How slow and old can a laptop be to still be usable today? Well, an ancient Pentium II laptop running Windows 98 will be enough for internet browsing, Word and Excel, music and movies – and that is pretty much all that most of us ever need.
Yet, we don’t see Pentium II laptops anymore, even though they are cheaper than a lightbulb. People prefer new, expensive laptops with built in things like fingerprint security or webcams, even though they keep the laptop at home and still work with the same old Excel sheets, and never turn the webcam on.
And this is the only way it can be in our consumerism-obsessed society, and cheap laptops that we use today will similarly look old and cost nothing in two years from now. What, then, will new laptops of 2010 be like? We came up with a list of 5 new features that we think will become standard in each laptop very soon.
1. Solid state harddrive, or SSD: It is already happening now, with new Apple Macbook Air laptop being sold with a choice of traditional HDD or new SSD harddrive. It is smaller, harder to damage, it takes less energy as there are no movable parts and it should also be cheaper to produce, once the market is saturated..
2. Wireless USB: Also already a reality, with Dell already selling its new XPS M1330 laptop with an option of wireless USB being built in. This means fewer cables, and fewer cables can only be a good thing.
3. 3G/HSDPA wireless broadband card: Internet anywhere, anytime? Oh yes, please. Understandably, it becomes more and more popular as the prices of mobile broadband fall each month. Most major laptop manufacturers are including them with new laptops already.
4. External CD/DVD drive: This one is not as straightforward as the previous three, since people still use CDs and watch DVD movies. Yet, CDs are big, subject to scratches and they need to be spinned, which needs energy and produces heat. There are two things that can kill a CD- the continuing rise of online downloads and the price of flash memory falling below the price of a blank CD. If this happens, nothing will save a CD from a place on a museum shelf, right next to the tape cassette.
5. New body shape: With solid state harddrive and no CD drive, new laptops can afford to become much thinner. There will be no movable parts, and together with new low energy processors this will help consume less energy and produce less heat, reducing the need and size of cooling pipes and fans. Laptop shape will change forever to a slimmer, lighter one, and old laptops will suddenly become as elegant as 19th century typewriters.
This is of course just a wild prediction and, like all predictions, will most likely differ from the real thing. You are welcome to disagree, any feedback on the list will be greatly appreciated.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Get Ready for the Digital Polaroid Camera
Polaroid, the name that makes us remember the old photographs we shook desperately, in an attempt to make them develop faster, is now renouncing the brand of cameras that made it famous, and introduces its next-generation counterpart, a digital version that also has a built-in printer. Though it's short of all the modern features, such as auto-focus, it does bring back a bit of the feeling that made its predecessor so popular.
The incorporated printer produces 2x3 inch photos on the spot, and is able to fully develop a picture in less than a minute, which makes the waiting time similar to its old counterpart. However, when printing the selected photos, it crops a bit from the top and the bottom of the image, a feature that can not be overrun.
On the bright side, you can now choose which pictures you want to print, as opposed to the new models, which placed the image on paper as soon as you pressed the button. Taking advantage of the modern technology, you can now shuffle through the pics you made and select only those worthy of seeing the light of day. Despite the fact that the new model may prove invaluable when those family moments happen, you should know before buying it that the speed of the shutter is fairly low, which means that it takes some time for the photo to be processed after you press the button.
Though it only features a 5-megapixel sensor, it does bring back the feeling of the earlier models, in that the colors have the same, a-bit-off hues, and a vintage look to them. It's obviously not made for professional use, but it's very fun to have around at picnics or barbecues.
Another advantage it has is that the photos are printed on adhesive paper, which means that you can easily peel them off and stick them to any surface you like, including refrigerator doors and coffee mugs, for instant customization.
If you’re looking to experience some more of the old Polaroid point-and-shoot feeling, this camera is the way to go. Don't expect performance or perfect pictures, but, if you want to have some fun, take it out for a “spin,” to remember the good old days.
The incorporated printer produces 2x3 inch photos on the spot, and is able to fully develop a picture in less than a minute, which makes the waiting time similar to its old counterpart. However, when printing the selected photos, it crops a bit from the top and the bottom of the image, a feature that can not be overrun.
