In 1992, Matt Moneymaker had an experience that would change his life. Some local farmers had told him about a number of mysterious sightings deep in the forests of Ohio. Without the internet or social media, Moneymaker did what you did back then: He placed classified ads in the hope that these witnesses might come forward and share their story and, crucially, the location where it had happened. "I went to the area where they had seen one, and I found tracks. And we heard their sounds, and I was at that point very, very, very committed to getting some video footage of these things" he told Engadget.

Regular glasses could soon double as night vision goggles after scientists developed an ultra-thin crystal film which acts as a filter to help humans see in the dark. The transparent metallic film contains nanometre-scale crystals that are hundreds of times thinner than human hair. It can be applied directly to a pair of spectacles and works by converting infrared light, which is invisible to the human eye, into images people can see. Nanotechnology: The transparent metallic film contains nanometre-scale crystals that are hundreds of times thinner than human hair. How it works: This graph illustrates how the ultra-thin film would be applied to glasses to allow wearers to see in the dark.

The Army has unveiled groundbreaking futuristic technology that is designed to replace current night vision goggles. The Enhanced Night Vision Goggle III and Family of Weapon Sight-Individual uses thermal technology to see through smoke and darkness, allow soldiers to shoot around corners, and connect wirelessly to the soldier's scope on their weapons. 'It is no longer just a night vision device,' said Army Col. Christopher Schneider, the project manager, to USA Today. 'The enemy can't see we're targeting him until we pull the trigger.' The Army revealed futuristic devices that will replace current night vision goggles that use thermal technology to see through smoke and darkness, allow soldiers to shoot around corners, and even connect wirelessly to the soldier's scope on their weapons They use augmented reality technology to give each soldier real-time information on a heads up display. The goggles identify heat sources, and can even detect enemies through concrete.

The lidar grid is visible using night vision during the test of the Ford Fusion Hybrid autonomous car. Ford researchers took a Fusion Hybrid autonomous test vehicle to its proving grounds in Arizona to put its lidar sensors through their paces – in pitch black darkness. It was so dark the researchers who were monitoring the test wore night vision goggles. The test was important not just for the cool factor of driving without lights in the darkness like a sci-fi spy. Many autonomous car systems use several types of sensors, including cameras and radar in addition to lidar.

Ford recently drove an autonomous Fusion through the Arizona night, relying entirely on the car's laser radar system to plot its course. Ford engineers working on the company's autonomous car technology recently succeeded in making a self-driving Ford Fusion lap its Arizona Proving Grounds in complete darkness, using laser radar, or Lidar, as its guide. While Lidar is a standard feature of most self-driving car gadgetry - along with traditional radar and cameras - the test was meant to specifically highlight how an autonomous vehicle might operate in a situation that many humans find nerve-wracking. Most self-driving cars are tested during daylight hours so all of their electronic systems can contribution to the process. As autonomous vehicles creep into our automotive future, the biggest hurdle for automakers won't be scientific but rather psychological.