Tim Hornyak
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Words @TheAtlantic @nytimes @TIME @Nature @CNBC @AGU_Eos @kinfolkmag ; Author, Loving the Machine: The Art and Science of Japanese Robots; Songwriter @rumdukes
Articles by Tim Hornyak
Sceye Flies Floating Cell Tower to Japan to Set Up Test 4G Network
Providing wireless connectivity from the sky has been the dream of a number of commercial ventures like the shuttered Google Project Loon. Now Japanese telecom giant SoftBank has moved a step closer to selling phone service from the sky. In a partnership with an American aerospace startup, the pair recently sent a solar-powered, uncrewed, lighter-than-air aircraft across the Pacific to beam cellphone coverage down over Japan.
Sceye Flies Floating Cell Tower to Japan to Set Up Test 4G Network
Sceye’s lighter-than-air aircraft is built to hover high above Earth and beam phone service to the ground below. Credit: SoftBank Providing wireless connectivity from the sky has been the dream of a number of commercial ventures like the shuttered Google Project Loon. Now Japanese telecom giant SoftBank has moved a step closer to selling phone service from the sky.
In Tokyo, a Handmade Temple of Concrete, Two Decades in the Making
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Tokyo has millions of buildings but none like Arimasuton. Its four floors of mangled concrete frame a riot of jagged ledges, jutting spars, asymmetrical windows and oddly shaped doors. Like a rebellious teen, it stands amid bland modern high-rises in Mita, a Tokyo district once known for its samurai warlord estates and Buddhist temples.
In Tokyo, a Handmade Temple of Concrete, Two Decades in the Making
3 hours ago People visit the Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies electronics show, known as CEATEC, at the Makuhari Messe convention center in the eastern Japan city of Chiba on Oct. 13, 2026, the opening day of the four-day event. (Kyodo) [RESTRICTIONS: NO SALES IN JAPAN]
Drones With Claws Perch on Arctic Icebergs Original
This article is part of our exclusive IEEE Journal Watch series in partnership with IEEE Xplore. Microspines are one of many ways to enable robots to latch onto surfaces like walls and ceilings. Now roboticists in Canada are using the mini spikes to get drones to land on a more challenging, remote surface: icebergs. Like a spider, the Ice Dart can land on and latch onto steep, slippery surfaces such as icebergs and glaciers—an increasingly useful capability as activity in the Arctic increases.
Canadian Researchers Develop Ice Dart Drone for Landing on Arctic Icebergs
Researchers in Canada have developed the Ice Dart drone, capable of landing on steep, slippery surfaces like icebergs. This drone can grip icy slopes of nearly 60 degrees, making it a valuable tool for monitoring Arctic environments. The Ice Dart's unique landing gear absorbs impact and utilizes retractable spines for grip, allowing it to perch successfully even in challenging conditions.
To Save Japan's Heritage Homes, People Are Shipping Them Across the World
High in the foothills of the Wallowa Mountains stands a compact home of white walls, wood and shingle. Set against a backdrop of snowcapped peaks in this corner of eastern Oregon, the house appears tiny and slightly out of place, especially when you step inside to find shoji screens, tatami mats and thick, curving rafters overhead. It is a kominka, or a traditional Japanese folk house, but its existence in the United States is anything but traditional.
To save Japan’s heritage homes, people are shipping them across the world
High in the foothills of the Wallowa Mountains stands a compact home of white walls, wood and shingle. Set against a backdrop of snowcapped peaks in this corner of eastern Oregon, the house appears tiny and slightly out of place, especially when you step inside to find shoji screens, tatami mats and thick, curving rafters overhead. It is a kominka, or a traditional Japanese folk house, but its existence in the United States is anything but traditional.
