Category Archives: Science and Technology

Sci-Tech Video: Uber’s self-driving cars have improved with experience

An interesting update on Uber’s testing in Pittsburgh of self-driving cars: While Uber Burns, Its Self-Driving Car Project Carries On | WIRED

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In another machine-learning uptick, check out the samples of computer generated speech using algorithms developed by Google researchers:

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Sci-Tech: Boeing GoFly Prize for personal flying devices + Videos of personal flying devices

Boeing is sponsoring the GoFly Prize

We’re calling on all inventors and doers to make human flight a reality by building the world’s first personal flying device for anyone, anywhere. Over the next two years, teams will compete to win $2,000,000 in prizes, creating revolutionary technology and accessing the top minds in aerospace.

(Full announcement is at GoFly​ ​Launches​ ​Competition​ ​to​ ​Bring​ ​Personal​ ​Flying​ ​Devices​ ​to​ ​the​ ​Masses: Boeing to Sponsor $2 Million, Two-Year International Incentive Competition – Boeing (pdf)).

There are certainly no shortage of individuals and companies building such devices:

** Woman Flying on a drone 

** Kalashnikov Unveils Flying ‘Hovercycle’ – Popular Science [Update: Original video taken down. This one has similar footabge of the Hovercycle.]

** Flyboard Air Flight Demo (Flyboard)

** Dubai starts tests in bid to become first city with flying taxis (Volocopter)

** Kitty Hawk Flyer San Francisco Flight-Test, June 10, 2017 (Kitty Hawk)

** Series 1 Jetpack Manned Flying August 2017 (Martin Jetpack)

** Guy builds working hoverbike in garage (Flyt Aerospace)

[ Update:  HeroFlyer.com

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Webcast: NASA Innovative Advance Concepts Symposium – live updates on latest projects

NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) funds studies into all sorts of cool and often “crazy” ideas that just might work. This week  (Mon-Wed) at the NIAC Symposium in Denver, Colorado, leaders of funded project will give updates on their studies. The presentations are being webcast live at 2017 NIAC Symposium on Livestream –

Here is the agenda (pdf).

Sci-Tech: Turtle Rover – “Waterproof open source RC robot designed by Mars rover engineers”

The Turtle Rover is a

remotely controlled mobile robot carefully designed to reach unseen places.

It’s a reliable open-source platform providing you infinite possibilities of modification and development.

Snap pictures, make videos and mount anything you like on its shell and inside its watertight case!

Development and production of the Turtle Rover will be accelerated by the Turtle Rover Kickstarter

The Turtle can be controlled remotely via a WiFi application program:

Drive anywhere you like, bring back what you find, snap pictures, and record live videos!

With our mobile app and long-range communication capabilities, you don’t have to be where Turtle is. The rover streams a live HD camera view and lets you see where you are going, even if it’s out of your sight. The app works on any device that has access to a web browser, including phones and tablets. The range is up to 200 meters (220 yards).

The Turtle is a spin-off of Mars rover projects at the Wroclaw University of Technology

From 2012, we’ve been involved in the development of Mars rover prototypes at the Wroclaw University of Technology. The rovers performed with top scores during the Mars Society University Rover Challenges, worldwide. We took a leap of faith in sending our Project FREDE experiment to the stratosphere with the support of ESA, DLR and SSC. Our team helped to design and manufacture electronic enclosures for the DREAM Project that was sent to space with the REXUS rocket.

Last year, we decided to make space technology available for everyone. Our idea is to bring personal robotics to a new level. We want to give you—makers, a simple, yet reliable platform to take your projects outdoors. That’s how the idea of Turtle Rover was born.

As of today, the Kickstarter has seen $37,611 pledged towards a $71,174 goal with 21 days left in the campaign.