technology filter: Future Tech

Online Sensitivity in a Wider World

Mon, 12 Feb 2007 22:29:52 GMT

In a world where technology frequently listens in on the private moments of humans, there is a fast-growing movement to expand our sensory perceptions. Sensors are increasingly monitoring the composition of our breathing environment, the composition of rain forests and even the rice paddies of Bangladesh.

Someday soon, sensors may be capable of measuring the sustainability of a highway bridge or the viability of our internal organs, 24 hours per day, seven days a week. The most sensitive part of all these future intrusions is of course the issue of privacy. Many of us would love to know if our hearts are approaching the doomsday clock, or if our highways are capable of falling down upon the passage of a massive trailer truck. Still, we fear having ourselves hooked up to a device that can monitor our conditions to a watching world. We would rather risk a heart attack than discovering our electrocardiogram on someone's MySpace page.

The other barrier to the merging of existing sensor technology with the World Wide Web is compatibility. The Internet gave us a common language — HTML — that renders Web text on any computer running any operating system. Monitoring devices do not speak a common language, and bringing them together to a common clearinghouse remains a challenge.

But it would be neat to be able to get up each day and decide if the world is worth putting both feet on the ground and moving forward.

Posted by Barbara.

Leaping Tall Buildings Up Close and Personal

Tue, 06 Feb 2007 18:13:17 GMT

Those of us who grew up with the Jetsons, nearly half a century ago,, are wondering why our modern-day skies are not filled with endless flying cars. Some of us fear that we will see flying pigs before we'll see flying cars.

Soon, our wait may be over. Like the rest of us, Israeli inventor Rafi Yoeli sat in a traffic jam one day and said there has to be another way. However, instead of a flying car, his invention became a next generation search and rescue vehicle that hovers like a helicopter without the dangerous rotary blades. The car can fit around urban buildings in a way that helicopters cannot. Consequently, the vehicle can perform rescue operations that helicopters cannot. On the downside, the vehicle is less fuel efficient than a helicopter. The X-Hawk can fly at 155 miles per hour and stay aloft for two hours.

The vehicle has already caught the attention of military officials who see the X-Hawk and its smaller companion, the Mule, as a perfect vehicle for an urban war, such as the one now happening in Iraq. Yeoli expects that the vehicle will be used primarily in urban rescues where it can approach tall buildings close enough to allow boarding.

In a more peaceful world it might turn some of those Manhattan tourist helicopter tours into a real E-ticket adventure.

Posted by Barbara

HP Hopes Slimmed-Down Chips Become Fashionable

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 18:43:55 GMT

Since the age of the double-wide ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), a morbidly obese monstrosity powered by unreliable vacuum tubes, electronic engineers have performed liposuction after liposuction to reach a point where toddlers can “Tickle Me Elmo.”

As in the fashion world, however, computers just can’t be too thin or too supercharged.

Hewlett Packard Co., which profits heavily on the sale of tiny printer cartridges that eject just enough ink to keep Grandma’s picture from becoming smudged, has turned its attention on a new technology that redefines the words “thin” and “powerful.”

The HP research may soon produce tiny microchips that fit eight times the number of transistors now packed on a tiny processor. The technology overcomes the problem of overheating — a long-time barrier to processor evolution for chips packed in at nanometer proportions. Best of all, the resulting processor uses a fraction of the electricity now required to power all manner of processes.

Hopefully, this trend won’t seep over into the fashion world. Somehow, the sight of twenty-pound supermodels walking down the runway at 100 miles-per-hour, while balancing 500-pound weights, doesn’t do much for me.

Posted by Barbara.

Meanwhile in San Francisco...

Mon, 08 Jan 2007 18:38:08 GMT

For the Apple faithful gathering at MacWorld— in the shadow of the Consumer Electronics Show this week — what happens in San Francisco may be doomed to stay in San Francisco. Unless of course there is an introduction of a high definition I-Pod that makes phone calls, acts as a fuel cell for hybrid cars, and remotely moves the toilet seat down.

Rumors have circulated for months that Apple will introduce a version of I-Pod that has at least one of those functions. Apple also may introduce its “i-TV” product that serves as an independent bridge for downloaded movies that can be played on a home TV. I-TV reportedly will include a hard drive that stores movies downloaded from a Mac or PC and played with “the ease of a DVR…”

Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs, who is currently under a stock option cloud, is expected to make an announcement Tuesday to introduce a new generation of Apple products. Unlike some of its competitors, Apple typically ships products introduced at MacWorld within hours of a Jobs address at MacWorld.

