Daily Mail: It sounds like the perfect invention for all those couch potatoes who find even using a remote control just a little too much like hard work. Scientists have come up with a box that lets television viewers change channels, switch on the DVD player or switch off an irritating presenter with the wave of a hand. The controller’s […]

FutureWire: The ability to direct and transmit electrical power through the air, without wires, took a further step from the theoretical to the practical in June when a group of MIT researchers demonstrated their “WiTricity” concept. The technology works by transmitting electricity as a magnetic field oscillating at a specific frequency. Through “magnetically coupled resonance,” the “receiver” can capture the […]

Futurewire: Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) have developed a nanotechnology polymer that can “heal” itself by filling in cracks and tears automatically. Although self-healing plastic is not an entirely new concept, the UIUC material is different because it can repair itself multiple times without any intervention. The material could have important uses where making repairs is […]

Cool Hunting: If you don’t like to rough it, can’t do without the conveniences of home, or just need a base camp to recharge your camera or MP3 player after a day on the trail, the Eureka N!ergy tents have three 12-volt plugs to charge your accessories. A concealed wiring system strategically places glowing outlets throughout the tent for easy […]

USATODAY: In the race for ever-thinner displays for TVs, cellphones and other gadgets, Sony may have developed one to beat them all — a razor-thin display that bends like paper while showing full-color video. Sony released video of the new 2.5-inch display Friday. In it, a hand squeezes a display that is 0.3 millimeters, or 0.01 inch, thick. The display […]

Crave: The way the particles land on a given credit card magnetic stripe are as unique as individual snow flakes or human fingerprints. So says a Magtek, a company that has developed a product, MagnePrint, for recording the unique magnetic media signature for all credit and debit cards scanned through its readers. The first scan by a MagnePrint reader creates […]

Iconoculture: They’re just concept phones for now, but we’re guessing the idea could be reused: ModeLabs has created a series of concept phones that run off sustainable energy sources. One concept phone looks like a yo-yo that hangs around the user’s neck and continuously harnesses both solar and kinetic energy using a pendulum and voltaic cells. Knowledge is nothing; power […]

USATODAY: Why listen to your voice mail messages when you can read them? That’s what a new crop of companies is asking — they’re developing software that turns voice mail messages into transcribed e-mail or text messages. We’ve all gotten those long voice mail messages from a friend, relative, business associate — or in this reporter’s case a PR person […]

Shiny Shiny: Remember when an iPod dock was a clever idea? Since then, we’ve seen iBelts, Inflatable iChairs, iProjectors, iLoo Roll, you name it. What on earth is next? Why, the Tune-In Bed, of course! This is no ordinary iPod dock! You can sleep in it! This is also no ordinary bed! It plays music from your iPod! Of course, […]

Gizmodo: Who knew you could use urine to power a battery? The Pee Battery uses the ions in human urine to keep 1.5 volts streaming for 90 minutes, and its makers say it can be tweaked to last even longer. They’re even saying that all other bodily fluids work equally well. Sounds like an unpleasant way to get that iPod […]