Mind Reading Computers :: Coming Soon

Imagine a world where you begin your day at work by sitting at a computer and looking at a screen.  As you begin, the windows move with perfect cohesion across the screen and suddenly you're typing as fast as you can imagine words.  Your thoughts organize entire strips of data and soon you've completed all of your tasks in a matter of minutes, only to move on to the next set at the speed of thought.  Sound like science fiction?  New technology is bringing it into reality quicker than you think.

Intel is currently working to develop a complex map of words and their relation to impulses in the brain.  By crossing this barrier between mental data and digital data, quickly your brain's processing speed will be your only limiting factor as you click buttons, type emails, check the web, and call up information to research simply by thinking about it.  Currently Intel's machines can detect several words and even have them appear on screen when subjects think about them.

But as the technology improves, the size of the device used shrinks and the applications grow.  Now it's words, but can we imagine a world where the same technology is brought into the work place the same as the keyboard and mouse were brought in as personal computers first saw use in the commercial sector?

Just as with any new piece of technology the innovations that can be used are virtually endless.  And with them there's an entire new world opened up of mind hacking.  Take for instance the scenario where someone says, "Think about the last thing you ate for lunch."  Before in the privacy of our minds we could give in to the reflex of thinking about our lunch and then a decision would take place between the thought in our minds and the movement of our mouths.  The subtleties in the time difference and those movements may betray us if we had reason to lie about it, but there would still be an opportunity to do so.  What if a bank robber were to walk to a banker and put on one of these mind reading head-sets and ask them to think about the combination?  Of course it would only be a reflexive action, and the banker would have every opportunity to freeze his thoughts, but this would largely depend on how much training he had controlling his thoughts.  And as the technology improves, it may prove more difficult to fool the machine with each passing generation.

And what will we discover if we leave such a machine on as we sleep?  Would we get a better grasp of the thoughts that run through our minds as we dream?  Perhaps this is yet another avenue to wonder about privacy invasion.

So are we in for a world where even our own deepest thoughts are not private?  With feeds such as twitter casually updating the world on our every movement, is it possible we could be opening a Pandora's box of honesty society is not at this juncture ready for?  The applications are as promising as they are terrifying.

PlayStation 3 'hacked' by hardware crackers

A group of hardware hackers claim they are about to release the first product to allow gamers to play homemade and pirated games on the PlayStation 3.

The PS3 is the only games console that has not been hacked, despite being on the market for more than three years.

Now a group called PSJailbreak says it will release a USB dongle containing software that allows users to save games to the console's hard drive.

Sony, the maker of the PS3, declined to comment.

However, a distributor for the dongle said that he had tested it and would start selling the device "in the next two weeks".

Mixed response

According to videos of the hack posted online by an Australian distributor, a user merely has to insert the USB stick into the console to make it work.

The videos show a person navigating to a "backup manager" on the PS3, which purports to show a list of games saved to the console's hard drive.

The narrator flicks through the list before loading one of the games.

Sceptics have suggested the videos are a hoax or that they show the hack running on a so-called "debug PS3" or "dev unit", used by developers to test code for the machine.

A spokesperson for Console Pro, another distributor based in the Netherlands, told the "dongle converts a retail unit into a dev unit".

"Dev mode means it will run any - even unsigned - code. Using a simple backup maker or player software, you can play backed-up [saved] games without the actual disc being in the PS3."

The spokesperson for Fox-Chip said the hack was a "good thing" as it would give gamers more functionality, including the ability to run their own games, called homebrews.

"There was previously no homebrew, because it was impossible to execute [on the console] - now some people can do it," he said.

He denied that the product would just be used to pirate games and said, in the long run, its release would be good for Sony.

"Sony should sell a lot of consoles because of this," he said.

But Rik Ferguson of security firm Trend Micro warned that the hack could cause problems.

"It does disable some key security features built into the PS3 - like the running of unsigned code - and we've seen with the iPhone that this makes your device less secure."

