IBM is gathering some goodwill points by partnering up with a nonprofit to help monitor a 315-mile stretch of the Hudson River. They’re going to be using a combination of sensor-laden buoys and solar-powered robotic underwater vehicles numbering in the hundreds. The vehicle, which sort of looks like a yellow sting ray covered in solar panels, will monitor things like the rivers temperature, pressure and pH levels. With this info they hope to be able to analyze the amount of pollutants in the river and better asses the risk to marine life. First things first, change the solar vehicles’ colour from yellow to murky brown. That way it will blend in with the Hudson a little better. [TreeHugger]
Don’t you hate accidentally smiling at 17% capacity and having no one tell you? Omron has released what they’re calling “Smile Measurement Software,” which tells you what your smile factor is on a scale of 0 to 100%. The software uses 3D face mapping technology to, “ensure accurate smile detection and measurement even when the subject is not looking into the camera”—which is great for when you’re really trying to get 83% joy out of someone.
The software can be used on digital cameras, mobile phones and things of that nature to —well, I’m not sure. It’d be a useful little gadget to put in a screening room for a comedy, or measure how happy your friends are in your company. Either way, I eagerly await to see what creepy uses are thought of for this technology. [Akihabara News]
This is either a technological breakthrough or a sign that the medical profession is getting lazier by the minute: Aranz Medical’s SilhouetteMobile PDA was designed to diagnose how bad a wound is, and monitor its progress as it heals. With lasers. Fully disgusting illustrated “Wound Measurement Report” after the bloody jump.
Want to make friends with sex offenders but aren’t quite sure where they live? Let Vision 20/20 help you. The free web-based program gives users the ability to find the location of any sex offenders living in their area — including the crimes and the intensely creepy mugshots for each. The program is easy to use — simply input your address, city and zip code, and a flashy map pops up with mustached, Village People-style markers showing you where your local neighborhood creep is.
According to the Vision 20/20 website, there’s 650,000 registered sex offenders in the US and they’ve got them all placed neatly on a map for you. Try it — it’s fun for the whole vigilante-loving family. [Vision 20/20 via TechCrunch]
Thought I’d point to the excellent Carcom car intelligence system, also by Intelematics (the crew behind SUNA Traffic Channel), in case you’d never heard of it. First launched a couple of years ago, it was so well received that the company went into heavy duty production for factory fitting these systems for a number of automakers. If you have Holden Assist, Toyota Link, or Mitsubishi Diamondtrack, then you have the Carcom system. For everyone else, you can buy direct for around $2000 installation and $300 per year.
A few of us here at the Giz spent quite a bit of time on the football field in our youth, and after one too many ditzy posts are wishing we would’ve worn a football helmet like this one when we were out there busting some asses on the gridiron. This high-tech helmet has sensors inside that can tell just how hard you’ve gotten your bell rung, then transmits that info to doctors on the sidelines who might promptly bench you once you’ve reached the limits of consciousness, or at least the point of physical injury.
If, like me, you lose your keys and wallet on an almost daily basis, then you just might be desperate enough for gadgets like this. The Find One, Find All is a little radio receiver that you attach to your commonly lost items. You can then use another one – yes, you have to buy two – to track it down. There are six keys, and additional units can be programmed to different numbers. Lost your keys? Press 1. Lost your wallet? Press 2.
The Department of Defense is pursuing a brain-implantable “biochip” that will measure/relay a soldier’s vitals on the battlefield (and off). We don’t know much from a technical standpoint about the chips, other than they are about the size of a grain of rice and will have the ability to, at minimum, measure oxygen levels in tissue. But the technological breakthrough involved has little to do with the electronics.
Scientists have invented a gel that mimics human tissue. By combining the gel with the microchip, chances that the body will reject the device are far less likely. The entire project is said to be five years from implementation.
Personally, I’d love to see these microchips developed for civilian use, especially for diabetics and those who need constant blood work. But when framed as a government, military initiative, the altruistic potential can be scared off by Big Brother. [intelligencedaily via inquirer]
You never miss a message when someone calls, texts, or emails you, as those methods all have systems in place to let you know what you missed as soon as you’re available again. But what about when someone comes to your place? There’s no voicemail for your front door. Well, at least there wasn’t. Japan’s Matsumura Technology is releasing a peephole camera that’ll record sound and video of anyone who comes to your door, giving you a sort of visual voicemail for visitors. Never again will you not know that the UPS guy tried to drop off a package or your long-lost high school ex stopped by to rekindle your old relationship. [Nikkei Net via The Raw Feed]
When the Korea-only Black Eagle GPS detects a deceleration of 1.1G or more, it assumes you’ve plowed into a tree or car, and saves an 18-second video clip of the collision. (12 seconds before, pulled from a cache, and 6 seconds after.) It also has sensors for lane changes. I’m not sure I’d want this incriminating AV evidence on my dash, which also reports your speed before impact.
