Microsoft Patents Vibrating VR Floor Mat to Keep You Safe Tech giant Microsoft has filed a patent for a floor mat that could help you be aware of your surroundings while you’re playing a VR game. This way, you can potentially avoid hitting yourself in the wall or any objects at home during an intense VR gaming session. The floor mat isexpected to come with pressure sensorscapable of efficiently detecting the player’s position without using optical sensors, according to the patent application that reads “A virtual reality mat may include a plurality of spatially distributed pressure sensors integrated into the mat to detect a physical pressure or force applied to an activity surface of the mat”....

Microsoft’s AI Generates Talking Heads from Noisy Audio Samples Researchers at Microsoft have developed a technique that aims to improve the accuracy and quality of talking head generations by focusing on the audio stream. As per current talking head generation techniques, a clean and noise-free audio input with a neutral tone is mandatory but the researchers claim that their method “disentangles audio sequences” into factors like phonetic content, emotional tone, and background noise in order to work with any given audio sample....

Relativity Space to Begin Commercial Launches of 3D-Printed Rockets in 2021 Relativity Space, an aerospace manufacturer company, is gearing up to expand its autonomous rocket factory. The rockets manufactured here, however, has a difference. They are 3D-printed. Yes, you read that right. The company is preparing to launch the world’s first 3D-printed rocket. “Relativity was founded with the long-term vision of 3D printing the first rocket made on Mars and expanding the possibilities for human experience in our lifetime....

Researchers Have Developed Artificial Human Skin for Robots Researchers have developed a system combining artificial skin with control algorithms and used it to create the first autonomous humanoid robot with full-body artificial skin. The artificial skin developed by Professor Gordon Cheng and his team from Technical University of Munich in Germany, consists of hexagonal cells about the size of a two-euro coin (i.e. about one inch in diameter). According to the study published in the journal Proceedings of the IEEE, each is equipped with a microprocessor and sensors to detect contact, acceleration, proximity and temperature....

Smartphone Sales in the US on a Steady Decline in Q3 2019 The US market sold 11.3 million smartphones in August which is down 4 per cent when compared with August 2018, says a Counterpoint Research report. When looking at how the third quarter (Q3) of 2019 is shaping up, July and August volumes are down almost 10 per cent from July and August 2018 volumes. However, according to Counterpoint Research, September was ruled by Apple....

These $3000 Shoes Filled with Holy Water were Sold out in Minutes A limited-edition sneaker filled with holy water from the Jordan River in the soles and blessed by a priest sold out within minutes after its debut. The shoes cost $3,000 per pair. ‘Jesus Shoes’ are basically distinctive pair of white Nike Air Max 97s, manufactured by a Brooklyn-based creative label MSCHF, Fox News reported on Wednesday. The shoes also have features like the Bible verse Matthew 14:25, the passage describing Jesus walking on water along with a single blood drop to represent the blood of Christ....

This Electric Car Runs 20 Kilometers Daily for 30 Days Without Charging Hanergy, a Chinese company with expertise in thin solar films partnered with a Chinese automaker named Jiangsu Joylong Automobile to develop a solar-powered electric car. The company has been testing the efficiency of the car and from the test results, it has been found that the car manages to run 20 kilometers per day for 30 days without charging, thanks to the thin solar films present in the car....