Nail watch: The future of telling time

In the year 2154, no one will want to wear wrist watches anymore. They'll probably be out of fashion or too bulky for our hands. The in-thing will be the nail watch, known as the TX54. Well, that is what Timex and Core77.com think will be the future in their 150th anniversary of the global design competition themed "2154: The Future of Time".

TX54, the runner-up in the event, is a concept by three Americans designers: Napoleon Merana, Steffen Schubert and David Takacs. The nail watch is designed to be hooked to our thumbnail. The user should be able to view the time in the dark just by pressing the tip of the thumbnail. There's also the ability to switch between colors available. It is also disposable. One hopes it's waterproof as well, just in case you forget to take it off while you are in the shower.

Although the TX54 is a good concept, I can't imagine how small the numbers are going to be, probably putting a strain on your eyes.

Credit: Core77

Step aside, Batmobile. Here comes the MonoMobile

Save the cheerleader, save the world. Taking it to heart, two Cincinnati denizens with pompom/rah-rah enthusiasm believe they have the answer to mankind's transportation woes. Enter the Liberator Car, an ultralight electric car that piggybacks off the monorail. The concept involves using wheels attached to the roof to connect to the monorail for short distance travel. So while in town, the car cruises along on battery power. To go further afield, rather than get onto a jam-packed expressway, simply hook the car onto an electrified monorail, sit tight, and it'll take you to your destination while topping up your car battery. How nifty is that? Tests are currently being carried out by both partners, though we'd love more details on how the car gets suspended to the rail and how stable it gets up there in an ultralight car frame while zipping along at 200mph. But if--and we hope it does--this takes off, it'll definitely bring new meaning to commuting by rail.

Via MonoMobile

Storing words and images in vapor

We've all at one time or another written words in vapor--leaving impressions on misted glass either on a Coke bottle, a coffee table or a car window. Now, apparently, Israeli scientists have found a way to store those images… in warm atomic vapor. And it's not all just hot air. The cool thing here is that the 2s in the image aren't projected onto steam or vapor. Instead, they're made up of vapor; sort of like Hellboy II's resident ectoplasmic psychic BPRD agent, Johann Krauss. Which is an amazing trick considering that atoms are constantly moving around in a floating cloud. If you're wondering what the purpose is for choosing a medium that's so volatile and fluid, the team from Technion-Israel Institute of Technology claims this method will open the doors to quantum communication and image processing. In the meantime, mastery of the technology still has a ways to go, with the current storage time of 30 microseconds barely enough to catch a trailer of Hellboy II.

Via Physorg

Boeing touts heli-blimp for heavy lifting

What do you get when you cross a blimp and a helicopter? One potential answer is the Skyhook JHL-40.

The JHL-40, mind you, is still essentially in the blueprints-and-artist's-renderings stage. It's an aircraft that Boeing and its partner Skyhook International are pitching as a short-haul commercial transport rig.

Boeing says the neutral buoyancy of the JHL-40 would let it hoist and move far greater payloads than can be handled by existing rotorcraft. The aircraft, the companies say, should be able to lift a 40-ton sling load and then transport it 200 miles without refueling, a capacity that would come in handy in harsh, undeveloped regions like the Canadian Arctic where "conventional land and water transportation methods... are inadequate, unreliable and costly".

Here's how it would work: The helium-filled envelope would support the weight of the aircraft itself (fuel included). Four rotors sticking out from the sides of the envelope would provide the lift for the external payload.
Read more »

Another concept camera to throw around

I don't really understand the fascination of combining a camera with something to toss around. Previously, we've seen the Tospom and satuGo, both ball-shaped cameras that snap shots while in the air.

Turkish designer Hakan Bogazpinar has conceptualized Flee, which is something similar to a ball camera. But the shooter is now attached to a petal-like contraception which reminds me of feathers on a shuttlecock that help keep the flight in the air stable.

But unlike its counterparts, Flee doesn't record the images onto a memory card. Instead, onboard Bluetooth is used to transmit the snaps to a paired mobile device. As far as we know, the range for Bluetooth is quite limited so we're not sure how Bogazpinar will work around this problem.

We can't really think of a proper use for the Flee except for reconnaissance when playing paintball or seeing your friends' reactions just before the shooter hits them.

Via: Ubergizmo

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