It looks like an iPad, only it's 1/14th the cost: India has unveiled the prototype of a $35 basic touchscreen tablet aimed at students, which it hopes to bring into production by 2011.
If the government can find a manufacturer, the Linux operating system-based computer would be the latest in a string of "world's cheapest" innovations to hit the market out of India, which is home to the 100,000 rupee ($2,127) compact Nano car, the 749 rupees ($16) water purifier and the $2,000 open-heart surgery.
The tablet can be used for functions like word processing, web browsing and video-conferencing. It has a solar power option too -- important for India's energy-starved hinterlands -- though that add-on costs extra.
"This is our answer to MIT's $100 computer," human resource development minister Kapil Sibal told the Economic Times when he unveiled the device Thursday.
In 2005, Nicholas Negroponte -- co-founder of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab -- unveiled a prototype of a $100 laptop for children in the developing world. India rejected that as too expensive and embarked on a multiyear effort to develop a cheaper option of its own.
Negroponte's laptop ended up costing about $200, but in May his nonprofit association, One Laptop Per Child, said it plans to launch a basic tablet computer for $99.
Sibal turned to students and professors at India's elite technical universities to develop the $35 tablet after receiving a "lukewarm" response from private sector players. He hopes to get the cost down to $10 eventually.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Oceans reaching tipping points
WASHINGTON — A sobering new report warns that the oceans face a "fundamental and irreversible ecological transformation" not seen in millions of years as greenhouse gases and climate change already have affected temperature, acidity, sea and oxygen levels, the food chain and possibly major currents that could alter global weather.
The report, in Science magazine, brings together dozens of studies that collectively paint a dismal picture of deteriorating ocean health.
"This is further evidence we are well on our way to the next great extinction event," said Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, the director of the Global Change Institute at the University of Queensland in Australia and a co-author of the report.
John Bruno, an associate professor of marine sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the report's other co-author, isn't quite as alarmist, but he's equally concerned.
"We are becoming increasingly certain that the world's marine ecosystems are reaching tipping points," Bruno said, adding, "We really have no power or model to foresee" the impact.
Volcanic activity and large meteorite strikes in the past have "resulted in hostile conditions that have increased extinction rates and driven ecosystem collapse," the report says. "There is now overwhelming evidence human activities are driving rapid changes on a scale similar to these past events.
"Many of these changes are already occurring within the world's oceans with serious consequences likely over the coming years."
"Although our comprehension of how this variability will change over the coming decades remains uncertain, the steady increase in heat content in the ocean and atmosphere are likely to have profound influences on the strength, direction and behavior of the world's major current systems," the report says.
"It's a lot worse than the public thinks," said Nate Mantua, an associate research professor at the University of Washington's Climate Impacts Group.
Mantua, who's read the report, said it was clear what was causing the oceans' problems: greenhouse gases. "It is not a mystery," he said.
The report, in Science magazine, brings together dozens of studies that collectively paint a dismal picture of deteriorating ocean health.
"This is further evidence we are well on our way to the next great extinction event," said Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, the director of the Global Change Institute at the University of Queensland in Australia and a co-author of the report.
John Bruno, an associate professor of marine sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the report's other co-author, isn't quite as alarmist, but he's equally concerned.
"We are becoming increasingly certain that the world's marine ecosystems are reaching tipping points," Bruno said, adding, "We really have no power or model to foresee" the impact.
Volcanic activity and large meteorite strikes in the past have "resulted in hostile conditions that have increased extinction rates and driven ecosystem collapse," the report says. "There is now overwhelming evidence human activities are driving rapid changes on a scale similar to these past events.
"Many of these changes are already occurring within the world's oceans with serious consequences likely over the coming years."
"Although our comprehension of how this variability will change over the coming decades remains uncertain, the steady increase in heat content in the ocean and atmosphere are likely to have profound influences on the strength, direction and behavior of the world's major current systems," the report says.
