Really Rocket Science

Quick. What’s the best part about a rocket launch, any rocket launch? If you ask me, it’s seeing something like this.

Right? So, would someone please explain to me what’s the point of a smokeless rocket launch?

James Woodward, a history professor at California State University in Fullerton, presented his research into Mach-Lorentz thrusters Wednesday at the Future in Review conference here. Mach-Lorentz thrusters (MLTs), assuming they can be scaled up from lab tests, could provide a new source of propulsion that "puts out thrust without blowing stuff out the tailpipe," Woodward said.

MLTs are based on Mach’s principle, which suggests that all particles in the universe have an effect on each other, and the work of Hendrik Lorentz, who conducted research into the movement of charged particles in a magnetic field. Woodward has constructed an engine that takes advantage of the fact that objects produce energy when their mass changes slightly, he said.

Woodward used capacitors to change the mass of an object and then applied a current to that mass. That produces a small amount of thrust. Increasing the voltage and frequency of the current increases the strength of the thrust, to the point where the engine could be used to adjust the orbit of a satellite, or push a rocket into space.

Is there a downside to "blowing stuff out the tailpipe"? Is there an upside to not doing so?

You might have thought, after the demise of Napter and the ensuing deluge of RIAA lawsuits, that satellite radio was a pretty safe bet. After all, you’re not so much downloading music as you are catching it as it falls from the sky. Kinda like collecting rainwater. As consumer, you’d be right. You’re relatively safe, for now. It’s the providers that could be in trouble, as XM radio learned upon getting sued by RIAA.

The recording industry on Tuesday sued XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:XMSR – news), alleging its Inno device that can store music infringes on copyrights and transforms a passive radio experience into the equivalent of a digital download service like iTunes.

The suit accuses XM Satellite of “massive wholesale infringement,” and seeks $150,000 in damages for every song copied by XM customers using the devices, which went on sale earlier this month. XM, with more than 6.5 million subscribers, said it plays 160,000 different songs every month.

…

“…Because XM makes available vast catalogues of music in every genre, XM subscribers will have little need ever again to buy legitimate copies of plaintiffs’ sound recordings,” the lawsuit says referring to the hand held “Inno” device.

The suit says that XM has touted its service’s advantages over the iPod and cites XM’s advertising literature that says “It’s not a Pod. It’s the mothership.”

 At $150,000 a pop, you’d better be careful what you beam down from “the mothership.” But, as the guys over at Gizmodo suggest, you might want to get yourself an Inno before they disappear forever. (Though the folks at XM say the lawsuit is just a negotiating tactic.)

In slightly related news, if you’re a Sirius Radio subscriber you’ll can listen to Bad Astrology blogger Phil Plait on Discovery Channel Radio at 9:00pm EST. He’ll be talking about the likelihood of Earth having a run in with a comet sometime next week…

Ever lose your mobile phone, never to see it again? Well, what if it could find it’s way back to you? Or what if it could at least come when you called it? (Assuming, of course, that you’ve given it a name.) Sounds a little crazy, but having lost a few phones myself, that’s the first thing that came to mind when I heard about WiMo; the Windows Mobile Robot. 

WiMo uses a Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone as the central "brain" of the robot. This Smartphone sits directly ontop of a Windows Mobile SDK cd (I did say i was using the SDK in a fun and unique way). The Smartphone communicates to a microcontroller via Bluetooth, using our Managed Bluetooth classes and also communicates with a Pocket PC (and soon to be desktop pc instead) via WiFi. The Pocket PC can be used to remotely control WiMo. The action pad of the Pocket PC is used for standard movement (up, down, left, right, stop).

… WiMo is learning to make conversation and respond to voice commands via some new prototype APIs in Voice Command. These APIs are not available yet, but we are looking to make them available in the future. WiMo can respond to his name, tell jokes if asked, and even dance!

OK. So your phone would have to be a Windows Mobile Smartphone and find its way into that contraption before it it could find its way home. But the idea’s gotta start somewhere, right?

Seeing as how GPS can be used to track just about everything and everyone, and how easy it it to find anyone who has a mobile phone, why not a phone that kind find it’s way home?  If my cat can do it, so should my phone someday.

