A Napkin That Speaks
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Category Archives: digital
A Rotating Skyscraper
I just can’t believe that Dubai is actually home to the world’s first rotating skyscraper. One day I have to see it in person.
When I first heard about it from some friends, I think I got a little dizzy. When I read about it in some tech pubs, my heart started to race. If I ever get to see it for real, I hope I have the courage to visit a high floor. While I might be very nervous, I wouldn’t want to miss the experience.
The rotating skyscraper is supposed to be complete in 2020. David Fisher of Dynamic Architecture, created the concept.
Fisher is building an 80-story, 1,273-foot tower in Dubai with floors that can rotate 360 degrees in both directions. Please watch the video. It’s absolutely amazing. Fisher wants to create a building that gives condo owners the opportunity to see sunsets and sunrises. Entire floors rotate.
The building will feature voice-activated technology that allows residents to spin their apartments just by a verbal request. Seventy nine wind turbines placed horizontally between the floors and solar panels on the roof produce the tower’s energy. The central elevator lets residents transport cars to their floor and park them next to their apartment.
Each unit is prefabricated with steel, aluminum and carbon fiber materials. They are assembled at the factory and then attached to the tower.
That scares me. What if it falls off? That is going to be an expensive fall. Units are priced from $4 million to $40 million.
Tooth Sensor Monitors Food
As we get older, we may be required to tell one of our doctors exactly what we ate for the day. If this is going to determine something detrimental to my health, I want the information to be completely accurate.
Technology is going to save the day.
The scientists at Tufts University have developed a new type of sensor that fits right on your tooth so it can measure and transmit readings about glucose, salt and alcohol intake. It’s very tiny, only 2 millimeters.
The device features an unpowered chemical sensor combined with RFID (radiofrequency ID) technology. The readings come from RF waves and the device measures the nature of the returning signal.
Tufts gives a bit of a complicated explanation, “The sensor consists of a material that absorbs the compounds to be measured, fattening in the process, and two square gold rings on the outside. As an analyte is absorbed, the gold rings move apart and the returning radio waves that bounce off of the device change accordingly.”
Tufts is hoping to get the device to attach to the skin. It could be useful in measuring chemical composition of sweat, body temperature, and other parameters.
March For Our Lives
Lois and Eliot
Dr. Howard and Ruth Greenberg
Dr. Howard Stark
Flying Cars Are Coming Soon
I hope we are alive to ride in one of the “flying cars” that are being developed right now. Word has it that they are just two or three years away.
Many tech reporters actually saw the production-version of the Dutch-made PAL-V Liberty at the Geneva Motor Show last week.
The Pal-V Liberty is a cross between a gyrocopter and a three-wheeled vehicle. The vehicle has two separate engines, one for flight and one for roadways. You will need a pilot and driver’s license to operate these new combos. I read it takes between five and 10 minutes to convert from flying to driving mode, and back again.
These new vehicles will sell between $400,000 to $600,000. That may sound like a lot of money now, but life is going to be very different once we start flying around.
Be sure to watch the video. You will get a glimpse into the future.
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Steve Jobs 1973 Job Application Sold For $174,000
I thought you would get a kick out of this. A job application filled out by Steve Jobs in 1973 was recently auctioned off for $174,757. The application doesn’t indicate the company, or the position.
The application also has misspellings and blank areas. Under address, Jobs hand-wrote “reed college (lowercase). He also didn’t capitalize his major, “english, lit.” He must have felt like a free spirit at an early age.
When Jobs was asked about his special abilities, he wrote, “electronics tech or design engineer. digital.-from Bay near Hewitt-Packard” — misspelling Hewlett-Packard.
Bobby Livingston, executive vice president at RR Auction, in Boston, said entrepreneurs and successful internet company owners who grew up admiring Steve Jobs and Apple bid on the application. The name of the person who made the winning bid was not disclosed. “For many, the document was a connection to Steve Jobs,” Livingston said. “He went from nothing, to one of the most important people in the 20th century.”
A number of Steve Jobs memorabilia items have done well over the years at auction. In October, a magazine signed by Jobs went for over $50,000. A signed contract from 1978 sold for $40,000 four years ago. For more information about the auctions go to CNET.
The legend lives.
Gatorade’s Skin Patch Tells You If You’re Dehydrated
I friend of mine recently fainted in dance class. I have another friend who becomes disoriented from time-to-time. I also have a friend who keeps getting headaches.
Each friend has visited several doctors to find out exactly what is wrong. I was startled to hear the results. I thought it would be awful. It turns out they were all dehydrated.
Now they drink Gatorade or water every hour, on the hour. They are not taking any chances, especially as we get older. Doctors have told them that dehydration can lead to more serious conditions.
