Your founding fathers had strong vision on the function of a society. Thomas Jefferson said, “A society that will trade a little liberty for a little order will lose both, and deserve neither.”
… Read More → "Your founding fathers had strong"Darpa, the blue-sky agency whose most successful pipe-dreams have turned into the Internet and GPS navigation, among others, has in recent years turned to civilians for help in catalyzing new innovations. First was the Grand Challenge for driverless car design. Then came the Network Challenge that sent the socially-networked searching for red weather balloons. Calls to crowdsource spy drones and combat vehicles quickly followed. … Read More → "Darpa recruits puzzle people for ultimate dumpster dive"
… Read More → "Ten years after the Patriot Act, a look at three of the most dangerous provisions affecting ordinary Americans"Much of the PATRIOT Act was a wish list of changes to surveillance law that Congress had previously rejected because of civil liberties concerns. When reintroduced as the PATRIOT Act after September 11th, those changes — and others — passed with only limited congressional debate. via Electronic Frontier Foundation
ARM on Thursday released details of its next generation architecture that will see its next cores capable of 64-bit computing. The boost from 32-bits to 64-bits will push ARM-based processors over the last big hurdle keeping the chip IP company outside the enterprise and corporate computing market, and pit it squarely against Intel.
ARM-based chips can be found inside cell phones, set-top-boxes and game consoles, but as power became more of concern in the data center, companies such as Calxeda, Nvidia and Marvell have tried to shoehorn ARM-based chips into servers. In fact, … Read More → "The ARM v. Intel fight just got good"
When you’re trying to figure out statistics about something as nebulous and pervasive as “the Internet,” you’re going to have to performs some interesting mental contortions. After all, how many things out there are connected to the Internet? How many of those things would you consider to be actively “using” it, how much power is there in the world? All valid and difficult questions, valid and difficult questions that Justin … Read More → "The internet is responsible for 2% of the entire world’s energy usage"
At the Mercedes-Benz TecDay 2011 event in Germany, Mercedes revealed its concept infotainment system, @yourCommand, a voice- and gesture-controlled cloud-based system in the F 125 research vehicle. While that system is a few years away from being integrated into production vehicles, Mercedes also announced that in a few months it will begin selling a new infotainment option developed specifically for the iPhone.
Mercedes didn’t provide much detail about the future infotainment system except to say that it will … Read More → "Mercedes to introduce new iPhone-centric infotainment"
Sadly, as our daily lives become more and more digital some things fall by the way side as they are replaced by newer, «better» devices. Let us not forget those fallen appliances, tools and gadgets and relive those bygone times by taking a visit to The Museum of Obsolete Objects. Step inside to step back in time!
It’s easy to underestimate boredom. The mental condition, after all, is defined by its lack of stimulation; it’s the mind at its most apathetic. This is why the poet Joseph Brodsky described boredom as a “psychological Sahara,” a cognitive desert “that starts right in your bedroom and spurns the horizon.” The hands of the clock seem to stop; the stream of consciousness slows to a drip. We want to be anywhere but here.
However, as Brodsky also noted, boredom and its synonyms can also become a crucial … Read More → "The importance of mind-wandering"
Newcastle University in England has installed this kitchen, which is designed to helps students learn a language and gain some cooking skills at the same time. PBS should be all over this.
Everything from the mixing bowls to the peelers to the flour and sugar have embedded sensors that work under the same concept as a Nintendo Wii. The computer knows where the tools are and what motions are being made.
The computer … Read More → "French digital kitchen: HAL 9000 meets Jacques Pepin"
… Read More → "Smart electric bike (from the makers of Smart car)"This eBike from Smart, known for their tiny cars, features a 250-watt electric motor powered by a high performance 400-Wh lithium-ion battery that recharges while you pedal. Along with a 62 mile range with one battery charge, the eBike features a smart phone integration, assisted brakes, a carbon belt drive and more. via Gear Culture
