Tuesday, 25 March 2014

Drayson B12 200 mph electric car (video)

0-100 miles per hour in 5 seconds ... 0-200 mph in 11.

Or as Paul Drayson puts it: "... & its just fab."

/ electric vehicle EV lithium ion LiIon lithium-ion record car race battery charge recharge fully charged electric racing car land speed record /

Monday, 24 March 2014

Galaxy S5’s killer feature could set a trend for iPhone 6 & beyond (video)


Credit: Gotta Be Mobile

Killer feature? Its waterproof/resistant. Is that important to you?

http://www.gottabemobile.com/2014/03/09/galaxy-s5s-killer-feature-could-set-an-trend-for-iphone-6-and-beyond// ships killer feature real consumers water-resistant water resistant design splash rugged phone average user Apple more rugged iPhone 6 Samsung Galaxy S5 rugged phone flagship consumer smartphone deliver blockbuster features specifications specs withstand water dust all major U.S. carriers carrier bigger bulkier phones old versions Android consumer friendly features amazing camera drop water rugged phone accident water water-resistant Android updates Google Apple hardware updates waterproof case pink sensor indicates water damage exposure /

Sunday, 23 March 2014

Mugshots created directly from DNA


Credit: Geek

Got the DNA, but how to identify the perp without a DNA test? Now its possible to create a mug shot from DNA alone.

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2014/03/these-eerily-accurate-mugshots-were-created-from-dna-alone/

http://www.geek.com/science/genetic-mugshot-could-make-dna-an-eye-witness-1588720/ / DNA solving crime genetic analysis generate precise mugshots criminals researchers new technique DNA analysis gene genes influence facial shape images predict looks like from biological samples Pennsylvania State University Catholic University of Leuven imaged face faces stereoscopic camera create 3D images mapped the surfaces face points statistical analysis genes sex racial ancestry shape face 76 different genetic mutations known to cause facial abnormalities researchers subtle variations affect shapes faces variants different genes sensibly predict face shape software genetic analysis predict shape face technique researchers generate face larger studies different populations variants broadly applicable dependable real-world use ancestors /

Saturday, 22 March 2014

Does quick charging reduce battery service life?

Over time, the capacity of a battery diminishes. Just how fast depends on a number of factors, including battery chemistry (& there are an enormous number of variations, big & small), operating temperature, levels of maximum & minimum charge, & charge rate.

Its early days for LiIon batteries in automotive applications & nobody has all of the answers. One expression of this is the ultra-conservative approach General Motors has taken with battery mangement in the Volt: in the every first Volts, a "fully charged" battery was actually 80% of capacity, & a "flat" battery was actually 20% of capacity. I.e., only the middle 60% of battery capacity was used, with obvious negative effect on battery range.

Purpose was to extend battery service life. Reduced range is acceptable in the Volt, as the internal combustion engine+generator range extender allows unlimited range.

With relatively small changes in battery chemistry, GM has increased the useable capacity of the battery to 65%, & electric range by a few kilometers, in more recent Volts.

Tesla manipulates charge levels for battery durability in the Model S, by allowing two levels of charge: one for commuting & a slightly higher level when maximum range is required.

For electric vehicles (EVs) without a range extender, quick charging is virtually essential when operating beyond maximum battery range, or even close to. Downside of quick charging has been concern about its effect on battery life. Little hard data has been available. Now, the Idaho National Laboratory is running trials with 4 Nissan Leaf EVs:

http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1090954_does-quick-charging-hurt-battery-life-total-miles-are-more-important / EV electric vehicle car makers Nissan Leaf recommend recommendations owners charge frequency frequently using quick-charging stations chemical processes rapid rapidly charging cell battery degrade faster regular charges reduce reduction reducing range recharge experiment Phoenix Arizona overall mileage Idaho National Laboratory Simanaitis Says evaluate evaluation evaluating electric cars Level 2 220 Volt 40 Amp recharging DC quick charge 80 percent capacity 30 minutes climate control results lost capacity fast charging degraded fast charged winter high summer temperatures report driving /

Friday, 21 March 2014

Backblaze cloud storage — unlimited for $5 per month (or less)

● just one simple plan: unlimited
● as little as $3.96 per month (if you pay two years in advance)
● that's backing up just one device
● data available to all of your devices
● apps for OSX, Windows & iOs (Android in the works)
● no free service, but a free 15 day trial is available

http://www.findmycloudstorage.com/backblaze-review/

http://www.tuaw.com/2014/03/19/backblaze-now-storing-100-petabytes-of-data-announces-storage-p/

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/backup/fl/backblaze-review.htm / back up backup personal documents photographs photograph photo photos secure online location personal budget priced backup service review CEO Gleb Budman CTO Brian Wilson MailFrontier serial entrepreneurs product purchase company headquarters San Mateo California USA game-changing technology market value MacUser’s Labs Winner ease-of-use Cnet TechCrunch Ars Technica TUAW startup years fund profitable bootstrapped company technology proprietary storage configuration open source open sourced technology 40 petabytes file space datacenter Mission Critical Facility staffed 24/7 biometric security measures N+1 UPS power system independent telecom providers datacenter securelye easy cheap cloud storage your data is automatically backed up to a cloud server on a continuous basis free trial email address password your choice install files on your hard drive external hard drive military-grade encryption SSL connections your data compressed encrypted AES military grade encryption cloud server secure SSL connection private encryption key back up any kind of file /

Thursday, 20 March 2014

Motorola Moto 360 smartwatch announced (video)


Credit: Motorola/Geeky Gadgets

Motorola has joined a growing crowd, with the announcement of their take on the smart watch. On sale this (northern) summer

http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/motorola-moto-360-smartwatch-announced-video-19-03-2014/ / new smartwatch Motorola Moto 360 launch Google Google’s new version Android wearable devices device Android Wear feature features a round design traditional watch photos video Moto 360 on time up to date subtle alerts notifications just a twist of the wrist who’s emailing calling time next meeting friend’s latest social post responds to your voice say Ok Google ask questions game what time your flight leaves scheduling appointment send sending text set setting alarm taking note new Moto 360 go on sale this summer available in a range of different styles style launch US first roll out globally /

Wednesday, 19 March 2014

New Rubik's cube world record: 3.253 seconds

What do you need to solve a Rubik's cube in 3.253 seconds?

So far, the only solution involves a Samsung Galaxy S4 with ARM processor, Lego Mindstorms EV3 bricks & custom software running on the S4. This all came to fruition at the Big Bang Fair in Birmingham, UK, on 15 Mar 2014.



Earlier video, even shorter, but with better views of some off the hardware:

/ Guiness World Record solve solving Rubix Rubik Rubik's cube record recording recorded time Big Bang Fair in Birmingham UK robot ARM-powered Samsung Galaxy S4 smartphone smart phone analyze instruct four robotic hands manipulate manipulations ARM processors power eight LEGO bricks perform motor sequencing control design designed designer designing built and programmed Mike Dobson David Gilday creators Android Speedcuber CubeStormer II custom app developed develop developer development phone's camera capture images each face process processor processing processes solution advanced two-phase algorithm dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 based processor SII optimise optimize optimizations octocore eight-core big.LITTLE processor configuration four Cortex-A15 Cortex-A7 processors human speedcubers' solve times physical manipulation image capture software solution calculation physical solve /