Contributor

Kristin Houser

Staff Writer

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Kristin Houser is a staff writer at Freethink, where she covers science and tech. Her written work has appeared in Business Insider, NBC News, and the World Economic Forum’s Agenda, among other publications, and Stephen Colbert once talked about a piece on The Late Show, to her delight.

Prior to joining Freethink, Kristin was a staff writer for Futurism and wrote several animated and live action web series.

Robotics

Robotic exoskeleton gives prosthetic legs a power boost

University of Utah engineers have built a robotic exoskeleton that gives people with prosthetic legs a power boost that makes walking easier.

Kristin Houser

Asteroids

Nuking an asteroid heading to Earth really could protect us

Blowing up an asteroid heading to Earth with a nuclear bomb could save the planet, according to new planetary defense simulations.

Kristin Houser

Magic Leap is back with a new AR headset

Augmented reality startup Magic Leap plans to release a new AR headset in 2022 using a recently raised $500 million in funding.

Kristin Houser

Transportation

Germany unveils first-of-its-kind autonomous train

A new system that turns a standard electric metro train into a more efficient, higher-capacity autonomous train has debuted in Germany.

Kristin Houser

Robotics

Are robotic kitchens the future of food?

Restauranteurs are using robotic kitchens to cut real estate costs, opening up room in their budgets for higher quality ingredients.

Kristin Houser

Clean Energy

Japan is restarting aging nuclear reactors after 10 years offline

Three of Japan’s nuclear reactors closed after the Fukushima disaster are restarting, a controversial move designed to reduce CO2 emissions.

Kristin Houser

Robotics

Caltech’s walking robot can also fly and skateboard

Caltech's new bipedal walking robot can fly to get around obstacles, and it's steady enough on its feet to skateboard or slackline.

Kristin Houser

Aerospace

William Shatner has boldly gone to space with Blue Origin

Star Trek actor William Shatner has gone to space as a passenger aboard Blue Origin’s second crewed flight — making him the oldest astronaut.

Kristin Houser

Robotics

Facebook robot winds fiber-optic cable around power lines

A Facebook robot that wraps fiber-optic cables around power lines could help bridge the digital divide by expanding internet access.

Kristin Houser

Inventions

Smart microscope slides make breast cancer cells leap off screen

Breast cancer cells appear brightly colored when placed on new smart microscope slides, which could help doctors diagnose patients earlier.

Kristin Houser