Recently it was announced the the first entirely artificial heart will be ready for human trials in two and a half years. With about 20,000 people per year in line for heart transplants, this is sure to be the medical breakthrough of the decade. The main problem with prototypes in the past has [...]
Today, Honda unveiled its second walking assistance device, which looks to be a stunning breakthrough. The device makes walking a whole lot easier by supporting the users body weight which takes off a significant weight load. I can see this device helping the elderly people get around. Part of the struggle with the older folk is supporting their own weight when walking. This device will make walking around town, going up and down stairs, and getting around a whole lot easier. As Honda states, “The new walking assist device with the body weight support system reduces the load on leg muscles and joints (in the hip, knees, and ankles) by supporting a portion of the person’s body weight. The device has a simple structure consisting of seat, frame, and shoes, and the user can put it on by simply wearing the shoes and lifting the seat into position.” [...]
I’ve been wondering why power hasn’t been harnessed from the ocean since I was a little kid. It’s constantly moving… seems like a no brainer. Well Portugal thought so too by building the first wave farm harnessing 2.25MW of power and in turn powering 1,500 homes. There are three 450 foot buoys [...]
For those of us who are sitting at the edge of our seats for OLED screens to become the standard, Samsung has released a new screen that could take us in a totally new direction. As we’ve been hearing for years, e-paper has many advantages to traditional displays. It’s the best for viewing in direct sunlight and power consumption is unparalleled due to the fact that the screen can retain images without having to be constantly refreshed. Well Samsung and Unidym have created a 14.3 inch nanotube-base[...]
Smokey the bear would be flipping out right now if he weren’t imaginary. It looks like the scientists at MIT have taken his advice literally and have come up with a way to prevent forest fires. The idea is truly genius. It’s to set up a network of sensors throughout forests that are actually powered by the trees themselves. Apparently a small amount of electricity can be extracted from the difference in pH balance between the soil and the root. It’s not much but they think it’ll be enough[...]
Can’t believe it has taken this long to come up with this, but perhaps the technology is just now available. Never the less, NASA plans on building a gigantic liquid telescope on the Moon. A huge downfall of trying to view space from Earth is that we have to look through the atmosphere which significantly obstructs our view, not to mention light pollution. NASA figures, if they are going to build a huge telescope all the way on the moon, might as well make it the best ever built. By using a ionic liquid (basically molten salts), and spinning it. The spinning w[...]
Now to be honest, here at ButteryBlend, we aren’t ones to post on the sci-fi dreams of designers that probably will never become a reality. On that note, The Space Elevator appears to be a, when not if, situation.
The idea is to build an anchor on Earth, somewhere near the equator, and to essentially [...]
Yesterday, October 3rd 2008, Raytheon successfully tested its 30 pound, 10 ft wide unmanned aircraft, designed for surveillance and reconnaissance called the KillerBee. It’s got a range of 100 miles and/or 15 hours of sustainable flight time. Something you may not expect is the seemingly low-tech recovery system. Which is basically a big net that the craft flies into to stop it. The cr[...]
