spaceminer

12.03.08

Wanted: Inventors to Build Space Elevator

A $50,000 contest aims to inspire new ways to hoist you and your luggage into orbit

By Patrick Di Justo Posted 10.11.2005 at 2:00 am 0 Comments

Space travel is relatively cheap compared with the cost of leaving Earth. The space shuttle, for instance, burns more than half a million gallons of fuel blasting into orbit, making every pound of payload cost $10,000. Now the nonprofit Spaceward Foundation, with a $400,000 grant from NASA, hopes to fast-track the technology to reach space on the cheap, without rockets.

[ Read Full Story ]

speedy The Fastest Swimsuit on Earth
"At the Beijing Olympic pool, perhaps the only star bigger than Michael Phelps was his swimsuit. The Speedo LZR (pronounced "laser"), like Phelps, didn't disappoint: 16 of the 32 gold-medal winners wore the full-body suit, and another 13 wore LZR pants."
[Read full story]

speedy A Finish that Repairs Itself
"It won't save you from a key-gouging vandal, but the finish on the 2008 Infiniti EX and FX-model SUVs can erase scrapes caused by, say, car washes or stray branches."
[Read full story]

speedy Boeing Advanced Tactical Laser
"Truck-mounted IED-destroying lasers have already been tested in Iraq, but firing lasers from an airplane is a more difficult proposition."
[Read full story]

speedy A Spit Test for Heart Attacks
"This year, San Antonio EMT crews began using a spit test that detects cardiac arrest faster, more accurately and more cheaply than other diagnostic tests."

[Read full story]

Eleven Clever Tips for Digital Camera Owners
You've got the technology in your pocket, so make the most of it
Middleweight Camera Championship
A series of comparison shots from the showdown of smaller “big” cameras from Canon, Olympus, and Panasonic
Dude, Where's My Flying Car (and Jetpack, and Robot Armies)?
Whatever did happen to yesterday's beloved technologies of tomorrow?

+ More Photo Galleries

Share your photos in the Pop Sci pool at www.flickr.com!
Current theme: Spooky Science
Our latest winner

regarding	user	just commented
The Five Diseases You Should Worry About	aariel	It's not so much that "an
An Earlier Information Age	ford2go	Researchers don't publish
Baby Steps Going Out of Style	ford2go	I hate to be cynical, but
Eleven Clever Tips for Digital Camera Owners	jlconeallyinc	Ooh! I have one more! My
American Power	jfkindc	We have to deal with the