from almost every other exoskeleton in that it's available now and currently seeing limited use. It uses electrodes resting on the operator's skin to analyze muscle movements, and then enhances the wearer's strength by up to five times what it'd normally be.

The future: A company called Cyberdyne is mass-producing the suits, with early prototypes alreadyavailable for rental in Japan. The HAL-5 isn't designed for the battlefield. Instead, it was made with Japan's elderly-heavy workforce in mind, as laborers would be able to continue to perform with robotic assistance despite their age.

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3. Trojan T Series

Creator: Troy Hurtubise

Powered by: Helmet-mounted, solar-powered battery packs

What it does: Troy Hurtubise's Trojan armor isn't a fully powered suit. Instead, battery packs on the helmet enable the five-way radio, a laser pointer for range-finding and spotting and even an air conditioner. It was popularly referred to as "Halo armor" thanks to its resemblance to the Spartan soldiers in the video game of the same name, and drew criticism for being impractical, despite Hurtubise's claims to its protective capability.

The future: Undeterred, Hurtubise went on to create a second suit, not quite as flamboyant as the Trojan T series (pictured above with a shield), streamlining the suit and making it lighter. The Trojan suits represent his vision of the future soldier, who is more like a walking tank — something that the other exoskeletons on this list could make possible, as they'd allow a trooper to wield such heavy armor.

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4. XOS

Creator: Sarcos/Raytheon

Powered by: External power supply via cable

What it does: The XOS is similar to the HULC in that it allows the wearer to lift upwards of 200 pounds without feeling any strain, thanks to hydraulic assistance and sensors attached to the hands and feet. (The XOS test pilot is said to have been able to perform over 500 reps at that weight, and still feel minimal strain.) Unlike the HULC, the XOS is tethered, meaning it has no onboard power supply. That allows its designers to continually build a more powerful suit without limiting it based on power concerns, though the wearer can't travel very far.

The future: The XOS is already one of the most advanced powered suits (if not the most advanced), though right now that's largely thanks to its tethered power source. A future soldier would not only enjoy increased strength and endurance, but also something just as important: reaction time. The researchers behind the XOS designed it to be responsive down to the second, without any lag, acting like a second skin.

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5. Lifesuit (Prototype 14)

Creator: Monty Reed

Powered by: Compressed air allows the suit to move 2.5 miles per hour

What it does: To understand the Lifesuit, you have to know a little about Monty Reed. Once an Army Ranger, he suffered a severe back injury after a parachute crash and was told he'd never walk again. Now he's walking after extensive rehab, but he won't forget that experience — and so the idea of the Lifesuit was born. The latest iteration, Prototype 14 (or LS14), uses a system of compressed air that can automate the process as well as allow the wearer to pick up objects as heavy as 200 pounds, just like the XOS and the HULC.

The future: Unlike the XOS and the HULC, the Lifesuit isn't being produced with the military in mind. Instead, Monty Reed is looking to replace the wheelchair. His exoskeleton would let those who have lost the ability to walk or have been partially paralyzed get their mobility back. Three variants of the Lifesuit are planned, including the Home Suit, which would be like a walking wheelchair; the Rescue Suit, which would aid workers during disaster recovery, allowing them to lift and clear rubble with ease; and the Rehab Suit, which helps everyone from the elderly and paraplegics train their bodies.

Apple loses the iPhone prototype and now DARPA loses a hypersonic plane. Get it together people

Depending on how things went, this could have been an article detailing another one of DARPA'sinsane projects spreading its wings. Sadly, the maiden voyage of the agency's Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2 (or HTV-2) didn't go so smoothly.

The HTV-2 is a hypersonic glider, capable of traveling at speeds of over Mach 20. That's pretty damn fast, and maybe a little too fast, as nine minutes into its maiden voyage, whatever satellite or ground-based solution tracking the glider couldn't keep up and contact was lost.

The HTV-2 is designed to allow for "prompt global strike" options, or being able to deliver a payload of conventional weapons anywhere in the world in under an hour. It'd glide through the Earth's atmosphere, making it mighty hard to shoot down, and there's also the added benefit that other nations wouldn't mistake it for a nuclear missile.

Ideally, DARPA was looking for the autopilot test to see the HTV-2 through a series of maneuvers that would help it bleed off some energy while banking and turning, and then perform a controlled dive into the water. The agency will try again in 2011, when a second test is scheduled for the craft.

Via PopSci and PhysOrg

Is it the right time to bring out 3D phones?

Motorola has a tricky 3D phone up its sleeve. Check out these unusually sharp spy shots of the Moto MT820 "Ming," a flip phone that uses two screens and glasses-free 3D in an attempt to distract you from the fact that you'll be carrying around a cellphone that's way too thick. Let's face it, RAZR-thin it ain't.

Gather what you can from these up close and personal photos, because there's not much more information available at this point. However, according to the dual-screen 3D patent Motorola applied for a few weeks ago, each screen displays 2D content, but when you close this clamshell, suddenly you'll see 3D in all its glory. It appears to employ a trick similar to the glasses-free "parallax barrier" touchscreen we showed you a few weeks ago from Sharp.

