Category: Science & Technology News

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NTSB urges states ban all cellphone use by drivers

cellphone ban

A sign in Havre, Mont., notifies drivers of the city’s handheld cellphone ban, which took effect in October.

The National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday called for a ban on all cellphone use by drivers saying its decision was based on a decade of investigations into distraction-related accidents, as well as growing concerns that powerful mobile devices are giving drivers even more reasons to look away from the road.  This is the most far-reaching such recommendation to date.

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government, Science & Technology News, Space

Loud TV commercials will soon be a thing of the past

Why-are-TV-commercials-so-loud

Those annoying ultra-loud TV commercials will soon be a thing of the past.

Today, the Federal Communications Commission is expected to pass regulations requiring broadcasters and cable and satellite TV systems to maintain constant volume levels. The order will go into effect one year from today.   The order “says commercials must have the same average volume as the programs they accompany,” says FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski.

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Brain, Breakthrough Thinking, Education, Health & Fitness, New Discoveries, Science & Technology News

Learnin’ Matrix-Style!

brain jackie-chan-l-1

Learning with a zing-zang-zoom!

Remember the Matrix where all you need to do to learn kung fu is to get it uploaded to your brain? Well, that may soon be coming to real life:

New research published today in the journal Science suggests it may be possible to use brain technology to learn to play a piano, reduce mental stress or hit a curve ball with little or no conscious effort. It’s the kind of thing seen in Hollywood’s “Matrix” franchise…

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Great New Product, New Inventions, Science & Technology News

QD TV that can be rolled up and carried in a pocket coming soon

3D

Forget about 3D.

Coming soon: the QD TV.  British scientists say they have developed a technology which they claim could be used to produce TV that can be rolled up and carried in a pocket. The scientists  at Manchester University have actually developed a new form of light-emitting crystals, known as quantum dots, (QD) which can be used to produce ultra-thin televisions.

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Education, Entertainment, Famous Inventor, Historical Perspectives, Internet, People Making a Difference, Science & Technology News

Google Celebrates The Career Of Microchip Inventor Robert Noyce

Robert Norton Noyce 34523454

Inventor Robert Norton Noyce

Today’s Google Doodle celebrates the life and career of inventor Robert Noyce, co-founder of Fairchild Semiconductor and Intel. Noyce, who died in 1990, is credited with the invention of the integrated circuit. His patent for a “Semiconductor Device and Lead Structure” paved the way for the semiconductor revolution of the next decades.

He was called the Mayor of Silicon Valley and his relaxed corporate structures encouraged his employees to experiment in an era of buttoned-down austerity. Without Noyce and his various projects, you probably wouldn’t be reading this right now…

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Business, Internet, Science & Technology News

Quirky – new crowdfunding site may be the next big thing in retail innovation

ben-kaufman

Ben Kaufman, founder of Quirky

There are a lot of  young kids who want to be inventors. But, when most of the young kids grow up they either grow out of wanting to be an inventor or resign themselves to the excuse that it is the work of only dreamers. When we were younger, we had playful, creative lessons in school on famous inventors like Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, and Walt Disney.

 

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Analysis, Human Behavior, Latest Trend, Science & Technology News

Vocal fry creeping into the speech of young women in the U.S.

vocal fry

College-age women end sentences in the lowest vocal register, a creaky vibration called vocal fry.

Vocal fry, a low creaky, vibration has crept into the speech of young adult women who speak American English. Pop singers, such as Britney Spears, slip vocal fry into their music as a way to reach low notes and add style. Now, a new study of young women in New York state shows that the same guttural vibration—once considered a speech disorder—has become a language fad.

 

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Business, Education, Internet, Science & Technology News, Video Games

Platform Wars – MIT launches free online video game simulator

 platform wars

MIT’s video game simulator lets you learn MBA management skills for free.

Thanks to “Platform Wars,” a video game simulator, you can learn MBA management skills and strategies for free.  It was created by MIT’s Sloane School of Management and anyone can learn elements of a business school education by portraying an executive at a video game console manufacturer online.

 

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