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     Volume 6 Issue 26 | July 6, 2007 |


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Sci-tech

Tiny Motorcycles Made From Watches
An advertising agent out of Brazil is the master craftsman behind these awesome miniature motorcycles. Assembled from watch parts and bits of other accessories such as eyeglasses, these motorcycles challenge the ideas of identity and representation, while putting us in the mood to BS about philosophy instead of just calling them "neat". These motocycles aren't for sale just yet but let us keep hoping.

iRobot and Taser Give Birth to Robot Overlord Ancestor
iRobot, maker of the Roomba robotic vacuum cleaner, already manufactures robots for the US military, but now it's teaming up with Taser for a new nonlethal robo-weapon for soldiers and cops. Are these robot weapon creators taking yet another baby step toward a world with killer RoboCop terminators, giving our future robot overlords the go-ahead toward their inevitable world domination? Well, these are the first robots capable of using force to take down suspects, so fill in the blanks. Someday in the not-too-distant future, one of these bots is going to make an awful mistake, and then maybe the weapons mongers will reconsider, before it's too late. Until then, it still seems like a pretty good idea to sacrifice machinery rather than human beings when fighting. Nobody's talking about when these stunbots might actually go on sale.

The Credit Card of the Future?
In The Future, no one will die and everyone will be skinny, but we will still all have horrible credit card debt. Hence Jacob Palmborg designing 'The Credit Card of the Future'. While it's strictly a concept, the credit card uses RFID that's linked to every account you own. It not only allows you to easily control purchases, but the card tracks said purchases and projects your economic status as a result. Plus, the unit features biometric security that could realise the potential of carrying various forms of ID...should the government ever let that happen. The concept is good now let's attach the phone and call it a real invention.

Logitech Debuts QuickCam Pro Line
Quickcam_Pros.jpgToday Logitech is showing off two new 2-megapixel $100 QuickCam Pro models, one for desktops (that is, made to sit atop a desktop LCD) and another one for laptops. The big news is that they are the only webcams equipped with the Carl Zeiss lenses that made the Sony Cyber-shot line so popular. Also in addition to echo-cancellation, there is also true noise suppression in the microphone for better Skyping. The autofocus is super fast, for better use of hand props and wild gesticulation. And of course they come with Logitech's legendary Video Effects and Fun Filters, like the king's crown and the sweet 1920s movie filter, for instant YouTube stardom.

The Minimalist Cellphone
This one's just a cellphone that plays a bit of music and stores a list of your contacts, nothing more. What a concept! It has an attractive OLED touch screen interface that appears underneath its spooky-looking black façade, and on the back there's a fingerprint ID screen so the phone will know that you are actually you. Its slightly angled face might make it easier to hold up to your face. That shallow angle might not be too comfortable in a pocket, though. Considering the objections Apple has been getting to its touch screen interface, let's hope this designer is also working on a way to make this one even more tactile and user-friendly. Nevertheless, we like its minimalism.

Transparent LCD Screen from Active Inc will Transform Shop Windows
Behold what could be the future for display screens in your local shopping emporia: a see-through composite LCD display. Developed by Active Inc, a Tokyo-based company that makes optical components. How does the technology work? Well, not a lot is known at the moment, but Active Inc's R&D department has been seeing how liquid crystal optical film works as a substitute for traditional LCD backlights. Its stain-glass effect is rather impressive, but I can't see this technology being used for TVs - but that's because I hide things behind my telly that I don't want anyone to clap their eyes on.

Compiled by IMRAN H. KHAN

Source: Gizmodo Online and WIRED

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