Free Republic

It seems like every time we go out, I’m pleased to see that my lawn is not the worst looking one in the neighborhood because I can always count on this one house on the corner. Yeah, my grass is kept a little high but it gets mowed whereas these guys on the corner have a front yard full of various weeds with no grass I can discern. Hey, this isn’t personal and I have nothing against them. I also view my neighbors in Texas as incredibly environmentally conscious; doing their part to aid in oxygen production now that the...

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AP) - The Boeing Co.'s X-45, the first robotic plane designed specifically to fly combat missions, has successfully made its maiden flight. The plane, one of two built so far, successfully took off, flew and landed on Wednesday, Boeing said, and was airborne for 14 minutes. A Thursday press conference was planned to discuss the flight. The plane was developed by the company's Phantom Works under a contract with the Air Force and the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Squat and tailless with a 36-foot wingspan, the X-45 is mostly flat. An engine intake...

Transmitting wireless signals directly into the brain, a group of scientists has produced the ultimate lab rat--an animal that can be guided by remote control over fences, up trees, through pipe and across rubble at distances up to a third of a mile. Click here to read the rest of article:Click here

Computers and CCTV cameras could be used to predict and prevent crime before it happens. Scientists at Kingston University in London have developed software able to anticipate if someone is about to mug an old lady or plant a bomb at an airport. It works by examining images coming in from close circuit television cameras (CCTV) and comparing them to behaviour patterns that have already programmed into its memory. The software, called Cromatica, can then mathematically work out what is likely to happen next. And if it is likely to be a crime it can send a warning signal to...

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Robots may never be able to "feel," but machines that sense and respond to human emotion could one day help care for the elderly and others with serious medical conditions, research suggests. In lab experiments, a UK researcher found that with the help of a wireless modem link, his study participant was able to control simple behaviors of a small mobile robot with nothing more than "emotional responsivity." In other words, certain physiological changes linked to emotion--such as heart rate, breathing and blood pressure--were monitored through a biofeedback unit that then sent the information to...

<p>TOKYO, Japan (AP) -- The newest Sony Corp. family member has a photographic memory, an extensive vocabulary and a jukebox-like knowledge of music.</p> <p>He also comes with a clunky, sci-fi name and a price tag resembling that of a luxury car.</p>

LINK TO SITE Afghan Explorer is intended as a vehicle for personal knowledge acquisition, in the belief that international peace can only come from mutual understanding.As the most powerful, and arguably the most technologically advanced nation in the world, it seems as if Americans should be able to get information at any time, from any place.Economies of ScaleIn fact, Americans are often information poor. Their reliance on low content mass media, like USA TODAY and television news, means that they see relatively little news and commentary, usually written for a 7th grade literacy level.In contrast to European nations, our geographic...