Information Technology News

Leap represents an entirely new way to interact with your computers. It's more accurate than a mouse, as reliable as a keyboard and more sensitive than a touchscreen. Leap enables control of a computer in three dimensions with natural hand and finger movements.

Leap Motion has demoed its Leap 3D motion control system having around 0.01mm accuracy — 100 times more accurate than the Kinect.  Leap creates a personal 3D workspace of about 4 cubic feet. The Leap consists of a small USB device with industry-standard sensors and cameras that with the company's software, can track multiple objects as well as recognize gestures.

Source: Leap 3D motion control system is 100 times more accurate than Kinect, will cost $69.99

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The secrets of one of the most remarkable technological finds from Ancient Greece have been probed for the first time using powerful X-ray imaging equipment, specially shipped to Athens.

 The Antikythera Mechanism as it is known, is regarded as the world's oldest "computer" and is thought to have been used to predict solar and lunar eclipses and record dates of the ancient Olympiad. Its remains were recovered from a Roman shipwreck off the southern coast of Greece in 1901. The Antikythera mechanism, is an ancient mechanical calculator (also described as the first known mechanical computer) designed to calculate astronomical positions. It was recovered in 190001 from the Antikythera wreck, but its complexity and significance were not understood until decades later. It is now thought to have been built about 150100 BC. Technological artifacts of similar complexity did not reappear until the 14th century, when mechanical astronomical clocks appeared in Europe.




Source: Probing the secrets of the Antikythera Mechanism

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MIT and Harvard announce edX
Joint venture builds on MITx and Harvard distance learning; aims to benefit campus-based education and beyond


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Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) today announced edX, a transformational new partnership in online education. Through edX, the two institutions will collaborate to enhance campus-based teaching and learning and build a global community of online learners.

edX is an organization established by MIT and Harvard that will develop an open-source technology platform to deliver online courses. EdX will support Harvard and MIT faculty in conducting research on teaching and learning on campus through tools that enrich classroom and laboratory experiences. At the same time, edX also will reach learners around the world through online course materials. The edX website will begin by hosting MITx and Harvardx content, with the goal of adding content from other universities interested in joining the platform. edX will also support the Harvard and MIT faculty in conducting research on teaching and learning.

EdX is a joint partnership between The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University to offer online learning to millions of people around the world. EdX will offer Harvard and MIT classes online for free. Through this partnership, the institutions aim to extend their collective reach to build a global community of online learners and to improve education for everyone.

EdX is a priority for the leadership of both Harvard and MIT, and it will be governed by a board made up of key leaders from both institutions, appointed by each university’s president. MIT Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Anant Agarwal will be the initial President of edX and will report to the board.

Learn More at http://www.edxonline.org/

Related:
Free courses from Princeton, Stanford, the University of Michigan, and the University of Pennsylvania
MIT Begins Offering Free Online Courses With Certificate
MIT to offer free online courses with unofficial certification for completion
Some good sites for free computer online learning

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Now every dual core Android user can have a PC in their pocket!

"In every dual-core phone, there’s a PC trying to get out."

The full PC desktop for multi-core Android phones




Now multi-core Android phones can be PCs too. Ubuntu for Android enables high-end Android handsets to run Ubuntu, the world's favourite free PC desktop operating system. So users get the Android they know on the move, but when they connect their phone to a monitor, mouse and keyboard, it becomes a PC.

Easy to integrate to your Android phone

Ubuntu for Android provides a full desktop experience, including office software, web browsing, email and media applications, on Android phones docked to a screen and keyboard. Thanks to tight integration with the Android service layer, the transition between the two environments is seamless, making it easy to access the phone's services from the desktop when docked.

Ubuntu for Android drops in cleanly alongside the rest of Android, so it is easy to integrate into current production roadmaps. The hardware requirements are straightforward and, with a broad range of ARM and x86 hardware supported, it can realistically be added to phones already in development.

Of course, your phone needs the docking capability and hardware support for HDMI and USB. But that’s standard for high-end models in the current generation of devices in development.

Benefits

Features

• Unified contacts
  Both Ubuntu and Android access the same mobile address book. So even when the phone is docked, you can view, edit, call, text or email a contact. You can even check their profiles on Facebook or Twitter.
• Calendar coordination
  As with your contacts, your Android calendar data is shared with Ubuntu. This enables synchronisation with any desktop or web-based calendar application, like Google Calendar.
• Messaging and calls
  Read and reply to incoming SMS messages from the desktop, using Ubuntu's message indicator. You can also make and receive calls via the desktop - and you'll be alerted to voicemails so you can manage them while you work.
• Simple integrated settings
  Alarm clock settings on the phone can be synchronised to alert you when working in the Ubuntu environment. You'll have one place to enter wifi passwords and one place to pair your bluetooth headset, then everything just works.
• Photos
  Manage and view photos stored on your smartphone using the Ubuntu Gallery application. Then edit them on the Ubuntu desktop and save them back to the phone. Create, edit and consume, all on one device.
• Social networking services
  All your Android social network account credentials are synchronised seamlessly, using the Ubuntu social networking client to provide easy access to your online communities.

