It’s assumed that just because modern machines use lasers and other electronic technologies, they’re far more precise and accurate than mechanical contraptions from many years ago. But as Dirty Jobs’ Mike Rowe discovered at a tannery, that’s not always the case. More »
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This Antique Machine Measures Irregular Shapes Better Than a Calculus Professor
The X Window Server has been serving Linux users faithfully for the better part of a decade. And Ubuntu has been using the standard-issue display server to push its GUI to monitors across the globe since its color scheme was more sludge than slick . Canonical originally planned to replace the aging X with another display server called Wayland, but the developers apparently couldn’t bend the compositing-friendly protocol to their cross-device whims. So, Mir was created. The goal for Mir is to easily scale from the TV, to the desktop, to tablets and phones while providing “efficient support for graphics co-processors.” That means Canonical is relying heavily on GPU acceleration, which will require the cooperation of manufacturers like NVIDIA, AMD, Qualcomm and others. As part of the cross-form factor convergence, Unity will be getting a rewrite entirely in QT and QML (the current version uses a Nux-based shell on the desktop). The Unity Next project will incorporate several core components from the Ubuntu Touch interface, inching the Linux OS closer to its goal of a truly unified codebase. Mir should make its debut on the mobile variants of Ubuntu soon, with Canonical aiming to get the UI unified and stable in time for the next LTS in April of 2014. For some more technical details check out the source links. Filed under: Software , HD , Mobile Comments Via: OMG Ubuntu 1 , 2 Source: Ubuntu 1 , 2
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Canonical announces Mir, a custom display server that will serve up future versions of Unity
An anonymous reader writes “Gaming on Linux is growing fast right now, and most of that is thanks to Steam. Initially, Steam committed only to the most popular desktop distribution, Ubuntu, but more recently has opened the door to others. So what do you do when you want to game in Linux and you’re using something a little less popular — at least, on the desktop? If you’re a programmer called GhostSquad57, you rewrite the installer for Debian. GhostSquad57 uploaded his efforts to Github yesterday, and has since reached out to the Linux community.” Read more of this story at Slashdot.
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Gamer Rewrites Valve’s Steam Installer For Debian
Yes, blood . Blood out the eyes. It’s a display that’s as impressive as it is shocking — in a last-ditch effort to ward off predators, several species of horned lizards will increase the blood pressure in vessels surrounding their eyes, to the point that they actually rupture, gushing five-foot fountains of hemoglobin at the faces of coyotes, bobcats, and other beasts of prey native to the Sonoran desert. More »
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Watch this lizard shoot a five-foot stream of blood from its freaking eyeballs
Getting too juiced up on caffeine happens. Maybe you made a pot and nobody wanted it but you. Perhaps you got lost in a great conversation. In any case, baristas and amateur nutritionists suggest one possible remedy: eat a banana. Yes, a banana. More »
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Eat a Banana to Remedy Over-Caffeination
Now you can stab and deliver an electric shock at the same time. Plus, it’s something you can make in your garage! If this weapon doesn’t show up in the next installment of The Hobbit , I’m just going to get drunk and go home. More »
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This is a taser sword. That is all you need to know.
Researchers at Brown University have made the first wireless, implantable, rechargeable brain-computer interface. Humans might be next in line for testing of the device, after 13 months of successful trials in monkeys and pigs. More »
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The First Wireless, Implantable Brain-Computer Interface Will Help Us Move Things With Our Minds On the Go
Hugh Pickens writes writes “Science Daily Headlines reports that researchers have applied a recently developed technique to directly measure the polarization states of light overcoming some important challenges of Heisenberg’s famous Uncertainty Principle and demonstrating that it is possible to measure key related variables, known as ‘conjugate’ variables, of a quantum particle or state directly. Such direct measurements of the wave-function had long seemed impossible because of a key tenet of the uncertainty principle — the idea that certain properties of a quantum system could be known only poorly if certain other related properties were known with precision. ‘The reason it wasn’t thought possible to measure two conjugate variables directly was because measuring one would destroy the wave-function before the other one could be measured,’ says co-author Jonathan Leach. The direct measurement technique employs a ‘trick’ to measure the first property in such a way that the system is not disturbed significantly and information about the second property can still be obtained. This careful measurement relies on the ‘weak measurement’ of the first property followed by a ‘strong measurement’ of the second property. First described 25 years ago, weak measurement requires that the coupling between the system and what is used to measure it be, as its name suggests, ‘weak,’ which means that the system is barely disturbed in the measurement process. The downside of this type of measurement is that a single measurement only provides a small amount of information, and to get an accurate readout, the process has to be repeated multiple times and the average taken. Researchers passed polarized light through two crystals of differing thicknesses: the first, a very thin crystal that ‘weakly’ measures the horizontal and vertical polarization state; the second, a much thicker crystal that ‘strongly’ measures the diagonal and anti-diagonal polarization state. As the first measurement was performed weakly, the system is not significantly disturbed, and therefore, information gained from the second measurement was still valid. This process is repeated several times to build up accurate statistics. Putting all of this together gives a full, direct characterization of the polarization states of the light.” Read more of this story at Slashdot.
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Physicists Discover a Way Around Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle
asjk writes “The controversial database includes millions of children and documents their names, addresses, disabilities other statistics and demographics. Federal law allows for the files to be shared with private companies. From the article: ‘In operation just three months, the database already holds files on millions of children identified by name, address and sometimes social security number. Learning disabilities are documented, test scores recorded, attendance noted. In some cases, the database tracks student hobbies, career goals, attitudes toward school – even homework completion. Local education officials retain legal control over their students’ information. But federal law allows them to share files in their portion of the database with private companies selling educational products and services.” Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Apple’s iWatch is the new primary focus of speculation for the company’s unannounced products, and a new article at Bloomberg today detailing its market potential also let slip that the wrist-mounted computer could arrive by the end of this year. Bloomberg’s source, which is one of the same that leaked details about the team within Apple working on the iWatch , said Apple hopes to have the device out to market “as soon as this year.” Bloomberg’s report today adds a bit more color about what we might expect to see from an Apple iWatch, too. The still-unconfirmed device would be able to make calls, check caller ID, relay map coordinates and carry a built-in pedometer and health monitoring sensors, according to the news publication’s source. That might mean another partnership with Nike for built-in fitness tracking, as we’ve seen in iPods and iPhones from the company to date. The news comes after reports from Apple supply partners and Gorilla Glass manufacturer Corning said that products based on its flexible Willow Glass product wouldn’t come to market for another three years, prompting many to assume that meant an iWatch was also at least three years out . Apple had patented a wrist-mounted computer based on flexible display tech, but that’s far from the company’s only option for producing an iWatch – it could easily take a more traditional form, like the Pebble smart watch . Bloomberg also notes that Apple’s chief product designer Jony Ive has also long had an interest in watches, and previously paid a visit with his Apple design team to Nike’s own watchmaking operations. Previously, Bloomberg reported that Apple has an internal team of as many as 100 individuals working on the iWatch project. Of course, despite the growing number of reports around the iWatch, Apple keeps its release timelines purposefully close to the chest for a reason: even if it was targeting a 2013 launch for the iWatch, missing that date wouldn’t actually constitute a delay since nothing has been officially announced. Accordingly, it’s always a good idea to treat rumors at this stage in the game with a healthy dose of skepticism, even when sourced from reputable publications. Still, Google wants to launch its own wearable computing product by year’s end , so there’s at least one reason for Apple to target the same time frame.
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Apple’s iWatch Could Arrive By The End Of 2013, Says Bloomberg