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The boffins at Ishikawa-Namiki Komuro Laboratory are working on a device that will allow “optical-hair modules” to provide spatial information via haptic cues. The modules will be able to process information and then pass this onto “vibro-tactile” units, which would be placed directly on the skins surface. Essentially, this means a suit containing the sensors…
If the speculation regarding the new aluminum MacBook line has driven you to desperation, the Shimura MacBook Metal Jacket should keep you content for now. The protective case houses your MacBook all nice and tight under an aluminum hood, concealing all but the fruitful essence of your plastic laptop pride and joy. https://gizmodo.com/incoming-slim-lighter-aluminum-macbook-302300 Port areas…
Researchers from SRI International and the University of Cincinnati are set to pioneer in-flight robotic surgery, in a simulated zero gravity environment. The planned flight will take place this month and will be abroad a NASA C-9 aircraft at 34, 000 feet. The researchers hope to investigate the precision and speed of human and RC…
A recent unearthed Microsoft patent details a preference based music service, where suggested music is directly pushed to your Zune based on your currently playing tunes. The selection would be forwarded to the device over WiFi, finally putting the Zune’s WiFi function to some good use. Whether this will be linked to a conventional music…
Reason magazine has a very interesting article by Katherine Mangu-Ward about the paleo-future. The piece can be found in the October, 2007 issue and an excerpt appears below. If this is the future, someone forgot to stock it properly. Where are the personal service robots, the moon vacations, the self-contained cities rising out of the…
The July 20, 1958 Chicago Tribune ran this Closer Than We Think! strip. Not only will every family of the future have their own yacht, it will be powered by the family car! The luxury of yachting may be within the reach of almost everyone in the world of tomorrow. Mass production of low-cost plastic…
Toy Artist KAWS and his Original-Fake toy store are dropping a custom Darth Vader vinyl toy. Utilizing KAWS signature art styles, the toy kinda looks like Darth Vader molested a sheep, but it’s actually a skull and crossbones under the helmet. This limited edition toy (probably less than 500) drops September 29 in Tokyo and…
Click to viewSo, okay, we’ve gotten into the Halo fever a little bit too with our gallery of the Halo 3 Limited Edition Xbox. Well, here’s a bit of Halo 3 tomfoolery for a late Friday afternoon. Apparently some guy dressed up in a Master Chief suit, went down to his local game store, and…
Andrew Steckl, a photonics expert from the University of Cincinnatti, has discovered that salmon sperm makes for better LEDs. He came to this disgusting discovery from analyzing biological materials and coming to the conclusion that DNA serves as a better material for intensifying LED properties. The best part: the fishing industry just throws away this…
Click to viewThis Limited Edition Xbox is basically your Premium Xbox with an HDMI port, but the attention to detail on the case is impressive. Text and graphics running over the side of the green, camo splattered Xbox, and an HDD and drive tray painted in the same reflective gold as the Master Chief’s helmet…
If we could ever summon up the strength to go exercise (which would then give us more strength), we’d want to do so on one of these Platinum Club Series Treadmills with a USB port for your iPod. Just hook up your iPod via the standard iPod cable, and you can scroll through playlists, watch…
We’re upping the contest prize for our Energi To Go Charger contest to an iPod classic, an iPod nano, a Nike+iPod Sport Kit, and an Energi To Go Charger. Not only can you hold a crapload of songs on the classic, you can also keep yourself in shape with the nano and the sport kit.…
We asked you yesterday whether you were happy or annoyed that rumble is back on the DualShock 3 for the PS3, but this new revelation may change your answer. GameDaily BIZ confirmed with SCEA that the rumble technology in the DualShock 3 is exactly the same as the on in the DualShock 2, and doesn’t…
If you thought Monster Cable was bad with its $80 HDMI cables, check out these Pear Anjou Speaker Cables, ringing up the cash register at an astonishing $7,250 for a couple of 12-footers. The most entertaining aspect of this sucker bait is the way the company got some gullible snob to gush about how he…
We reported on the BlackBerry Curve getting T-Mobile hotspot compatibility, but the 8320 has just become official, retailing now for $249 after $50 mail-in rebate with a two-year contract. It’s available in titanium and gold, and you should be able to pick one up from retailers (they just got the go-ahead to sell). Thanks tipster!…
Click to viewUsually, I hate the unnecessary swag. But this Xbox 360, Halo 3 Edition bag, is pretty much the best set of press junk I have ever seen. The duffel bag is printed with Halo 3 logos, my gamer tag, and the slogan “finish the fight.” There are two limited controllers with figurines, dog…
The New York subway system, that bastion of gentility and mutual respect, is about to get a cell-service upgrade, allowing people to talk n’ text in all 277 underground stations. Cell service is already pretty easy to pick up in a station, especially those in midtown. The new 10-year deal stops short of offering service…
We’re unsure if this is a policy or a one-time incident, but Jason O’Grady from ZDNet is reporting that an Apple store refused to service a hacked and unlocked (for T-Mobile) iPhone, saying the warranty was voided and blacklisting “the phone against future service, or return.” Although Jason’s colleague eventually got Apple to take the…
When the next phase of wide-area wireless networking rolls out, AT&T and Verizon Wireless will be using the same technology, the 100-megabit Long Term Evolution (LTE). Not surprisingly, it will be the same technology used by Verizon’s GSM-flavored corporate parent, Vodafone. This will end a decade or more of competing network technologies in the US,…
The SF Chron gossip column is reporting that Woz and Kathy Griffin are engaged. If this is true, congrats! If not (as we think, since he said just last week that the two had actually never met yet), can we please stop talking about Woz and Kathy Griffin now? [SF Gate]