Gizmag News - Xenatec's outrageous (and expensive) Coupe reprises the Maybach Exelero

Welcome to the newsletter for gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine. These are the headlines for March the 8th, 2011. Xenatec's outrageous and beautiful (and really expensive) Coupe reprises the Maybach Exelero Fancy a Porsche Cayenne crew-cab ute (1), a tastefully-elongated Audi R8 (2) or maybe a stretched Bentley (3)? How about an Aston Martin shooting break (4), a Toyota Landcruiser that seats an extra three people (5), or perhaps an altered roofline, respectfully modified or fully armored … well, anything? Xenatec is one of the places where people go when they have lofty desires and a matching bank balance. The company is now breaking out of its traditional custom niche and entering production of a 100-only limited edition EUR675,000 Xenatec Coupe (6 & 7) that captures the spirit of the many mouth-watering Maybach coupes across time (9). Read More Molecule that can erase or restore long-term memories – in rats If you’re struggling to remember the names of classmates from high school, or just can’t forget that time you made a complete ass of yourself in front of your high school crush, then a single molecule known as PKMzeta could be to blame – and increasing or decreasing its activity in the brain could either help you remember those names that seem on the tip of your tongue or drive that embarrassing memory from your head. In a new study, researchers have demonstrated that a memory in rats can either be enhanced or erased long after it is formed by manipulating the activity of the brain enzyme PKMzeta. Read More What humans really want - creating computers that understand users Binghamton University computer scientist Lijun Yin thinks that using a computer should be a comfortable and intuitive experience, like talking to a friend. As anyone who has ever yelled “Why did you go and do that?” at their PC or Mac will know, however, using a computer is currently sometimes more like talking to an overly-literal government bureaucrat who just doesn’t get you. Thanks to Yin’s work with things like emotion recognition, however, that might be on its way to becoming a thing of the past. Read More Bandage with integrated sensors to monitor the healing of injured knees Knee injuries are one of the most common injuries that can befall sportspeople or those that simply enjoy an active lifestyle. Such injuries can lay up patients for weeks while they wait for the joints to regain their full function. Although the time it takes for the knee to heal is directly related to how well it responds to the chosen treatment, it can be difficult for an orthopedic doctor to evaluate the healing process and for the patients themselves to know what progress they are making. Researchers have now developed a new type of bandage that features integrated sensors to monitor a knee's range of movement over time to let patients know how they are progressing and let doctors know it they need to adapt the treatment. Read More FiiK electric skateboard - wireless control, ABS braking system, ton of attitude Sometimes you come across a product that makes you sit back and go “FiiK”. In the past we have covered electric skateboards, off road skateboards, even all terrain boards but a combination of fun, tech, design and street cred has always been elusive. Two brothers on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia have managed to meld these elements together with their electric skateboards. The company is called FiiK “Future Is In Knowledge”, a nod to their ongoing design refinement which began over 10 years ago with a small two stroke motor strapped to a skateboard. The product has evolved to a skateboard with a magnetic motor, a digital wireless throttle control system, ABS braking system and a ton of urban chic. Read More Getting robots to move like people for better interaction As robots get smarter and more capable and make their way from manufacturing assembly lines to a much wider variety of applications, we will be interacting with them in more and more situations. Currently, robots tend to move with jerky, stop/start motions, which can make it difficult for humans, who are accustomed to the fluid and dynamic movements of other humans, to easily recognize what the robots are doing. In an attempt to create robots that can better interact with humans, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology are getting robots to move in a much more human-like way. Read More Space Shuttle Discovery's final mission drawing to a close At 4:53pm EST Tuesday 24th February, Discovery blasted off two minutes and fifty-three seconds late for it's final launch into space. After a tense few moments with an Air Force computer problem, emotions ran high as the NASA space shuttle rocketed through the clear blue afternoon skies. The mission revolves around the delivery of "Leonardo" a Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) to the International Space Station. In addition to carrying critical supplies the module delivered Robonaut 2, a dexterous robot that will find permanent residence on the space station. Read More Snap a 16MP photo and shoot 1080p movies simultaneously with the Olympus SZ-30MR Having to stop shooting high definition movies to a take a still image is somewhat frustrating, and can lead to a rather disjointed digital record of an otherwise enjoyable or important moment. There is no such restriction with the SZ-30MR super-zoom from Olympus. Thanks to a dual image processor, users will be able to record full HD movies and snap a full resolution image at the same time. The camera also benefits from fast burst shooting, dual image stabilization and tracking autofocus. Read More Self-healing elastic polymers developed with the help of a tree When the caoutchouc tree is damaged, liquid latex containing capsules of the protein hevein escapes from inside of it. Those capsules rupture, releasing the hevein, which links the latex particles together and ultimately closes up the wound. The whole bursting/sealing-microcapsules thing is obviously a pretty good idea, as it has been put to use in human technology such as self-healing concrete, electronics, paint and aircraft epoxy resin. Now, German researchers have copied the caoutchouc tree’s modus operandi to create a self-sealing elastic polymer. Read More What can be reused and biodegrade? The Eco Can can While Mother Nature would definitely applaud your use of reusable beverage containers instead of merely recyclable ones (or worst yet, disposable ones), there are some situations in which you don’t want to be toting that coffee flask you bought at Starbucks. When you’re out hiking or biking, for instance, it would be nice to have something that stays sealed when dumped into a bag, and that’s compact enough that it doesn’t take up a lot of space. Really, what would fit the bill nicely is a canned drink, but that’s in a reusable container ... enter the Eco Can. Not only is it reusable, but when the time comes, it’s also 100 percent biodegradable. Read More Nintendo 3DS will stream movies from Netflix With the Nintendo 3DS release date fast approaching, Nintendo's keynote address at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco was an opportunity to showcase more of what we can expect from the new handheld. The most connected Nintendo device ever released according to company President Satoru Iwata, the 3DS will incorporate Netflix video streaming and gain access to over 10000 AT&T wireless hot spots across the United States. Read More If you would like to refer this newsletter to a friend or colleague, please point them at our free subscription page. Please don't try to forward this email, as the formatting is unlikely to remain intact. And don't worry, we don't share email addresses. Please read our privacy policy if you are concerned. Watch for more of the best new innovations, ideas and practical technologies in your inbox. You are receiving this email because you signed up for our daily newsletter at http://www.gizmag.com. If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter please click here to unsubscribe. COPYRIGHT GIZMAG (C) 2011