Prototype GHOST military watercraft claims a world's first

If you combined a stealth jet fighter and an attack helicopter and stuck them in the water, what would you get? Well, according to the folks at New Hampshire's Juliet Marine Systems (JMS), you'd get the GHOST marine platform. Privately developed for possible use by the U.S. Navy, the boat would reportedly be invisible to enemy ships' radar, while also being faster and more economical than existing military vessels. The company's big claim, however, is that GHOST is the world's first super-cavitating watercraft.

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Supercavitation, in a nutshell, involves surrounding an object with a bubble of gas, so it can pass through the water with very little friction. In the case of GHOST, the objects in question are its two submerged buoyant tubular foils. Although the company isn't clear on how the process works, presumably the foils would have to be designed in such a way that when GHOST's gas turbines thrust it forward, water is deflected outward at the front of each foil, creating an envelope that closes behind it.

Whatever the case, JMS states that "GHOST is a combination aircraft/boat that has been designed to fly through an artificial underwater gaseous environment that creates 900 times less hull friction than water." Judging by that statement, it's hard to say if GHOST actually does create 900 times less friction, or if that's simply what they're aiming for.

The three-crew-member watercraft is intended primarily to patrol the perimeter of naval fleets, ready to spring into action against attacking small enemy boats. It is also being marketed as a means of protecting commercial vessels against pirate attacks. It can reportedly carry "thousands of pounds of weapons, including Mark 48 torpedoes" in an internal weapons bay, and could incorporate multiple weapons systems, capable of firing on several targets simultaneously.

It could also serve as a quiet, stealthy means of transporting troops to enemy beaches, or as a fast and efficient way of ferrying people and supplies to and from locations such as offshore oil platforms.

While there's presently no word on whether or not GHOST has any takers, JMSclaims to be already working with a large international defense company on a 150-foot version of the craft, and on creating an unmanned underwater vehicle that utilizes its super-cavitating technology.

Last mineral thought to be unique to the Moon found in Australia

When the moon-walking Apollo 11 astronauts returned to Earth in 1969, amongst the 47.5 pounds (21.5 kg) of lunar rocks they brought with them were three minerals from Tranquility Base that were thought to be unique to the Moon or lunar and possibly Martian meteorites. They were armalcolite (named after Neil Armstrong, Edwin 'Buzz' Aldrin and Michael Collins), pyroxferroite and tranquillityite. Both armalcolite and pyroxferrite were later found on Earth, leaving tranquillityite as the last mineral believed to have no terrestrial counterpart. Now tranquillityite has also been struck off the list with its discovery in the remote Pilbara region of Western Australia.

The researchers from The University of Western Australia's Centre for Microscopy, Characterisation and Analysis (CMCA) who confirmed the identity of the Pilbara mineral believe tranquillityite retained its unique status for so long because it is rare, small and prone to change. While the Moon's minerals are pristine due to a lack of water, even small amounts of water in magma on Earth causes the minerals to change, making them hard to identify.

After Curtin University's Professor Birger Rasmussen tentatively identified the Pilbara mineral as tranquillityite after studying it in a scanning electron microscope, the CMCA's Dr Janet Muhling and Assistant Professor Alexandra Suvorova and their colleagues confirmed its identity by targeting the sample with an electron beam in an electron microscope and analyzing the X-rays emitted. This confirmed that the mineral was made up of the same elements as lunar tranquillityite, while electron diffraction showed that the two minerals have the same crystal structure.

The researchers say the Pilbara rocks in which tranquillityite occurs were once thought to have been about 820 million years old. However, with tranquillityite being an ideal mineral for determining the age of the enclosing rock using radiometric dating, Professor Rasmussen and colleagues at the John de Laeter Centre for Isotope Research have now shown that they are about 1,040 million years old.

Thermaltake’s Level 10 M Mouse exposes itself to serious gamers

Design consultancy and BMW Group subsidiary DesignworksUSA has been collaborating on projects with PC case and components manufacturer Thermaltake on various projects, such as the Level 10 concept PC, since 2009. Now the two have teamed up again with Thermaltake asking DesignworksUSA to develop a series of design concepts for its upcoming range of Level 10 gaming accessories that will be created for its e-sports division. The first product out of the blocks is the Level 10 M Mouse that gamers will be able to get their palms on later this year.

