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Depending on your tolerance for pain, getting a tattoo can be an uncomfortable experience, but new technology developed by scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology could be about to change that.

A team led by chemical engineer Mark Prausnitz has created a low-cost skin patch containing microscopic needles smaller than a grain of sand. Each of the so-called “microneedles” acts like a pixel and can be arranged in different patterns. Each one is then filled with ink before being pressed onto the skin a single time to transfer the design, with no pain or bleeding involved. The process can even be self-administered.

While the patch could clearly present a welcome breakthrough for folks keen on getting a cosmetic tattoo but who are currently put off by the pain, the team actually began its research with another group in mind: medical patients.

“We’ve miniaturized the needle so that it’s painless,

As the world builds out ever larger installations of wind and solar power systems, the need is growing fast for economical, large-scale backup systems to provide power when the sun is down and the air is calm. Today’s lithium-ion batteries are still too expensive for most such applications, and other options such as pumped hydro require specific topography that’s not always available.

Now, researchers at MIT and elsewhere have developed a new kind of battery, made entirely from abundant and inexpensive materials, that could help to fill that gap.

The new battery architecture, which uses aluminum and sulfur as its two electrode materials, with a molten salt electrolyte in between, is described today in the journal naturein a paper by MIT Professor Donald Sadoway, along with 15 others at MIT and in China, Canada, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

“I wanted to invent something that was better, much better, than lithium-ion

As the 20-year anniversary of the Beltway Sniper shooting rampage nears, the man who headed the investigation at the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says new technology would have likely stopped the shooting sooner.

During a three-week period in October 2002, John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo shot and killed 10 people, and wounded three others in Maryland, Virginia and DC

At the time, Michael Bouchard was ATF’s special agent in charge during the sniper investigation, as the head of the agency’s Baltimore field office. Bouchard appeared often during news conferences with then-Montgomery County Police Chief Charles Moose and Gary Bald, the agent who headed the FBI’s task force efforts.

Hydrogen, the most common element in the universe, has long been touted as a clean and plentiful alternative energy source. But the easiest way to produce hydrogen fuel requires pure water, which can be hard to get ahold of — and will only become more difficult to source amid worsening droughts around the globe.

Now, in a study published this week in the journal Nature Communicationsscientists have revealed a new way to churn out hydrogen fuel.

What’s new — It turns out that all you need is the humidity that’s naturally hanging in the air, they found, along with their new device that swallows moisture and spits out hydrogen and oxygen. Their method could spur hydrogen fuel production anywhere on the planet.

This story is part of Plugged In, CNET’s hub for all things EV and the future of electrified mobility. From vehicle reviews to helpful hints and the latest industry news, we’ve got you covered.

Longer range, faster charging, less range degradation and a lower sticker price: That’s all that new battery technologies are to bring to electric cars. And while, on a practical basis, I remain more enthused about charging developments like GM’s recent expansion with Pilot and EVgo or Tesla Superchargers embracing the worldhere are some new battery technologies that are strong rivals for my enthusiasm.

Lithium ion is far from done

Please Nanotechnologies is replacing the graphite anode that forms a lot of the bulk and about 15% of the weight of today’s lithium-ion batteries with a form of silicon that it claims will give battery cells a 20 to 40% increase in energy density while

The New Jersey Department of Transportation has launched a new project along a section of Route 129 in Trenton that will include the use of a first-in-the-nation system to regulate traffic lights to improve pedestrian safety.

Plans call for a number of improvements to be made at three signalized intersections on Route 129 at Lalor Street, Cass Street and Hamilton Avenue, an area where a dozen pedestrians have been killed and many more injured since 2000.

According to DOT Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti, a Red Clearance Traffic Signal Extension system is being implemented that will detect vehicles approaching a pedestrian crossing.

“Basically, we let the red light stay a little longer, hopefully to allow pedestrians additional time to get across the street,” she said.

Smart predictive technology

Gutierrez-Scaccetti explained this smart, predictive technology detects the speed of a vehicle approaching an intersection and automatically adjusts traffic signal changes.

“That means instead

This week in football fans in this country will experience the future of VAR for the first time.

No more waiting around while the officials spend minutes drawing lines on the bottom of Harry Kane’s shirt sleeve — is that about right? No, no, down a bit, that’ll do — to find out if he is a few inches beyond the last defender.

After four years of development, nearly 300 matches of testing, the new semi-automated offside technology will launch officially in the Champions League group stages before being used at the World Cup this winter.

The semi-automated offside technology has been tested in 300 matches in the last four years

Chelsea, Man City and Liverpool kick off their campaigns in Europe’s elite competition away from home but Tottenham welcome Marseille where limb-tracking cameras inside the stadium will make tight offside calls quicker and clearer.

But as football welcomes a