Technology Tuesday: November 10
This week: New Horizons vastly increases our understanding of Pluto, future smart watches can lead to a world with touchless screens, exoskeletons that help the paralyzed walk, google maps goes offline, and a breakthrough in quantum computing.
New Horizons Pluto Flyby Leads to more than 50 Exciting Discoveries
New information from NASA’s New Horizons Mission has revealed more than 50 exciting discoveries about Pluto. From possible ice volcanoes to twirling moons, scientists continue to discuss the findings at this week’s 47th Annual Meeting of the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences.
“The New Horizons mission has taken what we thought we knew about Pluto and turned it upside down,” said Jim Green, director of planetary science at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “It’s why we explore — to satisfy our innate curiosity and answer deeper questions about how we got here and what lies beyond the next horizon.”
No Touch Smart Watch Scans The World Around You
What are you doing now? Your next watch may know the answer.
Two new smartwatch prototypes developed at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, can guess what their wearer is up to by tracking subtle signals in their skin and muscles. The technology could allow the owner to answer calls, track activities, and more – all without needing to be touched.
The first, named EM-Sense, can figure out what object its owner is touching. By fitting the smartwatch with a radio receiver, EM-Sense can use its wearer like a living antenna, picking up on the electromagnetic “noise” that travels through the human body when emitted by electrical objects.
New Exoskeleton Suit May Lead To Mobility For The Paralyzed
Life-changing metal exoskeleton suits, wearable robots, have been helping paralyzed people move. The device is worn over the body and delivers power to help people move their limbs.But the bulky suits make anything, other than walking in a straight line, difficult and slow. Now, a more flexible and less constraining version is being developed in Zurich, Switzerland to provide more freedom of movement.
Google Maps to Work Without an Internet Connection
Google on Tuesday updated its free map service to guide users of Android-powered smartphones to destinations without relying on Internet connections.
An offline navigation feature previewed at a Google developers conference early this year began rolling out in an updated version of Google Maps application tailored for Android-powered mobile devices.
A version crafted for Apple smartphones or tablets is coming soon, according to Google product manager Amanda Bishop.
Breakthrough in Quantum Computing
Schrödinger’s cat is a famous thought experiment that explains how a quantum object can be in two incompatible states at the same time. Now, research that was recently published in the New Journal of Physics has shown that it’s possible to have a superposition of incompatible states and incompatible orders of events. Ultimately, this marks the first time that scientists have discovered a physical quantum process that clearly demonstrates causal nonseparability.
Know any interesting stories we missed?Let us know in the comments!#SpaceExploration #GoogleMaps #Google #SmartWatches #QuantumComputing #Space #Exoskeletons #Technology #Science #Tech