Why put 3D on a cellphone? Because they can. Might make a compelling parlor trick. Or who knows, perhaps in the future all phones will be capable of displaying 3D.

Via Slashphone

Touchscreen was so last year, Hovercreens are the new thing

Cellphones with Cypress touchscreens, such as the Nokia S60 and Palm Pre, will soon have an extra dimension on board: hovering. You know when you're working on your desktop computer, and an icon changes when you move your cursor over it? In the next few months, cellphones will be able to do that, too, detecting the presence of your finger near the screen, and letting you hover the cursor without touching the screen.

Say, wasn't the lack of finger-hover tracking one of the lame reasons Apple used for not having Flash on its iPhone or iPad touchscreens? Flash uses hovering extensively, so this new capability will come in handy on those no-excuses smartphones that are Flash capable. We love Apple's touchscreens, but it looks like their dominance might soon be eclipsed.

Here's a video of the new tech in action:

NASA and GM to send human-like robot into space for the first time

Both humans and robots have explored the final frontier, but for the first time a human-like robot is going to be sent into space to aid the astronauts on the International Space Station. Known as Robonaut 2 (or endearingly, R2), the two-armed 'bot is the result of a venture by NASA and General Motors, and will help the researchers involved identify in what ways a robot could be a help to human explorers in space. Before it gets to go on its first space walk, however, it'll be monitored to see how well it deals with weightlessness.

It's worth noting that this isn't really the first "robotic man" to head to orbit, as R2 isn't bipedal — its lower body is commonly a set of four wheels instead of legs. It will be the first time a robot mimicking a human form is sent to help astronauts, however, and as robots are seen as the future of space exploration, it's a pretty big first step. R2 goes up to the ISS in September aboard Space Shuttle Discovery.

Via The New York Times

What if a Golf Cart and a Golf Bag Had a Baby?

While it'd probably ruin the majesty of something like the Masters golf tournament, the Mantys is perfect for solo golfers who don't want to mess around with either a cart or a caddy.

It's an electric scooter that's good for 36 holes (or around 13 miles) on a single charge, and tops out at 12 miles per hour, which should be more than enough for the green. The Mantys has space for your golf bag up front, storage area for your scorecard, balls and tees, and — of course — a cupholder. The only thing it doesn't have is a price, as it's call-to-order.

Check out a video of the Mantys in action down below.

Man builds robot that drinks polluted water

Most of us grow up thinking that clean water is good, while polluted water is bad, but that's only because we approach these things from a human perspective. Just as plants rely on the carbon dioxide that we breathe out, each living thing exists in a biosystem where plants and animals need each other to survive. Mexican artist Gilberto Espaza has used this thinking to create his Nomadic Plants, and in the process, he teaches us something about the world we all live in.

Each plant is a self contained cyborg that holds both plants and micro-organisms, along with a microbial fuel cell that powers the robot. Whenever the robot senses that it needs nourishment, it will seek out a source of polluted water and take a drink. The robot uses the water to feed the plants and microbes, which in turn feed the microbial fuel cell that powers the mechanical parts of the Nomadic Plant.

Espaza's goal is not to actually solve our pollution issues, but more to demonstrate that solving the world's problems can involve thinking outside the box, something he's clearly pretty good at.

The Nomadic Plants are being exhibited at the Laboral Art and Industrial Creation Center in Gijon, Spain, through June 7th.

Plantas Nomadas, via GizmoWatch

Solar Powered Charger May Do Wonders For Developing Nations

Humanitarians aim to bring light to the world, and this Solar Pebble could do literally that, charging up its batteries on sunny days and lighting up the night. Aimed at developing countries where electricity is often scarce, it's packing enough power to charge up cellphones and other small devices, too.

For easy carrying and more useful placement, there's a ratcheting stand/carrying handle on the back that helps tilt this sucker toward the sun for charging, also perfect for aiming its LED light right where it's wanted.

Adam Robinson of Plus Minus Solar designed his solar device as a low-cost convenience item for those who don't have access to the electrical grid. Unlike this $50 solar lantern, the Solar Pebble is designed to be dirt cheap; now all he needs is a humanitarian with deep pockets to ship millions of these babies where they're most needed.

Minority Report Interface Comes True and its Cheap!!

Just when we thought our days of writing Minority Report in a headline were over, MIT students Tony Hyun Kim and Nevada Sanchez had to roll up with a concept so faithful to the movie it has us excited all over again. Called "Glove Mouse," the device has microprocessors on the back of each glove to translate the movements of fingers into button presses, allowing all the pinching, pointing, grabbing and waving you saw in the movie. Hell, they even added sexy little LEDs to the tip of each index finger.

The most amazing part isn't actually the Glove Mouse itself, though — it's that the entire rig only cost the pair $100. Check it all out in Kim and Sanchez's (decidedly rockin') video below.

It looks like Repo Men isn't that far from reality

Artificial body parts are here today, but they still have a long way to go before they can rival our original equipment. As the movie Repo Men reminds us, total body replacement is on the way, but in the meantime, scientists and technologists are taking small steps toward the development of a complete cyborg. Let's take a look at artificial organs you can use today, and what's in store for the future.

