FIRST AND THIRD WEDNESDAY

Tech Talk is a fortnightly column which brings to you some interesting news features on not only how technology can make your life better but also how at times it can adversely affect your life. The Sip of Life sources these articles from some of the most reliable websites available and are well-researched to ensure that our readers are offered authentic information.

Caught in a jam? Try the flying car!

The next time you are driving a car and caught in a traffic jam, just remember that in about an years’ time, you will have an option of driving on a flying car. The US aviation authority has given its nod for commercial production of this car which can both fly and drive on the road giving you a choice to go up when you come across bumpy roads or come down when its not the right weather to be in the air.

A Wobern, Massachusetts company, Terrafugia, has been allowed to build the first flying car and this amusing video is sure to fascinate you to atleast be your next dream car! The Terrafugia Transition® is a prototype vehicle designed by five MIT graduates.

As per reports, this flying car is just the right choice as the wings unfold in about seven minutes and it is estimated that it will cost $194,000. Interestingly the company reports that it has already received 70 pre-orders with $10,000 deposits for the flying car. In other words it’s a roadable aircraft that can take off and land from any airport, and with the push of a button fold up its wings and drive down the road.

When it’s in the car mode, the wings fold and it can travel at speeds of up to 90 mph. For flight mode the wings unfold, in which it can cruise at a speed of 115 mph for up to 500 miles on a tank of unleaded gasoline.

Check your eyesight on mobile!

Image Source: http://www.psfk.com

Now you can detect refractive defects of the eye in less than two minutes using your mobile phone! Can you believe this? Yes, a low-cost device has been developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab which saves you from paying a visit to the ophthalmologist. The project was led by Ramesh Raskar, an assistant professor with the Camera Culture Lab.

The device is called Near-Eye Tool for Refractive Assessment, or NETRA, Sanskrit for ‘eye’, and it can be clipped on to a phone with the requisite software installed on it. The device uses the phone display to run tests and generate a prescription in less than two minutes.

The device, NETRA can only be used with a high-resolution cell phone display for the time being. The patient just have to look into the tiny lens of a small plastic device clipped onto the phone’s screen, and press the arrow keys of the phone to set parallel green and red lines overlap, bringing view into sharp focus and this has to repeated eight times for each eye as the lines appear at different angles and soon you will have the status of your eyesight displayed on your phone’s screen.

(Don’t) Let The Music Play…

Each one of us is a music lover in some way or the other – while some of us love listening to music, some love singing too and there are many who just love dancing. Music is a part of our lives, but not beyond a certain limit when it comes to listening to music on headphones.

Life is wonderful with some much of variety in music, and in the age of technology, most of us feel proud to be living in the age of iPods. But recent research by scientists have shown listening to music on headphones can have a temporary impact on our hearing because of the damage caused to the hair cells in the outer ear.

The findings are based on a study (published in the June issue of Archives of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery) in which the participants were tested for their hearing before carrying out the study and were then asked to listen to pop or rock music for six one hour long sessions. They were given different types of headphones and at different volumes.

After each session, men and women in the age group of 19 to 28 were made to listen to different sounds of different frequencies to see how clearly they could hear the sounds. The scientists found that participants showed temporary changes in their hearing after listening to one hour of pop-rock music on their portable music devices.

The problem is grave in the sense that the portable music players these days can store a good number of songs and even have a good batter life, thus encouraging listening to music for longer hours. This gets worse in cases when we play music at higher volumes so next time your child asks for an iPod as a birthday gift, think twice or ensure it is used in moderation before you ‘face the music’ with dangerous repercussions.

Soundproof Stadium For FIFA

Image Source: http://fredhatman.co.za

It’s always a nuisance if you are staying near a stadium and there is a match happening there. With FIFA fever on, we thought of bringing something related to it in this column this time. The authorities have made it sure that those near the 70,000-seater football stadium in Cape Town are able to carry on without being disturbed by the noise of fans inside.

