NASA scientists have invented a new metal alloy that is 1,000 times more durable than current state-of-the-art materials used in aviation and space exploration.
The US space agency believes that Alloy GRX-810 could revolutionise space travel, as it can withstand far harsher conditions than existing materials used within rocket engines.
The material has twice the strength, three-and-a-half times the flexibility and more than 1,000 times the durability under stress at high temperatures.
Google rolled out patches for the flaws in a December security update, so Android users should make sure they’ve updated their mobile OSes.
To SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the future is teeming with humanoid robots.
During a lengthy and freewheeling conversation with TED’s Chris Anderson last week, Musk expanded on his vision of what it could look like to share everyday life with automatons doing our bidding.
And, predictably, the conversation jumped directly to the sexual implications of humanoid androids. Despite his busy personal schedule, Musk clearly does have some time to daydream.
We are approaching the point when humans make the leap off Earth and onto other planets. When we get there, how will we represent ourselves?
In this opinion essay, Earth Flag designer Oskar Pernefeldt explains why humans need a symbol if they are to succeed as an interplanetary species — on and off Earth.
Posted in futurism
Pigs live in modular pens in barns with airy lattice-like facades on this Croatian farm designed by architecture studio Skroz.
Skroz designed the Eco Pig Farm for Sin Ravnice, one of the first professional breeders dedicated to the long-neglected Slavonian Black pig, which is indigenous to the Slavonia region of eastern Croatia.
The pig is prized for its bacon and the local specialty sausage “kulen”, but its numbers dwindled during the 20th century as factory farming increased, because the breed requires access to pasture.
A lush green wall and back-lit fibreglass panels are found on the exterior of an electrical substation extension that was designed by TEF Design to achieve net-zero energy consumption.
Owned by the utility company Pacific Gas and Electric, the Larkin Street Substation Expansion is located on a mid-block site in the city’s Tenderloin neighbourhood. It adjoins a concrete structure built in 1962 to supply power to the northeastern part of San Francisco.
For the constrained site, local firm TEF Design conceived a two-storey addition that totals 12,200 square feet (1,133 square metres). The extension rises 50 feet (15 metres) at its highest point.
