SAN FRANCISCO–The Orbiting Carbon Observatory, or OCO , was designed to monitor the movement of carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere starting this year, but instead it plunged into the ocean in February due to a launch malfunction. Now an instrument on another NASA probe is enabling researchers to map atmospheric CO2, and revealing that its global distribution is surprisingly uneven, with regional variations of up to 5 percent. [More]

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Just found this. A group of 7 people use everything from doors to windows to starter motors to make an amazing jeep techno song. The song starts off slow but then picks up at about 1:00 if you are low on time and want to skip ahead. I would recommend listening to it all though its amazing. Appare…
By: =SMART=

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COPENHAGEN–Revolutionizing the energy industry to achieve a target concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere of no more than 450 parts per million (ppm) would require building 17 nuclear power plants a year between now and 2030; 17,000 wind turbines a year; or two hydropower dams on the scale of Three Gorges Dam in China, according to the International Energy Agency . Such an effort would require an investment of $10.5 trillion during the next 20 years but would ultimately yield savings of $8.6 trillion, the IEA estimated. [More]

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Here’s an app you won’t be able to download via Apple’s App Store — well, that is, unless you’re in the military. Raytheon, a military contractor, is working on an app for the iPhone called One Force Tracker, which gives soldiers using it a constantly updating map, detailed with both friendly and enemy positions.

That’s not the only war app out there, either. Another military contractor, Knight’s Armament Company, has one called Bulletflight that’s designed to help snipers hit their targets.

According to Raytheon, the iPhone is ideal as “building software for the gadget was cheaper and simpler than some of the expensive options specifically designed for military use.” That all makes sense, sure, but it’s something of a danger, too, what with all the time wasters available on the iPhone. Read all about One Force Tacker on Raytheon’s website.

Via TUAW

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LED traffic lights may use a fraction of the energy their incandescent predecessors used, but there’s a problem emerging as we enter these colder months: LED bulbs don’t give off a substantial amount of heat. When things got cold in the “good ol’ days,” incandescent traffic signals generated enough waste heat to melt any snow buildup. With LED bulbs, that snow just piles up until drivers can’t see the signals anymore. You don’t need to be Thomas Edison to imagine why this is a problem.

To a Luddite, maybe this means incadescent bulbs are the way to go. To the innovator, however, it’s a sign that LED traffic lights still have ways to go, and the technology needs to improve to protect the lights in colder climes. Right now, however, they are proving to be a pain.

From Autoblog:

Municipalities around the country are taking different steps to keep their signals shining brightly in the face of Mother Nature. Crews in St. Paul, Minnesota, use compressed air to keep their lights clean. In Green Bay, Wisconsin, city workers brush the snow off by hand in a labor-intensive process. Until a fix arrives, it is best to take the advice of Dave Hansen, a traffic engineer with the Green Bay Department of Public Works. Treat a blocked signal as if the power is out. “If there’s any question, you err on the side of caution,” says Hansen.

AOL Autos, via Autoblog

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This here is a homemade steampunk camera. No, it’s not a new digital camera that’s just got a brass case on it, this is a completely homemade gadget. Impressive! Although I would worry that all of my pictures of people would have them sharing a similar confused facial expression.

Uberreview via Geekologie

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UPDATE: Giveaway is closed. We need to decorate this place a little bit. If you want an ornament patch to liven up your profile, just post a new comment below saying "Happy Holidays!" below. Oh, and this is only up for a few hours. Get a comment up before 3pm PST (that’s just over three hours fro…
By: fungus amungus

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NEW YORK — Disease has killed more than 90 percent of some bat populations in Northeastern states, according to a survey released yesterday by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation .

The DEC survey in New York, Connecticut and Vermont examined 23 caves that are believed to have once been home to more than 55,000 bats, roughly 10 percent of the regional bat population.

[More]

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Delta Pilar Touch₂O kitchen faucet lets you start or stop its water flow with a quick touch on any of its metal surfaces with your hand or arm. Its maker says it’s more sanitary than ordinary faucets, and claims it adds efficiency to your kitchen cleanup. Let’s see how well it works.

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Mort Lippmann noticed a strange phenomenon in his laboratory mice. For 14 straight days, their hearts were racing. [More]

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  Art | Craft | Food | Games | Green | Home | Kids | Life …
By: fungus amungus

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Art | Craft | Food | Games | Green | Home | Kids | Life | Music | Offbeat | Outdoors | Pets | Photo | Ride | Science | Tech Have a Homemade Holiday There’s just over a week left to make holiday decorations, food, and gifts for friends and fami…
By: fungus amungus

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Could it be that geniuses at the Sheinhardt Wig Company (also known as GE) are getting creative now that they’re about to get rid of us underlings at NBC Universal (the parent company of our overlords at SyFy)? It certainly appears so, if you take this high-tech sleigh for a spin. It’s a clever interactive app that takes you on a tour of some of the latest ideas from GE, the company Thomas Edison built.