The trouble is that most people don’t know if they are dehydrated. That is currently being cured. Gatorade has developed a skin patch that tells you if you’re hydrated enough.
Dr. John Rogers, a Northwestern University professor, is working with Gatorade, to create a Band-Aid-like flexible patch that will let you know when you’re dehydrated. TWICE Magazine explains, “The transparent, silicone patch, the size of a quarter, can be placed anywhere on a body. As the person begins to sweat, perspiration flows through microfluidic channels within the patch’s reservoirs, passing through food-coloring dye and indicating the levels of chloride within the sweat.”
The Gatorade patch is due out next year. No price was given.
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Zen Eating Helps People Feel Full From Less Food
This may be your lucky day. I was asked to promote a new device that can help you lose weight. It was created in Israel and you are the first to see it in the United States. Woohoo.
It’s called Zen Eating.
The creator, Scott Hirsch, was interviewed on an Israeli TV news station. Watch the video for a closer look at how this new invention can potentially can make you thin.
Now that you watched the video, (ha ha ha) I will give you a fast synopsis of what Zen Eating is all about. It’s a new water sipping device that trains the mouth to eat less.
The press release says, “If you use Zen Eating for five seconds before a meal, the device trains the tongue and throat to swallow less amounts of food at once. It’s the easy way to control your eating., You’ll find that you eat slower, enjoy your food more, and feel full from less food. What easier way is there to lose weight or stay on a diet?”
Zen Eating is available for $29.99 on https://zeneating.com and comes as the Zen Eating Method with the Zen Sipper.
The press release also quotes Professor John Mew of John Mew Orthotropics. “97% of adults do not swallow correctly. This contributes to fast overeating for a few reasons. The first is that most people swallow way too much food at once because they don’t fully close the tongue-to-palate gap.
“Secondly, people tend to suck food down too fast like a vacuum cleaner by using the cheeks during swallowing. Thirdly, every bad swallow activates a small stress response. This leaves people less satisfied and robs them of the relaxation and satisfaction they could be feeling with every bite.”
Poor swallowing can also lead to snoring, dental problems and acid reflux. Hirsch said, “If you find yourself eating too much, too fast, or too mindlessly, simply take a few sips from the Zen Eating Sipper. Zen Eating gets your oral muscle memory to work for you, not against you.”
According to Hirsch, having a physical tool to eat less also beats relying on willpower alone.
“Zen Eating gives you a feeling of total control and relaxation when eating, Because food is better digested with a fully active mouth, the feelings of hunger become much less extreme which helps prevent snacking.”
Zen Eating has a patent pending on the Zen Sipper. The Zen Eating Method includes scientifically proven eating tips taken from expensive oral training programs, and is guaranteed to help the user swallow less at a time. The Zen Sipper is made from medical grade silicone, is BPA free, and is shipped all over the world for free.
If you are a believer, this could work. I believe, I believe.
Your Pacemaker Can Give You Away
I may be watching too many episodes of Law and Order on TV. For some reason, I seem to be fascinated how technology is helping law enforcements solve crimes. Let me warn you. If you have a pacemaker, Fitbit, cell phone, or any other electronic data device on you, or near you, the police can use them to figure out if you are guilty.
Most of us are being recorded. Wired Magazine, probably the most sophisticated tech publication, just wrote a story about how a guy in Ohio was arrested on arson and insurance fraud because his pacemaker revealed that his heart rate and cardiac rhythms before, during, and after the crime, didn’t match where he claimed to be during a fire in his home.
In most cases, medical technicians are allowed to examine the same information routinely reviewed from a pacemaker during a doctor’s visit. The police can also check how many steps you took from your cell phone, or a Fitbit-type of device, to figure out where you were when a crime was being committed. Amazon Echos are also being searched for audio recordings and data from the device.
You have to read the Wired story for specific examples of how the smart devices are being used to present evidence against suspects. You may have constitutional rights, but your devices don’t.
A Private TV Experience
Eliot is sleeping next to me as I am writing this blog post. He’s snoring away and I am watching Law and Order SVU. I worry that the TV is going to wake him because there is a lot of screaming in this episode.
Then I remembered Tunity, an app that allows me to stream audio from my TV directly into my cell phone. Through the use of ear plugs, I can privately watch TV without Eliot hearing a word.
All I have to do is scan the television screen in the Tunity app. It will identify the live video stream. It figures out the exact timing and syncs the audio with my phone. Tunity currently works with more than 100 channels in the United States.
You can also use Tunity in a bar, gym, and at the gate in the airport. Watch the video to see exactly how Tunity works. It very simple to use, and now you have your own personal TV sound system. You can also check out CNET for their video explanation.
Happy TV days.
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DigiDame 
