Viena

 

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High-voltage Signal Isolators

 

Tue, 05/05/2015 Knick USA has introduced the P40000 “ProLine” universal high-voltage signal isolators. The Knick USA P40000 ProLine family is specially optimized for DC railway and light rail transit (LRT) applications. Series P40000 models are designed to accept voltages up to 3,600 V DC, in accordance with IEC/EN 50124-1 and IEC 62497-1. Electrical shock protection is achieved via protective separation of up to 1,800 V AC/DC, in accordance with IEC/EN 61140 and EN 61010-1. They are also UL 347 approved above 1,500 V and feature a mean time before failure of 96 years. Units have also successfully passed high shock and vibration testing in accordance with IEC61373. Knick USA ProLine signal isolators offer excellent signal transmission capabilities, including a >0.1% gain error; a cutoff frequency of >5 kHz with optional loss pass filtering; and >0.1 ms rise times. They also offer high immunity to transient noise (T-CMRR >115 dB) with virtually no influence from common mode voltages. Housings are highly durable, thanks to vacuum encapsulation and the incorporation of Knick USA’s own TransShield technology. This ensures the greatest possible product performance within the most compact modular housing footprint. For shunt-based current measurements, the Knick USA P41000 Series is particularly ideal. It can accept voltages from ±60 mV to ±100 V, converting them into impressed ±20 mA, ±10 V or 4-20 mA output signals. Alternatively, another series model, the P42000, can accept input voltages of up to 3, 600 V AC/DC and test voltages of up to 15 kV AC. Knick USA, www.knickusa.com

Inkjet printing process for kesterite solar cells

 

Wed, 05/06/2015 - 11:33am Antonia Rotger, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin   This is an illustration of the working principle of inkjet printing. Image: HZBThe drop-on-demand inkjet printing is a promising approach allowing patterning of materials with negligible materials waste; hence, significant reduction of raw materials cost can be achieved. Furthermore, inkjet printing can be easily adapted to a roll-to-roll process, which is suitable for large scale production. From the industrial application perspective, both of these two features of the inkjet printing technology are of great interest. A critical requirement for using inkjet printing is to develop a suitable ink in terms of viscosity and stability which leads to compact and homogeneous films. Tuning the molecular ink Dr. Xianzhong Lin from the Institute for Heterogeneous Material Systems of HZB used a molecular ink which was originally developed for spin coating technologies. The ink is produced by dissolving Cu, Zn, Sn metal salt and thiourea in dimethyl sulfoxide solvent. Lin tested its suitability for inkjet printing. He found that the viscosity of the ink can be tuned by adjusting the ink concentration and the ink composition can also be easily controlled by adding or reducing the amount of each chemical added. The CZTSSe absorbers were formed by annealing the inkjet-printed Cu-Zn-Sn-S precursor film under an atmosphere containing Selenium. Economical process Initial optimization of the processing conditions such as ink composition and printing parameters have already yielded solar cells with efficiencies up to 6.4 %. The huge advantage of inkjet printing versus spin coating to obtain thin film absorbers is the lesser amount of waste: Whereas with spin coating, a large quantity of the ink material is wasted, the inkjet printing is very economical: For example, less than 20 microliter ink is needed to build up a micrometer CZTSSe thin film absorber on an inch by inch substrate in this study. Low toxicity and low waste "Although the solar cell performance is still far below the record efficiency of 12.7 % for CZTSSe based solar cells, the great advantage of our approach is the low toxic and low material wastage process," Prof. Martha Lux-Steiner explains. The team is now working on the optimization of processing conditions for the kesterite absorbers to further improve the solar cell performance and on the deposition of buffer and TCO layers by inkjet printing. The goal is to print a complete device with high efficiency without relying on expensive vacuum technology. This work opens up a promising route for the fabrication of kesterite thin film solar cells. Source: Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin

Sustainable phosphorus recovery from wastewater

 

