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Weekly Wrapup: Real Time Web, Larger Kindle, CloneCloud, And More...In this edition of the Weekly Wrapup, our newsletter summarizing the top stories of the week, we analyze the Real Time Web, interview the founder of a venture tech firm, report on a new and larger version...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 1:00 pm Macs With 3G — More Connectivity, More Problemsnarramissic writes "In a recent blog post, Josh Fruhlinger muses on the possibility of 3G radio receivers turning up in future Mac notebooks (as foretold by Apple job postings and the mention of WWAN hardware in Snow Leopard beta releases). 'At first glance,' says Fruhlinger, 'this seems like a reasonably awesome idea.' But will the target market be willing to take on the additional telecom charge? 'And, more to the point,' he says, 'most of us have gotten accustomed to the idea of one Internet connection per household, shared with a wireless router. The latter idea could be covered by a router that connects to the Internet over a 3G connection — something like the MiFi hotspot. It wouldn't surprise me if Apple had such a thing in the pipeline, an Airport station (Airport Mobility?) that didn't need to be plugged into the wall. That would explain the search for 3G experts, anyway.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 May 2009 | 12:16 pm Microsoft says EU may boost Google dominance: report (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 May 2009 | 11:59 am Haute Teddy Bears - Push Button's Quirky A/W '09 Line Puts Plushies On Models' Heads (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Korean label Push Button makes brilliantly quirky clothes and therefore it should not be too shocking that they have their models wearing teddy bear heads to model the clothes. This...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 11:40 am Nine toxic chemicals added to banned list: UNNine chemicals, including headlice treatment lindane, have been added to a list of poisonous substances that are to be eliminated under the Stockholm Convention, the UN Environment...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 11:34 am UC Berkeley Health Service Data Stolen By Overseas Criminals - InformationWeek
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 9 May 2009 | 11:24 am Apple's New Rule: iPhone 3.0 Compatibility Required - InformationWeek
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 9 May 2009 | 11:22 am Fun High-Speed Photography - These Stomach-Churning Rollercoaster Shots Are Awesome (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) There is nothing like a high-speed roller coaster shot. No matter how much planning you put into it, somehow it always goes wrong the moment the camera takes the photo. From riders...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 11:20 am Toronto Comic Arts Festival today! Today is the start of programming at the Toronto Comics Arts Festival, featuring everyone from Scott McCloud to R.Stevens and plenty in between. It's on at the Metro Reference Library, with the show starting at 9 and the programming starting at 10. I can't find any info on admission prices -- I know it was free in years gone by, though.
Toronto Comics Arts Festival Toronto Comic Arts Festival today!Today is the start of programming at the Toronto Comics Arts Festival, featuring everyone from Scott McCloud to R.Stevens and plenty in between. It's on at the Metro Reference Library, with the show starting...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 11:19 am Co-Branding Parodies - Danger Maiden Productions Mocks Star Wars and Axe (VIDEO)(TrendHunter.com) Danger Maiden Productions has done a fantastic job with this hilarious, sexy and entertaining parody video. Weve seen a few great parodies, each entertaining in their satirical examination...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 11:00 am $27,000 Jeans - Psychedelic Designer Levis by Damien Hurst(TrendHunter.com) Not only are these Levis the most expensive in the world, they are the most extraordinarily psychedelic designer pants that Ive come across on the market. At first glance, the explosive...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 10:39 am 57 Innovative Simulations - From Fake Jail Cells to Skydiving Simulations (CLUSTER)(TrendHunter.com) With so many innovative simulations, who needs reality? That seems to be the scary question some people feel younger generations might begin asking as they grow up being totally immersed...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 10:19 am Business Time for Personal Smartphones [Digital Daily]
An interesting point. That said, I imagine it will take a while for enterprise to overcome its security concerns over such uses. And for their employees to feel comfortable conducting personal business on company-issued handsets governed by those annoying corporate communications policies…. Source: All Things Digital | 9 May 2009 | 10:00 am DIY Bamboo Bikes - Build Your Own Bike With the Bamboo Bike Studio in NY (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Looking for an eco-friendly way to travel? The Bamboo Bike Studio in Brooklyn, NY is hosting weekend workshops to build your own bamboo bike. Rather than using aluminum, steel and...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 10:00 am Sarcastic Boobvertising - Girl Racers Campaign Brings Out the Dual Airbags (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Sky TV sure knows how to promote its Girl Racers reality series. The ads embrace the fact that this show combines two of every straight mans dreams: girls and cars! Zooming in on breasts,...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 9:39 am Hand Shaking Is So Medieval. Lets End It.Every once in a while we go on a little rant here about something that bugs us. In the past we've done hit jobs on email, voicemail and business cards at various times. But there's one thing that bugs...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 May 2009 | 9:26 am Hand Shaking Is So Medieval. Let’s End It.
I’m not just talking about the sweaty palms handshake, which sends shudders down my back. I even take issue with the firm and dry handshakes that we engage in every day. I’d like to see the ritual ended. Hand shaking goes back a long, long way. Wikipedia says it was practiced as far back as the 2nd century BC. The story I’ve always heard is that shaking a someone’s hand shows that you hold no weapon. Since most people are right handed and would hold a knife in that hand, we shake right hands. Whatever the reason for hand shaking, it isn’t needed. Like the Qwerty keyboard (which is designed to slow us down so that the typewriter doesn’t jam), it’s a relic of an older time that’s not only no longer needed but actually causes inefficiency. I can live with the keyboard. But I’d rather not have to catch another flu or cold from a hand shake. The fact is that hand shakes spread germs. You shake someone’s hand and then touch your nose or mouth and you can get sick. I don’t like getting sick. But to turn down a hand shake is such an insult that there’s little choice. The hand is out there, in front of me waiting, so like everyone else I grasp it. Whenever I do shake a hand I’m completely aware of it, can’t stop thinking about it, until I can wash my hands. Sometimes in a meeting I’ll shake hands all around, then excuse myself to the bathroom to wash my hands, then return. It draws attention, though, and people have pointed it out to me as odd. My response is that it’s nothing personal but I don’t want to get sick. If I get sick I have to take time off and it hurts my business. And there’s a good chance I’ll get other TechCrunchers sick, too, which is doubly bad. Anyone who pays attention knows that most people don’t wash their hands after using the bathroom, which should be a criminal offense. Probably ten times a week I don’t shake hands with the excuse that I’m “coming down with something,” even though I’m not.
Thanks to Laura Boychenko for researching hand shakes for me. It’s a fascinatingly heathen practice. Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Source: TechCrunch | 9 May 2009 | 9:26 am Digitizing Literary Treasures Leads To New Findsstoragedude writes "The WSJ has a cool article on how the race to digitize literary treasures has led to a trove of new discoveries. Quoting: 'Improved technology is allowing researchers to scan ancient texts that were once unreadable — blackened in fires or by chemical erosion, painted over or simply too fragile to unroll. Now, scholars are studying these works with X-ray fluorescence, multispectral imaging used by NASA to photograph Mars and CAT scans used by medical technicians ... By taking high-resolution digital images in 14 different light wavelengths, ranging from infrared to ultraviolet, Oxford scholars are reading bits of papyrus that were discovered in 1898 in an ancient garbage dump in central Egypt. So far, researchers have digitized about 80% of the collection of 500,000 fragments, dating from the 2nd century B.C. to the 8th century A.D. The texts include fragments of unknown works by famous authors of antiquity, lost gospels and early Islamic manuscripts.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 May 2009 | 9:14 am AT&T to buy territories from Verizon for $2.35B (AP)AP - AT&T Inc. said Friday it will buy the assets of Verizon Wireless in 79 mainly rural areas for $2.35 billion, a deal that will affect more than 1 million subscribers.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 May 2009 | 9:12 am Notify.me Brings Instant RSS Updates To Yet Another Browser Toolbar
It’s not that Notify.me at its core isn’t useful, albeit not very unique. For a lot of people, instant updates for anything that has an RSS feed (not only blogs or news sites, but also classifieds listings, for example) with the ability to filter incoming by keyword makes sense, particularly if they need a lot of control over how the updates get delivered based on what the source is. Yet I can’t help thinking that the latest feature the startup is releasing, a browser toolbar, has ‘overkill’ written all over. What the toolbar does is bring Notify.me’s core functionalities to a persistent toolbar whenever you’re browsing the web. Users can set delivery methods and filter rules directly from the toolbar, and the company has also integrated Ping.fm (which it recently partnered with) and AddThis directly to the toolbar so you can easily share and bookmark websites you’re visiting on a wide variety of social networking services. Personally, I wouldn’t use this service as I would find it incredibly annoying to constantly have a toolbar on my screen that’s not only persistent but also pings me with new notifications every so often. There’s an abundance of new toolbars launching nowadays, and somehow I don’t think that’s what the next web is all about (quite the contrary, actually). I would love to get your thoughts on this as well. Similar services include Yotify and Notifixious.
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Source: TechCrunch | 9 May 2009 | 8:42 am Woman kills elephant with bow & arrowThis proud individual, Teressa Groenwald-Hagerman, is the first woman to kill an elephant with a bow and arrow. She reportedly spent eight months working out to handle a bow big enough to take down an elephant in Zimbabwe. From The Telegraph:"Woman hunter kills elephant with bow and arrow" (Thanks, Kirsten Anderson!) Source: Boing Boing | 9 May 2009 | 8:33 am Nations gather for oceans talks in IndonesiaMinisters and officials from 70 nations will gather in Indonesia on Monday for talks on protecting the world's oceans and to help set the stage for climate change talks in December. The...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 6:43 am Why Game Exclusivity Deals Are Feeding the HateParz writes "The recent announcement that the upcoming Ghostbusters game will be a timed PlayStation exclusive in the PAL territories — revealed a mere month before release — has set a nasty precedent which could have long-term repercussions for the industry. This Gameplayer article explores how this generation of gaming has spiraled into a tit-for-tat war on third-party exclusivity deals instigated by Sony and Microsoft, and the effect it is having on the psychology of the consumers. The Ghostbusters developers aren't pleased by Sony's deal, and the Guardian questions whether the game will be big enough to really affect console sales."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 May 2009 | 6:08 am Tourism, both bane and bonanza for Arctic researchersCoping with blizzards and polar bears is part of daily life for researchers in the Arctic, but what really gets under their skin is the hordes of tourists who arrive in diesel-spouting...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 6:00 am AT&T Buys Some Assets From Verizon Wireless - New York Times
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 9 May 2009 | 4:59 am ATT to buy Verizon assets for 2.35 billion (AFP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 May 2009 | 4:34 am What To Do When a Megacorp Wants To Buy You?Anonymous Entrepreneur writes "I run a small technology startup company; so small that our offices are still located in a room in my home. We are just some young friends, fresh from college, and we haven't started having regular sales, as 99% of our time is invested in development. A large corporation has just approached us, trying to persuade us to sell our company. The money is fair enough, and the employment conditions would seem excellent, since they would enable us to manage good-sized motivated teams, but we are very emotionally attached to our development and we place great importance to being independent. We founded our company because we didn't want to follow rules. We wanted to be the ones who make the rules instead. Money really doesn't mean much to us as long as we can do whatever we want while excelling at our passions. We feel that by accepting the offer, we couldn't achieve the maximum of our potential, and one of us joked that if we get in contact with the corporate environment and accept their money, we risk becoming lazy. Another member is more pragmatic, saying that accepting some money now is better than waiting for the development to go gold, even though all of us agree that if we finished our thing, we'd earn more than what the corporation has offered us. We would be very interested to know your thoughts and viewpoints, especially if you have ever faced a similar dilemma."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 May 2009 | 4:11 am Star Trek Gallery: Then and Now<<
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Everything Star Trek is new again as J.J. Abrams reboots the beloved franchise this weekend in theaters around the world. Wired.com does a photographic comparison study of the old-school crew that manned the U.S.S. Enterprise in the original TV series and the new, wet-behind-the-ears version. The original update of the Enterprise, as seen in the first three Trek movies (then rebuilt for a couple more), inspired much of the look of the new movie's flagship. Just ignore the astronomical odds against the new (old) Enterprise being built in an Iowa cornfield within easy driving distance of James T. Kirk's childhood home. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
The original James T. Kirk (played by William Shatner) enjoyed natural gravitas, warm lighting and a sturdy wood-and-leather command chair. The new version (Chris Pine) boldly plays in the snow without a coat and survives bouts with killer CGI. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
Spock Prime (Leonard Nimoy) was emotionless, calm and contemplative. Zachary Quinto's version is more intense and driven. He's also so uptight that if he broke wind, glass would shatter. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
The original Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) opened the door for generations of black actresses like her successor, Zoe Saldana. But Saldana lacks 1960s Uhura's natural curves as, like most 21st-century actresses, she doesn't appear to have eaten since 1974. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
Though he takes some unnecessary ribbing these days for coming out of the closet, George Takei's Sulu (above, left) was a sober and professional presence on the old Enterprise bridge. John Cho (second photo below) follows up with the same basic performance. Meanwhile, while the original Chekov (Walter Koenig, above, right) was originally brought in as a Russian navigator meant to look like a Beatle, Anton Yelchin's version (first photo below) is a Russian technician meant to look like a poodle. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photos: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
While the original Montgomery Scott (James Doohan) could hit the sauce occasionally, he was the best engineer in the fleet and a formidable commander when Kirk was off chasing green girlfriends. The new Scotty (Simon Pegg) is used mostly for comic relief in Abrams' Trek. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
Alternate Star Trek origin stories from novels and comic books use the dramatic tactic of having Kirk and Spock take an immediate dislike to each other. The new version wanders down that same road, though the two heroes get on the same page in time to save the day. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
In the '60s version of Trek, Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley) was Kirk's sounding board and conscience. In Abrams' Trek, McCoy (Karl Urban) is more of Kirk's comrade and enabler. We'll see if the relationship grows in sequels. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
Star Trek's antagonists can take very different forms. In Abrams' reboot, Eric Bana plays Nero, a blood-thirsty, revenge-crazed Romulan villain. The Kirk of years past took out plenty of alien scum like Nero, but he struggled against fuzzier, less-threatening foes like Tribbles. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures 
The original cast of the U.S.S. Enterprise was mature and seasoned — well into their five-year mission when fans caught up to them. The new cast is filled with rookies, forced into action because Earth is in dire need — and because film executives decided moviegoers can't stand to watch anyone over 25. 
