Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

If Intel’s CTO is correct, then man and machine could merge by the year 2050. Justin Rattner said that Intel’s research labs are looking at human-machine interfaces and predicts that promising changes could come sooner than expected. For example, did you know that Intel is working on small, shape-shifting robots called “catoms” — tiny inside the pocket, a million-strong team of micro-robots could one day reassemble into an earpiece, keyboard or state, full-torso heat shield that withstands the frictions of hyperspace (ok, we made that last bit up). During his keynote, Rattner stated, “There is speculation that we may be approaching an inflection point where the rate of technology advancements is accelerating at an exponential rate, and machines could even overtake humans in their capability to reason, in the not so distant future.” A date he pegs at 2050, not December 21st, 2012 as some would state. But with wireless power and 3-dimensional transistors on the horizon, well, who are we to argue? Besides, Intel has a pretty good record when it comes to predicting advances in technology, eh Gordie?

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

We’ve seen a number of wireless power systems come and go, but for all the hype-filled bombast and occasional working demo, the tech just hasn’t gone anywhere — but even with that background, Intel’s demo of a wireless power system that can broadcast 60 watts of power up to three feet at IDF with 75 percent efficiency has us giddy with excitement. The system works using essentially the same magnetic induction principle as all the others, but Intel’s seems the furthest along, and the company hopes to one day be able to charge laptops with it. Yeah, we’ll take three.

Read - NYT article
Read - Pictures from the presentation

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies certainly has plenty more ambitious fuel cell products in the works, but it looks like it’s not leaving any potential opportunity to make itself known untapped, with it now introducing the education-minded Bio Energy Discovery Kit to spread the fuel cell word to students and educators alike. According to the company, the kit is actually the “fuel cell industry’s first direct ethanol product,” which means it’s able to take plain water and any household alcohol (like diluted vodka) and, in this case, provide enough power to run a fan non-stop for days on end. That wonder of science doesn’t exactly come cheap, however, with the kit running a full $100.

[Via Blast]

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Move over, Casio Databank (and similar) — a formidable opponent just rolled into the ring. While the aforementioned timepiece has been the geek watch of choice for years now, Jennings’ WatchScale is all set to give it a real run for the money. This wristwatch not only displays the time in brilliantly blue fashion, but it also weighs lightweight objects (up to 300-grams) with an accuracy of 0.1-grams. We know, you’re already bracing for a quadruple-digit (pre-decimal) price tag, but there’s no need for worry — after all, you can procure your own for just $17.90.

[Thanks, Nate]

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Just as the world’s landfills could soon see an influx of unwanted televisions, many American warehouses are packed with e-voting machines that once held promise for a better way to vote. Instead, they turned into a multi-year fiasco, with hackers figuring out how to do everything save for their income taxes on ‘em and says reverting back to less vulnerable methods. Now, many says are scrambling for ways to recoup costs, even for outlets that will take them in for recycling. Oddly, Ohio can’t ditch the systems it bought until a couple of related lawsuits get dealt with. The result? Buckeyes will probably still be using e-voting machines come November.

[Via Slashdot, image courtesy of BradBlog]

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Those Apple “Get a Mac” ads have long been an annoyance to Microsoft and to Bill Gates in particular. No surprise as Apple, emboldened by rising market share, continues to ratchet up the venom with quips like, “fear of switching is the foundation of customer loyalty for PCs,” found in its latest TV ad. Now Microsoft is fighting back.

Microsoft’s new $300 million campaign (one of Redmond’s largest ever) is set to launch with a $10 million assist from “key celebrity pitchman” Jerry Seinfeld. Yes, Bill Gates will appear as well — the once maligned, rich corporate nerd turned adorable, rich humanitarian nerd. The campaign is said to be based on the idea of “Windows, Not Walls,” stressing the need to “break down barriers that prevent people and ideas from connecting.” Something we think open-sourcers might have a laugh at. Anywho, the immediate goal of the campaign is to reverse the negative public perception of Vista and thus incorporates elements of the Mojave Experiment. While we have doubts about the latter, the combination of Seinfeld’s pithy observations with a bit of that Bill Gates, self deprecating humor seen in “Bill’s Last Day” could be a winning combination. Whether that turns the slow moving boat of public opinion remains to be seen.

P.S. The campaign is said to debut on September 4th. Mulva.

