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Tim Ferriss’ New Book: Become a Superhuman

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by Aaron Saenz on July 15th, 2009

Everyone knows that building the perfect body takes years of hard work and an iron will. Everyone except Tim Ferriss. The bestselling author just announced that his next book will focus on his study of the human body using the craziest subject he could find: himself. Tim promises to show readers how to increase muscle strength by 30% in three days or less, drop 50-100 pounds of fat, or change lean muscle mass weight by 20 lbs in just 3-4 weeks. In short, Tim Ferriss has found the short cut to getting cut, and he’s about to share it with the world.

The bestselling author's next book will focus on superhuman workout regimens.

The bestselling author's next book will focus on superhuman workout regimens. (Photo from Tim Ferriss' Blog: http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/)

I have no idea if Tim Ferriss is the real deal, but he’s certainly made himself into a big deal. His 2007 bestselling book, The 4 Hour Work Week, promised to show you how to exit the rat race, make tons of money, and pursue your life’s goals without working yourself to death. He appeared at MIT, Harvard, Princeton, the CIA, Google, Live with Regis and Kelly…the list really never ends. He’s been on a constant lecture circuit while still achieving some ridiculous titles. He holds a Guinness World Record for Tango spins, he’s a champion kickboxer in China, and even had a TV show: Trial by Fire on Discovery Channel. Check out the promo after the break.

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Army Exoskeleton Suit Gives Man Superhuman Strength

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by Andrew Kessel on June 11th, 2009

Super hero movies are all the rage these days.  Take a look at the swollen coffers of Marvel and DC and it will be apparent.  With such a vested interest in the super-human, it seems only natural that it would be brought to real life.  No, there has not been a revolutionary breakthrough in gene therapy (X-Men style), and nobody is as diesel as Batman, but the researchers over at Raytheon’s recent acquisition, Sarcos Lab, have set their sights on super-strength with the design of their XOS exoskeleton.  Capable of lifting over 200 pounds without the operator breaking a sweat, this DARPA funded meld of man and machine will make any Iron Man fanboy plotz.

Capable of lifting 200 pounds, but still gentle to the touch.

Capable of lifting 200 pounds, but still gentle to the touch.

We have featured other exoskeletons here on the Hub, but this one takes the cake.  The super-suit is being designed for the U.S. Army, where the plan is to turn soldiers into workhorses.  They would be able to lift hundreds of pounds of ammunition and cargo without feeling the slightest bit of strain, making the fast unloading of precious cargo take significantly less time.  The system is run by a computer that receives input from six pressure sensors located on the exoskeleton.  With that input, the computer can then determine which action the user is trying to do and tell the suit to mimic the action before the human actually exerts any force.  The user only feels the weight of his or her arms and not that of the object being lifted.

Currently, the suit is limited in terms of mobility because power and hydraulic pressure come from an external source.  The researchers at Sarcos have yet to develop a portable power source for the suit, but that is on the shortlist of improvements for future designs.  The first step for the researchers was to create an effortless shadowing system and, now that it has been accomplished, they are now moving onto the power problem.  Take a look at the video below to see the XOS suit work its magic.  It’s a few years old but, because of the classified nature of this project, there’s not much footage out there.

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