Hands On With Compal’s Tegra 2 Android Tablet [Android]

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No major companies are quite ready to bring a proper Android tablet to market, but they're edging closer. When they do, they could do worse than turn out something like this 7-inch, Tegra 2 design from Compal.

Under the hood is Nvidia's newest Tegra, which guarantees snappy interface, video and graphics performance in theory. In practice, at least on this early device which can't leverage the new graphics acceleration in Android 2.1, menu transitions are still a little slow, browser scrolling isn't instant, and the responsiveness of the touch keyboard poor enough to make typing a genuine pain in the ass. But wait wait wait—that's a software optimization issue, which can almost definitely be fixed. What about the concept?

The Archos 5 Android tablet, had its issues, from lack of 3G support to inability to play Flash content, both of which have been remedied here—this Compal has a SIM tray as well as Flash 10.1 support. A shipped product would be faster than the Archos, and the extra two inches of screen are just enough to make this feel like a tablet, not an oversized smartphone. And to be honest, I could get into this.

It's a sofa tablet, a toilet tablet, a Skype tablet, whatever—there's a market for this, at the right price. The only serious issue now is that typing on the onscreen keyboard is almost impossible on a 7-inch screen, unless your thumbs are freakishly long. I have no idea how Google—or Apple, for that matter—could solve this problem. But someone might! And that would be great.



Hands On: Use the Yogen Charger to Power Gadgets With a String Pull [Yogen]

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We were pretty intrigued by the Yogen manual charger concept we saw earlier. While the production unit we saw today is markedly different—it doesn't disappoint. Instead of charging gadgets with a pedal, users now pull a chord.

Charging devices while pulling the string takes just as long as charging them via wall outlet so it won't replace plugging in, but in a pinch the compact device could be a life saver. There is super-low resistance in the chord so continuously pulling the string to charge isn't much of a chore (just tedious). The device is available now directly from Yogen for $39.99.



Spring Design Partners Their Alex E-Reader With Borders eBook Store [EReaders]

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In case you having sleepless nights fretting about content partners for Spring Design's Alex e-reader, they've linked up with Borders, and will feature the Kobo eBook store on their dual-screened device. That's something Barnes and Noble likely won't be accused of copying.

Spring Design and Borders Announce eBook Agreement
Borders to be eBook Seller for Alex eReader

FREMONT, Calif - January 7, 2010 - Spring Design and Borders Group, Inc. (NYSE: BGP) today announced an agreement in principle to feature the upcoming Borders eBook store powered by Kobo on the new dual display Alex™ eReader later this year. The agreement in principle follows a recent announcement that Borders will launch a new eBook store on Borders.com as well as Borders-branded mobile eBook applications, powered by Kobo. The new Borders-branded eBook store will offer more than two million titles.

"The combination of Borders' leadership in the book industry and Spring Design's innovation and experience in consumer electronics will create a world class service for eBook readers," said Dr. Priscilla Lu, chief executive officer of Spring Design. "This partnership delivers one of the critical foundations of our business growth going forward," Lu added.

"Our agreement with Spring Design represents another step in our digital strategy, which continues to focus on offering book lovers-including our more than 35 million Borders Rewards loyalty program members-high quality content on the device of their choosing," said Borders Group Chief Executive Officer Ron Marshall. "We look forward to bringing a world class eBook experience to Alex users."

The Alex eReader will initially be available February 22, 2010 for $359 in the online store at http://www.springdesign.com.



Using the Air as a Waste Dump

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This visualization is a time-series of the global distribution and variation of the concentration of mid-tropospheric carbon dioxide observed by the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) on the NASA Aqua spacecraft. For comparison, it is overlain by a graph of the seasonal variation and interannual increase of carbon dioxide observed at the Mauna Loa, Hawaii observatory. This is nothing less than the people on earth using the sky as a toxic dump for waste from their energy and transportation sources. How could anyone think this is OK and would have no consequences? This visualization was done in late 2009.

Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center and NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory Scientific Visualization Studio

Toddler Sucks On a USB Cable, Ends Up in the Hospital [Tragedy]

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Here's a sad reminder that USB cables belong plugged into peripherals, not children. Toddler Trinity Anderson was playing with a USB cable plugged into a laptop and put it in her mouth, which shocked her and knocked her out.

Trinity remains at Children's Hospital with third-degree burns on her tongue, palate and lips. She is on sedatives and paralyzing drugs to prevent her from moving and disturbing her breathing tube, Jeffrey Anderson said. She needs the tube because her tongue is so swollen it blocks her airway.

Anderson said he feels helpless as he watches his granddaughter in her hospital bed.

"I want to make it better and there's nothing I can do," he said.

Anderson said doctors plan to allow Trinity to regain consciousness in the next day or two to assess how much neurological damage occurred. The little girl wasn't breathing for several minutes, and her heart nearly stopped beating.

Anderson said doctors expect Trinity to recover from her burns, though she may have lasting cosmetic damage. Right now, the family's main concern is that the happy, laughing little girl does not suffer serious brain damage, and they hope she is young enough that she can recover any lost capabilities.

This was clearly a freak accident, but it's a good reminder that while these cables and gadgets we use are now commonplace, everyday items, they still carry a current and should be treated with care. Here's hoping Trinity makes a full recovery. [Colorado Daily]



Vizio’s New Soundbars Are All About Dolby Digital and Wireless Accessories [Home]

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Vizio's new batch of soundbars come in varying degrees of 2.0, 2.1 and 5.1 arrangements, with all of them supporting Dolby Digital surround sound. Also appealing is the army of wireless headphones, iPod docks and speakers offered up.

The VHT512 is Vizio's flagship 5.1 soundbar with fully wireless connections, including a 2.4 GHz wireless sub and two rear speakers that plug into the bassmaker. four 3" mids provide the primary sound for the sound bar, while each rear speaker has a 2" driver. There's also a wireless iPod dock that can be placed anywhere within a 60-foot radius of the speaker and still cleanly transmit audio. The VHT512 will be available in May for $400.

The VSB200 and -210ws Soundbars provide 2.0 and 2.1 sound with virtual Dolby surround and in the case of the 210ws, a wireless subwoofer. Like the 512, this bar is also powered by four 3" mid speakers. Both the VSB200 and VSB210ws will be available in January for $200 and $350, respectively.

Lastly there's the VHT200 and -212 soundbars, which are similar to the VSB line, except theyre only 32" wide (as opposed to 40") to accommodate smaller televisions. But not sacrificing much in the way of specs, these have the same speaker guts as its larger counterpart, and the VHT212 has a slightly smaller, wireless sub. The VHT200 and VHT212 will be available in April for $150 and $250, respectively.

And lastly, there are the wireless headphones, which also come with the wireless iPod dock, allowing you to have sound piped into your ears anywhere in the house, without the hassle of wires. It has a five hour battery and charged via USB. Only problem? They're $300. [Vizio]



Outgoing New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson proposes $200 million in new Taxes

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Two-term Democrat Governor of New Mexico Bill Richardson wants a major tax boost before his time is up.

From the AP (via NewsMax):

Gov. Bill Richardson on Tuesday proposed a $200 million tax increase — which he called temporary — to shore up state finances and balance next year's budget.

The tax proposal was part of $300 million in additional revenues that Richardson factored into his budget recommendations to the Legislature.

That adds up to: nearly $389 million in spending increases on programs.

Richadson says he wants the dollars to go to "public education and general government programs."

One of the revenue boosters that's being considered is raising the motor vehicle registration fees. Another proposal being bandied about is a tax on groceries.

Meanwhile, liberal special interests groups in Santa Fe are calling for raising taxes on tobacco, alcohol, and junk food.

