The supercomputers of the future will be capable of amazing feats such as modeling global climate scenarios, running molecular-level simulations of cells, and designing nanostructures. In order to for these “exascale computers” to operate, they will need to be able to run an enormous amount of data quickly while keeping power consumption under control. Scientists at IBM in conjunction with DARPA have created an ultra-high-speed prototype optical link that sets a new energy efficiency record. The researchers are set to describe their invention at the Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exposition/National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference (OFC/NFOEC) being held in Anaheim, CA from March 17-21.

Read the rest of IBM and DARPA’s Ultra-High-Speed Digital Data Link Sets Energy Efficiency Record

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: anaheim, California, darpa, energy efficient, exascale computer, ibm, jonathan e proesel, optic link, Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exposition/National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference, record breaking, soi cmos, sumimoto electric device innovations usa, supercomputer, vcsel

Shipping containers have emerged as a popular material for building everything from backyard retreats to temporary shelters and coffee shops. Now DARPA has harnessed the giant metal boxes for use in defense and disaster relief. The Tactically Expandable Maritime Platform (TEMP) links the 20-40 ft containers together like giant LEGO bricks to form floating platforms and bridges.

Read the rest of DARPA to Use Shipping Containers to Create Floating Platforms for Disaster Relief

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: adjustable, caat, captive air amphibious transporters, cargo, darpa, distaster, gps, grasp lab, hook-and-tether, lego, military, modular, relief, shipping container, supplies, tactically expandable maritime platform, temp, University of Pennsylvania

Last year, we reported that MIT’s cheetah robot broke the speed record for four-legged robots by running at 18mph. Now, MIT researchers say that their robotic version of the wild cat may soon outpace its animal counterpart in running efficiency! The robot’s streamlined stride and its lightweight electric motors produce high torque with very little energy wasted.

Read the rest of MIT’s Cheetah Robot Could Soon Match its Real-Life Counterpart in Efficiency

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: all terrain robot, bigdog, bigdog robot, Boston Dynamics, cheetah, darpa, ls3, power arm, robots, us army robot

Over the years, robotics company Boston Dynamics has developed a number of robots that take inspiration from nature such as the Cheetah, PETMAN and Rise. Among the most famous of their designs is BigDog, a rough-terrain robot that can walk, run, climb and carry heavy loads. Recently Boston Dynamics equipped the heavy-duty machine with a power arm that is powerful enough to lift and toss a heavy cinder block.

Read the rest of Boston Dynamics Equips BigDog Robot With an Arm Strong Enough to Throw Cinder Blocks

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: all terrain robot, bigdog, bigdog robot, Boston Dynamics, cheetah, darpa, ls3, power arm, robots, us army robot

Solar technologies are constantly evolving towards higher efficiencies thanks to the development of materials capable of absorbing more of the sun’s visible energy. A new DARPA-funded project explores nanostructured materials that break sunlight into its constituents, allowing for solar cells to absorb specific colors of the spectrum. According to the researchers, this approach could improve efficiency of solar panels by over 50 percent.


Read the rest of Nanomaterials That Split Sunlight into Separate Colors Could Double Solar Cell Efficiency

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "energy efficiency", darpa, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, green technology, nanomaterials, photovoltaics, scientific research, solar industry, solar panels, Solar Power, solar to electricity

The Defense Advance Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has helped establish the world’s computer networking and technology in the air, land, sea and space—and now they’re turning their intelligent eyes to recycling. Once satellites stop functioning, they are caught in a veritable death orbit, adding to the collection of space junk that has been collecting since the late 1950s. Rather than letting the disused satellites orbit endlessly, DARPA is exploring how robots could be sent into space to recycle the dead equipment.


Read the rest of DARPA Plans to Send Robots into Space to Recycle Dead Satellites

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: darpa, Defense Advance Research Projects Agency, disused satellites, eco design, green design, nasa, recycled satellites, space junk, Sputnik, sustainable design

DARPA are experts as creating robots, such as the Cheetah, which can reportedly run faster than Usain Bolt. This week, the defense research agency unveiled their two robotic ‘pack mule’ prototypes known as the Legged Squad Support System (LS3). The ‘pack mules’ are designed to aid soldiers in combat environments by carrying up to 400lbs of equipment in rough terrain. They are even capable of following verbal and visual commands!

Read the rest of DARPA’s Mule-like Robotic Squad Support System (LS3) Can Carry Up To 400 Pounds!

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: big dog, Boston Dynamics, cheetah, cheetah bot, darpa, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, legged squad support system, ls3, pack mule, robot, robotic pack mule, robotics, usain bolt, world's fastest man

In March, we reported that Boston Dynamics and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)‘s Cheetah bot had shattered the world speed record for legged robots with a running speed of 18 mph. At the time, that was 4.9 mph faster than the former record which was set back in 1989, but the Cheetah’s team has just announced that the robot can run faster 0.5 miles per hour faster than the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt! Watch a video of the cheetah robot in action after the jump.

Read the rest of DARPA’s Robot Cheetah Can Now Run Faster Than Usain Bolt!

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: Boston Dynamics, cheetah, cheetah bot, darpa, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, robot, robotics, usain bolt, world's fastest man

A team of researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a self-charging power cell that is able to directly convert mechanical energy into chemical energy. The cell then stores the power until it is released as electrical current. The all-in-one piezoelectric power cell essentially eliminates the need to convert mechanical energy to electrical energy for charging a battery, as its new hybrid generator/storage capability utilizes mechanical energy more efficiently than systems which use separate generators and batteries.

