1. One thing that helpsPneumatic Jacket
Tired of the tedious task of having to raise and lower the hood on your jacket? I know I am 🙂. OK, I know it sounds ridiculous, but this "soft robot" jacket could have important applications down the track.This jacket uses pneumatic logic (air-based logic) with pouches of air connected by soft tubes to alter its form. Differences in air pressure allow the jacket to raise or lower its hood at the push of a button, all without any hard electronic components or batteries (although currently you need to refill a carbon dioxide cannister just like a Soda Stream!). As there are no hard components in the design, this jacket can be washed and treated just like any other clothing.For now, the jacket can only do simple operations. However, its design allows it to be upgraded in the future. It is hoped that jackets like this will assist people to move their disabled limbs by inflating the areas that need assistance. The next stage is to detect when people want to move their limbs and trigger assistance automatically. This could be a huge, and cost-effective game changer.2. One to be wary ofBring Back Kurt!Will human singers be obsolete? In a world where AI is encroaching on the arts, recent advances in recreating human vocals may knock real singers off the top of the charts. In one instance, Tencent Music Entertainment, a Chinese company that focuses on music streaming services, has recreated voices of deceased legendary performers using AI. They also revealed that they have released over 1,000 tracks using their Lingyin Engine. One of these tracks has surpassed 100 million streams.As a huge music lover I am conflicted over this one. I'd love to hear a new track by Kurt Cobain or John Lennon but I imagine ( :-) ) that they would not be happy about their voice featuring on a track they did not create. Whilst alive, Michael Jackson almost never allowed his music to be sampled. After his death his estate, the completely normal Jackson family, allowed everybody to sample - even releasing his unfinished music. Imagine if they were able to create completely new songs from scratch?At some stage we need to sit back, appreciate what the artist did in their lifetime, and respect their legacy.3. One to amazeSatellite Catapult
Elon's reusable rockets? Who needs 'em! We're just going to fling stuff into space with a catapult now!SpinLaunch is reducing the cost of getting satellites into space by 70% with their kinetic launchers Suborbital Accelerator and Orbital Accelerator. So far, the Suborbital Accelerator has had successful launches for customers including NASA, Airbus, Cornwall University and Outpost. Both systems use an electric drive that uses a mechanical arm to sling payloads into space. But before it reaches the required 5,000 mph mark, the payload is swung in circles inside a vacuum-sealed accelerator, sending satellites on a one-way trip away from the earth. To reach orbit, a small rocket is used as a final stage to push the payload to its destination.I really think the team behind this innovation spent their childhoods trying to see how far they could catapult something with a forked stick and a piece of rubber. I think I missed my calling.