Robotic Samara: Single winged helicopter

Nature has always been a great inspiration when it comes to designing and developing new mechanical devices.  With the advent of the UAV age, flying machines are getting smaller in size. When it comes to hovering UAVs like mini-scaled helicopters the problem with them is the smaller they get the less efficient they become. So to solve this problem Evan Ulrich and colleagues at the University of Maryland in College Park turned to the biological world for inspiration. Many trees disperse their seeds by releasing those single-winged seeds that are also called "Samara". Evan Ulrich and colleagues built a mechanical Samara also know as Ulrich flyer whose dynamics are very similar to those of nature's Samaras.

Facebook finally introduces secure connection ("https")

The forth quarter of last year (2010) was a bit worry some for Facebook considering the fact that there were a lot of questions raised about the security of Facebook. The Firefox plugin Firesheep allowed any amateur to hack into someones Facebook account logged into the same WiFi or other public networks.

The only answer to this question was to make Facebook force the browser into using secure connection to communicate with the website to ensure that the information you send remains private, just like you find on Gmail, Paypal and a various other services which involve online transactions. Finally Facebook has introduced this feature.

This indicates that your browser is using a secure connection ("HTTPS"). 

CompuLab introduces Trim Slice: Energy efficient Mini PC

CompuLab an Israel based computer module boards and miniature computer system manufacturer announced a new energy efficient PC named Trim Slice. Its a miniature desktop computer powered by NVIDIA Tegra 2, the same processor thats powering the latest hi-end tablets and smart phones. Trim-Slice is said to be CompuLab’s smallest and most energy efficient computer. What makes this device unique is the fact that its a fairly small device almost looks like a small thin client in a sense. Don't go by the size it packs in quite a punch.

Vibro-Wind: The new way for Wind Power

Despite so much wind energy around us the only way to harness this energy man has figured is by the use of wind turbine. With their advantages Wind turbines have a lot of disadvantages too, as a result they are not that popular. They are huge, require large space for mounting and ultimate they cost a lot. A lot of conservationist consider them as a danger for birds and sensitive natural habitats. So the only way to solve these problems is to find a new design approach and that's what Vibro-Wind is about.

How to switch operator with Mobile number portability in India.

Finally the much awaited Mobile number portability service is now available in India. Now its possible to change your service provider without changing your Mobile number. 

This article is a six step simplified guide as to how to change your operator/service provider.

World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) today unveiled a new logo for HTML5

HTML5 is said to be the upcoming standard for the Internet which will support media rich content without the need for any or lesser plugins like flash player etc. The main aim of HTML5 is to make the Internet run more on pure markup language rather than making the user to install various plugins, their APIs and extensions to access media rich content on the Internet.

The new standard is being backed up by major IT firms like Apple and Google on a large scale. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is also trying to promote the use of HTML5 by spreading awareness in the masses. The release of a this new logo is a way to builds momentum and create interest in the online community. W3C is also giving away free Logo stickers and selling T-shirts online.

Google organizing its first ever: Google Science Fair 2011

The Search engine giant Google Inc. in partnership with CERN, The LEGO Group, National Geographic and Scientific American, is organizing its first ever global online science fair competition for kids aged between 13-18 years old. The competition is open to kids all across the world. Google is looking for the brightest young scientists from around the world to submit interesting and creative projects that are relevant to todays world. Please don't compare this to your local school science fair, its going to be a lot hi-tech and the competition is going to be intense. The participants can work on their own or in a team of maximum of 3 members.

The Quadrotor project at Penn Engineering GRASP Labs

When it comes to mechanical design, we know from history that the simplest of designs turns out to be the most useful of all. That's what Quadrocopter or Quadrotors as they are called are proving once again. Quadrotors are basically flying crafts which have a cross chassis and have a motors at each of the four ends, all the electronics for control  is situated in the middle. With the option of high tech programmable circuits these days the tasks they can perform are only limited to the ability of a programmer and the sensor options available.

A look at the Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series

Hybrid Devices are probably the future of personal computing for the IT industry. Companies are spending a lot of money into developing new type of form factors so as to create devices that fulfill all your computing needs with the added advantage of mobility. One such device that was revealed at CES 2011 was the Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series. This device has an innovative design, the concept of the device is similar to the Dell Inspiron Duo Tablet which aims at giving the user the advantage of both a net-book and a tablet.

How to win tech books for free.

Almost like 8 months ago I found this website called 101 free tech books via a Facebook ad, I click though the ad and found out that if I register I have a chance to win one of  a maximum of 101 free tech books they give away each month. All I had to do was register with my Name and email address, browse through the available books organised in various categories and add the ones I am interested in to my wish list. Although the claim seemed too much considering the fact that they ship it to your home for free, I went ahead and registered for it. 

Porsche 918 RSR Concept Premieres in Detroit (NAIAS)

Detroit: North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) is buzzing with a whole lot of awesome automotive masterpieces and new automotive technologies. The car thats catching all the attention is the Porsche 918 RSR Concept which is another amazing super sports car from Porsche. Its is an advancement of the earlier hybrid sports car the Porsche GT3 R Hybrid. The main intention behind this car from Porsche is to set a new standard for the future of Sports Cars. The world is already under the fear of global warming and this is a great risk for the future of fuel guzzling sports cars, its really important that new and more fuel efficient sports cars need to be made so as to sustain in the future. Porsche 918 RSR is also called the "Race Lab" a testbed for "new fuel efficient technologies under extreme conditions" that will feed the development of high-performance production hybrids.

Razer Switchblade for mobile casual PC gaming experience.

Las Vegas: CES 2011 featured a new concept gaming device code named "Switchblade" developed by the company Razer, one of the world's leading brand of high-end precision gaming products.

The main problem with developing the a mobile PC gaming device is the problem of replicating the functionality of the keyboard and mouse in a portable device. That's what this concept device tries to overcome. This design of the device is something never seen before.The dimensions of the device are 172 x 115 x 25mm (6.77 x 4.52 x 0.98 inches). It has a an amazing dynamic tactile keyboard that adjusts its configuration based on current game being played and user requirements each key is a tiny touch screen, that's what makes it one of a kind. For the mouse it has an ultra sensitive multi-touch screen.

Motorola and Verizon unveil the Motorola XOOM tablet at CES 2011

LAS VEGAS is Buzzing with CES 2011 and we are seeing unveiling of a ton of new devices, one of them is the Motorola XOOM tablet which was unveiled yesterday. The Motorola XOOM tablet is the first ever Android Tablet to run on the New Android 3.0 (Honeycomb OS) Operating system. The new OS is said to be specifically designed for new generation of tablet devices. The new Honeycomb OS  improves user experience on Android favorites such as widgets, multi-tasking, browsing, notifications and customization and features the latest Google Mobile innovations.