Top photo: Courtesy of NBC Bottom photo: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 May 2009 | 4:00 am 'Star Trek' Blowback: Weigh In to Win Hefty Blu-ray SetTell us what you think of J.J. Abrams' fast and furious reboot of the classic sci-fi franchise, and you could win a box set containing the first six Trek movies. Plus: See all Wired.com's coverage of the new movie.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 May 2009 | 4:00 am TwitDoc: Proving That Every File Format Will Eventually Be Shareable Over Twitter
Twitter is quickly turning into the media sharing platform of choice for many people, despite the fact that it, uh, doesn’t have any actual media sharing functionality. But a variety of services are popping up to fill the need, including countless Twitter-specific sites for sharing images, music, and video. Today TwitDoc is launching what appears to be the first service for sharing documents over Twitter, bringing support for PDFs, Microsoft Office Documents, and a bunch of other file formats. The site has integrated with popular document sharing hub Scribd to make the process as painless as possible - it only takes around 20 seconds to send a document, and you don’t have to sign up to get started. To use the service, you enter your Twitter user name and password, choose the document or photo you’d like to send out, and add any text you’d like to include alongside the document’s link. Hit upload and you’re done. It’s a handy tool, but I doubt it will reach the same level of popularity as TwitPic and its ilk - most people simply don’t have as many documents that they’d like to share with all of their Twitter followers. Still, it will definitely be helpful for sharing reports you find interesting, or scanned images that wouldn’t be readable if they were shrunk and compressed (which some image services do).  Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Source: TechCrunch | 9 May 2009 | 3:33 am Rapper offers free "Stimulus Package" (Reuters)Reuters - Oakland rap legend Del the Funky Homosapien, like all musicians, is coming to grips with a rapidly changing music industry. Unlike most, though, he's looking to himself for the solution, personally bankrolling his new album, "Funk Man (The Stimulus Package)," and releasing it as a free download.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 May 2009 | 3:23 am PRESS DIGEST - British Business Press - May 9Investment bankers are set to benefit by an estimated 54 million pounds from fees generated by rights issues at the house builder Taylor Wimpey and 3i, Britain's oldest private equity house. JP Morgan...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 3:19 am Weirdest game mods ever
This list of really weird mods is pretty fun, although 6 is a pretty low number to choose when you’re looking at weird mods — especially when two of them are Left 4 dead sound packs (snap into a slim jim!). I’d say where are the subtly weird ones, like a mod that re-enables Aeris in FFVII? That’s weird because the people who want it are creepy. There’s a whole world of mods out there — start at the beginning, then look at the ones out there for Crysis and stuff.
Source: CrunchGear | 9 May 2009 | 2:47 am Shuttle Atlantis set for Monday launch: NASANASA has announced that conditions are favorable to launch its final shuttle mission to the Hubble space telescope on May 11. All systems were go, according to Jeremy Graeber, assistant...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 2:20 am German Gov To Ban Paintballing After Shootingwhoever57 writes "In response to the school shooting in March in which 16 people were killed, the German Government plans to ban all games in which players shoot at each other with pellets. The rationale for this is that 'paintball trivializes violence and risks lowering the threshold for committing violent acts.' Fines could be up to 5,000 euros."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 May 2009 | 2:15 am Eleven Movies About Google’s Browser, One Cool Song [MediaMemo]
Here are 11 ads the company has commissioned to promote its Chrome browser. Most are designed to be “viral videos”, though you might see one of them — “Evolution of Simple” — on TV, because Google (GOOG) will be buying some airtime for the spot using its TV Ads platform. So really, it’s twofer — an ad for both the browser and Google’s attempt to break into television advertising, which hasn’t gotten very far to date. Andrew LaVallee at Digits has more about the campaign, and you can download the browser here. Unless you’re using an Apple (AAPL) computer, since Chrome doesn’t work (yet) on Macs. I’m not a huge fan of any of these, but what do I know? I liked those Microsoft (MSFT) ads with Jerry Seinfeld that inspired much braying from the Web’s amateur ad critics. Though I do sort of like the “Google Chrome” spot, with that Beatles/ELO soundtrack that turns out to be the work of someone named Tim Meyers. The song has also been used to sell Lay’s potato chips in a cool/creepy Canadian commercial; it also showed up on an episode of ABC’s Ugly Betty. If you ask me, it sounds like something you’re hear in an Apple ad. Source: All Things Digital | 9 May 2009 | 2:13 am Google Urges National Inventory of Radio SpectrumHugh Pickens writes "Google, the wireless industry, and consumer advocates have come together to support a bill that would require the federal government to take a complete inventory of the national airwaves to determine what spectrum is being used, how it is being used and who is using it. The government needs to clean up its sloppy record keeping, they say, or the US risks running out of wireless capacity with the increasing use of the mobile Internet. 'Radio spectrum is a natural resource, something that here in the US is owned by all of us American citizens,' wrote Richard Whitt, Google's counsel for telecom and media. 'Most of us don't give it much thought — and yet use of these airwaves is precisely what makes many of our modern communication systems possible.' The new law, if passed, would require the Federal Communications Commission and the National Telecommunications & Information Administration to report on the use of all spectrum bands between 300 megahertz and 3.5 gigahertz, including information on the licenses or government user operating in each band and whether the spectrum is actually in use. The unusual alliance between Google, public interest groups, and big telecommunications companies may be temporary. The telecom companies want to have the opportunity to buy any extra spectrum at an auction while Google advocates the use of new technologies that would allow the spectrum to be shared by whoever needs it."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 May 2009 | 2:10 am CORRECTED - UPDATE 3-AT&T to buy some Alltel for $2.35 bln*AT&T to buy Alltel assets from Verizon for $2.35 bln cashSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 2:07 am AT&T to buy territories from Verizon for $2.35BAT&T Inc. is buying the assets of Verizon Wireless in 79 mainly rural areas for $2.35 billion. Verizon Wireless is forced to sell the service areas, which are spread over 18 states, to...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 2:06 am BioShock 2 Headed for Multiplayer Mayhem (NewsFactor)NewsFactor - The first details of BioShock 2's evolution are finally emerging. On Thursday, 2K Games, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, announced a partnership with Digital Extremes to develop the multiplayer experience for BioShock 2.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 May 2009 | 1:55 am AT&T to buy some Alltel assets for $2.35 billionPHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - AT&T Inc said Friday it will buy the bulk of Alltel Wireless assets being divested by Verizon Communications Inc for $2.35 billion, and will sell some...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 1:53 am VFX engineer on why Star Trek ain't IMAXMy friend, a VFX engineer, shares this frustration with the IMAX version of Star Trek (which she otherwise dug): Just for future reference, ST was not shot in IMAX, and therefore is not a true imax film. imax is 65mm, 15-perf film, with an aspect ratio of 1:1.37 and a MASSIVE amount of image area, approximately 4x the size of VistaVision (VV is also the same format 35mm still cameras shoot, imagine a negative almost four times the surface area of one that was shot in your still camera.) Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 9 May 2009 | 1:51 am Long exposure shows Roomba’s path around your living room
That’s pretty cool, but now all I can think of are other ways of tracking the little bot. Webcam on its “head”? Merge multiple normal exposures? Attach a sharpie to its “tail”? So many experiments to do, and I don’t even own a Roomba! I guess when I move to my new hardwood floor apartment, I can track my Fukitorimushi. [via Doobybrain, Daily What, and Gizmodo]
Source: CrunchGear | 9 May 2009 | 1:50 am Harman Kardon Jumps on the Blu-ray Player Bandwagon [Blu-ray Players]Known mostly for its lavish—and expensive—home theater gadgets, Harmon Kardon will be releasing its first Blu-ray player, the BDP 10, sometime in May for $940. The BDP 10 will be able to...Source: Gizmodo | 9 May 2009 | 1:30 am NASA set for dramatic shuttle rescue - msnbc.com
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 9 May 2009 | 1:26 am Oddball Tech: Mood bridges, fuel made out of scum, and how you can go into outer space for freeSection: Gadgets / Other, Green, Lifestyle, Transportation, Web, Websites  How does your bridge feel?Maybe your mom or dad have an old mood ring laying around. It’s supposed to let people know how the wearer is feeling. Soon, bridges may tell you they aren’t feeling too well. A new polymer is being developed that changes color when stressed. Instead of projections and calculations of when a bridge is most stressed, there would actually be a visual indicator of what’s going on before it’s too late. Even more crazy is the idea that this may actually lead to “self-sensing and self-reinforcing” materials according to Nancy Sottos, head of the research team developing this polymer. Other applications include building the polymer into airplane components. [Source]
Make a fuel out of scumSure, you can make fuel out of corn, but there are hungry people out there. Don’t use corn to make biofuel. Use scum. Research is being conducted on scum from the Long Island Sound to create a fuel . What’s actually being used is algae. The idea is to have a very sustainable source for biofuels. No, I won’t do any scum from Long Island jokes. [Source]
See space one way or anotherWant to see space? How about in 3D? You can do that now thanks to Microsoft and NASA. Put together NASA’s pictures, Microsoft’s Virtual Earth and Microsoft’s Photosynth and you’ve got 3D space to check out. Will this get people more interested in space exploration? [Source] [See it in action] Maybe you want to see space the old fashioned way. Go there. The President has also asked for $18 billion put aside for NASA’s 2010 budget. What is NASA planning to do with that money? Checking out climate change and a return trip to the moon. Maybe they’ll use that color-changing polymer on the spacecrafts, too. If you want to see space this way, you better get in shape. [Source] Full Story » | Written by Iyaz Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 May 2009 | 1:01 am Why Doesn't Balancing Barn Home Fall On That Little Girl? [Architecture]I don't want it to fall on her, but I don't understand how this Balancing Barn building is gonna work, if 50% of it hangs over a slope, in "free space." Modern country houses are crazy, because...Source: Gizmodo | 9 May 2009 | 1:00 am SOBEaR Is the Perfect Gift for Sorority Girls Who Don't Know Their Limits [Robots]Touted as a responsible robot bartender, SOBEaR is a DIY teddy bear with a built-in breathalyzer that'll only dispense liquor depending on how drunk you are. In order to put him to work, patrons...Source: Gizmodo | 9 May 2009 | 12:30 am Nuts: Twitter Inventor About To Launch His Next Project, Code-named Squirrel Almost immediately following Twitter coming back from a planned downtime this afternoon, co-founder and current chairman Jack Dorsey sent out a tweet letting his followers know that he was, "Getting ready to embark on something new and entirely different. Excited!" Dorsey is getting ready to launch his next startup, he's confirmed to us. As the guy who actually invented Twitter, this is notable.
Though Dorsey declined to comment on what his new startup is right now, we hear from a source knowledgeable about the new company that it's code-named Squirrel. Here's what else we know so far: It's a service that allows anyone with an iPhone to become a merchant. Just like the wireless credit card swipers you see at certain shops and restaurants, you can carry around your iPhone and take payments. Apparently, the idea is that this will allow any individual to take credit card payments on a mobile device, kind of like what PayPal does for the web.
Source: MobileCrunch | 9 May 2009 | 12:28 am Nuts: Twitter Inventor About To Launch His Next Project, Code-named SquirrelAlmost immediately following Twitter coming back from a planned downtime this afternoon, co-founder and current chairman Jack Dorsey sent out a tweet letting his followers know that he was, "Getting ready to embark on something new and entirely different. Excited!" Dorsey is getting ready to launch his next startup, he's confirmed to us. As the guy who actually invented Twitter, this is notable.
Though Dorsey declined to comment on what his new startup is right now, we hear from a source knowledgeable about the new company that it's code-named Squirrel. Here's what else we know so far: It's a service that allows anyone with an iPhone to become a merchant. Just like the wireless credit card swipers you see at certain shops and restaurants, you can carry around your iPhone and take payments. Apparently, the idea is that this will allow any individual to take credit card payments on a mobile device, kind of like what PayPal does for the web.