Via Robot Gossip.  

Is this a case of "turnabout is fair play" or what? I blogged earlier about some California counties using GPS to track gang members after they’re released from prison. Well, this morning I opened my hometown paper (OK, I "opened" it in my web browser) to learn that in my neck of the woods thieves are tracking GPS units, and have started making off with them instead of expensive car stereos.

More than 50 dashboard-mounted Global Positioning System receivers have been stolen from parked cars in Alexandria and Arlington County since January, and police are urging motorists to hide the units, which range in price from $200 to nearly $3,000.

"It’s basically like leaving $700 in cash on the dashboard and asking someone to take it," said Mary Garrand, crime analyst for the Alexandria Police Department, who has noted about 25 stolen devices this year, mostly from Old Town.

Apparently increased demand for these gadgets among car owners has created increased demand among an unexpected demographic. Of course, if you leave your car unlocked or — as in one case — leave the top down, with your GPS unit attached to the dashboard with a piece of adhesive, you might expect to be relieved of it eventually.

[Detective Damon] Washington, one of several detectives who recently canvassed the hardest-hit areas in Arlington in search of suspects, said it comes down to this: "Don’t leave anything in your car that you’re not willing to lose."

It wasn’t long ago that car stereos started coming with removable faces, to ward off would-be thieves. Most GPS units — the dashboard variety, at least — are removable. So take it with you, or you might not be able to find it later.

If they ever catch the folks who’re heisting these GPS units, once they’re convicted and have served their sentences, I think they should be tracked via GPS upon their release. And nabbed if they come anywhere near a major parking lot. That’d be poetic justice. Dontcha think?

In writing about the whole mobTV phenomenon, I’ve been wondering about something that I haven’t asked about until now. Just how does one enjoy watching video on such a tiny screen? I mean, I haven’t measured them, but the screens on even the best phones seem rather small for any serious or enjoyable viewing; definitely not for watching full length programs.

As usual, I should have known someone would be way ahead of me on this. Enter video glasses for mobile TV. 

Kowon Technology, a South Korean venture start-up, Wednesday announced it plans to introduce an eye-glass type display _ dubbed MSP-209 – in the local market next week at 199,000 won.

The product is equipped with a pair of liquid crystal display (LCD) screens, roughly the size of a human pupil _ 4.2 millimeters by 4.8 millimeters _ in both lenses.

“Weighing just 2 grams each, this micro LCD would be the world’s smallest and lightest screen available. The weight of the video glasses would be also fine at 58 grams,” Kowon vice president Park Hong-tae said.

Park continued Kowon did not compromise the all-important visual quality to minimize the display size because the miniature screen features programs at 320X240 pixels resolution, similar to that of digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB).

They’re also being called "anti-glance" glasses, because you can watch your video without worrying about your fellow commuters or other neighbors peeking over your shoulder. And it’s supposed to be like watching a 32 in. television screen about two yards away. So, it’s like watching television in your living room, but from anywhere. And you also get to look as though you’ve been "enhanced by Borg technology." Not bad for the equivalent cost of $216 in U.S. dollar. 

Via MobileMentalism.Com.

Here’s something interesting in mobile news. YouTube has just started offering a mobile upload option. 

A growing number of handheld devices are capable of recording video. YouTube wants to disconnect users from their Web cams and computers, said Steve Chen, one of the company’s founders and its chief technology officer.

Most user-created clips are taken with Web and digital video cameras, Chen said. The new service will likely produce greater numbers of spontaneous and candid clips.

"The good thing about it is that you don’t have to go home to YouTube anymore," Chen said. "People may not carry their digital cameras with them when they go out. But everybody carries their cell phone…I’m interested in seeing what kind of content this will produce." 

I’ve had a YouTube account since they launched, but I haven’t figured out what to do with it, because the only video camera I own is the one in my mobile phone. I haven’t found much of a reason to use that feature on my phone either. Actually, I have a PDA that shoots video as well, but haven’t had a reason to use the PDA in ages. Until now, that is. 

