The 2002 science-fiction movie Minority Report "influenced the future" and helped make dozens of contemporary technologies a reality, according to the film's production designer. More about Minority Report made today's technology possible, says production designer Alex McDowell
Future Makers: advances in digital tools are enabling independent game developers to move into hardware as well as software, says Alex Fleetwood of start-up Sensible Object, which is developing a new hybrid game called Fabulous Beasts (+ movie). More about Indie developer Sensible Object merges physical and digital gameplay with Fabulous Beasts
Visitors to an English forest were able to explore the woods through the eyes of different animals as part of a virtual reality experience by London design studio Marshmallow Laser Feast (+ movie). More about Virtual reality helmets present a forest from an animal's perspective
London design studio Map Project Office has created a minimal compass that pairs with a smartphone app to point cyclists through the city (+ slideshow). More about Map's BeeLine bicycle compass guides cyclists with a single arrow
Dezeen is among "top news sources" available in Apple's News app, alongside the BBC, the Guardian, CNN, and the Financial Times. More about Dezeen now available in newly launched Apple News app
Dutch Design Week 2015: Delft University of Technology graduate Rob Scharff has created a soft robotic limb that can shake hands with people. More about Rob Scharff's Soft Robotics 3D-printed hand responds to human grip
Combining robotic fabrication with 3D printing offers "amazing" opportunities for architecture and could help solve the global refugee crisis, according to Coop Himmelb(l)au founder Wolf D Prix (+ interview + movie). More about "Robotic construction and 3D printing are the future" says Wolf D Prix
Vienna Design Week 2015: Vienna design collective Breaded Escalope has created a clock that uses shadows to display the time when a finger is placed within its face (+ movie). More about Breaded Escalope's touch-responsive clock tells the time with shadows
Dutch Design Week 2015: Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Bastiaan de Nennie has 3D-scanned and re-assembled everyday objects as improbable digital creations. More about Bastiaan de Nennie designs hybrid virtual objects for Digital Virtuosity series
Sci-fi movie Back to the Future II created a "self-fulfilling prophecy" that helped shape today's interactions and objects, according to contemporary designers. More about Back to the Future "brought the future closer" say designers
Future Makers: in this movie filmed by Dezeen in London, Suryansh Chandra claims the affordable robotic arm his company Automata is developing could lead to robots becoming as ubiquitous as desktop 3D printers. More about Automata aims to "democratise robotics" with ,000 six-axis robot
Tech company Arx Pax has worked with pro skateboarder Tony Hawk to create a slimmed-down design for its second Hendo hoverboard, released today to mark the exact date travelled to in 1980s sci-fi film Back to the Future II. More about Arx Pax unveils updated Hendo hoverboard on Back to the Future day
Dutch Design Week 2015: designer Troy Nachtigall has used scans of feet to create a pair of 3D-printed shoes personalised for a Dutch politician, which he claims are more comfortable than typically manufactured footwear (+ slideshow). More about Troy Nachtigall's 3D-printed high heels are "more comfortable than normal shoes"
The world's first 3D-printed bridge in Amsterdam uses a technique that designer Joris Laarman says could soon be used to build "infinitely large structures" (+ interview). More about Joris Laarman's canal bridge in Amsterdam could take 3D printing "to a higher level"
Researchers and students from the University of Stuttgart used 30,000 spiky components and a robot to create a pavilion described as the "first architectural structure realised with a designed granular system" (+ movie). More about Robot uses stacked spiky particles to build groundbreaking ICD Aggregate Pavilion 2015
Aerospace company Boeing has released a film that demonstrates the properties of what it describes as "the lightest metal ever" (+ movie). More about Microlattice metal is "world's lightest material" says Boeing
San Francisco designer Yves Behar's studio Fuseproject is releasing a new home access system that includes a keyless lock and video camera that are controlled by a user's smartphone (+ slideshow). More about Yves Behar's smart security system allows users to remotely let visitors into their homes
Chicago Architectural Biennial 2015: a team of designers from Swiss and American universities have created a towering architectural structure made from nothing but gravel and thread – which was built by a robotic arm (+ slideshow). More about Robot demonstrates pioneering technology by building structure from rocks and string
The "world's first smart menstruation cup" links with a phone app to provide women with information about their periods (+ movie). More about Looncup tracks menstruation and sends vaginal updates to your phone
Future Makers: industrial designer Sebastiaan Deviaene explains how he works with digital tools more commonly used by video game developers to create 3D-printed implants for bone reconstruction in this movie. More about Sebastiaan Deviaene designs medical implants using video game development software