mit - SlashGear

MIT smart power outlet can identify dangerous electric spikes

Shane McGlaun | Jun 18, 2018

The engineers at MIT have developed a smart electrical outlet that can learn what appliances are plugged in and tell dangerous electric spikes from spikes that are benign. MIT says that nuisance trips are things like your vacuum turning off unexpectedly or a lamp going off when your AC unit turns on. Those trips often happen when a detector installed inside the wall senses something that could be an arc-fault.

BMW and MIT create printed inflatable material

Shane McGlaun | Jun 8, 2018

BMW and MIT have announced that they have teamed up to create the first printed inflatable material. The breakthrough was created at the MIT Self-Assembly Laboratory and the material can self-transform, adapt, and morph from one state to another. The material can be customized to any shape or size.

MIT developed “bacteria on a chip” could detect gastric bleeding

Shane McGlaun | May 25, 2018

Researchers at MIT have developed a new ingestible sensor that features genetically engineered bacteria. The bacteria are designed to diagnose bleeding in the stomach or other GI tract problems. The "bacteria-on-a-chip" (not that kind of chip) combines a sensor that is made from living cells with ultra-low power electronics.

MIT self-driving car tech navigates with only GPS and sensors

Shane McGlaun | May 7, 2018

One thing common among self-driving cars right now is that for safe navigation they require 3D maps that are labeled by hand. A breakthrough at MIT will change that if the tech comes to market. MIT's system can navigate, even on country roads, using only GPS and sensor data. MIT's Daniela Rus says that the need for these dense 3D maps has limited where modern autonomous cars can operate.

MIT SoFi soft robot swims in the ocean like a real fish

Brittany A. Roston | Mar 21, 2018

MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) has unveiled SoFi, a soft robotic fish that can swim in the ocean using realistic movements, enabling it to get up close and personal with real sea life. SoFi was tested in the Rainbow Reef, where it was able to swim at depths down to 50ft, taking on ocean currents while capturing videos and photos using a built-in camera.

San Junipero is real: Nectome wants to upload your brain

Chris Burns | Mar 15, 2018

Nectome is a company that suggests they're able to upload your consciousness to a computer, just like on Black Mirror. The episode Black Mirror features a future in which people have a choice when they die: pass on, or have yourself uploaded to a place called San Junipero. Now the company Nectome says they can do that too - but there's no trial period, and you won't come back out the other side alive.

Lamborghini Terzo Millennio: The raging bull goes electric

Chris Davies | Nov 6, 2017

Blasphemy. That's what some would call it: the so-called purists, asked to consider an electric super sports car with the Lamborghini badge. And yet, at a time when EVs are drag-racing gas powered exotica and winning, and when "eco" absolutely need not be a synonym for "dull," perhaps it's time for a more open mind. Meet the Lamborghini Terzo Millennio, the Lamborghini for the third millennium.

Researchers develop smart tattoos that use color changing ink for medical info

Shane McGlaun | Oct 2, 2017

Researchers working together at Harvard and MIT have developed a new ink for tattoos that is able to monitor health and change color to warn of certain medical issues. The ink could change colors if the person is dehydrated or if the blood sugar rises. The inks used in the tattoos are biosensitive and the tech seeks to merge tattoo art with medical monitoring devices.

This camera tech could make Android the photographer’s choice

Chris Davies | Aug 3, 2017

Never mind swiping through endless filters trying to find the perfect Instagram effect on your latest photo: Google and MIT want to build that right into the viewfinder. Teams from the search giant and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have been collaborating on a system that promises automatic retouching of images in real-time, giving pro-photographer style results before you've even hit the capture button. It's the latest example of how machine learning can not only improve everyday tasks but cut our current reliance on the cloud.

MIT makes apps that teaches language for just a few seconds

JC Torres | Apr 21, 2017

We have become an "instant" culture, that is, a culture of instant gratification. We expect what we want, from an Internet connection to a reply to a message to that viral cat video, to be there at a push of a button. And it bugs us to no end when they don't. But instead of losing our cool, researchers from MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory or CSAIL suggest a better use of those precious moments. Meet WaitSuite, a group of micro-learning apps that can teach you language, math, or even medicine while waiting for an elevator or waiting for your device to connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot.

MIT robots know what you’re thinking

Brittany A. Roston | Mar 6, 2017

Researchers with MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, more commonly called CSAIL, and Boston University have jointly created a robot that can read a human’s thoughts. Thanks to this ability, the robot doesn’t need to learn complex human languages or other ways to get orders from humans — those humans can instead command the robots using nothing more than thoughts and a special electrode cap.

MIT gel robot is nearly invisible underwater, fast enough to grab fish

Brittany A. Roston | Feb 7, 2017

Researchers at MIT have created a new robot using hydrogel that, when placed underwater, is nearly invisible to the naked eye. Despite being made of transparent gel and powered by water, the robot is capable of reasonably fast movements, including grabbing a live fish, holding on to it, and then releasing it safely back into the water. Such a precise but gentle touch could one day have many applications, including surgical assistance.