MINI- Augmented Reality Glasses

Although it is currently just a prototype, MINI has released what they call the "augmented reality" glasses or AR at the Shanghai 2015 Auto Show. This is essentially a hybrid between Google Glass and the electronic devices built within cars such as the GPS and the standard back-up camera guide. The structure is similar to that of aviator sunglasses. The prototype is worn like a hat and is commonly identified as something that Elvis would have worn.

The functions of AR according to its creators, the BMW Group Research and Technology, is to eliminate the need for the driver to look away from the roads, which reduces the possibility of crashing into a car. The glasses display information such as current speed, distance between the car in front, and even side cameras to help you park and take caution of any pedestrians. By having the glasses sense them with exterior cameras and enabling the driver to literally look through the car as if it were transparent. The glasses correspond to the features of your environment rather than the movements you make and this adds to its ability to navigate through areas not only while driving, but while walking as well.

The AR is just at its beginning stages and the producers have already put in word that if there is to be a second prototype and if the project were to move on then they would touch up on the structure of the glasses, finding ways to make the entire product slimmer.

Check out this video on MINI Augmented Reality Glasses:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/b1ae1f64fdac4019a9165e9c351029dc.htm

Also take a look at the website:
http://www.dezeen.com/2014/02/03/dezeen-and-mini-frontiers/

iLower Heart Risks

Health-related smartphones applications have been identified as a significant factor in cardiovascular illness reduction. By using programs such as text-messages reminders, a substantial reduction is achieved in patients’ risk scores. A significant 1.24% reduction in Framingham scores foretold a positive outcome in 10-year risk estimations for first heart attacks.

A Mayo Clinic research team located in Rochester, Minnesota conducted a lengthy observational study. The team reviewed 51 separate studies that were conducted in Asia, Europe, and North America from 2003 to 2013 (10 years). The study had approximately 24,000 patients, each assigned to digital health interventions. Among 24,000 people, 10,333 individuals were controls (Placed into traditional care without digital intervention). The breakdown of the primary-prevention trials is as follows: No significant reduction in stroke/attack numbers, despite Framingham risk score reductions. Some possible questions to improve the experiment are: Were there long-term follow-ups? Were patients relatively healthy? Are lurking variables (Smoking, Air toxicity levels in neighborhood) posing any bias on our experimental patients?

Interesting enough, the study concluded that Web portals, telemedicine opportunities, and text-message applications were among the most effective technologies in improving/reducing heart risks.

Read more at: http://tiny.cc/c9gqxx

Repairing Damaged Nerves via 3D Printing

In cases with traumatic injuries casualties are susceptible to damaged nerves. What that means is that the 3 types of nerves you have in you body, the autonomic, the motor , and the sensory nerves are unable to function as they were created. Damage to the nerves causes dysfunctions such as unable to control muscles and even losing sensation in the body part rendering you unable to feel pain in that area.

There are currently methods of repairing nerve endings which require suturing the nerve endings in surgery but results prove to be rather inefficient in producing desirable results for not only the patients but the doctors as well. What’s needed is a way to repair the nerves to restore function as close to the way the patient was prior to the injury. This is where the 3D printers come in.

Using their Nerve Guidance Conduit(NGC) on mouses, the Scientists at the University of Sheffield have successfully restored nerve function on a mouse. The scientists utilized a form of 3D printing called Computer Aided Design(CAD) in order to create unique nerves personalized to the patient being treated.The benefits of 3D printing are quite obvious, the modern technology permits clinicians to print exact models that encourages the self-repairing of nerves over time. Their experiments with the mouse concluded with the repair of a 3mm injury gab over the course of 21 days. All that is left is to conduct trials on a larger scale to see if the NGC works. This brings great potential in restoring nerve function to patients who no longer have them at the moment.

Learn more about nerve damage here: http://www.webmd.com/brain/nerve-pain-and-nerve-damage-symptoms-and-causes 

Click on the link below to read more on NGCs:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150223104159.htm 

Google Artificial Intelligence

Google's artificial intelligence, DeepMind, has figured out how to play and master a handful of Atari video games. Partnered with Oxford University, Google developed an AI unit capable of learning and bettering itself over time. ”with its algorithm can not only learn how to play computer games from scratch - but go on to ace them after a few hours of practice.” This self taught AI not is not only capable of learning from past mistakes, it also has the capability to develop new tactics based on them.  At first, the algorithm struggles to return the ball but, after a few hundred plays, it eventually learns the best strategy to beat the game: break a tunnel into the side of the brick wall and then aim the ball behind the wall.” This is one step forward for science as it shows that we can create more delicate robots implemented with artificial intelligence, capable of distinguishing right from wrong and that are able to perform more delicate tasks.

