Top Stories - Technology

A quantum dot is a semiconductor whose excitons are confined in all three spatial dimensions. As a result, they have properties that are between those of bulk semiconductors and those of discrete molecules. Researchers have studied quantum dots for more advanced transistors, solar cells, LEDs, and diode lasers. This will be definitely the next generation core technology.

On Monday, Japanese auto giants and Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) joined forces to set up a common system to recharge electric cars, with the hopes to create a global standard.

Last week, the JR East company opened a public contest to… name the new E5 series Shinkansen.

Ask anyone who’s ever shopped for an ATV, outboard engine, personal robot…heck, even a private jet, and they’ll tell you that cars are only the tip of the proverbial iceberg for Honda. The Japanese industrial giant is one of a handful of automakers that also makes motorcycles (along with the likes of Peugeot, BMW and Suzuki, to name just a few).

We think it goes without saying that Japan loves robots. Japanese pop culture has had a love affair with our metallic friends since the '50s, and slowly but surely science is catching up to their imagination. fuRo, a Japanese robotic research & development firm, has taken their first tentative steps towards realizing a glorious future of wirelessly controlled robotic surrogates.

A US watchdog which was supposed to bark at a sign of technology trouble from car manufacturers lacks the techies to do the job.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has told a hearing into the Toyota fiasco that the recent problem on Toyota braking systems sailed past it undetected because the outfit does not employ any software engineers and only two electrical engineers.

(Credit: Robot Laboratory) Researchers at Japan's Kobe Gakuin University are developing a levitating chair that hovers on a small cushion of air.

The floating chair is being developed for elderly Japanese by Tsunesuke Furuta and others at the university's rehabilitation department.

If you think this is wild you should go onto robin's site - strap yourself in.....

Arthur

Manga Balloon Maker is a simple way to caption photos with speech- and thought balloons on an iPhone or iPod Touch. There are 20 balloon styles available, and the captioned picture can be shared via email or Twitter directly from within the app. Manga Balloon Maker gives you the option of taking a new photo or selecting one from your Photo Albums.

Mobile phone and wireless Internet enthusiasts will surely clap their hands with glee when they hear about this new technology.

Toyota Motor Corp. has been ordered by Japan’s government to investigate brake-related problems with its latest Prius hybrid, adding to company woes following the recall of millions of vehicles in overseas markets.

Japanese horseradish, whose smell is more usually found in sushi restaurants, contains allyl isothiocyanate – the same chemical compound that gives mustard its bite – and tests at the Shiga University of Medical Science have shown that virtually all the hearing-impaired people exposed to the odour of wasabi woke up within two-and-a-half minutes.

Tested with ver 2.42 firmware only, Geohotz have released the exploit to the Playstation 3, giving full memory access.

The iconic needle-nosed Japanese "bullet train" could speed through the swampy marshlands of central Florida if Yoshiyuki Kasai, the chairman of Central Japan Railway Co., gets his way.

Conceived by Kyuseop Lee, a graphic & Industrial designer from Korea, the “Deos” is futuristic flying vehicle for cops that ironically looks everything but a vehicle from any angle. Moving on a virtual track system, the vehicle concept is propelled by an air jet engine. Drawing inspiration from nature, the Deos features flexible body structure to sustain the pressure at high speed.