Source: CrunchGear | 9 May 2009 | 12:27 am Court reinstates Yahoo lawsuit over fake profilesLOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Friday reinstated a breach of contract claim against Yahoo Inc by an Oregon woman who said the company failed to remove nude photos and fake...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 12:15 am Broken Steel: A Must-Have Add-on - Gamespy.com
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 9 May 2009 | 12:15 am When Comets AttackRed Flayer writes "Popular Mechanics is running a story that describes one of the more interesting explanations for the Tunguska explosion of 1908: 'Now, a controversial new scientific study suggests that a chunk of a comet caused the 5-10 megaton fireball, bouncing off the atmosphere and back into orbit around the sun. The scientists have even identified a candidate Tunguska object — now more than 100 million miles away — that will pass close to Earth again in 2045.' Note that Popular Mechanics' definition of 'close to' is somewhat different than most people's — the comet will be 3.8 million miles away at its closest. At any rate, the key to this theory is that hydrogen and oxygen in the ice shard exploded upon entering the atmosphere, resulting in the difficult-to-explain blast pattern (previous theories contend that the object must have 'skipped' on the atmosphere and then re-entered at the exact same spot). This would also, sadly, dash the theory that Nikola Tesla was responsible."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 May 2009 | 12:13 am U.S. union plea: turn off lights in Tokyo, SeoulWARREN, Michigan, May 8 (Reuters) - A United Auto Workers official on Friday called on the Obama administration to push General Motors Corp toward a restructuring that would keep the lights on in American...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 May 2009 | 12:09 am Air audit, Amazon's Kindle DX, Intel in the EU - Reuters
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 9 May 2009 | 12:05 am Nuts: Twitter Inventor About To Launch His Next Project, Code-named Squirrel
Though Dorsey declined to comment on what his new startup is right now, we hear from a source knowledgeable about the new company that it’s code-named Squirrel. Here’s what else we know so far: It’s a service that allows anyone with an iPhone to become a merchant. Just like the wireless credit card swipers you see at certain shops and restaurants, you can carry around your iPhone and take payments. Apparently, the idea is that this will allow any individual to take credit card payments on a mobile device, kind of like what PayPal does for the web. Squirrel is both a physical device add-on to the iPhone as well as an iPhone app. Ingeniously, the device derives enough power from the physical swiping of the credit card to then read the card, so it requires no external power from the iPhone or anywhere else. The physical device apparently looks something like an acorn, thus the code name Squirrel. But Dorsey is not leaving Twitter. He told me just now, “I’ll never leave Twitter, it’s my life’s work and baby and I’ll always be a major part of the endeavor, strategically and operationally. But, I do have some other ideas I’m pursuing and yes, we’re going to launch soon.” Twitter was Dorsey’s idea when he was an engineer at the company Odeo, a podcasting company which current Twitter CEO Evan Williams ran at the time. Odeo ran Twitter as a side project for a while, before realizing that it had more potential than Odeo itself did. Twitter became the company, and Dorsey became the CEO. But there was always some question as to whether or not that role was a good fit for Dorsey, and so a few months ago, Williams and he swapped roles, with Dorsey taking the role of Chairman.
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Source: TechCrunch | 9 May 2009 | 12:02 am Google CEO: I Ain’t Afraid of No Feds … [Digital Daily]Source: All Things Digital | 9 May 2009 | 12:02 am Bye Bye Giz, Earth, It's Been Great [Notes]Today's my last day working for Giz, and in turn, my last day on Earth. Here am I sitting in a tin can, far above the world. BUT SERIOUSLY. As much as I would like to end this signal week in Gizmodo...Source: Gizmodo | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am Microsoft to EU: You Might Want to Take a Look at Google When You’re Through With Us … [Digital Daily]
Why? Well, Opera and Firefox developer Mozilla use Google’s (GOOG) search engine, as does Google’s Chrome browser. Forcing Microsoft to bundle the three of them into Windows would amount to the company giving Google a nice little homestead on the Windows desktop. “Not only would Google’s browser Chrome suddenly be on all Windows PCs, but it would strengthen Google’s dominance in search advertising,” a source told the Times. Interesting argument. Strategically savvy, too, in that it feeds into growing concerns about Google and its ubiquity and power, and comes as the company faces increasing antitrust scrutiny at home and abroad. That said, it doesn’t really speak to the wrongdoing of which Microsoft is accused. It does, however, push Google directly into the EC’s crosshairs. And perhaps that was Microsoft’s intention all along. Source: All Things Digital | 8 May 2009 | 11:49 pm Google Calendar Nerds Up For Star Trek [Google]If you add "stardate:" to your "Other Calendars" field in your Google cal, you can make all your plans just like Kirk and Picard would. [NYT]Source: Gizmodo | 8 May 2009 | 11:40 pm In China, $700 Puts a Spammer in Business (PC World)PC World - It's a great deal, if you're a spammer.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 8 May 2009 | 11:30 pm LegaLock Secure Transcriptions, LLC, Recently Selected as the Best New Business in AmericaRolls out the country's only commercial transcription service with a computer system authorized to process sensitive but unclassified (SBU) government data.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 11:22 pm Tip Us, Follow Us on Twitter [Announcements]Twitter, Twitter, Twitter—we tweet our thoughts all day. And if you love Gizmodo, come follow our tweets today, hey! If you just can't get enough of Gizmodo—or maybe our site is blocked...Source: Gizmodo | 8 May 2009 | 11:20 pm Gadgetell Experiment: Naked Windows week 1 updateSection: Computers, Security, Software / Applications, Features, Originals
Cautious machineSo far, the machine is used to backup DVDs and plenty of web browsing. Using TrendMicro’s online antivirus scan showed 14 cookies and nothing else mucking up the system. The machine runs pretty smoothly and it’s pretty unprotected. The idiot boxApparently, I’m not acting stupid enough because there are 20 cookies on the box and nothing else wrong with the system. It also runs smoothly and I am using Internet Explorer 6.0 so far. I have sought out suggestions as to how to act more dumb, and lots of people suggest visiting plenty of porn sites. Maybe I’ll do that—for science. I’m also going to start downloading applications freeware and shareware that I think an average person would download. Maybe a photo editor, a coupon clipper, or something else. If you’ve got suggestions, throw them in the comments. Full Story » | Written by Iyaz Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 8 May 2009 | 11:17 pm Law of Armed Conflict To Apply To Cyberwarcharter6 writes "Gen. Kevin Chilton, the head of STRATCOM, just declared that the Law of Armed Conflict will apply to cyberwar, and that the US won't rule out conventional (read: kinetic) responses to cyber-attacks. This means that we consider state-supported 'hackers' to be subject to the Geneva Conventions and Customary International Law, including the rules of proportionality and distinction (i.e. if we catch them, we can try them for war crimes). Incidentally, it also means we consider non-state cyber-attackers to be illegal enemy combatants, which means we can do all kinds of nasty stuff to them."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 8 May 2009 | 11:14 pm Update: Seeqpod Fire Sale To Microsoft Not A Done Deal.
Earlier today, I wrote a post wondering whether music-search engine Seeqpod had finally sold itself to Microsoft because of a suggestive link on its homepage linking to Microsoft Search. Some other bloggers noticed also. Since then, I’ve been able to confirm that no acquisition has closed and that talks continue. Seeqpod is indeed speaking with Microsoft, but not about an outright acquisition. Rather, it is trying to negotiate a piecemeal sale of its technology assets and find new jobs for its core technology team. And while Microsoft seems to be interested in the largest chunk of Seeqpod’s assets, the company is speaking with other large search companies in hopes of finding a home for the other pieces. These assets include its targeted crawling system for finding playable media on the Web, its search index of 14 million playable search results and 500 million associated text pages, its recommendation and discovery system, five related patents, and the teams associated with each of these technologies. The fact that Seeqpod is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy makes this sort of fire sale easier to pull off. As far as the pending lawsuit with the music industry which forced it to seek protection under bankruptcy in the first place, there is no plan to settle at this point in time and “become an ATM machine” for the dying music industry, says my source. So why would Microsoft want to touch Seeqpod, even with a ten-foot pole? It’s underlying search technology can be applied to many other areas besides music search. Seeqpod actually got its start at Lawrence Livermore Lab and genomic search (matching genomic sequences to diseases, symptoms, and even foods), so there are health search applications. But more broadly Seeqpod’s technology is around “playable search.” It can bring back playable media results (audio and video, primarily) for practically any search term. That is the kind of technology and team that could help Microsoft’s general search engine. Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Source: TechCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 11:05 pm Computer Repairman Steals Hard Drive, Charges Company $2000 To Fix It [Criminal Masterminds]How does a computer repairman stay afloat in a troubled economy? If your name is Kevin Andrew Lutes, you perpetuate your own business through theft. Except for the getting caught part, Lute had one...Source: Gizmodo | 8 May 2009 | 11:00 pm Twitter And FriendFeed Battle For Downtime. Scoble’s Head Explodes.
FriendFeed, aka, the first alternative to talk about Twitter when Twitter is down, has completely lost contact with its data center, co-founder Bret Taylor tells me (hey, Twitter once lost a database, so this is nothing new). They’re investigating the problem right now. But where are we supposed to turn? Facebook? LinkedIn? Orkut? Scoble must being going crazy right now.
Update: FriendFeed co-founder Paul Buchheit lets everyone know (appropriately on Twitter), “The entire svcolo datacenter lost power. They expect to have it restored in 10min, but it will take at bit to bring up all systems.” Update 2: The downtime has now surpassed an hour. Here’s what Buchheit tells me, “Our entire datacenter lost power, and unfortunately it’s taking them a while to restore it.” He also noted that FriendFeed isn’t the only one affected, check out more of the carnage via this Twitter search. Crunch Network: MobileCrunch Mobile Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.
Source: TechCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 10:55 pm Sun Micro: We may have broken US anti-bribery law (AP)AP - Sun Microsystems Inc. may have broken anti-bribery laws with its actions in an unspecified location outside the United States, a revelation that would-be acquirer Oracle Corp. knew about before inking its $7.4 billion takeover deal.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 8 May 2009 | 10:45 pm Solar cycle will be weakest since 1928, forecasters say - New Scientist
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 8 May 2009 | 10:41 pm Show Your Mom You Care On Facebook On Mother’s Day — Then Unfriend Her
In celebration of Mother’s Day, Facebook now lets you list and connect to your family members in the “Basic Information” part of your profile. Starting later today and through this weekend, you will see a new “Family Members” section within the Information tab on your profile. You can enter your parents, children, sisters and brothers and can list family members even if they aren’t Facebook users. If you include their birthdays, Facebook will show their ages too. This is a good idea in theory and I think many users would have no problem listing and connecting siblings on their profiles. But I feel that a lot of people may not use this feature because they don’t want to list their parents on their profiles. I can see parents wanting to list their children but I’m not so sure that the feeling would be mutual, especially amongst younger users who may not want their parents to be connected to their lives via Facebook. Facebook also said it is considering an extended family section for the future. Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors
Source: TechCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 10:41 pm Mutant Thingamakit Has Way Too Many Light Hungry Tentacles [Thingamakit]Thingamakits have been every synth nerd's DIY light-controlled, analog noise friend. This abomination grew extra LED and photo-sensor tentacles that produce different tones and pitches, depending on...Source: Gizmodo | 8 May 2009 | 10:40 pm Joking Or Not, Official Or Not, Facebook Needs To Grow Up
It’s sort of funny when Facebook’s Randi Zuckerberg takes her frustration out on a club bouncer by saying (it has now been removed) it would be “a huge bummer if their facebook pages “accidentally” went down.” But it’s also terrible messaging for the fast growing company. Randi is founder Mark Zuckerberg’s sister, an executive of the company and also their unofficial spokesperson. Her statements carry weight, can be intimidating and considered an abuse of power. It’s also a recurring theme with Zuckerberg, who was in the news a couple of weeks ago for facilitating a minor but annoying violation of the Facebook terms of service to help out a friend. I’m not trying to paint this picture as something that it isn’t. Randi was clearly joking around and venting frustration. But it illustrates an underlying way of thinking that needs to be nipped in the bud. Facebook has long referred to user data as “our data,” ignoring the fact that in reality it’s the users’ data, not theirs to do with as they please. Likewise, Facebook is a community of people. This community will accept a benign dictatorship. Even a police state, perhaps, if the benefits are clear. But too many vendettas and shows of favoritism and that community could turn. I don’t believe that Randi would actually take action at Facebook to get back at this bouncer. But the message this sends is terrible, and it shows that she may not fully understand the weight of her words. It’s time for Facebook’s executive team to step things up a notch and realize that as fun as Facebook is, this isn’t a game. We’ve reached out to both Randi and Facebook for comment. Update: Facebook’s official statement is “This comment was clearly intended as a light-hearted joke. It goes without saying that there is no intended consequence beyond voicing a personal opinion.” The twitter message has been removed. Crunch Network: MobileCrunch Mobile Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.
Source: TechCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 10:38 pm Laptop pillow Over at Boing Boing Gadgets, Lisa Katayama beckons me to this "laptop pillow for sleepy workaholics." Source: Boing Boing | 8 May 2009 | 10:29 pm Kerouac on Firing Line In 1968, Jack Kerouac was a guest on William Buckley's Firing Line tv program. The video is viewable online at the Digital Beats: Kerouac site hosted by the Jack & Stella Kerouac Center for American Studies at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Kerouac on Firing Line
Previously:
Source: Boing Boing | 8 May 2009 | 10:25 pm IBM "Invents" 40-Minute Meetingstheodp writes "On Thursday, the USPTO disclosed that self-described patent reform leader IBM wants a patent covering its System and Method for Enhancing Productivity. So what exactly have the four IBM inventors — including two Distinguished Engineers — come up with? In a nutshell, the invention consists of not permitting business meetings to be scheduled for a full hour during certain parts of the day. From the application: 'The observation is that if an hour were shorter, by a small amount, we would be more focused, and accomplish the same amount of work, but in less real time, thereby increasing productivity.'" I just knew someone would one up my 43-minute-meeting patent. That's why I've already begun intense R&D on my latest invention: the 37-minute meeting! Register early for an early-bird discount. Register even earlier for more of one.Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 8 May 2009 | 10:23 pm Handmade Vertex Pyramid Cases Entomb Your PC [Pc Cases]Pyramid-shaped PC cases are nothing new, but these handmade Vertex-cases are a little snazzier than most—and will ensure that your PC successfully completes the transition to the afterlife. ...Source: Gizmodo | 8 May 2009 | 10:20 pm MomSourcing: Outsource Your Mother's Day Phone Call Want to wish your mom a happy Mother's Day this Sunday, but can't be bothered to fit the task in to your, uhh, four hour work week? Outsource it to mom-sourcing.co.in. * Yes, the site is a joke, operated by a friend of a personal friend of mine, and they have actually hired call center workers to call your mom for you. That part is not a joke. They swear they won't keep the data or use it for any other purpose, they just think this is a funny thing to do. Source: Boing Boing | 8 May 2009 | 10:14 pm Mr. T on ghosts, UFOs, Pee-wee Herman, etcBizarre magazine in the UK conducted a rather odd interview with 1980s icon, Mr. T."How Bizarre is... Mr. T"
Previously:
Source: Boing Boing | 8 May 2009 | 10:11 pm Hackers breach UC Berkeley computer database (AP)AP - University of California, Berkeley, officials said Friday that hackers infiltrated restricted computer databases, putting at risk health and other personal information on 160,000 students, alumni and others.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 8 May 2009 | 10:10 pm Chips that changed the worldIEEE Spectrum has compiled a deeply geeky and interesting article about "25 microchips that shook the world." Here's a bit about one of my faves, the Texas Instruments TMC0281 Speech Synthesizer from 1978. From IEEE Spectrum:"25 Microchips That Shook The World" Source: Boing Boing | 8 May 2009 | 10:03 pm DIY: Extend the life of a notebook battery
It’s actually easy to keep batteries properly conditioned. This handy guide covers some of the basics, like don’t completely discharge your battery before putting it on charge, if you use your laptop on the power supply all the time, unplug it a couple of times a week and let the battery discharge down and then recharge it. Use all these tricks, and while your battery won’t last forever, it should last quite a bit longer then if you abuse it.
