technology

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The Jedi of Lifeblogging

One would be Gordon Bell, a Microsoft research scientist who's been doing a darn good job at living a relentlessly documented, paperless life. He's been deemed the guinea pig for the MS lifeblogging project, MyLifeBits. The Bits software enables users to save every email, IM transcript, phone call, a new jpg every 30 seconds--basically all your lovely ephemera; as ars technica explains: Bell generates 1GB of data each month, and says that having a computer store this much information frees his mind for... READ ON

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The World of Forklifts

This is an emissions-free, human powered forklift, made by green-forward Soceadth. Sometimes those spinning classes are just too much, right? Sometimes one needs to see those joules of energy really produce! This wondrous Japanese invention will set you back about $1615, but still better than a real, new one (they hover around the $20k range), but you can get a used one for $3k! When you finally have your dream lift (and you're certified, of course), then you can wear those "Have You Hugged a Forklift... READ ON

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Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Interviewed Together

Last week, the D "All Things Digital" conference played host to a variety of interesting events (including Microsoft's introduction of a new digital table). But perhaps the most remarkable event was a joint onstage interview with classic rivals Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. They spent roughly an hour chatting about their history in the personal computer industry, and generally getting along like old soldiers (translation: surprisingly well, though with the occasional cutting remark from Jobs). After all,... READ ON

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Amazing Interactive Table

I'd heard about smart table cloths and interactive furniture in the works, so when I first got wind of Microsoft's 'computer meets coffee table' (codenamed Milan) I assumed it was something more dining oriented. Like maybe it could keep your coffee at a temperature you like, or help you reorganize the dishes so everyone seated has maximum elbow room. This is totally different, though. It's more like a ridiculously cool touch-screen monitor that can download images and info from the cameras and phones you... READ ON

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Short Circuit Drum Circle

Check out this amazing, interactive drumming robot from Georgia Tech. The creation, designed by Director of Music Technology Gil Weinberg and his grad student Scott Driscoll, uses "computational power and numerical algorithms to listen, analyze and improvise." Sadly, he's already better than most of the kids from my high school jazz band. Link via... READ ON

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Security Briefs: Underwear with a silver lining

TheRawFeed is reporting that Swiss clothing manufacturer Isabodywear is releasing a new line of underwear that supposedly protects "men's sperm from harmful cell phone radiation." So, what's the secret? The black briefs are lined with threads of silver to block cell phone rays and reception. To me, the result sounds equal parts extravagant, and difficult to get through an airport metal detector. Link (in French) via the ever-informative... READ ON

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New Sofa Record: Couch Cruises at 92mph!

The Sun is reporting that a fully-reclined daredevil named Marek Turowsk has broken the Fastest Furniture Land Speed Record by kicking his couch into high gear. His pimped-out, high-performance sofa (fully furnished with a desk, plants, and a plate of cookies) crushed the previous record of 87 mph, that had held since 1998. For his speedy accomplishments, Turowsk will be featured in the 2008 Guinness Book of World Records, and will no doubt be talked about at water coolers from Ikea to Pier 1. Link via... READ ON

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Judging a Facebook by its Cover

According to this article from the CBC, the city of Toronto is banning its 23,000 employees from using FaceBook. Not surprisingly, YouTube and a few other social networking sites are already on the list. Of course, what's most interesting about the thing is that while it applies to all city employees, it doesn't apply to politicians, who apparently need the sites to interact with their constituents. I love Canada, but it sounds a little Animal Farm-ish, no? Like all Toronto city employees are... READ ON

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How Much is that Robotic Guinea Pig in the Window?

(Answer: $80.) While some companies like Sony struggled with the quirks of recreating a dog's personality, the company Gizoo set their ambitions a little lower. A lot lower. They've created the first robotic guinea pig, with sensors to let it know when it's being cuddled and stroked, when it's daytime or night, and where things are around it (so it knows what not to bump into when it's scampering about). The most interesting thing about the guinea pig is that it... READ ON

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Add cold water, make hot rice!

A Japanese consulting firm has just developed a genius product called "Hotto! Raisu" where you can make a bowl of hot, steaming rice simply by adding cold water to their clever packaging! An exothermic agent in the foodstuff essentially steams the contents when liquid is added; a trick that could be incredibly useful to help feed those in areas hit by natural disasters. Currently, the rice is packaged with pickled ume plums, but if the marketing takes off, the team plans on developing more... READ ON