Whoa! Even though Santa and his sleigh look decidedly of the Sputnikpunk persuasion, that vehicle is packed with tech. Icephobic coatings? Yikes. Made of carbon fiber, tricked out with GE sodium batteries, a holographic disc and all kinds of wireless tech, Santa should be able to use this hotrod to hit every house in the world in, oh, 2.5 million years or so.

Via GE Global Research Blog

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Is there a Google-branded netbook on the way? Google’s been talking about working with a variety of manufacturers to be sure its Chrome OS runs well, but now multiple sources are saying Google will hire an unnamed netbook maker to build a device specifically for Chrome OS, working from a recipe of Google’s detailed tech specs.

We might be seeing such a refined gBook by next Christmas. By then, there will even more tiny and powerful processors from which to choose, giving this net-connected laptop plenty of oomph.

This is a great idea, Google. Like Apple, when you have control over both the hardware and the software, near-perfect integration is possible. On the other hand, naysayers might argue that hardware is not part of Google’s core competency. But this is not about Google making hardware — it’s about control. Either way, if Google makes it cheap, and might just be a big hit.

TechCrunch, via Geeky Gadgets

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Sainsbury’s has been testing a fleet of 20 Smith Electric Vehicles for delivering groceries for several years and has found that they easily get the job done. Now it’s just ordered 50 more of the three and a half ton Edison vans—making the grocery chain (at least for now) the world leader in EV grocery deliveries.

Online orders will be delivered in the carbon-conscious all-electric delivery vans and will cover an area that makes it possible to serve an estimated 60% of people living in central London.

Read more of this story »

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Here’s something you don’t want to see flying right at you: it’s Australia’s new hovering drone, kept aloft by four ducted fans.

This futuristic contraption, called the Cyber Quad, was designed by Cyber Technology Pty Ltd. It’s set to be used to carry out surveys of offshore drilling platforms, but it could really be used to survey anything from afar, while scaring the hell out of anyone nearby. I want one.

Via Danger Room

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Is your life so interesting that it’s worth recording all of? Alternately, are you so forgetful that you completely blank on entire conversations you had earlier that day? It sounds like you could use some technological help.

The You-Vision video glasses are glasses with a built-in camera. They’ve got enough battery and storage to allow you to shoot for 5 straight hours, which should be enough to capture any dinner parties you attend. Sure, they’re conspicuously blocky, but it’s better than the alternative of forgetting everything.

Photojojo via Gadget Lab

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All environmental eyes are focused on Copenhagen this week, but take a peek outside the summit and you’ll see the debut of what could be a revolutionary new wrinkle in the bicycle world. M.I.T. is debuting a wheel that could be quite revolutionary.

The Copenhagen wheels stores the kinetic energy created when the bike brakes or coasts downhill, just like a hybrid automobile. The motor kicks in when sensors detect that the riders needs some help up a hill or into a headwind. The hub interacts via Bluetooth with a iPhone mounted on the handlebars to shift gears, plus there’s a GPS to track your ride. You can even see where other riders are or where traffic is building using the iPhone app.

I’m a purist when it comes to my bikes, but with a price expected between $500 and $1000, would you use something like this on your bike?

MIT via The New York Times

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Now, there are in-car navigation systems, and there are in-car navigation ZOMG systems. This, chums, is one of the latter — Audi’s updated MMI system for its A8 sedan, which will incorporate Google Earth; the first time ever it’s been applied in a production car.

As well as the hard-disk navi system, there’s a GPRS/EDGE modem, meaning you’ll be bombarded with a constant stream of Google info. You can plan your route on Google Maps, and Google Earth, as well as Audi’s online portal, and transmit all data to the A8′s sophisticated system. (Did I mention it’s got an 8-speed gearbox? Well, I just did.)

So far, Audi says that the updated MMI system will be available in selected markets, but it’s remaining coy as to which country we’ll have to move to in order to get this as standard on our new set of wheels.

Via Autoblog

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France-based game designer Frantz Lasorne has created what may be the new standard for next generation games. His experimental, augmented reality game system called SCOPE takes real world toys and/or objects and assigns values and powers to those objects.

Each piece has a different code platform attached that is readable by a connected computer. When the gamer dons the specially configured headset, the objects become fully interactive, allowing for a whole new range of gaming paradigms to be explored. You can see video of the SCOPE game system in action here.

Via Design Boom

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