Ryan Seacrest’s Typo Keyboard Sued By Blackberry

 JAN 13, 2014BRANDON5 COMMENTS

 

 

 

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Ryan Seacrest is really busy these days. Besides playing host to American Idol, the New Year’s Rockin’ Eve special, his own radio show, and having a life – Seacrest has also found the time to help develop a new keyboard attachment for the iPhone. Sick of so many typos while texting and using the internet, Seacrest and co. designed the Typo keyboard. It is a keyboard embedded in a case that directly fits over an iPhone. Currently the keyboard only works with the iPhone 5 and the iPhone 5s.
The Typo keyboard is reported to allow users to type much faster with approximately 50% less errors, or typos. It features a fully lit keypad and gives you a 40% portion of your phone’s screen back. It also includes easy buttons for currency, etc. allowing you to not have to switch back and forth between multiple screens trying to find the right key. Sounds great, right? Well, not to Blackberry who has decided to sue Typo Products.

So, What’s Blackberry’s Problem With The Typo Keyboard?
Apparently, the folks at Blackberry think that the Typo Keyboard looks a little too familiar for their liking. Steve Zipperstein, their Chief Legal Officer had this to say regarding the product:
“This is a blatant infringement against BlackBerry’s iconic keyboard, and we will vigorously protect our intellectual property against any company that attempts to copy our unique design…We are flattered by the desire to graft our keyboard onto other smartphones, but we will not tolerate such activity without fair compensation for using our intellectual property and our technological innovations.”
The Typo keyboard was set to begin shipping in the next month, but those preorders may be on delay until everything gets settled in court.
What do you think? Can you see any resemblance between the Typo keyboard and Blackberry’s keyboard design? Should it even matter? After all – as a wise man once said, “There’s nothing new under the sun.” Is Blackberry just doing this because they need the money and publicity, or are they just fighting for what’s rightfully theirs?
[Image via allthingsd]
SOURCE: http://www.theverge.com/2014/1/3/5270336/blackberry-suing-ryan-seacrests-keyboard-startup

   

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Build Your Own Robot At Home With MOSS

 FEB 22, 2014ALLANAHNO COMMENTS

 

 

 

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The field of robotics is seeing great advancements and so it makes sense that the up-and-coming generations are encouraged to get involved with science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM as the subjects are collectively known.
At this year’s Toy Fair, robotic kits and science sets featured heavily, aimed at nurtering a child’s interest in building and creating objects. One such kit named MOSS has been created by the same company that produces Cubelets. It comprises of a set of cubes that have sensors, inputs and ouputs and are colour-coded to make it easier to assemble them. So for example, cubes with green faces are for power, blue for pass through, brown for input and orange for output.

On each corner of each block there are magnets but the blocks are actually held together by the steel ball bearings on the corners. It is possible to produce large stable structures by placing a ball on each corner but by just using two, a hinge can be created. Thanks to the large number of electrical components and structural pieces it is possible to build complex robots with personality.
The kit is designed for children over eight years old and is expected to be available in April at the earliest. The basic kit comes with fourteen modules and costs $150, while the Advanced Builder kit is $480. They are available for pre-order now.

[Image via Crowdlifted]
SOURCE: http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/17/moss-robot-kits/
   

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IBM Researchers Make A Breakthrough In Graphene Technology

 FEB 6, 2014ALLANAH1 COMMENT

 

 

 

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IBM researchers have been demonstrating the amazing capabilities of a wafer-scale graphene material that could radically change electronics.
Branded as the “wonder material”, the researchers have been able to use graphene in creating the most advanced integrated circuit. This has the potential to allow mobile devices to transmit data far quicker.
Graphene was first created in 2004 and since then has been subject to a lot of study. Made up of just a single layer of carbon atoms, the aim is to harness its incredible electrical, thermal, optical and mechanical properties. These make it more energy efficient and cheaper compared to silicon.

According to IBM, graphene is well suited for wireless communications. Now that we see more big data applications, it has become more important to improve mobile devices so that they can transmit and receive large amounts of data, more efficiently.
“This is the first time that someone has shown graphene devices and circuits to perform modern wireless communication functions comparable to silicon technology,” said Supratik Guha, director of physical sciences at IBM Research.
Graphene has nano-scale dimensions, making it difficult to incorporate in to a circuit because it can be easily damaged. However, scientists have developed a manufacturing method that can preserve the quality of the graphene transistor, making it the most sophisticated graphene-based integrated circuit.
This breakthrough is considered to be a step towards true graphene technology.
[Image via Flickr]
SOURCE: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-25944824
   

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Concept Car Comes With Free Drone

 FEB 10, 2014SCOTT LEE1 COMMENT

 

 

 

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If you go to purchase a brand new car you expect a few extras included in the price, such as a satellite navigation system, alloy wheels, air conditioning or climate control, or maybe even Bluetooth connectivity.  I think for some people at least, that it maybe not be enough.  As the saying goes; “bigger, better, stronger and faster” and car makers are the first in line to adhere to this way of thinking, but I think the designers over at Renault have taken this motto a little too far. 