One voice in contrast to all those anxious to raise taxes is coming from the free market think tank, Rio Grande Foundation. According to the New Mexico Independent:

Paul Gessing, of the Rio Grande Foundation, however, wrote that there was no reason to raise taxes on anyone to solve the state’s budget crisis.

“Some of the spending decisions made over the years have made the situation more difficult than it needs to be,” Gessing wrote. “That said, in no particular order, I’d start out by forming a commission to thoroughly analyze the budget for wasteful and unnecessary programs.”

There’s No Cure For Cancer, But We Are Hard At Work Shaving Fly Genitalia With Lasers [Science]

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Today we salute you...biologists that gave a fly a full Brazilian with a laser so that you can study mating habits.

You see the male fly has these spines on its junk and we just don't know what the hell they are used for. My guess is that they have something to do with maintaining a velcro-like grip on the female during the sexual act, but hey...I'm no expert. You need trained professionals on a mystery of this magnitude. Professionals with a special (and probably very expensive) laser that is so precise, it is capable of cutting off a third of each millimeter-long spine. You can't just go off making wild assumptions about something this important.

The result? They have something to do with maintaining a velcro-like grip on the female during the sexual act. Going full Brazilian reduced the chances of mating down to 20%. Okay, I know what you are thinking. Thank God we fund this kind of research. [Scienceblogs via Treehugger via Neatorama]



Five simple reasons why the Copenhagen Climate Conference failed

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I'm still reeling from the rather anticlimactic finish to the recent Climate Change Conference held in Copenhagen. Like so many others, I was hoping for an internationally binding deal that would, at the very least, compel and motivate the nations of the world to address the climate crisis in a meaningful and precedent setting way.

But it was not to be. The immediate reasons for the conference's failure are complex and laden with the political and economic realities of our time (e.g. settling on exact targets and incentives). But these reasons are part of a deeper malaise that is currently paralyzing the countries of our warming planet. As this crisis is revealing, our social and political institutions are ill equipped to deal with a pending catastrophe such as this.

More specifically, there are basically five 'bird's eye view' reasons that can account for the conference's failure:

1. Nation-states are far too self-serving: Countries don't like to be told what to do, and when push comes to shove it's far too easy for them to hide behind the sovereignty shield. Instead of acting proactively and with leadership, many nations (particularly those in the developed world) are 'aligning' themselves with what other countries are doing. No more and no less. And seeing as no one is doing anything....well, there you have it. Compounding this problem is the realization by some countries that they aren't going to be too negatively impacted by climate change -- a disturbing reminder that nation-states are unwilling to deal with threats that are not considered local.

2. Democracies are too ill-equipped and irresolute to deal with pending crises: A reader of mine recently complained that the people of the world were not being consulted on what they feel should be done about climate change. Well, this would only work if the 'people of the world' were universally educated about the intricacies of the issues (including scientific, economic, cultural and political considerations) and disarmed of their petty selfishness and local biases. This isn't going to happen anytime soon, and consulting the Joe the Plumbers of the world on something as multi-faceted and complex as climate change is probably not a good idea. Moreover, like the politicking politicians who supposedly represent them, the masses have shown a tremendous unwillingness to deal with a problem that has yet to show any real tangible negative effects.

3. Isolationist and avaricious China: One thing that the Copenhagen failure revealed is that China's isolationism is alive and well--even as they emerge as a global superpower. They're going to go about this whole global warming thing on their own terms, whatever that's supposed to mean. This unilateral approach is particularly disturbing considering that they're the largest manufacturing state in the world and house a massive population that will soon start to demand first-world standards of living. And exacerbating all this is the communist Chinese system itself with all its corruption and lack of accountability and due process.

4. The powerful corporatist megastructure: As the onset of last year's economic crisis so beautifully illustrated, capitalism, if left to its own devices, will eat itself. This is because corporations don't act rationally or in a way that would indicate foresight or a desire for long-term self-preservation. Moreover, corporations will never voluntarily deal with a seemingly ethereal and controversial problem, especially one that requires a dramatic reduction of profits.

