Ear Docs' Warning Rings Loud and Clear: Turn Down the iPod!

MP3 players and iPods line the pockets of millions of people across the world. People listen to their music while walking, waiting, and for enjoyment. Although people do not listen to music loud, the time they spend with the player has increased over the years. A new study from the European Union cautions people who listen to personal music players for too long, at too high a volume settings, may do serious damage to hearing. “The music coming form those small, white ear buds is part of a larger problem,” experts claim. Hearing loss is permanent, cumulative, and—because it’s painless—hard to detect, according to the researchers. Signs that you are listening to music at too high a volume include stuffy ears and ringing. However, there are steps that the users of MP3 players can take to limit potential hearing problems. If you are listening to the music on your headphones, make sure you can hear someone else talking to you at a normal volume level. Researchers at Northwestern University advocate the "60/60 rule," which means MP3 players should be used at no more than 60 percent of the maximum volume and for no longer than about 60 minutes per day. Although those headphones may not seem to be too loud for you, remember that you cannot feel your sensory cells dying in the tiny hairs in the inner ear, but they are.
By Stephen T. Watson
The Buffalo News
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/Ear-Docs-Warning-Rings-Loud-and-Clear-Turn-Down-the-iPod-65042.html
Michael Saleeb

Livescribe's Pulse Smartpen for the Mac

Just in time for the holidays, Livescribe is about to release their Smartpen for the Mac on November 24. The pen is about the size and weight of a large MontBlanc pen, with a microphone, a speaker, a small OLED display, and an internal computer chip that captures handwritten notes and drawings. Earlier in the year Livescribe came out with the Pulse Smartpen for the PC. The pen has the ability to record sound and synchronize the audio with written notes. Basically what the Smartpen does is record and link the audio to what you are writing, and making it possible to listen to what you recorded while you write. You are even able to search for keywords in your notes. This seems ideal for college students who like to take notes because if you forgot what your note was supposed to mean, you can click on the text and the audio will jump back to the exact moment in recording when you wrote that word. This would be useful to anyone who uses pen and paper frequently. However, to use the text and audio features, you have to use the pen with Livescribe’s dot paper that has points of reference for the audio. The paper has pre-printed controls on them that allow users to fast-forward and rewind the audio. For Mac users, the paper must be purchased from Livescribe but PC users will be able to print their own paper with Livescribe software for Windows 1.4, which will be available later this month. The pen has a variety of applications, including a built-in language translator that can translate English words into a many languages like Spanish and Mandarin.
The Smartpen has a 1GB model that sells for $149 and a 2GB model for $199.

http://www.macworld.com/article/136877/2008/11/pulsesmartpen.html?lsrc=top_3

- Annie Huang, Thursday 8am

The iphone that Listens

It is no longer necessary to type an inquiry, you can just verbally ask your phone. Now, with the new speech recognition service that has been recently released by Google for the iPhone, you can actually talk to the search engine. Just as you enter questions into a search box on the traditional Google application, is how this new program best understands verbal questions. For example all that needs to be said is, “best Chinese restaurant in Los Angeles.”

Voice recognition technologies such as this new application and Bluetooth devices for vehicles demonstrate how this industry has progressed. One of the first successful demonstrations of a voice command technology were the voice controlled battleships created by researchers at SRI International, originally the Stanford Research Institute, in 1983. The industry’s leaders have always stated that one day we will be able to talk to machines, and that they will understand us. And over the past twenty-five years Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo have all claimed that voice recognition is necessary for the mobile computing era. Other companies such as I.B.M, Nuance and Vlingo are also in the race, and the stakes are high. Whoever develops and refines the first major technology in voice will easily take control over handheld devices.  

Source

Dina Rosenberg, Thursday 8am 

Telemetria Telephony Introduces First In-Car Computer

Telemetria Telephony Technology Inc, founded by Alen Nejeh, has developed the first in-car PC with broadband connectivity. The company is aiming for a 2009 release date. The system includes features such as Smart Navigation, Real Time Traffic Monitoring--which predicts the best driving routes based on real time traffic patterns, and Web Services--including online maps, search engines, and much more through the built in LAN/WAN connectivity. The computer itself is an easily removable seven inch screen that conveniently plugs into the dashboard of the car. Partnered with Intel, Telemetria hopes to establish a new and successful piece of technology, which hopes to serve as the "platform for vehicular applications." Other features of the device include control over all in-car systems such as the DVD player, alarm system, or radio/CD player from both the front and back seats. Video steaming on YouTube and other sites is manageable on the system's bandwidth of 3G, but developers are hoping to establish a bandwidth of at least 4G to allow for high quality streaming. The in-car PC works with any car, but can only be used with models newer than 1996. The cost to purchase this device is currently unknown, but developers estimate a price of under $1000.