Source: CrunchGear | 8 May 2009 | 10:00 pm Our Favorite Kotaku Posts of the Week [Roundups]Kotaku's got Hugh Jackman, BioShock 2 and Star Trek for you this week. If only Hugh Jackman could star in both those franchises. • BioShock 2's multiplayer actually expands the story •...Source: Gizmodo | 8 May 2009 | 10:00 pm Jordan Crane's Uptight #3
Here's the cover and a couple of interior pages for Jordan Crane's latest issue of Uptight, no. 3. It looks great!
Uptight No. 3 by Jordan Crane Schmidt doesn't see problem with Apple board seat - ZDNet
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 8 May 2009 | 9:54 pm Tech Jobs Still Scarce But Layoffs May Be Slowing Down
April proved to be a dismal month for technology sector jobs and overall employment, but there may be a light at the end of the tunnel. Granted, this morning brought sobering news of the U.S. unemployment rate hitting its highest mark since 1983: 8.9%. In the past month, 700,000 jobs were lost in the U.S., bringing the total number of U.S. jobs lost since December, 2007 to 5.7 million in April, 2009. However, while the economy continued to suffer from recessionary conditions over the past month, the pace of layoffs, at least in the tech sector may be decelerating. According to the TechCrunch Layoff Tracker, tech layoffs reached 330,000 in April, due to layoffs announced by Yahoo (675), Sony Ericsson (2,000), Toshiba (3,900), and Nokia (450) over the past month. Media companies were also hit with layoffs this month with NPR, The Tribune Company, and Conde Nast Digital all forced to implement job cuts. However, according to the numbers, job losses may be slowing down. It only took three weeks for tech layoffs to go from 200,000 to 300,000 in February and five weeks for layoffs to hit the 200,000 mark before that in January. Yet it has taken 11 weeks for layoffs to rise by 30,000, with the layoff tracker hitting 330,515 layoffs today. We are not completely out of the water yet. Last month, we reported the effects of the recession as measured by tech jobs site Dice.com, and it appears that available tech job listings have dropped even further in April. Dice.com is reporting a 47% year-over-year drop in available technology jobs for April, increasing slightly from a 45% year-over-year drop in March. April’s drop, as reported by Thomas Weisel Partners, is the highest annual drop Dice has seen so far this year, with February’s listings down 40.4% and January’s jobs down 39.3% (all year-over-year). Once again, Dice said that of the ten reported metropolitan areas, Silicon Valley was hit worst, with available tech jobs in the Valley down 54.2% year over year. Chicago (down 54.2%) and Boston (down 52.6%) also posted large declines. Our own smaller jobs site, CrunchBoard, has also seen a sharp decline in available tech jobs in the past month. A little over year ago 100 - 120 job listings were added to CrunchBoard each month. The number of new listings gradually declined with the onset of the recession and then fell significantly in November 2008, dropping from 68 to 37 listings from the month before. The listings rose slightly over the next few months, with February’s listings hovering around 60. In April, the listings dropped to a low of 35 job postings. But the Conference Board’s Online Help-wanted Index may show signs of hope in the economy, reporting that monthly job demand dropped 131,000 in April, down 28% year over year, compared to the 31% year over year decline in March. And Challenger, Gray & Christmas released a report yesterday that planned layoff announcements eased in April to 133,000, from 150,000 in March. Strangely enough, it looks like the fishing, farming and hunting industry has been able to weather the storm better than any other area. According to analyst Christa Quarles from Thomas Weisel, the agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting industry was the only industry that showed an increase in job vacancies in April. Maybe we are in the wrong industry. We’ve consistently believed in the resilience of the tech industry, especially given the industry’s past experience with economic downturns. Hopefully, the ease in layoffs is a sign that the tech industry is slowly but surely rebounding in the wake of the economic crisis. Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
Source: TechCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 9:49 pm All Solid State Drives Suffer Performance Drop-offLucas123 writes "The recent revelation that Intel's consumer X25-M solid state drive had a firmware bug that drastically affected its performance led Computerworld to question whether all SSDs can suffer performance degradation due to fragmentation issues. It seems vendors are well aware that the specifications they list on drive packaging represent burst speeds when only sequential writes are being recorded, but after use performance drops markedly over time. The drives with better controllers tend to level out, but others appear to be able to suffer performance problems. Still not fully baked are benchmarking standards that are expected out later this year from several industry organizations that will eventually compel manufacturers to list actual performance with regard to sequential and random reads and writes as well as the drive's expected lifespan under typical conditions."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 8 May 2009 | 9:48 pm Strong Financials Have Activision Exploring New Genres (NewsFactor)NewsFactor - In a press release issued late Thursday, video-game maker Activision announced its revenues for the first quarter were much better than expected. The company's booming sales and strong performance are heightening speculation that some of its leading game franchises may wind up on a screen near you in the not-too-distant future.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 8 May 2009 | 9:37 pm Journalist ADD, Blogger OCD and Our Collective DNA [Voices]If journalism were a psychological disorder, traditional print reporters have attention deficit disorder, while bloggers are more on the obsessive-compulsive-disorder side of the coin. This is according to Arianna Huffington, co-founder of the Huffington Post, who presented her testimony Wednesday to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation in a hearing about the future of journalism, along with Google’s Marissa Mayer, former Washington Post editor Steve Coll and others. Ms. Huffington called the profusion of online journalism “a Golden Age for news consumers,” not unexpected given her Web-media leanings. She said mainstream-media reporters must change their approach. “For too long, traditional media have been afflicted with attention deficit disorder–they are far too quick to drop a story–even a good one, in their eagerness to move on to the Next Big Thing.” Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 8 May 2009 | 9:33 pm NASA braces for manned space review - CNET News
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 8 May 2009 | 9:31 pm Firefighters, Evacuees Relying on Verizon's Wireless, Wireline NetworksNetwork Performance and Free Services Keep Relief Workers, Residents Connected SANTA BARBARA, Calif., May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Firefighters in the field and evacuees at shelters in Santa Barbara County are relying on the Verizon Wireless and wireline networks to stay connected during the Jesusita wildfire.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 9:31 pm Is Your PC Ready for Windows 7? This Tool Lets You Know - PC World
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 8 May 2009 | 9:30 pm Sony X-series OLED Walkman prices leaked
Sony’s X-series touchscreen Walkmans (Walkmen?) have made an appearance on Sony’s rewards wesite, aptly named SonyRewards.com, at $299 for the 16GB version and $399 for the 32GB version. Of course since it’s a rewards site, nothing’s in actual dollars. As such, the 16GB NWZX1051FBLK is listed at 29,995 points and the 32GB NWZX1061FBLK is listed at 39,995 points although neither are in stock. One reward point equals one penny. The players haven’t shown up on SonyStyle.com yet, although SonyInsider.com promises that prices remain constant between the two sites. So in a very roundabout way, the Sony X-series devices appear to be almost here and they’ll cost $299 and $399 depending on capacity. See our previous coverage here and here for specs and features. Sony X Walkman Shows Up on Sony Rewards Site [SonyInsider.com via Electronista]
Source: CrunchGear | 8 May 2009 | 9:30 pm My mom is a programmer, raging against the machine
This is my mom Karen. The photo was taken 30+ years ago while she was traveling in Japan on business as a buyer for a textiles company. Not long after, I was born and that career ended, but her work with fabrics continued, even flourished. By the time I was in elementary school, most every holiday season my teachers each received a handmade scarf, compliments of my family. Instead of knitting on the couch, my mom handcrafts scarves, rugs, and towels in a private studio on a foot-treadle floor loom the size of Smart car. Pretty neat stuff, but when you're a 3rd grade dude playing He-Man and defeating Contra, the absolute coolness of looms and weaving has a tendency to escape you. Until, that is, I realized my mom's basically a homebrew analog improv programmer of sorts. Find out how and why, and see her work, after the jump...
Professor Paul E. Dunne in the Computer Science Dept. at the University of Liverpool explains: prior to the development of mechanical looms and weaving machines, lengths of fabric had to be woven slowly by hand, the advent of powered tools for carrying out this task meant that quantities of fabric could be mass-produced at a far quicker rate than previously, thereby reducing its expense. There was one area, however, where the new machines could not compete with skilled manual workers: in the generation of cloth containing anything other than a plain (or at best extremely simple) woven pattern. Awesome. But not according to some. By 1812, textile factories in England housing "power looms" were literally being attacked by unemployed, disenchanted handloom weavers (some of the first Luddites). Fast forward 250 years to New York City and my mother. While studying textile design at FIT, she learned most of her colleagues HATED handweaving, because it wasn't considered an "art." Intrigued by the process and the challenge of mastering a craft no one wanted to do, she dove right in. Today there are power looms with electric drives and controlling software capable of importing bitmaps from Photoshop. But my mom keeps it old school. To honor her artistic and contrarian nature, I thought I'd find out more about how she goes from this... A wall of stored yarn in her studio and this... Yarn in waiting to this... In medias res w/her shuttle and bobbin resting on top or more often this... An intricate, original pattern What about the process of weaving first intrigued you? MOM: Perhaps I have a bit of spider-blood*, but I love the structure. The interlacing of the threads and the manipulation of the weaves. When did you buy your first loom? MOM: 40 years ago; it was a wedding gift from a person I worked for in the textile industry; through the years, I acquired others, but this is still my favorite. What looms have you owned over the years? MOM: Macomber 32"-- 8 harness, Macomber 60" -- 12 harness, Leclerc 8-harness table loom, Leclerc 4 Harness table loom, and various tapestry looms. (I still use the Macomber 32", Leclerc 8 harness table and tapestry looms.) Do you always adhere to carefully-constructed algorithmic patterns? MOM: Some weavers need "recipes" to follow. They create with little deviation and enjoy that process. Then there are the no-recipes weavers like me who feel the excitement of constantly pushing into untraveled areas. I enjoy setting up my loom to explore and learn. What goes into creating a pattern, and how/when/why do you choose to deviate? MOM: Weaving takes many forms, but in this case, we're discussing threads that meet at right angles and in a series/repeats (warp and weft) one has choices as to what fibers, colors, sizes and qualities to select for each threads/fabric desired. The more intriguing the selections, the more novel the resulting fabric.
MOM: For each project, I determine what fiber(s) color(s) and look I'd like to achieve. If making kitchen towels (above), I'd like mine to be different from what can be store purchased. I might start with an original design for a stripe pattern add in color in a combination that might not normally be used for kitchens, but maintain a fiber blend that will withstand wash and drying as needed for this end result. If weaving a scarf, I must consider the drape/hand and how this fabric feels next to skin. No itchy wools or fiber blends that will give a too stiff fabric. I would take into consideration color selection, if it were to be a gift for some one specifically. Therefore in weaving, generally the end cloth dictates what you might use in the process of selection. The excitement for me is to figure how to make these selections more novel/creative.
What the heck is going on in the above photo? MOM: These are tie-ins, which are used when you have an existing warp on your loom and want to either replace "some" of the warps (for color or other design concepts) OR you make an entirely new warp and tie each new warp end to an existing old end therefore saving time in drawing the warps through the heddles (eyes) and reed (dents). The stretch just means that before you roll the new warp on to the warp beam, you straighten them out. [ed. note: I'd liken this to adding a little script to some pre-existing software.] What is your shortlist for the best resources on learning how to weave? MOM: WeaveZine and the WeaveCast podcast, the HGA, ATA, and the WeaveTech and Tapestry2005 Yahoo lists. In fact, there is an LOL -- list of lists. There are also workshops held by various guilds. This is not my guild but one whose members are my friends. They are very talented. Here's my mom today, in front of two mantle panels, wearing a garment she wove for herself...
Many thanks and much love to you, ma! *If only that were true. It'd obviously make a rad backstory to the comic book version of my life. Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 9:30 pm Hands-Free Hard Drives Take the Headache Out of BackupsThink all external hard drives are created equal? Yeah they're not. We take Seagate's very capable Replica backup solution and pit it against ClickFree's 500GB drive in a winner-take-all, no-holds-barred hard-drive head-to-head.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 8 May 2009 | 9:30 pm Hands-Free Hard Drives Take the Headache Out of BackupsThink all external hard drives are created equal? Yeah they're not. We take Seagate's very capable Replica backup solution and pit it against ClickFree's 500GB drive in a winner-take-all, no-holds-barred hard-drive head-to-head.
