Not any more they don't. They still might for data on "dumbphones", but they force you to pay for the "everything's included" plan for any smartphone newer than a Treo even if you don't want it. At least that's what they always tell me when I bitch at them about this very issue.

I pay $60/month for two phones on Sprint with no data plan. I'm very happy with this plan, but my skanky old Treo 650 won't last forever. I'd like to get a new smartphone that I'd be able to use on WiFi, but every other carrier in the US will not even allow me to get a newer smartphone without a data plan. The…

These guys don't need any "thimble" and could probably get a lot more out of this interface:

That was the easy part- they've been using flexible circuits in small things like phones and batteries for well over a decade now. Double layers and everything- they were in the Motorola StarTac phones and batteries back in 1995 when I was there and had been in use for some time before then.

This is called "passive dynamic walking" and was first demonstrated by a guy names Tad McGeer back in 1990. Interesting, but by no means new. In fact, several groups have created robots using this concept that are generally powered with a slight ankle push-off. These robots are far more efficient than Honda's Asimo…

Not all that innovative. Lever-drive wheelchair propulsion systems - many also with gearing - have been around for a while now:

That's because normal rowing involves pulling. This most likely uses a pushing motion (like many other similar devices) that anyone capable of pushing a normal wheelchair would be able to do.

It looks like pheromones don't work that well in humans. Instead we develop an innate sexual aversion to people we grew up with, whether we're related to them or not ([en.wikipedia.org] In fact, that link says that the opposite is actually true and there may be some form of genetic sexual attraction ([en.wikipedia.org]

You ever watch an episode of New Yankee Workshop? Wander through an art fair? The handbuilt, custom, top of the line stuff. Ikea just uses plywood for everything and slaps a layer of laminate on the parts you see. No sane furniture builder would ever waste good wood on the back of a piece of furniture where a sheet of…

Commodore 64 (as in 64kB), and it was awesome.

That carpenter analogy is way off- great furniture does indeed often use plywood on the back instead of the "pretty" wood used on the front, top, and sides. Plywood is structurally stronger and less subject to wood movement and warping with changes in humidity. If something is not going to be seen, sensible people…

Cool, but this looks like a budget Heliodisplay. These are just projectors projectors aimed at a curtain of water vapor, but people don't have to stand as still as a cardboard cutout. You can also walk right through the image and use it as a touchscreen.

Lots of alumni and students would care about a bitter rival getting credit for their accomplishment. At least the author cared enough about it to fix his mistake.

Are you trying to piss people off? That's the University of Michigan, not Michigan State!

If they were truly obsolete people wouldn't still want them. Old tech, yes. Inefficient, yes. But not obsolete.

Current prosthetic technology can work fine for double above-knee amputees, this person's residual limbs (stumps) were just "too short" to put them on.

In Firefox I just right-click the image to open it in a new tab, then right click in that tab to save it.

@siwex80: The problem here is that the internet is everywhere, and the laws aren't the same everywhere. Libel laws in the UK are widely regarded as among the worst in the world- soundly putting the burden of proof on the accused rather than the accuser and costing them millions regardless of the outcome. It is quite…

Actually, the most efficient small four-stroke motors are only around 43% thermal efficiency while electric motors can easily get over 90% efficiency. What you're actually getting at is the energy density of the fuel. It doesn't matter that internal combustion engines are so inefficient because gas is so much more…

Awesome! You've given me hope that I'll eventually be able to retire my poor old Treo 650. Don't laugh- I get two phones with all the minutes I need for only $60/month after fees! Now that you've given me hope, could you give me some ammo too? Can you tell me which specific android phones you've activated and gotten…