Wed, 05/06/2015 - 11:12am Ken Doyle, American Society of Argonomy   Wastewater treatment infrastructure, such as this anaerobic digester, can be leveraged to capture and recycle phosphorus, a limited essential nutrient. Image: Michael NorthropA new approach to wastewater treatment may be key in efforts to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Moreover, it can be profitable. Phosphorus is an essential element for human nutrition. It plays multiple roles in the human body, including the development of bones and teeth. Fertilizer with phosphorus, applied to crops or lawns, enables healthy growth. Without it, the basic cells of plants and animals, and life itself, would not exist. Typically, phosphorus is found in phosphate-containing minerals that are mined—a limited and non-renewable resource. The annual demand is rising quickly. However, once used, phosphorus is difficult to reclaim. Where does the phosphorus go? In animals (including humans), urine contains phosphorus. Surface water carry large amounts of phosphorus from fields and lawns downstream. The result is phosphorus in water discharged by wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). "Whatever phosphorus we use and discharge into rivers and oceans is lost to the environment," says Rolf Halden, professor at the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, and director of the Center for Environmental Security, Arizona State Univ. Additionally, accumulation of phosphorus can result in problems like algae blooms in lakes and other surface water bodies. In turn, algae blooms deplete oxygen from the water, affecting the delicate balance of aquatic life. "This problem is observed in the seasonally recurring 'dead zone' of the Gulf of Mexico," says Halden. Halden's group recently published a study in the Journal of Environmental Quality that examined methods for recovering phosphorus from wastewater using mathematical modeling. "WWTPs represent ground zero for addressing the problem of global phosphorus depletion," Halden says. WWTPs in many cities are currently implementing methods to extract phosphorus before discharging wastewater into the environment. There are two main types of phosphorus recovery methods: chemical and biological. In the chemical method, WWTP treat phosphorus dissolved in wastewater. The phosphorus then falls out of solution for easier removal. In the biological method, bacteria introduced into the water collect the phosphorus into removable sludge. A variation includes enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR). This method selectively encourages bacteria that can accumulate phosphorus. Choosing a method is complicated. "The region's water quality, size of the treatment plant, and economic considerations play a role in the selection," explains the study's lead author, Arjun Venkatesan. Halden and Venkatesan's study focused on a combination approach. First, EBPR concentrated phosphorus in sludge. Next, chemical treatment helped phosphorus fall out to form struvite, a usable phosphate mineral. The study showed that a typical WWTP could reclaim approximately 490 tons of phosphorus in the form of struvite each year. Conventional methods remove only 40 to 50% of P, according to Venkatesan. The secondary treatment of sludge employed by EBPR "achieves an additional 35% mass reduction, for a total of about 90% removal," he says. EBPR helpfully avoids additional chemicals and reduces sludge production. Both these factors lower the cost of operation—a key consideration for WWTPs with limited budgets. Reclaimed phosphorus pays off for the environment with less mining for phosphorus and improved surface water health. phosphorus recovered as struvite can also generate income. The team estimates that the WWTP used in their case study could generate $150,000 in annual revenue from this two-pronged approach. A plant with existing EBFR facilities can recoup the initial expenses in as little as three years. "Nearly 367,500 tons per year of phosphorus could be generated with combined EBPR and struvite production," says Halden, in plants with treatment capacity similar to the one used in the case study. Such a payload can be a welcomed payoff for conscientious communities. Source: American Society of Argonomy

A “super cool” way to deliver drugs

Wed, 05/06/2015 George Hunka, American Friends of Tel Aviv University Water, when cooled below 32 F, eventually freezes—it's science known even to pre-schoolers. But some substances, when they undergo a process called "rapid-freezing" or "supercooling," remain in liquid form—even at below-freezing temperatures. The supercooling phenomenon has been studied for its possible applications in a wide spectrum of fields. A new Tel Aviv Univ. study published in Scientific Reports is the first to break down the rules governing the complex process of crystallization through rapid-cooling. According to the research, membranes can be engineered to crystallize at a specific time. In other words, it is indeed possible to control what was once considered a wild and unpredictable process—and it may revolutionize the delivery of drugs in the human body, providing a way to "freeze" the drugs at the exact time and biological location in the body necessary. The study was led jointly by Dr. Roy Beck of the Department of Physics at TAU's School of Physics and Astronomy and Prof. Dan Peer of the Dept. of Cell Research and Immunology at TAU's Faculty of Life Sciences, and conducted by TAU graduate students Guy Jacoby, Keren Cohen, and Kobi Barkai. Controlling a metastable process "We describe a supercooled material as 'metastable,' meaning it is very sensitive to any external perturbation that may transform it back to its stable low-temperature state," Dr. Beck said. "We discovered in our study that it is possible to control the process and harness the advantages of the fluid/not-fluid transition to design a precise and effective nanoscale drug encapsulating system." For the purpose of the study, the researchers conducted experiments on nanoscale drug vesicles (fluid-filled sacs that deliver drugs to their targets) to determine the precise dynamics of crystallization. The researchers used a state-of-the-art x-ray scattering system sensitive to nanoscale structures. "One key challenge in designing new nano-vesicles for drug delivery is their stability," said Dr. Beck. "On the one hand, you need a stable vesicle that will entrap your drug until it reaches the specific diseased cell. But on the other, if the vesicle is too stable, the payload may not be released upon arrival at its target." "Supercooled material is a suitable candidate since the transition between liquid and crystal states is very drastic and the liquid membrane explodes to rearrange as crystals. Therefore this new physical insight can be used to release entrapped drugs at the target and not elsewhere in the body's microenvironment. This is a novel mechanism for timely drug release." All in the timing The researchers found that the membranes were able to remain stable for tens of hours before collectively crystallizing at a predetermined time. "What was amazing was our ability to reproduce the results over and over again without any complicated techniques," said Dr. Beck. "We showed that the delayed crystallization was not sensitive to minor imperfection or external perturbation. Moreover, we found multiple alternative ways to 'tweak the clock' and start the crystallization process." The researchers are investigating an appropriate new nano-capsule capable of releasing medication at a specific time and place in the body. "The challenge now is to find the right drugs to exploit our insights for the medical benefit of patients," said Dr. Beck. Source: American Friends of Tel Aviv University