http://www.usatoday.com/videos/tech/2015/02/26/24079545/

http://www.zdnet.com/article/googles-deepmind-artificial-intelligence-aces-atari-gaming-challenge/

A Minute’s Charge

A tedious task most young adults face nowadays is having to charge their phones on the dial. In certain cases, this repeated charging session can happen more than once a day depending on the user. There is a plethora of different smart phone devices that have varying uses. Some of these uses can list from job-related tasks/quotas to daunting social media platforms (i.e. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snap Chat). While many devices have a battery interfaces that can last through the day, there are plenty of other devices that do not. Battery interfaces have become a hot issue for all smartphone makers alike. As communal productivity increases, the need for technology increases too. These smartphone makers are amidst the different options they can go into in terms of steady performance and task endurance. It wasn’t until later last year where a unique Israeli company showed potential in finding the solution to smartphone battery interfaces once and for all.

The StoreDot is a by-product of presumably unrelated research made by the nanotechnology department at the Tel Aviv University. While looking into the Alzheimer’s disease, the researchers discovered a peculiar peptide molecule that has high capacitance (ability to hold an electric charge). Batteries utilizing the peptide molecule absorb electric charges faster than previous smartphone batteries. Another aspect to look into is the battery’s capacity. Interestingly enough, the overall capacity for these peptide batteries are smaller. The current state of the StoreDot cannot be used in existing smartphones and tablets due to its low capacity. However, that doesn’t stop the StoreDot's company leaders from further developing their much-needed battery. The need for modification of these battery interfaces has been identified as well. The company had already discussed the future of utilizing the StoreDot in future smartphone contenders with more than fifteen different smartphone makers. Of these makers, one of two companies hopes to use of this technology in future device by the Christmas of year 2016.

With the addition of the battery alone, the company needs to create a special charger and handset component that can easily sync into the fast-charging feature the peptide battery StoreDot has. The addition of these select pieces can cause the phone’s cost to increase. This increase would be approximately $50 USD. It was suggested, by the company, that many buyers would not mind paying the additional fees necessary for a strong battery charge. This poses a question: Who would not be willing to switch?

Read more at: http://tiny.cc/p35mux

Car and Vehicle Safety Programming

The partial control or autonomy of vehicles is pretty prevalent today and we know these features as co-piloting in planes or cruising in cars. Google, one of the leading search engines, is working on a prototype of a car that does not require a steering wheel. Their aim is to create a driverless car in which technology is in control. Safety programming is involved when we do hand over our control to technology. The company has to take into consideration the factors that apply such as human interaction. This is what the Professor Zilberstein from University of Massachusetts Amherst tries to do. He obtains the elements of human behavior and encodes them into computer programs that the technology can read. An experiment Professor Zilberstein conducted involved semi-autonomous cars with drivers with varying levels of fatigue. In this scenario he utilized an algorithm that he created which favored roads that let the vehicle drive autonomously when the control is transferred from the man to the car. His algorithm gave drivers a better sense of safety because the vehicle would avoid roads like highways as they were fatigued. Acting with the support of The National Science Foundation, Zilberstein along with several AI researchers hope to further advance the studies of smart technology as they already integrate themselves into our societies. Studies such as this put to use decades worth of efforts and labor making changes in the world more prominent.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150204111952.htm

3D Printed Concept Cars

3D printing is the seemingly magical process of making physical objects from three-dimensional computer models. You can design and produce almost anything through 3D printing and students at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore have even built urban solar electric cars. They have designed a car with an innovative body shell consisting of 150 parts using a 3D printer called the NV(8) which will race in the Urban Concept category at this year’s Shell Eco-marathon Asia which focuses on creating a prototype that is both fuel-efficient and road-worthy. The competition challenges students to build a vehicle that can travel the furthest distance while using the least amount of energy. The students at NTU have also built the NV(9), a three-wheeled racer that can execute sharp turns with little speed loss due to its motorcycle racing inspired tilting ability.

These two cars were built over the span of a year with the goal of highest fuel efficiency. The students built these cars from scratch and faced a couple of difficulties. One of which was the assembly of the cars. The shell of the car was produced in different pieces by a number of 3D printers at the university and other sponsor companies. Creations like this really put into perspective just how revolutionary 3D printing will be.

Link to original article: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150203094149.htm