Computer America

Show Notes 17 April 2026 Researchers Develop 3D Printed Lab-Grown Ear Cartilage 3DPrinting.com https://3dprinting.com/news/researchers-develop-3d-printed-lab-grown-ear-cartilage/ 3D Printed Ear Video ETH Zurich YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01U6KC35dKw Novel prosthetic design combines AI and 3D printing to improve fit Robert Egan MedicalXpress.com https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-...

Show Notes 10 April 2026 Scientists may have figured out how to unlock the energy of ocean waves David Nield ScienceAlert.com https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-may-have-figured-out-how-to-unlock-the-energy-of-ocean-waves Power in Motion: Transforming Energy Harvesting with Gyroscopes University of Osaka Asia Research News https://www.asiaresearchnews.com/content/power-motion-transforming-ene...

Show Notes 3 April 2026 Researchers Develop Photonic Crystal Light Sails for Interplanetary Exploration National Today.com https://nationaltoday.com/us/al/tuskegee/news/2026/03/06/researchers-develop-photonic-crystal-light-sail-for-interplanetary-exploration/ Fuel-free interplanetary travel: Photonic crystal sail could help laser beams push spacecraft MSN https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/...

Sony Is Raising Prices on PlayStation Consoles and Portals Polygon https://www.polygon.com/ps5-price-increase-sony-playstation-portal Netflix Raises Prices Across All Streaming Plans CNBC https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/26/netflix-raises-prices-across-all-streaming-plans.html Physical vs Digital: Switch 2 Games Pricing Explained Polygon https://www.polygon.com/physical-vs-digital-switch-2-games-prici...

Story 1: AI search robot uses 3D maps and internet knowledge to find lost items Andreas Schmitz, Technical University Munich TechXplore.com https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-ai-robot-3d-internet-knowledge.html Research paper: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11359697 Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUouwHUZPWQ Story 2: Tofu brine could power safer batteries that last decades, research...

Show Notes 20 March 2026 Story 1: Extra ‘set of eyes’ for self-driving cars: Roadside radar sensors could reduce blind spots Silvia Cernea Clark Rice University website https://news.rice.edu/news/2026/extra-set-eyes-self-driving-cars-roadside-radar-sensors-could-reduce-blind-spots https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1SWRzGPQJQ Story 2: Spray-on 'immune-shield' coats transplant organs to curb rejectio...

  Show Notes 13 March 2026 Story 1: 3D Printing Soft Robots - Rotational multi-material printing offers intricate, programmable shapesSource: Harvard School of Engineering Story by Anne J. Manning Link: https://seas.harvard.edu/news/3d-printing-soft-robots See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BK9K_mJjlxE Story 2: AI robot vehicles learn to team up and extinguish fires in early trial Sou...

Show Notes 6 March 2026 Story 1: Scientists Grew Mini Brains, Then Trained Them to Solve an Engineering Problem Source: ScienceAlert.com  Link: https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-grew-mini-brains-then-trained-them-to-solve-an-engineering-problem 200,000 living human brain cells just learned to play Doom and this is just the start of it Source: ZME Science  Link: https://www.zmescience.com/sci...

Show Notes 27 February 2026 Story 1: Artemis II to Test Laser-Based Communication from the Moon Source: ExtremeTech.com Link: https://www.extremetech.com/aerospace/artemis-ii-to-test-laser-based-communication-from-the-moon Story 2: New solar-powered device extracts lithium for batteries while desalinating seawater Source: Interesting Engineering Link: https://interestingengineering.com/energy/chin...

Show Notes 20 February 2026 Story 1: Watch a robot swarm “bloom” like a garden Source: ArsTechnica.com Link: https://arstechnica.com/science/2026/01/watch-a-robot-swarm-bloom-like-a-garden/ See research paper here: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scirobotics.ady7233 See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80QqrFmvIr0&t=2s Story 2: Electric semi-trucks could serve as mobile AI data...

Show Notes 2/13/2026 AI model from Google's DeepMind reads recipe for life in DNA  Source: BBC  Link:  https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c39428dv18yo Carbon Robotics Launches the World’s First-Ever Large Plant Model Source: BusinessWire.com  Link:  https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260202630325/en/Carbon-Robotics-Launches-the-Worlds-First-Ever-Large-Plant-Model Your future home might be fra...

Tiny silicon structures compute with heat, achieving 99% accurate matrix multiplication Source: Techxplore.com Link: https://techxplore.com/news/2026-01-tiny-silicon-accurate-matrix-multiplication.html#google_vignette Research Paper: https://journals.aps.org/prapplied/abstract/10.1103/5drp-hrx1 Scientists Found an Untapped Energy Source Running Through Our Cells Source: Popular Mechanics Link: htt...

