Group items tagged

This article is about  spherical solar cells that can collect light from any direction. It can also collect light energy that is bouncing off in their surrounding. Compared to the traditional flat solar panels, this gizmo can work at its optimal performance any time of the day, leaving the old fashioned solar panels a thing in the past. 

The article that I have chosen to share for week 4 is about IBM and their new services to help eliminate fraud and financial crime. The article interested be because around 3.5 trillion dollars are lost per year to financial crime and fraud through technology. While the software is being marketed to big companies it also directly involves us, the consumers. For example when Sony's PSN was down thousands of peoples accounts were hacked and had money taken from their accounts. This new software interested me because now people can feel a little more secure using online programs knowing that their information can be safer. It is a new time where many things are bought through the internet and with better security people won't feel as worried about their security

The article that I have chosen to share for week 4 is about IBM and their new services to help eliminate fraud and financial crime. The article interested be because around 3.5 trillion dollars are lost per year to financial crime and fraud through technology. While the software is being marketed to big companies it also directly involves us, the consumers. For example when Sony's PSN was down thousands of peoples accounts were hacked and had money taken from their accounts. This new software interested me because now people can feel a little more secure using online programs knowing that their information can be safer. It is a new time where many things are bought through the internet and with better security people won't feel as worried about their security

What if there a was a way to charge your smartphone and get a workout at the same time?  This project is currently being implemented in New York City. Bikes open to the public that are able to charge phones have been scattered all over New York City.  The Charge Cycle hopes to bring a network of outdoor neon-green stationary bikes that allows anyone to charge their phone for free by simply peddling.  It takes the same amount of time to charge as if you were to directly plug it into the wall. Although there are some concerns of theft, developers have chained the bikes and also put locks on the bikes, which makes it harder to move. Nowadays, we all rely on our smartphones, they are technically our everything.  Many people would be devastated if it were to die, and they will not be able to use it until they have their charger and an outlet.  The Charge Cycle offers a charging system for smartphone users while they get a workout as well, so it is a "win win" situation for these users.  This affects our lifestyle because instead of sitting around doing nothing while waiting for our phones to charge, we can get a workout out of it, and stay fit and healthy. I do think this a good idea because obesity rates today are increasing, which is dangerous.  In order to maintain a healthy diet, exercise is important.  This bike allows us to maintain said healthy diet, while charging our phones at the same time, which truly is a win win.

Earlier today, Twitter announced  a brand new update for it's searching features for the web and smartphones including Android and IOS. This new update adds a search button to the Iphone making it up to speed with Androids and any form of a tablet. Also, this update improves search results for photos, tweets and twitter accounts. Secondly, the connect tab automatically defaults to interactions which will display new followers, mentions as well as re tweets. Lastly, which is probably the most favourite new addition, is a change in Twitters mobile implementations handle links. Meaning, you can now click a URL directly from your twitter timeline without having to open a related tweet. This is the new twitter search update that was released earlier today. Make sure to install this update and the mobile site is already sporting the latest updates, but you will need to update your IOS or Android smartphone at their respective store.

This article is about the Playstation 4.  It Lists the new technology added to the Playstation 4, such as its new graphics card, the new RAM, and  the new GPU.  It also talks about some of the new features such as the new "suspend mode", in which you basically put the gaming console into a "sleep-mode", in which it cuts out the start up sequences, and takes you directly to the game. Also, you now have the option to connect your PSN to your facebook.  Playstation has changed and updated their console very much from the previous installments, and because of this, Sony will have a distinct advantage in the upcoming console race that will come later this year.

Interesting. Very interesting. Not.

This article is about the capital of Peru which is the second largest capital in the world located in a desert. It rarely rains which means that many residents are forced to get their water from dirty wells. The good thing is that the humidity there is 98% so the local University designed a billboard that's able to harvest the moisture in the air and turn it into potable water. The University teamed up with with an add agency to create the billboard. A series of five tanks located at the top of the tower can store up to 96 liters of water at any given time, and the liquid reserves are accessible from a single faucet located at the base of the billboard.  The water vapor is being pulled directly from the air and further processed by a filtration system. The water is guaranteed to be clean enough for drinking all year round. I think that this is a great invention and should be used in many other places around the world with a high humidity. This article relates to the selected tag of Environment because even though it doesn't damage the environment it is a renewable resource and will only benefit us in the future.They get the water vapor from the air and change it into water from the environment. 

