Having commissioned development of flying robotic 鈥渋nsects鈥� and self-driving cars, the Pentagon鈥檚 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has announced its latest unlikely-sounding project: a submersible aircraft. DARPA wants the eight-seater plane to be able to land in international waters, then dive and travel at least 12 miles to shore (). Making a fuselage that鈥檚 thin and light enough to fly, yet tough enough to resist pressures under water, will be the major challenge, DARPA says.
The University of Cambridge has developed a pill on a string that, when swallowed, expands into a sponge in your stomach. When gently pulled out, its takes a swab of the oesophagus as it travels back up. This will allow cancerous oesophageal cells to be detected without an uncomfortable endoscopy, says inventor Rebecca Fitzgerald.