Read the rest of Georgia Tech’s Self-Charging Piezoelectric Power Cell Can Harvest 5X More Energy From Footsteps

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: chemical energy, darpa, Georgia Institute of Technology, mechanical energy, piezoelectricty, piezoelectricty cell, self charging power cell, self-charging batteries

An associate professor of aeronautics and astronautics at MIT has designed a penny-sized rocket thruster that could be used to power the smallest satellites in space. Paulo Lozano‘s device aims to replace current bulky satellite engines, which are heavy and require more fuel to power. Lozano’s system is a flat, compact alternative that is covered with 500 microscopic tips that, when stimulated with voltage, emit tiny beams of ions propelling the satellite forward.

Read the rest of MIT Develops Cheap, Lightweight Penny-Sized Microthruster For Satellites

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: astronautics, biomimicry, cubesats, darpa, ion propulsion, lightweight, microthrusters, MIT, nanosatellites, paulo lozano, satellites

Scientists at Harvard are working toward a “novel wearable system” that could prolong the physical endurance of soldiers in the field. While this may seem a bit too much like they’ll be saving Gotham City, ahem – real life Batsuits, the  Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has already granted $2.6 million to the university’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering for the project.  Click ahead to read more about the high-tech suit and how it will delay the onset of fatigue.

READ MORE >

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: darpa, darpa grant, harvard, military designs, performance enhancement, performance enhancement suit, smart suit, wearable technology, wyss institute

The geniuses at DARPA are at it again – in the past they have created the internet, designed super fast cheetah robots and next-generation flight systems, and now they’ve developed a new system that is able to put out fires using sound waves. The U.S. defense agency’s “Instant Fire Suppression” program could have life-saving benefits, especially in enclosed spaces such as aircraft cockpits and ship holds where fires can be devastating.

Read the rest of DARPA’s New Fire Suppression System Extinguishes Fires With Sound!

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: darpa, DARPA fire suppression system, darpa military, extinguisher, fire extinguisher, instant fire suppression, naval systems

AeroVironment has created a tiny, mechanical, flying bird that borrows from the natural movements of the hummingbird. The Nano Hummingbird is a flying robot created through a program sponsored by DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) that is meant to be used in future indoor and outdoor surveillance missions. DARPA has requested a remote-controlled Nano Air Vehicle that can fly, hover, move forward and backward and be controlled without an external power source. AeroVironment’s Nano Hummingbird does all of that and more.

Read the rest of DARPA’S Nano Robot Spy Hummingbird Moves Just Like a Real Bird!

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: aerovironment, airborne robot, biomimicry, darpa, flying robot, flying spy robot, hummingbird, hummingbird robot, nano hummingbird, nano robot, nanobot, robot spy, robot technology, robotics, surveillance robot, tiny robot

The United States’ Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) have done great things in the past – they have aided in the Apollo moon missions, invented the Internet, developed solar blimps and created batteries smaller than a grain of salt. However, it’s their latest venture that is literally out of this world. DARPA is set to begin work on a project called the 100-Year Starship Study, an initiative which is designed to see what it would take to create an organisation capable of taking us to the stars, or in essence, Starfleet!

Read the rest of DARPA to Start Work on 100-Year Starship Study That Could Give Way to a Greener Life

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: "clean energy", 100-Year Starship study, ARPA-E, darpa, darpa 100 year starship study, darpa nasa dod, nasa, star trek

Political correctness aside, Boeing’s proposed solar-powered spy plane is really freakin’ cool: the company says the plane it’s building for the DOD will be able to fly unmanned for five years straight. Not unlike the Solar Impulse, Boeing’s SolarEagle will feature hyper-efficient electric motors and propellers and long wings covered in solar cells that store energy by day to achieve constant flight.

Read the rest of Boeing’s Solar Spy Plane Could Fly for Five Years Straight

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: aeronautics, aircraft, airplanes, boeing, darpa, solar impulse, solar powered aircraft, solareagle, U.S. Military

Photo credit: Popular Science

We are totally nerd-ing out right now over a new DARPA project. The Department of Defense’s research branch wants to merge the best elements of a plane, electric vehicle and Optimus Prime to create a flying car for the military. If researchers are successful, the world could see an airborne prototype of the seriously souped-up (and green!) flying car by 2015.

Read the rest of DARPA Reveals Plans for Avatar-Like Flying, Electric Transformer Car

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: darpa, electric vehicle, flying car, flying car for the military, flying electric vehicle, hybrid electric, Optimus Prime, Tranformers, Transformer TX

The military often gets to check out exciting green technology before the general public. Case in point: DARPA‘s new smart blimp, an automated, unmanned airship featuring an advanced radar system, solar cells, and a fuel cell to store energy at night. Dubbed The Integrated Sensor Is the Structure (ISIS), the helium-filled blimp takes advantage of its radar system to offer up high-resolution images of battlefield scenes.

Read the rest of DARPA Unveils Speedy Solar-Powered Smart Blimp

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: air force, alternative energy, blimp, darpa, green design, green energy, ISIS, military, MITRE, Solar cells, Solar Power

DARPA, the well known research arm of the Pentagon, has just announced that they will soon be able to transform algae into biofuel at costs that are competitive with fossil fuels. The agency is on track to achieve a cost of $3 dollars a gallon for jet fuel, and their plan is to then develop a large-scale refinery that can produce around 50 million gallons per year. Is this the beginning of the biofuel revolution?

Read the rest of Pentagon Developing Cost-Competitive Algae For Jet Fuel

Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg
Post tags: algae jet fuel, darpa, eco design, green design, green transportation, pentagon, pentagon biofuels, sustainable design