Link Vomit – Science and Tech Edition

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Image: Drank too much? - Vision and scenes of Hell! [8], a Creative Commons Attribution (2.0) image from rwp-roger's photostream

The town of Inuvik, Canada, will no longer spend winter in permanent darkness, thanks to their shiny new artificial sun [9]!  Despite being just freakishly awesome, I wonder what effect this will have on the local ecosystem?

Attention super-villains: Seeking exotic materials for your next go at world domination?  Check out inventables.com [10] for the latest and greatest microreplication devices [11], spray-on metals [12], and talking tapes [13].  On a side note, do you  really want dominion over this planet?  Sounds like a helluva workload to me …

Speaking of spray-on materials, a Germano-Turkish research conglomerate has developed a non-toxic form of glass coating [14] that is both flexible and breathable and is designed to protect against a score of environmental hazards.  I imagine we’ll file this one with the electric car and any other product designed to decimate entire economic sectors in the selfish name of environmental protection.

Google is reportedly working on a speech-to-speech translation [15] system.  Of course, I hear this and think Star Trek style real-time interspecies communication, but I imagine the typical conversation sounds a lot more like, “For why do you recite intercourse you?  I perform solament translation service error!”

Researchers in the U.S. have developed a skin-based device interface [16] that operates on the electric signals conducted through touch.  Ostensibly, this will allow people to perform a series of gestures to control their mp3 players, make a phone call, and send email.  As someone who is still getting used to the site of people using their bluetooth headsets on the street, I look forward to the day when everyone is spasmodically touching themselves!

Clever little monkeys at the University of Technology and the University of Michigan have developed a prosthetic foot that stores the kinetic energy [17] of the downstep for release in the upstep, thereby mimicking the action of the human ankle.  Next stop - go go gadget legs!

Finally, from the New Scientist, Valerie Jamieson – aka Dr. Buzzkill – explains why we’ll never travel at warp speeds [18].  However, fear not, for there is no shortage of clever little pointy-eared fans with the smarts to rebut her hypothesis [19].