THE TECH-LICIOUS

Check Out This AirType Keyboard-less Keyboard

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">It doesn’t really matter what you use to do it – typing is just about the same on all devices. Oh, sure, it’s bigger on some devices and smaller on others, but the letters and the keys are pretty much all in the same spots, and you have to press them all the same to get your message out. We’ve been typing the same way since basically the advent of the typewriter, QWERTY and all. Don’t you think it might be time for some kind of a change?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The folks at AirType do, and I have to admit – <a href="http://airtype.io/concept/" style="color: #0092dd;" target="_blank">what they’ve designed is intriguing to say the least</a>. They’ve created a bluetooth keyboard that’s missing the keyboard, and they claim it will work anywhere, and even better, it will learn all of your typing habits and will adapt to each individual user. They claim a person can type on any surface whatsoever or they can also type on no surface at all if that’s their preference.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><img alt="Check Out This AirType Keyboard-less Keyboard" class="lazy alignnone size-large wp-image-17309 data-lazy-ready" data-lazy-src="http://news.filehippo.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/airtype-keyless-keyboard-12928.jpg" data-lazy-type="image" height="398" src="http://news.filehippo.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/airtype-keyless-keyboard-12928.jpg" style="background: rgb(236, 240, 244); display: inline; float: none; max-width: 708px; padding: 10px;" width="708" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The keyboard works using 2 bluetooth bracelets which connect to an app to learn your typing habits. The bracelets will even clip onto a tablet so you can easily carry them wherever you take your tablet. AirType claims that its text prediction and text correction are state of the art as well, so a user won’t have to spend all their time detecting and retyping words.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">At this point in AirType’s development there is no mention of how much it will ultimately cost. If it proves to be successful, though, it could provide a welcome change to mobile typing everywhere.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">source-<a href="http://news.filehippo.com/2014/07/check-airtype-keyboard-less-keyboard/" target="_blank">tech beat</a></span></div>
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Check Out This AirType Keyboard-less Keyboard

It doesn’t really matter what you use to do it – typing is just about the same on all devices. Oh, sure, it’s bigger on some devices and s...

Google letting curious explorers take Glass for a free spin

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Glass has run the opinion gamut from "<a href="http://www.engadget.com/2014/04/09/google-glass-parkinsons-uk-trial/" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;">great</a>" to "<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/i-was-assaulted-for-wearing-google-glass-2014-4" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">hate</a>" to "surprisingly useful," but Google thinks you should forget all that. We just received an invitation (after the break) to several Google Glass "Basecamp" offices with the following teaser: "There's a lot of talk about Glass, but have you tried it for yourself yet?" If you're near San Francisco, LA or New York, you'll need to <a href="https://support.google.com/glass/answer/6021600?hl=en" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">schedule an invitation</a> for a fitting, service or a demo. For those worried about the original, not-so-stylish <a href="http://o.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/GLOB/crop/2999x1996+0+0/resize/630x419!/format/jpg/quality/85/http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/midas/a4dd63d9fadc5c57bb737e4d45329be9/200119256/147229908.jpg" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">cyborg look</a>, Google has hooked up with couture magnateDiane Von Furstenberg to create more normal eyewear designs. And of course, anybodycan get them now -- as long as you're willing to burn $1,500.</span></div>
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Google letting curious explorers take Glass for a free spin

Glass has run the opinion gamut from " great " to " hate " to "surprisingly useful," but Google thinks you...

