[CES 2012] The most impressive non-Android product of the week: Samsung’s transparent smart window
(source: Android Police)
The Pope has chosen Android
“God Almighty himself, through his appointed papal mouthpiece, has picked a winner. For this year’s celebration of Christ’s birth, Pope Benedict will remotely light a giant Christmas tree display attached to the side of a mountain, from 130 miles away…. But! Scandal! He’s doing it with the Lord’s fave new gadget, [a Sony Android tablet]!” Read more…
(source: Gizmodo)
Does telecommuting make you invisible?
“Telecommuting provides many joys, including the ability to stay in your pajamas all day and the chance to work with a cat on your lap. But it does have some major drawbacks, perhaps none so serious as the fact that, if your co-workers are for the most part in an office, they can forget you exist — which means you don’t get credit for your work as you deserve.” Read more…
$350 hardware cracks HDMI copy protection
“After the leak of an HDCP master key in 2010, Intel proclaimed that the copy protection was still secure, as it would be too expensive to build a system that could conduct a real-time decryption of the data stream. It has now been proven that a system can be built for around $350 (€200) to do the task. However, the solution is of no great practical use for pirates.” Read more…
(source: Ruhr-Universität Bochum, via Slashdot)
Can scientists make a battery that will survive 40,000 charges?
“A team of researchers from Stanford have developed a new battery electrode that can survive 40,000 charge cycles. That’s about a hundred times more than a normal Lithium-Ion battery, and enough to make it usable for somewhere between 10-30 years.” Read more…
(source: Gizmodo)
Maze solving robot mouse makes real lab mice look downright stupid
Final result:
Learning the maze:
“Even after spending years solving countless placemat mazes at restaurants around the world, I’m still no match for this robotic micromouse that races through this giant maze in just 3.921 seconds, shaving a full second off the previous record.” Read more…
source: Gizmodo)
Surrounded by surveillance: Is everything spying on you?
“Depending upon who you listen to, GPS tracking shouldn’t be your only concern when you are out and about on the streets. The ACLU hammered license plate scanners as ‘logging our every move,’ a different investigative report concluded your car is spying on you, and some even claim the street lights are out to get you.” Read more…
(source: ComputerWorld)
Wireless contact lens display now a reality
“It has finally been done: A team of US and Finnish bioengineers have embedded an antenna, radio receiver, control circuitry, and LED into a wearable contact lens. If you’re a rabbit, you can hop along to their research lab at the University of Washington, Seattle, and try it out right now — but if you’re a human, you’ll still have to wait a couple more years for the bionic, Terminator-like HUD of your dreams.” Read more…
(source: ExtremeTech)
How technology is shaping our language
“This is an interesting article about how technology is shaping the English language, which touches on the fate of the current crop of (sometimes silly) tech-inspired words, and anticipates an increased blurring of the line between the written and spoken word.” Read more…
(source: silicon.com, via Slashdot)
How much tech can children take?
“Today’s parents have more than one screen in the living room to worry about: PCs, smartphones, tablets and games consoles are all part of the fabric of daily life for today’s children. On the one hand, researchers warn of the potential dangers of too much “screen time”, pointing to alarming (some say scaremongering) research that suggests over-exposure leads to an increased risk of developing autism and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).” Read more…
Get ready for a new human species
“If some of the information emerging from the technology, governmental, and academic worlds are any indication, not only is the police state here; the scientific dictatorship is right around the corner. Indeed, if recent comments made by Juan Enriquez are indicative of the coming state merger between technology and genetics, we have much to be concerned about. “ Read more…
(source: Red Ice Creations, via Current)
Bezos' New Shepard takes off and escorts itself back to the landing pad
“Since being awarded $22 million from NASA to develop a commercial space vehicle, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin has been relatively quiet. There’s been a couple of test flights, one of which didn’t end so well for the water tank-shaped ship, but we haven’t actually gotten to see the New Shepard (a nod to Alan Shepard) in action. Well friends, take a gander after the break to see the reusable, suborbital launch vehicle climb a short distance into the air then gracefully settle back down with the aid its landing thrusters. “ Read more…
(source: Engadget)
Engineers Create World's Lightest Material
Light as a Feather, Stiffer Than a Board
When you pick up the newest material in Julia Greer’s office, it takes a second for your mind to adjust. Despite its looks, the little brick of metal weighs next to nothing.
Greer, assistant professor of materials science and mechanics, is part of a team of researchers from Caltech, HRL Laboratories, LLC, and the University of California, Irvine, who have developed the world’s lightest solid material, with a density of just 0.9 milligrams per cubic centimeter, or approximately 100 times lighter than Styrofoam™. Though the material is ultra-low in density, it has incredible strength and absorbs energy well, making it potentially useful for applications ranging from battery electrodes to protective shielding.” Read more…
MIT creates “brain chip”
“With 400 transistors and standard CMOS manufacturing techniques, a group of MIT researchers have created the first computer chip that mimics the analog, ion-based communication in a synapse between two neurons. This is the bleeding edge of brain-like (neural network) processors, but let’s put this into perspective: The human brain has around 100 billion neurons, and each neuron can be connected to thousands of others with synapses. There are trillions or quadrillions of synapses in the human brain.” Read more…
(source: ExtremeTech)