The new Green Point stadium which is scheduled to host one of the semi-finals is designed in such a manner so that most of the noise remains within its walls that the bystander outside the stadium wouldn’t hear the roar of the fans inside. The technology has come from a German engineering firm Schlaich Bergermann which has covered the stadium with the world’s largest glass ceiling.

This is South Africa’s first completely soundproof stadium. The roof will also protect fans from the Cape Town’s unpredictable weather. The roof’s concave shape deflects the wind and redirects it around the stadium.

It’s a 398,265 square foot roof having 9000 half inch thick glass panels which have been arranged in a ring above the stands. There is a Teflon and fiberglass mesh suspended below the glass which reflects the crowd’s noise inside back into the fields and stands thus making the stadium noisier, and that’s what is required to cheer the teams in such a big international sporting event.

Volcanic Ash: Technology Was A Lifesaver

Technology at times can even come to your rescue in emergency just the way it did to hundreds oftravellers who were stranded because of recent volcanic ash cloud over Europe. For technology enthusiasts Twitter and Facebook were lifesavers. People dependent on their online bookings managed independently when ash from Iceland started drifting into airspace and flights were grounded across Europe. The travellers did not just depend on the websites or busy call centres, but Twitter users got flight updates from the airport authorities on it and even information on transport and accommodation.

On the other hand Facebook also helped travellers and kept them connected to the extent that one European carrier used its page only to update its passengers and also cater to their individual queries.

David Carroll in The Australian has said that even the travel consultants were through technology able to connect to their clients and help them get on to trains, buses and cars. He even mentioned that services such as ConTgo’s Mobile Travel Assistant (MTA) and Loop9.com’s Travel Messenger proved useful because they use a simple SMS service to put travel agents in touch with affected travellers. The company delivered a record 110,000 SMS high-alert messages during the crisis and got 10,000 messages back.

Computer Virus ‘Infects’ Scientist

Today Tech Talk brings to you an interesting case of a scientist, who happens to be the first human being who has been infected with a

MARK GASSON

computer virus! Can you believe this? As per a recent news report, implantable devices, such as pacemakers, defibrillators and cochlear implants, are becoming vulnerable to “infection” with computer viruses, a researcher in England warns.

A scientist at the University of Reading’s School of Systems Engineering, Mark Gasson allowed himself to become Exhibit A and became the first person in the world to be infected with a computer virus after he “contaminated” a high-end radio frequency identification (RFID) computer chip which is often used as a security tag in stores to prevent theft, which Gasson had implanted into his left hand.

In an interview, Gasson said his intention was to make aware the people about the risks involved in implantable medical device technology. He added that these are like mini computers and can be infected by viruses and there is a dire need for ensuring safety of this technology.

He will be presenting his findings at the IEEE International Symposium of Technology and Society, which is being held in Australia from June 7 to 9. The chip Gasson implanted helped him to access his place of work, his cell phone and even other to track his movements.

After it was ‘infected’ the chip started functioning improperly. Gasson said by infecting own implant, it was a perfect example of how advanced technology can also be a bane rather than being a boon.

Dr. Mark Gasson is a senior research fellow at the School of Systems Engineering, University of Reading, UK. He obtained his first degree in Cybernetics and Control Engineering in 1998 from the Department of Cybernetics at Reading, and was subsequently given a research post. He obtained his Ph.D. in 2005 for developing an invasive interface between the nervous system of a human volunteer and a computer system.

Trauma To The Unborn

Today we bring to you a feature with startling revelation on www.naturalnews.com which has pointed out how ultrasound is dangerous for the unborn child. Incidentally, we all go for it to get a shot of the foetus so that they can see how their little one looks inside the womb.

As per BBC news recently scientists are planning tests to see if ultrasound can be used as a reversible contraceptive for men. As per the University of North Carolina experts a blast of ultrasound to the testes can safely stop sperm production for six months.

If ultrasound can destroy the sperm functioning for six months, how can it be considered safe for the unborn baby, debate experts? They elaborate, ultrasound causes tissue disruption and damage to foetus and also causes stress and shock for the baby, but still the parents want to show the pictures of the unborn to their family and friends, which they are not aware pose a real danger to the health of the baby.