Tech News

Rebuilding Cambridge University’s First Computer

In 1946, scientists at Cambridge University built the institution’s first ever computer—the Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator. One of the first to be used to solve real scientific problems, it was scrapped to make way for its successor. Now, it’s being rebuilt. During its lifetime it gained the ability to perform some pretty complex operations—-dealing…

Why It’s So Hard to Predict Where and When Earthquakes Strike

Can earthquakes ever be predicted? This question is timely after the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck Nepal recently. If authorities had more warning that the earthquake was coming, they may have been able to save more lives. While Nepal is a documented area of previous seismic activity, at the moment there is no technique that…

You Can Download a Free Windows 10 Preview For Raspberry Pi Right Now

Earlier this year, we found out that Windows 10 was going to be free on Raspberry Pi. Now, Microsoft’s made the first Windows 10 previews for the little computer available to download. The Windows 10 IoT Core Insider developer preview (phew) isnow available, not just for Raspberry Pis but for other small devices, too. Microsoft…

I Want To Build This Weather-Predicting Lamp

I’ve always been into multi-functional furniture: like the wave-activated lamp that used to sit on my bedside, lighting the room, and scaring away any potential mates. So I desperately want this LED-powered lamp, which not only looks cool, but tells you in a glance what it’s like outside. Project Aladdin — yup, that’s right —…

A Modular Phone Case Adds Every Accessory You Never Knew You’d Need

Google’s Project Arais heralded in sweaty-palmed blog posts as the future of mobile computing — a modular smartphone that adapts to suit your every need. But at the moment, the future of smartphones is struggling to boot up consistently. So in the meantime, this Kickstarter wants to take Ara’s promise of a modular smartphone, put…

Adidas’s App Uses Spotify To DJ Your Run

Listening to music whilst running is great — if only to drown out the little voice in your head, swearing about how unfit you are, you useless lump — but matching the BPM of the song to your running cadence is nearly impossible. There are apps that will build you specific playlists, but that’s an…

The Microsoft Band Could Get Way More Interesting With DIY Web Apps

Soon, the Apple Watch will wirelessly monitor your glucose level. But you know what? The Microsoft Band can do that too. This is just one of many apps that will come to the formerly-unimpressive Band—thanks to a new ability to turn web data into live tiles for the wearable. See the picture above? That’s the…

Want to try the gorgeous new Windows 10 Start Menu? Feel free—there’s a new Windows 10 preview build with loads of improvements that you can download right this second. [Microsoft]

Does It Really Take Drones To Get You To Adopt A Dog?

Tomorrow’s National Adopt A Shelter Dog Day. So, we’re here to remind you that there’s hundreds of thousands of new best friends just waiting on you to come save them. What are you waiting for, drones? Yeah, this video from pro-dog propaganda blog 3 Million Dogs is silly, but it also drives home the point…

These Maps Plot the Most Interesting Places and the Paths Between Them

For the past five years data artist Eric Fischer’s been working on something called the Geotaggers’ World Atlas, a project which hopes to discover the world’s most interesting places by examining beautiful Flickr photos. As it turns out, the maps showing the routes between them are just as beautiful. Using Flickr’s API, Fischer has been…

Microsoft HoloLens Hands-On: Incredible, Amazing, Prototype-y as Hell

I just put Microsoft’s new holographic glasses on my face. It’s one of the most amazing and tantalizing experiences I’ve ever had with a piece of technology. This piece was originally published on 1/21/15, but we thought you might like to know what Hololens is all about—since Microsoft just re-introduced it at theBuild dev conference.…

These Speedy Packing Robots Ship Your Online Purchases Faster Than Ever

Like C-3PO and R2-D2, some robot pairs are a match made in mechanized heaven. Now, a new team, Fetch and Freight, can eliminate much of the efficiency-botching human labor from warehouses, getting that Amazon shipment to your door faster than ever. It’s a system San Jose-based Fetch Robotics developed to help retailers be faster and…

How The New Cold War Is Improving Your Navigation

Ever contemplated going to war with America, but been thwarted when the Great Satan switched off your access to its navigation satellites? That’s potentially a real problem for China and Russia, but the real victor in this navigational arms race might be you; it’s improving the quality of location data on your phone and in…

God Dammit, Even The Hulk Wants More Black Widow Merchandise

There’s a distinct lack of Black Widow toys on shelves for Age of Ultron, but that’s not a new problem. I know it. You know it. Now even Mark Ruffalo, Bruce Banner himself, knows it. Ruffalo — who’s been on a roll lately when it comes todealing with the usual gender nonsense that comes with…

Today in Congress, We Heard That Encryption is Enabling Upskirt Photos

Government debate over encryption has veered into fully stupid territory. Expert testimony at a Congressional hearing on encryption blamed Apple and Google’s privacy systems for allowing perverts to get away with secretly photographing vaginas and posting the pictures online. When Apple and Google debuted bulked-up encryption for websites last year, the FBI complained that this…

Light Pollution Is Probably Messing With Ocean Life 

The bright lights of cities have aclear and well-documented effecton urban wildlife. Less clear, though, is if lights from ports, ships, and offshore oil rigs affect marine creatures underwater. A recent study off the coast of Wales says yup, it’s probably happening. Ocean water is full of tiny larvae from a diverse set of sea…

WSJ: Some Apple Watches Are Too Broken to Ship

Apple has found problems with the component that powers the Apple Watch’s “Taptic Engine,” according to the Wall Street Journal. The problem is causing shipping delays for many customers, so if you haven’t gotten yours, now you know why. The taptic engine is a linear actuator that lets the Watch give you a little taps…

All Your Home Really Needs Is This R2-D2 Pinball Machine Coffee Table

Forget couches, forget dining tables, forget beds, forget even a working toilet, all your home really needs for you to be happy and content is this amazing R2-D2-themed coffee table featuring a working Star Wars pinball machine inside. The pinball machine (circa 1991) hidden beneath the table’s glass top comes courtesy of Data East, so…

How Microsoft Is Going to Port Everything to Windows

We heard the rumors over and over: Android apps are coming to Windows 10. It sounded like a good way to let Windows Phone and Desktop users fill the gaps in the Windows Store—but it isn’t happening. Instead, Microsoft is making it ridiculously easy to port Android apps to the Windows Store. And everything else…

Cute short shows a digital animation vs a traditional drawing

Digital animations are great! But so are more traditional drawings! This cute short film by Nata Metlukh pits a digital animation against a traditional drawing and we see the strengths and weaknesses of each as they battle for supremacy. The slickness of digital vs the nostalgia of drawing traditionally. Versatility vs what’s simple. And so…