Communications, features and articles | Educational Science

Jun 23, 2014

'Smart Glass' Could Transform Smartphone Cameras

Newly developed smart glass technology that mimics the shutter capabilities of a traditional camera could improve the pictures you snap on your smartphone. Researchers in Germany have developed a camera component for smartphones that helps adjust light, exposure and focus. Traditional cameras have what photographers refer to as an aperture...

Jun 30, 2014

Facebook Emotions Are Contagious, Study Finds

Could reading a cheerful or depressing post on Facebook influence your own mood? Apparently so, according to a new study conducted by the social networking company. When Facebook removed positive posts from the news feeds of more than 680,000 users, those users made fewer positive posts and more negative ones....

Jul 3, 2014

'Smart' Garden Morphs to Reflect Moods of Visitors

A high-tech garden that can change the way it looks and alter other parts of its environment depending on the reactions of people on Twitter, has been created in the United Kingdom. This futuristic, social media garden could one day inspire the development of smart buildings that adapt to people's...

Jul 12, 2014

Nanolasers on Silicon to Provide Faster Data Transmission

This Research in Action article was provided to Live Science in partnership with the National Science Foundation. Fiber optic networks play a key role in transmitting feature films to laptops, cool apps to smartphones and lifelike video games to game consoles. To ensure networks keep up with consumer demand for...

Aug 18, 2014

Goodbye, Glasses: Future Smartphone Screens Could Correct Vision

Say goodbye to glasses. A new high-tech smartphone accessory can bring images on your device's screen into focus without a trip to the eye doctor. This vision-correcting display is a thin, transparent material that fits on top of the screen of a smartphone or other device. It works in conjunction...

Sep 19, 2014

5 Technologies for the Selfie-Obsessed

Taking a great selfie requires two necessary elements: a flattering facial pose and state-of-the-art technology. That first part is something you'll have to work out on your own, but when it comes to the tech side of the selfie equation, device manufacturers have you covered. From smartphones designed with self-portraits...

Jun 29, 2015

How Millennials and Older Adults are Using Their Smartphones (Infographic)

A telephone survey of 1,000 U.S. respondents made by Braun Research Inc. on behalf of Bank of America between April 13-26, 2015. Respondents were adults 18 and older with a current banking relationship and who own a smartphone. • 55 percent reported that their smartphone was on the nightstand at...

Jul 1, 2015

Mark Zuckerberg, Stephen Hawking & the 'Terminator' Talk Science

What scientific questions does Mark Zuckerberg want answered? Stephen Hawking wants to know. In a town hall-style Q&A session held Tuesday (June 30) on Zuckerberg's Facebook profile, the acclaimed British physicist asked the site's co-founder and CEO to share some of the big questions in science that he'd like to...

Jul 3, 2015

Mark Zuckerberg's Vision of 'Facebook Telepathy': What Experts Say

Could Facebook one day be Brainbook? Mark Zuckerberg said in a recent Q&A that he predicts people will send thoughts and experiences to each other as easily as people text and email today. However, this fanciful idea of brain-to-brain communication is still a long ways off, neuroscientists say. On Tuesday...

Dec 24, 2015

Pocket-Size Device Turns Smartphone into a High-Powered Microscope

Ever wonder what weird microorganisms are crawling around on your kitchen counter? Or, perhaps you'd like a close-up view of those dust bunnies in the corner of your room. Well, there's a new pocket-size tool that could help you take a much closer look at these and other household specimens....

Jan 9, 2016

Pocket-Sized Device Charges Your Phone with Water

LAS VEGAS – A sleek new device could help you charge your phone without an electric outlet. Swedish startup MyFC unveiled its cool technology, dubbed JAQ, here at CES on Jan. 6. The device, which is small enough to slip into your back pocket, is a fuel cell charger. It...

Jan 12, 2016

Ta-Da: Magician's Trick Brings 3D Images to Your Phone

Even your smartphone can make 3D images, without adding expensive laser holography systems — at least if an Arizona inventor has his way. Hologram Pyramid was dreamed up by Jim Smith, a Phoenix resident and engineer who has worked in industrial and product design for the past 15 years. It's...

Jan 14, 2016

Magnetic Device Lets Smartphones Test Your Blood

Smartphones equipped with portable devices that magnetically levitate cells might one day help diagnose diseases in the home, clinic or lab, researchers say. Nowadays, smartphones are incredibly powerful portable computers that include handy devices such as multimegapixel cameras, and they can be found in both developing and developed countries. Increasingly,...

Jan 23, 2016

Color-Morphing Clams Could Inspire New Smartphone & TV Screens

Iridescent cells in the flesh of giant clams could one day help scientists design more efficient solar panels, and television and smartphone screens that are easier on the eyes, researchers say. Giant clams are native to coral reefs of the Pacific and Indian oceans and can live up to 100...

Feb 2, 2016

Smartphones Could Generate Own Power with New Coating

A transparent material that can be attached to a smartphone's touch screen could help the device generate electricity whenever anyone taps it, researchers in China say. Touch screens are now found on most cell phones and tablet computers. Using a touch screen typically involves finger taps, and scientists at Lanzhou...