Technabob » ant

Ant-Roach Inflatable Robot is Bizarre, Could Be Your Post-Apocalyptic Transport

Conner Flynn — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 13:00:53 +0000

It looks like a giant kids toy, but this 15-foot beast is actually an inflatable pneumatic robot. In the future, humans will ride these beasts across the wastelands of the apocalypse and wage wars with one another on their backs. Silly looking wars.

Developed by Otherlab, the Ant-Roach is like an ant and a roach in one, hence the name. It is in the concept stage at the moment. Inflatable actuators on the legs do all of the hard work, and are able to lift up to 1,000 pounds.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The goal of building this strange beast was to demonstrate the carrying capacity and high strength-to-weight ratios that inflatable structures are capable of. Inflatable robots have a lot of potential as they are low-cost, lightweight, extremely powerful, and at the same time safer for humans to interact with.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

It still looks like they’ve got a way to go before the Ant-Roach can actually move smoothy, quietly, or quickly though.

[via Hizook]

Sportiiiis Heads-up Display Offers Fitness Feedback, Four i’s

Technabob — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 21:59:51 +0000

The 21st century is proving to be an exciting time for technology and fitness fanatics. As tech shrinks and becomes more and more mobile, the list of available gadgets for workout-aholics continues to grow. One of the latest entries into the high-tech fitness fray is the Sportiiiis system from (who else but) 4iiii Innovations (as in “four eyes.”)

This unique “heads-up” display offers color-coded LEDs help you keep track of your heart rate and pace without looking down at a watch or other electronic gadget. The gadget clips onto pretty much any pair of sunglasses, and tucks in neatly along the arm between your ear and lens. Sportiiiis communicates wirelessly with ANT+ compatible devices such as a wrist-worn heart-rate monitor or bike cadence sensor, and provides quick visual feedback, and alert you when you drift outside of your targets.

For instance, a green light in the middle indicates you’re right at the perfect heart rate, while amber or red LEDs to the edges tell you if you’re too high or too low from your ideal heart rate or running pace. Special software for Mac, PC or smartphones will allow you to set up workout profiles for your Sportiiiis to monitor. A small tap on the side of the device will also provide an audible heart-rate cue, and double-tapping lets you flip between multiple paired sensors.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Sportiiiis should be available some time later in November, and will retail for $199 (USD). Sunglasses and remote sensors not included, though.

[via Gizmag via Crave]

See-Through Ants Come in Custom Colors

Technabob — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 19:56:08 +0000

Did you know that certain ants out there have translucent abdomens? We must have missed that day in entomology class. Not only are there see-through ants, but they can be filled with colorful liquid to make them any color you want!

Dr. Mohamed Babu of Mysore, India shot these incredible photographs, taken as these unusual ants sipped from colorful piles of sugar water. He says that not only did he end up with red, yellow and blue ants, but some of them drank from multiple drops, creating new colors too.

I love stuff like this. Not only are these photographs incredible, but they capture one of natures incredible creations, and teach us a thing or two about science.

We better not let the guys at ColorWare hear about this, or else they’ll be selling custom-colored ants for $500 each. Although if you send in your own ants, they might provide a small discount.

[DailyMail via NotCot via Colossal Art + Design]

The Real Alien Ant Farm

Technabob — Sat, 30 May 2009 14:06:49 +0000

Remember playing with ant farms when you were a kid? You know, the type where you’d get sand all over the place and proceed to kill all of your insect friends within a matter of minutes as you tried to fill it up? Or when they’d all escape and start gnawing on your arm? It looks like the good old ant farm has gotten a modern update.

Created by Uncle Milton’s (the same guys who made the original ant farm over 50 years ago), this updated version features a brightly illuminated green environment for your 6-legged friends to crawl around in. Instead of sand, the tunnels are loaded with a moist, nutritious green gel (I prefer to call it goo). The see-through colony is designed to be break-proof and escape-proof, so that should keep the ants inside where they belong.

The entire contraption is illuminated LEDs to give you a bright, up-close-and-personal view of your budding ant civilization. You can even connect multiple farms to create a massive above-ground ant city. All you need is a magnifying glass and the power of the sun, and you’ll be all set.

If you don’t have any spare ants lying around, Uncle Milton’s will ship you about 25 to 30 (non-breeding) harvester worker ants to populate your world with (assuming you can wait the requisite 3 to 6 weeks for delivery).

You can grab the Uncle Milton’s LED Gel Ant Farm over at Entertainment Earth for $29.99 (USD).

The Great Insect War: Ants Versus Phoridae

Lambert Varias — Wed, 13 May 2009 12:15:45 +0000

Freaky news from Texas: apparently, fire ants are becoming a problem in the Lone Star State, so they’re importing phorid flies to deal with the problem. Pshaw, what can puny flies do against ants, you must be saying. Pshaw. Well pshaw on this report from UPI: “The phorid flies effectively turn fire ants into zombies, the Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram reported Tuesday. The egg that hatches in a fire ant produces a maggot that eats the ant’s brain…” Awesome. It’s Ants vs. Phoridae, and we’ve got some nasty photos of the ongoing insect war:

Okay here’s the real deal (via Missouri State University):

That’s a fire ant on the left, looking just fine and fiery, ready to bite your little toe off. And here’s what could happen after the phorid fly’s Brain Buster attack: (via USDA-SABCL)

Ouch. Rob Plowes of the University of Texas summarizes the epic battle thusly: “…as the maggot eats a fire ant’s brain the ant begins to rove around mindlessly. After about two weeks, the ant’s head falls off, allowing the fly to emerge, seeking another fire ant to begin the cycle again.” The plan won’t eradicate the ants totally, just control the annoying ant’s population. And that’s good, because 20th Century Fox just got a hold of representatives from the warring insects and signed them on for a trilogy.

LED Watch Covered With Ants

Technabob — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 12:40:21 +0000

If I told you to put a pile of fiery ants on your wrist every day, you’d probably say I was crazy. But with this entomological timepiece from Japan, you can cover your arm with ‘em without any risk of getting bitten.

The Seahope ANTS watch tells time using a bunch of the little 6-legged buggers. At first glance, you’ll have no idea what time it is. But once you figure out that the the red ones are hours, yellow ants are five-minute intervals, and the green ones are single minutes, you’ll know that the watch in the picture above says its 1:57. At least that’s what the ants told me.

While trying to make heads or tails of the current time might be painful, at least its better than 27 ant bites on your wrist. Ready to stick you hand in the ant hill? You can find the ANTS watch over at Dynamism for $119.99 USD.

[Rather not have ants on you wrist? The TokyoFlash Infection watch looks suspiciously similar, but is completely bug-free.]