michigan

Summer is still three months away, but here in Northern California, with bright sunshine outside (and windows to keep the chilly wind out), it already feels like it's just around the corner.

That's also because I've already started the planning for Road Trip 2013, my eighth-annual journey to highlight some of the best destinations around for technology, military, architecture, science, nature, and so on.

For six of the past seven years, CNET Road Trip has taken me all around the roads of the United States, giving me the opportunity to visit the Pacific Northwest, the Southwest, the … Read more

To put it lightly, something sensational happens upon feeding large concentrations of toxic gold chloride (also known as liquid gold) to the bacteria Cupriavidus metallidurans. After about a week's time, the bacterium creates a 24-karat gold nugget from the digested toxins.

"Microbial alchemy is what we're doing, transforming gold from something that has no value into a solid, precious metal that's valuable," said Kazem Kashefi, assistant professor of microbiology and molecular genetics at Michigan State University, where the research is taking place. … Read more

Michigan State Police have deputized a new sort of law enforcement officer in the fight against drunk driving. Talking urinal cakes are now in residence in bars and restaurants around the state.

The cakes have a motion-activated audio track where a lady tells the restroom user, "Hey! Listen up. That's right. I'm talking to you. Had a few drinks? Maybe a few too many. Then do yourself and everyone else a favor. Call a sober friend or a cab. Oh, and don't forget. Wash your hands."

"Not only do we want to turn some heads and get people talking, we hope everyone takes the message to heart," said Michael L. Prince, director of the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, in a statement about the project.… Read more

"No, I can't make 8. How about 9:30? I'm taking a walk on the pier right now. It's really long. LOL."

That's what I imagine that Bonnie Miller from Benton Harbor, Mich., wanted to text while walking -- just before toppling into the deep, cold beyond off the pier in St. Joseph, Mich.

This incident seems to have been even more unfortunate because Miller doesn't appear to be much of a swimmer. At least that is the evidence presented to ABC57 News by Rebecca Van Zant, who happened to be on the … Read more

It seems unlikely that the maker of hundred-million-dollar Hollywood blockbusters such as "Armageddon" and "The Transformers" could inspire scientists to develop an ultra low-cost tool for quickly sensing airborne chemical weapons. Yet one former University of Michigan at Ann Arbor researcher says his idea to use a nerve-gas antidote to create an inexpensive litmus paper-like nerve-gas sensor emerged shortly after watching "The Rock" on DVD a few years ago.

During the climax of that 1996 Michael Bay movie, chemical weapons specialist Stanley Goodspeed (played by Nicolas Cage) injects himself in the heart with atropine … Read more

The next time you feel like swatting a bug, consider whether it might be packing military sensors that are gathering data about its surroundings. And maybe you, too.

Researchers at the University of Michigan are working on ways to generate power from insects' kinetic motion and body heat while bugging the bugs as well.

In a paper in the Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, Khalil Najafi and collaborators created piezoelectric generators that harvest small amounts of electricity from the movements of the green June beetle.

The power could be used to charge a bug-board battery for sensors that would relay … Read more

The University of Michigan's Solar Car Team is hoping to break the U.S.' 24-year dry spell at the 2011 World Solar Challenge this weekend. An American team hasn't won the international solar car race since GM took home the trophy in 1987. But a lighter, faster car could give UM the edge it needs to cross the line first.

The World Solar Challenge is a 1,800-mile race across the Australian Outback in an ultralightweight, single-passenger vehicle powered solely by the sun. Teams race their solar vehicle between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., setting up … Read more

New research suggests that wireless operators may unwittingly be degrading performance on their networks as the technology they use to shuttle traffic around their networks gets more and more complex.

Researchers from the computer science department at University of Michigan along with experts from Microsoft Research discovered that "middleboxes"--or network hardware that performs tasks such as firewalling, deep packet inspection, and intrusion detection and prevention--may be slowing down network connections and even exposing wireless subscribers to security vulnerabilities.

According to the report published last month, "An Untold Story of Middleboxes in Cellular Networks," researchers observed … Read more

The 2012 Ford Focus and Explorer models will have quieter cabins thanks to new laser inspection technology.

Ford today announced it is investing $100 million to install robotic plant laser inspection technology to better attach doors and other large panels to vehicles. A tighter fit equals less cabin noise, Ford said.

The new laser inspection will be used at the at Michigan Assembly Plant and the Saarlouis, Germany, plant, both plants build the 2012 Ford Focus. And then at the Chicago Assembly Plant, which builds the 2012 Ford Explorer.

According to Ford, robots are programmed to recognize any minute deviations … Read more