Battery powered trousers could have you walking on walls

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><img alt="A student paper has concluded that battery-powered trousers allowing people to walk on ver..." height="358" src="http://images.gizmag.com/hero/vacuum-pants.jpg" width="640" /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">A group of students at the University of Leicester in the UK have shown that it is theoretically possible to build a pair of battery-powered trousers which would allow the wearer to walk on walls or even the ceiling, if only for a short time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">In the 1993 Wallace & Gromit claymation movie <em>The Wrong Trousers</em>, Wallace buys Gromit a pair of battery-powered robotic trousers that, among other things, allow the wearer to walk up vertical walls or even on the ceiling. They work both on Earth and in space using a combination of vacuum and magnetic field generators placed in the soles of the boots. A team of graduate students at the University of Leicester set out to establish whether building such a gadget is physically possible.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The mechanics of walking means that the device needs to function even when only a single boot is in contact with the wall or ceiling. Therefore, the students made their calculations assuming that only one boot is supporting the entire weight of both the person and the device itself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">If each boot had a slightly raised rubber insulator on the edge of its sole, this would create a cavity when the wearer puts their foot down on a surface. Applying a vacuum to this cavity would make the boot stick firmly to the surface, similarly to a suction cup, but with finer control.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Making basic assumptions on the area of the sole as well as the weight of the wearer and the device itself, the students concluded that the vacuum generator would need to reduce the pressure of the air underneath the boot by approximately 18.5 kPa compared to the surrounding environment. This is roughly the vacuum created by an ordinary vacuum cleaner.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">According to the students, the main issue with building such trousers wouldn't be generating enough vacuum, but rather powering them effectively. Because of weight constraints, the students say their gravity-defying pants could realistically only be powered from a battery for about 20 minutes before needing recharging. The alternative would be to draw power directly from the grid, though this would obviously constrain movement.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Because the device relies on creating a lower pressure than the surrounding environment, the trousers wouldn't work in space, where pressure is already close to a perfect vacuum (negative pressures are possible in liquids, which is how very tall trees can carry water all the way up to their leaves, but gases cannot have negative pressure). The students say that a possible workaround could be to use magnetic generators rather than vacuum generators.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The students presented their findings in a paper for the <em><a href="https://physics.le.ac.uk/journals/index.php/pst/article/view/651/437" style="background-color: transparent; color: #1e8dd7; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Journal of Physics Special Topics</a></em>, a peer-reviewed student journal designed to give students practical experience of writing, editing, publishing and reviewing scientific papers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">source-<a href="http://www.gizmag.com/vacuum-trousers-wall-ceiling-walking/32988/" target="_blank">gizmag</a></span></div>
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Battery powered trousers could have you walking on walls

A group of students at the University of Leicester in the UK have shown that it is theoretically possible to build a pair of battery-pow...

Jaguar Virtual Windscreen concept looks to the future of HUDs

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><img alt="The 'Virtual Windscreen' is also able to display a racing line for trackday warriors" height="359" src="http://images.gizmag.com/hero/jaguar-landrover-virtual-windscreen.jpg" width="640" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Looking to add a touch of <em>Gran Turismo</em> or <em>Forza</em> to your daily commute? Jaguar Land Rover is developing a Virtual Windscreen concept that aims to do just that with a slew of driver assistance technologies designed to keep your eyes on the road, including a head-up display (HUD) that overlays the driving line featured in many virtual racers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">As well as projecting key information onto the windscreen like speed and navigation, the Jaguar Virtual Windscreen concept would also overlay the driving line and even a "ghost" car, which acts as a reference point from previous laps.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Although this may seem like a bit of fun for track-day warriors, HUD systemsoffer some obvious safety benefits for having key information at the driver's eye-level.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Jaguar's concept also extends to replacing rear view and external mirrors with cameras and virtual displays. This system would incorporate a of a "3D instrument cluster" linked to head-tracking technology that could deliver key information unobtrusively as well as giving drivers a clear picture of their surroundings.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Finally, the system would include gesture-based control for functions like sunblinds, rear windscreen wipers and maps. Rather than having to search for buttons on the dash, the idea is that drivers could simply wave at the gesture-sensor with a range of 15 cm (5.9 in) to operate particular functions. Of the three tech concepts in development, this is the one most likely to appear in production models in the near term, with Jaguar claiming it could be on sale "within the next few years."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Below is Jaguar's video detailing how the Virtual Windscreen concept would work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">SOURCE-<a href="http://www.gizmag.com/jaguar-land-rover-virtual-windscreen-concept/32930/" target="_blank">GIZMAG</a></span></div>
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Jaguar Virtual Windscreen concept looks to the future of HUDs

Looking to add a touch of Gran Turismo or Forza to your daily commute? Jaguar Land Rover is developing a Virtual Windscreen concept ...

