Google files patent for bone conduction audio in Project Glass

Welcome to the newsletter for Gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine. These are the headlines for January the 28th, 2013. Google files patent for bone conduction audio in Project Glass A USPTO patent application suggests that Mountain View is planning to use bone conduction audio with its Project Glass headset. The patent describes how the tech might work with the headset and includes a number of images seen in previous Glass filings. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Video Head puts the helmet cam into the helmet The helmet cam has been one of the biggest things to ever hit the action sports market. These relatively inexpensive, easy-to-use cameras have made it both affordable and easy to capture action sports film, enabling everyone from beginners to pros to film their greatest (and worst) exploits. The Video Head camera helmet takes a different approach, pulling the action camera off its Teletubby-like perch on top of the helmet and sliding it inside. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Sensei transforms two chairs into one table (and back again) With living urban spaces shrinking as the world's population increases, it seems the concept of dual-purpose furniture and fittings is heading towards the mainstream. Joining the likes of the sofa bed workstation and the shape-shifting apartment in this space is Sensei – a pair of chairs which transform seamlessly into a coffee table. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Pressure-sensing GravitySpace floor adds new dimension to the smart home Smart floors could soon be part of our smart homes. Scientists in Germany have developed a high-resolution pressure-sensitive floor that can accurately keep track of people and furniture in rooms. Dubbed "Gravity Space," the floor can detect poses, movements and collisions and create a mirror-like inverse projection of the goings-on above. The technology could have a wide range of applications ranging from home security and automation to interactive gaming. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile dri+Cap camera and lens caps protect your gear from moisture If your camera is exposed to excessive humidity, you'll want to make sure it's dried out properly when you pack it away – because it's never fun to find lens-killing fungus on your expensive glass. While most of us do this by carefully wiping down equipment and throwing a few silica gel packets into a kit bag, BRNO has released a range of dehumidifying lens and body caps to do the job. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile New research explains why Facebook posts are so memorable The success of social networks such as Facebook may provide clues to the type of information the human mind tends to favor. New research suggests human memory prefers spontaneous writing favored by users communicating online to grammatically polished text found in edited material. This the gist of the findings presented in a paper called Major Memory for Microblogs, which details the results of a research comparing memory retention of Facebook updates to book excerpts and faces. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile UCO LumoraPod combines flashlight, lantern, worklight and tripod The new UCO LumoraPod Utility Light transforms to meet a multitude of tasks. With a few simple adjustments, it becomes a flashlight, lantern, lamp, work light and more. It can serve as a one-light-fits-all around the house, at the work site and in the great outdoors. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Sony announces 20mm pancake and 18-200mm E-mount NEX lenses Sony has revealed a pair of new E-mount lenses for its NEX range of mirrorless cameras. A 20mm F2.8 pancake, while not the prime telephoto some NEX shooters have been crying out for, gives a good wide walk-around lens, and the new (but not quite new) 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 OSS boasts impressive video-friendly credentials. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile DeltaMaker takes crowdfunding route to growing 3D printer market The ongoing race to build the cheapest, most versatile 3D printer continues with the impending launch of the DeltaMaker. Founded by a small group of engineers out of Orlando, Florida, the DeltaMaker puts its own spin on the growing personal electronics revolution, matching the print resolution of the MakerBot Replicator 2 while offering a larger overall build envelope and, at US$1,599 dollars, costs $600 dollars less. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Healthspot replaces doctor's office with a telepresence kiosk Telepresence physicians have been predicted since Hugo Gernsback foresaw the "radio doctor" in the 1920s. HealthSpot of Dublin, Ohio takes this idea a step further with its HealthSpot Station. It's a telepresence kiosk that acts as an alternative to the traditional doctor's office. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Oxijet air shower reduces water use by 50 percent Low-flow shower heads are a good way to save water, but using one can be a bit like showering with a spray bottle. New Zealand company Felton, in collaboration with Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), has developed the Oxijet – an "air shower" head that injects tiny air bubbles into the water droplets to make the shower feel like it's at full pressure, yet while using 50 percent less water. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile ECO-Cycle kit grows greens and cleans aquarium water The folks at the non-profit ECOLIFE Foundation are dedicated to providing, as they put it, "ecologically sustainable water, food, and shelter to communities through education applied programs." Part of this mandate involves the promotion of community aquaponics projects – systems that symbiotically combine aquaculture and hydroponics. Now, the group is bringing scaled-down aquaponics to classrooms and homes, in the form of its ECO-Cycle Aquaponics Kit for aquariums. