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Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: Avoiding kangaroos, various-legged robots & a crow imitating a siren

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: Avoiding kangaroos, various-legged robots & a crow imitating a siren
Steve Caplin on the latest tech. VW have developed a kangaroo scarer for cars. A home security device can fire paintballs or tear gas. There's a three-legged robot for asteroid mineral extraction, a two-legged humanoid that can be trained remotely and a drone that can hop on one leg. Skateboards can now be propelled by an expensive broomstick-like device. The Post Office can't tell if its own stamps are counterfeit or not. A crow near a police station can imitate two types of siren. And Elon Music wants to send 1,000 rockets to colonise Mars.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: Recharging drones, tea & post robots, DNA in air conditioners & vegan leather

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: Recharging drones, tea & post robots, DNA in air conditioners & vegan leather
Steve Caplin admires a Singapore company offering electric rental vans. In Denmark, they are developing drones that can recharge from power lines. Japanese scientists are experimenting with drones that can become a rolling wheel on land as well as fly. Hyundai are producing a robot that can deliver tea and post and cope with lifts. A new multitool lets you select the tools you would find most useful. Imperial College has grown a vegan leather shoe from bacteria which even dyed itself. And in Australia, they've found they can retrieve criminals' DNA from air conditioners.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: A timezone & crops for the Moon, AI nurses & Unidentified Submerged Objects

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: A timezone & crops for the Moon, AI nurses & Unidentified Submerged Objects
Tech expert Steve Caplin explains to Simon Rose why NASA believes the Moon should have its own time zone. NASA also plans to grow crops there in two years' time. Is space junk becoming dangerous to us on Earth? UFO spotters are turning their attention to the oceans. Amazon is ending its "just walk out" shops in the USA. NVIDIA is developing AI nurses while DrugGPT is hoping to provide doctors with second opinions. An Emo robot attempting to mimic human expressions turns out to be rather creepy. The invisibility shield is now available to buy. And Steve recommends an inexpensive micro sander kit for tricky angles.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: Brain chips, AI film and song-generation, a stair-climbing vacuum & railways on the moon

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: Brain chips, AI film and song-generation, a stair-climbing vacuum & railways on the moon
Steve Caplin marvels at the success of Elon Musk's Neuralink brain chip, enabling a paralysed man to control a computer. He thinks filmmakers and song writers should be very afraid of AI technology that could make them redundant. He has hopes for an autonomous road repair system designed to stop potholes developing. He feels the investor of a bike lane sweeper hasn't thought things through properly. Northrup Grmman has won a contract to develop a railway on the moon. There's a stair-climbing robot vacuum. And the world's fastest camera has got even faster.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: Robot space binmen & baggage handlers, flying taxis & maglev trains

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: Robot space binmen & baggage handlers, flying taxis & maglev trains
Steve Caplin heralds the development of robot rubbish collectors in space and driverless baggage handlers at Gatwick. After two weeks of being plugged into AI, a humanoid robot can speak, reason and manipulate objects: the entrepreneur behind it wants a billion of them to be made. Electric flying taxis could be in the UK by 2026. There's a remarkable tech auction in progress. GameScent adds smells to computer games. Maglev trains may be able to use existing rail tracks. And a robot can paint offshore wind turbines underwater.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: Is Perplexity the new Google, Google's wifi problem & bionic eyes

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: Is Perplexity the new Google, Google's wifi problem & bionic eyes
Steve Caplin and Simon Rose marvel at new search engine Perplexity which they both feel knocks Google for six in its usefulness. You can try it at Perplexity.ai for free on the web and through apps. Google have other problems too, with their new campus a wifi black spot. A helium balloon could be the answer if you're lost in the wilderness. A watch could show you your actual blood flow. Bionic eyes could be powered by solar panels on the iris. A replica of the Titanic is due to sail in 2027. And there's a sweet crowdfunded robot powered by your smartphone.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: Will world run out of electricity, transparent laptops, hospital beeps & a mood app

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: Will world run out of electricity, transparent laptops, hospital beeps & a mood app
Steve Caplin looks at the latest tech. Elon Musk thinks the world will run out of electricity next year because of AI. Lenovo has a concept transparent laptop. Hospital beeps might be more effective if they are more musical and less annoying. An app can tell if you're depressed and recommend solutions. Image specialist Adobe is moving into music but composers need not be worried just yet. There's a crowd-funded fishing probe. Honda have a moving way to enhance your VR experience, but might not have thought it through properly. There's an e-bike with built-in 5G connectivity and more. Windscreen ice problems might have been solved. And why do Amazon keep offering you more of whatever you've just bought?
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: Project Titan cancelled, why Odysseus fell over & sterilising mosquitoes en masse

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: Project Titan cancelled, why Odysseus fell over & sterilising mosquitoes en masse
Steve Caplin delves into the world of tech. The once officially-secret BT Tower has been sold to a hotel group. The Odysseus lunar lander fell over because somebody forgot to turn a switch back on. A new ride will give you longer in space for less money. Google has had to pause AI images of people again because of bias. Helicopters could soon be much simpler to fly. A Brazilian company has found a way to sterilise mosquitoes en masse. A robot bed vacuum will get rid of your dust mites. An armchair can expand into a 2- or 3-seater sofa. And Tesla is shamed online into paying for the thousands of pies it ordered then cancelled.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: Amazing Sora video, drying out phones & wooden satellites

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: Amazing Sora video, drying out phones & wooden satellites
Steve Caplin discusses the amazing advances in AI Sora videos. It transpires that rice is NOT the best way of drying out wet phones. With a shortage of guide dogs, a robot seeing-eye dog is being developed in Glasgow. Clothing impregnated with nanodiamonds could cool you in summer. Japan believes a satellite made of magnolia could be more environmentally friendly than aluminium. Bumpy solar cells are more efficient. Rice filled with fat and muscle could be a cheap high-protein food. Doctors can operate remotely on the International Space Station. And Israeli scientists can – literally – grow a pair.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published:
Simon Rose

Gadgets & Gizmos: The US returns to the Moon, Darwin online, safer lithium batteries & Taylor Swift and CPR

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

Gadgets and Gizmos

Gadgets & Gizmos: The US returns to the Moon, Darwin online, safer lithium batteries & Taylor Swift and CPR
Steve Caplin discusses the US returning to the Moon for the first time since 1972, entirely in private hands rather than equipped by NASA. There's an electric rickshaw with a detachable scooter. A top-of-the-ranger mobility scooter has all mod cons. Brian Eno's limited edition turnable is a work of art – but an ugly one. Steve wonders why there's a new portable CD player. Charles Darwin's library is online in its entirety, but dreadfully presented. Lithium batteries could be made far safer, if people are prepared to pay. Taylor Swift's songs could save people from heart attacks. Repeated vaccines should be given in alternate arms. An underwater kite could be the solution to strong wave power. And chocolate could have much less sugar – and more oat flour.
Guest:

Steve Caplin


Published: