10 NEW DISCOVER ON EARTH
1. Holodecks help ready soldiers for war Long gone are the days of training videos. Today’s technology is allowing for a much more hands-on experience. While simulators have been improving for years, none has come as close to offering such a realistic experience as the Virtual Immersive Portable Environment (VIPE). Developed by Northrop Grumman, VIPE combines a 360-degree screen, projectors and Microsoft’s Kinect tracking system to create a lifelike environment that reacts to the user’s movements instantly – a bit like the famous holodecks in Star Trek. Because VIPE is wired up to the internet, multiple soldiers can participate in a single training exercise, no matter where they are in the world. 2. A single bedbug can start a colony It’s always been something of a mystery why bedbugs are so difficult to get rid of, but new research by the University of Sheffield has shed some light on their resilience. The new genetic analysis has revealed an entire infestation can stem from a ...