Cuatro frases que hacen un mundo de diferencia

 

 

Tamara Medina Sapovalova

Business Confidence Coach

"Somos lo que pensamos". Todos tenemos hábitos que nos ayudan a alcanzar nuestras metas pero con frecuencia nos saboteamos con frases que nos decimos a nosotros mismos y que impactan nuestro desarrollo y crecimiento.

Una de las primeras cosas que analizo con mis clientes tiene que ver con las palabras y cómo las utilizan, además de la actitud que tienen ante la vida y los retos que ésta les presenta.

Tengo una regla que utilizo con todos mis clientes; durante las sesiones no está permitido utilizar las siguientes expresiones:

"No sé" - Si no sabes algo, investiga, aprende. Hoy en día con la tecnología de la que disponemos, el mundo está, literalmente hablando, al alcance de nuestras manos. La respuesta a cualquier pregunta la puedes encontrar rápidamente.

Si se trata de algo sobre ti mismo y tus sentimientos debes preguntarte: ¿qué te ayudaría encontrar la respuesta?

Si es con respecto a las cosas que quieres, puedes hacer una lista de lo que deseas. Si esto se te dificulta hazlo a la inversa: pregúntate que es lo que no quieres y lo opuesto será lo que si quieres. Más detalles de este ejercicio puedes encontrarlos en una de las entradas anteriores: Tips que te ayudarán a vivir una vida plena.

"No puedo" - ¿Qué te hace pensar que no puedes? ¿Qué te ayudaría para poder lograrlo? ¿Quién podría apoyarte? Es importante que te concentres en las soluciones. Encuentra la manera de lograr lo que quieres; tal vez tengas que hacerlo varias veces o buscar una nueva estrategia hasta que logres tus metas. Como bien dijo Albert Einstein, "La locura es seguir haciendo lo mismo y esperar resultados diferentes".

"Es difícil" - Hay que ver la vida y las situaciones que se nos presentan como retos. Todo depende en aquello en lo que decidas enfocarte. Tienes dos opciones o te enfocas en todas las razones por las cuales no se van a dar las cosas que quieres o te enfocas en las oportunidades. La decisión es tuya. Puedes ver más sobre este tema en: ¿La vida es difícil o te la haces difícil?.

"Lo voy a intentar" - Como bien dijo el Maestro Yoda: "O lo haces o no lo haces, pero no lo intentes". Cuando "intentamos" algo nunca damos el 100 por ciento pues "solo lo estamos intentando", nosotros mismos ya nos estamos limitando.

Cuando nos hacemos preguntas la tendencia natural de nuestro cerebro es buscar las respuestas, pero si ya de antemano nos estamos diciendo que no sabemos, que no podemos, que es difícil, y que lo vamos a "intentar" entonces nuestro cerebro se "cierra" porque ya no ve como necesario el buscar alternativas, oportunidades, conocimiento y respuestas.