Source: Wired: Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 9:30 pm Twitter Is Down: 15 Alternative Things To Do
And here are some other alternatives inspired by commenters:
Update: And Twitter is back. But save the list for Monday! Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
Source: TechCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 9:25 pm Web Zen: Record Cover Zen record envelopes Permalink for this edition. Web Zen is created and curated by Frank Davis, and re-posted here on Boing Boing with his kind permission. Web Zen Home and Archives, Store (Thanks Frank!) Source: Boing Boing | 8 May 2009 | 9:25 pm Missouri journalism students required to buy iPhone or iPod touch? (Macworld.com)Macworld.com - Starting this fall, journalism students at the University of Missouri, Columbia will need to add an iPhone or an iPod touch to their shopping carts.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 8 May 2009 | 9:16 pm B&O’s $111,000 BeoVision 4 103-inch TV (photo gallery and video)
The 1200 pound monster television set is meant for a select few. In fact, if you are willing to purchase the device, you must fill out a questionnaire and an inspection of the client’s home must take place to determine whether your location is structurally sound to handle the weight. Additionally, since it takes five people to move the TV into a location, the area is inspected to determine whether there is enough room to move the BeoVision 4. What can this TV do? First off, it doesn’t just stand there. When you turn on the BeoVision 4, the television screen rises on a near-silent lift and a center channel pushes forward. You should really see the video below to see this in action. Additionally, you can tilt the television or rotate it via remote. How about calibration? If you’re watching a screen like this, you want it to look great. No problem. B&O actually placed a camera in the bezel that swings down during calibration to check if colors are accurately presented. What about ambient light? Gadgetell saw the television in a car showroom on a sunny day. The television has a sensor that detects ambient light and adjusts brightness, color, and contrast depending on conditions. What happens when you power down? The center channel retracts and the screen parks itself back down. If something impedes the parking, then the 580 pound screen lifts itself up an inch so you can clear whatever was there. This truly is one site to behold. If you have time, check out the video. You can also download a HD version of the video to get a better idea of what this thing can do. Expect to see this TV in hotel lobbies, meeting rooms, television studios, and in your friends house if you hang out with well-off folks. If you want to save some money, ditch the floor stand and grab the TV screen for wall mounting at $93,050. Delivery is free, but installation will cost you. Oh, and if you’re wondering why they came out with this TV in this economy, B&O’s official response was, “Why the hell not?” Company Site: [Bang & Olufsen] Full Story » | Written by Iyaz Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 8 May 2009 | 9:06 pm Graybar Reports 2009 First Quarter ResultsEmployee-owned company eyes increased market share Strategic planning helps financially strong company weather the downturn ST.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 9:05 pm How the Wolfram Alpha Search Engine Could Save GoogleWolfram Alpha, a new smart search engine that answers queries has been billed as a Google klller. Instead, the company could be a Google savior, keeping the search giant obscured from government monopoly busters.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 8 May 2009 | 9:05 pm Review: Ipevo Kaleido R7 digital frame
I’d rather listen to nails on a chalkboard all day than review a digital picture frame. What’s the big deal with these things? It’s probably something I’d buy for my parents. That’s how I used to feel about digital picture frames until I got my mitts on the 7-inch Kaleido R7 from Ipevo. The Wi-Fi-enabled frame not only streams my personal photos from my Mac/PC, but I can also stream custom feeds from the likes of Flickr or Picasa, and get my news fix with RSS feed streaming. It also rotates from landscape to portrait mode. Features • Screen: 7-inch TFT LCD with LED backlight Build quality At $200 the Kaleido R7 doesn’t look like your typical digital picture frame. And by that I mean, it doesn’t look like a cheap piece of junk with faux wood accents. It has a nice modern looking design with a mix of glossy black and ivory accents. As I mentioned earlier the R7’s display can be rotated from landscape to portrait mode and adjusted for optimal viewing with 25 degrees of freedom. The touch controls are surprisingly responsive and allow you to navigate through the menus without the use of the included remote control. However, I take my time with touch sensitive controls and others might be inclined to tap away at a frantic pace. The same can be said about the remote control. The on/off switch is located on the right side near the power button as well as a green/orange LED to indicate whether the display is on or off. What looks like a webcam in the upper left corner of the display is actually an IR port for the remote control. On the back of the frame is a USB port for thumb drives as well as a miniUSB port. What’s nice about this particular frame is that it won’t automatically go into slideshow mode when a memory card is inserted, which is located on the left side of the display. And the entire frame is more or less plastic with a heavy base that prevents it from being easily knocked over. Display The 800×480 resolution LED display is vibrant and does a fairly good job of reproducing color accurately. With six levels of brightness you can easily adjust to compensate for changing lighting in the room. Direct sunlight will, however, wash the frame out. Colors don’t change too much based on viewing angle but with all things, it’s always best when you’re looking at it straight on. Software/Menu The menu system is bare bones and not overly complicated so it’s very easy to navigate. From the main menu you can pick from Live Channels that you’ve created, view your stored images, access images from memory cards or dive into the settings. Firmware updates can be automatically downloaded when connected over Wi-Fi, which is a pretty big deal if you ask me. To view online content such as your Flickr feed or a friend’s you’ll need to activate Live Channels by installing the EyeStage software onto your PC or Mac. You can also point to specific folders on your computer for the R7 to access. If you currently use an RSS reader then using the EyeStage software won’t be a challenge. The only caveat to viewing Live Channels is that your computer will have to be on so the Kaleido can communicate with the desktop software. Viewing news from the likes of CrunchGear or Yahoo (which comes preinstalled) is hit or miss. The formatting just doesn’t look that great and slides are often repeated. Pros • Easy to use software that works with both PCs and Macs Cons • Doesn’t support video or music playback Conclusion I was never a fan of digital picture frames until the Kaleido R7. Despite its shortcomings in a few areas I’d spend $200 because of everything else it can do. If Ipevo can fix the RSS output with a firmware update then the R7 is a must have digital picture frame. Of course, being able to watch videos would be a nice feature but it’s definitely not a deal breaker for me. I give it two enthusiastic thumbs up.
Source: CrunchGear | 8 May 2009 | 9:00 pm Mr. T: "Treat your mother right"Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 8:55 pm Afghanistan's only pig in quarantineAfghanistan has one pig -- it's in a zoo -- and it's quarantined:Quarantine for lonely Afghan pig Source: Boing Boing | 8 May 2009 | 8:49 pm Everybody panic: Nintendo says Wii, DS software sales will be flat this year
Nobody wants to read “businessy” news on a Friday afternoon on CrunchGear, so let’s keep this one short: Nintendo only had an okay year last year; this year, it expects sales to be flat. It chalks that up to a decline in the software tie-in ration for new DS and Wii consoles. That is, the sheen of Wii Sports has worn off, and people are no longer compelled to buy the four game per Wii (2 per DS) that they had. Or, in other words, boys and girls, Ninteno won’t exactly be printing money this year. The Wii, perhaps, has peaked; it’s only flat or downhill from there. We now return you to your non-business news afternoon. Photo: Flickr
Source: CrunchGear | 8 May 2009 | 8:40 pm Nortel Inversora S.A. Announces Consolidated First Quarter Results for the Fiscal Year Ending December 31, 2009BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, May 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Nortel Inversora S.A. (NYSE: NTL), whose sole substantial activity is owning 54.741682% of the stock of Telecom Argentina S.A.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 8:35 pm Gadget Musician Directs iPhone, DS Orchestra
Via Gearcrave
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 8:30 pm Universal Travel Group Updates 2009 EPS guidanceSHENZHEN, China, May 8 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- Universal Travel Group (OTC Bulletin Board: UTVL) ("Universal Travel Group" or the "Company"), a growing travel services provider in the People's Republic of China ("PRC") specializing in online and customer representative services to the travel service industry offering packaged tours, air ticketing, hotel reservation and air cargo agency services, today corrects its prior fiscal year 2009 earnings per fully diluted share guidance announced May 6, 2009. For the fiscal year 2009, the Company maintained it previous forecasts for sales and net income to range from $88.0 to $96.0 million and $16.8 to $18.0 million, respectively.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 8:30 pm Verizon Wireless Offers To Reduce Exclusivity Of New Mobile DevicesVerizon Wireless said it has offered to cut the time in which it demands exclusive rights to the latest cell phones from Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc.The move is an attempt to provide smaller, rural wireless carriers an opportunity to market the new phones.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 8:26 pm Chinese man builds terrifying massage chair out of scrap metal
This was the reality (or at least, how I imagined it) for one Chinese woman, whose husband (a retired car repair guy) DIY’ed a massage chair to ease her joint and muscle pain. And although it certainly looks like something the Spanish Inquisition would employ on defiant heretics, I’m guessing from the look on his face (”Ahhhhhhhh….”) that it’s actually pretty relaxing. Not that I’d step into that thing — not for a million yuan ($146,628). [via Dvice and Gizmowatch]
Source: CrunchGear | 8 May 2009 | 8:20 pm Martin Sumichrast - Finance and Real Estate Investment Author Launches New BlogCHARLOTTE, N.C., May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Managing Director of private equity firm Lomond International, Martin Sumichrast, has launched his new blog The Sumichrast Report, so that he may provide accessible financial information to the public.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 8:18 pm Vevo–aka “YouTube Music”–Gets a CEO: Universal Digital Boss Rio Caraeff [MediaMemo]
Caraeff is already heading up Vevo on an interim basis, but right now he’s still holding down his old job as executive vice president of UMG’s eLabs unit. At some point later this year, he is “99.99 percent certain” to be named president of the video site, according to someone familiar with Universal’s thinking. No word on who will get his old job. That’s a good start for Vevo, which you can think of as either a “Hulu for music,” or more practically, “YouTube Music,” since the project will move videos at the world’s biggest music company from the world’s biggest video site and onto the new venture. Running a start-up will be a new role for Caraeff, but at least he knows digital music and UMG specifically–he’s been working there since 2005. Prior to that, he ran wireless for Sony’s (SNE) movie arm. Just as important, the appointment means Vevo will at least have cleared one hurdle that tripped up News Corp.’s (NWS) MySpace, which announced its plans to start a music site in the April 2008 but couldn’t land a CEO for the venture until MTV vet Courtney Holt took the gig in November–a couple months after the site launched. There’s plenty for Caraeff to do: In addition to overseeing the launch of the site itself, he’ll need to staff it–while Google (GOOG) is helping Universal build and power the site, Caraeff will need to hire a “couple dozen people,” says a source familiar with his plan. A big priority: Assembling a sales force to sell the video clips. And then? Plenty of other questions, which I raised a month ago when the deal was first announced. Forgive me, but I’m just going to quote myself here:
Source: All Things Digital | 8 May 2009 | 8:13 pm Asus EeePC Tablet Coming in May or June
Readers have been asking about the promised EeePC T91, an innovative convertible tablet netbook that Asus showed off in January at CES. Since then there’s been no word from Asus about the availability of what promised to be like a cool, low-cost portable with a touch-sensitive screen. Now there’s a report that the T91 will be available within a month, in the U.K. at least. Reports are that it will cost £449, or in American, about $667. That’s a lot of money for an Atom-based netbook, even if it does have a swiveling touchscreen, a TV tuner and integrated GPS. On the other hand: Want! Via Gizmodo, Mirror.co.uk and Electricpig Photo credit: Dylan Tweney/Wired.com
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 8:02 pm Tiger Woods 10 to feature real-time ‘Play the Pros’ modeTiger Woods 10 for the Wii is shaping up to be a killer game. Yes, I’m getting my hopes up and yes, Tiger Woods ‘09 let me down but this — fingers crossed — might be the year that everything finally falls into place. The graphics look nicer, there are a ton of new features, and the addition of the MotionPlus peripheral ought to push the entire motion-controlled golf experience up at least a few notches. IGN.com has a couple new videos up today. One showcases new golfers Anthony Kim and Rocco Mediate, plus the following new golf courses: Banff Springs, Bethpage Black, Hazeltine, Oakmont, Pinehurst, Torrey Pines, and Turnberry. The other video (shown below) details a feature called Live Tournaments, which consists of daily and weekly stroke-based competitions that you play against every other Tiger Woods 10 owner along with a Play the Pros mode that allows you to compete against professional golfers in real time when a particular real-life tournament is being played on a course that’s in the game. I’ve always thought it’d be cool to have a real-life Play the Pros feature where the professional golfers’ actual shots were plotted along the course in real time so you could, for instance, virtually play alongside your favorite golfer while he plays in a real tournament. This new feature in Tiger Woods 10 seems to be a good first step.
Source: CrunchGear | 8 May 2009 | 8:00 pm TheMarkets.com Wins CODiE AwardNamed Best Online Professional Financial Information Service Recognized for Vision and Achievement in the Software Industry NEW YORK, May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- TheMarkets.com, a leading provider of research, estimates and workflow solutions to institutional investors worldwide, today announced that its flagship research and estimates platform has been named a winner in the Software & Information Industry Association's 24th Annual CODiE Awards competition.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 8:00 pm Nanophase Reports First Quarter 2009 Financial ResultsNanophase Continues to Execute New Strategy ROMEOVILLE, Ill., May 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Nanophase Technologies Corporation (Nasdaq: NANX), a technology leader in nanomaterials and advanced nanoengineered products, reported today financial results for its first quarter ending March 31, 2009. First Quarter Revenue for first quarter 2009 was $1.4 million, compared to $3.0 million for the same period in 2008.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 8:00 pm Hillard Heintze Forms Strategic Relationship with Nixle, a Groundbreaking Community Information Service, Challenger to Twitter and Other Social Networking PlatformsAlliance is expected to advance the exchange of critical and community oriented information between local police departments, municipalities, their agencies, community groups and residents in a format more trusted, secure, and accurate than other current methods.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 8 May 2009 | 7:58 pm Warning: Sunspot Cycle Beginning to RiseAs the sun moves into a busier part of its cycle, engineers on Earth stand guard.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 8 May 2009 | 7:55 pm USPS insurance is fickleDid you know that if you insure something through the United States Postal Service for a certain amount—say $3,000 to cover your five new laptops—and then they are lost or destroyed, the Postal Service retains the right to determine the worth of your goods? That happened to a man who just got offered $74 for five new Lenovo laptops. [Consumerist] Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 7:54 pm iPhone App Assesses Your Hearing LossUHear is one of those iPhone apps you’ll probably use once and delete — but it’s worth trying anyway. It’s a sound app that features two tests and a questionnaire to evaluate your hearing performance. One test evaluates your hearing sensitivity by prompting you to tap a button whenever you hear tones, which are played at various volume levels. The other test assesses your ability to hear speech in a noisy environment by asking you to crank up a noise track as high as you can until you can just barely understand the voice track. The questionnaire asks you how your hearing is in different environments and situations, and it tells you whether you should consult a physician about your hearing. The app should be useful to people at all ages: Enough rock concerts (or playing too much Rock Band) over a few years could screw up your ears in no time. I tested the app out of sheer curiosity, and it confirmed my suspicion that my left ear is far less sensitive to hearing than my right. Kind of a bummer, but good to know. UHear is $1 through the App Store. All proceeds go to charity, according to Unitron, who developed the app. Download Link [iTunes] (Thanks, Shay!)
