A total of 6.9 zettabytes of media flows to individuals and households in a year — that’s 6.9 million million gigabytes.… read more
Google’s mysterious floating barge on San Francisco Bay will feature luxury showrooms and a party deck for the tech giant to market Google Glass and other gadgets to invitation-only clients, according to KPIX 5 in San Francisco.
The station cited “multiple sources” including at least one who has been aboard the barge, and said it was dreamed up at Google X, the company’s secret facility.… read more
“An obsession with growth has eclipsed our concern for sustainability, justice and human dignity. But people are not disposable — the value of life lies outside economic development,” writes philosopher, environmental activist, and author Vandana Shiva at The Guardian.
“Limitless growth is the fantasy of economists, businesses and politicians,” she says. “It is seen as a measure of progress. As a result, gross domestic product (GDP), which is supposed… read more
Which five futuristic technologies are likely to have the biggest impact by 2025? And what can people start doing, from today, to prepare for the changes and to ensure positive outcomes?
This London Futurists Hngout on Air featured a live discussion between futurists Kevin Russell,Peter Rothman, Riva-Melissa Tez, Clyde DeSouza, and José Luis Cordeiro.
When: 7 pm to 8.30 pm London time (2 pm to 3:30 pm EST) on… read more
Light stimulates brain activity during a cognitive task even in some people who are totally blind, according to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Montreal and Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
“We were stunned to discover that the brain still responds to light in these rare three completely blind patients despite having absolutely no conscious vision at all,” said senior co-author Steven… read more
The neurocam is the world’s first wearable camera system that automatically records what interests you, based on brainwaves, DigInfo TV reports.
It consists of a headset with a brain-wave sensor and uses the iPhone’s camera to record a 5-second GIF animation. It could also be useful for life-logging.
The algorithm for quantifying brain waves was co-developed by Associate Professor Mitsukura at Keio University.
The… read more
Playing the Super Mario 64 video game causes increased size in brain regions responsible for spatial orientation, memory formation and strategic planning as well as fine motor skills, a new study conducted at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and Charité University Medicine St. Hedwig-Krankenhaus has found.
The positive effects of video gaming may also be useful in therapeutic interventions targeting psychiatric disorders.
To investigate… read more
Stanford professor Marc Levoy sees a combination of computational imaging and new-form-factor camera-equipped devices that will allow for a set of what he described as “superhero vision” capabilities, Extreme Tech reports.
Rapidly increasing processor power will help fuel this new world of powerful new photographic tools. Levoy, a pioneer in both computer graphics and computational imaging, noted that GPU power is growing by roughly 80% per year,… read more
MIT researchers have found that Kepler 78b, a small, intensely hot planet 400 light-years from Earth discovered by the researchers in August, shares Earth’s mass.
By analyzing the movement of its host star, Kepler 78, the scientists determined that the exoplanet is about 1.7 times as massive as the Earth.
From the same measurements, they calculated that the planet’s density is 5.3 grams… read more
In a possible first, Cecilia Abadie received a traffic ticket Tuesday for wearing Google Glass while driving in San Diego, she noted on Google+:
According to CNN, the California law cited in Abadie’s case, V C 27602, prohibits televisions and similar monitors from being turned on and facing the driver. “There are exceptions for GPS and mapping tools and… read more
A unique nanostructure developed by a team of international researchers* promises improved all-in-one detection, diagnoses, and drug-delivery treatment of cancer cells.
It can carry a variety of cancer-fighting materials on its double-sided (Janus) surface and within its porous interior and can:
The NSA has secretly broken into fiber-optic cables that connect Yahoo and Google data centers around the world — positioning itself to collect at will from hundreds of millions of user accounts, many of them belonging to Americans, according to documents obtained from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden and interviews with knowledgeable officials, the Washington Post reported today.
According to a top-secret accounting dated… read more
An orally administered compound that prevents neurodegeneration in mice has been developed by researchers at the Medical Research Council (MRC) Toxicology Unit at the University of Leicester.
The team had found previously (Nature) that the build up of misfolded proteins in the brains of mice with prion disease over-activates a natural defense mechanism in cells, which switches off the production of new proteins.… read more
Arizona State University and Georgia Institute of Technology researchers have developed a new approach to growing indium gallium nitride (InGaN) crystals, promising “record-breaking” photovoltaic solar cell efficiencies.
Researchers previously found that the atomic separation of the crystal layers of the InGaN alloy varies, which can lead to high levels of strain, breakdowns in growth, and fluctuations in the alloy’s chemical composition.
“Being able to ease… read more
Out of shape and can’t lift something? No prob, just strap on an external bicep — the Titan Arm, a new invention from a group of engineering students at the University of Pennsylvania.
That’s if it’s ever available commercially (co-inventor Nick McGill told KurzweilAI they’re working on it, no date yet). If so, the Titan Arm will help lift 40 pounds more than you normally can.… read more
