Uploaded August 2014 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In this week's episode of the Engineering Update:
Japan’s military space force
Following Japan’s approval of the Basic Space Law in 2008, allowing for the use of space for security purposes, the country recently announced the formation of a space-based military force by 2019. Most of us are probably familiar with Japan’s constitution – established by Allied Forces in 1947 – which expressly forbids war as a sovereign right of the nation. This renunciation of military aggression has also applied to space – that is, until the adoption of the Basic Space Law in 2008….
The world’s first commercial space launchpad
Given the tension between Russia and the rest of the world, the U.S. has been actively pursuing alternative options for getting people and gear into space. Considering the U.S. is paying 60 million dollars per astronaut for a seat on a Russian Soyuz, it seems like a decent thought. Space X has been on the forefront, along with boeing, in designing and executing a plan to create a commercialized space industry and recently announced they’ve selected a location for the world’s first commercial space Launchpad.
Tortoises work a touchscreen
A group of turtles, probably mutated by some elaborate but exceedingly implausible plot mechanism, have figured out how to use touchscreens, before snarfing down pizzas, spouting inane catchphrases, and fighting crime! The red-footed tortoises were trained to use a touch-activated system developed by Purdue University researchers which projects an overlay onto flat surfaces, essentially turning anything into a touchscreen.
In this week's episode of the Engineering Update:
Japan’s military space force
Following Japan’s approval of the Basic Space Law in 2008, allowing for the use of space for security purposes, the country recently announced the formation of a space-based military force by 2019. Most of us are probably familiar with Japan’s constitution – established by Allied Forces in 1947 – which expressly forbids war as a sovereign right of the nation. This renunciation of military aggression has also applied to space – that is, until the adoption of the Basic Space Law in 2008….
The world’s first commercial space launchpad
Given the tension between Russia and the rest of the world, the U.S. has been actively pursuing alternative options for getting people and gear into space. Considering the U.S. is paying 60 million dollars per astronaut for a seat on a Russian Soyuz, it seems like a decent thought. Space X has been on the forefront, along with boeing, in designing and executing a plan to create a commercialized space industry and recently announced they’ve selected a location for the world’s first commercial space Launchpad.
Tortoises work a touchscreen
A group of turtles, probably mutated by some elaborate but exceedingly implausible plot mechanism, have figured out how to use touchscreens, before snarfing down pizzas, spouting inane catchphrases, and fighting crime! The red-footed tortoises were trained to use a touch-activated system developed by Purdue University researchers which projects an overlay onto flat surfaces, essentially turning anything into a touchscreen.
