54672101
submission
wjcofkc writes:
Interactive displays projected into the air in the spirit of Iron Man have been heralded as the next step in visual technology. Yet many obstacles remain. According to Russian designer Max Kamanin, creator of Displair, many the problems have now been largely cracked.
With this attempt at refining the technology, the image is created inside a layer of dry fog which is composed of ultra-fine water droplets so small they lack moisture. Three-dimensional projections are then created using infrared sensors. The projected screen currently responds intuitively to 1,500 hand movements, many of which are similar to those used on mobile devices, such as pinch and zoom. The most immediate applications include advertising and medicine, with the latter offering a more hygienic alternative to touchscreens.
The most immediate objection from home and office computer users is that they don't want to be waving their hands around all day, and while such questions as "What happens when I turn on a fan?" are not answered here, just imagine a future with a projected keyboard and trackpad that use puff-air haptic feedback with the option of reaching right into the screen whenever it applies to the application at hand — and applications that take advantage of such a technology would no doubt come along. Better yet, imagine for yourself in the comments. As always, pictures speak a thousand words, so don't neglect the articles gallery.
52654319
submission
wjcofkc writes:
Degenerative brain disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's are among the most insidious and feared diseases a person may have to face. Recently, researchers have discovered a multi-photon laser technique that makes it possible to distinguish aggregations of the proteins believed to cause the diseases, while differentiating from the the well-functioning proteins. In theory, removing the protein aggregates can cure the disease."
"Nobody has talked about using only light to treat these diseases until now. This is a totally new approach and we believe that this might become a breakthrough in the research of diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. We have found a totally new way of discovering these structures using just laser light," says Piotr Hanczyc at Chalmers University of Technology.
52625721
submission
wjcofkc writes:
Degenerative brain disorders such Alzheimer's and Parkinson's are among the most insidious and feared diseases a person may have to face, and the emotional toll on the loved ones of those afflicted are as prolonged and devastating as the disease itself. Now, researchers have discovered a multi-photon laser technique that makes it possible to distinguish aggregations of the proteins believed to cause the diseases, while differentiating from the the well-functioning proteins. In theory, removing the protein aggregates can cure the disease."
"Nobody has talked about using only light to treat these diseases until now. This is a totally new approach and we believe that this might become a breakthrough in the research of diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. We have found a totally new way of discovering these structures using just laser light," says Piotr Hanczyc at Chalmers University of Technology.
52620377
submission
wjcofkc writes:
In the turbulent wake of the international uproar spurred by his leaked documents, Mr. Snowden published a letter over the weekend in Der Spiegel titled, "A Manifesto for the Truth". In the letter, Mr. Snowden reflects on the consequences of the information released so far, and their effect on exposing the extent and obscenity of international and domestic surveillance, while continuing to call out the NSA and GCHQ as the worst offenders. He further discusses how the debate should move forward, the intimidation of journalists, and the criminalization of the truth saying, "Citizens have to fight suppression of information on matters of vital public importance. To tell the truth is not a crime."
52521801
submission
wjcofkc writes:
The United States Government has officially called in the calvary over the problems with Healthcare.gov. Tech titans Oracle, Red Hat and Google have been tapped to join the effort to fix the website that went live a month ago, only to quickly roll over and die. While a tech surge of engineers to fix such a complex problem is arguably not the greatest idea, if you're going to do so, you might as well bring in the big guns. The question is: can they make the end of November deadline? ZDNet TechCrunch and CNN Are among the first sites reporting.
51826987
submission
wjcofkc writes:
In an ironic but welcome twist, author of the Patriot Act, Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), is introducing the USA FREEDOM Act, a bill specifically aimed at countering the portions of the Patriot Act that were interpreted to let the NSA collect telephone metadata in bulk. The congressman has been a vocal opponent of the NSA's interpretation and misuse of the Patriot Act since Edward Snowden first leaked evidence of the program in June. On Wednesday, he wrote to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder that the “collection of a wide array of data on innocent Americans has led to serious questions about how government will use—or misuse—such information.”
49731039
submission
wjcofkc writes:
With the fall of Lavabit and Groklaw at hand, an interesting question arises: how should Slashdot respond to the NSA if they come knocking? It is not entirely unreasonable to think that this might happen, if it hasn't already. Slashdot is after all highly trafficked by the fringes of society and is rife with seditious discussion. Courtesy of gag orders, it's difficult to know who the NSA's heavy handed dragnet operation has already ensnared. Should we expect Slashdot's editors and administrators to reflect it's powerfully counter-culture user base, and out an NSA incursion while shutting down the site, violating a gag order? Or could Dice Holdings prevent the people that run Slashdot from even knowing it was happening? These are question we should all be asking. And so I pose the question to those who administer this site: do you have a plan in case the NSA comes knocking? Is Dice Holdings in a position to keep you ignorant of NSA snooping activity? Also, to the users: how do you think Slashdot should handle their user base in response to a visit from the NSA to copy hard drives, install 'special' hardware, and lay down a gag order? If you think the question doesn't apply to us, consider that it shouldn't have applied to Groklaw either.
28303780
submission
wjcofkc writes:
Why didn't Slashdot go dark today? Considering Slashdot is at the forefront of intelligent discussion on the SOPA bill, and that users here are at the forefront of concern; why isn't Slashdot going dark today? Was there discussion amongst the ranks? If so, what logic led to the decision to stay live? It's not like there is a play by play to keep up on. Yes, I am literally asking Slashdot.
24229168
submission
wjcofkc writes:
Hot on the heels of Facebook users everywhere crying foul over the interface changes surrounding the new Ticker and Top Stories, CNN is reporting that we haven't seen anything yet. There are more substantial changes coming that push the boundaries of publishing personal information very far.
24112554
submission
wjcofkc writes:
New York City police have resurrected a law from 1845 against wearing masks in public in order to begin arresting participants of the Liberty Plaza protest against Wall Streets influence on government. According to ThinkProgress, "Yesterday, seven protesters were arrested by the New York Police Department, despite being peaceful and not noticeably disrupting the normal activities of the city. The Wall Street Journal notes that the charges being brought against these demonstrators include “loitering and wearing [a] mask."" occupywallst.org has more information.
22749684
submission
wjcofkc writes:
Are users of other Web browsers smarter than the people who use Microsoft's Internet Explorer?
A new survey doesn't quite say so. But it sure as heck suggests it. This article on cnn.com explores an idea long discussed on Slashdot, that IE users fall into the none-to-bright category. With IE6 users being the dumbest and Opera users being among the brightest, what browser do you use?
21916396
submission
wjcofkc writes:
The Transportation Security Administration stood by its security officers Sunday after a Florida woman complained that her cancer-stricken, 95-year-old mother was patted down and forced to remove her adult diaper while going through security.
