Filed under: Ask Engadget, Misc. Gadgets

We’ll be honest — Dave has run into a magnificent problem to have, but it’s still an issue in need of an answer. And before you get too engrossed, might we remind you that you can send in questions of your own to ask at engadget dawt com.

“I live in Canada and have relatives visiting Taiwan in the near future. What hawt Asia-only, non-igloo-related gadget should I ask them to grip for me? Thanks!”

We’re going to take the liberty of expanding this question to involve all of Asia, given that quite a few others are probably headed to Akihabara in the foreseeable future. So, what’s the ideal gizmos(s) to pick up if heading over to the other side for what might be the first and last time ever?

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We always thought that the RIAA’s first-ever filesharing trial victory against Jammie Thomas was a little suspect since the labels weren’t required to prove that Thomas even had Kazaa installed on her machine or was the person using the account in question, and it looks like the court agrees — it’s just declared a mistrial and set aside the $222,000 judgment on the grounds that simply making copyrighted works available for download does not constitute copyright infringement. That’s a massive decision — the “making available” theory is the basis for most of the RIAA’s legal arguments — and it means that the RIAA will now have to prove the unauthorized transfer of each song it wants to collect damages on at the new trial. We’ll see what effect this has in the broader sense — we’ve got a feeling we’re in for a slew of appellate decisions on both sides of the “making available” debate — but for now it looks like the good guys are finally starting to score some points.

[Via ZDNet, thanks JagsLive]

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Read - Decision [PDF]

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Elderly? Enfeebled? Just plain clumsy? Tokyo-based Prop has your back. Its newly announced personal, wearable airbag looks like a cool fanny-pack and weighs a mere 1.1 kilograms (2.4 pounds) — but springs forth in one-tenth of a second when sensors detect you’re headed for the floor, protecting your head and ass with two inflated bags that contain 3.9 gallons of gas each. Similar to the various airbag-equipped suits already used by some motorcyclists, the airbag is yours for a cool

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While most folks working to improve on the traditional lie detector have veered towards MRIs, EEGs and the like, Scott Bunce of Drexel University’s College of Medicine has taken a decidedly different approach and turned to an infrared light-based method, which he seems to think would be both less costly and more accurate. Apparently, the system works simply by sending infrared light into your brain and measuring how much is reflected back, which varies depending on the levels of oxygen in the blood, and in turn gives an indication of brain activity. Not surprisingly, the research appears to have already attracted the interested of some of the usual suspects — namely, the U.S. Office of Naval Research and the Department of Homeland Security, who have provided some of the funding — but it seems like there’s still some more work to be done before it moves beyond the lab. At least as far as we know.

[Via Crave]

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Here you’ve latest pinhole camera by artist, Wayne Martin Belger — a good boy raised on a steady diet of crucifixion imagery and the scorched-earth wrath of divinity. This work entitled Third Eye, a study of “the beauty of decay,” uses precious metals like titanium and silver to expose the memory of time onto film, sheering the 150 year old skull of a 13 year old girl. Sample image posted after the break for those who dare.

[Via Make: and Art Diabolique]

Continue reading Third Eye pinhole camera exposes the dead, mocks the living

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We’ll warn you in advance, this is only for those who dig the weird, all things Stephen Hawking or clock-making in general. This

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You’re a wealthy industrialist and you’ve spent more money on jewelry than most Americans will see in their entire lives. You deserve a safe that’s attractive enough to be a display piece itself, but is secure enough to repel the most seasoned cat burgler. To this end, Stockinger — the first name in luxury safes — has teamed up with Bentley Motors Ltd. to produce two limited edition lockboxes, each the definition of style, security and extravagant waste. The Continental is designed for jewelry, while the Arnage features pockets and watchwinders for all your antique and valuable timepieces. Both models are designed to be impenetrable, and feature built-in alarms and a GPS unit. These safes are available in all standard Bentley exterior colors, and you can choose from one of ten interior leather hides and three wood veneer panels. They are available in a limited edition of 200 each and can be ordered exclusively through Stockinger. So what are you waiting for?

[Thanks, JW]

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Cognition Technologies’ new Semantic Map lets computers — and, conceivably, evil robots — “understand” the English language in much the same way humans do, based on word tenses and context in a sentence. With this technology, a computer or search engine can understand virtually every word in the English language — for a vocabulary about ten times that of a typical American college graduate. The system is already being employed in search engines, allowing people to ask questions in human-phrasing instead of unnatural, machine formatted word strings. Researchers state the capability to understand language is an important building block of the nascent Semantic Web, and will make the Replicants of the future extremely difficult to detect.

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As it turns out, the World Health Organization (WHO) isn’t condoning e-cigarette products — shockingly — as some manufacturers might like you to believe. In fact, the lawsuit flag is being waved at a few companies who brazenly plastered the organization’s name and logo across promotional material, suggesting an endorsement of the product. The WHO’s Douglas Bettcher asserts that the product is untested as a nicotine replacement therapy, stating, “If the marketers of the electronic cigarette want to help smokers quit, then they need to conduct clinical studies and toxicity analyses.” So while e-cigs might not carry the same carcinogenic risks as traditional smoking, there are still plenty of health issues surrounding liquid nicotine and all the nasty additives it’s served in… and the WHO isn’t about to let you forget it.

[Via PhysOrg]

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Ion Audio has already provided some means for transferring your tapes and records to your PC, and it’s now doing the same for the stacks of 35mm slides collecting dust in your closet. Not exactly the most one-of-a-kind device, to be sure, but at just $100 its new SLIDES 2 Computer unit is a good deal cheaper than your average slide scanner, and its 5-megapixel resolution should be more than adequate for the average user that’ll likely burn through their entire slide collection and never lay eyes on the thing again. It also promises to get the job done fairly quickly, with it scanning each slide in one or two seconds at the push of a button, and employing some automatic exposure and color balance measures to cut down on the tweaking required afterwards.

[Via Everything USB]

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