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IdeaFeed

Big ideas in the news from across the Web

  • Biotech Revolution

    Scientists Build Electricity Producing Viruses

    If current research proves fruitful, the homes and cities of the future may be powered by viruses. Berkeley Lab scientists have genetically engineered the M13 virus to output more power. 

  • green tech

    Bicycles Are the Next Mobile Technology Platform

    As more American cities warm to the idea of bicycle sharing programs, the bike may evolve into the ideal platform for gathering urban data on everything from traffic levels to heartbeat rates. 

  • Rethinking the Workplace

    Does Mobile Computing Increase Productivity?

    Access to mobile computing, to allow employees to check email outside of working hours, increases productivity up to a point. After that it just burns people out and makes them unhappy. 

  • Creative Boosts

    Autonomous Robots Take to the High Seas

    A new robotic sailboat aims to set navigation records while collecting data on marine life. In the future, such boats could be used for search and rescue operations and tsunami detection.

  • Biotech Revolution

    Mind-Controlled Robots Take Big Step Forward

    A team of researchers at Brown University have taught a paralyzed woman to move a robotic arm with her mind, enabling her to take an independent sip of coffee for the first time in 15 years. 

  • Life in Space

    Why We Probably Aren't Alone in the Universe

    There is not much middle ground in the debate over whether life exists beyond planet Earth. Astronomers either believe the odds of life are impossibly rare or mundanely common. 

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