8 Science Fictions that became Science Facts in 2012

1.FLEXIBLE, INEXPENSIVE SOLAR PANELS CHALLENGE FOSSIL FUEL

At half the price of today’s cheapest solar cells, Twin Creeks’ Hyperion uses an ion canon to bombard wafer-thin panels. The result is a commercially viable, mass-produced solar panel that costs around 40 cents per watt.



2. DIAMOND PLANET DISCOVERED

An exoplanet made entirely of diamonds was discovered this year by an international research team. Approximately five times the size of Earth, the small planet had mass similar to that of Jupiter. Scientists believe the short distance from its star coupled with the exoplanet’s mass means the planet, remnants of another star, is mostly crystalline carbon.
Source: io9.com



3. EYE IMPLANTS GIVE SIGHT TO THE BLIND

Two blind men in the U.K. were fitted with eye implants during an eight-hour surgery with promising results. After years of blindness, both had regained “useful” vision within weeks, picking up the outlines of objects and dreaming in color. Doctors expect continued improvement as their brains rewire themselves for sight.
Source: telegraph.co.uk



4. INVISIBILITY CLOAK TECHNOLOGY TOOK A HUGE LEAP FORWARD

British Columbia company HyperStealth Biotechnology showed a functioning prototype of its new fabric to the U.S. and Canadian military this year. The material, called Quantum Stealth, bends light waves around the wearer without the use of batteries, mirrors, or cameras. It blocks the subject from being seen by visual means but also keeps them hidden from thermal scans and infrared.
Source: toxel.com



5. DNA WAS PHOTOGRAPHED FOR THE FIRST TIME

Using an electron microscope, Enzo di Fabrizio and his team at the Italian Institute of Technology in Genoa snapped the first photos of the famous double helix.
Source: newscientist.com / via: davi296



6. GENETICALLY MODIFIED SILK IS STRONGER THAN STEEL

At the University of Wyoming, scientists modified a group of silkworms to produce silk that is, weight for weight, stronger than steel. Different groups hope to benefit from the super-strength silk, including stronger sutures for the medical community, a biodegradable alternative to plastics, and even lightweight armor for military purposes.
Source: bbc.co.uk



7. ARTIFICIAL LEAVES GENERATE ELECTRICITY

Using relatively inexpensive materials, Daniel G. Nocera created the world’s first practical artificial leaf. The self-contained units mimic the process of photosynthesis, but the end result is hydrogen instead of oxygen. The hydrogen can then be captured into fuel cells and used for electricity, even in the most remote locations on Earth.
Source: sciencedaily.com



8. 3-D PRINTER CREATES FULL-SIZE HOUSES IN ONE SESSION

The D-Shape printer, created by Enrico Dini, is capable of printing a two-story building, complete with rooms, stairs, pipes, and partitions. Using nothing but sand and an inorganic binding compound, the resulting material has the same durability as reinforced concrete with the look of marble. The building process takes approximately a fourth of the time as traditional buildings, as long as it sticks to rounded structures, and can be built without specialist knowledge or skill sets.
Source: gizmag.com

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Review of MOTO X

 MOTOROLA X

The Moto X is an upcoming flagship smartphone manufactured by Motorola in the United States. It will be available on Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and U.S. Cellular in the United States, and will be a Rogers exclusive in Canada. The phone will be released during Late August to Early September.

Motorola's Moto X is the first Motorola smartphone to be created and assembled in the United States. Phones will be constructed in a former Nokia factory in Fort Worth, Texas. The phone includes a 4.7 inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels (720p HD). The Moto X is powered by the Motorola X8 Mobile Computing System which consists of a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro System-on-chip, a single-core Natural Language Processor and a single-core Contextual Awareness Processor. The Snapdragon SoC itself consists of a dual-core Krait 300 CPU at 1.7 GHz and a quad-core Adreno 320 GPU at 400 MHz. The phone has 16 GB internal storage (32 GB online version), and 2GB of RAM.

Features 

Customization

The Moto X can be customized on-line through the Moto Maker web-site with options consisting of:

· The front panel can be black or white.
· The back panel can be a choice of 18 colors
· The accents of the phone, such as the buttons and the camera rim, can be colored.
· A wooden back panel (not yet available)
· Engraved backing
· Storage space of 16 GB or 32 GB
· A custom message on boot animation


Contextual awareness

· The camera can be activated with flicks of one's wrist
· Saying "OK Google Now" activates the phone
· The clock is displayed on the screen when the phone is picked up or taken out of one's pocket
· Notifications appear when a finger is placed on the screen. Removing the finger returns the phone to the lock screen.

Specifications

Dimensions	5.09 * 2.57 * 0.41 inch
Weight	130 g
Operating System	Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean
Memory	2 GB RAM
Storage	16 GB (32 GB online)
Battery	2200 mAh
Rear Camera	10.5 MP with clear pixel sensor and flash
Front Camera	2.1 MP
Sound	Mono speaker on back sound
Display	1280 * 720 (316 ppi) Amoled

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