Month: September 2013

Engineering Space Tech

NASA’s tiny glowing plane shows the future of flight in fluorescent oil

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As reported on The Verge. By Rich McCormick NASA built a toy-sized model of a hybrid wing plane, coated it in fluorescent oil, and put it in an ultra-fast wind tunnel. Why? Because it’s a federally funded center housing some of the world’s brightest minds, and that’s the kind of thing it gets to do. This image shows a 5.8 percent scale model of one of NASA’s plane prototypes coated with a glow-in-the-dark liquid before being blasted…

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Google Internet

Google Fiber Compared To Broadband By Putting A Middle Age Guy In A Bath Robe And Soaking Him With A Firehose

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As reported on TechCrunch. by ALEX WILLIAMS Provo, Utah is getting Google Fiber in the next few months. So how do you explain to the people of this small city north of Salt Lake what that will mean for their Interent service? You get a guy to wear a bath robe and stand next to a raised swimming pool with a garden hose, symbolic of broadband service. Then you drench him with a fire truck deluge gun and two…

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Application Business Mobile

Spike Kickstarter Project Puts Accurate Laser Measurement Hardware Right On Your Smartphone

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As reported on TechCrunch. by DARRELL ETHERINGTON Smartphones have pretty good cameras, but nowhere near good enough to do the kind of high accuracy measurement work that’s required for engineering or remodelling projects. Enter Spike, a new smartphone attachment designed by ikeGPS, a company that specializes in building fit-for-purpose laser hardware for use in surveying and 3D modelling.The Spike is version of their solution that attaches to the back of a smartphone and integrates directly with…

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Google

Gmail Android app may get ads soon, APK teardown reveals.

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As reported on Engadget. By Alexis Santos Google’s Gmail app for Android has remained an ad-free sanctuary, but code uncovered by Android Police in an APK teardown of the application’s latest versionhints that circumstances might change. Buried within the the program is a new library called “ads,” along with messages, functions and classes mentioning advertisements. What’s more, a “ShowAdPreferenceManager()” function routes users to the ad settings page for their very own Google account. Its not clear if sponsored bits will make it…

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Article Games

Timothy Leary-developed video games found in New York Public Library archive

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As reported on Engadget. By Timothy J. Seppala  The New York Public Library recently discovered a treasure trove of video games in its archives created by psychedelic evangelist Timothy Leary. Over 375 floppies (talk about flashbacks) containing a “dozen or so” games developed by the LSD-advocate in the ’80s — some are playable via emulation — are now on display in the library’s rare books and manuscripts division, according to The New York Times. The good doctor’s digital works had…

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Microsoft PC

Bill Gates admits Control-Alt-Delete was a mistake, blames IBM

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As reported on The Verge. By Tom Warren Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has finally admitted that forcing users to press the Control-Alt-Delete key combination to log into a PC was a mistake. In an interview at a Harvard fundraising campaign, Gates discusses his early days building Microsoft and the all-important Control-Alt-Delete decision. If you’ve used an old version of the software or use Windows at work then you will have experienced the odd requirement. Gates explains…

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Government Hacking Security

Shutting Down The US Government Likely Won’t Slow The NSA’s Surveillance Activities

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As reported on TechCrunch. by ALEX WILHELM According to an unnamed government officialspeaking with The Hill, shutting down the U.S. government wouldn’t lead to the National Security Agency (NSA) halting its controversial, and broad surveillance efforts. The United States may shut down in short order, due to political intransigence between the two chambers of Congress. Republicans want to defund the Affordable Care Act, while Senate Democrats and the president do not. It isn’t clear if there…

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Google

Google+ May Finally Matter Thanks To YouTube Comments

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As reported on TechCrunch. by JOSH CONSTINE You didn’t really need a Google+ account until now. You might have one whether you wanted it or not. But YouTube’s new commenting system requires a presence on Google+. And there’s no real alternative to YouTube for video. Google+ may have mattered before in theory, but now it matters in practice. Google+ is really a social identity data layerdesigned to help Google personalize all your products and improve ad targeting. The more it…

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Government Politics

FAA committee concludes that flyers should be allowed to use smartphones, tablets during takeoff and landing

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As reported on Engadget. By Mat Smith Recall that silent rage you get when you’re told to switch of your Kindle, iPod or laptop for take-off and landing, even when there’s nothing wireless going on. Well, the FAA could be approaching a change in the rules. A 28-member committee, created by the Federal Aviation Administration itself, has offered up its recommendation that flyers should be able to use “most” devices during takeoff and landing. Data-based activities and voice calls would still…

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Business Mobile

Voltaic Switch solar bag powers your tiny tablets with sunlight

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As reported on Engadget. By Mariella Moon Voltaic’s solar bags sure can be useful, but not everyone likes lugging a laptop or a 10-inch tablet around while on a holiday. It’s a good thing the company has developed the new Switch solar bag specifically for smaller slates like the iPad mini, so you don’t pull a muscle carrying a 6-pound gadget as you navigate the jungle. The firm claims Switch’s 6-watt solar panel can charge a typical smartphone in about four hours…

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