Using a Blockchain for a Smarter Energy Grid
Blockchain technology stems from Bitcoin and provides a platform for change greater than Bitcoin itself. Researchers in the renewable energy industry have realized that blockchains can be used to replace…
technology
More People can Help the Blind: Be My Eyes Now on Android
Be My Eyes is an app designed to help people with low vision to get help from thousands of people around the world. It works by connecting people with vision…
Parkinson’s Research Using Massive Data Collected from 23andMe
23andMe hopes to find a cure for Parkinson’s through data mining. Parkinson’s is a degenerative neurological disorder that affects millions of people, and a cure is hard to find. The…
Improved Air Conditioner Beams Heat Into Space
Air conditioner suck up a lot of energy in hotter months by dumping heat from inside buildings to the outside, ironically heating up neighbouring locations. A Stanford research team developed…
A Helping Hand for Shaky Mice
Your browser does not support the video tag. Almost everybody uses a computer daily, even those with involuntary muscle movements. The inability to effectively use a mouse as a result…
The Plight of the Millennials
Further explanation here. First, a bit about statistical norms and the normal distribution. In social sciences, for something to be considered a statistically significant characteristic of a group, it just…
eBird App is Helping us Understand Birds
eBird is a mobile app that has been around for a few years and used around the world. As a result the app has been used to collect a rich…
Ellis D. Kropotechev and Zeus, This marvelous time-sharing system. 1967
Stumbled on to this interesting little 16mm film made by a couple of Standford grad students in 1967. Some computer history and plenty of innuendo. Enjoy!
Even Massive Multinationals Support Net Neutrality
Net neutrality is what allows the internet to be what it is, and without it the internet would be pretty much useless. The Trump administration is presently trying to eliminate…
Using a Blockchain to Rebuild Trust in Governments
Cryptocurrencies have popularized the use of a digital concept called a blockchain. These blockchains can be used to track transactions and increase accountability of shared networks. If this sounds familiar,…
Algae Used for Carbon Capture at Cement Plant
Every year cement production contributes about 5% of the global emissions generated by humans. Any improvement around cement production will have a good impact on lowering carbon entering our atmosphere.…
VLC Demonstrates the Awesomeness of the FOSS Movement
VLC plays anything you can throw at it as it’s an amazing piece of software. The application is focussed on doing one thing really well: playing media. It’s so good…
Prototype Parkinson’s Bracelet Stabilizes Hands
Parkinson’s negatively impacts millions of people around the world by making their muscles harder to control. Basically, in people with Parkinson’s the brain fires extra signals which can cause involuntary…
Blockchain Technology to Track Real Blocks
Blockchain technology is changing the world of commerce and law, now it can be used to track real world blocks instead of just digital blocks. The technology got attention thanks…
An App That Rewards You for Riding a Bike
Biko rewards cyclists with free stuff just for riding their bike! Rewards include small things like coffee to very expensive consumer items. The idea of rewarding cyclist for not killing…
New bank Account Morally Monitors Your Purchases
money Aspiration financial firm is a B-corporatoin that wants to help people “vote with their wallets”. It’s incredibly hard for individuals to stay up to date on the damage that…
Treepedia Lets Cities See Where Trees are Needed
Treepedia is a new tool from MIT that uses Google street view to asses what the coverage of trees are in specific areas. It lets you know what your neighbourhood…
WiFi hysteria again
Every so often, old crackpot ideas, hoaxes, cons and plainly silly pseudoscience resurface online under the guise of Trump-like alternate fact. Scary stories about chemicals in your food, fake health…
Be Safe Online
The American government recently repealed laws set to protect your privacy online, clearly the government doesn’t care about private communication. This impacts people around the world because a lot of…
Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Heather Whiteside discusses how the privatization schemes being toyed with at all levels of government represent nothing more than reckless gambling with…