Kage roi table does your web searches for you
June 30, 2008
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Household
Only recently we told you about a table that monitors who is dominating a conversation and deemed it potentially disruptive. This time, however, we’re looking at the “Kage roi” which looks to add to the coming together of wits and intelligences. Using voice recognition, Kage roi grabs keyboards and performs internet searches, displaying the results for each to see. To add it it all, the table even uses colored LEDs to set the mood. For instance, if you work with a group of morning people, set it to sunrise. If you’re trying to get them to scramble before the end of the day, give them a sunset and let the desperate brainstorming begin. Developed by IT firm Kayac with some brains on Keio University, Kage roi won’t be in a board room near you any time soon.
[Via Coolest Gadgets]
Nike+ Gym Equipment Coming July — iPhone Integration Imminent
June 30, 2008
Filed under: iPod, iPhone, Summer Fun
24 Hour Fitness just announced that it will be the first to offer Nike+ iPod enabled gym equipment at choose clubs starting next month. The press release says the following:
“Nike and Apple worked with major gym equipment manufacturers to make their cardio equipment Nike + iPod compatible so gym members can easily track and record workouts on cardio equipment like treadmills, stair steppers, elliptical trainers and stationary bikes.”
The press release only mentions the iPod nano. In fact, that might be all that we’re speaking about here.
Nevertheless, July is synonymous with the iPhone 3G, 2.0 firmware, and App Store launches and there’s that little ol’ patent application (the source of the picture above) which describes leveraging the iPhone’s sensors to turn it into a “lifestyle companion.” Nike of course, already confirmed that its Plus system would be extending to the iPhone and iPod touch sometime in the future. July seems as good a time as any don’t you think [Source: Business Wire]
||| Via [switched]
Volkswagen Prepping Diesel-Electric Hybrid for 2010
June 30, 2008
Filed under: Vehicle Tech, Green Tech
You know how we love plug-in hybrids around these parts, particularly if they’re actually going to get built — crazy, we know. Now it looks like Volkswagen is going to get into the game, with a “Twin Drive” Golf powered by a 122 horsepower diesel engine and 82 horsies of electric motor. The vehicle should debut around 2010, and VW plans on spending $769 million on the project, helped along by a $23.5 million program put in place by the German government to help along such development.
The car, which uses the electric motor for primary power, supplemented by the diesel motor and regenerative braking for extra juice, should be able to squeeze about 31 miles out of its Sanyo-developed lithium-ion batteries in all-electric mode. [Source: Wired]
||| Via [switched]
J Force Games promises “Best Indie Game Ever”
June 30, 2008
Filed under: News, Xbox Live Arcade
Oh, and J Force Games assures us that the game (whatever it will be called), is indeed headed to the 360 (presumably on XBLA). Find the video documentary after the break.
Continue reading J Force Games promises “Best Indie Game Ever”
Britain’s Surveillance Cameras Get Ears and Brains
June 30, 2008
Filed under: Audio/Video, Cameras, Personal
It was less than a year ago that closed circuit TV (CCTV) security cameras in the UK were given the capability to hear. Now, in some places, those cameras are getting a major upgrade in the form of an artificial intelligence program that law enforcement officials hope will eventually be able to identify and locate specific sounds. The current generation of software is sophisticated enough for complex image recognition — it can even identify if a automobile antenna is up or not.
The next step for the software is to learn to identify the waveforms of sounds, such as a automobile window being broken. The hope is that the camera will then be able to locate the sound, pivot to spot its origin, and alert the camera’s operator. As the software “hears” more it will learn to identify more sounds.
Large Brother isn’t just watching anymore, he’s listening and learning. [Source: BBC]
||| Via [switched]
Britain’s Surveillance Cameras Get Ears and Brains
June 30, 2008
Filed under: Audio/Video, Cameras, Personal
It was less than a year ago that shut circuit television (CCTV) security cameras in the UK were given the capability to hear. Now, in some places, those cameras are getting a major upgrade in the form of an artificial intelligence program that law enforcement officials hope will eventually be able to identify and locate specific sounds. The current generation of software is sophisticated enough for complex image recognition — it can even identify if a car antenna is up or not.