While most mice demurely hide their insides under a modest cover of plastic, like the Level 10 concept PC the Level 10 M Mouse flaunts its sexy internal workings - although we're not talking exposed circuit boards and electronics here, so the mouse should last longer than a single sweat-inducing session or a couple of days in a dusty study. The upper hand plate, which almost appears to float above the base on which the guts of the device sit, is height and tilt adjustable with the turn of a screw. It also features a perforated surface designed to help stop the user's palm getting too hot and sweaty. Judging by the released images, it also appears to be a wired unit with an aluminum chassis.

Of course, no matter what it looks like, the proof of a good mouse is in the pointing and clicking, which you'll be able to do when Thermaltake launches theDesignworksUSA-designed Level 10 M Mouse this northern spring at a price yet to be announced.

Sensics SmartGoggles - The VR headset with the works

There certainly wasn't a shortage of smart eyewear at CES this year. Shortly after our encounter with Vuzix SMART Glasses we ran across these formidable looking SmartGoggles from Sensics. The Natalia Immersive SmartGoggles provide an ideal platform from which to deliver a powerful immersive gaming experience and as a result, they take up a considerable amount of space - "SmartHelmet" might be a more accurate description. But the bulkiness is quickly forgotten when you look at the hardware that's packed under the shell of this 360-degree 3D gaming and entertainment video rig.

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The biggest differentiating feature of the SmartGoggles is that they're fitted with an actual on-board computer. The Natalia Immersive SmartGoggles you can see on the image above sports a 1.2 GHz dual core chip with a 3D graphics co-processor. The battery operated unit runs on Android 4.0 (though Windows is also supported) and can handle on-board applications without a connection to an external rig, such as a PC, a gaming console, a tablet or a smartphone. There's a microphone which handles speech recognition, GPS, an in-built modem, SD card slot and thanks to an array of cameras, including a hi-definition one, the gear can support AR and face recognition and can also manage head and hand tracking. Users should prepare for a lot of limb-flailing fun when controlling the user interface or interacting with a game.

Even when connected to an external mobile device, the headwear can chip in with some of its on-board processing power (e.g. graphics and real time interaction can be handled by the goggles while the handset deals with the user interface). Head and hand tracking information can be relayed to the other device via Bluetooth, WiFi or an old fashioned wire. When paired with a more powerful machine, like a gaming PC or a console, the SmartGoggles can be used not only as a display (via a HDMI port), but also as a means of controlling the user interface with gestures and movement.

We tried out the SmartGoggles on a basic game where you became a kind of virtual King Kong, smashing down buildings and plucking helicopters from the sky with your bare hands. The brief test was impressive - the (albieit basic) graphics were smooth and the tracking of your head and body movements, as well as your hands in front of the camera, crisply responsive. The unit isn't as ungainly as it looks once adjusted correctly, although when jumping from rooftops during the game (which involved physically jumping) the bulk of the headset did hit home. There is clearly huge potential here though.

The Immersive Natalia SmartGoggles sport dual SXGA (1280x1024) OLED displays with 720p support. The company is also working on see-through goggles (called Marina) to complement the immersive ones. Not only would this reduce the risk of falling over the coffee table while gaming, see-through goggles would lend themselves to a variety of AR applications.

Although the SmartGoggles clearly cater towards the needs of gamers, Sensicsenvisions its head gear - in this and smaller versions - being used for military and professional applications. The unit on display at CES is a prototype that the company is providing to content developers and consumer electronics companies with a view to collaborating on an affordable version based on the technology that can be brought to market - we can't wait to see it on the shelves.

Sensics' introductory video is below:

"If I Die" Facebook app posts to your wall from beyond the grave

Death is a subject that comes with a lot of open questions: How and when will I go? How will my loved ones cope? What will happen to my Facebook page? Okay, that last one might not be high on your "To Do" list, but it is the easiest one to take care of with the "If I Die" Facebook app, which lets you record a video or text message that is posted to your wall once you've passed on.

Developed by Israeli start up, Willook, which focuses on "time capsule" services and products, the "If I Die" app allows users to ensure they get one final statement out to their online friends if they meet with an untimely end. Users simply install the app, record either a five minute video or a text post, and assign three good friends to act as "trustees." In the event of a person's passing, the three trustees must confirm the death with the app before the message is posted.

It may sound morbid and a bit creepy, but the app might be a useful service to give some people a little peace of mind - the terminally ill, for example. Willook suggests leaving behind a final farewell, a long-held secret, or even one last insult, depending on a person's preference. The developer is very clear that no one, not even anyone at the company, can see the messages that users create until their death is verified.

