Technology

The story of Icarus teaches us that it is dangerous to fly close to the sun.  But that is only when you are wearing wings made of wax.  When you are harnessing the sun’s energy with photovoltaic cells, closer is actually better.  In fact, solar energy is five times stronger in space than it is on the Earth's surface.  Taking this to heart, Japan’s Aerospace Exploration Agency announced this week that it plans to build an energy station in space that will capture s

Many of us grew up watching cartoons and movies about the future that showed us a number of objects, such as flying cars, that would be fun to have but others also brought to us the idea of prosthetic limbs and other resources that helped repair or replace integral elements of our daily lives. While some of these have slowly come across and have been used to help individuals who may have lost limbs in a war or due to certain diseases, these alternatives never truly became mainstream. The Swiss company IMI is now looking to change that.

Scientists are one step closer to developing an elevator capable of conveying people and objects to and from space.  Once the domain of fringe astrophysicists and science fiction novelists, the Space Elevator, as it is called, has garnered enough credibility to become a mainstream science project.  According to one observer, “The space elevator is where the PC was i

The movies always inspire our imagination; most recently's Marvel's Ironman film made many of wish for a suit that could do almost anything. Well, researchers are currently working on an artificial intelligence suit that could hold some of those fantastic elements. These specific components are being designed to be integrated into NASA's space suits so as to allow astronauts the ability to identify alternative lifeforms on other planets, specifically Mars.

When looking at developing countries and the myriad of issues that face them, it often becomes a daunting task coming up with ways to benefit those in need. Many however have lived up to the task and have found the little things that make a big difference. The latest in this is a new combination of older technologies that create an inexpensive and environmentally friendlier way of bringing light where there was once darkness.