Telephone directory inquiries in Britain will use computers that converse with inquirers

A watchful eyeParents would soon be able to use the Internet to keep an eye on their children at nursery school. A new system called Kindercam can send a colour video image twice a second from a

British Telecom's research laboratories in Martlesham, Suffolk, have developed a pocket dictionary-sized box that could replace the wiring needed in offices to connect computers and telephones. Known

A boat powered by flippers, rather than a propeller, is being developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. The system, based on the swimming action of the penguin, uses

Synthetics are no longer coveted as natural fibres are being used for making everything from cars to tennis rackets

...with materials that can sense changes in the environment and adjust accordingly

Research on guns that recognise the owner's voice, touch and even fingerprints is expected to revolutionise sharpshooting by the US police

UK-based Chloride Industrial Batteries Ltd has manufactured a new high reliability battery for military applications. Named Armasafe, the battery uses latest recombination technology

A laser invented in Scotland is so small that it can fit into a matchbox. Developed by Bruce Sinclair and Neil Mackinnon of the School of Physics and Astronomy at St Andrews University, the

British scientists have developed an artificial hand that is as deft at handling objects as a real one. Homer Rahnejat and Russel Speight of the Bradford University in northern England, in