A few cities in the US have wireless service in their subway systems , but not Los Angeles. Take a trip to Wilshire Boulevard, for example, and you’ll stay incommunicado until you’re back above ground. You won’t be out of touch for too much longer, though. The city and InSite Wireless have started deploying both cellular service and WiFi at subway stations, beginning with the Red Line. The launch will be modest early on, with four stations getting WiFi by May and cellular service coming in August. LA’s plans are much more ambitious in the next couple of years, however. A second wave should get both the Purple Line and more of the Red Line up and running by June 2016, while the Gold Line railway’s tunnels should be connected by March 2017. As is often the case with these kinds of upgrades, transportation officials see wireless as both a convenience and a necessity. It’s not just for checking Facebook while you’re on your way home from work; you won’t miss important messages that could make you change course, and you might just save a life if you can call 911 without having to leave the station. Some Angelenos will no doubt abuse their newfound freedom (like making you listen to their way-too-loud phone conversations), but it could be worth the sacrifice if the service keeps you in contact with the outside world at a crucial moment. [Image credit: Frederick Dennstedt, Flickr ] Filed under: Cellphones , Transportation , Wireless , Networking , Mobile Comments Via: The Verge Source: Los Angeles Daily News
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Los Angeles’ subway is getting cellphone service and WiFi
The L.A. Times reports that for the first time since 2007, the FDA has approved a weight loss device (as opposed to a weight-loss drug), an implantable device called the Maestro Rechargeable System. Using electrical leads implanted just above the stomach and a regulator carried under the skin near the ribcage, the device suppresses signals carried by the vagus nerve. … The device adopts a variant of a “neuromodulation” technique long used in the treatment of epilepsy: by applying intermittent bursts of electrical current to the vagus nerve, it disrupts the signals that prompt the stomach to relax, expand and prepare for an influx of food. … The FDA approved the use of the device in adult patients with a body mass index, or BMI, between 35 and 45, who have at least one other obesity-related condition, such as type 2 diabetes. Read more of this story at Slashdot. 
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