Show Notes 23 January 2026 Story 1: MIT just made aluminum 5x stronger with 3D printing -  it is stronger, lighter, and tough enough to reshape the future of flight Source: ScienceDaily Based on MIT news announcement Link:  https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251226045316.htm See also:  https://news.mit.edu/2025/printable-aluminum-alloy-sets-strength-records-may-enable-lighter-aircraft-p...

Show Notes 16 January 2026 Very Low Earth Orbit Satellites Could be the Next Frontier in Satellite Technology Source: ExtremeTech.com Link:  https://www.extremetech.com/aerospace/very-low-earth-orbit-satellites-could-be-the-next-frontier-in-satellite NASA, Boeing Test How to Improve Performance of Longer, Narrower Aircraft Wings Source: NASA Link:  https://www.nasa.gov/aeronautics/nasa-boeing-test...

Calcopia.com . Nathan Evans, Managing Editor. Herman Exum, Tech Reporter. Calcopia is your place for unique and interesting analyses on the best of gaming, movies, tech, books, a regularly updated Podcast, and original content you won’t find anywhere else. 100 percent independent and agenda-free, our diverse editorial staff is committed to keeping things interesting and always entertaining. A veri...

Main Stories Story 1: The perfect polymer? Plant-based plastic is fully saltwater degradable and leaves behind zero microplastics Source: Phys.org Link:  https://phys.org/news/2025-12-polymer-based-plastic-fully-saltwater.html Story 2: First highway segment in U.S. wirelessly charges electric heavy-duty truck while driving Source: Purdue University Link:  https://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/2025/Q4/fi...

Show Notes for Computer America Story 1: Real-world helper exoskeletons come closer to reality with AI training Source: TechXplore.com Link:  https://techxplore.com/news/2025-11-real-world-helper-exoskeletons-closer.html Research Paper:  https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scirobotics.ads8652 Story 2: New Augmented Reality Tech Can Turn Any Surface into Keyboard Source: University of Texas at Dall...

Calcopia . Nathan Evans, Managing Editor. Calcopia  is your place for unique and interesting analyses on the best of gaming, movies, tech, books, a regularly updated Podcast, and original content you won’t find anywhere else. 100 percent independent and agenda-free, our diverse editorial staff is committed to keeping things interesting and always entertaining. A veritable cornucopia of editorial e...

Show Notes: 19 December 2025Stories of the Day 1. New wearable device lets you touch fabric online, read braille, and more - VoxeLite can help you literally feel websites. Source: Popular Science Popular Science Article Research Paper 2. Birch Leaves and Peanuts Transformed into Cutting-Edge Laser Technology Source: Bioengineer.org Bioengineer.org Article Optics.org Article Research Paper 3. What...

Show Notes Featured Stories Hyundai wants to cut EV charging time to 3 minutes, as fast as filling up a gas car Source: Electrek.com Link:  https://electrek.co/2025/11/20/hyundai-cut-ev-charging-time-3-minutes/ Japanese scientists unveil a quantum battery that defies energy loss Source: ScienceDaily.com Links:  https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/10/251023031612.htm ,  https://journals.aps....

Show Notes: 5 December 2025 Story 1: Startup develops incredible tech to pull water from unexpected source:  'This is just the beginning of what's possible' Source: The Cool Down on MSN, Story by Elija McKee Link See also See also Video here Story 2: PowerLattice attracts investment from ex-Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger for its power-saving chiplet Source: TechCrunch.com, Story by Marina Temkin Link See...

Story 1 Title: 3D Solar towers boost electricity production by around 50% Source: New Atlas Links: Solar Towers Electricity Janta Power Closes $5.5 Million Seed Round to Power the Future of Clean Energy Story 2 Title: European Space Agency to Trial Growing Protein Powder in Space Using Astronaut Urine Source: ExtremeTech.com Links: ESA to Trial Growing Protein Powder in Space Using Astronaut Urine...

Show Notes Story 1: Computing and AI Title: Scientists create world's first microwave-powered computer chip — it's much faster and consumes less power than conventional CPUs Source: LiveScience.com Links: LiveScience Article Research Paper Cornell Chronicle Posting Story 2: Sustainable Materials Title: Green alternative for light-emitting materials in displays uses plant waste and amino acids Sour...

Show Notes: 14 November 2025 Main Stories Story 1: Wireless Charging Roads Title: This Wireless-Charging Road Is More Powerful Than Most Tesla Superchargers Source: InsideEVs.com Link:  Wireless Charging Highway Power Company Site:  Electreon See Also:  First Highway Charges Cars as They Drive Story 2: Tank-Killer Robot Title: Meet FireAnt: US firm unveils mini ‘tank-killer’ robot built to hunt he...

Bonus Fun Virtual Experience Google's virtual Route 66 driving adventure (Source: Google Arts & Culture in collaboration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation) Link:  https://artsandculture.google.com/project/route-66 Main Stories Powered by mushrooms, living computers are on the rise -  Neural organics lead to lower energy costs, faster calculation speeds  (Source: Ohio State News...