The iPhone has been cracked several times and allows owners to run non-Apple approved applications.

Gamers have met the news of PSJailbreak with a mixed response, with some welcoming the possibility of developing their own games for the popular console.

However, many posting on PS3 forums said that the product would promote piracy and could undermine the games industry.

Pre-emptive strike

The legality of products such as this - commonly called modchips - differs by country.

The Fox-chip spokesperson said that distributing them was legal in France.

However, in other countries, console manufactures have successfully taken distributors to court.

A recent High Court ruling in the UK said that "game copiers" were illegal to import, advertise and sell.

The case had been brought by Nintendo, maker of the Wii and DS handheld console.

The defendants had argued that they allow gamers to play home-made games.

PSJailbreak is not the first time that there have been claims that the popular PS3, which has sold almost 40 million units, has been hacked.

Earlier this year, a US hacker who gained notoriety for unlocking Apple's iPhone as a teenager, George Hotz, claimed to have cracked the console.

Following his initial announcement, Sony released an update for the console disabling a function that allowed gamers to install a version of Linux on their machines, thought to have been exploited by Mr Hotz.

Many saw it as a pre-emptive strike to guard against games piracy.

Mr Hotz has never released the exploit and has said publicly that he has given up his work on the console.

The spokesperson for Console Pro said he expected a similarly swift response to the latest exploit:

"They will come with a firmware update in some days blocking the use of the dongle," he said.

'Memory' how to fight Flu

In short order every few years a new flu strain evolves that many say threatens to disrupt civilization as we know it.  With super bug fears rising every year, some say the next superbug could be the one that finally mimics the Spanish flu and kills millions.  Of course these diseases are often seen as nothing more than an inconvenience.  But fear them or merely dislike them, a new vaccine may soon be available that removes the flu from our lives forever.

The logic of the vaccine is as follows: there are two largely recognizable parts of a flu virus, the head and the stem.  In using an analogy comparing the flu virus to an ice-cream cone we can discover how the vaccine works.  The head of the virus is similar to the ice cream contained in the cone.  The flavors or genetic variations of the virus change from one generation to the next, making it difficult to predict what will be coming next.  Meanwhile, despite the flavors of virus being different the cone is always the same, and rarely changes.  This new vaccine will target the thing that makes all flu viruses similar by making the body produce antibodies that fight specifically against it.

Scientists for years have had difficulty combating the rapidly mutating flus partially because of how different they can be from year to year and even from month to month.  When H1N1 first hit the US, 24 hour news coverage soon decreed that it could be a disaster of national proportions.  In retrospect, many have come forward saying these reports were hasty while others contend that H1N1 was never more than a few mutations away from becoming a serious problem.  And a mere five years earlier the Bird flu H5N1 was seen as a potential killer that could mutate into something quite deadly and cause the same level of devastation.  If every five years a flu is going to come around that threatens civilization as we know it, then a universal flu vaccine is certainly a worthy endeavor.

And that vaccine may soon be developed thanks to the efforts of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and its director, Anthony S. Fauci.  Fauci has found a way to create antibodies in animals that neutralize several different strains of the disease and provide protection that could last for ten years.  Given that somewhere around 36,000 people in the US die annually of the common flu, this would be a milestone achievement.  A single vaccine is expected to last for ten years, meaning up to 360,000 lives could be saved right away.  And that's only taking into account deaths in the United States.  Globally the disease claims up to 500,000 lives annually, meaning up to five million could be saved over one ten year period if the vaccine works.  And this is just taking into consideration the standard flu.  A super flu that could cause widespread devastation in a pandemic scenario could soon become a thing of the past.

Lenovo plans Android tablet PC

Hong Kong: Lenovo Group, the world's No 4 PC brand, said it will roll out its own tablet PC, becoming the latest technology company to jump on the bandwagon for computers styled after Apple Inc's popular iPad.