Como ejercicio te invito que esta semana prestes atención si utilizas estas frases en tus conversaciones cotidianas y que te hagas a ti mismo esta pregunta: ¿en qué te estás enfocando, en las oportunidades o en las razones por las cuales no vas a poder lograr lo que quieres?

Con algo de práctica, así como lo han hecho mis clientes, también tú podrás eliminar de tu vocabulario estas frases que te limitan y te darás la oportunidad de lograr mucho más de lo que jamás te hayas imaginado.

Cuando alguno de los dos trabaja jornadas muy largas

• Es entendible que en ocasiones tengan que trabajar horas extras o asistir a reuniones importantes que traspasan los horarios regulares de oficina, pero de alguna manera deben tratar de evitar que esto se vuelva una regla. Si siempre salen tarde del trabajo, llegarán a casa cuando la otra persona ya haya cenado por su cuenta e incluso tal vez haya decidido irse a dormir. Si esta dinámica se convierte en su día a día, llegará un momento en el que quien siempre está solo en casa, se canse y aburra de esperarles sin sentido. Dos cosas podrán suceder: un reclamo en tono de pelea surgirá, o bien, se dará un alejamiento con toda la indiferencia del mundo.

• Cuando trabajan hasta en fines de semana

  Cuando el trabajo se vuelve más demandante cada vez y de poco en poco les va siendo inminente ocupar hasta sus días de descanso para resolver pendientes laborales, la oportunidad de disfrutar los ratos de ocio juntos desaparece. Aquel que sí puede descansar los fines de semana, será el único que asista a las reuniones familiares o con amigos. Sólo uno de ustedes irá al club, a pasear al perro o al cine, y pronto, se volverá prácticamente en una persona soltera. Sentirse abandonado de esa manera sólo hará que el amor se diluya.

• Cuando el trabajo genera malhumor y estrés

  Cuando alguien tiene problemas en la oficina o demasiada carga de trabajo, todo el tiempo estará hablando o quejándose de ello. Cuando el trabajo se vuelve el único tema de conversación entre ustedes, o alguno pasa todo el tiempo atendiendo llamadas o correos electrónicos de la oficina, la situación se vuelve incómoda y aburrida. Aunque pasen tiempo juntos, la relación no se enriquecerá en absoluto, y por el contrario, se volverá una carga para el que sirva de confidente.

• Cuando no hay energía para el romance

  Cuando por fin se liberan y dejan de pensar en el trabajo, la energía que les queda es mínima. Ven tele y se quedan dormidos, platican y parecen zombies... y en la cama, nunca hay vitalidad para una sesión de sexo. ¿Crees que esto no acabará con la paciencia de tu pareja? Están juntos para compartirlo TODO, y si bien es cierto que ambos deben ser comprensivos y entender que el trabajo es importante, no pueden dejar de lado los cariñitos y los instintos más básicos.

• Cuando la presión del trabajo afecta su salud

  Todo el estrés que genera el trabajo, tiene repercusiones físicas: el sistema endocrino se ve afectado, aumentan el estrés y la ansiedad, se incrementa el riesgo de sufrir enfermedades cardiovasculares (infartos, anginas de pecho, hipertensión), insomnios, trastornos urinarios... ¿Qué tal te suena esto? Si enfermas, tu pareja tendrá todo el derecho de decirte: "te lo dije". Una cosa es estar juntos en la salud y en la enfermedad, pero otra es tener que atender los achaques que la obsesión por el trabajo pueda provocar en alguno de ustedes sólo por la necedad de no querer liberarse un poco de él.

• Lo que debe hacer el que sufre el abandono:

  Se debe decir lo que se siente, hacer evidente lo que afecta. "Estoy triste", "necesito que algo cambie", "necesito pasar tiempo de calidad contigo". Si no te haces escuchar, tu pareja podría ni enterarse de que hay un problema entre ustedes. No se vale que te calles lo que te molesta y un día, de buenas a primeras, simplemente te alejes y termines la relación.

• Lo que debe hacer el trabajador compulsivo:

  Aunque no lo creas, la solución está en ti. Por muy demandante que sea tu trabajo, tú, tus compañeros y jefes, entienden que también tienes vida personal. La salud de tu relación de pareja puede ser el motor para el resto de tu vida, así que no la sacrifiques en nombre del trabajo. Debes encontrar tiempo para pasar tiempo de calidad con tu pareja. Escucha y sé sensible o a lo que la otra persona siente y no des por hecho que estará a tu lado siempre sin importar que la ignores.

Hope it helps.