"It's a lot worse than the public thinks," said Nate Mantua, an associate research professor at the University of Washington's Climate Impacts Group.
Mantua, who's read the report, said it was clear what was causing the oceans' problems: greenhouse gases. "It is not a mystery," he said.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Powering The Future
I happened to catch this on Discovery Channel last night (after Mythbusters examined the Moon Landing Conspiracy theories). It turns out it's a four part series.
Powering the Future, a brand-new four-hour special series, is hosted by Dr. M. Sanjayan, lead scientist at The Nature Conservancy, the special closely examines where our energy could come from and how we are striving to create a clean, limitless, secure supply of energy.
The episodes are
The Energy Revolution
The race to power the future.
The Energy Planet
Reasons for easing mankind's dependency on fossil fuels; ways to power Earth in the future.
Striking a Balance
Balancing energy supply and demand.
Leading the Charge
Global warming, geopolitics and geology offer reasons for change.
They were on Discovery Channel last night, but I see they are being rerun on the Science Channel this week.
Powering the Future, a brand-new four-hour special series, is hosted by Dr. M. Sanjayan, lead scientist at The Nature Conservancy, the special closely examines where our energy could come from and how we are striving to create a clean, limitless, secure supply of energy.
The episodes are
The Energy Revolution
The race to power the future.
The Energy Planet
Reasons for easing mankind's dependency on fossil fuels; ways to power Earth in the future.
Striking a Balance
Balancing energy supply and demand.
Leading the Charge
Global warming, geopolitics and geology offer reasons for change.
They were on Discovery Channel last night, but I see they are being rerun on the Science Channel this week.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
google docs lockup / new format
I recently noticed that when I try to edit my google docs docuents on chrome, the browser locks up. CPU activity goes to 100%. It's like it gets stuck in an endless loop. So I have to CTRL-ALT-DEL and end task to exit.
It seems OK on firefox though. And trying it on Internet Explorer it locks up there too.
So I wondered maybe it's just my old documents. So I tried creating a new document. And it looks different. Now it looks like a WYSIWG word processor with a ruler on the top and margins on the left and right.
I suppose this is OK, but I'm wondering whether this has something to do with why it's locking up.
I tried a small document and it seemed OK. So maybe it's the size of the document? Maybe they can't handle large documents in the old format?
***
Well, I tried copying and pasting text from the old document to a new document. But it doesn't look the same. Even changing the font to the same, the line spacing looks different. And as soon as I try to do anything, it tries to save and I get a message box saying the script is unresponsive. And this is in firefox.
Definitely a turn for the worse in my view.
***
I guess what I can do is go to this link and copy and paste into it.
OK made the doc and tried to edit it in chrome. Seemed OK. Then tried it in I.E. Locked up at first with high CPU usage then settled down after a number of seconds and then could edit it. Maybe it's a document size issue?
Next I opened a document in the new format into which I had pasted in test from an old document. It was really slow to open in I.E. with high CPU usuage. After like 10 minutes the document finally loaded in and I was able to slowly edit it.
The same document loaded much quicken using firefox, like in five to ten seconds.
Conclusion? I'll continue to use firefox and create new documents in the old format.
***
Ah, now I see that there IS a new google docs and actually seems to be a brand new (completely different) product.
So compatibility issues would be expected. But locking up the browser has to be unacceptable.
***
[7/19/10] Ah, you can change the default back to the old documents. Click on new features at the top. Then click on the link Learn more about the new version and how to start using it. That brings up the answer.
You can continue to create documents in the older version, for now, by opting out of the new version. Simply go to your Google Docs Settings page, click the Editing tab, and deselect the option labeled "Create new text documents using the latest version of the document editor."
***
[1/28/11] Now I see they have removed that option. What you need to do is then, is bring up an old document with the old format, make a copy of the document (with the make a copy option under the File menu), rename the document, type in the new text and delete the old text.
