Today’s Tech Sightings: Gates-Funded Toilet of the Future Is Built So Anyone Can Repair It Funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Caltech’s Group’s “toilet of the future” uses solar power to turn human waste into clear, sterilized water. After testing it in India, the group decided to tackle maintenance issues, should the toilet […]
Future Toilets; Creepy Facebook Algorithm; Privacy; Free Windows 10?
Posted June 23rd, 2015 at 3:44 pm (UTC-5)
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New Mobile App Helps Document, Verify Atrocities
Posted June 19th, 2015 at 1:32 pm (UTC-5)
Recently, someone posted an online video depicting human rights abuses and claimed it was from the Central African Republic, long a witness to the atrocities of war. The footage was actually from Nigeria. In another instance, images that were posted on social media in relation to last year’s Gaza war in fact dated back to 2012. […]
Cuba Expands Wi-Fi; WeChat; iPhone OS X Flaw; Ello Goes Mobile
Posted June 18th, 2015 at 3:32 pm (UTC-5)
Today’s Tech Sightings: Cuba Says It is Expanding Wi-Fi Access, Making it Cheaper Cuba’s government announced Thursday that it is expanding Wi-Fi access in state-run Internet centers and slashing hourly online costs by more than half. Cuba’s state communications company said 35 computer centers around the country will have Wi-Fi access, beginning in July. WeChat […]
Internet Connectivity; Galaxy Flaw; Apple; a Zuckerberg Snapshot
Posted June 17th, 2015 at 3:31 pm (UTC-5)
Today’s Tech Sightings: Airbus, OneWeb to Compete With Internet.org in Worldwide Internet Race The race to connect the world to the Internet is heating up with another company getting into the fray. OneWeb has a plan to bring satellite connectivity to billions of people around the globe in partnership with Airbus, which will build more […]
Facial Recognition; Cybersecurity; Java Legacies; Twitter Out Loud
Posted June 16th, 2015 at 3:30 pm (UTC-5)
Today’s Tech Sightings: Privacy Advocates Unsatisfied With Government Plans on Facial Recognition A large group of privacy advocates dropped out of talks with the U.S. government over disagreements on facial recognition safeguards. The group, backed by tech giants that include Google, Microsoft and Facebook, argues that users should have an opt-in feature for facial recognition […]
Technology to Help Dyslexics Yet to Be Developed
Posted June 12th, 2015 at 3:17 pm (UTC-5)
Reading apps might be helpful to kids and adults who struggle with reading. But the technology that could help dyslexics overcome reading and comprehension challenges and decode the words they read has yet to be developed. Appi Dabbi‘s Qread, which stands for quick read, is an Android and iOS mobile app that helps people with […]
Oculus VR for Therapy; Cyberinsecurity; iCloud Bug; Foxconn Eyes India
Posted June 11th, 2015 at 3:16 pm (UTC-5)
Today’s Tech Sightings: Oculus Virtual Reality Headset Finds Medical Uses Virtual Reality (VR) is great for gaming, but Jennifer Patterson, a University of Pittsburgh engineering student, used the Oculus prototype software to help treat soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. And she hopes her effort might show doctors and therapists the benefits of technology for […]
Robots; Tech Diversity Race; War Crimes App; Apple’s WWDC
Posted June 9th, 2015 at 3:13 pm (UTC-5)
Today’s Tech Sightings: Korean Robot Takes Home $2 Million Prize in DARPA Challenge A South Korean team won this weekend’s DARPA Robotics Challenge to design robots for disaster aid, taking home two million dollars. The winning DRC-HUBO robot completed all tasks in 45 minutes and was able to transform into a wheeled position to move faster. […]
Are Cell Phones Harmful to Your Health?
Posted June 5th, 2015 at 3:41 pm (UTC-5)
Cell phones and mobile devices that use electromagnetic radio frequencies continue to invade nearly every aspect of modern life despite concerns that they might prove harmful. But extensive research into the health effects of these devices has only produced inconclusive evidence. “The evidence is not certain that these devices are dangerous,” said Jonathan Samet, M.D., […]