Lenovo was developing a tablet PC, known internally as LePad, that would run on Google Inc's Android operating system, Lenovo spokeswoman Wu Hwa said on Wednesday, adding that no launch date had been set and the name of the product may change.

"We want the tablet PC to be compatible with our LePhone smartphone, which is why we're using Android," Wu said.

LePhone is Lenovo's smartphone offering in China, sold by China Unicom, which also runs on Android.

Tablet PC shipments are expected to grow by an average 57.4 percent per year between 2010 and 2014, research firm IDC said, making the sector a lucrative growth area for companies selling heavily commoditised laptops.

The tablet PC has already caught the attention of major PC companies such as Hewlett-Packard Co, Dell Inc and now Lenovo, as they look to diversify beyond laptop PCs that typically offer low profit margins.

Apple's iPad, launched in April, sold 3.27 million units in the second quarter, prompting research firm iSuppli to revise upwards its full-year shipment forecast for the product to 13 million units from 7.1 million units.

"iSuppli believe that the only limitation on iPad sales now is production and not demand," iSuppli analyst Rhoda Alexander said.

Your hand is a touch screen

Imagine a world where your computer is not only at your fingertips, but directly controlled and interfaced on them. As technology got smaller, unfortunately screen size also suffered, but a new projection technology recently developed hopes to turn the viewing area on computers and personal devices such as cell phones into the user's own glowing skin. The technology was offered as a solution to problems many computer and personal device users have of small screens on smaller devices.

The world of technology is bringing out new breakthroughs that hold the potential to make life both easier in some ways and more inconvenient in others. Social networking sites have made communication far easier, yet at the same time more difficult in several ways, MP3 players have made the average walk down the street less connected with other people, yet opened another world within, and the internet has harbored in a new age of information with informative sites that serve to inform readers honestly and without compromise from multi-million dollar industries at great cost to those industries. But as technology changes, the medium itself must change as well. And what better part of consistency is there than the user the technology hopes to serve?


It's called "skinput." One example sees a tiny LED projector on the wrist pouring out a detailed phone pad onto the hand of a user so they can use their other hand to dial a phone. As each "button" on the display is pressed, a wave is sent up the hand in reaction, and an advanced sensor detects the waves and sends a signal to the tiny processor on the Skinput computer where it is measured and quickly estimated into an exact point of contact on the skin. It's a principle similar to how dolphins use sonar to navigate sea floors and keep an eye out for potential predators as well as food. As the sensors got more advanced, as they were being developed, it became more accurate and therefore more applicable. Essentially a "skinput" device would be exactly like any other touch screen device, except rather than touching a screen, you would be touching your own hand glowing from the projector mounted on your wrist.


As gadgets get smaller, so too must the screens used on them. Fortunately, the problem of a screen too small to see, as well as buttons and interface too small for those with larger hands to use is remedied as the screens will be directly proportional always to the size of the user's hand. In addition, it will be as easy to look at as it is to hold your own hand up to your face. Since the device doesn't need to be held to use, it will be far less likely to be forgotten, lost, or dropped.


Will skinput be able to have military applications as well? Researcher Chris Harrison from Carnegie Mellon institute said the system worked equally well whether running, walking, or standing still. Currently there are limited points of detection for it, however, which will have to be worked out before we find ourselves staring into our empty hands trying to make a phone call.

New Electricity Production Method

A new method of creating electrical energy has been developed by scientists studying nano-technology at MIT through the use of a previously undiscovered phenomena wherein microscopic wires can be used in certain formations to produce electricity at a scale that may lead to a breakthrough in future ultra-small electronic devices.