Benefits for network operators

• Deliver the enterprise next-gen desktop in a single device
• Drive adoption of 4G handsets, as online apps like Google Docs shine with low-latency connections
• Expand your service portfolio from the smart phone to the smart desktop by delivering productivity desktop apps, including managed Windows apps as a service on your network
• Satisfy demand for first PCs to families in emerging economies with no legacy wired connectivity

Benefits for handset makers

• Drive sales of multi-core phones with faster CPUs, more cores, more RAM and high-end graphics
• Target lucrative markets for thin client in the enterprise and first PCs in emerging markets
• Integrate easily with Android phones already in development
• Accessorise with docks, cables, keyboards and displays

Here's How

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Blindness is one of the most debilitating conditions that can severely impact people’s ability to lead independent lives.
Bionic Vision Australia is a national consortium of researchers working together to develop a bionic eye that can help restore sight to people with particular forms of vision impairment. The aim is to restore the sense of vision to people living with blindness and low vision. Initially, this technology targets patients with retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration. With time and more research, it is possible in future that this technology can help patients with other vision impairment conditions.



Technology
The bionic vision system consists of a camera, attached to a pair of glasses, which transmits high-frequency radio signals to a microchip implanted into the retina. Electrodes on the implanted chip convert these signals into electrical impulses to stimulate cells in the retina that connect to the optic nerve. These impulses are then passed down along the optic nerve to the vision processing centres of the brain, where they are interpreted as an image.

To benefit from this technology, patients need to have a functional visual pathway from the retina to the brain along the optic nerve, as well as some intact retinal cells. As such, the two medical conditions that this technology aims to address are retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration.

What does the patient see?
A person using a retinal implant to see won't experience vision in the same way that a person with a healthy eye does. It will be quite basic to start with and they will need training to adapt to the implant. With time, training and patience, people will be able to use this visual information so they can be more independent and mobile.

The retinal implant bionic eye works by stimulating the perception of light in a patient. A phosphene is a perceived spot of light in the visual field. What our technology aims to do is stimulate many of these phosphenes across the visual field in a way that enables the patient to put together a picture of what they're looking at.

The more electrodes an implant contains, the more phosphenes are capable of being generated and the more detail a patient may be able to see. The first wide-view prototype device has 98 electrodes. The second High-Acuity device has more than 1024 electrodes.

Source: Bionic Vision Australia

Relevant:
Bionic Vision Around the Corner
Google Glasses

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"Like an upgrade to Google Docs" - Google Drive is everywhere you are—on the web, in your home, at the office and on the go. So wherever you are, your stuff is just...there. Ready to go, ready to share. Get started with 5 GB free

• Drive gives new users 5 GB free for each user account. Upgrades are 25GB for $2.49/month, 100GB for $4.99/month or even 1TB for $49.99/month
• Docs storage does not count against your Google Drive quota
• Desktop apps for Windows and OS X are available today. Android is there too but iOS integration is coming in the next few weeks
• Drive will allow 30+ file types to open natively in the browser, including Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and HD video

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Phillips has invented a prize-winning light bulb that lasts for 20 years and is going on sale in the US on Sunday, Earth Day.  A cheaper and less efficient version of the LED bulb is already sold by Philips in the US and Europe.



The bulb swaps filaments for light-emitting diodes to provide illumination.

Using LEDs endows the light with a long life and a hefty price tag. The first versions are set to cost $60 (£37).

Philips has arranged discounts with shops that will sell the bulb meaning some could buy it for only $20 (£12).

Buy Here

Encouraged by DoE
The bulb prevailed in the Bright Tomorrow competition, run by US Department of Energy that aimed to find an energy efficient alternative to the 60-watt incandescent light bulb.  The DoE challenged firms to develop a design that gave out a warm light similar to that from an incandescent bulbs, but was much more energy efficient.  Philips was the only candidate for the competition and its design underwent 18 months of testing before being declared a winner.

Competition
LED bulbs face competition from compact fluorescent lights which are almost as energy efficient and cost a lot less.  Sales of more energy efficient bulbs are being aided by official moves to end production of higher wattage incandescent bulbs.  Production of 100 watt bulbs has ceased in the US and Europe. Production of 60 watt bulbs has been stopped in Europe and is being phased out in the US. From 2014, incandescent bulbs of 40 watts or above will be banned in the US.

Source: US introduces $60 LED light bulb

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iBGStar™ is the first blood glucose monitoring system to connect directly to your iPhone® or iPod touch®. It was created for your on-the-go lifestyle so you can manage your diabetes information — anytime, anywhere.
Click here to be notified when available

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Google[x] started Project Glass to build a special kind of glasses, moving technology out of one's way; "helping users explore and share the world, putting them back in the moment."  This video released by Google on Wednesday, shows potential uses for Project Glass. A man wanders around the streets of New York City, communicating with friends, seeing maps and information, and snapping pictures. It concludes with him video-chatting with a girlfriend as the sun sets over the city. All of this is seen through the augmented-reality glasses. 

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