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 7:38 pm Gorillas Use Hand-Clapping To Communicate With FamilyResearchers in the forests of central Africa have observed methods used by mother gorillas to keep their families in line.The report, published in the journal Primates, marks only the second time such activity has been seen among wild western lowland gorillas.While monitoring at the Lac Tele Community Reserve Project in the Republic of Congo, Ammie Kalan of Oxford Brookes University, in Oxford, UK and Hugo Rainey of the Wildlife Conservation Society, noted that they clapped their hands in order to communicate with family members."What struck me most was how it was conducted in such a controlled and deliberate manner while in a bipedal position; much like a human would hand clap," Ammie Kalan of Oxford Brookes University, in Oxford, UK, told BBC’s Earth News."A female was able to exert control over her infant's behavior by hand-clapping.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 7:37 pm Star Trek TNG remixed into surreality, hilarity
As long as we’re on the topic: a commenter at the original post also links these great Star Trek blooper reels. What, we can’t geek out every once in a while? Note: This is a repost from February, but very fitting seeing as today’s the Star Trek movie premier. Make sure you watch these if you missed them the first time around. They are hilarious. [via Metafilter] Bonus beard on beard:
Source: CrunchGear | 8 May 2009 | 7:30 pm Photo: Lockheed M-21 engine
You're looking at the business end of a Lockheed M-21 Blackbird engine, currently on display at Seattle's Museum of Flight, a place I first visited this week and which I cannot recommend enough. They have a real Blackbird cockpit on the floor next to the M-21 that you can climb into, shake the stick around, and make whooshing noises with your mouth to augment the ones coming from a little speaker. Even though all the instrument and control panels were cover in thick plexiglass, my heart still raced as I pretended I was cruising at Mach 3. If you can, peek into the second hatch and take a look at the screen the drone operator would have used. (I am presuming the whole rig is from another M-21, but maybe it was an A-12 or SR-71.) I don't know what would be more scary: doing Mach 3 while able to see where you're going, or only being able to look out from tiny windows on the sides. Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 7:29 pm Laptop pillow for sleepy workaholics
The laptop pillow's for workaholics who don't feel rested without their computer, or at least a simulation of it, by their bedside. via Uber Gizmo Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 7:24 pm Cloaking devices are here, provided you are already invisibleNational Geographic on new cloaking research: Both materials still have a long way to go before they're ready for stealth military operations. To start with, both cloaks work only in infrared light for now. The next step is to try to develop a version that works in visible wavelengths. Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 7:22 pm Darpa: Heat + Energy = Brains. Now Make Us SomeThe U.S. military's premiere research agency is already trying to use math to predict human behavior and neuroscience to replicate a primate's brain. The next step: Lean on the study of energy and heat to create an entirely new theory for how intelligence actually works.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 8 May 2009 | 7:21 pm Awesome n00bian moms, we salute youDoes your mom have a meltdown just cause you won't put away your laptop? Does she have technical difficulties? Try to throw her a bone sometime. More and more moms, grandmas and great-grandma's of all ages are learning to get down with the Wii, strum to Rock Band and fiddle with other gadgetry. To all the ordinary, wonderfully un-techy moms out there who aren't afraid to dive right in -- even when cameras are rolling -- we say, "Rock On!" "Hey, I am darn good at this!" More after the jump... A cool grandma not only lets you play Luke, she even lets you win. "What did I do?" "I don't know what it's doing, but it's doing something." "Killing pedestrians excites her" At 00:54, g-ma shows this 2 year-old she's the real Guitar Hero. A mom in a robot costume. With a big smile. Sometimes we give you every reason to hate computers. Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 7:15 pm Former Coal Mine Now Source Of Climate Change ObservationsWhat was once a large source of coal in the Arctic mountains of Norway is now home to international climate scientists.Operated by Kings Bay, the Ny-Aalesund Arctic Research Infrastructure facility brings in scientists from around the globe to gauge the impact of greenhouse gas emissions.The facility was once a mining site for fossil fuels, but mining operations were ended after a firedamp explosion killed 21 men on the site in 1962.Now the settlement is inhabited by only a few dozen researchers."It's good to be far away to measure trends" in carbon dioxide emissions, Swedish researcher Johan Stroem told AFP from the Zeppelin atmospheric measuring station."When you're in the middle of it, you don't see it.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 7:15 pm Experimental Firefox Add-on Weaves OpenID Into the BrowserMozilla shows off a video demonstrating an experimental version of its Weave extension for Firefox, which substantially simplifies the process of logging into websites using OpenID. It's proof that browser-makers are finding successful ways of moving smart identity management into the browser, where users barely have to think about it.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 8 May 2009 | 7:05 pm Hulu to go commercial-free tonightSection: Video, Content, Web, Online Music/Video
Hulu’s a great way to catch up with shows you’ve missed. Their advertising breaks are even somewhat bearable. Tonight will be different though. Tonight, McDonald’s McCafé promotion starts on Hulu. Together they are bringing commercial-free Hulu programming from 7PM EST to 3AM EST. That’s a pretty cool deal. I’d assume that we would see and hear “This program is brought to you interruption-free thanks to McDonald’s McCafé” but that’s not bad at all. There is an oddball picture chosen to announce this move on the Hulu site with Meg Griffin of “Family Guy” and Alec Baldwin of “30 Rock” in stylish poses. I realize that both NBC and Fox are partners in Hulu, but why chose Meg Griffin to represent Fox? Even Seth McFarlane doesn’t know what to do with her on the show. Tonight would be a great time to put together a queue of shows or watch some of the movies on Hulu without the usual breaks. Watch [Hulu.com] Full Story » | Written by Iyaz Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 8 May 2009 | 7:01 pm Palm Pre Contacts Podcast
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Source: MobileCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 7:00 pm China’s Panda Population Still Reeling From Last Year’s QuakeThe massive Sichuan earthquake in China last year has decelerated efforts to save the country’s giant panda, which is regarded as China’s national treasure.The quake had massive implications for the panda population as it demolished a primary food source, inhibited its sex drive, and caused tourism profits to decrease."The biggest impact has been on the food source of the panda, as a lot of bamboo was destroyed," Wang Chengdong, the director of the Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding Center, told AFP.The food supply is very, very tight," Wang said.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 6:58 pm Feds let stand Bush ruling on polar bearsA federal refusal to use the U.S.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 6:56 pm ESA Extends TIGER ProjectESA kicked off the second phase of its TIGER initiative at the Fifth World Water Forum in Istanbul, Turkey.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 6:48 pm Sun Open-Sources U.S. Antibribery Laws [Digital Daily]
It’s not clear what activities are at issue here, but if they’re found to be in violation of the FCPA, Sun (JAVA) could be in a for a rough time of it. As the company itself notes, “The FCPA and related statutes and regulations provide for potential monetary penalties, criminal sanctions and in some cases debarment from doing business with the U.S. federal government in connection with FCPA violations, any of which could have a material effect on our business.” Also disclosed in the filing: three class action suits seeking to block Oracle’s $7.4 billion acquisition of the company. “Three putative shareholder class action were filed by individual shareholders on April 20, 2009, April 30, 2009 and April 30, 2009, respectively, in Santa Clara County Superior Court naming Sun and certain of our officers and directors, as well as Oracle Corporation, as defendants,” Sun explains. “The complaints, which are similar, seek to enjoin the proposed acquisition of Sun by Oracle Corporation and allege claims for breach of fiduciary against the individual defendants and for aiding and abetting a breach of fiduciary duty against the corporate defendants. The complaints generally allege that the consideration offered in the proposed transaction is unfair and inadequate. Sun and the other defendants have not yet responded to the complaints.” Wonder what Oracle (ORCL) will make of all this? Source: All Things Digital | 8 May 2009 | 6:39 pm The Knot: Investors File For Divorce [Voices]The honeymoon is over for investors in The Knot (KNOT). The wedding planning site’s shares are down sharply lower following disappointing Q1 results. Revenues for the quarter of $23.7 million were slightly ahead of the consensus at $23.5 million, and down a tad from $23.8 million a year ago. But the company lost 4 cents a share in the quarter, slightly worse than expected. And adjusted EBITDA of $1.3 million was down 52 percent year over year, and well below the Street consensus at $2.8 million. EBITDA margins fell to 6 percent from 11.5 percent a year ago. Hurting margins in the quarter: an 8.4 percent jump on operating expenses. Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 8 May 2009 | 6:37 pm Tiny Beetle Threatens Florida’s Avocado IndustryFlorida’s thriving avocado industry could be in danger due to the arrival of the redbay ambrosia beetle.Scientists say the little beetle (Xyleborus glabratus) spreads a fungus called laurel wilt disease that kills off avocado trees.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 6:31 pm T-Mobile “Bigfoot” G1v2 pictured?
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Source: MobileCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 6:30 pm Scientists work to reduce cow gasMethane from cattle can be reduced by as much as 25 percent by balancing starch, cellulose, fat and other elements of feed, scientists in Canada said. Cattle account for 72 percent of Canada's methane, a powerful greenhouse gas that threatens the environment, said Stephen Moore, a professor of agricultural and nutritional science at the University of Alberta. Moore and his research team have developed a formula to cut methane from cattle by balancing elements found in their feed, including ash, fat and sugar, a release issued by the university Friday said. That's good news for the environment, Moore said.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 6:29 pm SLIDE SHOW: The Week's Top StoriesBrowse through images from the week's top stories in Discovery News.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 8 May 2009 | 6:15 pm Spectrograph to look back at universeA spectrograph destined for the Hubble Telescope will look back several billion years and help reconstruct the early universe, scientists in Colorado said. The $70 million Cosmic Origin Spectrograph is to be carried to the Hubble aboard the shuttle Atlantis on its May 11 launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, said James Green, a scientist at the University of Colorado in Boulder. The spectrograph -- the size of a telephone booth -- was built by the university and its industrial partner, Ball Aerospace & Technology Corp.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 6:11 pm Why Your Baby's Name Will Sound the Same as Everyone Else'sThe baby naming process may seem personal or driven by the popularity of movie stars, but there are deep trends in the way the popularity of names shift over decades that say a lot about how our culture changes, and why there were so many girls named Emma in 2008.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 8 May 2009 | 6:10 pm US Becomes World’s Top Wind Power GeneratorThe United States surpassed Germany to become the world’s leading wind power generator in 2008, the Worldwatch Institute said on Thursday. Global wind capacity increased by over 27,000 megawatts (MW), or enough to power 27 million homes, last year, rising to about 120,798 MW, according to the Washington-based research organization. The move represents a 29 percent increase from the previous year.Wind power now supplies 1.5 percent of global energy demand, up from 0.1 percent in 1997, Worldwatch said.Within the United States, wind capacity grew by 50 percent to 25,170 MW, or 21 percent of world capacity.In Europe, wind was the No.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 6:10 pm Android v1.5 widgets demoed on videoEven after a three minute presentation by an Android engineer, some of the things lurking around in the Android v1.5 (which should hit your G1 next week, if it hasn’t already) haven’t seen much exposure thus far. Take the new Widgets system, for example: while Android has had Widgets since launch, the related APIs and the marketplace have both been made widget-friendly, allowing anyone to scratch one out. Nifty, but more or less unmentioned in coverage thus far. Fortunately, the dudes over at Phonedog saw this gap and coverage and patched it right up. Check out the video up above, where they walk through a hefty chunk of the widgets available in the marketplace right now. Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
Source: MobileCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 6:08 pm How drugs and technology help attain motherhood
It's been 32 years since the first test tube baby was delivered in the UK. Today, fertility clinics offer a whole slew of technologies for getting pregnant (IVF, IUI, GIFT, ZIFT), but they're expensive and can be invasive. IVF--in-vitro fertilization, a common technique whereby doctors inseminate the egg in a lab and then transfer the embryo back to the woman's womb--is safe, but can cost up to $20,000. "If you could get pregnant naturally, you wouldn't need these technologies," says Dr. Masood Khatamee, who is the executive director of the Fertility Research Foundation in NYC. "But if you wait too long, then you might never get pregnant." My friends Lisa and Marcus went through a similar struggle as Alison. Here's Lisa, recounting their years-long efforts after finding out that Marcus had a low sperm count:
Lisa and Marcus lucked out--but many of us moms-to-be will have to resort to other means. The answer for some of us may even lie in cloning or stem cells, although that's still far out in the future. *name altered for privacy Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 6:05 pm Conservationists Watching 'World’s Smallest Pig' PopulationConservationists report that the world's smallest and rarest pigs are "thriving" following their release into the wild last year, BBC News reported.The captive-bred pygmy hogs have adapted well to their new home in the grasslands of Assam in India, according to evidence from camera-trap footage and surveys.More of the Pygmy hogs — which stand just 10 inches tall and weigh only 13-20 pounds — will be introduced into the habitat in the near future.Very few of the tiny pigs are thought to exist in the wild.“It is an enigmatic and shy creature and it's about the size of a small dog,” said Professor John Fa, director of conservation science at the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, one of the partners in the Pygmy Hog Conservation Program (PHCP).He said the creatures are very well adapted to living in grasslands due to their bullet shape and sloping backs—a feature of animals that live in very thick vegetation. The pigs are thought to have once spanned the southern edge of the Himalayas in the Indian sub-continent, scientists said.Now only one population is currently known to exist in the wild and researchers say their habitat, at Manas National Park in the state of Assam, is under threat."The practice of indiscriminate dry-season annual burning and uncontrolled livestock grazing threatens the last surviving wild population of pygmy hogs in Manas and, if continued, will doubtless also affect many other threatened and sensitive grassland species," said William Oliver, chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission's Pigs, Peccaries and Hippos Specialist Group.Conservationists began a captive-breeding program in 1996 in a bid to boost the pigs' numbers and 16 of these pygmy hogs (seven males and nine females) were released into the Sonai Rupai wildlife sanctuary in May 2008.“Since the release, we have been doing very extensive surveys every month to find out how they are using their habitat,” Fa said.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 8 May 2009 | 5:53 pm iPhone OS 3.0: Something Wicked Cool This Way Comes [Digital Daily]