The "Green Brain Project" aims to create an insectobot (a robotic insect) with the brain of a honey bee. It's not as crazy or difficult as it sounds though, the researchers working on this project are not directly copying a bees brain but trying to recreate it. More specifically they are recreating bees two most important senses- sight and smell. They will then upload this fake brain into a small insect like robot so it can act somewhat like a real honey bee. This is important, as it would be a huge step forward in robotics and also because scientists say they could use robotic bees to artificially pollinate. This could help  with the reduced number of honeybees. Bees are very important to the whole environment so this project could possibly be revolutionary. I chose the tag "environment" because scientist are trying to recreate a natural animal that not only comes from Earth but greatly impacts it. Plants need bees pollination to grow, and animals need plants to eat so with a lack of bees, the whole food web would take a major hit. This project aims to try to fix this. To me, it seems like it would be extremely expensive and difficult to create as many bees as the earth would need. Maybe in the distant future though, this may be realized.

In the recent weeks, it seems to be the societal trend to chastise Apple Inc. for their mistakes, the most recent of them being their native iOS 6 'Maps' application. Earlier in the week, CEO Tim Cook published a letter on the Apple website apologizing for the poor quality of the app, saying that "At Apple, we strive to make world-class products that deliver the best experience possible to our customers. With the launch of our new Maps last week, we fell short on this commitment." However, this is not a first for Apple admitting their mistakes and apologizing; one example is in June of 2012, Bob Mansfield (SVP) expressed remorse for Apple's withdrawal of the EPEAT rating system, which ensured the company met an eco-friendly standard. They later recanted their actions and went back on to the rating system. Many people attribute Apple's recent downfall to the shift of power from Steve Jobs to Tim Cook. Apple has also come to fire for their general decreasing of employees per Apple store to increase profitability, their standalone podcast app and ultimately the widely regarded inadequate 'Siri', supposedly improved in iOS6. This relates to the tag 'eLifestyle' because when Apple limits the users experience by introducing faulty software and refuses to adress things because of pride, evidently the customers suffer. This relates to 'Environment' because of Apple's debacle with the EPEAT, and society's increasing desire for products that are eco-friendly, and Apple's supposed "higher environmental standards" that they operate under. Legally, Apple has actively been taking and giving lawsuits over the past years, including Samsung and Adobe (a lawsuit directly following Steve Jobs' choice to abandon flash on iOS devices.) From an economics standpoint, Apple seems to be making all the wrong choices, being that they abandon things that work (e.g. Google Maps, third-party podcast apps, EPEAT) and tries to 'reinvent the wheel' and many people argue that without the direction o

This article mentions the fact that Twitter now plans to update its mobile applications to introduce filters for photos allowing people to share altered images without having to use another source such as Instagram. Since most phones come with high-resolution cameras and many of the Twitter users use their phones this will be an easy way for people to edit and upload their photos. Especially with people or famous celebrities that use Instagram then share them on Twitter where more people follow them it will be easier and faster to just use Twitter for it all. This new idea has been hastened when Facebook bought Instagram. Twitter was thinking of buying a different photo service or application but when weighing out the cost they decided to just build their own filters. Twitter is also exploring the ability to upload and edit videos without using a third-party application like YouTube. This article has a lot to do with economics and the battle between two companies trying to get people to use their site and apps and not the other. In this case Twitter is really trying to become the most popular and important social networking site where people will be able to do anything on and it will be instant. They are changing what they once were to try to morph into Facebook because of the increasing popularity of Instagram and the fact that Facebook bought it.  I think personally that Twitter is making a good decision about the filter but i don't think twitter should add their own video player because it would change twitter and its purpose of being instant statements and pictures. YouTube is good at what they do and twitter should stay out of it. However with the whole idea of adding filters to Twitter you get the benefits of Instagram with the benefits of Twitter which might just keep them on top of Instagram.

Following Facebook's purchase of Instagram for almost $1 Billion in April 2012, it seems appropriate that Twitter would integrate something similar into their users' experience. 'Inside sources' say that Twitter is working on a photo-filter system that will be integrated directly in the site and mobile apps that hopes to bypass third-party services (such as Instagram.) While Instagram is a social network that focuses on social images with limited text, Twitter is renowned for its 140 character text-based updates with occasional images. An advantage of Twitter's supposed photo filtering system would be that there would most likely be a website equivalent to the mobile app, a problem that has plagued Instagram users who want a PC experience. As of now, there have been no official confirmations by Twitter, but the idea of a Twitter-exclusive photo sharing system seems interesting; although the market is currently saturated by Instagram, which can export images to other social networks, including Twitter. Legally, Facebook and Instagram may be able to take action against Twitter, depending on how similar their filtering system will be. This relates to eLifestyle and ICS20 because as social network users, we are always searching for ways to monetize our networks to one cohesive experience; another photo-sharing application seems arbitrary when there is already a capable system (Instagram.)

I think this is a great idea to do. Zamzar makes it much easier fro us now to read/see things that are emailed to us. It's also more reasonable because almost everyone has smart phones nowadays and if you wanted to read an email on your phone but it needed converting you could just use Zamzar. You wouldn't have to wait until you were able to go home and use your laptop. The only downfall is that you need a paid account on Zamzar if you wanted to convert more than 1MB of files.

