Technology

Last week, Apple created a huge stir by unveiling its iPhone 5 smartphone. Already analysts are predicting the company will sell 48 million of the handhelds by the end of 2012. But Motorola is hoping to steer some consumers away from Apple with its ... RAZRi, which the company showed off in a public demonstration on Tuesday, September 18. With the new device boasting the fastest processor ever in a smartphone, Motorola called the RAZRi release the "biggest launch since the original RAZR." Super-Fast Processor Could Give RAZRi the Edge At the demo, the company proudly highlighted the RAZRi's ... (view more)

A team of researchers in Cambridge, Massachusetts, have created the world's first batch of stretchable electronics. The researchers say they're hoping to use the new stretch polymer skin patches to help doctors and nurses monitor a patient's vital ... signs. MC10, the startup firm behind the stretchable electronics, is the same company now in the process of commercializing electronic sutures , which are said to be capable of healing deep wounds much faster than present technology. Stretchable Polymer: A Worldwide Pursuit To be considered "stretchable," technology must contain electronic ... (view more)

A group of researchers at China's Zhejiang University have used fast-emerging 'thought-control' technology to successfully launch a helicopter into the air and have it perform a controlled series of maneuvers. To make the mind-controlled device ... (called FlyingBuddy2) soar, the scientists first adapted a Parrot AR Drone 2.0 so that it could be operated by an Emotiv EPOC electroencephalogram (EEG) headset hooked up to a PC running special software. Basically, the operator wears the headset, connected via Bluetooth to a laptop, which then transmits flight instructions to the helicopter. At that ... (view more)

The surgical process of stitching up a patient will soon receive a hi-tech makeover. The change could reduce the chance of infection and decrease healing times. A team of researchers at the University of Illinois have created the first ever ... 'electronic suture' (a stitch used by doctors and surgeons to hold tissue together). The special suture contains ultrathin silicon sensors integrated on polymer or silk strips that penetrate the skin and knot, just like standard medical stitches. To create the 'electronic sutures,' the researchers first use chemicals to cut an ultrathin film of silicon ... (view more)

A U.S. federal appeals court has ruled that police and other law enforcement officials have the right to use Global Positioning System (GPS) data from a suspect's cellphone without a warrant. The judges decided a technicality in existing law means ... such actions do not violate the Fourth Amendment, which forbids unreasonable search and seizure by the federal government. The Appeals Court ruling came in the case of convicted drug dealer Melvin Skinner, who was tracked down by GPS after an investigation. The investigation involved acquiring a cellphone number used by Skinner. Drug enforcement ... (view more)

Disney researchers at Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University have successfully given common houseplants electronic sensors that make them responsive to human touch. Called Botanicus Interacticus, the project leverages an innovative technology that ... allows humans to interact with everyday inanimate objects in ways never before thought possible. At the heart of the project is a custom-built 'capacitive sensor module' which transmits a low current through an otherwise ordinary plant. This allows the plant to 'sense' when and where an individual touches it. Because the human body is naturally ... (view more)

A Congressional agency has told regulators it is time to review the rules governing cellphone radiation. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) said existing rules might not be doing an effective job of measuring the risk to users. The GAO acts ... as support staff for Congress and also carries out audits to check that government departments are spending money effectively. Three members of Congress recently asked the GAO to look into the way the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulates public safety with respect to cellphones. Cancer, Health Risks Not a GAO Concern The GAO's year- ... (view more)

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) plans to join the twenty-first century by using computer systems rather than paper to manage its cases. The change may improve detection rates by making it easier to cross-reference data between cases. ... The new computer system, called Sentinel, will also allow FBI agents to make notes on cases via dedicated software. A demonstration for reporters showed that Sentinel contains elements reminiscent of consumer software, such as web browsers, Microsoft Outlook, and tax preparation software. (Source: wsj.com ) FBI personnel have been using Sentinel ... (view more)

Most city-dwellers have had at least one scare while crossing the street or riding a bicycle through traffic. But General Motors now believes it can prevent pedestrian and cyclist injuries and fatalities with a new smartphone application. According ... to GM and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2010 more than 4,000 pedestrians and more than 600 cyclists lost their lives after being struck by a moving vehicle. Clearly, something needs to be done to prevent such tragedies from occurring. (Source: csmonitor.com ) WiFi Tech: Vehicles, Smartphones Interact GM has been working for ... (view more)

A team of Ukrainian researchers calling themselves "QuadSquad" are breaking down barriers between people who communicate with sign language and those who hear and speak. Their method is based on an ingenious glove-based system that allows people ... using the two different modes of communication to understand each other easily. Called EnableTalk, the specially-designed glove senses the movements of the wearer's fingers and translates each meaningful sign into spoken words. Glove Features Special Sensors, Accelerometers The glove is quite remarkable. It is lined with more than a dozen flex sensors ... (view more)