Long and Short Plaster, designed by Miyeon Kim & Hoyoung Lee.
Kids these days, running around and scraping themselves. It forces big people to run to CVS and buy various sizes and assortments of Band-Aids. This concept Band-Aid machine will rid of this routinized shopping spree by allowing you to cut customized sizes of Band-Aids. Think of it like a tape dispenser, but for Band-Aids. Neat-o.
Animated video of the machine at work after the break. Concept images below.
[Via Gizmodo; Yanko Design]
So why don’t you do it yourself? Apparently you can transform a standard wall outlet into a USB charging outlet in about thirty minutes for as low as ten bucks. Head over to Instructables to see how it’s done.
[Via Gizmodo; Instructables]
The Mood Chair, designed by Aether & Hemera.
The chair changes color based on your mood and surrounding environment. Unfortunately it does not come with a chart explaing what each color means. Use your imagination.
Catch a video of the illuminating chair after the break.
Continue reading Mood chair is ‘like a Mood Ring for your ass’
Check out this recreation of the famous bullet time scene from The Matrix, Lego-style. It took 440 hours to complete.
[Via Gawker]
Scientists at IBM have created the “biggest artificial brain ever” with a computer simulation (1.6 billion virtual neurons connected by 9 trillion synapses) that far surpasses the previous attempt (55 million neurons) to do such a thing. This year’s results simulate a cat’s brain, while the last time simulated a rat’s brain. Who’s up next? We are.
These massive simulations are merely steps toward Modha’s ultimate goal: simulating the entire human cortex, about 25 billion neurons, at full speed. To do that, he’ll need to find 1000 times more computing power. At the rate that supercomputers have expanded over the last 20 years, that super-super computer could exist by 2019. “This is not just possible, it’s inevitable,” [Dharmendra Modha, computer scientist] says. “This will happen.” [He adds:] “I’ll have it ready for you within the next decade.”
Modha meet SkyNet.
Well then, time to go out and buy all the Terminator movies and study up. Judgement Day is imminent.
[Via Gizmodo, here & here; Popular Mechanics]
Looks like Google is finally giving its first-born a refresh. At an unspecified date the main Google page and its search options will change in appearence. The interface promises to be cleaner, bolder, and and more accessable. Right now Google is testing out the new search features on random people. You haven’t been invited to the party? That’s OK, I’ve got the ticket to sneak you in the back entrance. It’s all after the break.
[Via Gizmodo, here, here & here; SearchEngineLand]
Continue reading Google is refreshing its search interface, give it a try
This past week YouTube lifted the 720p-only upload restriction; users are now able to upload and watch full 1080p high definition videos on YouTube. And what better way to celebrate this news than watch Heroes’ Hayden Panettiere uncork a bottle of champaign in slow motion, in reverse. Enjoy, fellas..
There’s still more YouTube news hot off the press. First, Google decided to shut down YouTube’s API access. What this means is that all the set-top boxes (and other similar devices) no longer have the ability to access YouTube services. Only YouTube-sanctioned devices like supported Blu-Ray players, Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, and TiVo will be able to feature a YouTube interface and provide videos to consumers. Why is Google doing this, you ask? Well, the unofficial reason is that Google, like any other company, wants to make as much revenue from its ads as possible and letting anyone and everyone have access to their YouTube service leaves them in a hard-to-control situation. Come December 2 all set-top boxes and unauthorized devices will lose their ability to feature the YouTube service.
On a less somber note, Google is now allowing users to add automatic captions to their YouTube videos to make videos accessible to the deaf and hearing-impaired. YouTube will utilize Google Voice speech-recognition technology to create automatic, on-the-fly captions for uploaded videos. For now this service will be available to a handful of partners including PBS, National Geographic and a some universities until it is perfected. For now, Google is implementing an “auto-timing” feature that will take written words in a user-generated text file and match the text to the words as they are spoken in the video. Neat-o.
Oh, and there’s another (less exciting) 1080p video posted after the break.
Amidio has created the “world’s first” true DJ software for the iPhone and iPod touch with Touch DJ. This app allows you to use your own MP3 or M4A files to create your own DJ mixes; this includes the ability to scratch and loop as well as manipulate positioning, equalization, effects, and pitch. Very neat stuff. Touch DJ is available in the App Store right now for $19.99. Peek after the break for a demonstration.
[Via Engadget]
Continue reading Touch DJ turns your iPhone/iPod touch into a highly functional turntable
“unfriend” – verb – “To remove someone as a ‘friend’ on a social networking site such as Facebook.”
That’s right, folks. The word “unfriend” is the word of the year, according to the Oxford American Dictionary. And get this–it beat out the words netbook, hashtag, and sexting, among others.
This is just silly, ain’t it?
Don’t mind the “auto-tune” nonsense. The original version cannot be embedded. ..Enjoy Will’s “Windows 7 Rising.”
[Via Gizmodo]
The Evolce ONE features a 47-inch full high definition LCD multitouch display and can recognize an unlimited number of touch points. It also has haptic feedback. It can run Windows 7 and it is compatable with all of 7’s multi-touch capabilities. Check out an additional hands-on video after the break, as well as the official press release.
[Via Engadget]
Today Google revealed its take on the operating system. And it’s called Chrome OS. What’s that you say? You’ve heard of Google Chrome, you are using it right now? Google Chrome is a browser, just like Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Mozilla’s Firefox. What Google has announced is an operating system (think Microsoft Windows or Apple Mac OS X) that runs in the Chrome browser skin. The desktop and the entire workplace resides in what looks very much like the Google Chrome browser you may be using today. The team at Google knows that when most people turn on their computer they go directly to their browser of choice to access the Internet. Their plan is to streamline this process by making the browser the home base of your computer.
Now let’s talk hard facts. Chrome OS is based on Linux and the current Chrome browser. It is entirely web-based and only runs web apps. All your storage will live in the Internet “cloud;” this means that all of your data (documents, music, pictures, etc.) will be stored online. Local hard drives will only be accessed to cache data and keep your computer speedy. Think of the cloud in the same terms you think of how your email is handled. You don’t download your email messages to your hard drive; it is all stored on the Internet, whether you use AOL Mail, Gmail, whatever. An advantage of an OS based on the cloud: You can take your virtual space with you everywhere; all you need handy is your login information and a Chrome OS-capable computer to sign in and access all your data. The OS itself is “light;” it will take just seconds to fully boot up your computer. And this is one of Google’s main goals: to get you on the Internet as fast and safe as possible. Speaking of safety, Chrome OS will be highly resistive to viruses and malware; Google has designed a security layer based on its own binaries and the OS easily upgradable with over-the-Internet updates for the entire OS.
—–>> Continue reading Google announces Chrome OS; “what if your browser was your operating system?”