ENGGtalks Newsroom

04 Oct 23

Sunak axes northern leg of HS2, but promises billions for transport links

Civil, Structural & Architecture, Mechanical, Production & Manufacturing

After weeks of speculation, Sunak confirmed the scrapping of “the rest of the HS2 project” during his closing speech at the Conservative Party conference, held in a former train station in Manchester. Sunak explained his decision to scrap any HS2 connection that is not in the London–Birmingham leg as a…

04 Oct 23

Estonian mission will deploy ‘plasma brake’ to deorbit satellites faster

Computer & Information Technology

Estonia’s ESTCube-2 satellite is set for takeoff this week with an ambitious mission: the first demonstration of “plasma brake” technology to deorbit satellites faster and help reduce space debris. To achieve this, ESTCube-2 will also for the first time use electric sail (or e-sail) technology. This is a type of…

04 Oct 23

AI designs new robot from scratch in seconds

Electrical, Electronics & Instrumentation

The team tested the system by giving it a simple prompt: “Design a robot that can walk across a flat surface.” The computer started with a block about the size of a bar of soap. Knowing it was unable to walk, as instructed, the AI began making iterations of the…

04 Oct 23

VC Atomico raises €1B in glimmer of hope for European tech startups

Computer & Information Technology

It is no secret that European tech funding has seen an alarming decline throughout the past 24 months. Thankfully, there are still some bright spots. London-based venture capital firm Atomico is challenging the trend, having raised $1.1bn (€1.05bn) of new funding to invest in tech startups. Atomico will use the…

04 Oct 23

Conmemoramos a todos los profesores este Día Mundial de las y los Docentes

Computer & Information Technology

Para celebrar el Día Mundial de las y los Docentes y homenajear a la increíble comunidad de educadores en todo el mundo.

04 Oct 23

Honoring teachers everywhere this World Teachers’ Day

Computer & Information Technology

To celebrate World Teachers’ Day, we took a look at educational search trends on Google to acknowledge the dedication and passion of teachers everywhere.

04 Oct 23

Meta proposes ad-free service for EU users — but you’ll have to pay for it

Computer & Information Technology

Meta is considering charging EU users €13 a month to access an ad-free version of Instagram or Facebook on their phones, the Wall Street Journal reports. The tech giant is also considering a €16 fee to use Instagram and Facebook without adverts on desktop. Accessing both apps on smartphones would…

04 Oct 23

Chatbot: A New Robotics Podcast from IEEE Spectrum

Electrical, Electronics & Instrumentation, Mechanical, Production & Manufacturing

We’re launching a new robotics podcast here at Spectrum! It’s called Chatbot, and it’s something a little different that I’m pretty excited about. Subscribe to Chatbot Subscribe to Chatbot on the podcast service you like, or watch the video versions on the Spectrum YouTube channel here. • Spotify ↗• Apple…

04 Oct 23

The Future of Moore’s Law Is Inside This Willy Wonka Machine

Electrical, Electronics & Instrumentation, Mechanical, Production & Manufacturing

TranscriptStephen Cass: Hello and welcome to Fixing the Future, an IEEE Spectrum podcast, where we look at concrete solutions to some big problems. I’m your host, Stephen Cass, a senior editor at IEEE Spectrum. And before we start, I just want to tell you that you can get the latest…

04 Oct 23

Job satisfaction in European tech on the rise — but Dutch, Swedes least happy

Computer & Information Technology

Levels of job satisfaction among young tech workers in Europe have bounced back this year. The proportion of employees feeling unhappy in their role fell from 35% in 2022 to 15% in 2023. The findings come from the Young Generation in Tech report (backed by Eight Roads Ventures Europe and…