But a new development in battery technology could bring paper right back around to its former place of prominence, using it to power the very digital devices — smartphones, Kindles, laptops, etc. — that are increasingly replacing print.

By coating regular copier paper in ink made of carbon nanotubes and silver nanowires, Stanford researchers have created highly conductive storage devices that can be bent, folded, and wrapped around other surfaces (energy-storing wallpaper, anyone?). The carbon nanotube ink adheres to the surface of the paper just like normal ink would, making paper the ideal vehicle for these thin, lightweight storage devices.

Since earlier research has shown that silicon nanowire batteries can be up to 10 times more powerful than lithium-ion batteries, researchers are hopeful the paper batteries will be able to power everything from automobiles to laptops to phones with smaller, lighter, more powerful and longer-lasting batteries. The method can also create simple supercapacitors with large surface areas that allow rapid energy discharge, a requirement for automobile power sources that lithium-ion batteries have trouble satisfying.

All of that would just be more pie-in-the-sky battery research if it were not for this: the paper battery technology is basically market-ready. That's not to say that researchers won't need some time to iron out the kinks, but power sources based on this technology could be commercialized very soon compared to a lot of the nano-noise circulating in scientific circles. The fact that the process is also very cheap means devices like these could be powering your paper-replacing devices sooner than you think. Get the details straight from Stanford's Yi Cui below. [PhysOrg, Forbes]

Popular Science is your wormhole to the future. Reporting on what's new and what's next in science and technology, we deliver the future now.

The units, demo versions of which already exist (this is assuredly not a concept), take CO2 in from the air and turn it into liquid, which is easier to store and manage. Professor Klaus Lackner, lead developer, notes that the synthetic trees are not designed to replace, say, coal plants that reduce emissions from the inside, but this could be one very useful plastic plant if it sees mass production. [CNN]

A composite laminate having an improved cosmetic surface is presented herein. The composite laminate includes a plurality of sheets of preimpregnated material, or prepreg, stacked one over another and a scrim layer provided on an exterior surface of the sheets of prepreg. The scrim layer and the sheets of prepreg form a composite laminate whereby the scrim layer constitutes an outer, exposed surface of the composite laminate. Each sheet of prepreg is made from fibers preimpregnated with resin, and the fibers of the prepreg may be substantially parallel or woven carbon fibers. The scrim layer may be a glass fiber or carbon fiber scrim, or veil, that has absorbed resin from the sheets of prepreg during a molding process. In another embodiment, the composite laminate includes a plurality of sheets of prepreg stacked one over another and first and second scrim layers provided on opposing exterior surfaces of the sheets of prepreg, whereby the sheets of prepreg are sandwiched between the first and second scrim layers. The first and second scrim layers constitute exposed surfaces of the composite laminate.

Since scrim absorbs resin of the composite, scrim takes on the cosmetic properties and color of resin. Also [...] scrim is very thin, and it is translucent, and the underlying fibers of composite are partially visible therethrough [...] The combination of resin and scrim forming scrim layer imparts a depth to surface of composite laminate, thereby providing an improved cosmetic surface of a molded article formed therefrom that is not only consistent in appearance, but is also aesthetically pleasing.

And other yadda yadda yadda and blah blah blah. Summary: They have discovered a new way to shave pounds of your future notebook that won't look like crap. Sounds good to me. [Apple Insider]

They're also quicker. A human's muscle fibers can contract 10% per second, but these can contract 40,000 percent.

I had no idea synthetic muscles materials have come so far. A few years ago, when I was covering JPL's robotic arm wrestling challenge for Wired, the materials had a fraction of the potential of organic muscles. [Wired]

The Triumph Speed Triple motorcycle features a 1050cc triple engine to get you going and twin 4-piston, 4-caliper brakes to bring you to a stop. But if that's not enough, a special, limited run of 55 Triumph Speed Triples will get the carbon treatment that includes a flyscreen, cowl, infill panels, heat shield, mud guard, and sprocket covers, all done up in the matte black material.

The carbon fiber privilege will cost you $11,800 over the bike's base price (which is probably pretty high to begin with). In other words, enjoy the pretty picture. [Triumph via Carbon Fiber Gear]

Sadly, there's no stat as to its weight or tensile strength, but at 3 meters long (that's almost 9 feet), I can't imagine you could stand on it, shouting "I have a carbon fiber table, so I rule this house at last!" I mean, you probably could, but it might snap beneath your noble mass, once again returning the control of the house to your stowaway cousin who owns last year's 3mm carbon fiber table. Rats! [StylePark via bbGadgets]

And these are no ordinary textiles either: they're transparent and way stronger than a sheet of steel. The team's technique involves chemically-growing "forests" of nanotubes that self-assemble, and is reported in Science currently. If it proves true we may see nanotube materials replacing metals like steel pretty soon—though I'm not sure how many people would balk at flying in a plane with wings you can partly see through. [Physorg]

The potential benefits of accessing space by crawling up a cable versus launching rockets are mind boggling...especially when you realize it could be 100 times cheaper to get there than using a Space Shuttle. But building a more than 36,000km-long carbon rope (or more likely a series of parallel ropes) to connect an Earth-based "launch pad" with a geostationary-orbiting elevator hub still seems a lot like science fiction. Yet it turns out that development of carbon nanotube technology has seen a more than 100 times increase in the fiber strength in the last five years: four times more strength certainly seems possible.

The Space Elevator Association's director also thinks technology similar to the Bullet train's could be used to build the elevator cars, since nanotubes can be used as electrical conductors. Lets hope his vision that "just like travelling abroad, anyone will be able to ride the elevator into space" comes true: my savings fund for going aloft in Virgin Galactic is going to take waaaay to long to fill up. [Timesonline]
Picture: HighLift Systems.

The oil-dampening vibration-killing mount can be loaded with an HD camera, night vision camera, still camera, low light camera or thermal imaging camera. The machine also has GPS, which feeds positioning data into the remote control's LCD. The X6 can even maintain flight if one of its 6 motors stops working. The battery can be charged in 30 minutes, yet can supply the device with 450 watts of power, which allows the machine to climb 23 feet per second, turn 90 degrees in the same time or do fly-bys at 30 MPH. I don't know how much these cost, but I'm getting enough enjoyment out of watching the videos at Dragonfly's site. [Draganfly]

The motor and 5:1 gearbox are Swiss made, and the rudder actuator is sensitive to 64-steps, allowing 180-degree turns within a 12-foot-wide room. And the battery pack is a dot-sized 30Mah Lithium ion that docks on the 2-channel remote. The prop? Carbon fiber, of course.

How does it fly? I won't lie, I'm going to use the included simulator software before I try piloting this $300 plane in my house. But after the gallery, there's a video. More on my maiden flight, later, after flight school.

Video after the jump...as soon as youtube gets its shit together.

A little history: The Carbon is the successor to the original Butterfly, made from Balsa wood. I won't mince words: That thing was the most fragile gadget I'd ever seen. Within minutes, the slight frame was smashed in three places. –Brian Lam

Carbon Butterfly [Gizmodo]

It has a range of 400 feet, and is directed by a 4xAA RC remote control. It's a little pricey at $300, but it also includes a carrying case. You can even fly it around your living room dive bombing your little sister and aggravating your father's hypertension. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Plantraco via Cool Hunting]