Wow! That’s Engineering!

Imagine how scorching our summers would be if the sun were seven times hotter.

You’d feel it if you lived somewhere near a just-discovered star located in a cluster of the Tarantula Nebula, 165,000 light years away.

British scientists say it’s not only hot, but the biggest and brightest star ever seen — 10 million times brighter than our sun, seven times hotter, and weighing 265 times more.

The star used to weigh 320 times more than our sun, but stars this bright are born heavy and lose weight as they age.

Also, the life span of such large stars are shortened due to the amount of energy they expel. Thus, R136a1, as it is known, may only be around for 3 million years before perishing in a large explosion.

Locating R136a1 was important, but less significant than another discovery in outer space recently, this time by NASA’s planet-hunting Kepler mission.

The Kepler telescope found 140 new planets that were small, rocky, and potentially habitable like the Earth, and it is now believed that planets similar to our own are the most common type of planet in our galaxy.

Astronomers estimate that the Milky Way may have as many as 100 million habitable planets.

Does this mean we may be close to discovering life on another planet? Stay tuned.

Image: Andrew Curtis / Flickr

If you’re planning to visit the western coast of France anytime soon, be sure to keep an eye out for a 40-foot-tall mechanical elephant. Perhaps taking inspiration from steampunk fiction and Jules Verne, French engineers, artists, and craftspeople have cobbled together a movable mammoth using 45 tons worth of reclaimed wood and steel.

The Great Elephant is part of the Machines of the Isle of Nantes project, and exhibit of fantastical creations, which aims to inspire the imaginations of citizens and tourists alike. And it’s not just for decoration, either: this robust creature can carry up to 49 passengers on a 45-minute walk around the city of Nantes.

Here’s a video of some stomping action:

Click here to view the embedded video.

While it’s unclear what sort of fuel the mobile elephant runs on (peanuts?), we’re hoping its carbon footprint is a lot smaller than its actual footprints.

[Inhabitat]

Now, thanks to Tom Broadbent, an industrial design graduate from De Montfort University in Leicester, UK, bathrooms may start impacting the environment in more positive ways by becoming power generators.

Called the “HighDro Power,” Broadbent’s design harvests energy from water discharged from showers, toilets, and sinks in high-rise apartments.

Employing the same principles as a hydroelectric dam, the falling water flows down a pipe, then hits four specially-designed turbine blades. Those blades power a single generator, which could save a seven-storey building more than $1,000 per year in energy costs.

Broadbent began working on his invention after the G8 Summit in 2008, when many governments including the United States announced their intention to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and dependency on fossil fuels by 2050.

After observing how a hotel bathtub drained — quickly, and with a large amount of force — Broadbent realized that such energy could be harnessed to create green electricity.

The HighDro Power is currently being considered for a James Dyson Award, as well as one from the Institution of Engineering Designers.

Image: De Montfort University

The software, called Lagoa Multiphysics 1.0, was created by Thiago Costa, a programmer and technical director for Ubisoft games. Watch as it realistically simulates falling dirt, crumpling silks, and other animated marvels in the eye-popping demo below:

While these stunning graphics are currently too complex to run in real-time (e.g. during gameplay), they may soon be popping up in video game cut-scenes and in movie theaters near you.

[PopSci]

Wouldn’t it be great if the whole country got together to celebrate the achievements of scientists and engineers? Fortunately, such a celebration will be happening this October on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

The first annual USA Science and Engineering Festival will take place from Oct. 10-12 2010, and will include over 500 exhibitors and many fun hands-on activities. The event is designed for students, teachers, families, and anyone else who loves engineering and science. Exhibits range from fighter pilot simulations to nanotechnology demonstrations.

You can see a preview of all the cool exhibits here, or even apply to volunteer at the festival. As always, don’t forget to check out the eGFI Family Engineering booth!

Image: YoTuT/Flickr

If you hand him a drawing, Milo will reach out, grab it, and comment on the drawing’s shape and color.

None of that may seem particularly unusual – except that Milo is a virtual creation, a milestone in gaming created by U.K. game designer Peter Molyneux.

Unlike other gaming experiences, interacting with Milo almost feels like being with a real person: You can reach for the computer screen and splash the water in Milo’s pond, while he can throw you a pair of goggles.

Milo comes to life thanks to Microsoft’s Kinect, a new hands-free Xbox 360 controller that is able to interpret its user’s intentions using a series of cameras, microphones, and sensors.

Molyneux developed his virtual character using Microsoft technology and artificial intelligence created by Lionhead studios.

After 45 minutes, Milo will recognize you, and your experiences with him will shape and change the course of his life. Thus, no two Milos can ever be the same.

You will shape his reality . . . but will he shape yours?

Think about what all this might mean for our future.  Do you agree that Milo is the coolest advancement in virtual gaming ever?

Or do you feel that artificial intelligence this sophisticated could become dangerous, as we’ve seen in the movies I, Robot and The Matrix?

Need to see it to believe it? Watch the video below:

Image: IGN

Researchers from Spain’s Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona School of Engineering developed the system, called XALOC – Xarxes de sensors per a la gestió d’Aparcaments públics i LOCalització.