If the toilet seat descender is introduced, I will be first in line at my local Apple store.

Posted by Barbara.

2007 CES Opens Sunday in Las Vegas

Sat, 06 Jan 2007 01:07:22 GMT

I always looked at the Consumer Electronics Show as my own “secret garden” of toys. After all, it began in the year I graduated from high school and its winter showcase is held annually in the week of my birthday. Most importantly, its endless halls and corridors are filled with the passion fruit of my life — few of which I can justify buying for myself.
This year’s 40^th edition opens Sunday evening in Las Vegas without me. However, Oliver, my partner in this space, will be there to bring you all the latest developments. f you haven’t got a reservation in Las Vegas, forget about it. The more than 150,000 folks that will gather to watch the harmonic convergence of personal computers, televisions and the cinematic experience will be jamming Las Vegas elevators to approach host suites, endless free buffet lunches and handshakes from the next generation of Japanese robots. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it. I haven’t done it since 1987, when there were few cell phones outside the display area, and laser discs had started threatening the future of VHS.

Bill Gates, as usual will keynote the show when it opens Sunday evening. He didn’t speak at the 1987 show that I attended. Microsoft had just gone public, and its eyes were focused on what seemed like a trade secret: Windows 2.1. It would be another two years before the PC hardware manufacturers displaying at the Las Vegas Convention Center — and developers working on Windows 3.0 — would make Windows a viable product.

Professionally, I was looking primarily at computer hardware for the three PC-related magazines I represented. Personally, however, I watched fascinated by advances in compact disc technology (imagine being able to carry the compact disc sound anywhere like a Walkman!) and the home theater experience of the latest laser disk systems. Did Movie theaters have a future?

This year, of course, the trend of bigger, better, a biorhythmic home entertainment system advances to new levels. High definition will be the name of the game in television, personal computer monitors and DVD players. Much of what is said here will be forgotten, just as it was in 1987. The future is certainly in high definition. But like every preceding technology, the future is yet to be defined for sure.

Posted by Barbara.

Toyota: Sober Drivers Wanted

Wed, 03 Jan 2007 18:03:05 GMT

Remember the good ol’ days when your car ruled the road?

At last, vehicle technology will rule the roads over drunk drivers, if Toyota has its way. The world’s second largest car maker is reportedly creating a detection system in new cars beginning in 2009 that will forbid drivers with a certain amount of alcohol in their systems from taking control. It can also detect a build-up of alcohol in the system that will stop the car if it measures excessive alcohol consumption.

The technology includes a breathalyzer, a camera that detects loss of focus in the pupils, and a steering mechanism that senses abnormal steering. The system is reportedly more advanced than the security locks imposed upon some drunken drivers by US courts.

The anti-drunk driving detection system has become an increasingly popular enforcement system against repeat offenders who build up a series of convictions. There is no immediate word whether Toyota plans to sell its system as a voluntary option or as standard equipment. Toyota is expected to announce details surrounding the new system this week.

Now, if only Toyota could create technology that prevents a sober driver from acting like an idiot behind the wheel...

Posted by Barbara.

Happy New Year! Predictions for 2007

Fri, 29 Dec 2006 19:15:52 GMT

A bright shiny new year is ahead of us, time to take a forward spin into the world of technology and gadgets. In the spirit of optimism, just remember that the very first Monday of 2007 is a holiday!

January:

·          Microsoft Windows Vista is finally delivered to the consumer markets. In days of its delivery, experts discover a major security hole that could give ordinary users access to Bill Gates’ bank account. The security hole is repaired in Warp time.

February
·          Disney announces not only a new addition to its Hall of Presidents, but also plans to enter its robotic version of Ronald Reagan into the 2008 presidential campaign. The advanced robot makes his first appearance at a New Hampshire shopping center on the former president’s birthday, and thrills his audience by simply saying “There I go again…”

March
•        Bipartisanship in the 110^th Congress diminishes as Democrats become aware of this new tool called the “Internets.” A Democratic member of Congress sends an email referring to the President of the United States as “President Poopyhead” and accidentally hits the “reply to all” button. President Poopyhead has the Democrat declared an enemy combatant.