Pour sauver les maisons patrimoniales du Japon, on en expédie à l’autre bout du monde
Dans les hauteurs des contreforts des monts Wallowa se dresse une petite maison aux murs blancs, faite de bois et de bardeaux. Avec, en toile de fond, les sommets enneigés de ce coin de l’est de l’Oregon, elle paraît minuscule et légèrement incongrue — impression que renforcent, à l’intérieur, les cloisons shojis, les tatamis et les épais chevrons incurvés qui surplombent l’espace.
To Save Japan's Heritage Homes, People Are Shipping Them Across the World
High in the foothills of the Wallowa Mountains stands a compact home of white walls, wood and shingle. Set against a backdrop of snowcapped peaks in this corner of eastern Oregon, the house appears tiny and slightly out of place, especially when you step inside to find shoji screens, tatami mats and thick, curving rafters overhead. It is a kominka, or a traditional Japanese folk house, but its existence in the United States is anything but traditional.
To Save Japan’s Heritage Homes, People Are Shipping Them Across the World
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. High in the foothills of the Wallowa Mountains stands a compact home of white walls, wood and shingle. Set against a backdrop of snowcapped peaks in this corner of eastern Oregon, the house appears tiny and slightly out of place, especially when you step inside to find shoji screens, tatami mats and thick, curving rafters overhead.
It was 60 years ago today: Japan’s top Beatles fan keeps the Budokan flame burning
The town of Ako is known for two things: salt and samurai, specifically the 47 Ronin celebrated for avenging the death of their lord in the early 18th century. Besides samurai memorials everywhere, visitors will notice posters advertising a museum dedicated to a subject that would seem unlikely in southwest Hyogo Prefecture: the Beatles.
Japan Pioneered Humanoid Robots—Can It Now Catch China? Original
“In the future, the relationship between humans and robots will deepen, and the distinction between them will probably disappear.” This prediction, from one of the attendees at the recent Humanoids Summit in Tokyo, might have been unremarkable had it not come directly from an android that was first introduced to the world 20 years ago. Geminoid HI-6 is the sixth-generation of a robot originally designed in 2006.
China’s Humanoid Army Pushes Japan to Rethink Its Robot Future
5 hours ago Washington's National Independence Day Parade has been canceled, according to an announcement from organizers late Friday night. Short Wave This July 4th, are you a thrill- or chill-seeker? The parade had been scheduled to mark the nation's 250th birthday and begin at 10:30 a.m EST. Saturday. Todd …
Japan Pioneered Humanoid Robots—Can It Now Catch China?
Technology 2 hours ago China’s Humanoid Army Pushes Japan to Rethink Its Robot Future ieee.org - Tim Hornyak • 2h “In the future, the relationship between humans and robots will deepen, and the distinction between them will probably disappear.” This prediction, … World News 4 hours ago The Quest to Make Humanoid Robots Safe Enough for Humans The Wall Street Journal.
In the crosshairs: Journalists are being killed at record rates
June 2026 | Cover story Israel was responsible for two-thirds of the deaths of all journalists in 2025 and 2024 2025 was another banner year for journalism, but not in a good way. A total of 129 members of the press were killed, the highest in more than 30 years and the second annual record in a row, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York nonprofit aimed at protecting press freedom around the world. Conflict in the Mideast is accelerating the slaughter.
Amid Hype, Humanoids Aim for Balance in China
Watching Unitree’s G1 robot in action, you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s just AI imagery. To celebrate the Chinese New Year, the startup staged jaw-dropping demonstrations of the G1 performing synchronized martial arts moves as well as acrobatics with young kung fu practitioners. Leaping, somersaulting, and flipping, or wielding swords and nunchakus, the mechanical ninjas moved with enough grace and agility to rival their human counterparts.
‘Alone in Japan’ travels towns in decline, talks to the people left
While Japan’s depopulation is a much discussed issue, with no shortage of statistics and analytics, journalist Tom Feiling's book, “Alone in Japan: A Journey to the Future,” tackles the topic face to face as he returns to the country he once lived in and travels to remote parts of it. He talks to experts, recluses, singletons and other people not just in Tokyo and Osaka but also across the depopulated hinterlands across the nation. Alone in Japan: A Journey to the Future, by Tom Feiling. 272 pages.