5. Weak consensus on the reason for global warming: Global warming denalists are no longer the problem. What's of great concern now is the growing legitimacy of anthropogenic climate change denialists -- those individuals who believe that global warming is a natural phenomenon. This is a particularly pernicious idea because it absolves humanity from the problem. Adherents of this view contend that human civilization is not responsible for the changes to the Earth's climate and that as a consequence we don't need to fix anything--we can keep on spewing carbon into the atmosphere with reckless abandon. This idea is particularly appealing to politicians who use it as a convenient escape hatch.

I'm inclined to think that the only way the nations of the world will band together and act decisively on this issue is if an actual climate-instigated disaster happens--one that touches all international stakeholders in a profound way. But even this isn't guaranteed as there will always be global disparities in terms of impact.

Part of the problem right now, aside from the intangibleness of it all, is that some countries will be impacted more than others, a prospect that will ultimately lead to the rise of a new geopolitical stratification: different regions (both inter- and intra-national) will experience the effects of global warming differently, whether it be coastal areas, those dealing with desertification or those having to contend with the exodus of climate refugees.

Given the failure of Copenhagen, I'm inclined to believe that semi-annual conferences are not the way to go. Instead, I'd like to see the United Nations assemble an international and permanent emergency session that is parliamentary in nature (i.e. representative and accountable) and dedicated to debating and acting on the problem of anthropogenic climate change (a sub-parliament, if you will). The decisions of this governing board would be binding and impact on all the nations of the world. The chances of outright failure (like the one in Copenhagen) would be significantly lessened. Instead of ad hoc conferences, the emergency sub-parliament would conduct a series of ongoing debates over proposed legislation that would ultimately result in internationally binding agreements.

The current climate problem has caused the emergence of another crisis, namely a crisis-of-resolution. Failure at this point is not good enough. What's required is something more respective of the dire situation we're in.

The Fashion of 3D Glasses, Always Out of Style [3D]

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I just tried 3D HD and really enjoyed it. I don't even mind how goofy the glasses make me look, but that's mostly because I wouldn't be looking at myself. Really, I'd look sillier than I can imagine. See?

And what do you do when you have friends over to watch a game or movie? Spend hundreds of dollars in spares, or have the friends you like least stare at the doubled up images, crosseyed, for hours? It's little things like this that sap my enthusiasm for 3D but I'm into it. There's no stopping the future.



Rick Perry proposes 2/3rds Super Majority for future Tax increases

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Texas Governor Rick Perry has adopted a favorite plank of economic libertarians - the 2/3rds super majority vote of the legislature for any tax increases.
From the Statesman.com, June 6:

Perry, facing a tough re-election fight in the March Republican primary, called for a constitutional amendment requiring any increase in state taxes to be approved by two-thirds of the Legislature, instead of a simple majority. He also said he wants a tighter constitutional restriction on state spending.

"These two sensible amendments will engrave our proven fiscal discipline into the bedrock of state law," Perry said during campaign stops in Fort Worth, Lubbock and Midland.

But he doesn't stop there. Perry is also proposing stringent spending reductions. Continuing:

Perry said the state constitution should limit growth in spending to the combined rate of growth in population and education. The state constitution now says spending cannot grow faster than projections of personal income.

Perry's proposed amendment would require a vote of the people to exceed the new spending cap.

The Governor was quoted in the Houston Chronicle saying he hoped the proposals might work as a counter to protect the State from big spending in Washington:

"This sets a nice high hurdle for lawmakers who might be inclined to raise taxes, and require broader support for decisions of this magnitude."

Personal Genomics Flop…..big Belly Flop!

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Daniel and Dan get quoted in an article in the Times yesterday and I am happy for them. It just goes to show how bloggers in this space ultimately shape the space.

That being said, everyone is left wondering "Where in the hell do we go from here in Personal Genomics?"

Well, I know where we are going in Personalized Medicine. PGx.

But as for personal genomics, the path is less clear. First we have to be honest about a few things.