April

Cingular introduces a new version of the “chocolate” cell phone just in time for Easter. The phone comes with edible, replaceable chocolate bunny ears. Once the ears have been chewed away, however, the phone loses reception.

May

· Japanese television manufacturer JVC announces the first “contra-reality” television experience. A new generation of sets allows viewers to become a part of a regular series by simply slipping into the picture tube. The company warns viewers, however, that stepping into some dramatic roles — such as being a cadaver on “CSI” — may be hazardous to the viewer’s health.

June

· Comcast, in a fight for market domination on the West Coast, announces a new “pay per view” cable service in San Francisco. Instead of a monthly cable bill, viewers will simply insert quarters on a set-top box for every 15 minutes of viewing time.

July

·          The Orrick vacuum cleaner folks merge with a hearing aid supplier and create a new hearing aid that cleans the air surrounding the wearer.   According to celebrity customers, such as Ross Perot, that “giant sucking sound” can be annoying.

August

·          Alaska Senator Ted Stevens introduces a constitutional amendment that would require that the Internet have “all of its tube tied.” Stevens, the architect of the intelligent tubes design of the Internet, says that Internet content has become “far too fertile” in its brief history and should be put on some sort of birth control.

September

·          In the most fiendish terrorist plot ever devised all the world’s batteries suddenly go dead. Game systems, remote controls and Brittany Spears’ private cell phone all cease to operate. Sony denies responsibility, saying its batteries would have exploded.

October

· Cell phone companies measuring the impact of Verizon’s advertising program, expand commercial opportunities by adding specific ringtones free of charge. Local restrooms are suddenly filled with the sound of “Plop, plop fizz, fizz, oh what a relief it is…”

November

· Wal-Mart announces a custom-built version of the Microsoft Zune Mp3 player, selling for a mere $49.95. Unfortunately, its restricted library of tunes plays only the Carpenters, the Monkees and the best of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

December

· Atari founder Nolan Bushnell announces a comeback for Pong. The new version of the popular 70s video game is aimed at aging baby boomers no longer comfortable with the speeds and coordination required for playing modern console games. Overnight, hundreds of former Chuck E. Cheese restaurants are converted into senior citizen hangouts.

Posted by Barbara.

Nerd Alert: The Math Behind Cloaking

Wed, 27 Dec 2006 08:09:10 GMT

You may remember back in October, UK and Japanese research scientists made a big splash when they revealed that not only had they solved the math behind building a real invisibility cloak...they'd actually gone and built a partial prototype. The math behind this obviously wasn't as flashy as the prototype, but for those who like numbers it was certainly exciting. Now some theorists have created more math that describes the behavior of what's going on inside an working invisibility cloak and their explanations show that the technology should also be able to hide even actively light-radiating objects like a flashlight or cell phone. A good read, but probably fun for physicists only.

Gonna be a whole new world for burglar detection.

(via Digg)

Posted by Oliver

Is Your IPod Obsolete?

Mon, 11 Dec 2006 22:02:52 GMT

Memory
All alone in the moonlight
I can smile at the old days
I was beautiful then…

Today, at a San Francisco news conference, in a place where even gadget geeks fear to tread, your IPod Nano just became obsolete.

So did your laptop.

Imagine a flash “phase change” memory chip that can retain memory without constant electrical charge and makes today’s bite-sized chips seem as bulky as a vacuum tube. A collaboration among IBM, Macronix and Qimonda scientists demonstrated a prototype phase-change memory device at an IEEE meeting in San Francisco. The new alloy material at the root of the chip switches more than 500 times faster than flash while using less than one-half the power to write data into a cell. At this point, there is no estimate on when the first real-time applications of the new chips will be developed.

What this means is that you might ultimately host several I-Tunes stores on your MP3 player, and you can take your laptop with you on that July spelunking trip through Death Valley a few years from now — without worrying about overheating or exploding batteries.

In the meantime, you might want to take your Nano to an antique store for appraisal.

Posted by Barbara

Checking In to the Hotel Tomorrow

Mon, 11 Dec 2006 18:41:46 GMT

Those of us who chose to go a little more upscale in our overnight accommodations after going eyeball to eyeball with a cockroach somewhere in East Texas will be amazed at the Hotel of Tomorrow.

