Davey Alba

This Used to Be a Swamp

The intersection of Highway 6 and Highway 90 in Sugar Land, Texas used to be a lush and watery swamp. This is what it looked like yesterday when photographer Barry Sigman found it. [Houston Press Blogs — Thanks, Matt!]

Facebook Finally Gets Their iPad App Ready

The New York Times is reporting that insiders briefed on Facebook’s plans have revealed that the company intends to introduce a free iPad application optimized for the tablet—and it will be out in the next few weeks. What does it do differently from the Facebook Web site? Well, for one thing, you’ll be able to…

Shuffle Your Files Between iOS Devices, Computer-Free

The Photofast i-FlashDrive will transfer your music, photo and movie files between iOS devices, even without a computer. It might look like a plain, two-sided USB and 30-pin dock connector at first glance, but it’s more than that. The dongle works like your usual flash drive—it connects to your iDevice or computer, letting you store…

Life Without a Pulse Is Possible

At the Texas Heart Institute, doctors have developed an artificial heart replacement that produces no discernible pulse or audible heartbeat. Put your ear against the chest of a patient with this implant, and all you’ll hear is a faint humming sound. Touch their wrist, and there will be no pulse. The machine is a continuous-flow…

New Google Desktop Features

Shooting Challenge: Infinite Loop

This was taken with the iPhone 4 native camera. I was in Chicago with my brother, looked up inside the Millennium Park Bean and shot. I’ve found three occurrences of my brother and me in the pic, but I’m guessing the total occurrence is INFINITE. – Laura Andersen I used Hipstamatic with an iPhone4. John…

These Shoes Tell You What’s Wrong With the Way You Walk (But Not Your Fashion Sense)

This footwear might look like the spawn of a three-way with shoes, stilts and a computer, but the super-awkward ForceShoe is actually a smartie, telling you exactly how you walk. Developed by researchers at University of Twente’s MIRA research institute, the ForceShoe contains four sensor modules at the heel and the front of the foot…

Spotify Signs Universal Music, Could Arrive in the U.S. as Soon as This Summer

According to AllThingsD, Spotify has just signed a distribution deal with Universal Music Group, the world’s largest music label. This means that they have now secured deals with with three of the four largest labels—just minus Warner Music. And the coveted streaming service could come to the U.S. as soon as this summer. (Yes!) [AllThingsD]

IBM Researchers Build Wonder Material Integrated Circuit Smaller than a Grain of Salt

IBM researchers have created the first graphene-based integrated circuit constructed on a wafer of silicon, in a setup that’s smaller than a grain of salt. The circuit is a broadband frequency mixer, which can operate up to a decent 10GHz. It’s yet another advancement in the use of graphene—which, in case you forgot, is that…

Cameras Returning To Federal Courtrooms for the First Time Since 1946

Since 1946, electronic media coverage of federal district courts has been expressly prohibited. But now, fourteen federal trial courts and 100 judges will participate in a three-year digital video pilot, a first for the Federal Judiciary. According to a Federal Court release, the presiding judge will still hold much sway over these cameras in court.…

Shooting Challenge: Modern Family

When I read about this challenge, I immediately thought about my inspiration photo. When I called my sister and told her about the challenge, she indicated that she thought of the same photo. My parents have had this photo up in their house since 1985. I have always called it the “Hmph” photo since my…

This Is the Fastest Rubik’s Cube-Solving Machine So Far

At the Swinburne University of Technology in Australia, a bunch of students just invented a machine called Ruby, which can solve a Rubik’s Cube in 10.69 seconds—the fastest ever for a robot. The robot scans each side of the cube using a webcam and applies a special software algorithm to figure out the solution. But…

Shooting Challenge: 1 Second Gallery 2

Camera Model Canon EOS 50D Tv 1.0 Av f/22 ISO 500 Lens EF28-135 IS USM (IS off) Focal Length 55.0mm – 135mm Flash Off Tripod 2 x 1500W Fluorescent bulbs (No Diffusion) Processing: removed strings holding up the guitar I found this a good opportunity to get use out of equipment for my other hobby,…

Shooting Challenge: 1 Second Gallery

Camera: Canon EOS 40D Lens: Tamron 17-50 2.8 f/3.5 Exposure 1sec ISO-200kyl Focal Lenth 50mm When I decided to shoot something for this challenge I immediately thought of shooting something with movement to take advantage of the long one second exposure. Being near my guitars/bass’s at the the time I decided to try and capture…

Get Torrents on Your iPhone with These Apps

If you regularly download torrents on your computer, chances are you’ll want to explore getting them directly onto your iPhone, too. Luckily, you’ve now got a couple of options to do this. The first is an app called iTransmission. It’s jailbreak-only, which means you’ll have to head over to the InsanelyI Cydia repo (repo.insanelyi.com) to…

Congress Probes FCC Commissioner Baker’s Jump to Comcast

The drama over FCC Commissioner Baker’s jump to Comcast continues to unfold. Congress has now begun a probe in order to “gain a better understanding of the rules that govern Commissioner Baker’s departure”—and the response deadline is May 31st. Good on ya, Congress, it’s about time to get some answers. [Ars Technica]

Big News: IBM Now Officially Worth More than Microsoft

For anyone who’s well-versed in the history of the tech landscape—particularly the 1990s—this is stunning news: IBM is officially worth more than Microsoft. The House that Gates Built is now third in the list of highest market caps in the industry—right behind Big Blue, who’s in second. [SAI]

Soldiers May Soon Be Able to Control a Herd of Robots With Their Heads

A new Army program, called Heads-Up Display for Control of Unmanned Ground Vehicles, is said to be developing an “eyeglasses-like display” that projects live video feeds from robots on the ground. That’s no breakthrough. But what is new is that our soldiers may even be able to drive these robots—using only the natural movement of…

Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball App Now Available for Android

Yahoo’s Fantasy Baseball app has finally made its way into the Android Market—just a month and a half late. You can manage your lineup, track matchups, get real-time scoring updates, and more. Free. [Android Market] https://gizmodo.com/the-best-apps-for-baseball-5787785

The World’s First Wi-Fi Mouse’s Battery Lasts for Nine Months

You are going to run out of USB ports on your computer. It’s inevitable. And sucky! But HP’s new Wi-Fi Mobile Mouse helps you conserve those ports by connecting wirelessly—not with Bluetooth, though. Wi-Fi. This rodent’s battery life can last up to nine months before it drains out—supposedly more than twice the lifespan of other…