The basic mechanics involve latticed layered wires known as carbon nanotubes.  The carbon nanotubes are incredibly small hollow tubes that are coated in a layer of ultra high powered fuel that produces energy through decomposition.  The catalyst is a small laser or high voltage spark that travels through the wires using a phenomenon known as thermopower.  The discovery, according to researchers at MIT has opened up a new area of energy research, which is understandably rare.  The wave of electrons is pushed through the lattice work  like a tsunami after a large shelf falls into the ocean, each individual electron pushing the next one out, while the high yield output actually amplifies the electrical output using the fuel hidden within the carbon nanotubes.  Currently the potential power output for a typical Alkaline battery such as a AAA is merely 1/100th of the potential power input of a Nanotube battery of the same weight.  Imagine a tiny battery cell that actually has a power output of 100 times that of a typical AAA battery.  Imagine three large 6 volt batteries put together, and you have almost the amount of power output potential of one AAA battery sized Nanotube battery as it currently is.  In a world where many limitations on green energy rest on the potential keeping power of batteries, the Nanotube battery has the potential to bring about a technological revolution the likes of which has not been seen in several years not only for its potential power output, but its limited size.

Of course an incredible amount of research must still be done before these batteries are ready for application in larger systems, but as it currently stands there are already several potential applications for smaller systems that will hopefully be coming out in the near future.  The downside, of course, is there is still much time and work that must be put into these projects and several different avenues of research before these systems could be economically viable.  One potential application, according to the scientists who first discovered the property, is to have several tiny sensors with these energy systems to be released into the atmosphere to observe changes and transmit data on potential climate change.  If the battery systems turn out to have larger applications, however, they could in time be perfected and used in robotics systems as well as a number of space faring ventures as well as nanotechnology which is currently limited by the current energy storage and output.  As technology gets smaller, energy will be a larger concern, but with Nanotube batteries, hopefully the next generation of computers (or possibly those two generations from now) and gadgets will have high yield batteries that will make them all the more viable and marketable.

Google enters travel market with flight data purchase

Search engine giant Google has entered the travel market after acquiring flight information firm ITA Software.

ITA provides software that organises fares, flight and journey times that are used by airlines, travel agents and flight comparison sites such as Orbitz.

Google said it may well expand the scope, enabling users to search directly for flight destinations.

Google paid $700m in cash for the US-based company, founded in 1996 by a team of MIT computer scientists.

"What we're going to do is build new flight search tools that focus on end users," said Google chief executive Eric Schmidt.

However, he said that the firm would not be selling airline tickets to consumers and that it would honour "all existing agreements that ITA has with its partners".

Those partners include some of Google's direct competitors - such as Microsoft's own flight comparison website, Bing Travel.

Other firms which had been bidding for ITA included Travelport, Expedia and Kayak, many of which are also dependent on ITA for their flight data.

A spokesman for Kayak told that, for now, they were not concerned.

"In the short term, it's not an issue, because Google said it's honouring existing agreements," he said.

However, there are fears within the travel industry that Google could have an excessive influence. Google says the acquisition is "pro-competitive" and "pro-consumer" but said regulators were likely to examine the deal.

"I would expect that it would be a significant review," said Mr Schmidt.

The Independent's travel editor, Simon Calder, told the biggest loser may be the old legacy booking systems, should Google expand ITA's remit.

"If anything, the airline industry used a system that you could describe as the forerunner to the internet," said Mr Calder.

"The aviation industry used GDS - the Global Distribution System - for decades, because there were computers in travel agents, airports and airlines across the globe.

"Now it consolidates around Amadeus, Sabre, Galileo and World Span and these still have legacy aspects. For example, if you book a flight from London to Mexico City via Dallas, you will still have to pay $3 for each segment.

"If Google can do something to rival that, it would be very interesting and exciting.

"But, as with all things to do with Google, the issue of market domination comes up," he added.

Collision course

Google confirmed it was also working on a project that would enable users to search for hotels, with the results displayed on Google Maps. That could put put it on a collision course with firms like Expedia, Travelocity and Opodo.

Mr Calder said that while he could see merit in Google running a flight information firm, he was not convinced that it should launch a travel comparison website of its own.

"While there is great competition when it comes to transatlantic flights, from smaller airports, the choice for a passenger is more limited," he said.