On the bright side, you can now choose which pictures you want to print, as opposed to the new models, which placed the image on paper as soon as you pressed the button. Taking advantage of the modern technology, you can now shuffle through the pics you made and select only those worthy of seeing the light of day. Despite the fact that the new model may prove invaluable when those family moments happen, you should know before buying it that the speed of the shutter is fairly low, which means that it takes some time for the photo to be processed after you press the button.
Though it only features a 5-megapixel sensor, it does bring back the feeling of the earlier models, in that the colors have the same, a-bit-off hues, and a vintage look to them. It's obviously not made for professional use, but it's very fun to have around at picnics or barbecues.
Another advantage it has is that the photos are printed on adhesive paper, which means that you can easily peel them off and stick them to any surface you like, including refrigerator doors and coffee mugs, for instant customization.
If you’re looking to experience some more of the old Polaroid point-and-shoot feeling, this camera is the way to go. Don't expect performance or perfect pictures, but, if you want to have some fun, take it out for a “spin,” to remember the good old days.
Intel 4004: World's First Microprocessor (1971)
In November, 1971, a company called Intel publicly introduced the world's first single chip microprocessor, the Intel 4004 invented by Intel engineers Federico Faggin, Ted Hoff, and Stan Mazor. After the invention of integrated circuits revolutionized computer design, the only place to go was down -- in size that is.
The Intel 4004 chip took the integrated circuit down one step further by placing all the parts that made a computer think (i.e. central processing unit, memory, input and output controls) on one small chip. Programming intelligence into inanimate objects had now become possible.
Flavor of Time Clock
It’s been said that our most powerful sense is the sense of smell and that the scent of a fond memory can stay with you forever—like homemade cookies from when you were a kid, or the way that that she smelled the first time you kissed… But you probably never thought you’d be telling the time based on smell alone. That’s the idea behind the Flavor of Time Clock. There are 12 different “flavor capsules” so each hour a different scent is exuded from the holes on the face of the clock.
Top 10 Scientific Breakthroughs of 2008
1. Cellular Reprogramming: The top honours in this list has been given to a research that produced a "made-to-order" cell lines by reprogramming cells from ill patients - a method known as "Cellular Reprogramming." It opened a new field of biology almost overnight and holds out hope of life-saving medical advances.
2. Exoplanets: For the first time in 2008, astronomers directly observed planets orbiting other stars, using special telescope techniques to distinguish the planet's faint light from the star's bright glare.
3. Expanding the catalogue of cancer genes: By sequencing genes from various cancer cells, including pancreatic cancer & glioblastoma - two of the deadliest cancers, researchers turned up dozens of mutations that remove the brakes on cell division and send the cell down the path to cancer.
4. New mystery materials: Researchers created a stir in 2008 by discovering a whole second family of high-temperature superconductors consisting of iron compounds instead of copper-and-oxygen compounds.
5. Watching proteins at work: Biochemists encounters major surprises in 2008 as they watched proteins bind to their targets, switch a cell's metabolic state and contribute to a tissue's properties.
6. Renewable energy on demand: Researchers found a promising new tool for storing excess electricity, generated from part-time sources like wind & solar power, in the form of cobalt-phosphorus catalyst.
7. The video embryo: Researchers observed, in unprecedented details, the dance of cells in a developing embryo, recording and analyzing movies that trace the movements of roughly 16,000 cells that make up the zebrafish embryo by the end of its first day of development.
8. "Good" fat, illuminated: In a study that may offer new approaches to treating obesity, scientists discovered that they could morph "good" brown fat (which burns "bad" white fat to generate heat for the body) into muscle and vice versa.
9. Calculating weight of the world: Physicists now have the calculations handy to show that the standard model, which describes most of the visible universe's particles and their interactions, accurately predicts how much mass the protons and neutrons have.
10. Faster & cheaper genome sequencing: Researchers reported numorous genome sequences this year - from w0olly mammoths to human cancer patients - aided by a variety of sequencing technologies that are much speedier & cheaper than the ones used to sequence the first human genome.