This futuristic concept is a combination of some old Jack Lemon and Dean Martin morning-after visuals and Star Trek technology. Not only is there electricity in the air, it surrounds you on the walls and floors, making wires and wall sockets obsolete. Presumably, the charge you feel will be from the environmental conditioning system that makes the ambiance ideal — as measured from your first step into the room.

The room is filled with gadgets from the room selection device that can conceptually put you in the room as you make your reservation, to the bed that withdraws into a bathtub and shower. Imagine waking up to a cold shower in the morning.

The Hotel of Tomorrow is not somebody’s wild and crazy idea of future hospitality. It is a working project by Hospitality Design magazine and Gettys, a Chicago-based design firm.

Call me a fatalist, but I have the feeling that cockroach in East Texas will still be able to check in to this new environment.

Posted by Barbara

Wireless Baseball

Thu, 16 Nov 2006 22:48:44 GMT

Bring on the Wi-Fi! Who needs peanuts and Crackerjacks?

Silicon Valley’s new home for the Oakland Athletics will apparently show off more than a baseball team. Cisco Field in Fremont, California is cleverly designed to draw gadget fans away from their Xboxes and high-definition TV when it opens in three to five years.

Early press reports note that the facility sponsored by the world’s Wi-Fi leader will be the most technically advanced sports stadium anywhere, including wizardry such as “handheld devices to watch instant replays, order food and beverages, communicate with friends, and keep score.”

Does it mean the A’s will be a better baseball team?

Apparently, some of this technology is already present in the new Busch Field, home of the 2006 World Champion St. Louis Cardinals.

Posted by Barbara

Fingering the Food

Tue, 07 Nov 2006 20:51:31 GMT

An extended finger is probably the last thing the cafeteria lady wants to see when a child pushes his tuna wiggle through the line. But at West End Elementary School in Rome, Georgia, every student is expected to raise their index finger as they pass the cashier.

In the first test of a biometric system at the elementary school level, the system captures the fingerprint of mere four-year-olds (as well as older kids) and deducts the price of lunch from a prepaid account. A human monitor behind the counter is left only to determine the accurate amount of food on the plate.

When the four-year-olds grow up, chances are their biometric impressions will open more than the cafeteria line. Their identity will be an open door, unless of course they turn to a life of crime. In that case, few doors will be open to them.

Still, only 35 parents of students have opted out of the program on behalf of their students.

Posted by Barbara

Back to the Future Shock

Mon, 06 Nov 2006 21:59:12 GMT

Those of us who grew up with the Jetsons’ cartoon series back in the 1960’s figured that we would be commuting with jet packs and other aerial transit at this point in our lives.

Who knew that the future promised by the Jetsons was about as accurate as the stone-age set of the Flintstones

According to the authors of a new coffee table tome, we should have seen it coming.
Eric and Jonathan Dregni have put together an admonishment for futurists in Follies of Science: 20^th Century Visions of Our Fantastic Future that remind us that what’s good for corporate barons is not necessarily good for America.Long before the Jetsons, America’s vision included a full court press on the magic ingredients that seemed so wonderful early in the twentieth century.

Have you ever thought of the “health-giving electric atoms built into radioactive suppositories?” Between that and designer lead paint, you might never have to worry about damage to your brain from cell phones.

Chances are that there are other modern tools that will qualify for the Dregnis future volumes. Did you hear the one about the electronic voting machine that performs a colonoscopy as you cast your ballot?

Posted by Barbara

Free Energy for Everyone? Cool!

Fri, 13 Oct 2006 14:17:28 GMT

Free energy would certainly make life better for millions of people--though it would probably put a damper on teh day of those poor ultra-execs who just made $10 billion in profit per quarter. Awwww.

But this isn't yet another cold fusion hoax-style rehash. Seems this time, two Irish engineers accidentally discovered a perpetual motion engine based on a magnetic source. Their invention was aimed elsewhere, but it turns out their machine generates more power than it needs and keeps on doing so.

All boils down to the new company's theory that fixed magnets can act upon a moving magnet in such a way as to turn the ensemble into a virtual perpetual motion generator. Has applications everywhere, electrical appliances, water pumps, heating systems and even energy efficient cars. Work it Steorn, work it.