Renault have designed a fresh and funky looking concept car that is called Kwid and it comes complete with a mini quad copter drone hidden away in the roof that can fly alongside/ in front of you!  That’s right folks you read that correctly. Your very own personal drone, to do with as you see fit. According to Renault, the drone companion can be used to see if there are obstacles and traffic on the roads ahead.  It can relay live video to a tablet mounted in the car’s dashboard. You can also use it to take pictures.  The drone can be programmed to follow the Kwid automatically, or your passenger can take control of it from the dashboard-mounted tablet.

I can really see this thing bobbing around the streets of London, where the average speed is now clocked at 12MPH in the city centre.  This little concept car may actually help in the morning commute, especially if you car share as someone can pilot the drone to check the traffic jams!  Renault has actually designed the Kwid for young customers in the Indian market, although it would be perfectly happy around the like of London as it is a tiny vehicle, at just 3.6m long, but it packs quite a little punch with a 1.2l turbocharged engine.  The car has Gullwing doors and the interior is unique as it is modelled on a bird’s nest!  No information regarding pricing structure etc has been announced as the car is still a concept at the moment and not a production model.
[Images via: Recombu and DailyMail]
SOURCE: http://www.stuff.tv/renault/renault-kwid-concept-car-comes-its-own-drone/news
   

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A Breakthrough in Nuclear Fusion

 FEB 17, 2014ALLANAH3 COMMENTS

 

 

 

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Nuclear fusion has the potential to produce enough energy to meet humans’ high demands, so it is understandable why scientists invest a lot of time and money into researching this technology. It is unlikely that we will see this energy resource commercially available any time soon but scientists have announced that they have reached a big milestone in their studies.
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory researchers have revealed that fuel used to create fusion in their reactor is able to produce more energy than what is required to start fusion.

Fusion works by joining two atoms together. The huge amounts of energy are created when the atoms’ nuclei fuse. We see this in action everyday because the Sun contains a natural fusion reactor deep within its core. The energy it generates provides enough heat and light for life on Earth to exist.
In order to recreate the fusion process, the researchers use a highly complex reactor. 192 lasers are used to heat a cylinder with a 1cm diameter to millions of degrees. Contained within the cylinder is a plastic pellet, which houses two types of hydrogen plasma. When the cylinder reaches the required temperature, it creates x-rays which make the pellet explode, compressing the gas.
The more energy that reaches the hydrogen atoms, then the more fusion occurs and this leads to a chain reaction where the fusion actually becomes self-sustaining. This is called ignition. Although scientists have never been able to reproduce the ignition process, in the journal Nature, the reseachers have outlined how for the first time they been able to get the fuel to produce more energy than it received – up to 2.6 times more energy.
However only 1/200th of the original energy output from the lasers is making it to the hydrogen, so overall the reactor is still losing a lot more energy than it puts out, therefore there is a long way to go for the researchers.
“There is more work to do and physics problems that need to be addressed before we get to the end,” lead author Omar Hurricane said in a release. “But our team is working to address all the challenges, and that’s what a scientific team thrives on.”
[Image via Drboblog]
SOURCE: http://gigaom.com/2014/02/12/for-the-first-time-nuclear-fusion-produces-more-energy-than-it-takes-in/
   

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NASA Has Designed A Satellite Robot Refuelling Station

 FEB 18, 2014SCOTT LEENO COMMENTS

 

 

 

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There are currently over 500000 different pieces of space junk, floating around our orbit.  Unfortunately, with every satellite launched into orbit, it will eventually become interstellar garbage, things that have a seemingly unstoppable destiny to be tracked and possibly dismantled by DARPA or ultimately disposed of by huge lasers or something of similar force. Obviously, NASA is not happy about such a waste of resources and it knows that lots of satellites’ useable lifespan may be increased with the addition of even more fuel.

So those really intelligent North American Space Administration Scientists have come up with the answer, in the form of the Remote Robotic Oxidizer Transfer Test (RROxiTT).  This is a project aimed at constructing a robot platform capable of refuelling satellite tanks both here on planet earth and out in space.
To ensure the process can work, scientists are calculating a method for delivering highly combustible oxidizer (this is the chemical that is used to ignite rocket fuel) to a satellite that was not ever designed to be serviced. The small catch is, that they need to be able to do it safely and of course remotely. Oxidizers are “toxic, extremely corrosive and compressed” according to NASA, which is why this refuelling system is being developed for use both on in orbit and on land.  The though behind this process is why should we put a human being into harm’s way when a robot can accomplish the mission?
The technology that is required, is being jointly developed by men and women from Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland USA, which specializes in constructing the robotic arms and control systems and also a team from The Kennedy Space Center. That team has developed a distinctive oxidizer and fuel delivery and monitoring system, which is capable of safely transferring the propellant.
Tests of RROxiTT are currently ongoing as its creators are working out the problems that the new system has, down here on the planet, before they venture into space.
If you have any sensible comments regarding this story, please leave your comments in the section below.
[Image via: universetoday]
SOURCE: http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/12/nasa-satellite-refueling-robot/?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000595
   

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