Tech Universe: Wednesday 20 July

OYSTER POWER: The Oyster 800 is a platform that moves to and fro in waves. As it moves it pumps water to generate electricity in an on-shore station. The 800kW device is to be installed off the coast of Scotland. This model is simpler, more robust and more efficient than earlier versions. Surely any country surrounded by ocean should consider wave power. More information here and video proof here.

FISHING FOR POWER: Instead of sending wave power to shore to create electricity, US scientists are considering sending 50 metre long ships out to harvest the waves and store power in batteries that they'd then bring back to shore. The ships could stay in port during storms and the current extremely costly cables wouldn't be required. That could bring a whole new meaning to the phrase fishing fleet. New Scientist has more.

EARS WIDE: The Russian RadioAstron telescope is headed for an orbit that extends almost to the Moon. Its job is to sync up with radio antennas on the ground, creating a telescope whose 'dish' is almost 30 times the diameter of the Earth. Its own antenna is only 10 metres wide but when its signals are combined with those from ground-based telescopes it creates very sharp observations - about 10,000 times the resolution of the Hubble Space Telescope. The dish will collect 144 megabits of data per second, but only part of that will be received by a few Earth-based stations. Data volume is a problem again. More details here.

CAR CHAT: Scientists from the University of Bologna, Italy want cars to talk to one another efficiently to share data such as a car crash ahead on the road. Acceleration sensors in their system detect abnormal conditions, such as a crash. The system then uses WiFi to alert nearby cars, then pass the signal on to cars optimally placed to send the message further afield. While a great idea it could be wide open to all kinds of hacking and abuse. BBC has more.

- Miraz Jordan knowit.co.nz