(via Geeks Are Sexy)

Audi Gets Hot with Super Car

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 16:05:51 GMT

Yeah, it's a tech blog, but when I see a car this sexy I just have to squawk about it somewhere. Seems Audi is tired of being the almost-sports car of Germany. They've gone all out with the new supercar R8, a $130,000 ultra sports car that'll be available here in 2007. Even went so far as to give Mayor Bloomberg a test drie down Park Avenue today (Mikey had to ride shotgun, tho).

(via Digg)

Nanotech Takes on Anthrax

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 18:32:58 GMT

Researchers have announced some progress in the fight to keep us safe from nutbars with weaponized diseases, especially anthrax. Clemson University research team led by Ya-Ping Sun and including some visitors from Peking, have developed a nanotech countermeasure to combat weaponized anthrax. The new approach uses nano stuff to attack specific components of weaponized anthrax powder rendering it (hopefully) harmless. Still a ways from production, tho.

(via Digg)

Mouse With Your Feet

Mon, 02 Oct 2006 18:41:07 GMT

HP's UK operation just filed to patent a foot-controlled user interface. The idea is to build this foot-activated device into chairs and such so folks with the use of their hands can still control mouse and pointer functions. Clicks, by the way, wouldn't be done with toes, but rather twists of your feet. Means you can now get tired feet while sitting down.

They've even got visions of using this as part of a severe multi-tasking environment (hands-free to handle phone calls while the feet do the computing--I HATE the sound of that) and also as part of a wearable computing system (that twist thing should make walking a real challenge).

(via Engadget)

Data Exchange Rings

Tue, 26 Sep 2006 16:50:16 GMT

A little whacky, but cool in a semi-useless pushing-the-techno-geek sort of way. "Data rings" designed by Hideaki Matsui. You wear a ring. I wear a ring. We meet somewhere for the first time and shake hands. Your ring passes your basic information to me (biz card and bio type stuff) and my ring passes the same info to you. We smile, exchange no words, and keep going to the next person. Later, I can call you up on a screen and study up on your vitals. Then decide whether you deserve a call back.

Sleek, geeky and cold. Hope that's not our whole future.

(via Sci Fi)

Out there: MIT Puts Gas Turbines on Chips

Tue, 19 Sep 2006 19:11:26 GMT

This is a freaky idea: MIT researchers are putting tiny gas-turbine engines on silicon chips roughly the size of a quarter. It's not a faster chip, but a longer-lasting battery. MIT hopes the new devices would run 10 times longer than a battery of similar size and weight. Eventually this would be able to power laptops, cell phones, radios and more.

So they're calling them 'microengines' for now, and hope that with mass production these little jobbies could drop the cost of providing energy significantly. Also has great benefits for folks who can't access a power grid, since as long as they're powered with gas the devices are largely self-sufficient. Cool.

(via Slashdot)

Phillie's New Future School

Fri, 08 Sep 2006 19:29:36 GMT

A possible model for the school of the future has just been opened in Philadelphia. This is a public high school where students all work on WiFi-connected laptops, teachers don't do traditional curriculums but rather concentrate on teaching through real-world topics and parents can track their kids' school progress via the Web.

The school cost $63 million to build and had backing from Microsoft. Students were elgible based on record and a lottery.

I like initiatives like this. Our educational system has long been in need of a swift kick in the booty. The only downside is that often these types of 'modern' or 'future' schools often load up on technical, math and science studies while giving short shrift to the humanites, literature and even history. Just hope that this new school gives students a chance to explore those fields if their predilictions lie that way.

(via Digg)

Bridgestone Gets into Wireless--Want It

Thu, 07 Sep 2006 16:21:59 GMT

Having just had a tire problem based on my never checking my tire pressure. Hey, it's a pain in the booty to get all dirty and, besides, I've got a bad back.

Well that wouldn't be a problem with the new wireless tire pressure system that Bridgestone is about to unveil. This job would place a sensor into the tire rim. That will hold some kind of radio frequency ID sensor (RFID), that would alert your dashboard if it senses that your tires are over- or under-inflated. They've even got a version for your dealer that can store info on 1080 tire readings from 90 vehicles. So now your dealer can call you if your tire pressure gets too low? Guess that's a good idea for leased vehicles.

(via UberGizmo)

Electric Mini Does 0-60 in 4.5 Seconds

Thu, 31 Aug 2006 19:42:11 GMT

A Brit engineering firm has put together a proto of a hybrid version of BMW's Mini Cooper. It's called the PML Mini QED. It's electrically powered but has a top end of 150mph and a 0-60 acceleration time of 4.5 seconds. It achieves these impressive stats via four 160 horsepower electric motors, each located separately behind one of the car's four wheels.