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Molecular assembler finally created Ribosomes are the main engines of creation of the proteins on which the body depends. Now, an artificial analog of the biological ribosome has been designed and synthesized by Professor David Leigh FRS and his team in the School of Chemistry at the University of Manchester. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile ModiBots toy line takes advantage of 3D print-on-demand service The ModiBots, a line of poseable action figures which can be outfitted with all sorts of accessories, sell for around US$15 apiece, which isn't much more than what you'd expect to pay for any other toy at retail. The difference is that these aren't being churned out in massive quantities by a major manufacturer – they're available for purchase online via Shapeways' 3D print-on-demand service. It's an example of how entrepreneurs are taking advantage of 3D printing technology to build new businesses. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile DARPA produces 10 million flu vaccine doses in one month A familiar news topic during the flu season is the difficulties that the authorities face in producing enough flu vaccine fast enough to control the outbreak. That's a serious enough problem, but when the influenza outbreak turns out to be the start of a global pandemic, then hundreds of millions of lives could be at risk. To combat this, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has developed a new way of making vaccines that has turned out 10 million doses of H1N1 influenza vaccine in a month, in a recent test run. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Curiosity works the night shift NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has taken to working the night shift lately. This week, on the Martian night of January 22, the nuclear-powered explorer used its Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) instrument under ultraviolet light to examine a rock called "Sayunei" as part of its two-year mission to seek out areas of the Red Planet where life may once or could still exist. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile HTC gives a huge smartphone its own Mini feature phone Huge smartphones and phablets are great for some customers. They provide more screen real estate, and can double as miniature tablets. But the bigger these devices get, the more awkward they become for phone calls. If your 5-inch smartphone has you feeling like Zach Morris, then HTC has a solution: give your smartphone its own personal dumbphone. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Compact iPad 5, Retina iPad mini rumored for October For the iPad's first three iterations, Apple's release cycle was obvious. Every March or April, that year's model would hit store shelves. But after the company unveiled the iPad mini and 4th generation iPad last October, nobody knew exactly what to expect in 2013. Today those plans may be a bit clearer. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile DARPA video outlines progress of Phoenix satellite re-purposing project The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has released a new video showing the progress of its Phoenix project, which aims at salvaging parts from defunct communications satellites to build new ones. Based on a new class of nanosatellites and a robotic "tender," its purpose is to use repurposed satellites to construct a new communications net for the military at low cost. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Bulletproof whiteboard created to protect teachers and students from shooters Given the horrific event that occurred last month in Newtown, Connecticut, it's not surprising that we're seeing a rise in products designed specifically to protect children against shootings in schools. One of the latest such devices is a bulletproof dry-erase whiteboard. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Grub Hub packs a camp kitchen in a rolled suitcase We've covered a few camp boxes like the Kanz Field Kitchen and My Camp Kitchen in the past. These boxes serve to organize all of a camper's cooking gear into one box, so as to keep everything easy to transport from garage to campground and prevent things from getting lost. The new Grub Hub is a similar concept but packaged in a softer, more portable package. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Dainese fine-tunes its ski airbag system Besides continuing to produce its high-end protective body armor, Dainese has also spent the last several years developing something else – a wearable airbag system for motorcyclists. A couple of years ago, the Italian company announced that it had entered into a partnership with the International Ski Federation, to adapt that system for use by downhill ski racers. Now, Dainese has announced that it is fine-tuning the ski system, for use in the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile Prefab meets the 19th century in Method Homes' Cottage Series Whisper the words "prefabricated home" to yourself, and the image you'll conjure (if you're of like mind to me) is a distinctly modern arrangement of single-story cuboids made of cutting edge lightweight materials (or if not then of reclaimed or sustainably-grown natural matter instead), probably with scant decoration or adornment. Method Homes' Cottage Series comes as a welcome twist on the prefabricated house, adopting as it does a more traditional late 19th century American style. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile San Francisco Bay Bridge to become world's largest light sculpture Since its creation 75 years ago, the San Francisco Bay Bridge has remained a familiar feature of the city's skyline. However, from early March, the west span of the bridge is set to be transformed into the world's largest animated light sculpture, courtesy of artist Leo Villareal and his project The Bay Lights. Read on Desktop or Read on Mobile You are receiving this email because you signed up for our daily newsletter at http://www.gizmag.com. If you would like to switch to our weekly newsletter, click here If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter please click here to unsubscribe. COPYRIGHT GIZMAG (C) 2013