Spraying crops with weed-killer is not only harmful to the environment, but it’s also costly for farmers. With those problems in mind, scientists have conducted a study which suggests that less herbicide could be used for the same results, if applied at the right time of day. Just like us, plants have circadian rhythms. This means that throughout the day, […]

Though facial recognition technology isn’t exactly flavor of the month at the moment, it could prove popular among revelers queuing at a busy bar. British data science company DataSparQ has introduced the A.I. Bar service, which helps bar staff decide who needs serving next by putting customers in a virtual queue. Getting served at a busy bar can be something […]

Russia’s largest agricultural holding company has joined forces with AI development firm Cognitive Technologies to pilot autonomous crop management on 665,000 hectares of land. It is hoped that the technology will help reduce crop losses while also improving farming efficiency. Rusagro has contracted Cognitive Technologies – the same company that’s testing an autonomous tram in Moscow – to install the […]

Central Saint Martins graduate Rosie Broadhead has integrated live bacteria into the fibres of clothing that reduces body odour, encourages cell renewal and improves the immune system, when activated by sweat. By encapsulating live bacteria into the fibres of a leotard-like garment, the designer hopes to create a new interaction between fabric and skin through the use of probiotic technology. […]

The most numerous of organisms on Earth, bacteriophages are viruses that infect and kill bacteria. Now, scientists have grown enough of them to create a self-healing hydrogel that’s made almost entirely of the things. It could have important applications in medicine, and in other fields. Led by chemical engineer Zeinab Hosseini-Doust, researchers at Canada’s McMaster University grew bacteriophages in the […]

A good host knows how to make a variety of cocktails and drinks, but playing bartender doesn’t always leave you with time to socialize. Barsys set out to solve this problem with the Barsys 1.0, a robotic bartender that “lives on your countertop.” The device acted like an alcoholic Keurig; it could make custom cocktails and drinks based on predefined […]

Us humans can be pretty adept at tuning into a singular voice – in say a busy bar or restaurant – but hearing aids and devices like them can quickly become pretty overwhelmed by all the background noise. Scientists call this the “cocktail party problem,” and through a new form of artificial intelligence believe they have come up with a […]

Current approaches to water desalination are tremendously expensive and energy-intensive, so the search is very much on for new technologies that can get the job done more efficiently. Scientists in Melbourne have put forward one rather promising solution, developing a new kind of system that heats up and purifies water using only the power of the Sun. The device was […]

Getting real, physical movements accurately depicted in the digital world remains a challenge for programmers and engineers, but a newly developed glove promises to advance the tech significantly. It’s able to capture hand movements with much more detail and nuance than most existing solutions. To achieve this, the researchers behind the glove created a silicone compound holding 44 embedded stretch […]

It can be challenging, growing delicate plants from seeds. A group of Korean entrepreneurs is out to make the process easier – and techier – with the Wi-Fi-connected, water-pump-equipped and smartphone-controlled Bloomengine. Users start by placing an included disc-shaped peat pellet in water, and allowing it to expand. That expanded pellet is then put in the bottom section of the […]