Pretty cool, especially considering that it's completely green and has a range of about 1500 kilometers. Let's just hope they don't use Sony lithium ion batteries.

Good Article: Not Too Late to Reverse Global Warming

Mon, 28 Aug 2006 20:25:50 GMT

MIT's Technology Review magazine is pretty high-falutin stuff--probably because it's written largely by MIT research grads. But if you're willing to put some brain cycles into it, the mag can be an interesting read.

This article's one of the really good ones. It's Not Too Late by David Talbot is an essay on how existing technologies, like bio-engineered greenfules and clean burning coal, if used with some smarts can still save the planet from a global warming disaster. I think it puts a little too much faith in human nature, but the science sounds not only solid but refreshing.

Backyard Windmill for the Energy Conscious

Mon, 28 Aug 2006 15:55:43 GMT

Getting fed up with high energy bills? If you live in tropical places, like my buddy Brian in Honolulu, you can add solar energy pretty easily. But for those of us in more temperate climes, our weather simply doesn't lend itself to solar very easily. Fortunately, now that's not our only option.

Arizona-based Skystream Energy just introed a shipping version of its Skystream 3.7 "residential wind generator". No it doesn't generate wind, it's simply a wind-to-electric power generator that you can hook up in your backyard for between $10,000 and $12,000. Should save you between $500 and $800 per year if you don't mind a 35-100 foot tall windmill in our backyard.

Probably also a good idea to check your local zoning laws before plunking down your credit card.

(via Digg)

Earphone Earrings a Future Trend?

Thu, 10 Aug 2006 15:26:05 GMT

As we predicted, the worlds of fashion and high-tech will continue to converge. Clothes are becoming wired, and now jewlery is doing the same. The Korean company EarMecca is working on a cross between high-fidelity earphones and earrings. Apparently, they're all the rage in the far east and experts predict they'll be taking us by storm real soon. Probably the high school set first, but that's just my guess.

(via Sci Fi)

GM To Do Hybrid Trucks

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 20:10:31 GMT

GM is going greener in 2007, rolling out its much-anticipated dual-mode truck engine which will debut on the Silverado and GMC Sierra lines. According to GM, this should give customers a 25% fuel efficiency increase with a 25mpg rating. The engine still has oomph, however, at 365hp with 350 foot-pounds of torque. Only trouble is that it also represents an approximate $3,000 sticker price increase as well. So it's greener, but it probably won't save you too much money when you add everything up.

Linux 'Bot by 2007

Mon, 24 Jul 2006 19:36:12 GMT

Sadly, it's coming from the French. But if you can get past that, then it's a pretty cool sounding project. The robot will be called the 'Nao' and it intends to compete with that Honda humanoid 'bot you occasionally see standing in front of some garage on TV waving at nobody.

The Nao will be a full-sized humanoid robot as well, it'll be based on linux and have all kinds of neat lil' features, including a vid cam, synthesized vocal tones, voice recognition for those "get me a beer" commands, WiFi connectivity and even a hand that grips--beers as well as othr stuff, I suppose.

Price: All they'll say for now is "affordable". Guess we'll see around x-mas time next year.

(via Gearlog)

Tesla Roadster Test Drive

Fri, 21 Jul 2006 19:54:04 GMT

Wired Magazine's Joshua Davis managed to get himself a test drive of the new Tesla roadster. I did a reference blog to the Tesla a couple of days ago in Today in Tech, but only commented about its existence.

Davis actually got in one and here's the scoop: Yes, it's called the Tesla; it's completely electronic, powered by 6831 lithium-ion batteries; and it can do 0-60 in about 3-4 seconds with a top end of about 130mph. Oh, I forgot a range of about 250 miles and a price tag around $80,000.

A small silicon valley company challenging the auto establishement -- love it.

Computer on a Credit Card

Mon, 03 Jul 2006 18:34:08 GMT

And I was impressed with a credit card-sized USB drive. But the world keeps on pushing, this time with the CM-X270 from Israel's Compulab. This puppy is the size of your Visa card, has an Intel XScale processor, 128MB of RAM, a PCI bus and four USB ports. You don't even need to use one of the USBers for WiFi as the CM-X270 has the built-in, too. If you've got the demand, they go for $47 apiece in quantities of 10,000. Now that would make a hell of a trade show chatchki.

