Best Inventions of 2006
It's been an interesting year in technology. Nintendo invented a video game you control with a magic wand. A new kind of car traveled 3,145 miles on a single gallon of gas. A robot learned to ride a bike and somebody came up with a nanofabric umbrella that doesn't stay wet
Sauvignon Bot
This squat robot with a swiveling head can "taste" wine using infrared light sensors and a spectrometer in its left arm. When training its beam directly onto a bottle of, say, Sauvignon Blanc, the bot can analyze the chemical composition of the liquid inside to determine type, brand and flavor and then suggest a complementary cheese (it relays the info by speaking in a high-pitched voice). NEC's mechanical sommelier is the latest robot with an "optical tongue" to emerge from the company's research lab in Tokyo; the first, PaPeRo, unveiled last year, identifies ingredients in food.
Inventor: NEC System Technologies and Mie University
Availability: Prototype only
To learn more visit necst.co.jp
Special Features:
Around the Web
-
Anne Burrell Comes Out: Food Network Star Confirms She's A Lesbian
From THE HUFFINGTON POST
-
John Edwards Trial Juror Flirting With Ex-Senator
From THE HUFFINGTON POST
-
Tide Redesigning Box After Kids Mistake Detergent For Candy
From SLATE
-
Islamist Leader Likely To Face Former PM in Egyptian Runoff
From SLATE
