Bench Talk

The rise of soft robotics is inspiring new materials and technologies that are able to sense certain cues—pressure, forces form different directions, vibrations, and more. Soft robotics use soft, compliant mechanisms and actuators, built using fluids and flexible materials, enabling a wide range of motion, making them more useful for things like exoskeletons or wearables. While soft robotics may sound a little wimpy, the reality is that the technology will likely punch way above its weight in terms of usefulness by blending the best of human with the best of mechanical in the near future.

High-performance, zero margin for error, extreme environments, and more are just some of the high-stakes challenges that space engineers face. New materials, louvres, space hardening, Whipple shielding, and artificial intelligence (AI) are just some of the ways space design challenges are addressed.

Humanity has streamlined the process of manufacturing several times over the course of its history. First, we channeled water and steam to mechanize production. Then we learned to harness electrical power for mass production. Next, electronics and information technology helped us increase automation. Now with 3-D design and printing, we’re able to blend the physical, virtual, biological, and chemical.

If you’re the kind of engineer who wishes sci-fi would hurry up and become sci-fact, you’re in luck.

While some believe driverless vehicles will completely disrupt traditional commerce, turning things like truck drivers and the $220 billion auto insurance industry into relics, others believe autonomous vehicles are coming just in time to fill a pressing need.

According to the Open Source Hardware Association (OSHWA): "Open source hardware is hardware whose design is made publicly available so that anyone can study, modify, distribute, make, and sell the design or hardware based on that design.” Going deeper, OSHWA says that the hardware’s source, the design from which it is made, must be available in the preferred format for making modifications to it. “Ideally, open source hardware uses readily-available components and materials, standard processes, open infrastructure, unrestricted content, and open-source design tools to maximize the ability of individuals to make and use hardware. Open source hardware gives people the freedom to control their technology while sharing knowledge and encouraging commerce through the open exchange of designs." What’s interesting in the above definition is that - much of the time - open source hardware is basically open source software; meaning that the piece of hardware is usually proprietary, but what you can do with that hardware is open.

Advancements in technology and space travel mean human settlement on Mars is already possible using existing technologies. But while the mechanisms are ready, is human psychology? Programs like Mars One are already ramping up plans for Mars colonization, with the goal of sending the first human pioneers in crews of four, every two years, starting in 2026.

You’ve heard of the Love Boat, but have you heard of the Love Bot? Many romance seekers at the recent SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, were tricked into opening their hearts and pouring out their feelings to what turned out to be nothing more than Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) on the popular dating app Tinder.