(Source: Ubergizmo)

Microsoft Does Robotics

Tue, 20 Jun 2006 15:59:20 GMT

Microsoft's research arm did a Domo Arigato announcing that it's working on a Mr. Roboto software toolkit. These software tools will allow robotics developers to build little R2D2s that are either controlled by a Windows console or run an embedded version of the Microsoft platform as their internal software.

The software is called the Microsoft Robotics Studio and apparently there is a private preview version already available.

(via Gizmodo)

Microsoft's "MSiTunes" Project

Mon, 19 Jun 2006 16:40:10 GMT

Rumors are sprouting like bloomers and tumors about Microsoft's suddenly-leaked project to do mighty and final battle with Apple's iTunes service. Yes, the project seems to be real since Microsoft has confirmed that VP Bach who headed up its xBox project is now leading the MSiT charge.

No online pictures of the device as yet exist, so keep your knickers on. If any surface, I'll post links here. As to analysis:

This is completely according to the Microsoft tradition. Wasn't a matter of if they'd do this, only a matter of when. The portable, downloadable digitunes gadget market is hugely profitable. Another company has shown them how to do it, so they're just doing what they've always done: Follow another company's success with something Redmond hopes will be better. In basic econ, we called this 'competition'.

Is it going to be revolutionary? Maybe, but most likely not. If we conitnue to follow Microsoft's tradition, then they'll come to market as quickly as they can. That means using technology that already exists. So expect some flavor of Windows Media Player on the device and a morphed version of URGE as the service. Expect really good pricing to start and loads of advert glitz when a release data draws nigh.

Then wait a version or two until the get innovative. Just my two cents.

Popular Science: A Plan to Cut US Dependence on Fossil Fuels

Fri, 16 Jun 2006 19:07:15 GMT

Popular Science just pubbed a plan that allows the US to adopt a series of alternative fuels such that by 2025 we'll hardly need traditional fossil fuel at all. Several cool things: First, it's a pretty realistic plan (not counting politics). All the technologies exist today, we just need to use them in conjunction intelligently. That's the other thing I like about it -- it doesn't blndly eshew one technology over all the others, but rather combines them to show that there's plenty of fuel around if we just stop fixating on the idea that it's always got to be one and one alone.

Only downside is that it ignores politics--to be expected from Pop Sci, I suppose. This plan is good, but as long as the fossil fuel hawkers have such a powerful lobby--not to mention a president with interests in that business--you're going to need some major political and marketing muscle to move America to this view. Especially if you intend to do it before there's a real shortage calamity.

Good luck.

(via Digg)

More Super Storage Tech: This Time It's About Water

Tue, 09 May 2006 20:34:49 GMT

Holographic storage promises some real dense storage capacities in the fairly near future, but it's not the only player in the super-dense bits and bytes arena. Recently, a Drexel University researcher, Dr. Jonathan Spanier, and colleagues at the U. of Pennsylvania have announced a new storage technology that he says could pump 12.8 million gigabytes into a single cubic centimeter.

That's your average USB thumbdrive loaded with about 32 million full-length movies.

The technology is based on a technology called ferroelectricity, basically a combination of water and ultra-thin wire. Until Spanier, the technology had been deemed too unstable at smaller nano-style sizes, but it seems the Drexelers have managed that problem.

Of course, like the super-dense numbers for holographic storage, the arrival times for ferroelectric storage numbers are still...nebulous. Keep your eyes open, I suppose.

(via Digg)

Truth Just As Strange as Fiction

Fri, 05 May 2006 14:21:22 GMT

Austin Powers first made them popular then conquered them on his way to drubbing Dr. Evil. But it was Elizabeth Hurley who really gave them scope. BUT...

...it was development team head, Baeg Moon-hong, of the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology that actually brought them to life. Yup, the EveR-1 is an almost-walking life-sized female robot who communicates via eye blinks and various facial expressions. She also understands 400 words and even makes eye contact when you talk to her.

No word on a price, so any future Dr. Evils out there looking to populate a private fembot army...well, you'll just have to wait.

Dutch Fight Global Warming with...Floating Cities?

