Lifeboat Foundation

Today, sewing relies on the low-tech power of human hands, but soon that may not be the case. Human workers are still needed for the final steps of making clothes, in order to align fabrics and correctly feed them into sewing machines. If robots could do that instead, shock waves of change would surely ripple through global supply chains and disrupt the lives of millions of low-wage earners in the developing world.

For better or worse, plenty of technologists, researchers, and companies are working on the challenge—but so far, getting robots to navigate the imprecisions of flimsy textile materials that easily bend has proven elusive.

One promising solution, though, has come from an unlikely place: the sleepless brain of Jonathan Zornow, a young freelance web developer with no previous background in robotics, manufacturing, or the apparel business. His project, Sewbo, recently demonstrated the world’s first robotically sewn garment, and the inspiration came while watching a late-night Science Channel show called How It’s Made.

Continue reading “The Surprisingly Simple Invention That Allows Robots to Make Clothes” »

In 24 hours, it seems like all the biotech and futurism news is about telepathy. Guess we all read each other’s mind and posted our research and POVs. too funny.

Using quantum materials and technology will mean less invasive implants and no need for head gear in general. Suggest researchers do some due diligence with some of the various research labs and companies experimenting with things like graphene, liquid quantum materials, etc.

“Even though fMRI cannot read minds yet, we need to start deciding how and why we might want to use it, where screening might help, and where it might violate privacy,” Ms Gottwald, a PHD student at St John’s College at the University of Cambridge said. “Because the technology is advancing so rapidly, these kinds of questions are becoming more and more pressing.

Continue reading “Minority Report-Style Mind Reading Could Soon Be Reality” »

Graphene cooking oil?

In Brief

• Researchers have discovered a way to make soybean oil into the super-strong material graphene. The material has a wide variety of potential uses and can revolutionize electronics.
• The material could be used to make cell phone batteries last 25 percent longer, make more effective solar cells, and even filter fuel out of air.

Researchers have found a way to turn cheap, everyday cooking oil into the wonder material graphene – a technique that could greatly reduce the cost of making the much-touted nanomaterial.

Continue reading “Scientists Have Turned Cooking Oil Into a Material 200 Times Stronger Than Steel” »

Prabhuraj Balakrishnan, a PhD student researcher at the University of Manchester, talks about his recent discovery that could see a major leap in sustainable energy production, realised using graphene and other 2D materials in fuel cell systems.

1st February 2017 in News, Science & Technology

Prabhuraj Balakrishnan

Continue reading “Fuel cells could provide new green energy solutions” »

Luv this.

Researchers at The University of Manchester have developed a method of producing water-based and inkjet printable 2D material inks, which could bring 2D crystal heterostructures from the lab into real-world products.

Examples include efficient light detectors, and devices that are able to store information encoded in binary form which have been demonstrated, in collaboration with the University of Pisa.

Continue reading “Water-based and biocompatible 2D inks for printed electronics” »

We can now 3D print functional human skin.

Even meteorologist have jumped on the QC wagon.

And if you ask each of the professionals who pour over layers of data to sift out the details and clues that ensure a correct and trustworthy forecast, the passion began at a young age, and for most, with a distinct weather event.

Here are their stories.

Continue reading “Passion for Weather: What fuels our meteorologists” »

Wonder which 3D printer she used?

Together with scientists, fashion designers have used graphene — a Nobel-Prize winning material that’s tougher than diamonds — to give their LBD a high-tech cut.

“We are trying to showcase the amazing properties of graphene,” Francesca Rosella, the co-founder of fashion company CuteCircuit, told CNN.

Continue reading “This graphene dress lights up when you breathe” »