Clearly, OS 3.0 had to be truly stable for Apple (AAPL) to issue such a mandate. And that suggests that the company is ramping up toward an official release–most likely at its Worldwide Developers Conference in early June. Source: All Things Digital | 8 May 2009 | 5:21 pm Kindle’s voice reader suffering from pronunciation problemsSection: Gadgets / Other, Green, Lifestyle  Reports from the New York Times have indicated that the Amazon Kindle’s new voice reader program is suffering from pronunciation issues and have fouled up some words, almost making them incomprehensible. The most obvious pronunciation error is the president’s name Barack Obama, which ends up sounding like “Barrak Alabama.” Many of the pronunciation problems that the Kindle has are from proper names that don’t appear in the dictionary. This is significant due to the frequency that the president’s name comes up in Kindle publications, including the electronic version of the New York Times. Following the report, Nuance Communications that manages the Kindle text to speech feature, announced that it has fixed the error and had plans to update the dictionary that they use. The hopeful future of electronic readers is that the voices will start to sound more natural and less robotic. However, as of right now the Kindle reader will have to sound out things phonetically, especially when it comes across a word that it is not familiar with. Read: [New York Times] Full Story » | Written by Heather Wood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 8 May 2009 | 5:15 pm "Here & There": Manhattan on a ringworld
"Here & There" is a project from Schulze and Webb to try to find a better way to display projection maps of dense cities. It's Grand Theft Auto IV meets Halo. They'll sell you two prints, one uptown and one downtown, for $65. (€45 in Europistan.) Update: Here it is in motion, which definitely makes it seem like the sort of thing I'd like to have in a GPS. Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 5:11 pm Robotic Hand Handles Eggs, Runs On Compressed AirIt can’t arm wrestle yet, but a robotic hand developed by students at Virginia Tech is strong enough to lift a can of food and dexterous enough to handle a raw egg. It’s a big step for robotic hands, which have so far been hampered by lack of flexibility, forcing them to merely grab objects instead of being able to handle a wide range of textures and motions. The latest hand, called RAPHaEL (Robotic Air Powered Hand with Elastic Ligaments), is powered by a compressed air tank. A microcontroller helps coordinate the motion of the fingers. The mechanism makes the hand deft enough to gesture for sign language. The robotic hand’s grip depends on the extent of pressure of the air. A low pressure is used for a lighter grip, while a higher pressure allows for a sturdier grip. “This air-powered design is what makes the hand unique as it does not require the use of any motors or other actuators,” said Dennis Hong, director and the faculty adviser on the project at the Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory of Virgina Tech. “The grasping force and compliance can be easily adjusted by simply changing the air pressure.” The hand could potentially be used to create robotic prosthetics, though at Virginia Tech it is part of a larger project. The university’s Robotics Lab is working to create a humanoid robot known as CHARLI (Cognitive Humanoid Robot with Learning Intelligence) that will be 5 feet tall and used as a research platform and in robot sports. The latest version of the robotic hand is expected to be used in the CHARLI robot. Once the newer model hand is connected to the larger body, it will be able to pick up — not just grasp and hold — objects just like a person, says the lab. Check out this video showing RAPHaEL at work: Photo: Robotic Hand/Virginia Tech College of Engineering
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 4:54 pm Nokia’s Very BigHuge Giant App Store! (TM)
Nokia is planning an app store that could explode your head out of your ears and make your bladder explode in delight. Called the Ovi Store, this amazing app store will have 20,000 apps on launch, enough for all the men, women, and children in Scranton, Pennsylvania to enjoy an app a day for fifteen years. I’m not quite sure why Forbes sees the Ovi Store as the second coming of the Jesusphone but I’ll accept that 20K apps out of the box is pretty good. However, there have been Symbian apps for almost a decade now, which mind of makes the claim of the biggest app store on launch disingenuous.
Oh well. I rarely go to Forbes for tech stories anyway. Crunch Network: TechCrunch obsessively profiling and reviewing new Internet products and companies
Source: MobileCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 4:06 pm Who’s on Crack in Tech: They are freaking liars editionSection: Apple, Communications, Computers, Web, Features, Originals, Columns, Who's On Crack  Does truth exist online? Does truth matter online? That is the focus of my “Who’s on Crack” column today as it seems to be all the rage. I’ll look at the tech firms that may have bent the truth this past week and how we really feel about the truth in these days of broadband. And to my new online buddies who know me as the 62-year-old Tai Chi instructor from Encinitas, a hearty, “namaste.” Now, on to the lies that get under my skin. This week, I am picking on:
Apple rules are firm only when you don’t complain loudlyThis week Apple showed us yet again that their App Store is run by monkeys and that Apple’s will can be bent. After getting rejected by the cloak and dagger App Store review process, Trent Reznor, the drive behind the innovative NIN, went on a tear saying the system was flawed citing iTunes happily sells his music but flags his app for content? Our Natesh Sood takes a sympathetic view of Apple and suggests it is an honest mistake. I could go along with that if only it were an isolated incident. Today’s fast paced media tells us this is not isolated. Remember the Baby-Shaker game? Tweetie update? Time and time again, Apple throws someone out only to hear them cry foul and then opens the door back up. I picture a monkey at the wheel, madly, and randomly pushing buttons on a control panel accepting and denying apps as fast as simian-aly possible. Can you tell me if I am close, Apple? Let’s be honest about the rules? Putting out something that says it’s a flawed operation; we are inundated. It is a Sisyphus-ian task, that mail chute must be clogged with no end in site. Mistakes are going to be made, but let’s be clear that these rules are guidelines. An evolving set of guidelines.
Who’s censoring the censors on FacebookFacebook has been pretty clear that all your stuff on their site is really theirs. It is a concept that is written and rewritten time and time again. So why should we be surprised when they decide to block one torrent provider over another? Because it isn’t right. You don’t want illegal stuff on your site, we get that. But blocking only one provider sends the message that you’ll pick and choose this censorship. Sue Walsh tells us:
What looks like a social network simply covering their rear-end could be something that breaks the principles of our nation? Awesome! More here.
Amazon Kindle DX: savoir of newsprintOh, brother! Iyaz and I agree that while the concept of delivery of content and books via e-ink are intriguing, we both find the execution a bit off and pricing ridiculous. I had hopes that Amazon would work with newspapers to convert their readers to e-readers. A tough task for sure, but not one that is impossible. Until they announced the price and limited subsidization. Apparently the subsidized Kindle DX is only for folks outside of delivery areas. W.T.F? Seriously? If they live outside the delivery area, you’ve already written those readers off, now you are going to pander them? Talk about missing the boat. Attention: residents of Kodiak, Alaska: now you can access the New Yorker! Woo-frickin’-hoo! It has been a good run killing trees, dropping ink in rivers and putting your delivery people in cars in the wee hours of the morning. Time to think different or just stop thinking altogether. I fear the war is already won and like the soldiers battling at Fort Tyler, West Point, Georgia a week after peace was announced, both sides may not know it yet. Truth: (huh) what is it good for?And finally a bit of news that caught my eye this week both on NPR and all over news sites: truth in journalism. The thrust of this question is if journalism is handed over to us bloggers, who will hold power accountable? Who, in the absence of the j-school over-achievers will be there to ask the tough questions? Great questions. Especially compared to a fun piece Crunchgear did just as the Kindle DX was announced, titled, Prediction: What Kindle DX stories will appear today?:
And sure enough, of course the prediction came true. Bloggers love to zig while others zag. If you can’t be first, be innovative. With the blogging world so densely populated, will any story remain unchallenged or question unasked? What about research and follow up? Then there is the whole “sometimes bloggers lie” thing. That is where the trouble is. With incentives only to produce stories quick, we’ve developed the attention span of a fruit fly (apparently along with you). Who has time to work on something for weeks, let alone days. Woodward and Bernstein’s blog would have been: Is “Tricky Dick up to Watergate Hijinks?” followed up the next hour with “7 Reasons why you should build a stand alone shed for your computer.” We get the idea but not the facts and then we move on. If you got the story wrong, who cares? It gets buried 7 pages back in a matter of hours, forgotten by humanity. Twitter only reinforces this. There is no pause on Twitter whilst you go research something. Miss it in the instant and down it flows like water through the drain in your bathtub, never to be seen again. So where does this go? I don’t know. Maybe reporters need to be heirs of wealthy estates, like Bruce Wayne, only to mix it up with the common man and bring truth out of the shadows. What is your take? Do investigative reports deserve more than reality-show like fanaticism? Can bloggers slow things down and report like journalists? Don’t look for answers from me, I’ve been thinking about this all week and can’t make heads or tails of it. Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 8 May 2009 | 4:00 pm The Grid, Cars and the Net: One Idea to Link Them AllRobin Chase links transportation and the internet when she starts Zipcar. Now, she wants to do it again to make the electric grid and our cars smarter.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 8 May 2009 | 3:57 pm The Trucker Hats of iPhone Apps [Voices]A classical piano player in Christchurch, New Zealand decided to see how quickly he could make an app for Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone. Reuben Bijl, 22 years old, took 30 minutes and came up with a pointless one called “Sound Grenade.” It then made him more than $100,000 in a few months, he says, through advertising on the free version and a $1.99 pro version. It emits a harsh squeal that irritates anyone within earshot, even in a crowded restaurant (I tried this–evil looks abounded). These apps appeal to everybody, Mr. Bijl says. His frustration that “Sound Grenade” has flourished, compared to the tepid response to some of his more useful apps, is palpable. Source: All Things Digital | 8 May 2009 | 3:52 pm Polar Bear Protection Won't Be BroadenedPolar bear protection will not be expanded to include nation-wide emissions limits.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 8 May 2009 | 3:50 pm Earthly Cave Bacteria Hint at Mars LifeEarth's first cave dwellers show how life on Mars may be possible today.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 8 May 2009 | 3:40 pm No Jail Time for Army Contractor in Revenge KillingA U.S. Army contractor who shot dead a handcuffed prisoner who had mortally wounded a colleague receives only probation and a small fine after pleading guilty to manslaughter.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 8 May 2009 | 3:11 pm Jaunty Jackalope, 7, (Snow) Leopard? What’s really in the name?Section: Computers, Software / Applications, Features, Originals
Jaunty Jackalope, 7, or Leopard? Based on name alone, which would you choose? Given context there’s a chance you’d choose 7 or even Leopard, but possibly never Jaunty Jackalope (nor its predecessors Intrepid Idex and Hardy Heron). That could be from the stigma that surrounds Linux including its most popular distribution, Ubuntu. Analyzing the trendsLooking at a quick Google Trends its obvious that Ubuntu 9.04 , with the project name of Jaunty Jackalope, just can’t compete with Windows 7 and the current Mac OS X Leopard. While Windows 7 hit a high point back in January when the beta was released, Leopard remained steady over the past year (though the upcoming Snow Leopard proved less popular), with Jaunty Jackalope only actually showing on the graph in mid-March as it got closer to release. Perhaps the name just isn’t all that popular, or maybe its just that people don’t know about it, or maybe Google searches are unnecessary in finding out more information.
Silly code namesThere is a small chance that Ubuntu is limiting itself by using code names that some may perceive as silly compared to the others. However, Jaunty Jackalope is a lot easier to remember than Ubuntu 9.04, just like Snow Leopard is easier than Mac OS 10.6. The name may sound silly comparatively, but code names are meant to be memorable and distinct. The name might not make a bit of difference, though, and probably doesn’t. The name can be as memorable and silly as Canonical wants to make it, the truth is that once people find out it’s Linux they get scared away, without even testing Jaunty/Inrepid/Hardy or whatever version of Ubuntu they found. Maybe if they abandoned the Linux identifier it would garner more attention for how easy it can be to use. Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 8 May 2009 | 3:05 pm Look of Youth May Boost Success of Black CEOsBlack CEOs with a "babyface" appearance are more likely to lead wealthy companies.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 8 May 2009 | 3:00 pm Shrinking Glaciers Redraw Europe's BordersItaly and Switzerland remap their borders as global warming alters the dividing line.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 8 May 2009 | 2:50 pm MacBook Users: Turn Off This Default Setting NowThere is a default setting on your MacBook that needs to be changed ASAP: Turn off “Allow Bluetooth devices to wake this computer.” I didn't, and my laptop almost fried.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 8 May 2009 | 2:37 pm MacBook Users: Turn Off This Default Setting NowThere is a default setting on your MacBook that needs to be changed ASAP: Turn off “Allow Bluetooth devices to wake this computer.” I didn't, and my laptop almost fried.
Source: Wired: Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 2:37 pm MacBook Users: Turn off This Bluetooth Default Setting Now
Last night I discovered an incredibly dumb — and what I consider to be dangerous — setting enabled by default in my unibody MacBook Pro. In the Bluetooth preferences, it’s the box checkmarked “Allow Bluetooth devices to wake this computer.” Sounds innocent enough, but it could’ve killed my computer.