An American Couple Explored Japan for a Diamond in the Rough Original
Tom and Patty Chan in Atami, Japan, where they recently bought a new home. The Sacramento couple had about $1 million to spend. Noriko Hayashi for The New York Times Patty Chan’s love affair with Japan began 55 years ago, when she was a high school student in the San Francisco Bay Area and visited for the first time.
Babbling brooks beat bathroom blushes
A public bathroom, part of the Tokyo Toilet Project, at Ebisu station in the Shibuya district of Tokyo. Devices that conceal unwanted noises are the next frontier in advanced toilet technology. — Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times STEP into any public restroom stall in Japan and you’re likely to be enveloped in a soundscape. No, not that kind.
Soothing toilet sounds for added privacy
Step into any public restroom stall in Japan and you’re likely to be enveloped in a soundscape. No, not that kind. It’s the babble of running water, perhaps peppered with cheerful tweets and birdsong, and it’s meant to transform the space into an auditory simulacrum of nature, perfect for responding to its call.
NTT tests optical switching to manage data center loads
Although fiber optic cables today are fast, converting their photons to electric signals at the internet server level still uses a lot of electricity.Japanese telecom firm NTT and Tokyo-based electronics giant Toshiba are working on new ways around this problem. In November, the duo demoed high-speed factory production via an optical and wireless network that was controlled from a data center 300 kilometers away.
Silicon Photonics Data Center Slashes Latency
Although fiber optic cables today are fast, converting their photons to electric signals at the internet server level still uses a lot of electricity. Japanese telecom firm NTT and Tokyo-based electronics giant Toshiba are working on new ways around this problem. In November, the duo demoed high-speed factory production via an optical and wireless network that was controlled from a data center 300 kilometers away.
¿Ruidos incómodos en el baño? Estos inodoros japoneses están en otro nivel
Si entras en cualquier baño público de Japón es probable que te envuelva un paisaje sonoro. No, no es el que estás pensando. Se trata de un murmullo de agua corriente, quizá salpicado de alegres gorjeos y cantos de pájaros, y su finalidad es transformar el espacio en un simulacro auditivo de la naturaleza, perfecto para responder a su llamado.
¿Ruidos incómodos en el baño? Estos inodoros japoneses los ocultan
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Like fancy Japanese toilets? You’ll love the sound of this.
Step into any public restroom stall in Japan and you’re likely to be enveloped in a soundscape. No, not that kind. It’s the babble of running water, perhaps peppered with cheerful tweets and birdsong, and it’s meant to transform the space into an auditory simulacrum of nature, perfect for responding to its call.
Like Fancy Japanese Toilets? You'll Love the Sound of This.
For inspiration on what gifts to buy loved ones, many people are turning to artificial intelligence tools. About 42% of consumers are using AI…
Like Fancy Japanese Toilets? You’ll Love the Sound of This.
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Step into any public restroom stall in Japan and you’re likely to be enveloped in a soundscape. No, not that kind. It’s the babble of running water, perhaps peppered with cheerful tweets and birdsong, and it’s meant to transform the space into an auditory simulacrum of nature, perfect for responding to its call.
Japan’s “Iron Lady” faces a fractured political landscape
Japan’s historic moment with Sanae Takaichi has quickly given way to political turbulence. Her rise as the country’s first female leader of the Liberal Democratic Party was hailed as a breakthrough for representation in a nation ranked near the bottom of the global gender equality index. Yet, the optimism surrounding her victory and assumed pathway to the prime ministership has been short-lived.
Securing Japan from Online Attacks
In January 2025, Japan’s National Police Agency alleged that Chinese hackers were stealing sensitive information related to security and advanced technology from Japanese government agencies, companies, and individuals. While not unprecedented, the campaign was highly organized, beginning in 2019, targeting over 200 victims and netting over 10,000 files. Japan was in the middle of an online conflict.
