trip

At Woods Hole, conquering the deep ocean

WOODS HOLE, Mass.--Although crews have managed to shut off--for now, at least--the flood of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, it is virtually certain that ongoing cleanup work will keep the concept of deep-sea science in the public's eye for some time.

That could be good news for the scientists and researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) here, one of the world's leading repositories of across-the-board ocean expertise, and the developers of a stunning collection of hardware and software tools designed to probe the countless mysteries of the deep.

I've come here as part … Read more

At 2,000 miles, Road Trip 2010 hits the suburbs

SOUTHINGTON, Conn.--If you're going to hit 2,000 of miles of driving while traveling through the Northeast, I can think of a lot of places a lot more interesting than where I did.

Since starting Road Trip 2010 on June 23, I have indeed now driven 2,000 miles--it only seems longer, given how many times I've been stuck in horrid traffic on Interstate 95, including yet again on Wednesday--and I've gotten to see some pretty amazing things along the way.

But this town of about 40,000 people, just 20 miles southwest of Hartford, Conn., (… Read more

At iRobot, moving way beyond the Roomba

BEDFORD, Mass.--I have seen the future of military robotics, and it is autonomy.

I've come here to visit the headquarters of iRobot, the company probably best known for its famous Roomba vacuum cleaners. But while it has sold more than 5 million of those cute household devices, it has also developed a reputation as one of the world's leaders in designing battlefield-ready robots capable of things like detecting and extracting explosive devices, search-and-rescue, and much more.

Click here for a full photo gallery on iRoomba, its past and its history.

And though iRobot could probably rest on … Read more

After 6,000 miles, Plastiki defying its doubters

On March 20, a very odd boat set sail from Sausalito, Calif., just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Destination: Sydney, Australia.

This was the Plastiki, a vessel made entirely of plastic, including 12,000 recycled bottles, built to showcase the world's garbage problem. It is the brainchild of banking heir and expedition leader David de Rothschild.

That was more than three months ago, and in the weeks since, the boat has bobbed and weaved its way across well more than 6,000 miles of open ocean on its way Down Under.

In recent days, the boat and its … Read more

Open-source hardware standards formally issued

NEW YORK--There are 13 million-dollar open-source hardware companies, but there have been no standards governing what defines the still nascent field.

Until now, that is.

Unlike open-source software, because there have been no formal definitions, many people may not even be aware of the growing industry. But already some of those practicing its general principles have become household names among the geek set: Arduino, the programmable single-board microcontroller and software suite; Chumby, a popular Wi-Fi device; MakerBot, a low-priced 3D printer; and Adafruit, a maker of do-it-yourself hardware kits for things like MP3 players and more.

Late Tuesday, a group … Read more

A trip beyond the edge of the observable universe

NEW YORK--If you want to see what outer space looks like, there may be no better way to do so than to have Carter Emmart take you on a ride there.

As part of my Road Trip 2010 project, I got a chance to go on that journey, and I can say with high confidence that there are probably few people on Earth better equipped for such a voyage than Emmart.

In his role as director of visualization at the American Museum of Natural History's Rose Center for Earth and Space, Emmart is the leading force behind the programming … Read more

Grand Central's multimillion-dollar secrets

NEW YORK--If you want to know what the very latest tech toys are, don't go to Best Buy or an Apple Store. Go to the lost-and-found department at Grand Central Terminal.

That's because in a train terminal that services 700,000 people a day, and more than 2,000 lost items a month, those with the latest cell phones, laptops, or other tech gear are bound to lose them while at Grand Central. And there's a really good chance those people will be reunited with their hot new items.

"We start seeing technology as soon as … Read more

The high-tech tools of Keller's kitchens

NEW YORK--I'm standing in the middle of America's foodie mecca, and I've found a smoking gun that helps explains its incredible success.

I mean that literally.

This is the kitchen of world-class chef Thomas Keller's Per Se, his Michelin three-star restaurant located on Columbus Circle, and the smoke is flowing freely, rapidly filling up a plastic container and helping to give the cream inside some additional flavor.

I mentioned this was the Smoking Gun, a culinary tool from PolyScience, right?

I've come here to Per Se because a friend told me he'd had a … Read more

From metal to money: Making America's coins

PHILADELPHIA--Staring at the bin in front of me, stacked high with thousands of dollar coins, it's hard not to make like Scrooge McDuck and jump in headfirst.

Except, of course, that security would grab me and I'd have to deal with having a felony on my record for the rest of my life. Also, there's this small detail: These aren't actually dollars. Yet.

I'm at the U.S. Mint here, the largest mint in the world, and a place big enough--at around 600,000 square feet--that all the rest of the American mints could fit … Read more

CNET to the Rescue: Rafe and Josh talk keyboards

If you're going to spend more time touching your keyboard than your spouse, you might want to put some time into picking a good one (keyboard, that is). Here are our tips for keyboards. Plus, of course, your questions answered. And the obligatory Evernote tip.