The website and descriptions for the service have a darkly humorous slant, which the developers say is meant to diffuse the sensitivity of the subject. For example, check out the video below to hear the app explained in a voice that sounds like it should be reading a Roald Dahl book rather than discussing your final message from beyond the grave:

Web goes dark in SOPA protest

A number of high profile websites are going dark today to protest the proposed Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). The bills are designed to protect intellectual property holders by toughening measures against copyright infringers. Opponents say that aspects of the bill pose grave threats to free speech and internet entrepreneurship, with some high profile web-masters claiming that the bill, if passed, would threaten the very existence of their sites despite not hosting copyright-infringing material directly. Wikipedia, Reddit and Boing Boing are among the sites effectively shutting down today.

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What would the bills do?

It's complicated, but in essence, SOPA and PIPA would bring tougher direct penalties against overseas websites providing copyright-infringing material. SOPA appears to go further, seeking to cut funds and traffic to such sites by requiring U.S. hosting, advertising and financial transaction companies to notify and suspend services to the website. A court order against the infringer would be required to commence the process. In the House of Representatives, there is currently no date set for a vote on SOPA, but the Senate is due to vote on PIPA on January 24.

So what's the problem?

Opponents claim that the bills are badly written, with loose terminology opening up the broader web to potential abuse. In a post on Boing Boing, reprinted today at the Consumerist, Cory Doctorow sets out his objection to the bill.

"Boing Boing could never co-exist with a SOPA world: we could not ever link to another website unless we were sure that no links to anything that infringes copyright appeared on that site. So in order to link to a URL on LiveJournal or Wordpress or Twitter or Blogspot, we'd have to first confirm that no one had ever made an infringing link, anywhere on that site."

Could Boing Boing really be shut down?

It seems unlikely, but may be legally possible under the terms of the bill. Michael O'Leary of the Motion Picture Association of America (the debate surrounding the bills has been framed as Hollywood versus Silicon Valley) sought to calm such fears.

"This bill doesn't shut down websites. It doesn't make websites illegal," he told the BBC. "It's simply focused on websites that are engaged in criminal activity, that are stealing the product of American workers and profiting from it. If you are a legitimate site like Wikipedia, there's nothing to be concerned about here."

The recent case brought against Richard O'Dwyer under existing copyright law (albeit bolstered by the UK's uneven extradition treaty with the United States) over his TVShack website shows that U.S. authorities are willing to go after those that merely provide links to copyright-infringing material. TVShack may have provided such links in a abundance, but it did not directly host any such data.

Is that the only objection?

No. Twitter's general counsel, Alex Mcgillivray, points out that SOPA's "unit of censorship" is everything under the domain name at which infringing material appears, whereas its "unit of analysis" is the site or a portion of it. The implication is that one minor infringement can bring the whole site crashing down. On a website with millions of users, it's asserted that the actions of one could result in the removal of content for all the other law-abiding users.

Is it only Wikipedia, Reddit and Boing Boing going dark?

No. Other big names shutting up shop for some or all of the day include Oreilly.com, Mozilla, WordPress.org, TwitPic, and Destructoid, though at the time of writing not all blackouts had gone live. Google, Facebook and Twitter have publicly opposed SOPA but are not going so far as to blackout completely.

But I could really do with accessing Wikipedia today

If you have a paper due, all is not lost. A Google search of Wikipedia will allow you to access a cached copy by clicking the double arrow that appears when you mouse-over the appropriate search return. Alternatively, the mobile site appeared to be fully accessible at the time of writing.

The vibration-sensing, head-tracking Fit Freeway “exergaming” app

As evidenced by the popularity of motion controlled fitness games ushered in by theWii and followed by the PlayStation Move and Kinect, so called "exergaming" - the combining of exercise and video games - is a field that has grown rapidly in popularity in recent years. But if you don't want to shell out for a new console and already have an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, as well as a treadmill, elliptical machine or exercise bike laying about, then the new Fit Freeway app is designed to make working up a sweat a bit more fun.

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Aside from a compatible iOS device and existing torture device exercise machine, the Fit Freeway app doesn't require any additional hardware, meaning you can even take it to the gym with you. The Outrun-style racer is based on a game calledFinal Freeway and works by using the accelerometer of an iOS device placed on the exercise machine to detect your level of exertion through the amount of vibration you're generating. The more vigorous your exercising, the greater the amount of vibration, and the faster you're virtual ride will go - or at least that's the idea. Meanwhile, the iOS device's camera is used to track your head movements so you can steer the car through traffic by tilting your head left or right. This means you'll have to position the mobile device's camera so it can see your noggin. The game also includes iPod support for listening to your own workout soundtrack.

