GLIMPSES OF THE
FUTURE |
App To Stop Kids (And Others?) Texting As They Drive 'Textecution' is a new app for Android powered phones that parents can install on mobiles used by adolescents. It's designed to shut down all texting functions - sending and receiving - if the phone handset is moving at more than 10mph. Texting whilst driving is a major cause of accidents (think of a 17 year-old girl breaking up with her boyfriend whilst doing 90mph in the fast lane) but who honestly thinks than an average parent would be able to outsmart his or her kids when it comes to locking/unlocking technology? And the app would be pretty annoying on train journeys. Give Cows A Break: Get Them A Mattress Cows may not have much to do but stand around and eat, but until now, nobody has thought deeply enough about their comfort. Now Champagne Edition Inc., based in Alberta, Canada, is manufacturing mattresses for the comfort and health of cattle. What’s more, they make the mattresses out of old tires, that might otherwise end up in a landfill. Sold under the name of Cozy Cow, the $95 mattresses consist of a tough synthetic cover stuffed with rubber crumb. The rubber comes from discarded tires, about 500,000 of which are shredded on-site at Champagne Edition each month. The covers are treated with anti-fungal and anti-bacterial solutions. Udderly luvverly! One More Step Towards Constant Surveillance In my 2001 novel 'Emergence' I predicted that in 2015 everybody on the street would be videoing their surroundings constantly. This scenario came a step closer this week when police in San Jose, California fitted a head camera to18 officers for routine recording of incidents during a duty shift. The head cameras could help catch officers behaving badly and clear those who are falsely accused so long as they are accompanied by police department policies requiring they be switched on during each encounter and not as an officer chooses. The device resembles a Bluetooth earpiece and is attached by a band that runs around the back of the officer's head. It can be connected to an on-and-off button on the officer's chest, and from there to a video screen on a holster. In San Jose, officers are required to switch on the cameras for even routine investigations, such as vehicle stops. (Believe that's how they'll do it and you'll believe anything.) Be Afraid. Be Very Afraid! Robot Soldiers Are Here. HULC, the Lockheed Martin (LM) powered robotic exoskeleton developed to beef up soldiers' muscles is being extended in its range to support extended missions of 72 hours and more. LM is working with Protonex Technology Corporation to evaluate and develop fuel cell-based power solutions that can be carried by the HULC, while at the same time powering the exoskeleton and the soldier’s mission equipment during extended dismounted operations. On foot, soldiers often carry loads greater than 130 pounds, including electronics and numerous extra batteries needed to operate gear and complete 72+-hour operations in the field. The HULC, equipped with an extended mission power supply with recharge capability, would enable foot soldiers on these missions to carry fewer batteries. Protonex brings experience in developing and manufacturing compact, lightweight and high-performance fuel cell systems for portable power applications in the 100 to 1000-watt range. The company’s fuel cell systems are designed to meet the needs of military, commercial and consumer customers for off-grid applications by providing customisable, stand-alone portable power solutions. New Glass That Blocks More UV Researchers from Penn State University are hoping that a new recipe for making glass will further improve the protection offered by ultraviolet-blocking sunglasses. The team has discovered that adding cerium oxide to phosphate glass could result in sunglasses, windows and solar cells that block UV light more effectively than existing glass and have increased radiation resistance. Ultraviolet rays can cause damage to the skin, but it can also damage the eyes. The cumulative effect of not protecting eyes from the sun can cause unpleasant problems such as cataracts, skin cancers around the eye and pterygium - an abnormal growth which starts in the corner of the eye but can grow over the cornea. |
Robot Waiters Won't Forget What You Ordered
If you hate those waiters who refuse to write orders down and then deliver all the wrong stuff to the table, you'll be keen to visit restaurants staffed by robots in a Robo Cafe ITM Technology of Korea has developed a restaurant concept around a cute little robot that fulfills the role of a waiter - it takes orders from customers, either verbally or through a touch screen, then relays them to the kitchen, and brings the food out when it's ready. Robo Cafe is said to eliminate ordering errors, reduce staffing costs dramatically for restaurant owners, and the robots even brings the boss all the tips. (But, be warned: ITM is also a major manufacturer of military robots so don't try to leave without paying your bill.) Power From Your ClothingPowering an iPod or mobile phone could become as easy as plugging it into your T-shirt or jeans, battery clothing that you recharge overnight. Scientists in California are reporting a method of changing ordinary cotton and polyester into 'conductive energy textiles' - e-Textiles that double as a rechargeable battery. The new process for making E-textiles uses 'ink' made from single-walled carbon nanotubes - electrically conductive carbon fibers barely 1/50,000 the width of a human hair. When applied to cotton and polyester fabrics, the ink produced e-Textiles with an excellent ability to store electricity. The fabrics retained flexibility and stretchability of regular cotton and polyester, and kept their new e-properties under conditions that simulated repeated laundering. As Drivers Get Older... Increased Risk On The Roads?The number of male drivers over the age of 70 in Britain will double in the next 20 years, and the number of female drivers over 70 will treble. Does this pose a greater risk on the roads? A new in-depth report released last month by the UK's IAM (Institute of Advanced Motorists) contradicts the common assumption that older drivers are a danger on the roads, comprehensively proving that drivers over 70 are no more likely to cause crashes than any other driver, and are indeed, considerably safer than younger drivers. Just eight per cent of drivers are currently over 70 years of age, and they are involved in around four per cent of injury crashes; 15 per cent of drivers are in their teens and twenties but are involved in 34 per cent of injury crashes. New Test For Earlier Detection of Alzheimer's Disease A new simple and inexpensive eye test could aid detection and diagnosis of Alzheimer’s at an earlier stage than is currently possible and a 'cocktail' of commonly available supplements has shown promise in improving memory and fighting Alzheimer’s disease. Currently there are more than 30 million people with dementia worldwide. By 2050, this figure will increase to over 100 million. At University College London researchers have demonstrated a new technique that enables retinal, and therefore brain cell death, to be directly measured in real time. The retina is a direct, albeit thin, extension of the brain. It is entirely possible that in the future a visit to a high-street optician to check on your eyesight will also be a check on the state of your brain. Hearing Through Your Teeth Sonitus Medical of San Mateo in California has created a small hearing aid device for people with hearing loss in one ear that wraps around the teeth. The hearing aid picks up the sounds detected from a tiny microphone in a person's deaf ear and transforms them into vibrations. These then travel through the teeth and down the jawbone to the cochlea in the working ear, where they are transmitted to the brain providing stereo sound. The same process of 'bone conduction' explains how we hear our own voices, and why they sound different when they are recorded and played back to us. Back issues of 'Glimpses' are archived here. |