2. Exoplanets: For the first time in 2008, astronomers directly observed planets orbiting other stars, using special telescope techniques to distinguish the planet's faint light from the star's bright glare.
3. Expanding the catalogue of cancer genes: By sequencing genes from various cancer cells, including pancreatic cancer & glioblastoma - two of the deadliest cancers, researchers turned up dozens of mutations that remove the brakes on cell division and send the cell down the path to cancer.
4. New mystery materials: Researchers created a stir in 2008 by discovering a whole second family of high-temperature superconductors consisting of iron compounds instead of copper-and-oxygen compounds.
5. Watching proteins at work: Biochemists encounters major surprises in 2008 as they watched proteins bind to their targets, switch a cell's metabolic state and contribute to a tissue's properties.
6. Renewable energy on demand: Researchers found a promising new tool for storing excess electricity, generated from part-time sources like wind & solar power, in the form of cobalt-phosphorus catalyst.
7. The video embryo: Researchers observed, in unprecedented details, the dance of cells in a developing embryo, recording and analyzing movies that trace the movements of roughly 16,000 cells that make up the zebrafish embryo by the end of its first day of development.
8. "Good" fat, illuminated: In a study that may offer new approaches to treating obesity, scientists discovered that they could morph "good" brown fat (which burns "bad" white fat to generate heat for the body) into muscle and vice versa.
9. Calculating weight of the world: Physicists now have the calculations handy to show that the standard model, which describes most of the visible universe's particles and their interactions, accurately predicts how much mass the protons and neutrons have.
10. Faster & cheaper genome sequencing: Researchers reported numorous genome sequences this year - from w0olly mammoths to human cancer patients - aided by a variety of sequencing technologies that are much speedier & cheaper than the ones used to sequence the first human genome.
Ka-56 Portable Helicopter
Ka-56 Portable Helicopter
In 1971 the Kamov Design Bureau was ordered to produce the new ultralight helicopter for military service. Sergei Fomin, Deputy Chief Designer, was ordered to lead this project.
The special task for this helicopter was that it should have been transported in a cylindrical container of 500mm diameter. The reason was that the Navy wished to have an opportunity to pull the helicopter out of a submarine’s torpedo tub
Another point was that the helicopter should have been assembled for flying in 15 minutes when unpacked from a container.
Powerplant was 40hp air-cooled rotary engine which burned motor-car fuel.
The full-scaled mockup was built first in order to find better decisions in helicopter’s configuration: to make it compact and easy to assemble. The next step was to build the test platform which included the real engine, rotor system, transmission and controls.
The only parts which were detachable from the helicopter for transportation were 4 main rotor blades. All other parts were easily folded. The time to assemble the helicopter was only 10 minutes.
Unfortunately Ka-56 wasn’t ever flown due to a lack of suitable rotary piston engine.
In 1971 the Kamov Design Bureau was ordered to produce the new ultralight helicopter for military service. Sergei Fomin, Deputy Chief Designer, was ordered to lead this project.
The special task for this helicopter was that it should have been transported in a cylindrical container of 500mm diameter. The reason was that the Navy wished to have an opportunity to pull the helicopter out of a submarine’s torpedo tub
Another point was that the helicopter should have been assembled for flying in 15 minutes when unpacked from a container.
Powerplant was 40hp air-cooled rotary engine which burned motor-car fuel.
The full-scaled mockup was built first in order to find better decisions in helicopter’s configuration: to make it compact and easy to assemble. The next step was to build the test platform which included the real engine, rotor system, transmission and controls.
The only parts which were detachable from the helicopter for transportation were 4 main rotor blades. All other parts were easily folded. The time to assemble the helicopter was only 10 minutes.
Unfortunately Ka-56 wasn’t ever flown due to a lack of suitable rotary piston engine.
Intel Core i7
Intel Core i7: With Alienware, Dell and Gateway getting in on Intel’s latest processor, it’s clear this is the must-have for PC gamers. Gizmodo does an admirable job of explaining the nitty gritty of the i7’s might, but the processor reduces bottlenecks, enables the use of more RAM and divides up tasks more efficiently — just what you need when getting your frag on.
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