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Green architecture – Frontier Project

By Damir Beciri
14 September 2010

the-frontier-project-1Located in Rancho Cucamonga, California, the Frontier Project displays and utilizes sustainable innovations for Southern California living and working environments. Designed by HMC Architects, the building is a 1,300-square-meter (14,000-square-foot) demonstration of how sustainable design can be economical, efficient, and inviting. The Frontier Project’s goal is to educate resident consumers, commercial builders, and sustainable advocates… »

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Laser beams used to contain and move tiny objects

By Damir Beciri
One Comment9 September 2010

anu-tractor-beam-teamAlthough it’s been years since optical tweezers have been used to move particles, the previous methods weren’t able to move them on distances larger than few millimeters. Researchers at the Australian National University (ANU) made a breakthrough by developing a method which can move objects much further by using laser beams. The researches have managed… »

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U-M researchers developing displays with smaller pixels

By Damir Beciri
8 September 2010

u-m-display-tech-1Conventional LCDs, or liquid crystal displays, are inefficient and manufacturing-intensive to produce. Only about 5 percent of their back-light travels through them and reaches our eyes. In a step toward more efficient, smaller and higher-definition display screens, a University of Michigan professor has developed a new type of color filter made of nano-thin sheets of… »

Architecture| Tech»

Green architecture – The Allison Inn and Spa

By Damir Beciri
7 September 2010

the-allison-inn-and-spa-1Located 40 kilometers (25 miles) from downtown Portland, the site of The Allison Inn & Spa is a representative of the surrounding Willamette Valley wine country, Oregon. The resort whose architecture, landscape architecture and interior design for The Allison Inn were done by Seattle’s GGLO, received LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council…. »

Bionics| Tech»

Fish biomimicry used for bridge stability sensors during floods

By Damir Beciri
5 September 2010

salmonFloods cut down more bridges than fire, wind, earthquakes, deterioration, overloads and collisions combined, costing lives and hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. The speed and turbulence of an overflowing stream scours away the river bottom that provides the support for a bridge foundation. In order to counter that, researchers at the Case Western… »

Bionics| Robotics| Tech»

PARITy drivetrain govern the flight of minuscule aerial robots

By Damir Beciri
2 September 2010

harvard-university-parity-drivetrain-1Engineers at Harvard University have created a millionth-scale automobile differential to govern the flight of minuscule aerial robots. Their new approach is the first to passively balance the aerodynamic forces encountered by these miniature flying devices, letting their wings flap asymmetrically in response to gusts of wind, wing damage, and other real-world impediments. “The drivetrain… »

Bionics| Robotics| Tech»

Stickybot gecko-like robot climbs vertical surfaces

By Damir Beciri
One Comment1 September 2010

stickybot-geckorobot-climbing-a-windowGecko’s foot ability to stick to many surfaces, including glass, has been inspiring scientists to mimic that ability in other to make dry adhesive materials and robots able to walk up various materials. A group of scientists from Stanford University are developing such a robot which is fittingly named Stickybot. They are already working on… »

Bionics| Tech»

Frog skin germ-fighting substances for new antibiotics

By Damir Beciri
31 August 2010

frog-skin-substances-for-antibioticsEven witchdoctors in the past knew that some frog skins contain germ-fighting substances since they manage to live in swampy and hostile environments. A group of scientists, led by Michael Conlon, Ph.D., noted that modified frog skin substances could be used against the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria, which have the ability to shrug off conventional… »