Interpreting Technology Hype
When new technologies make bold promises, how do you discern the hype from what’s commercially viable? And when will such claims pay off, if at all? Gartner Hype Cycles provide a graphic representation of the maturity and adoption of technologies and applications, and how they are potentially relevant to solving real business problems and exploiting new opportunities. Gartner Hype Cycle methodology gives you a view of how a technology or application … Read More → "The Hype Cycle: how technology goes from inception to mainstream"

I think the “Pleo” robotic toy dinosaurs had some skin touch sensors several years ago.

http://www.pleoworld.com

The science fiction fantasy of Steve Austin, The Six Million Dollar Man, just took a huge leap toward reality thanks to the work of the researchers behind a new thought-controlled modular prosthetic limb. via Dvice

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… Read More → "Thought-controlled arm and hand makes ‘The Bionic Man’ a reality"

Max Barry’s Machine Man is a disarmingly funny and light-feeling novel about an antisocial engineer who decides to create his own prosthetic leg after he loses his own in an industrial accident. Charles Neumann is an antisocial, technology-dependent scientist at a top secret military contractor’s skunkworks. Dissatisfied with the prosthesis he is fitted with after he accidentally crushes his leg in a materials-testing machine, … Read More → "Machine Man: a discomfiting novel about the antihuman side of transhumanism"

New shoes with built-in GPS devices will go on sale this month to help track dementia patients who wander off and get lost. Caretakers can download a smartphone app that allows them to track the person wearing the shoes, which could help patients with Alzheimer’s disease stay in their homes and live autonomously for longer periods.

Caretakers or family members can even map out a “safe zone& … Read More → "First GPS-enabled walking shoes help caregivers track Alzheimer’s patients"

If you’re a data junkie when it comes to your exercise, you’ve probably moved well beyond the finger-on-wrist technique for monitoring your heart rate. Cyclists, for instance, often like to measure heart rate, speed, cadence, and power all at once. The only problem is, if you’re on a bicycle, it’s hardly the safest thing to be peering down at a smart phone or wrist monitor to check on your progress.

A Canadian company, 4iiii Innovations, thinks it has the answer. It’s developed the first heads-up display for athletes, called Sportiiiis. … Read More → "A heads-up display for athletes"

Wow.

via Boing Boing

… Read More → "This biped robot rides on a bicycle"

At the Nokia World show in London, the Finnish mobile phone maker showed off its “Nokia kinetic device” with a flexible display. Gripped with two hands, it would scroll through music collections or photo albums when twisted. Bowing it inward or outward zoomed photos in and out or paused and played music, while tapping the corners panned through photos. via cnet

Continue reading</ … Read More → "Nokia’s flexible, kinetic device interface"

A new report from the WWF indicates that by 2030 as much as 90% of the UK’s electricity could be produced by wind, solar, tidal and other sustainable sources. Energy prices are currently a major political issue in the UK with the 2020 targets meaning household bills would increase by 4%. However the WWF argues … Read More → "90% of UK’s energy could come from renewable sources by 2030"

Mark Frauenfelder noticed them everywhere he went: bleary-eyed souls peering up over their laptops and monitors, craving something more tactile than a keyboard, plus a measure of control over their surroundings. And then it began: They started making things, things that didn’t necessarily have anything to do with 1s or 0s. From handcrafted furniture to bespoke clothing to homemade robots, the Maker Movement took hold in California’s geek-heavy communities in the early 2000s and has since grown … Read More → "Maker Faire and the growth of DIY"