1. Your genome is essentially worthless right now
2. We don't understand what the hell most of the SNPs and CNVs mean in the genome
3. In an economic downturn, very few people will buy this, no matter how cool it looks.
4. Don't believe me? How does Time's Invention of the Year ONLY GET 30,000 (if you believe) customers. How many iPhones sold after the listing in 2008?
5. Things we are certain of in the genome add very little to life planning or healthcare.

Now, if we can overcome those things we have to ask ourselves. Is this a software play or a genome database play. If this is a software investment......

1. Is the software being created that valuable?
2. Can you patent or create a moat around the analytical tools that were created by these companies, or are the tools just rehashing of other tools that exist
3. Does Prometheus ruin the ability to patent these tools?
4. Are these tools accurate and valuable? Ask J Craig fellas....
5. Will the lessons learned justify the investment? At least a few hundred million USD people!

Well, let's say it is NOT a software play, it is a genome database play.

1. How many people does it take to have a valuable database.
2. Is the database a legal liability worth the risk?
3. Will anyone want to buy the database?
4. Can there be a free database which will be more valuable than the "for sale" database
5. Can the database be curated and annotated easily?

So, after the million dollar open bars and zeppelins and celebs we are left with some real hard questions. Which is why I am very unclear as to the future of this "industry"

Is this really an industry all of its own? Or is this just a rehash of facebook?

Do you remember that fat kid? You know the one who said "Hey look at me! I am gonna make a HUGE SPLASH!"

Well, guess what porky, huge splash made..........

Now how in the hell does that SORE RED BELLY FEEL?

The Sherpa Says: A lot of pain and suffering may ultimately in the end prove worthless and the ripples may die.......Only to have some other fatso cause waves later on........

Vizio’s Mobile Razer Displays Are LED-Backlit, Under an Inch Thick [Televisions]

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Vizio just dropped three mobile LED displays on the world, capable of pulling down ATSC broadcasts and delivering an 800x480 picture in 7, 9 and 10-inch form factors, while only an inch thick in the other direction.

The 10" VMB100 and 9" VMB090 Mobile Razors are capable of pulling down not just ATSC and NTSC broadcasts, but also the new mobile ATSC-MH broadcasts as well. They come complete with an HDMI 1.4 input, composite inputs, headphone jack and a USB port for uses such as MP3 playback.

The 7" VMB070 model loses the USB and HDMI ports, along with the ATSC-MH capability, but its only 0.75 inches thick. All models feature only touch-sensitive controls, and can run for three hours on a single charge. The 7", 9" and 10" will be available "later this year" for $150, $200 and $230, respectively. [Vizio]



New-Geothermal Heat Pump

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See old thread under geothermal heat pump

I think I made a mistake in the use of the word over unity and ever one went of on a tangent to what I had in mind.

What I was trying to say was; If the combination of the electric energy driving the compressor and the heat energy from the

Mad Catz Eclipse Keyboard and Mouse Join the Touch-Sensitive Party [Peripherals]

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These new Eclipse keyboards and mice from Mad Catz are pretty standard fare, except for one key feature—touch sensitivity. The keyboard has a 3-in-1 touchpanel keypad, and the mouse is able to understand finger gestures.

The Eclipse Wireless Litetouch keyboard comes in wired and wireless variants, and is distinctive because of it's 3-in-1 LCD touchpad that lets you switch layouts and use it as a number pad, media controller, or a customizable app/website launcher. The keyboards also have backlit keys, along with mouse buttons and a scrollball for all-in-one PC navigation.

Looking like a futuristic race car, the Eclipse Wireless Touchmouse replaces the standard scroll wheel with an optical "touchscroll module" that allows you to scroll in any direction, and can be programmed to act on certain gestures. It also has bluetooth, and lasts six months on a single AA battery.

Available this January, the keyboards will run you $130 and $100 for the wireless and the wired models, respectively. The mouse will cost $60. [PR Inside]