Translation? “Sensor networks for the management of public parking and location.”

Each parking spot in the system has a wireless sensor embedded in the middle of the space, which can tell whether or not the space is occupied.

The location of the available space can be displayed on electronic street panels.

To help drivers directly, XALOC uses the ARID Navigator system, which works much like a GPS navigator, taking the signals from the sensors and determining the proximity of the closest open parking space in relation to the driver.

Compared to conventional GPS navigators, the ARID offers more precise location techniques, reduced positioning time, and better coverage.

If proven successful, the use of XALOC could lead to a much more pleasant driving experience, without endlessly circling for parking.

Image: realSMILEY/Flickr

Wouldn’t it be great if the pesky mice in your home would just disappear?

Well, if you’re talking about the mouse for your computer, then you’re in luck!

Researchers are about to unleash Mouseless, an invisible computer mouse that allows users to interact with a computer as usual – just without a physical mouse.

To achieve that effect, scientists working with the Fluid Interfaces Group at the MIT Media Lab developed an infrared laser beam located just above the surface of the computer and a camera near the top of the monitor.

Aiming at the spot where a user’s hand and mouse would normally be, the laser beam projects light onto the hand, tracking any changes in position.

The light’s movement is interpreted by the built-in camera, which translates them into clicks, movements, and mouse commands.

The MIT researchers are working on improvements to produce more complex gesture recognition, and ultimately give the Mouseless visible advantages over a physical mouse.

See a very cute demo here:

Images: Mouseless

In science and engineering, sometimes the most creative inventions are the outcome of happy accidents. Such is the case with the Aqualux 3D, an innovative 3D display technology that resulted when researchers at Carnegie Mellon were attempting to improve the functionality of car headlights under rainy conditions. They discovered that layers of water could make the perfect medium for a truly 3-dimensional, interactive screen.

With Aqualux 3D, each carefully-positioned water drop acts as a 3D pixel (or “voxel”) that can be viewed from many different angles. Three successive layers of drops add depth to one image, or can be used as separate displays (as in the 3D Tetris demo below):

Click here to view the embedded video.

Let’s hear from you: The makers of Aqualux point to its potential for use in a variety of situations – from theme park rides to art installations. What’s the most creative use for a 3D water drop display you can think of?

Image: Carnegie Mellon University

NASA satellite image of the oil slick from July 12, 2010

The New York Times is reporting that a cap placed yesterday on the exploded BP oil well appears to be holding steady. After the disastrous oil rig explosion on April 20 off the Gulf of Mexico, BP has struggled to find a solution to stop the deadly leak.

See this graphic for a timeline of previous attempts to cap the leak, and this video for views of the current containment apparatus.

Hopefully, engineers now can fully focus on cleanup efforts. Already researchers are pioneering new oil-water separation methods, and engineers like Eric Hoek are busy evaluating these technologies and putting them to good use.

President Obama recently announced that he will be investing $2 billion into two established solar companies in an effort to strengthen the U.S. solar industry.

One of these, Abengoa Solar, is constructing the largest solar power plant in the world. Located in Arizona, the plant will be capable of powering 70,000 homes and drastically cutting CO2 emissions.

The solar plant will likely generate even more power than existing ones, thanks to RoseStreet Labs, which has created a thin film solar panel that integrates three separate layers of photovoltaic cells into just one panel.

Each layer captures a different part of the sun’s spectrum, which allows a panel to absorb 35 percent of the sun’s rays instead of just 15 percent, significantly increasing the efficiency rate.

Another company focused on renewable energy is Joule Unlimited, which has created photosynthetic microorganisms that use sunlight to convert carbon dioxide into ethanol or diesel.

The microbes need no fresh water to grow and the secrete fuel continuously, which makes it is easy to collect.

Lab tests estimate that the microbe process will yield 100 times as much fuel per hectare as fermented corn and 10 times as much as other standard sources used for ethanol production, such as agricultural waste.

Not only that, but costs could be competitive with fossil fuel production.

Image: david.nikonvscanon/Flickr

Anyone who commutes frequently or just watches the news these days knows that the U.S. has a serious infrastructure problem. Although crumbling roads and bridges have the potential to cripple our transportation system, they also present an opportunity to rebuild in smarter, more technologically advanced ways.

One of the most promising new transportation solutions comes from the company Solar Roadways, which is working to repave parts of the country with roads equipped with energy-storing technology.

Not only would these green roads absorb enough energy in one mile of a 4-lane highway to power 500 homes, they would also power transportation warning signs using embedded LEDs. Additional wireless capabilities would enable roadside panels to communicate real-time traffic information to travellers.

Thanks to a recent $100,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Solar Roadways is working with several universities to create prototypes and develop durable materials for the project.

Within the next two years, the company hopes to test its solar paving in parking lots.

Check out a video of Solar Roadways’ latest prototype:

Image: Solar Roadways

Click here to view the embedded video.

Most people hear NASA and think of rocket ships and outer space.

