Just like hard drive sectors can fail, neurons can go bad as data processing, memory-storing units in your brain. In this video, a neuron lacks the protein needed to make connections with other cells, essentially becoming a bad sector. More »
In today’s Remainders: the next step. For John Grisham, it’s ebooks. For the television-viewing public, it’s viewing television while surfing the web. For Google, it’s controlling the internet. And for NVIDIA, it’s releasing GeForce drivers that don’t melt your rig. More »
We knew vaguely that Google was looking toward the living room, but the NYTimes has the details on Google TV, an ambitious platform to deliver web content to Android-based set-top boxes and TVs through partnerships with Sony, Intel, and Logitech. More »
Perhaps spurred on by yesterday’s flurry of Google phone activity, Sprint confirmed that the Nexus One will be coming to its network, though the price and date are yet to be announced. More »
It’s no secret that Palm is hurting, and hurting bad. But we knew that they at least had something on the horizon: the launch of two devices on AT&T, with all signs pointing to them being updated versions of the Pre and the the Pixi landing sometime in April or May. Well, according to John Paczkowski, Palm’s renaissance might have to wait until summer, with AT&T delaying the launch until sometime in June or July. More »
The first hard drive, from 1956, was housed in a computer the size of two refrigerators. But in less than a quarter of the century, engineers shrunk hard drives to 5.25″. The first, holding 5MB, was Seagate’s ST-506. More »
If data centers are the brains of an information company, then Google is one of the brainiest there is. Though always evolving, it is, fundamentally, in the business of knowing everything. Here are some of the ways it stays sharp. More »
Space has long been considered humanity’s final frontier. But for retired Air Force General Lester Lyles, it’s just the final front. When it comes to observing the enemy, he explained recently, the farther out we are the better. More »
The IBM 305 RAMAC, which debuted in 1956, was the first computer with a hard drive. It was 16 square feet, weighed over a ton, and had to be transported by plane. But it sure as Hell beat punch cards. More »
In today’s Remainders: things lurking below the surface. Literally, a fuel cell-powered fish. Less literally, ISP’s seething contempt for the FCC’s new National Broadband Plan. Also: Samsung’s David Lee Roth tablet love and a helicopter with rocket-powered blades. Yikes. More »
Microsoft’s two new HD LifeCams shoot 720p video on the cheap, for $50 and $60 respectively. What sets them apart is their TrueColor technology, supposedly delivering more vivid colors in any situation. How do they fare? You be the judge. More »
Though sales for Google’s Nexus One haven’t been great by any measure, a new, 3G-friendly version of the phone is now available for use on AT&T’s 3G network in the U.S. and Rogers Wireless in Canada. More »
Streaming HD video. Uploading gigantic files. Surfing the web comfortably. These aren’t things you’d normally expect on 3G. But T-Mobile’s beefed up HSPA+ network, which I tested recently in Philadelphia, handled all these tasks beautifully. At the same time. More »
This week, we’re looking at the ever-increasing digitization of memory, and indeed, today’s technologies can even access memories stored on the most closely-guarded of hard drives: our brains. In a recent study, MRIs accurately predicted what individuals were remembering. More »
In today’s Remainders: new beginnings. Tim Bray, co-founder of XML, starts a new job at Google (and has his sights set on Apple); several Windows Phone 7 team members are leaving…to develop apps for Windows Phone 7; and more. More »
Social media researcher and general internet guru Danah Boyd gave the keynote address at SXSWi earlier today, focusing on matters of privacy. On paper, Google Buzz was a perfect social network. So why did it freak everyone out so much? More »
Last month, I risked life and limb to tell you about Celsius X-VI-II, a shadowy French company who was building a $300,000 mechanical cellphone. The first pictures of the phone have surfaced, though they don’t exactly answer our questions. More »
At least in the parts of the internet I frequent, pet pictures have been enjoying an unusual popularity as of late. FujiFilm’s Finepix Z700 has technology that snaps a photo when your furry friend smiles. Talk about capturing the zeitgeist. More »