"There are plenty of price comparison sites already and for someone booking flights, the system is almost perfect, so I don't see how Google is going to get a slice of that."

Nokia N900 Hacked To Run Android Froyo

Nokia's Maemo-based N900 smartphone has been hacked to run Google's latest Android 2.2 Froyo operating system.

Tech blog Engadget has posted a video of an N900 device running the Android 2.2 OS, codenamed Froyo.

The Nokia N900, launched in 2009, was the first Nokia device to run the MeeGo OS developed by Nokia and US-based chip maker Intel.

The device, which comes with a 3.5 inch screen and 600Mhz ARM Cortex A8 processor can be seen running Android smoothly, with a fast internet connection and apparently full support for the phone's hardware.

Nokia recently announced that it will be replacing the Symbian OS with its MeeGo operating system on all future Nokia N-series smartphones. The company said that Symbian will still be used in all of its cheaper smartphones.

Apple patent case 'could affect all android phones'

Apple's legal action against HTC may have "wider implications" for all phone makers using Google's Android operating system, an analyst has warned.

Ian Fogg of Forrester Research said that the case against HTC, in which Apple alleges infringement of 20 of its patents, could be the first of many.

Although Apple has not named Google in the suits, many of the named patents relate to operating system processes.

Google has taken the unusual step of publicly supporting HTC in the case.

"We are not a party to this lawsuit," said a Google spokesperson.

"However, we stand behind our Android operating system and the partners who have helped us to develop it."

Wider implications

HTC was the first manufacturer to use Android in its phones and is also the maker of Google's own brand Nexus One handset.

Some have speculated that Apple - which makes the popular iPhone - are attacking Google "by proxy" by filing the case against HTC.

"I think this is kind of an indirect lawsuit against Google," analyst Shaw Wu of Kaufman Brothers told Reuters.

Some of the patents that Apple alleges have been infringed are 15 years old and cover aspects of operating systems.

As a result, some believe that the patents cannot just relate to HTC and believe the case may just be an opening salvo against other firms and possibly Google.

"Simply because Apple has focused on HTC now doesn't mean it won't take action against other manufacturers later," Mr Fogg told BBC News.

"[This case] could have implications for all other phone manufacturers which have just announced their phones at Mobile World Congress."

Mobile World Congress is a showcase for the phone industry, held every February in Barcelona, Spain.

Manufacturers including Sony Ericsson, LG, Samsung and HTC announced new handsets running Android at the show.

"2010 is going to be the year of Android," said Mr Fogg.

Legal web

In a statement Apple boss Steve Jobs said: "We can sit by and watch competitors steal our patented inventions, or we can do something about it.

"We've decided to do something about it."

The Californian firm alleges that HTC have infringed 20 patents owned by Apple that are used in the iPhone.

Apple is seeking an injunction which would effectively bar HTC from selling phones that use the disputed technology in the US.

The legal action has been filed with the US International Trade Commission (ITC) and a district court in Delaware.

HTC has said it is unable to comment on the case until it has had a chance to assess the validity of the claims.

It is the latest in a series of legal wrangles involving Apple.

Finnish phone giant Nokia sued Apple for patent infringement in October 2009, alleging it had stolen patented technology.

In response, Apple countersued in December 2009, followed by a second round of legal action from Nokia.

Apple is also being investigated by the ITC following a complaint by camera manufacturer Kodak. The firm alleges that the iPhone uses technology for previewing pictures that infringe Kodak patents.

Apple reveals new iPhone features (Friday, 9 April 2010)

Apple has shown off some of the 100 new features to be included in the iPhone operating system later this year.

The update includes a mobile advertising platform called iAd that will be used to place adverts in applications made by third parties.

Apple founder Steve Jobs also showcased a long-awaited multi-tasking feature, which will allow users to run more than one program at a time.

The feature is already included in many other smartphones.

iAd marks Apple's first foray into a potentially lucrative new market, and pits it directly against Google's search engine advertising model.