But the space agency will assist in an effort to relocate 70,000 sea turtle eggs from northern Gulf beaches that have been affected by the BP oil spill.

To save them, biologists are carefully digging up 700 sea turtle nests by hand, with each nest containing approximately 100-120 eggs.

The eggs will be placed inside Styrofoam coolers and buried in the damp sand taken from their nests, and then transported in a temperature-controlled truck to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

Researchers will monitor the eggs until they hatch, after which the young turtles will be quickly moved to nearby beaches so they can make their voyage to sea.

Even under the best conditions, only about one in 1,000 sea turtle hatchlings typically survive to adulthood.

While the relocation may not be successful, if the eggs remain, currents in Northwest Florida would likely carry the recently-hatched turtles right into the Gulf spill’s floating oil, eliminating any chance of survival.

This effort by NASA is of special importance since most of the nests were dug by the threatened loggerhead sea turtle, as well as Kemp’s ridley, leatherback, and green sea turtles, all of which are endangered.

Images:

Sea Frost/Flickr
TurtleDude/Flickr

The plane was in the air the all day and all night, relying entirely on solar energy. The flight is the longest and highest in the history of solar aviation.

“I’ve been a pilot for 40 years now, but this flight has been the most incredible one of my flying career,” Borschberg said as he was leaving the cockpit. “I have just flown more than 26 hours without using a drop of fuel and without causing any pollution!”

Images: Solar Impulse

Now, Swiss pilot André Borscherg is attempting the world’s first manned 24-hour flight in a solar-powered aircraft, which began this morning when he took off in the Solar Impulse HB-SIA.

The plane, which is equipped with 12,000 solar cells on its wings, will attempt to fly both during the light of day and the dark of night. If this mission is successful, it will be the longest and highest flight ever made by a solar plane.

The Impulse took seven years to develop, and with a 208-foot wingspan and the weight of a medium-sized car, it is only slightly larger than an average glider.

The solar cells on the plane feed four electric engines and recharge lithium batteries stored underneath the wings.  The plane will charge its batteries all day, soaking up the sun’s rays in preparation for the night flight.

Borscherg hopes to ascend up to an altitude of 26,000 feet during the day, flying at about 44 miles per hour, and then descend back down to 5,000 feet during the night.

Because the plane needs to be piloted at all times, Borscherg has to stay awake all night –and without a lot of wiggle-room in the tiny cockpit.

He’s been practicing yoga and breathing exercises to help him stay relaxed and keep his blood flowing during the flight.

As CEO and co-founder of the Solar Impulse project, Borscherg hopes this flight will be a stepping stone to much longer flights without fuel.

He plans next to undertake a transatlantic flight and then a round-the-world flight, with multiple stops, in 2013.

Update: The flight was a success and stayed in the air for over 26 hours! Click here to read more.

Images: Solar Impulse

The new $100 bill design (U.S. Treasury)

This year, the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing (a.k.a the “money factory”) is all about the Benjamins. The new $100 bill was unveiled this April, and it looks to be much flashier than its predecessors. But this bill, the most technologically advanced the country has ever printed, was specially engineered not only to look cool but also to discourage criminal copycats.

The latest incarnation of rap artists’ most beloved bank note is expected to be in circulation by February 2011, boasting several impressive new security features. Among these upgrades are a copper inkwell with a holographic Liberty Bell inside, and a blue 3D security ribbon that runs down the center of the bill. This strip has been woven into the fabric (not printed onto it) for extra protection from counterfeiters.

If you’d like more details on how the new 100 is made, CNET has an in-depth report on the currency design and manufacturing process. To take a closer look at the bill itself, check out this nifty interactive graphic (you can even view the note under a UV light!).

The number or IEDs used in Afghanistan have increased by 400 percent since 2007, and IEDs are responsible for 50-75 percent of the more than 6,000 American soldiers who have been wounded in Afghanistan.

In January, military experts reported that Taliban fighters have developed new bombs that are almost undetectable because they lack any metal or electronic devices.

To better protect U.S. troops from IEDs, civilian mechanics at the Anniston Army Depot in Alabama have built the Assault Breacher Vehicle – a 64-ton tank nicknamed “the Shredder.”

In designing the tank, they attached a 12-foot, 5,000 pound plow onto a MIAI Abrams battle tank. The sharp teeth on the plow can dig up to seven inches into the ground at 10 miles per hour, exposing any buried IEDs or land mines.

The Assault Breacher is also equipped with a Mine Clearing Line Charge that can blast roadside bombs out of existence and clear a safe path for soldiers to travel.

The line charge consists of a nylon rope that carries 1,750 pounds of C4 explosives and can be launched to distances of over 300 feet.

In addition, the tank is outfitted with a .50-caliber machine gun and reactive armor to protect against high explosive anti-tank weapons.  The entire vehicle can also be operated remotely, allowing soldiers to avoid any danger.

The Marine Corps plan to field 52 of the tanks by 2012 and the Army wants to buy 187. Each one costs $3.7 million and 34 have already been produced, which will hopefully increase the survival-rate of U.S. troops fighting in the war.

Images: United States Marine Corps