Techno-News Blog

By Kate Greene, Technology Review

Today, the way to interact with a mobile phone is by tapping its keypad or screen with your fingers. But researchers are exploring ways to use mobile devices that would be far less limited. Patrick Baudisch, professor of computer science at the Hasso Plattner Institute in Postdam, Germany, and his research student, Sean Gustafson, are developing a prototype interface for mobile phones that requires no touch screen, keyboard, or any other physical input device. A small video recorder and microprocessor attached to a person’s clothing can capture and analyze their hand gestures, sending an outline of each gesture to a computer display.

http://www.technologyreview.com/communications/25380/?a=f

By Erica Naone, Technology Review

Even a brand new computer can be slowed down by a particular combination of hardware or software, and it’s difficult to figure out what’s wrong. Soluto, a startup based in Tel Aviv, Israel, that launched this week, hopes to offer users advice on how to avoid this kind of slowdown.  Soluto’s software runs in the background on a PC and is designed to detect problems that slow a machine down as well as solutions that speed it up again. The idea is to collect this information and use it to recommend software and hardware fixes to other users.

http://www.technologyreview.com/computing/25385/?a=f

By Lauren Gravitz, Technology Review

A maelstrom of neural connections develop in a child’s brain during the first five years of life. Understanding how interconnected circuits develop, and how babies think, could lead to a host of new insights into everything from autism to language acquisition. But gathering such information has been tricky: infants can’t be ordered to stay motionless, which is required for most advanced neuroimaging techniques. Now a system that works in concert with existing imaging machinery can account for head movement and, for the first time, let researchers see detailed activity in an active baby’s brain.

http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/25430/?a=f

by the BBC

The BBC iPlayer has launched a trial service inviting users to share favourite programmes via social networks such as Facebook and Twitter. People can now choose to log-on to the revamped video player, allowing them to personalise the service and see recommendations based on prior viewing. It will also aggregate content from other broadcasters including Channel 4. Users will also soon be able to chat using Microsoft’s Messenger service while watching live TV streams.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/10162232.stm

by the BBC

Hundreds of people gathered at Apple’s flagship store in London to be among the first to buy an iPad. Like many others, the Apple store opened at 0800 BST so eager shoppers could buy one. The gadget went on sale in the UK, Europe, Japan and Australia, following delays caused by high demand in the US. There are warnings that some customers who pre-ordered the device by post to get it on the launch date may be disappointed due to delivery delays.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/10176138.stm

by the BBC

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said the settings had “gotten complex” The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) says that “more is needed” from Facebook to address privacy criticisms. In a blog post, the civil liberties group praised Facebook for a “great first step” towards giving members of the site more control over their data. However, it warned members against choosing the site’s recommended privacy control setting.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/10171575.stm