Skip to content
×
  • Opinion
  • Features
  • Speed Reads
  • 5 THINGS TO KNOW
  • Popular
  • Authors
  • Magazine
  • World
  • U.S.
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Arts
  • Books
  • Life
  • Parenting
  • Photos
  • Video
  • Cartoons
  • Puzzles
  • Newsletters
  • Authors
×
Get clarity on what happened & what comes next.
  • Subscribe & save
  • Give a gift
  • Digital subscription
Subscribe
<   Previous
Next  >


Innovation of the week

Researchers in England are working on a 3D projection that can rival the one in “a galaxy far, far away,” said Ian Sample in The Guardian. The device displays floating images that “talk and interact with onlookers,” much like the communications devices imagined in Star Wars. This projector uses ultrasonic waves between two horizontal plates to levitate a small, colorful plastic bead. The bead moves “at speeds approaching 20 mph” to trace shapes in the air. “The brain doesn’t see the moving bead, only the completed shape.” But scientists can manipulate the object by controlling the ultrasonic field to “make objects speak or add sound effects and musical accompaniments.” So far, the researchers have demonstrated a butterfly flapping its wings and a rotating planet Earth. ■

November 22, 2019 THE WEEK
The Week logo
  • More about The Week
  • Subscribe
  • Subscriber login
  • Give a gift
  • Classroom subscriptions
  • Newsletters
  • RSS
  • Do not sell my information
  • Subscribe
  • Subscriber login
  • Give a gift
  • Classroom subscriptions
  • Newsletters
  • RSS
  • Do not sell my information
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms & conditions
  • The Week UK
  • Customer service
  • Contact us
  • Accessibility
  • Ad info
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms & conditions
  • The Week UK
  • Customer service
  • Contact us
  • Accessibility
  • Ad info
Privacy Preferences
® 2021 The Week Publications Inc., All rights reserved.