So, I’ve created a mobile profile on my YouTube account, and plugged in PDA so it can recharge. Now all I need is a reason to shoot video. 

And while you’re at it, YouTube, how about a way for me to view videos on my mobile phone? I mean, Tivo just inked a deal to deliver web-based video to my living room. Can somebody do the same thing for my phone?

Via Blogspotting. 

While we’re on the subject of robots, have you noticed they’re becoming more and more human all the time? This one — developed in Korea — is only the second android ever made, and though she can’t move from the waist down she comes in handy in some situations.

Korea has developed its own android capable of facial expressions on its humanoid face, the second such machine to be developed after one from Japan.

… Ever-1 can move its upper body and “express” happiness, anger, sadness and pleasure. But the robot is still incapable of moving its lower half. Ever-1’s skin is made from a silicon jelly that feels similar to human skin. The face is a composite of two stars, and its torso on a singer.

The 15 monitors in the robotic face allow it to interpret the face of an interlocutor and look back at whoever stands near it. Ever-1 also recognizes 400 words and can hold a basic verbal exchange.

According to the article, Ever-1 (Eve R-1. Get it?) could earn her keep by giving directions in department stores and read stories to children. On that last one, if you asked me, I’d bet that the kids (a) won’t be fooled by Ever-1, and might even be frightened.

But I just might lose that bet. Robot Dreams has a post up about a new robot from NEC that’s also designed to designed to interact with people, and is pictured with some happy looking kids.

Oh well. If I’m right, Ever-1 might be able to get work piloting tentacled flying robots.
 

Call me crazy, but if the folks who came up with flying robots got together with the people who’ve invented tentacled robots, they could potentially take over the world. Or at the very least have a pretty interesting sci-fi flick on their hands.

Robotic "tentacles" that can grasp and grapple with a wide variety of objects have been developed by US researchers.

Most robots rely on mechanical gripping jaws that have difficulty grabbing large or irregularly shaped objects. Replacing these with tentacle-like manipulators could make robots more nimble and flexible, say the scientists.

The tentacle-like manipulators, known as "Octarms", resemble an octopus’s limb or an elephant’s trunk. They were developed through a project called OCTOR (sOft robotiC manipulaTORs), which involves several US universities and is funded by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

"An elephant’s trunk can pick up a peanut or a tree trunk," says Ian Walker, a member of the project team from Clemson University in South Carolina. "This ability, inherent in the OCTOR robots, gives OCTOR arms a huge advantage over conventional industrial robots." 

Would it be a case of science fact catching up wth science fiction? 

Maybe. Just maybe.

But the question remains, once we have tentacled flying robots … what do we do with them?

It’s an idea I’ve had knocking around in my head for a while, or at least since I started writing for this blog. And it may be an idea whose time has come. But given my somewhat limited technological abilities, someone else is gonna have to make it happen.

While pondering the various ways technology might be employed to improve the life of the everyday man or woman on the street, it occurred to me that while exploring the various uses for mobile technologies affairs of the heart were being overlooked. Since scores of people carry mobile phones these days, that allow them to do everything from playing their favorite music via satellite radio to watching their favorite shows, it seems like a no-brainer to use the same technology to track down potential candidates for significant-other status. If I thought of it, surely someone out there with greater technical acumen than me has thought of it and tried to make it a reality. 

Enter the Cellular Love Detector.  It works like this: dial the access number, the number of your latest crush, and talk as you would normally do while the Love Detector does it’s magic and spits out a report. 

Using the Love-Detector Cell Service is as simple as dialing the access number, and your friend’s phone number right after… Once the conversation starts, all you need to do is have a NORMAL conversation. Speak about work, homework, movies or any other thing. …

During the call, our server will monitor the excitement levels and other related parameters your friend is demonstrating, and will calculate the "Love-Level" as detected in the conversation. Once the conversation has ended, the final report will be sent to your cellular phone using SMS or audio message! The final report is not only about the "Love-Level", and includes other parameters, like "Concentration", "Embarrassment" and even "Anticipation".

