darpa
Online
DARPA Challenge: Find 10 Red Weather Balloons, Win $US40,000
12:11AM Danny Allen | To celebrate the Web’s 40th anniversary, DARPA wants to explore social networking’s role in time-critical communication. They will award $US40,000 cash to the first group who finds 10 2.4-metre weather balloons located at fixed locations around the US More »
Online
Lockheed Martin, Microsoft To Create Military-Friendly Internet
10:27AM Rosa Golijan | Lockheed Martin is getting a $US31 million contract from the US government to work on reinventing TCP/IP for a new Military Network Protocol. Also lending a hand in this effort to create a proper cyber-arsenal is Microsoft. What a team! More »
Robots
Military Car Robot Jumping 7.6 Metres Is Every Kid’s Toy Dream
1:20AM Jesus Diaz | Watching this video of the Precision Urban Hopper jumping over a fence, makes my inner kid all giddy and excited. It also makes my outer nerd wet. It has been invented by Boston Dynamics, the creators of the scary BigDog. More »
Vehicles
Pentagon Wants A Flying Bug: This Flapping Nano Bot Is Phase One
9:30PM Danny Allen | Last year, DARPA granted aerospace firm, Aeronvironment, a chunk of change and six-months to demonstrate a bird-sized Nano Air Vehicle (NAV). This video shows the result: the “smallest ever free-flying aircraft to hover and climb with flapping wings”. More »
Vehicles
The Underwater Express Lets You Cruise In A Gas Bubble At 100 Knots
12:00PM Don Nguyen | While most DARPA projects never materialise, the Underwater Express mini-submarine project is entering the test phase. If successful, the Underwater Express will be capable of going 100 knots—far faster than the 30 knots today’s subs can muster. More »
Robots
Insect Cyborgs Could Replace Smoke Detectors
8:00AM Jack Loftus | The Pentagon is known for its ominous pet projects, but here’s one we can honestly say doesn’t have us losing any sleep: Cyborg crickets. More »
Robots
2:00AM John Herrman | You don’t have to be tinfoil underwear type to get uneasy about some of the bizarre projects that DARPA throws its weight behind. But the organic matter-consuming EATR robot? Oh. God. More »
DARPA Stops Trying Not To Be Terrifying, Funds Chainsaw-Wielding, Flesh-Eating Robot
2:00AM John Herrman | You don’t have to be tinfoil underwear type to get uneasy about some of the bizarre projects that DARPA throws its weight behind. But the organic matter-consuming EATR robot? Oh. God. More »
Robots
Pentagon’s Robot Hummingbird Christened “Nano Air Vehicle”
10:00AM Dan Nosowitz | The Pentagon’s wacky sci-fi department DARPA has been working on robotic hummingbird-based drones to serve as miniature spies. They’re not nearly as agile or adorable as real hummingbirds, but DARPA is well on their way to achieving that dream. More »
Science
Obama Pledges 3%+ of GDP—as Much as Defence Spending—to Scientific Research
2:40AM Adam Frucci | This morning, Obama made a huge pledge to focus more money on scientific research—more than the US spent during the space race. In fact, it’s almost as much as we spend on defense. More »
Science