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Heart

Today: It's only temporary. If you want a mechanical ticker now, don't get too attached to it because it's only temporary. Internal artificial hearts such as the AbioCor (pictured above) exist today, but because of the tendency to form stroke-inducing blood clots, they're limited to heart patients waiting around for organ transplants.

Tomorrow: The race is on for a permanently implantable artificial heart, and French transplant specialist Alain Carpentier says his model will be ready for clinical trials by 2011, and for actual use as an alternative to heart transplants in 2013. He already has a prototype, using electronic sensors and made of chemically treated animal tissues that he calls pseudo-skin.

Beyond: Smaller, smarter. Scientists are aiming for a miniaturized artificial heart controlled by minuscule processors that determine how quickly the heart needs to beat. It will be equipped with sensors that detect artery blockage and will notify its patient and the doctor of any impending malfunctions. Maybe it will even be able to do those notifications via Twitter.

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Liver

Today: liver assist devices. Of the 16,000 people waiting for liver transplants, there are only about 6,500 transplantable livers available each year. Unlike the movie Repo Men, there are currently no implantable artificial livers, but researchers are developing ELAD, an Extracorporeal Liver Assist Device that resides outside the body. Mimicking a normal liver, it cleanses the blood of toxins and waste, and produces albumin and clotting factors. It's not all artificial, though, with the secret sauce inside being "immortalized human liver cells," interlaced with tiny tubes through which the patient's blood flows. The current technology offers a temporary replacement for the liver while a awaiting a donor.

Tomorrow: stem cell combo. Boston company HepaLife is working on a "bioartificial" liver using a proprietary line of liver stem cells. Once the patient's blood is separated into plasma and blood cells, a external bioreactor unit with those stem cells inside can reduce levels of toxic ammonia by 75% in less than a day.

Beyond: BioEngine's implantable hybrid system uses liver stem cells grown on a special three-dimensional framework of micro tubing running through the cells. The ultimate goal is to create a complete implantable liver replacement.

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Hand

Today: off the hook. Today's artificial hands have come a long way from the days of Captain Hook. Using what's called myoelectric linking, the prosthetic limb picks up electrical impulses from remaining muscle fibers on the arm, transmitting those impulses to articulating fingers and a thumb. They're attached to the stub by suction, belts or cuffs, and some can be expensive, costing upwards of $35,000. More reasonably priced is the i-Limb, an $18,000 artificial hand with articulating fingers and thumb, each with its own motor.

Tomorrow: SmartHand is a bioadaptive hand that can actually feel. Its 40 sensors communicate back and forth directly with the brain using nerve endings in the arm. The hand sends its sensory input to the brain, and the brain sends instructions for movement to the hand. The result? It can pick up a plastic water bottle without crushing it, or pour a drink without spills.

Beyond: Direct route. Researchers are working on permanently implanting an artificial hand directly to the bone in the arm, a process called "osseointegration." That will eliminate much of the inconvenience and discomfort currently associated with artificial limbs. Further improving the experience will be smaller and more efficient batteries, and lifelike materials that will more closely resemble real skin, and be capable of more accurate communication between hand and brain.

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Lungs

Today: a bulky box. About the closest you'll get to an artificial lung today is a clunky heart-lung machine next to your hospital bed. These ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) machines are designed for temporary use, while a patient recovers from infections or trauma.

Tomorrow: the MC3 BioLung is a soda-can-shaped implantable device that uses the heart's pumping power to move blood through its filters. It's designed to work alongside a natural lung, exchanging oxygen from the air with carbon dioxide from the bloodstream. So far, it's been tried on sheep, where six of the eight animals on the BioLung machine survived for five days. Human trials are expected within the next couple of years.

Beyond: artificial heart/lung. Scientists are concentrating on a dual-function device that pumps blood and oxygenates it at the same time, similar to an internal heart/lung machine.

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Eye

Today: no Geordi glasses yet. Nearsighted or farsighted? Wear glasses or contact lenses, or get some laser surgery. Missing an eye? Glass eyeballs have been around for centuries. There's no cyborg eye available yet, but there certainly is a lot of research going on.

Tomorrow: artificial retinas. The Argus II Retinal Prosthesis is deep into its research phase, and it works with a tiny camera, a video processor worn on the belt, and 60 electrodes implanted on the optic nerve. So far, all it creates is a murky image where only patterns of light and dark are visible. The experimental procedure costs $100,000 and might be covered by insurance. If it's not? Pay up, or look out for the Repo Men.

Beyond: bionic eyes. Work is now underway for special contact lenses that give you superpowers. Beyond that (I'm speculating here), as the camera/optic nerve link is perfected, resolution will be much sharper, way beyond the vision of a hawk. Infrared vision, panning and zooming, night vision and telescopic vision will be possible. The link between eye and brain could be also used for video viewing and hyper-realistic simulations. Maybe a small eye could be implanted in the back of the head, simulating the unique capabilities of my third grade teacher