Aedan O'Brien

Scientists have created a material that can switch between repelling and absorbing water droplets at the flick of a switch. The copper based material can go from super hydrophobic (water hating) to super hydrophilic (water loving) in a matter of seconds and could be used for water filtration, biomedical devices, liquid lenses and smart self-cleaning

New algorithms developed by Google and MIT engineers make it possible for smartphones to process and retouch photos in real-time, before you’ve even hit the shutter button – so they can fix your shoddy photography before it happens. Machine learning networks were set to work on a database of 5,000 sample images improved by five

As mobile phone users, all we want is enough battery life to last the day. Frustratingly, the older the device, the less power it seems to have. In fact, the amount of battery life our mobiles have on any given day depends on two key factors: how we use them on that particular day, and

As the Tesla Model 3 launch was imminent, Jack Stewart of Wired wrote, “The arrival of Tesla’s Model 3 signals a new chapter in automotive history, one that erases 100-plus years of the gas engine and replaces it with technology, design, and performance hot enough to make electric vehicles more than aspirational – to make

Robovacs like the Roomba may be awesomely convenient helpers around the home, but buying a robot to clean up after you could come at a hidden cost. Unguarded comments from the leader of iRobot – the maker of the Roomba – have lit a firestorm of controversy over this previously most uncontroversial of tech, after

Flying warehouses, robot receptionists, smart toilets… do such innovations sound like science fiction or part of a possible reality? Technology has been evolving at such a rapid pace that, in the near future, our world may well resemble that portrayed in futuristic movies, such as Blade Runner, with intelligent robots and technologies all around us.

Scientists have created an ultrathin energy harvesting device that generates electricity from human motion. The material could be placed in the fabric of clothing to charge your smartphone, fitness tracker and other personal electronics while you go about your daily life. “In the future, I expect that we will all become charging depots for our personal

Researchers have started developing artificial intelligence with imagination – AI that can reason through decisions and make plans for the future, without being bound by human instructions. Another way to put it would be imagining the consequences of actions before taking them, something we take for granted but which is much harder for robots to

When a battery runs low it usually needs to be manually recharged, but new approaches are being developed to help this energy source last indefinitely. Self-sustaining batteries are needed for activities that use sensors. These include long-term tracking of wildlife like flying foxes, multi-year biodiversity assessments in Australian rainforests and the Amazon, and studying the

How far away is a robot that could help you around the house with domestic tasks such as putting away the groceries, cleaning up messes and answering simple questions? Although self-driving cars are already here and now, roads are a lot more consistent to navigate than the average – and wildly variable – family home.

We’re always hearing how robots are going to take our jobs, but there might be a way of preventing that grim future from happening: by becoming workplace cyborgs first. A company in Wisconsin has become the first in the US to roll out microchip implants for all its employees, and says it’s expecting over 50

The summer can be a great time to start a new relationship. Maybe it’s that lingering ‘school’s out’ mentality that makes us feel young and carefree. Or, hey, maybe it’s that people look better when they aren’t bundled up in an oversized turtleneck sweater.   Dating site Match told Business Insider that July tends to be

Finding time to stop, plug in and recharge could become history, with scientists developing a new electrode design that could charge batteries in seconds instead of hours. They say it could solve not only the pain of recharging phones, but also solve one of the primary issues holding back the electric vehicle market.   Previous

Elon Musk has announced via Twitter that he received verbal approval for this plan to build an underground Hyperloop between New York and Washington – which would also stop at Philadelphia and Baltimore. As a result, one could get from New York to D.C. in just 29 minutes.   It’s worth noting that the approval

Mister Fantastic might not be the hottest superhero in the extensive Marvel Universe roster right now. But there’s no denying the Fantastic Four leader’s power to stretch and contort his plasticky limbs into any nook or cranny has helped save the day (and the world) many times over. While Reed Richards is alas only fictional,

As a guest speaker at the 2017 National Governors Association Summer Meeting, entrepreneur and innovator Elon Musk covered a number of topics, including artificial intelligence (AI). During his talk, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO and founder urged the US governors present on Saturday to set up regulations for the development of AI.   Musk is very familiar

Behold the FlatScope, an innovative implant scientists hope could one day beam sensory information straight to your brain – skipping the need to repair eyes or ears to restore vision or hearing. Not only that, the team behind the FlatScope says it has the potential to capture brain activity in much more detail than currently

As an artificial intelligence researcher, I often come across the idea that many people are afraid of what AI might bring. It’s perhaps unsurprising, given both history and the entertainment industry, that we might be afraid of a cybernetic takeover that forces us to live locked away, “Matrix”-like, as some sort of human battery.