It seems OK on firefox though. And trying it on Internet Explorer it locks up there too.
So I wondered maybe it's just my old documents. So I tried creating a new document. And it looks different. Now it looks like a WYSIWG word processor with a ruler on the top and margins on the left and right.
I suppose this is OK, but I'm wondering whether this has something to do with why it's locking up.
I tried a small document and it seemed OK. So maybe it's the size of the document? Maybe they can't handle large documents in the old format?
***
Well, I tried copying and pasting text from the old document to a new document. But it doesn't look the same. Even changing the font to the same, the line spacing looks different. And as soon as I try to do anything, it tries to save and I get a message box saying the script is unresponsive. And this is in firefox.
Definitely a turn for the worse in my view.
***
I guess what I can do is go to this link and copy and paste into it.
OK made the doc and tried to edit it in chrome. Seemed OK. Then tried it in I.E. Locked up at first with high CPU usage then settled down after a number of seconds and then could edit it. Maybe it's a document size issue?
Next I opened a document in the new format into which I had pasted in test from an old document. It was really slow to open in I.E. with high CPU usuage. After like 10 minutes the document finally loaded in and I was able to slowly edit it.
The same document loaded much quicken using firefox, like in five to ten seconds.
Conclusion? I'll continue to use firefox and create new documents in the old format.
***
Ah, now I see that there IS a new google docs and actually seems to be a brand new (completely different) product.
So compatibility issues would be expected. But locking up the browser has to be unacceptable.
***
[7/19/10] Ah, you can change the default back to the old documents. Click on new features at the top. Then click on the link Learn more about the new version and how to start using it. That brings up the answer.
You can continue to create documents in the older version, for now, by opting out of the new version. Simply go to your Google Docs Settings page, click the Editing tab, and deselect the option labeled "Create new text documents using the latest version of the document editor."
***
[1/28/11] Now I see they have removed that option. What you need to do is then, is bring up an old document with the old format, make a copy of the document (with the make a copy option under the File menu), rename the document, type in the new text and delete the old text.
Friday, July 16, 2010
clearing firefox browsing history
For some reason, I can't clear one one certain item in my firefox browsing history.
Normally you press the down-arrow in the address bar to bring up the most visited url's. Then move the mouse arrow to highlight the item and press delete. That will delete the item. But when I did that, one item still remained. Well two items, one was google.com, so that's OK. But the other one was a private website.
They even remain when I go tools, clear recent history, and clear everything.
Ah there you go, it was in unsorted bookmarks (go to bookmarks, organize bookmarks). Found it and deleted it and now it's gone. I forget why I looked at this. I might have been been after looking at this article or similar (found from searching mozilla support) and happened to look there. (Don't know for sure because I deleted all my history and can't look back to see now :)
***
Ah, now I'm getting to see how the items get in the address bar history. It doesn't appear at first. But accessing the website, the next time you type a few letters in the address bar, the website appears. Then after you select the website, it's now in the choices in the address bar history.
Normally you press the down-arrow in the address bar to bring up the most visited url's. Then move the mouse arrow to highlight the item and press delete. That will delete the item. But when I did that, one item still remained. Well two items, one was google.com, so that's OK. But the other one was a private website.
They even remain when I go tools, clear recent history, and clear everything.
Ah there you go, it was in unsorted bookmarks (go to bookmarks, organize bookmarks). Found it and deleted it and now it's gone. I forget why I looked at this. I might have been been after looking at this article or similar (found from searching mozilla support) and happened to look there. (Don't know for sure because I deleted all my history and can't look back to see now :)
***
Ah, now I'm getting to see how the items get in the address bar history. It doesn't appear at first. But accessing the website, the next time you type a few letters in the address bar, the website appears. Then after you select the website, it's now in the choices in the address bar history.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Was blind, but now I see
LOS ANGELES — Dozens of people who were blinded or otherwise suffered severe eye damage when they were splashed with caustic chemicals had their sight restored with transplants of their own stem cells — a stunning success for the burgeoning cell-therapy field, Italian researchers reported June 23.
