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Plenty
of robots are mobile, and robotic arms have
been commonplace in factories for decades,
but there have been very few mobile robots
that have arms. A robot that can move around
and manipulate objects would go a long way
toward the ideal of robots that interact with
people in the everyday world. A robot that's
based on the Segway two-wheel scooter is a
major step, er roll, in the right direction.
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Jolts turn liquid to solid
Apply electricity to certain fluids that contain
tiny particles and the liquid turns solid. This
caused a lot of excitement in the late '80s, but
until now the stuff couldn't be made harder than
firm tofu. A dose of nanotechnology has changed
the picture.
Switch
promises optical chips
Computers have historically been electronic rather
than photonic because lightwaves, while great for
sending signals over long distances, are controlled
by equipment that has proven difficult to shrink
to computer chip scale. The rise of photonic crystals
promises to narrow the gap between electronic and
photonic control, however. A design for photonic
crystal transistors shows that they could be made
in much the same way as their electronic predecessors.
Physics
tackles processor problem
The difference between problems that parallel processing
computers are good at solving and those they are
not is a bit like the difference between water and
ice. They are distinct phases marked by a transition
point. Pinpointing the boundary between easy and
hard parallel processing problems is a physics puzzle
that could lead to better parallel processing software.
Briefs
Molecular
memory is electric... Liquid
crystal tunes fiber... Nanotubes
fortify plastic film... Plastic
display circuit shines... Model
leverages nano tethers... Stamp
forms organic laser.
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