Apple will allow external developers to pocket 60% of ad revenue from iAd.

The Apple boss said the iPhone OS 4.0 update will be released first for the iPhone and iPod touch, and then the iPad, later this year.

'Ad-sense'

Mr Jobs gave a demonstration of the multi-tasking feature showed the online radio station Pandora running in the background playing music while a user could either read news online or deal with e-mail.

"We weren't the first to this party but we're going to be the best," he said.

Some of the other features unveiled at the presentation at Apple's headquarters in California include being able to create specific folders to store third party applications downloaded from iTunes, enhanced mail, which will gather e-mail from multiple accounts into one "unified" inbox and iBooks, which is already on the iPad.

Mr Jobs said mobile users spend more time inside applications than searching the internet.

Therefore it made sense to have adverts within the applications - or apps as they are commonly known.

"It's very clear that [Mr] Jobs believes that ads in the context of apps makes more sense than generic mobile search," said Tim Bajarin at consulting company Creative Strategies.

Mobile sales

Apple's move into mobile advertising was widely expected after it bought Quattro Wireless mobile advertising network for almost $300m (£196m) in January.

Analysts say revenue from mobile advertising will jump dramatically this year.

"It has huge potential to really change mobile commerce," said Van Baker, Vice president of research at Gartner.

"The evidence so far is that very few transactions really happen in this space. Mobile is used to compare prices, find restaurants, movie times and the like but very little in the way of commerce."

Apple bought mobile ad company Quattro after failing to buy the market leader AdMob, which was purchased by Google.

In a slight to the search giant, Mr Jobs said "Google came in and snatched them (AdMob) because they didn't want us to have them".

Google's deal is currently being investigated by US regulators.

iPad demand

During the packed press event, Mr Jobs revealed that to date Apple has sold 50m iPhones. That number rises to 85m when the iPod touch is included.

Mr Jobs also gave an update on the iPad, which went on sale in the US only at the weekend. It is expected in stores in the UK and part of Europe, as well as Canada and Australia at the end of the month.

Apple said it had sold 450,000 iPads as of 8 April. Mr Jobs added that 600,000 electronic books and 3.5m applications had been downloaded for the iPad in the previous five days.

"We're making them as fast as we can," Mr Jobs said. "Evidently we can't make enough of them yet so we are going to have to try harder."

UVB-76 Disappears, Fears Over USSR's Dead Hand

The mysterious numbers station code-named UVB-76 has been broadcasting at a frequency of 4625kHz since 1982 out of Russia. The mysterious signal broadcasts a buzzing sound every second and lasting for .8 seconds anywhere from 20 to 34 times a minute. The broadcast is a complete mystery and every clue that has come about to provide evidence of its purpose only deepens the enigma. And just recently the broadcast disappeared. Some suggest the signal was related to the Dead Hand, the system that would automatically retaliate with nuclear weapons in the event of a nuclear war. The sudden and unexplained disappearance of UVB-76 has many people nervous.



On January 16, 2003 the buzzing tone changed to a higher pitch of slower repetition for several minutes before changing back to its constant droning lower pitch. At the time many were concerned that the increased pitch may have been related to the increased perceived risk of nuclear attack by the United States. As the tone returned to normal, however, it was shrugged off as an unexplained anomaly. The very nature of numbers stations such as this one is one of complete mystery.

And that's not all that's suggesting there's something more going on at this station. Whatever it is has received a considerable amount of funding over the years as there is evidence that the site is an actual installation with employees of unknown purpose who often will walk into the transmission room and occasionally have hushed conversations behind the microphone. Unfortunately these conversations only serve to increase the mystery of the UVB076 signal. Less than a month after September 11, 2001 those listening for changes in the signal noted a brief conversation taking place in the room where the buzzer apparently was transmitting, "143. Not receiving the generator. There's some work on the hardware." A broadcast from December 24, 1997 was temporarily interrupted and a male voice came on speaking Russian, "Ya - UVB-76. 18008. Bromal: Boris, Roman, Olga, Mikhael, Anna, Larisa. 742, 799, 14." After the message was repeated several times, the message returned to normal. Again in 2002 on September 12, the voice came back, "UVB-76, UVB-76. 62691 Izafet 3693 8270." Other messages would follow with the most recent official one being an equally cryptic string of numbers and letters being broadcast as recently as 2006.