Having given the free version of the app a quick trial on an exercise bike, the steering works pretty well, but is pretty forgiving. However, using the vibration to determine the speed of the vehicle was less impressive. Even relatively slow speeds on the bike translated into flat out acceleration with only the slowest turning of the pedals slowing the car down at all. If there was a way to calibrate this in the game - pedal flat out now to set your fastest speed, for example - things might be better. But maybe just once my gut starts jiggling there's no stopping it.

Thankfully BitGym has released a free version of the Fit Freeway app alongside the paid version, so you can give it a try before you buy to see if it works with your particular setup. The paid version is available now for the introductory price of US$2.99, but will increase to $4.99 in the future. It is compatible with iPhone 4/4S, iPad 2 and camera-equipped iPod touch.

The company also has plans for other "exergames" in the future and has made the SDK used to create Fit Freeway, which provides access to the motion and exercise tracking technology it employs, available to developers.

Here's a video showing Fit Freeway in action.

Power Bank two-in-one flashlight and phone charger

Though falling into that tiny category of things exhibited at CES 2012 that don't have an HD screen and aren't an iPhone peripheral, we did want to briefly mention Poldera's Power Bank Energy Holder. A combined LED flashlight and phone-charger, the Power Bank is one of those unassuming devices that may not be a head-turner, but is a good idea nonetheless. After all, if you have need of a portable phone charger, why not have one that can do something else useful too?

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Here's the gossip. The device itself is charged via a 500 mA 5V micro USB port. It will charge a phone, or any other USB-chargeable device through its USB 2.0 port. It takes five hours to fully charge the device's 2200 mAh battery - which is effectively overnight or a full day at the office, though it may be that it can be given a useful zap in an hour or so (the battery technology employed isn't clear from the specs).

The aluminum plate cylindrical body is 107.4 mm (4.2 in.) in length and 23.7 mm (0.9 in.) in diameter, with the device 73 grams (2.6 oz.) in weight.

The Power Bank is controlled with a single on/off button. A blue LED lets you know the device is powered on, and flashes when a phone is being charged. Disconnect the phone and the Power Bank switches off in 20 seconds. To power the flashlight up and down, the on/off button is held for two seconds. That sounds like good, thoughtful design.

The flashlight consists of a single 1 W LED, and though no word is given on the lumen output, provided Poldera have selected a good quality LED, and the optics provide a tight enough beam, that should prove plenty for domestic use.

The Power Bank comes in gold and silver finishes, and can be ordered from the Poldera website for US$79.99. It's not the cheapest charger around (renewable energy charges included), but it is compact, robust, and also a flashlight.

Okay. It is sort of an iPhone peripheral.

McIntosh launches 50th Anniversary edition MC275 Tube Power Amplifier

While it's true that we've seen some gorgeous examples of modern amplification at Gizmag over the years, there's still something very pleasing to the eye about those that proudly display their tube circuit credentials, like the JoyVirtue TM-6 Tube-Amp AV Center. It's not just about looks, though. In spite of many, many advances in audio reproduction technology, enthusiasts still demand the warmth that vacuum tubes seem to give to an audio signal. One of the first tube amps I ever heard was an MC275 from McIntosh Laboratory way back in the mists of a misspent youth. The company is now celebrating the Golden Anniversary of its iconic amp with a very limited edition release.

Tobii demonstrates Gaze Interface for Windows 8 at CES

Eye control innovator Tobii introduced and demonstrated its latest eye control technology at last week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The Gaze interface for Windows 8 is said to take advantage of the operating system's large tile layout to offer users a superior interaction experience, that neither touch nor mouse alone can provide.

Gaze hasn't been designed to be totally hands-free like the company's EyeAsteroidsgame we brought you last November, or even the earlier prototype laptop created with Lenovo. The system uses a combination of eye control for pointing and touch pad confirmation of commands for fine tuning. The interface is said to be at least as precise as using a mouse to move a cursor around, but much quicker.

A user can activate an onscreen app or shortcut by looking at the Metro tile icon and then using the trackpad for more precise control of the onscreen cursor - to activate smaller icons like links on a web page, for instance, without huge sausage fingers getting in the way and blocking the view as is often the case on a touchscreen. Tobii says that Gaze users can enable all seven primary touch commands in Windows 8, including activate, select, zoom, and scroll.

The Gaze interface seems to hold great potential for faster gaming, precision onscreen graphics manipulation, and more intuitive document browsing. Tobii says that it could also be useful for manipulating medical imaging technology used in surgery and diagnostics.