After checking the Apple support forums I found a thread where a user reported the exact same problem, and it turned out it was because his Bluetooth mouse was left on in his bag, too; he remedied the issue by unchecking the default Bluetooth setting. I was relieved that the solution was so simple, but I was still pretty concerned that this was a default setting in the first place. Imagine if I hadn’t checked my notebook for a few more hours. That could’ve caused a serious burn injury, or at worst, a fire. True, it was my own negligence to not turn off my Bluetooth mouse before throwing it in my bag, but I think it’s reasonable to assume many people have done the same thing. (Heck, I often don’t turn off my Bluetooth mouse when it’s on my desk at home, as it shuts down when it’s inactive. Clearly it’s not the same when your mouse is in your bag and you’re keeping it on by walking around.) Also, I say it’s unintelligent that this feature is turned on by default because for notebooks, it’s useless. Usually when we sleep our notebooks, we close the lid. On a MacBook, opening the lid wakes it back up automatically. There’s no need to use the Bluetooth mouse to wake up the notebook. This setting should certainly not be turned on by default. MacBook users? If you own a Bluetooth mouse, disable this setting now. Have you seen any other strange settings turned on by default that I should disable? Feel free to point them out in the comments below. Photo: WzaHk/Flickr
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 1:59 pm First Look: Gigapan Epic 100, The Panorama RobotWe get to play with the Gigapan Epic 100, which takes your compact camera (or small DSLR) and, using stepper-motors, take a whole bunch of perfectly aligned snaps which can later be stitched together to make a huge, detailed gigapixel image. It's a solid device and it certainly doesn't feel amateur.
Source: Wired: Gadgets | 8 May 2009 | 1:55 pm First Look: Gigapan Epic 100, The Panorama Robot
One of the great things about being a tech blogger is the semi-regular visits from the UPS guy. This week he wore himself out running up and down the stairs to my 5th floor apartment (no elevator), and one of the best new toys is the Gigapan Epic 100. Gigapan makes hefty boxes which take your compact camera (or small DSLR) and, using stepper-motors, take a whole bunch of perfectly aligned snaps which can later be stitched together to make a huge, detailed gigapixel image — hence the name. The Epic 100 is essentially the same as the original Gigapan, only it can accommodate slightly larger cameras. This weekend I’ll be taking it out for a full test, but I thought y’all might like a look at the kit itself beforehand. It’s pretty interesting.
The Epic is solid, feeling more like a piece of kit from the physics lab than the photo store. It has the feeling of having been hand-bent into shape and then the electronics soldered inside. This is a good thing, by the way — it certainly doesn’t feel amateur.
Next is tripod mounting. I hefted the Epic 100 onto my trusty Manfrotto and, following the instructions, levelled up. This is very easy with a ball head, but make sure it’s up to holding camera and Epic otherwise you’ll have an ugly spill. You need to align the centre of the lens with a marker, which ensures that it sits over the axis of rotation, and then move the triggering arm into place. Yes, the Epic is deliciously old-school, using a mechanical arm to fire the shutter.
Next up is set up, which you are prompted to enter upon firing the unit up. I started, but skipped out as soon as I realized that “setup” is the actual taking pictures part, in that you need to zoom your camera and start getting ready for the shot. I thought my neighbor might get a little freaked if I took a gigapixel image of his apartment through the window (the lovely view you see in the top picture), so I quit.
Once I have lugged the Epic, the tripod, my camera, another camera to take photos of the action and (hopefully) scrounged a video camera to show it working, I’ll post on the results and the ease of use (or lack of, depending on what we find), along with a rundown of the included software.
Product page [Gigapan]
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 1:50 pm Nokia N97 up for pre-order
Those keeping track should know that the pre-order price is nearly $250 off the MSRP of the US spec handset and just a few dollars more than the discounted N96. Oh, and Nokia is throwing in the $89.99 BH-703 Bluetooth headset to sweeten the pre-order. Any takers? Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Source: MobileCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 1:25 pm Forget about CFL bulbs, Philips shows off greener LED bulbsSection: Gadgets / Other, Household
Philips previewed a 600-lumen A-shape LED bulb for consumers that will be able to replace traditional 40-watt incandescent bulbs. The LED bulb offered is five times as efficient as the incandescent bulb. That is slightly more efficient than a 40-watt equivalent CFL bulb, which requires 10-watts. Also, LEDs do not have CFL’s safety issues. As you likely already know, CFLs have a small amount of mercury in them, which means they must be recycled and extra care most be taken when one breaks. As a bonus, with all the money you’ll save on electricity, you might be able to spring for that new gadget you’ve been eyeing, say perhaps, the Kindle 2. Read: [Philips] Full Story » | Written by Merlyn Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 8 May 2009 | 1:08 pm CrunchDeals: Unlocked Nokia N96 for $450
Read the rest of this entry >> Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors
Source: MobileCrunch | 8 May 2009 | 1:00 pm Whale Sharks Travel Vast Distances to BreedThe biggest fish in the sea, whale sharks, are surprisingly low in genetic diversity.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 8 May 2009 | 1:00 pm Next-Gen iPhone Will Contain a Compass
IPhone screenshots are easy enough to fake, and lord knows some odd claims come from the Boy Genius Report, but this seems such an obvious addition to iPhone hardware that we’ll bite. The shot above is from a debugging menu inside the 3.0 beta iPhone OS, and shows options to save logs of a compass, as well as the current accelerometer and also “motion”, which we think is either a combo of the others or a log of the GPS unit’s findings. It makes complete sense. The iPhone hardware was mature at its first launch, and there’s not much — bar a decent camera and a thinner case — that could be added. The G1 Googlephone already has a compass and it powers the neat but slow live street-view function, where the phone rather redundantly overlays pictures of the world onto the actual real world. Knowing the position of the phone and also the direction it is pointing in opens up some neat options. This seems like a juicy and accurate rumor. In fact, now we have read it, it seems very odd that Apple wouldn’t include this in the new iPhone. Magnetometer in next iPhone confirmed? [BGR via MacRumors]
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 11:46 am MPAA Proof of Concept: Copy DVDs by Pointing Camera at ScreenIt’s hard to believe that this video is real, but apparently it is. What you are seeing is the official, MPAA sanctioned method for teachers to make copies of DVDs for educational purposes. Are you ready? To make a copy you play the DVD and aim a camera at the TV screen. I told you it was hard to swallow. So desperate is the movie industry’s crazy uncle to stop anyone breaking DVD copy protection that it actually made the above presentation at the Library of Congress, where a hearing is held every three years to decide whether or not any exemptions should be made to the DMCA laws. Needless to say, it’s already too late (cough, Handbrake, cough), and this is clearly just an attempt to protect the DMCA in its current form rather than to actually stop teachers from copying movies. What we find particularly ironic, though, is that this is the exact same method that the MPAA wants to stop in cinemas, where evil teenagers use their cellphones to record movies off the screen. MPAA shows how to videorecord a TV set [Vimeo]
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 11:29 am SugarSync adds new 2GB plan, available for freeSection: Computers, Software / Applications, Peripherals, Storage
To begin with, they have changed up their plans just a little. First, they have added a new plan. Previously they had the Basic (30GB), Premium (60GB), Professional (100GB) and Business (250GB) option that ranged in price from $4.99 a month up to $24.99 a month. The new option is smaller, coming in at just 2GB, but the good news is the price—free. Sure, you are not going to fit a ton a files in 2GB, however for someone with basic needs that should be more than enough. Especially when you combine that with either the Blackberry or iPhone app, which are also both able to be downloaded and used for free. Additionally, they have also added some other improvements feature wise. Windows users will notice a change as you can now manage your documents and files directly from within Windows Explorer. That means all you have to do is right click and you will be given the option to open the SugarSync Manager. You will also see special icons on folders that show you if that item is in the process of being synced (circular arrows) or already synced (green check mark). Finally, they also added some improvements in the web interface, which are noted as making it easier to setup and sync your files. Read [SugarSync] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 8 May 2009 | 11:18 am Universal Translator: Marry Any Flash to Any Camera
The Strobists are on a roll. Not only has the first batch of the community-design LumoPro LP120 flashguns sold out (don’t worry — they’ll be back in stock in a couple days), but Moishe of MPX and David Hobby, the Arch-Strobist, have come up with a new accessory, also cheap, also useful and also incredibly open. Named the Universal Translator, the tiny cube lets you use pretty much any flash with any camera. Here’s a list of the connections in this little black box:
That, you will see, covers just about anything. You can adapt any strobe to work with the cable of your choice, you can turn a cheap compact digicam into a wired flash commander, and you can use the minijack to hook direct into PocketWizard wireless remotes. The price is $19, and the only drawback is that they won’t fit Sony cameras or flashes. But then, when you gave Sony your money, you weren’t expecting it to use any standard parts, right? Product page [Midwest Photo Exchange via Strobist] Photo: strobist/Flickr
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 8 May 2009 | 11:07 am
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With smartphones as apt to be running personal productivity apps as business productivity ones, the divide between enterprise devices and their consumer counterparts appears to have finally been bridged. To wit, these comments from Cisco (CSCO) CEO John Chambers who, while talking up the Flip video camera during an earnings call this week, said that 
Every once in a while we go on a little rant here about something that bugs us. In the past we’ve done hit jobs on 
So let’s start a new trend - not shaking hands. You can do a 
The huntswoman wrote her own blog about her trip to Zimbabwe where she found the elephant in 2007.
Well, Google can’t say it’s not in the content business anymore.
Almost immediately following Twitter coming back from a planned downtime this afternoon, co-founder and current Chairman 
Looks like Microsoft (MSFT) has settled on a legal defense for its European Commission antitrust inquiry: sanction us and you might as well just hand the search market entire over to Google. Sources with knowledge of Microsoft’s legal strategy 
If you didn’t know,
We all know about Twitter’s downtime today. It was a scheduled maintenance service that was supposed to last for about an hour. Sure enough, after about an hour, Twitter came back — but only partially. Over the past hour since it’s been back, it’s been up and down, but mostly down. And now there’s another problem, 
It was probably only a matter of time before Twitter, which has a long history of downtime, was down on the same day as another site that houses people’s social graphs. When one of these sites goes down, people can usually deal with it. But two? I think I hear people screaming outside of my window. If Gmail goes down right now, I’m packing up some bottled water and heading for the hills. (With my iPhone just in case they all come back up in time.)
Your current Snickers campaign sees you come out with a new trademark line, telling weedy men to “get some nuts”. Who’s the weakest guy you’ve ever encountered?
Pee-wee Herman. Sadly, I’ve never had the chance to train him – to get him to beef up and man up! I don’t think there’d be enough time if I had eternity. And that little wimpy suit he wears doesn’t help matters.
If it weren’t for the TMC0281, E.T. would’ve never been able to “phone home.” That’s because the TMC0281, the first single-chip speech synthesizer, was the heart (or should we say the mouth?) of Texas Instruments’ Speak & Spell learning toy. In the Steven Spielberg movie, the flat-headed alien uses it to build his interplanetary communicator. (For the record, E.T. also uses a coat hanger, a coffee can, and a circular saw.)
Ever notice that laptop batteries seem to die before cell phone battery? And not just running out of juice, but that the battery needs replacing. Well, there’s a reason for that: while most people recharge their cell phone batteries correctly, they will abuse their laptop batteries to the point that they stop functioning.
Twitter just went down. Don’t worry, it was 
Say you’ve got $111,805 burning a hole in your pocket. What should you get? How about the BeoVision 4 103-inch plasma television from Bang & Olufsen? 
The animal, known simply as Khanzir, the Pashtu word for pig, was given to the zoo by China in 2002.
There are plenty of question marks surrounding Vevo, Universal Music Group’s new music video site that’s scheduled to launch later this year with a big assist from Google’s YouTube. But here’s one answer: The venture will be run by Rio Caraeff, who currently oversees UMG’s digital business.
The very HTC-like keyboard (you can tell from the width of the keys), obscured as it is, looks nice, and you can barely tell but there are three touch-buttons at the bottom, possibly with placeholder icons on them. BGR has graciously put their watermark directly over them, but you can see they’re a bit anonymous and probably not final. After all, the “home” and “back” functionality are integral to Android and I doubt they’d use such arbitrary designs to represent them. So we don’t see this as a final design but it’s certainly more slick-looking than its predecessor.
Developers building applications for the iPhone best make sure their work runs on the device’s forthcoming 3.0 OS. Because effective yesterday, Apple is no longer accepting applications that don’t. “Beginning today, all submissions to the App Store will be reviewed on the latest beta of iPhone OS 3.0,” Apple said in a message to developers Thursday. “If your app submission is not compatible with iPhone OS 3.0, it will not be approved.” 
Here’s what happened: I was in a rush to leave the office to meet a colleague for coffee, so I closed my MacBook Pro and threw my Bluetooth mouse into my laptop bag. After my coffee meeting, I ended up at a bar and took my notebook out to quickly check my e-mail. It was scalding hot all over, and when I opened the lid I was greeted with the gray screen of death. And I realized my notebook, though closed, was still on for hours — the heat insulated by my bag.
The first thing you’ll notice is the weight. Actually, the very first thing, if you’re opening a review unit, is the mountain of batteries inside. The Epic needs six AA cells and the box came stuffed with both alkalines to get started quickly, plus a couple of chargers filled with Ni-MH cells.
Just coming off of Earth Day in April, most of us are looking for ways to be greener and changing the lighting in our homes is just one of those ways. This past week, NYC was home to Lightfair International 2009, which is the largest lighting trade show and conference in the world. One of the exhibitors at Lightfair, Philips, unveiled some new ideas about “green” lighting that may soon find their way into our homes. 
As someone who regularly works on multiple computers, I appreciate the ability to always have my files with me. That is where SugarSync comes in; they have a setup that just works and now it has recently gotten a little nicer.