 

Resources for personal development

A very pretty girl

 

   

George Bush ouve sobre o ataque ao WTC

 

 

 

Esta imagem mostra o momento exato em que um dos assessores do então presidente George W Bush transmitia a ele a trágica notícia dos ataques às torres gêmeas do WTC.

Extreme close-ups of your eyes

 

Em frente ao mar

 

Em uma Tarde de Outono Outono. Em frente ao mar. Escancaro as janelas Sobre o jardim calado, e as águas miro, absorto. Outono... Rodopiando, as folhas amarelas Rolam, caem. Viuvez, velhice, desconforto... Por que, belo navio, ao clarão das estrelas, Visitaste este mar inabitado e morto, Se logo, ao vir do vento, abriste ao vento as velas, Se logo, ao vir da luz, abandonaste o porto? A água cantou. Rodeava, aos beijos, os teus flancos A espuma, desmanchada em riso e flocos brancos... Mas chegaste com a noite, e fugiste com o sol! E eu olho o céu deserto, e vejo o oceano triste, E contemplo o lugar por onde te sumiste, Banhado no clarão nascente do arrebol...

Did Nepal Earthquake Change Mount Everest’s Height?

 

Scientists race against the clock to retrieve data that will also help them understand the devastating quake. Mount Everest (left) and Mount Nuptse (right) might have shifted in the recent Nepal earthquake, but by how much? Photograph by Andy Bardon, National Geographic Creative Updated on May 1. The massive earthquake that struck Nepal Saturday likely caused permanent changes in the Earth’s surface and may have made Everest a little taller—or shorter, scientists say. A team of geologists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is working on the problem now, but they need to retrieve data from a GPS station near Everest within the next 11 days, warns Kenneth Hudnut, a geophysicist who studies earthquakes with the USGS in Pasadena, California. After that, new data will start recording over information about the quake, erasing the most detailed information on how much the station swayed back and forth and up and down. As a result, the geologists are scrambling to raise the funds to book helicopter time or to piggyback the mission on scheduled humanitarian efforts. (Learn more about the science of the Nepal quake.) In the meantime, Hudnut and colleagues have been analyzing satellite and seismology data on Saturday’s estimated magnitude 7.8 earthquake, to better understand what happened and determine how likely future quakes may be. Preliminary models, which will need to be refined, suggest that Mount Everest and its surrounding area may have shifted by a few centimeters both vertically and horizontally, says Hudnut. That jives with an estimate from James Jackson, a geologist at Cambridge University in England. At Everest, “the vertical motion is expected to be less than 10 centimeters [four inches] and the horizontal the same,” Jackson said via email. Another spot moved two centimeters to the north, one centimeter to the east, and nothing in the vertical, Jackson added. That location, in Tibet 124 miles (200 kilometers) east of the earthquake’s epicenter, may be similar to what Everest experienced, he noted. On April 29, scientists in Europe announced that preliminary satellite data suggests Everest may have actually decreased by about one inch (2.5 centimeters). Closer to Kathmandu, ground may have uplifted as much as three feet (one meter), the scientists noted, although more analysis is needed. Zeroing In For a closer look, Hudnut hopes to retrieve data from a station called SYBC in a valley less than 17 miles (30 kilometers) from Everest’s peak. Since the station is no longer transmitting data, thanks to the quake, scientists will have to fly there and download it directly. Further information could eventually be provided if climbers can survey the top of the mountain with high-quality GPS units. “We’re not just looking to see whether Everest went up or down, but we’re looking to understand what the whole Earth did and the science behind the earthquake,” says Hudnut. “For example, we want to know if the quake put additional stress on other faults in the area, which could lead to future earthquakes.” Hudnut adds that the city of Kathmandu, which was closer to the epicenter than Everest and was heavily damaged by the temblor, may have seen movement of as much as a meter (three feet). Jackson says movement of the rocks along the fault near the city might have been as much as nine feet, or three meters. Still, that doesn’t mean the city was simply shifted by that much, cautions Jackson, because the Earth’s crust deforms in complex, uneven ways. It may mean that parts of the ground underneath the city, or near it, moved relative to each other. Time to Change Maps? Asked if a new height for Everest will mean a change to National Geographic’s many map products, society Geographer Juan Valdés says he is watching the science closely. National Geographic doesn’t rely on a single scientific agency for its data, he says, but rather reviews data compiled by as many sources as possible. In the case of Everest, that means data from agencies in China, Nepal, Europe, and beyond. Quakes and other geological events have changed National Geographic's maps before, Valdés notes, from movements in the ground caused by earthquakes to new islands created by volcanoes. The movement experienced in Kathmandu is unlikely to show up in the resolution of the society’s maps, says Valdés, but it remains to be seen for Everest’s height. The last time Valdés recalled a significant change in a mountain height was in January 2014, when a massive rockfall in New Zealand had reduced the height of Mt. Cook from the previously measured 12,316 feet (3,754 meters) to 12,218 feet (3,724 meters), a difference of 98 feet (30 meters). How do earthquakes form? Watch Earthquakes 101 to find out! The fact that the world’s tallest mountains can move at all “proves how dynamic the planet truly is,” says Valdés.