Source

Desiree Dozier
Thursday 9 am

Disneyland Jumps on The Mobile Application Bandwagon

It seems like new mobile applications are created all the time; some useful like VCAST Song ID (which I use all the time), and some not so useful like the one for the iPhone that did nothing for a lot of money. Well, this time Disney and Verizon have come up with a tool that will help you navigate both the California and Florida parks. This application - although still in development - will aid in finding shows, restaurants, rides and their wait times. It will also help you locate the Disney characters in the park and you could even receive messages (and possibly phone calls, but I can't tell if that part is a joke or not) from them. I just thought it was interesting how Disney is adapting to the times by developing this interactive application that will be available outside of the parks thus being yet another advertising tool for Disney - even though they say they won't take advantage of it's advertising aspect.

Orig. article

Devin Wilson
Thurs 9am

Google Get's It's Medical Degree

The New York Times article, “Google Uses Searches to Track Flu’s Spread” illustrates the active leap that the Internet has made in the medical field. This came about because the common person tends to use the Internet to answer all of his/her questions. Many Americans, when starting to feel a sickness coming on, try to self-diagnosis themselves by using the Internet. Therefore, this act has “given rise to a new early warning system for fast-spreading flu outbreaks called Google Flu Trends” (Helft, pg.1). For example, in early February, the C.D.C. reported that the flu had recently spiked in the Mid-Atlantic States, but Google Flu Trends realized this two weeks before that report came out. Such a development through the use of the Internet could help the speed of the response of those in the medical field and ultimately reduce the spread of the disease. Some even say that such a trend-spotting can not only help with the awareness of the flu but other disease trends as well. The suspect side of this tool is that it is not validated scientifically, but in the end it only helps the cause of reducing the spread of a disease. In my opinion, this type of trend spotting is fascinating and proves that the Internet’s capabilities are infinite. Hopefully, it turns out to be a successful endeavor, and the medical departments will be able to prevent a disease from spreading.


Gabrielle Yacoob
Thursday 8 am

NComputing: The Energy-Efficient $70 PC

NComputing is a California-based company that has developed a PC that may possibly be the PC unit of the future. A traditional PC consists of numerous hardware parts and also consumes quite a load of energy. NComputing has built a PC unit that does not have a CPU, memory or moving parts built in. Rather, the unit connects to a central shared computer that uses NComputing's virtualization software to share its processing power to the satellite units. The PC will still run like a normal PC, the only difference is that the hardware will not be physically present in the unit. Moreover, this new feature will enable up to 30 users to connect to a single central computer that costs $500. Given that the PC does not consists of any moving parts, the device will also be far more energy efficient than current PC's. In most cases, the new devices will run on as little as 1-4 watts of power. The NComputing devices sell for $70, which is a significant difference in price compared to today's prices for a PC. This new style of computing could change the manner in which businesses or schools use computers. Not only will this new feature save you money it is also more environmentally friendly, a new direction that many businesses are now headed in.
http://cleantechnica.com/2008/11/03/ncomputing-the-energy-efficient-70-pc/

Javier Ramirez Thur 8am

Virtual Voters Follow Election In Cyberspace

In the virtual world of the game Second Life users came together to watch the election updates through the game. They were able discuss their thoughts on the election and learn more about the candidates. Various users also created campaign headquarters, held rallies and handed out virtual buttons to those who visited them.
Spore, another virtual game, took a less serious approach to the elections by creating their own downloadable spaceships modeled after the presidential candidates.
Aside from the gaming world people were getting involved in the election through social networking sites like Twitter. Twitter was keeping track of the number of Twitter users that voted and also using google maps to help them estimate wait times for voting places.


Link= http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/11/04/election.online.ap/index.html

Done by: Bryn Sakow