Artificial muscles made of human proteins make for better implants

Researchers have developed a new type of artificial muscle that’s entirely made out of natural proteins. Responding to changes in its environment allows the muscle to flex on demand, which could make it useful for implants, prosthetics or robots.

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InfraredTags embed “invisible” info within 3D-printed objects

Barcode stickers may provide valuable information on products, but they're rather unsightly, and they peel off over time. An experimental new alternative, however, is 3D-printed right into the item, and is invisible to the naked eye.

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Novel “artificial leaf” design ups the carbon capture rate by 100x

"Artificial leaf" systems could play a key role in the fight against climate change, and a team of engineers has just picked up the pace with a solution that captures carbon dioxide at 100 times the rate of current technologies.

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Autonomous drones may be the ultimate scarecrows … for pigeons

Much as we may like pigeons, they can make quite a mess of buildings and other structures, potentially posing a health hazard. According to new research, autonomous drones may be ideal for harmlessly chasing the birds away.

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Dexter tech gives regular lawnmowers the autonomous treatment

Partially due to labor shortages, autonomous lawnmowers are becoming increasingly popular. The Dexter robotic system offers an alternative to buying a whole new "smart" mower, as it can be added to existing mowers in order to make them autonomous.

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Roadie Coach designed to be your personal guitar teacher

Learning to play an instrument is hard, but technology can help. We've seen a number of inventive solutions over the years, and the latest is the Roadie Coach, an audio recorder, music learning system and MIDI controller rolled into one.

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Ibanez reveals crazy three-necked Hydra guitar built for Steve Vai

Multi-necked guitars are nothing new of course, examples include Luca Stricagnoli's Reversed Slide Neck, Rick Nielsen's five-neck Hamer, and the beautifully bizarre Manzer Pikasso. The Hydra follows a similar path, but does so with monstrous style.

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Defiant X attack helicopter completes first mission profile test flights

With the decision on the replacement of the US Army's UH-60 Black Hawk fleet coming down to the wire, the partners behind the SB>1 Defiant have announced that their candidate advanced rotorcraft has completed its first mission profile test flights.

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Seasam drone autonomously follows divers and performs underwater tasks

Back in 2016, we told you about the iBubble, an underwater drone that autonomously follows and films scuba divers. Well, it now has a more capable industrial-use big brother, known as the Seasam.

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Full production of Russia’s Tu-160 bomber restarted after 30 years

In an echo of the Cold War, Russia's first newly manufactured Tupolev Tu-160M (NATO designation Backfire) supersonic nuclear heavy bomber completed its maiden flight on January 12, reaching a height of 600 m (2,000 ft) during its 30-minute test.

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