Being Well in the Land of Wa — The ACCJ Journal
With millions of visitors expected and exhibitors competing to show off exciting new innovations, enticing destinations, and even a rock from the moon, Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai may not seem like the ideal venue to learn about mindfulness and well-being. But improving human lives and society is what all world expositions have been about, and this year’s edition—with the theme Designing Future Society for Our Lives—has been designed as a “living lab” to share solutions for cocreating a better world.
Discover the World's Most Precise Commercial Clock: Is It Worth $3 Million?
Scientists have tried to create more precise timekeeping devices even after the International System of Units adopted specific cesium-133 radiation in its 1967 definition of the second. Atomic clocks have been widely applied since then, but the quest for greater accuracy continues. Now a Japanese company has commercialized one approach: An optical lattice clock it claims is the most accurate on the market.
Can Depleted Uranium Batteries Transform Nuclear Waste into a Green Energy Solution?
It seems like something right out of Doc Brown’s garage in Back to the Future: a rechargeable battery made with depleted uranium. But that’s exactly what researchers in Japan have built. Scientists at the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) say their uranium battery could help renewable energy sources such as wind and solar farms to provide a stable energy output by serving as a potential alternative to large-capacity lithium-ion batteries.
Digital Past Stirs Analog Memories at Extinct Media Museum
“We are analog beings living in a digital world, facing a quantum future,” physicist Neil Turok wrote in his 2012 book The Universe Within. The deluge of digital information we face every day “feels rather alien to us as natural, living creatures,” he later explained. If that’s true, it may be one reason why visiting the Extinct Media Museum in Tokyo, Japan, feels so relaxing.
Tokyo tech failures lean into misfortune, mistakes and missteps
Distraught by a business failure and a career setback, Tsuyoshi Domoto walked despondently onto a bridge in Portugal. The waters of the Douro River slowly flowed far below as he contemplated his options. He saw his parents’ faces staring back at him, and finally made a choice. “‘What the hell are you doing?’” the tech entrepreneur recalled asking himself. “‘Let’s not give up on this thing called life.
In Japan, timeshares are back, and cooler than ever
TOKYO - In the foothills of Mount Asama, one of Japan’s most active volcanoes, jagged lava formations dot the landscape – remnants of a 1783 eruption that swallowed villages and permanently scarred the land. A nearby park pocked with dark volcanic rock is called Onioshidashien, or Expelling Demons. Nearby, a crop of angular polyhedrons appeared in 2024, joining the lava deposits in this forested region about 145km north-west of central Tokyo. But these new objects arrived with skylights and saunas.
In Japan, Timeshares Are Back, and Cooler Than Ever
In the foothills of Mount Asama, one of Japan's most active volcanoes, jagged lava formations dot the landscape - remnants of a 1783 eruption that swallowed villages and permanently scarred the land. A nearby park pocked with dark volcanic rock is called Onioshidashien, or Expelling Demons. Nearby, a crop of angular polyhedrons appeared last year, joining the lava deposits in this forested region about 90 miles northwest of central Tokyo. But these new objects arrived with skylights and saunas.
Digital Twins Promise Personalized Medical Care
For years, manufacturing and engineering companies have been using digital models of products and systems for enhanced design, simulations, and maintenance. Unlike computer simulations, they incorporate Internet of Things (IoT) data to predict how a real-world system will respond to changes. Medical technologists are now applying the concept to the most complex system of all: the human body.
Terahertz Waves for 6G Get a Boost With New Chip Design
Terahertz waves have been proposed as a powerful tool to quickly transfer giant volumes of data in potential 6G networks and to see through solid matter, like X-rays—only without the hazardous ionizing radiation. Actually implementing these ideas as real-world applications, however, has proven difficult. Now, a research team says it’s bringing the terahertz dream closer to reality with a device that can put powerful terahertz waves on a chip.