The next step for the software is to learn to identify the waveforms of sounds, such as a automobile window being broken. The hope is that the camera will then be able to locate the sound, pivot to spot its origin, and alert the camera’s operator. As the software “hears” more it will learn to identify more sounds.
Big Brother isn’t just watching anymore, he’s listening and learning. [Source: BBC]
||| Via [switched]
David Hayter needs your help to write Metal Gear Solid movie
June 30, 2008
Filed under: Culture
Don’t misinterpret that headline — David Hayter, who has voiced the role of Solid Snake since … well, since Solid Snake could speak, doesn’t need you to submit your fan fiction to help piece together the plot of the supposedly upcoming Metal Gear Solid movie (though we’re sure he would find your homemade Otacon/Sniper Wolf erotic literature wildly fascinating).
According to a recent IMDB post from Hayter himself, he needs fans of his work and of Kojima’s epic series to email a certain Sony Photos rep and politely advocate that Hayter be the one to pen the film’s script. He’s got the credentials to do so, having written screenplays for the first two X-Men movies and the upcoming adaptation of Alan Moore’s Watchmen. We can also assume that he’s played the game he would be adapting, giving him a significant edge over most screenwriters of ludologically-inspired films.
Alltel Now Offering WiFi Via Their Partnership With Boingo
June 30, 2008
Alltel customers who have been starved of free WiFi will like this bit of news. They’ve just announced a partnership with Boingo to bring Boingo Hotspot Access to their wireless customers.
For just $69.98 a month, Alltel customers will be able to get unlimited data on their wireless handsets in addition to unlimitd Boingo Hotspot browsing by subscribing to the latest Internet Anywhere Bundle. This new service is available now, and (potential) users can begin joining the queue.
Accidental ‘WTF’ License Plate to Be Replaced, Free of Charge
June 30, 2008
Filed under: Car Tech, Cell Phones, Summer Fun
Poor DMV officials. They have a hard time of it, between re-taking digital I.D. photos until little newly-licensed Kayla or Callie gets her bangs just right and, well, they’ve to spend all day in the DMV. We can’t blame them for being a little behind on the Web-SMS shorthand lingo, but this Really
A cute 60-year-old Grandma from Fayetteville, NC happily drove to and from her teaching job with the kickin’ set of WTF license plates that had been issued to her by the DMV. Last July, she figured out what the somehow not — thanks to some help from her teenage grandchildren. When the kids informed her of the true implications of the letters on her license plate, the woman was so vexed that she complained to DMV officials.
Gran’s plates were replaced gratis, and the North Carolina DMV has offered to exchange any WTF or other questionable plates free of charge.
Embarrassingly, it took DMV officials almost a year to realize that the sample plate on their site is also, ironically, of the WTF variety. Apparently some NC Webmaster has an, er, awesome sense of humor.
They are currently trying to take the picture down. [Source: WXII12]
||| Via [switched]
Soul Calibur IV will have some sort of tag team
June 30, 2008
Filed under: News
The latest Famitsu, according to translations from intrepid Cheap Ass Gamer forum goers, includes some brand new information on the upcoming Namco Bandai fighter Soul Calibur IV. Of the newly revealed details, the most intriguing is that the game is set to include some kind of “character swapping” which immediately evokes the image of tag team battles seen in many other fighting games of years past. The strange part is that the swapping elements are only mentioned in regards to the single-player game. It’s hard to imagine implementing a tag feature without incorporating it into multiplayer, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
The article also includes details on the game’s character creation mode as well as a few more technical aspects of the fighting itself. Hit the Source link to check it out.
[Via Joystiq]
Recent Comments