Bendy chip, flexi-tronics

 

The bendy chip, developed by researches at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Unlike the current generation of brittle-boned silicon chips, the new chips can be “stretched and folded whilst maintaining the electronic capabilities of traditional microchips. The circuits are built from ribbons of single crystalline silicon supported on very thin plastic and rubber-like layers.”

The development heralds a new era of flexi-tronics, and smart applications like “latex glove[s] for surgeons which would measure vital signs, such as blood oxygen levels, during an operation.” Other apps currently in progress include surveillance antennae for aircraft, and “a sheet of electronics which could lie on the surface of the brain to monitor brain activity in epileptics.” Full story

Webcam with balls

The MPC-095 from Rodintech, a groovy webcam for sports fans. The models have flexi arms and legs, and come complete with basketball, baseball, football or soccer. Specs include 300k pixel resolution, 1.3 megapixel video sensor, and built-in mic. No price or release date yet.

 

 

 

GeekAlerts

Kevin Everett - Standing Tall

 

Kevin Everett at Barnes & Noble in Beaumont, Texas, signs copies of his new book which charts his miraculous recovery from a severe spinal injury. The event took place on Saturday 22nd March, the story covered by South East Texas Live, quoted below.

“He told me not to give up,” said Dani Simien, a 19-year-old Beaumont resident confined to a wheelchair since a car accident with a drunken driver almost a year ago. “He told me to keep working hard and to get my education.” Simien’s connection with Everett extended far beyond Saturday’s encounter. The pair frequently saw each other at Memorial Hermann as both recovered from their injuries. “He’s a nice person,” said Simien, who attended the book signing with his mother, sister and niece. “A lot of people who are big-time like him, they don’t care like he does.”
Full story

‘Everett has thought about his future. Friends have contacted him about coaching high school in Texas, and that possibility intrigues him. “I’d like to work with kids,” he says. “I’m sure of that. Maybe teaching. I want to stay around football too.” He says that with help from the NFL and the Bills, his medical issues have not created a financial burden.’
Full story on SI - December 2007

Researchers crack the mystery of Lightning

Researchers have cracked the mystery of lightning. A computer model developed by Jeremy Riousset and his team at Penn State University, can work out how lightning forms, how it strikes out from storm clouds, and whether or not it will form random “bolts from the blue” - strikes that hit the ground from blue sky while a storm is several miles away. According to researchers, the model can be used to predict the lightning pattern of thunderstorms. See full report

A Brief History of Anxiety

 

Award winning journalist and married mother of two, Patricia Pearson draws on her personal experience of clinical anxiety to illustrate a remarkable study of psychological disorders.

According to Kirkus Reviews, “[Pearson] insightfully probes one of the oldest and least-understood psychological conditions…[a] well-constructed book…lively. [Pearson] employs a pleasing blend of personal anecdote and historical context. Despite her often playful tone and poetic, evocative language, Pearson provides countless intriguing historical examples, backed by an extensive notes section, including discussions of ancient philosophy, medicine and theology. A wholly satisfying mix of memoir, cultural history and investigative journalism.”

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In a recent interview, when questioned about the remedy for anxiety, Pearson was direct and constructive. “Fear is the remedy for anxiety. What I mean by that is that dealing with a clear and present danger will displace the more paralyzing and helpless sensation that is anxiety. Since I wrote my book, a family member has grown very ill. No time to be anxious. Time, instead, to be working the phones, finding cutting-edge treatments, battling doctors. This is what Virginia Woolf called ‘extreme reality.’ Anxiety is more about what T.S. Eliot wrote: “What shall we do now, what shall we do? Pressing lidless eyes and waiting for a knock upon the door.”

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In the same interview, Pearson explained her motivation. “This book is driven by the narrative arc of my experience. So is William Styron’s self-portrait of depression, Darkness Visible, and Kay Redfield Jamison’s account of her bipolar illness: An Unquiet Mind. I don’t think it’s self-indulgent to offer up one’s own tale as a basis for conversation about an overarching human conundrum. What is self-indulgent is drinking too much Port.”

For more insight, check into:
- New York Times review
- BlogWonks interview
- Amazon

Grand Theft Auto IV

April 2008

Expect good news, according to GameSpotUK - “Grand Theft Auto IV is looking superb. Perhaps even more importantly, it’s looking finished. The millions of eager fans who were disappointed by the game’s postponement can rest easy, because bar a major catastrophe, the game should make its planned April release date. Having played it for two and a half hours at Rockstar’s London offices, we can report that…” more