Robotic bear pillow tickles sleepers to stop snoring

Robotic bear pillow tickles sleepers to stop snoring: "Demonstrated during this month's International Robot Exhibition (IREX) in Tokyo, Jukusui-Kun is a polar bear-shaped robotic pillow that, like Paro the seal-bot, masks a serious purpose beneath its cute and cuddly exterior. Jukusui-Kun is designed to help snorers and those who live with them - whenever snoring becomes too loud (and sleep apnea becomes a danger), the robot raises its paw and gently touches the sleeper's face to trigger a change of sleeping position."

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Russia's MiG Aircraft Company develops 3D flight simulator for the MiG-29 Jet Fighter

Russia's MiG Aircraft Company develops 3D flight simulator for the MiG-29 Jet Fighter: "Russian Aircraft Company's MiG is best known for its fighter planes which have been used by the USSR, China, North Korea and North Vietnam since the beginning of WWII."

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LuminAID solar-powered inflatable lantern - simply a good idea

LuminAID solar-powered inflatable lantern - simply a good idea: "Although it can be considered as a basic human need alongside food, water and shelter, 1.6 billion people all over the world have no access to stable and safe source of light. It's a situation that two bright young Architecture graduates are aiming to combat with the LuminAID solar-powered lantern."

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Robothespian humanoid robot delivers human-like stage performances

Robothespian humanoid robot delivers human-like stage performances: "Engineered Arts Ltd.'s Robothespian is probably one of the first professional robotic actors who made it into the real world (sorry, T-1000). Its elegant movements, extraordinary body language and emotion-conveying skills make it a great communicator"

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Burton rolls out True 3D laser plasma display

Burton rolls out True 3D laser plasma display: "Engineers from Burton Inc. in Japan have rolled out a "True 3D" display, which evolved from work begun five years previously by teams at Keio University and Japan's national institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST). While most 3D displays available today involve a form of optical illusion that depends on the parallax or disparity inherent in human binocular vision, this new system, which can function in air or under water, needs no screen of any sort, and the effect is quite impressive."

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OVO-4 brings full-motion flight simulation to your rec room

OVO-4 brings full-motion flight simulation to your rec room: "Chances are, you will never get to try out the new 3D MiG flight simulator. If you have almost US$60,000 that has nothing better to do, however, you can now buy something almost as impressive - the OVO-4 Home Flight Simulator. The egg-shaped capsule contains a full simulated light aircraft cockpit, with three linked 24-inch monitors displaying the output of Microsoft's Flight Simulator X. Best of all, however, the capsule pitches and rolls according to what's happening in the simulation - users presumably have to supply their own barf bags."

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Three new tilting narrow-track vehicles from EICMA - including a tilting offroad quad scooter

Three new tilting narrow-track vehicles from EICMA - including a tilting offroad quad scooter: "Tilting three- and four-wheelers make a lot of sense - they're almost as narrow and light as motorcycles, and perhaps even more maneuverable, but they offer enormous amounts of grip and stability. There's so many new narrow track vehicle designs sprouting up all over the world right now that it's easy to see them becoming a significant part of the commuting mix in the congested cities of tomorrow."

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Panasonic details Toughpad FZ-A1 rugged Android tablet

Panasonic details Toughpad FZ-A1 rugged Android tablet: "Pricing, availability and technical details have now emerged for Panasonic's new rugged tablet that we briefly covered in June. The Toughpad FZ-A1 has been designed to meet the needs of a modern mobile workforce, and features a multi-touch screen bright enough to use in daylight, has been drop-tested at Panasonic's own labs to MIL-STD-810G standards, and is both waterproof and dust resistant to IP65 standards."

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New technique turns 2D patterns into 3D objects using nothing but light

New technique turns 2D patterns into 3D objects using nothing but light: "Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a new technique for transforming two-dimensional print output into 3-D structures, using nothing but light. A pre-stressed polymer sheet is fed into a conventional inkjet printer, which applies black stripes to areas designed to be used as hinges."

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Solid Gray armadillo-inspired backpack designed to keep your gadgets safe

Solid Gray armadillo-inspired backpack designed to keep your gadgets safe: "There are loads of precious and fragile electronics in our lives that require appropriate protection when used on-the-go, and therefore the range of gadget-tailored bags is pretty huge. If you need greater protection than a typical case provides, however, a hard shell-equipped backpack may be your best bet. Designed for heavy use, the Solid Gray backpack comes with a rigid body yet is lightweight at the same time, given that it's made from a single sheet of copolymer."

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Teenage Honduran builds open source eye-tracking computer interface for the disabled

Teenage Honduran builds open source eye-tracking computer interface for the disabled: "This unique and worthwhile project was put together by a 17-year-old electronics and programming whiz from Honduras, of all places. The Eyeboard system is a low-tech eyeball-tracking device that allows users with motor disabilities to enter text into a computer using eye gestures instead of a physical interface"

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Why Is China Building These Gigantic Structures In the Middle of the Desert? (Updated)

Why Is China Building These Gigantic Structures In the Middle of the Desert? (Updated): "This is crazy. New photos have appeared in Google Maps showing unidentified titanic structures in the middle of the Chinese desert. The first one is an intricate network of what appears to be huge metallic stripes. Is this a military experiment?"

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