007 Plot Plausible?

The latest Bond flik has hit theatres, and though I've not yet had the opportunity to see it "Quantum of Solace" is definitely on my list of things to do this weekend. It seems the bad guys in this movie are bent on controlling the water resources of an entire nation and Bond of course is out to stop them. The folks at Sciencentral.com have examined the plot and have asked how realistic is the premise that water might be a country's most valuable resource. Check it out... (don't worry, no spoilers)

Google Mobile App - Voice Search On The iPhone

Google has added voice search to the Google Mobile App for the iPhone. With the app running a user simply has to put the phone to their ear, wait for the beeb, and speak their search query. Taking things a step further Gummi Hafsteinsson, Product Manager says on the Official Google Blog "When you do local searches, Google Mobile App can now automatically use your location to make results more relevant to where you are."

Now if only Google could read your mind and provide you with the search results... on second thought, no!

Space Station To Get Extreme Makeover

The Space Shuttle Endeavour docked with the International Space Station on Sunday afternoon bringing with it a second toilet, sleeping compartments, exercise equipment and a water regeneration system to support an extra 3 long term crew members. There are also 4 space walks planned for the Endeavour crew to work on the stations power system. The astronauts plan to clean a huge rotary joint needed to pivot solar panels to face the sun, the joint was shut down last year when it was found that it contained metal filings.

CBC Story.

Flip Video Of Roomba

Here is a brief video that I shot with my new Flip Ultra. It struck me that if you had told me 20 years ago that I would be here today using a filmless video camera, not much larger than the palm of my hand, to film my robotic vacuum cleaner, and then I'd transfer this video to a computer somewhere in the world so that anyone could view it... I'd have called you nuts!

I'm really enjoying the Flip Ultra. It's dead easy to use and a great size for stuffing in a pocket and taking on the road. However, I'm afraid that I'll have to buy more hard drive space, or at least be a whole lot more selective about what I save.

Oblong Industries Minority Report Like Interface

Here is an incredible demonstration of g-speak an operating system designed by Oblong Industries Inc. that acts much like the computer system depicted in the Tom Cruise movie, Minority Report. The resemblance is no coincidence however as the Chief Scientist of Oblong, John Underkoffler, is also the MIT graduate who helped Steven Spielberg with the science vision on the film. Also of note is Underkoffler's involvement in Ang Lee's movie adaptation of "The Incredible Hulk.", but let's hope he doesn't figure that one out!

g-speak overview 1828121108 from john underkoffler on Vimeo.

Wife Files For Divorce Atter Husbands Second Life Affair

Recently a Japanese woman was jailed for killing off an online character in a virtual world and now a British woman is filing for divorce from her husband (both online and in real life) because of his sexual escapades in Second Life. Even though her husband has never met in person the woman with whom he has been having a Second Life affair with, Amy Taylor is ending their marriages both virtual and real. “It's cheating as far as I'm concerned, but he didn't see it as a problem and couldn't see why I was so upset,” To put things into perspective the two met online in 2003 and married in 2005 both physically and in a lavish Second Life ceremony. According to Ms. Taylor they spent as much of their time together in the virtual world as they did in the physical one. When she suspected her husband's Second Life avatar of cheating she hired a virtual private detective to catch him in the act. Oh my, what are these worlds coming to?

Globe and Mail article.

Canadian Taxman Goes After eBay Power Sellers

About two years ago the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) launched a probe into eBay Canada "Powersellers" to ensure that they were claiming all of the income that they earned. A PowerSeller receives various benefits from eBay Canada, there are varying levels and it takes about $3000 in annual sales to qualify. The probe focused on sales in 2004 and 2005 and involved about 10,000 people. The CRA now says that it is expanding it's investigation to include 2006 and 2007.

The CRA has been hampered by eBay's unwillingness to provide information, saying that the data is stored on eBay's servers in the US where CRA has no jurisdiction however last week the Federal Court of Appeal dismissed eBay's arguments.

"We're just alarmed by this," Andrew Sloss, eBay Canada's manager said in an interview yesterday. "I think everyone who values their privacy should find this alarming. This is a slippery slope. I mean, who will be the next people who will be the product of a government fishing expedition and have their privacy rights compromised?"

3 LCD Producers Plead Guilty On Price Fixing

In a plea agreement filed Wednesday, LG Display Co. Ltd., Sharp Corp., and Chunghwa Picture Tubes Ltd., all makers of LCD screens, have agreed to co-operate in a U.S. Justice Department antitrust investigation currently underway. Deputy Assistant Attorney-General Thomas O. Barnett said “These price-fixing conspiracies affected millions of American consumers who use computers, cellphones and numerous other household electronics every day,” Each of the manufacturers have agreed to pay fines, the fine for LG (Korea) and it's American subsidiary amounts to $400 million, Chunghwa (Taiwan) will pay $65 million, while Sharp (Japan) has agreed to $120 million. For it's part Sharp said in a statement that “After carefully taking into consideration the applicable laws and regulations, the facts and other factors, Sharp has decided that the best possible course of action would be to conclude the aforementioned agreement,” The big question now is, will the fines affect the cost of new LCD's? ;-)

Globe and Mail story.

Philips Creates "intelligent pill"

Dutch group Philips has created what it's calling an "iPill" capable of measuring acidity with a sensor to determine its location in the body. The capsule contains a microprocessor, battery, wireless radio, pump and a drug reservoir to release medication in a specific area in the body. The benefit is in being able to treat digestive tract disorders such as Crohn's disease by releasing its payload directly to the location of the disease thereby lowering the required doses and reducing side effects.

Globe and Mail story.

Google Uses Search Terms To Estimate Flu Activity In US

Google has launched a new site called Flu Trends saying that "We've found that certain search terms are good indicators of flu activity. Google Flu Trends uses aggregated Google search data to estimate flu activity in your state up to two weeks faster than traditional systems." Check out the trends here and how Flu Trends work here. I see that Maine is showing moderate activity, glad I got my flu shot!