Because smart skins are grown by depositing layer upon layer, the base coating can be used as a foundation for adding other ingredients to tailor the material's properties for specific purposes.

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It combines a strand of standard plastic with a layer made from a "smart" material that can absorb water.

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Google Goggle is an "augmented reality" application, which allows users to layer information about the world around them onto a smart phone display.

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Esa believes double layer drives could be as small and economical as the one on board Smart 1, but much more powerful, which would enable craft to accelerate and decelerate faster.

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In the absence of its own software layer, Sony has partnered with a company called Symbian to develop software for "smart" cell phones.

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