Architecture & Nature

 

You can trust me !

 

Os gatos não são muito “chegados” num banho.

 

She may be the face I can’t forget

 

 

Self-driving semi hits the road

 

Daimer'ls Freightliner truck division has licensed two autonomously driving trucks for use on public roads in Nevada. The trucks can only drive on their own in highway situations. A driver will take control in suburban and city driving situations.

Look closely. That truck driver has both hands on his iPad.

Freightliner has been given a license to test out its autonomously driving tractor-trailer truck in the state of Nevada. The big-rig manufacturer already has such a truck in operation and will now begin test driving it on public highways there.

There will always be a licensed truck driver in the driver's seat but the Frieightliner Inspiration is designed and equipped to drive itself on limited access interstates. There are currently two of the trucks. A human driver will take full control when the truck is in city and suburban driving situations. Nevada is one of a few states that has legislation specifically allowing for the licensing of self-driving vehicles.

The Freightliner truck will stay in its lane and avoid hitting cars ahead with no driver input. Radar sensors and cameras will watch lane lines and surrounding traffic. Freightliner is owned by Daimler AG (DDAIY), which also makes Mercedes-Benz luxury cars. Mercedes has also been testing self-driving cars.

Trucks like this could reduce driver fatigue, according to Freightliner executives, and allow drivers to be more productive. While the truck is going down the highway, the driver could safely attend to paperwork or plan the next trip, for instance.

Since the truck can drive itself on highways, Freightliners says, the driver can occuppy himself with other pressing business.

Automated trucks could also save fuel by driving in "platoons." In this scenario, automated trucks, communicating with one another electronically, could drive in a tightly packed line behind a lead truck. This would have huge aerodynamic benefits because only the truck in front would have to push through a lot of air. Each following truck would ride in a sort of bubble created by the truck in front of it.

Autonomous driving technology will, at some point, find its place in the in the trucking industry, said Wolfgang Bernhard, who heads Daimler's commercial truck operations.

"We don't believe that everyone is going to jump on immediately," he said. "It's a process."

Getting experimental trucks out on real roads is a step in that process.

"From an industry standpoint, it's going to be a question of cost versus benefit," said Ted Scott, director of engineering for the American Trucking Association, a group that represents the trucking industry. This technology is going to add to the cost of the rig which will still need a paid professional driver at the wheel.

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Not everyone is sold on the idea of self-driving semis. Scott Grenerth is director of regulatory affairs for the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), a group that represents independent truckers. He spend 13 years driving big rigs, he said, and he'd be very nervous handing control of an 80,000 pound vehicle to a bunch of cameras and sensors.

Given a big trucks' long stopping distances and limited maneuverability, driving one requires the ability to correctly predict what's going to happen far out ahead. That requires foresight and intuition that are difficult to program into computers.

These trucks are going to have to pass through some tough legal checkpoints in coming years, Bernhard said. Right now, it's not clear, in the event of a crash, who would be responsible, the truck or the driver? Also, interstate trucks, by definition, travel across multiple states. This technology won't be practical if rules about its use vary from one state to the next.

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In many states, for instance, using an iPad in the driver's seat would be illegal even if the truck could drive itself, said Bryant Walker Smith, a University of South Carolina law professor who has written about autonomous vehicles. Also, in New York, the law specifically states that the driver must have a hand on the steering wheel at all times, he said.

Self-driving trucks are coming, though, Bernhard said, and probably sooner than many people think.

"Long before autonomous vehicles are cruising the suburbs," he said, "you will have autonomous trucks on the highway."

CNNMoney (New York) May 6, 2015: 1:13 AM ET