Japan Debuts First General-Purpose Quantum Computer Made of Light
Quantum computers could in principle solve some complex mathematical problems that would take far too long on a regular, classical computer. However, efforts to make them practical and easily scalable have been stymied by the inherent instability of quantum states. Researchers in Japan recently developed an optical quantum computer that can be used for a variety of applications, a feature they say makes it the first general-purpose optical quantum computer in the world.
Zen and the Art of Aibo Engineering
11 min read Pink When Sony’s robot dog, Aibo, was first launched in 1999, it was hailed as revolutionary and the first of its kind, promising to usher in a new industry of intelligent mobile machines for the home. But its success was far from certain. Legged robots were still in their infancy, and the idea of making an interactive walking robot for the consumer market was extraordinarily ambitious.
In Japan, Designers Fit Big Ideas Into Tiny Homes
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For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
The 2024 Tokyo gubernatorial election in July stood out for its large field of candidates, many of whom were unknowns from the fringes. One independent was a familiar face to many in Japan, however. Yoshiro Nakamatsu, better known as “Dr. Nakamats,” is one of Japan’s most famous inventors and was making his eighth bid for governor. Having just turned 96 when ballots were cast, he was the oldest candidate in the race, and while he didn’t win, his willingness to challenge Gov.
Fukushima Reactor: TEPCO robot aims to extract nuclear fuel
Thirteen years since a massive earthquake and tsunami struck the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in northern Japan, causing a loss of power, meltdowns and a major release of radioactive material, operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) finally seems to be close to extracting the first bit of melted fuel from the complex—thanks to a special telescopic robotic device. Despite Japan’s prowess in industrial robotics, TEPCO had no robots to deploy in the immediate aftermath of the disaster.
Model Suggests Undersea Mountains Help Mix the Global Ocean
Undersea mountains could have a big effect on how the ocean circulates, new modeling outputs suggest. Scientists have long sought to calculate the strength and distribution of ocean mixing and its impact on global ocean circulation and climate. They have largely been constrained, however, by how little of the seafloor has been mapped. Tides and oceanic lee waves were thought to be the major forces stirring up the deep ocean.
Glass Antenna Turns Windows Into 5G Base Stations
Since 5G began its rollout in 2018 or 2019, fifth-generation wireless networks have spread across the globe to cover hundreds of millions of users. But while it offers lower latency than precursor networks, 5G also requires more base stations. To avoid installing unsightly equipment on more and more shared spaces, Japanese companies are developing transparent glass antennas that allow windows to serve as base stations that can be shared by several carriers.
Glass Antenna Turns Windows Into 5G Base Stations
Since 5G began its rollout in 2018 or 2019, fifth-generation wireless networks have spread across the globe to cover hundreds of millions of users. But while it offers lower latency than precursor networks, 5G also requires more base stations. To avoid installing unsightly equipment on more and more shared spaces, Japanese companies are developing transparent glass antennas that allow windows to serve as base stations that can be shared by several carriers.
Ultrasound Circuit: Topological Device Could Cut IoT Interference
The proliferation of IoT technology has made chatterboxes out of everyday hardware and new gadgets too, but it comes with a downside: the more devices sharing the airwaves the more trouble they have communicating. The nearly 30 billion connected devices expected by 2030 will be operating using different wireless standards while sharing the same frequency bands, potentially interfering with one another.
Japan moves to halt long-term postgraduate decline by tripling number of PhD graduates
In response to a decline in the number of PhD holders in Japan, the Japanese government has announced plans to not only stop the trend but reverse it, by tripling the number by 2040. Japan is the only major economy that has recorded a dip in PhD numbers since 2000. In 2022, there were 14,382 new PhD admissions across the country — down 21% from a high of 18,232 in 2003. As a proportion of the population, there are now fewer PhD holders in Japan than in many other leading research countries.
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