Tue, 02 May 2006 16:06:55 GMT

Global warming means arctic melting. Arctic melting means colder weather and...way more water. Way more water means less land. This is pretty much the logic line that Dutch engineers are following in their pursuit of amphibious housing.

And if you're thinking about house boats, that's not what these Dutch guys are talking about. They're thinking about floating entire city blocks and eventually entire cities themselves. They've got a sample community already up, called the Maas, with 37 float-capable houses in its portfolio.

Sounds great, but there's still plenty of testing. Floating houses necessarily mean more mobile houses and that can mean trouble when you're talking about what often accompanies a real big flood: A nasty windstorm. Still it's gone far beyond 'interesting concept' in the Netherlands, so expect to see more announcements like thisin the future.

(via About My Planet)

SmartLabs Visit Article

Wed, 19 Apr 2006 20:18:09 GMT

The guys from Gizmos for Geeks have an annoyingly slow site for us New Yorkers, but they pub good stuff, including this article on their visit to the Insteon's SmartLabs in Irvine, CA. SmartLabs is home geek heaven, with a focus not just on gadgets, but on smart home technology in particular with close cooperation from smart home tech vendor engineers from Insteon corporate.

(via RealTechNews)

Philips Files for Patent on an Evil Plan

Wed, 19 Apr 2006 16:00:27 GMT

So it seems that Philips' R&D people have been working on a scheme to obviate our TV remote controls and hold us hostage to TV advertising. According to the patent description, Philips wants to add software tags to digital TV content that would prohibit your remote from switching the channel once a TV ad segment begins. So you can channel surf when your show is playing, but when that all important advertising dollar is at stake, you're stuck watching the Charmin bear or that ultra-annoying Pepto-Bismol commercial.

I don't believe this will make it into the real world. If it does, it'll signal the realy beginning for Internet TV as well as the end of civilized society.

(via Digg)

Next Prius Even More Gas Stingy

Tue, 11 Apr 2006 19:06:11 GMT

The UK magazine AutoExpress is reporting that the next version of the European Toyota Prius could reach 113 miles per gallon--which is worth about 94 mpg here in the U.S. because Brits just always need that little edge to feel superior. Reason is the same as the increase in battery life for laptops: Lithium ion batteries. Just give those things a little more cargo room, make them less ugly and I'll get in line as soon as my lease is up.

(via LeftLaneNews)

Army Gets a Force Field

Mon, 10 Apr 2006 15:58:35 GMT

According to this report from HighT3ch, the Army is going to deploy a force field-style system, called the Trophy Active Defense System (ADS) though some news stories in the defense sector are also calling it the Active Protection System (APS). This post refers to an imminent deployment, though the system was successfully tested a couple of weeks ago, according to DefenseWorld. Fast turnaround.

The system, being marketed by General Dynamics, is apparently designed for use against RPG munitions. Seems to be a sensor net that detects an incoming missile and then throws a beam of fragments at it that cause it to explode in the air. Pretty neat stuff, and there's a video at this link as well.

(via Digg)

Coolest Gaming Accessory Ever...Tho It's Not Actually Here Yet

Tue, 28 Mar 2006 16:42:31 GMT

Mitsubishi Research Labs is showing Web videos of a new tabeltop gaming table built specifically for WarCraft III. Very cool stuff. It's a projection onto a 2D tabeltop surface that responds to both voice and touch commands--or combinations.

Players can point their fingers at screen locations and call to specific units to converge on that spot and perform an action. The table is even smart enough to handle such input from multiple players at once.

No word on when, if ever, this'll see the light of day, but it's looking pretty far along judging by the video. Wonder what it'll cost.

(via Engadget)

MIT Invents Subspace

Tue, 21 Mar 2006 20:21:12 GMT

"Hail the USS Oliverius over subspace, Ensign." How many times has Picard or Janeway or Kirk or my Momma said something like that while on the bridge of a Federation starship. Used to result in really cruddy radio communications, but later it allowed for wonderfully high-quality video conferencing. Gotta love it.

Love it so much, that MIT researchers actually worked on the solution before the problem really exists. Those crazy MIT Dept. of EE scientists put together a light-based communication system that could supply high-speed bandwidth to outerspace right this minute.

Too bad we don't have anyone out there right now. Otherwise, you could be orbiting the moon and bidding on eBay at the same time. Sweet.

(via Digg)