Sounds like an interesting idea, and one that may be useful to folks who are impaired when it comes to detecting mutual admiration. But I don’t think it goes far enough. 

Look, we already know how easy it is to track someone down using various technologies. We can use GPS to track down lost pets and roving gang members. We can use GPS and cell phones to track down wandering teenagers. And I just read that it’s pretty easy to track anybody who’s carrying a cell phone, whether they make calls or not. 

Most people know that when they make a mobile call—during a 911 emergency, for example—authorities can access phone company technology to pin down their location, sometimes to within a few feet.

A lesser-known fact: Cell phone companies can locate you any time you are in range of a tower and your phone is on. Cell phones are designed to work either with global positioning satellites or through “pings” that allow towers to triangulate and pinpoint signals. Any time your phone “sees” a tower, it pings it.

Here’s a more straightforward explanation. 

Real-time tracking of cell phones is possible because mobile phones are constantly sending data to cell towers, which allows incoming calls to be routed correctly. The towers record the strength of the signal along with the side of the tower the signal is coming from. This allows the phone’s position to be easily triangulated to within a few hundred yards.

The technology is already within reach of consumers. You can sign up for services like AccuTracking, World Tracker, or ULocate. For that matter you can build your own. So, the genie is out of the bottle and unlikely to go back in. 

Why not put it all together in the service of matchmaking? The Google Earth Blog had the same premonition I did, upon hearing news of at least one dating service letting customers use Google Earth to locate prospective dates.

It can only be a matter of time before other dating services implement a Google Earth interface for showing approximate locations for prospective dates. It would be a smart move in my opinion and not too difficult to implement technically.

Exactly. At least one dating service already uses GPS to alert customers to potential dates in their vicinity, if the prospective date is on the customer’s "hotlist." Another popular online dating service was considering a similar move earlier this year. Even the practice of "toothing" — meeting potential dates via Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones — started as a hoax and blossomed into reality. 

So, I guess my idea isn’t all that far fetched, but would just take things one step further. Here’s how it would work, at least as I imagine it. You register with the service, and fill out a profile indicating your interests, the type of person you’re seeking, etc. You don’t have to do much more than that to start getting matches, except to indicate that you’d like to be "trackable" via your mobile phone.

Then some computer in some warehouse in the middle of nowhere runs through it’s database to find potential matches that are also "trackable." When you’re out and about with your phone, you’d get a message from the service when there’s a good match in your vicinity, with a link to their profile. At that point, you’d be asked to decide whether you want to make contact or not. At the same time, your potential match would see the same message with your profile and the option to make contact.

You and your match would get, say, three contact options. First, chatting via SMS or a chat client. Second, talking via mobile phone (with numbers masked, of course). And finally, if you’ve opted to have your location tracked and chosen to make contact and your match has done the same, you could get one another’s approximate location via GPS, and meet in person.

I haven’t seen anything quite like that available, but if I did and I were single I’d sing up for it. With all that technology at your disposal, who needs Cupid?

What’s that in the sky? A bird? A plane? No, it’s a flying robot. An unstoppable flying robot, according to some experts. 

The technology for remote-controlled light aircraft is now highly advanced, widely available — and, experts say, virtually unstoppable.

Models with a wingspan of five metres (16 feet), capable of carrying up to 50 kilograms (110 pounds), remain undetectable by radar.

And thanks to satellite positioning systems, they can now be programmed to hit targets some distance away with just a few metres (yards) short of pinpoint accuracy.

Security services the world over have been considering the problem for several years, but no one has yet come up with a solution.

The article quotes a number of experts who suggest flying robots may be a security threat, includes a photo of the U.S.-built "Predator" unmanned aerial vehicle, and cites development of similar technology in other countries. 

But the discussion in the blogosphere is tinged with doubt. Over on Dvorak Uncensored, at least one commenter rattles off a laundry list of pitfalls between having the technology and making it work, including everything from getting a decent engine to finding an open channel. Meanwhile, Bruce Scheiner pegs the article as tipping the" movie-threat hype meter." 

On the other hand the DefenseTech post mentioned in the article ends with the statement "How great the threat is this time remains to be seen."