NYPD developing portable body scanner for detecting concealed weapons

You have to feel sorry for the police officers who are required to frisk people for guns or knives - after all, if someone who doesn't want to be arrested is carrying a lethal weapon, the last thing that most of us would want to do is get close enough to that person to touch them. That's why the New York Police Department teamed up with the United States Department of Defense three years ago, and began developing a portable scanner that can remotely detect the presence of a gun on a person's body. The NYPD announced the project yesterday.

The device uses infrared light rays to image radiation being emitted by a person's body. Wherever a solid metal object such as a gun is blocking those rays from reaching the body, a silhouette of that object will appear on the scanner's screen. So far, the technology only works from a distance of about three or four feet (about one meter), although NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly hopes that its range can ultimately be extended to at least 25 meters (82 feet).

The plan is for the scanner to be mounted on a van, then used on suspects who would otherwise have to be physically searched.

iNature biodegradable iPhone case

Your iPhone won't last forever. In fact, long before it wears out, chances are that you'll trade up to a higher model. The designers at Italian companies Med Computer and Biomood apparently figured that if the cover that you're using on that phone is bound to become obsolete anyway, why should it last forever? The result is the 100-percent biodegradable iNature soft iPhone cover.

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The iNature cover is made from an Italian bio-plastic known as Apinat. According to its makers, the cover snugly fits an iPhone - protecting it against bumps and falls - yet it also won't deteriorate or deform with use, or when subjected to wet environments. It is said to remain straight and rigid along the edges of the display, and incorporates openings to access the phone's various ports and other features.

When it comes time to get rid of the iNature cover, it must be placed in a composting environment. Once there, it should biodegrade by over 90 percent within less than 180 days.

We saw the iNature cover for ourselves last week at the Consumer Electronics Show, where it was named as an honoree in the CES Innovations 2012 Design and Engineering Awards. On display with it was the iNature BioRolly, a biodegradable device for wrapping up loose device cables such as headphone cords.

The iNature phone cover is available in several colors and three models, to fit iPhones 3G, 3GS, 4 and 4S. It can be purchased from the product website, for US$19.90. The BioRolly will set you back $7.95.

New hormone mimics the effects of physical exercise

A group of researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, led by Bruce Spiegelman and Pontus Boström, have discovered a hormone that mimics some of the results of a workout by facilitating the transformation of white fat into brown fat. While the purpose of the former is to accumulate excess calories, the latter is used to produce heat. Irisin, named after the Greek goddess Iris, could one day help address obesity and diabetes. However, there is still a long way to go before the hormone is made into an actual drug.

Irisin occurs naturally both in humans and in mice, and its levels surge with physical exercise. Mice have to spend three weeks running on a wheel for the hormone to accumulate in their blood. For humans, the same happens after ten weeks of systematic exercising. A placebo-controlled study showed that boosting the levels of the hormone artificially in mice may induce some of the benefits that would normally be caused by a workout. The cells of the mice injected with irisin needed more oxygen and burned more calories. Obese mice lost several grams within the first ten days from the injection.

The treatment also had a positive effect on the regulation of blood sugar levels, which links the hormone to diabetes prevention. What's more, Spiegelman's team plans to investigate the potential of irisin to advance the treatment of diseases such as muscular dystrophy and muscle wasting. "We are hopeful, though we have no evidence, that this hormone may embody some of the other benefits of exercise, perhaps in the neuromuscular system," he says.

This sounds very promising, but there is still a lot to be done before an irisin-based drug comes to a pharmacy near you. First, whether or not irisin will have the same beneficial effects on humans still remains to be seen. Second, making it into an actual drug may turn out to be very challenging, as pointed out by MIT professor Harvay Lodish. Adiponectin, a hormone Lodish discovered back in the early 1990s, also seems to play a role in staving off obesity and diabetes. It is correlated with the body mass index (BMI) and it increases the metabolic rate in mice without raising the food intake. Still, so far all the attempts at converting the full size adiponectin protein into a viable drug have failed.

Professor Spiegelman, however, is optimistic. In fact, he's optimistic enough to have set up a separate company, called Ember Therapeutics, to conduct brown fat-related research that includes studies on the effects of irisin. Supported by Third Rock Ventures, the company raised US$34 million in the first round of financing. We do hope that all this money and brain power will eventually lead to a treatment for obesity and diabetes. That said, we do recognize that there might be more to it than just swallowing a pill.

We are far from advocating the medicalization of serious social issues, and we warmly encourage our readers to exercise on a regular basis (at least until the magic pill is out, that is).