IF YOU ARE A BAD SHOOTER THEN DON'T WORRY "SMART BULLETS" ARE HERE

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEgUkBJms2-451S-KtC4sm5uwAh4gJ_x-UG_gbnXwkyGaNQErREy2bdanoaEzj4p29Hky9sVghumw8SWnPryheRDxipSylqI3T8B69JuN95qp4aQHOzA30g8RFuBwq0QD86gIXaESrKG401i7_hrClE2ecFCUUqu-z05f8ppRAEtKz1WrZ1yPx85ijk2TarhiKe2KpflJrkTYHAsjqf_k8HNdSQ2hXt4iqKBsbllOdg4=" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="DARPA shows its EXACTO smart bullets in action" border="0" height="224" src="http://o.aolcdn.com/hss/storage/midas/73fc49aa21b738b625a9e5907b4ee16d/200410163/darpa-exacto-demonstration.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Soldiers have long dreamed of smart bullets that always hit their targets, and it looks like they're now much closer to getting their wish. DARPA has posted the <a href="http://www.darpa.mil/NewsEvents/Releases/2014/07/10a.aspx" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">first footage</a> of<a href="http://www.darpa.mil/Our_Work/TTO/Programs/Extreme_Accuracy_Tasked_Ordnance_(EXACTO).aspx" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">EXACTO</a> (Extreme Accuracy Tasked Ordnance), a .50-caliber bullet that uses optical guidance and sensors to home in on its prey. As you see in the fuzzy-looking video below, the projectile compensates for movement, weather and wind with all the agility of a missile -- even if you try to miss, it easily swerves back on track. The project is still young, but it could prove a tremendous help to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longest_recorded_sniper_kills" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">long-distance snipers</a> for whom even the tiniest slip-up could ruin a shot.</span></div>
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IF YOU ARE A BAD SHOOTER THEN DON'T WORRY "SMART BULLETS" ARE HERE

Soldiers have long dreamed of smart bullets that always hit their targets, and it looks like they're now much closer to getting t...

Bell Labs Zips Past Google Fiber to Set Broadband Speed Record of 10GBPS

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Can we get some of that 10Gbps, please?</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Records are meant to be broken, but sometimes they’re downright shattered. Case in point – <strong>Bell Labs, the research arm of Alcatel-Lucent, just set a new broadband speed record of 10 gigabits per second</strong> using traditional copper telephone lines combined with a prototype technology that’s intended to show how existing copper access networks can be used to deliver 1Gbps symmetrical ultra-broadband access services.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The prototype technology is called XG-FAST and is an extension of G.fast technology, a new broadband standard currently being finalized by the ITU. G.fast, which is expected to be commercially available in 2015, uses a frequency of 106MHz to deliver broadband speeds of up to 500Mbps over a distance of 100 meters.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">By comparison, XG-FAST uses an increased frequency range of up to 500MHz to achieve faster speeds, albeit over shorter distances. Using XG-FAST technology, Bell Labs was able to hit 1Gbps symmetrical over 70 meters on a single copper pair, and 10Gbps over 30 meters using two pairs of lines (bonding).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">“Our constant aim is to push the limits of what is possible to ‘invent the future’, with breakthroughs that are 10 times better than are possible today,” explains Marcus Weldon, President of Bell Labs. “Our demonstration of 10Gbps over copper is a prime example: by pushing broadband technology to its limits, operators can determine how they could deliver gigabit services over their existing networks, ensuring the availability of ultra-broadband access as widely and as economically as possible.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Interesting stuff, though Bell Labs set the record in a lab under ideal conditions. Quality of wire, crosstalk, and other factors can all affect real-world results. Nevertheless, it’s pretty exciting that 10Gbps speeds are visible in the distance.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">SOURCE-<a href="http://www.technobuffalo.com/2014/07/12/bell-labs-zips-past-google-fiber-to-set-broadband-speed-record/" target="_blank">TECHNO BUFFALO</a></span></div>
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Bell Labs Zips Past Google Fiber to Set Broadband Speed Record of 10GBPS

Can we get some of that 10Gbps, please? Records are meant to be broken, but sometimes they’re downright shattered. Case in point – Be...