The uncertainty for the Neue Halberg casting continues

D The striking employees of the automotive supplier Neue Halberg Guss have chosen big words on Thursday to support the further negotiations on a social wage agreement for their company with protests. When around 600 employees from Saarbrücken and Leipzig gathered at the Opernturm in Frankfurt at noon, they carried several banners: “Where justice becomes… Continue reading The uncertainty for the Neue Halberg casting continues

Chip Hall of Fame: Photobit PB-100

Image: Photobit Corp. PB-100 Image Sensor Manufacturer: Photobit Corp. Category: MEMs & Sensors Year: 1999 Photographers have a saying: The best camera is the one you have with you. Today most of us do have a camera constantly with us, housed in a cellphone or other portable device, thanks to the CMOS image sensor, and… Continue reading Chip Hall of Fame: Photobit PB-100

Chip Hall of Fame: Philips TDA7000 FM Receiver

Image: Harm van Rumpt TDA7000 FM Receiver Manufacturer: Philips Category: Wireless Year: 1977 FM radio is now a standard feature in a staggering number of gadgets, including alarm clocks, wristwatches, and music players. But before the early 1980s, conventional radio functions were costly and time consuming to build. Manufacturers typically had to make 10 to 14… Continue reading Chip Hall of Fame: Philips TDA7000 FM Receiver

We Grew Algae and Asked Spectrum Editors to Taste It

Algae could be the environmentally-friendly superfood we’ve all been waiting for. But will anyone actually eat it? When was the last time you sipped algae? Chances are, you’ve never done that. But while working on a special report about potential climate-saving technologies, IEEE Spectrum decided to try to grow Spirulina, which proponents have pitched as… Continue reading We Grew Algae and Asked Spectrum Editors to Taste It

Asimo Still Improving Its Hopping and Jogging Skills

Image: Honda Research We learned last week that Honda is putting Asimo out to pasture, so to speak, which is a little sad, but not too sad: Honda is doing this because they want to instead focus on the other, more useful humanoid robots that they’ve been working on recently, like E2-DR. Honda learned a… Continue reading Asimo Still Improving Its Hopping and Jogging Skills

Jolt the Brain, Then Listen Closely

Photo: Dawn Harmer/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory If an electric current passes through the brain, does anyone hear it? Earlier this year, researchers in the United Kingdom showed that stimulating the brain with mild direct currents helped people stop stuttering. Neurostimulation has also shown promise for treating conditions such as migraines, depression, and the physical effects of… Continue reading Jolt the Brain, Then Listen Closely

Synthetic Biology Behemoth Aims to Police Its Own Industry

Photo: Ginkgo Bioworks Try as a nefarious actor might, it would be near impossible to order the ingredients for making a deadly virus such as smallpox from scratch—at least not from any reputable company. That’s because the world’s leading gene-synthesis firms all routinely screen customer requests against DNA sequences from hazardous viruses, bacteria, toxins and… Continue reading Synthetic Biology Behemoth Aims to Police Its Own Industry

Chip Hall of Fame: Intel 4004 Microprocessor

Photo: Intel Intel 4004 Manufacturer: Intel Category: Processors Year: 1971 The Intel 4004 was the world’s first microprocessor—a complete general-purpose CPU on a single chip. Released in March 1971, and using cutting-edge silicon-gate technology, the 4004 marked the beginning of Intel’s rise to global dominance in the processor industry. So you might imagine that the full… Continue reading Chip Hall of Fame: Intel 4004 Microprocessor

Jim Campbell, Electrical Engineer Turned Artist, Lights Up San Francisco’s Salesforce Tower

Photo: Jim Campbell/Boston Properties Salesforce Tower, the new skyscraper dominating San Francisco’s skyline, lit up for the first time in April. That first show was just a test, but now, every night starting at dusk, silhouettes of dancers and other images move against a bright background across the façade of the top six floors of… Continue reading Jim Campbell, Electrical Engineer Turned Artist, Lights Up San Francisco’s Salesforce Tower

Forget Jet Packs—Why Don’t We Have Stair-Climbing Wheelchairs?

Photo: MIT Museum Ernesto Blanco invented his stair-climbing wheelchair in 1962 and entered it in a design challenge from the National Inventors Council, a U.S. agency that sought out technologies of potential military use. Blanco even created a one-quarter scale model [above] to show that the design actually worked. Stairs are of course tricky to… Continue reading Forget Jet Packs—Why Don’t We Have Stair-Climbing Wheelchairs?