And yet there are also rumors of a final voice broadcast days prior to UVB-76's disappearance, but the contents of that message have not been discovered. Numbers stations exist in Russia, the United States, and several other countries around the world though their purpose is widely unknown. There are many suggestions that the broadcasts may be coded instructions to spies. As for the UVB-76 broadcast, there is a strong belief that it may be related to the dreaded "Dead Hand," of the Soviet Union. The Dead Hand was a program set up to ensure a retaliatory attack on the United States in the event of a first strike scenario by the United States. It was set up as a sort of automated kill switch in case there was no one left at the controls of Russia's ICBMs. And that leaves many wondering, "Where does that leave us if the system is no longer broadcasting?"

IBM's Precog Computer Predicts the Future

In the year 2000 there weren't many options for observing traffic. Either a system was intended to look at the flow of traffic by examining the progress in real time from a helicopter or high vantage point and report to radio and television stations and make mathematical projections, or systems were left that sensed the speed and frequency of moving traffic. But since that time, the systems have gotten more advanced. And not IBM is announcing a computer system that will not only track the progress of traffic, but even predict the future.



With busy schedules, places to be, and longer commutes to get into the city, many in the suburbs are effected intensely by the sudden crowding on the highways during rush hours. And to make matters worse, there are always accidents, breakdowns, and other road blocks that threaten to grind the roadways down to a halt altogether. If there's one feeling of desperation many people feel they can relate to when it comes to traffic it's being in a complete gridlock and knowing they were supposed to be somewhere fifteen minutes ago. But now IBM is announcing a project they have undertaken with the New Jersey Turnpike Authority that will make roadways run smoother and more efficiently. The so called Smart Transportation initiative promises to use technology to solve this problem. The program actually predicts traffic patterns long before the cars are anywhere near the area, with incredible success at predicting road congestion up to an hour before it even takes place. This is long before many commuters are even on the road.

The system promises to make announcements to commuters, forecasting through traditional means such as radio and television, but can also be used in GPS navigation systems. Even when few cars are visible on the road, the system is said to predict the patterns of vehicles by taking a collection of information from GPS systems (which are present in many phones and vehicles), events taking place nearby, weather patterns, and other systems. This information is fed through a complex program and the results are eerily accurate. This "psychic" prediction is not part of a massive supercomputer either. Though it may seem only a computer capable of eventually becoming self aware and declaring war on the human race would be capable of such complex calculations, IBM announces that its system will be able to run on a standard computer system. Of course the closer it comes to "crunch time" the more accurate the system will be. Within 20 minutes a fair estimation becomes a prediction and within 10 minutes it is even more accurate.

The secret, according to programmers, is that the new system will be more elastic and nimble than traditional projection software. In time perhaps this will be translated over to other concepts that can make predictions about the weather or even the stock market with a fair amount of accuracy. The system is expected to start changing highway efficiency in some areas later this year, but if it works well it could possibly be used nationwide.

NANO--Truly Flying Drive..!!

Terrafugia has completed flight testing of the Transition POC (Proof of Concept). Introducing the Transition. Simply land at the airport, fold your wings up and drive home. Fly a distance of 725 kilometers at speeds of 115 km/hour,requires a special license to drive and fly.

The time required for the transition from plane to car takes less than 30 seconds. Vehicle speed 185 km/hour, range is 724 km on highways Vehicle is fueled with gasoline, and the price of the car is expected to be around $200,000. The first shipment will be in 2011

SOURCE::http://www.terrafugia.com/