Mozilla will begin selling smartphones running the Firefox operating system that will be priced at $25. $25 for a smartphone is an extremely low price, but it will not perform as well as our smartphones today. While it can be purchased in North America, it will also be sold in less developed countries like; Panama, Nicaragua, Argentina, and more. I think this is a great way for Mozilla to earn money because they are not directly competing with Microsoft, Apple, and Google. In such countries, just having a smartphone is a big deal; even if it cannot perform as many things that the modern smartphone can. This will allow people who would have never had the chance of owning a smartphone to actually own one. I think Mozilla has really thought outside the box here and while some may criticize while thinking it is a cheap and terrible phone, it may be something amazing to someone in another country.

Today employers face multiple challenges with traditional online hiring portals such as:

ü  Escalating cost of accessing candidates database which is largely unused

ü  Time-consuming candidate search and review process

ü  Hard to zero-in on the right resource

ü  Limited branding options

Needless to say, all the above factors slow hiring online which delays bringing candidates on-board. To help employers tackle these online recruitment problems, Pinhopes - a new-age online hiring destination, has introduced innovative profile filtering features, video based online hiring process, multiple branding avenues combined with cost-effective payment option. Here are the key differentiators which help employers hire 3x faster:

Get relevant applications from interested candidates - Every time

Unlike existing online recruitment portals Pinhopes doesn't deal in database business which means employers are not required to search for right candidates, in a database which is largely unused. Instead employers get relevant applications directly from active job seekers for a job opening, without putting much effort.

No tedious candidate search process - Advanced built-in search bubbles best ta

Google is taking one step forward in personal protection with their recently added feature. By automatically adding an "s" to http at the begining of the URL, they are encrypting the website and protecting its viewers from being seen by random people snooping around their searches, by making it more difficult to do so. This feature will soon be an available setting for Firefox, Chrome, Chromium, and Internet Explorer servers. Firefox users can install HTTPS Everywhere extention. Chrome and Chromium users can right click on the URL bar and add an "s" to the end of the "http". Internet Explorer users can add the setting in IE add-ons page.

Everyone has used google at one point in their lives. Well, a new revolution of google is on its way. When we google something have you noticed besides the 'www.' there is an 'http://'. This is means that your search worked but it isn't encrypted. This means that people can see what you're searching. With a new google search engine under development, the search engine revolution will advance. Instead of having to look for the website or whatever you're searching for, which sometimes makes me want to pry my eyes out of my head, the new google plans to take you directly to the website you searched for. What about 'http://' or whatever you ask? Another feature the new google will have is using the 'https://' system. The 's' at the end of the 'http' means 'secured', so basically no one can see what you're searching besides google itself. In other, more technical words, your data is encrypted. Looking forward to the new future of google!

Siri may have given Apple the boost they needed to remain on top and above Google. They may have given themselves at least a two-year advantage over Google in the on-going battle for the best smartphone platform. Siri crossed the threshold of being able to directly communicate with your device, and it is huge. Google has a program called Voice Actions, but Siri really understands what you mean. And it's personable. For example, it responds to "I love you, Siri," with "I love you too." Why shouldn't Apple be on top? They have cracked a code that Google has yet too, and the technology for this will haunt the people at Google's nightmares for the next long while.

Cameras are so annoying. Like, you have to HOLD them to take a picture! Honestly. As you've no doubt thought at least once before in your life, while taking a picture, "can I just throw the camera?" Well, apparently the people from this company have, and so created a camera that you can throw that takes pictures, and have thus christened it, the "Throwable Panoramic Ball Camera." Suitable name. This camera can allegedly take 360-degree panoramic photos, simply by throwing it up into the air, which is probably where they got its name from. You throw the camera directly into the air, and when it reaches the apex, all 36 cameras automatically take a picture. Using a specific computer program, these pictures are digitally stitched together, and you are able to navigate your own way through the 360-degree picture. Watch the video, and you'll see that the results are very impressive. The drawbacks? The ball cannot spin when it is thrown up into the air, and don't even THINK about dropping it, because despite the foam padding, it will be ruined if it drops. Maybe you should bring a catcher's mitt on your trip. And it's HUGE. Like, soccer ball huge. Where on Earth are you going to put this thing, anyways? Certainly not in a purse or a pocket. Innovative, and a step forward from the old-fashioned cameras everyone still uses today, and yet very impractical.

The "Bitcoin rush" is very similar to what the gold rush was in the 1800s. Only a virtual version. BitCoins are a form of digital currency that  Driven by the Bitcoins value of around 256.00 USD, people have set up rooms with high-tech PC's dedicated to mining BitCoin.