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

We’ve seen the boys and girls in blue disturb the peace on occasion, but this is just downright bizarre. It’s bruited that the city of Plano, Texas has complained to the FCC about a powerful new police communications system that’s being testing in Cedar Hill, DeSoto and Duncanville. The signals have the ability to reach some 30 miles away, and they’re driving the radio-controlled sprinklers that Plano uses at parks and road medians absolutely crazy. The whole ordeal has made for some pretty interesting conversation amongst those involved, with one Tim Smith, managing director of the Southwest Regional Communications Center, asserting: “Which comes first: watering plants or protecting police and fire?” If anyone catches grown men fighting about this, do us a favor and send in the video.

[Thanks, Travis]

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

In operating rooms today, cancer surgeons are essentially forced to operate without any definitive way of determining whether or not 100% of the diseased tissue has been removed. Thanks to a radical invention by researchers in Massachusetts, that massive limitation could soon be a thing of the past. A new system, dubbed FLARE (Fluorescence-Assisted Resection and Exploration), involves a near-infrared (NIR) imaging system, a video monitor, and a personal. These tools are used to see special chemical dies (christened NIR fluorophores) that are crafted to “target specific structures such as cancer cells when injected into patients.” When these dyes are exposed to NIR light, the cancer cells light up, giving doctors an simple look at what they’ve left to remove. The team is gearing up to showcase the technology at the American Chemical Society national meeting in Philadelphia — here’s hoping it can be put to good use in the very near future.

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Filed under: iPod Family, Software, Odds and ends

When U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan need to communicate in Iraqi Arabic, Kurdish (spoken in north Iraq), or Dari and Pushto (Afghani languages), they have the ability to reach for an iPod.

Vcom3D, working with troops from the U.S. Army 10th Mountain Division, designed a software product called VCommunicator Mobile that uses the iPod to display a phonetic translation, “speak” a phrase through an attached speaker, display the phrase in local writing, or demonstrate hand gestures that are common in Arabic.

The Army is fielding about 260 iPods and iPod nanos equipped with this system, with about 700 individual troops using the device in Iraq and Afghanistan. The total cost of the system, including the software development for all of the specific dialects and languages, a speaker that plugs into the earphone port, and protective covers for both the iPod and speaker, was about $800,000.

Before someone makes a crack about the U.S. Military buying $3,100 iPods, remember that these are running custom software with key phrases that must be accurately rendered in a number of different languages, and custom software development and language localization is never inexpensive. The system also comes with a laptop-based editor for adding new phrases or editing existing ones.

Vcom3D selected the iPod platform for the system after realizing that both U.S. soldiers and Iraqi civilians owned or were familiar with Apple’s iconic media device.

[via MacDailyNews]

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Filed under: iPod Family, App Store

In contributing my share to our ongoing series of favorites for Mac and iPhone apps, I think I’m the first of our crew to focus on the iPhone’s sleeker sibling. The iPod touch might not have the communications and GPS capabilities of the motherphone, but what it lacks in circuitry it makes up for in panache. I’ve found apps that are kid-pleasers, apps that leverage the touch’s native WiFi location capability, and apps that challenge the brain. (All links are directly to the App Store.)

Comic Touch from Plasq. Although the iPhone’s camera is absent, the ability to edit, annotate and humorize synchronized pics on the touch is a delight. Comic Touch may not be the only app in this space but it’s proven its worth to me during evenings out or when traveling, as my daughters derive endless fun from captioning family snapshots with thought balloons.

Pandora Radio. Making the portable device into a full-featured internet streaming tool is a work in progress, but a WiFi-connected iPod touch with Pandora is an astonishingly fun and surprising music source, a glass-front Airport Express. I love the Pandora web app, so I was prepared to like the miniaturized version — what I didn’t anticipate was how connecting it to a stereo and letting it play would lead to “Wow, who’s this?” moments. Lacking a microphone, I can’t run Midori or Shazam on my touch — but I have the ability to make iPhone users want to use those apps to find out what Pandora is playing through my speakers.

Scrabble. Yes, I know that Facebook users have dartboards covered with pictures of Hasbro’s legal team — I still enjoy the EA version immensely. It’s colorful, simple to play and has the feel of the tabletop game and the tactile letter-dragging fun you anticipate. Shaking the device to shuffle the rack aside (it feels gimmicky and I never do it), all I really want to add is a copy of the Scrabble dictionary for training and reference.

Location-aware touch. Even without the GPS of the iPhone, I’ve been pleased that so many location-aware apps work just fine on the touch. Where To?, Twitterrific, Urbanspoon and Now Playing — assuming there’s a WiFi network around — behave just as they would on the iPhone, and whether it’s due to the solid location frameworks or thoughtful work by developers, I’m appreciative.

Honorable Mention: Simplify Media, Dot Game, City Transit NYC, and Facebook.

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