Researchers at the University of Surrey in the UK, working with scientists from Philips, are getting closer to bringing “roll-up” technology to life. New breakthroughs in flexible electronics have come from working with a simple-circuit component that can be used in analog electronic designs, including display screens. The component, called a Source-Gated-Transistor, could potentially be built into additional items made of flexible plastics or textiles. Source: Science Daily
What if the 4 million miles of highway in the U.S. could harness the power of the sun they sit under all day, and add that energy back into the power supply? Scott and Julie Brusaw of Idaho-based Solar Roadways are poised to find out. Their Federal Highway Administration-funded prototype has taken shape in the form of a 12-foot-by-36-foot parking lot, and the pair has since taken to Indiegogo to help bring the product to market. The durable hexagonal panels are heated to ease snow and ice removal, and feature LEDs that can display road markings.
Forget the gym selfie, car selfie and duck face selfie — a more medically useful opportunity for self-photography is now available. A tiny camera from Georgia Tech mechanical engineering Professor F. Levent Degertekin offers high-resolution, 3-D pictures of internal organs. Resembling a mini cymbal, the apparatus features a circular silicon chip embedded with 100 sound wave-capturing sensors, shedding light on obstructions in blood vessels without increasing blood temperature. Source: Wired