The treatment worked completely in 82 of 107 eyes and partially in 14 others, with benefits lasting up to a decade so far. One man whose eyes were severely damaged more than 60 years ago now has near-normal vision.
“This is a roaring success,” said ophthalmologist Dr. Ivan Schwab of the University of California, Davis, who had no role in the study — the longest and largest of its kind.
Stem cell transplants offer hope to the thousands of people worldwide every year who suffer chemical burns on their corneas from heavy-duty cleansers or other substances at work or at home.
The approach would not help people with damage to the optic nerve or macular degeneration, which involves the retina. Nor would it work in people who are completely blind in both eyes, because doctors need at least some healthy tissue that they can transplant.
The treatment worked completely in 82 of 107 eyes and partially in 14 others, with benefits lasting up to a decade so far. One man whose eyes were severely damaged more than 60 years ago now has near-normal vision.
“This is a roaring success,” said ophthalmologist Dr. Ivan Schwab of the University of California, Davis, who had no role in the study — the longest and largest of its kind.
Stem cell transplants offer hope to the thousands of people worldwide every year who suffer chemical burns on their corneas from heavy-duty cleansers or other substances at work or at home.
The approach would not help people with damage to the optic nerve or macular degeneration, which involves the retina. Nor would it work in people who are completely blind in both eyes, because doctors need at least some healthy tissue that they can transplant.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
lost my beep
When I permanently delete items from my Outlook Express deleted folder, I get a pleasant beep sound. But now I just get the beep from the speaker. [This happened several times before too.]
I also get the sound as a warning when I close (for example) Word without saving. And when using WS_FTP (yes, I still use that).
I suspect the system is sort of screwed up because the memory always gets low.
Anyway, the last time it corrected itself after a reboot, but this time it didn't. The first time, I used these instructions to correct it.
1) Click START... RUN... type Services.msc in the box... click OK
2) Change both of the following services from "Automatic" to "Disable"
---> Plug and Play Service
---> Windows Audio Service
3) Reboot, then reset both the "Plug and Play" & "Windows Audio" Services back to "Automatic".
4) Reboot, then test if the "Beep" is still there by opening a new MS Word document, type a few letters, then exit without saving to get the Exclamation/Beep prompt.
***
[7/14/10] Hey got my beep back, but not in the above way. What I did was go to control panel, sounds, and set it to no sounds. Then shut down. Start up. Then set the sound back to Windows default.
I also get the sound as a warning when I close (for example) Word without saving. And when using WS_FTP (yes, I still use that).
I suspect the system is sort of screwed up because the memory always gets low.
Anyway, the last time it corrected itself after a reboot, but this time it didn't. The first time, I used these instructions to correct it.
1) Click START... RUN... type Services.msc in the box... click OK
2) Change both of the following services from "Automatic" to "Disable"
---> Plug and Play Service
---> Windows Audio Service
3) Reboot, then reset both the "Plug and Play" & "Windows Audio" Services back to "Automatic".
4) Reboot, then test if the "Beep" is still there by opening a new MS Word document, type a few letters, then exit without saving to get the Exclamation/Beep prompt.
***
[7/14/10] Hey got my beep back, but not in the above way. What I did was go to control panel, sounds, and set it to no sounds. Then shut down. Start up. Then set the sound back to Windows default.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
welcome to recycled island
A Dutch architecture company says it plans to construct a massive island in the Pacific made from the vast collection of plastic that has collected in the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” between Hawaii and San Francisco.
WHIM’s Ramon Knoester says the construction of “Recycled Island” will clean out the majority of the Pacific’s plastic pollution and create new habitable land as many of the world’s coastlines are lost to rising sea levels.
WHIM’s Ramon Knoester says the construction of “Recycled Island” will clean out the majority of the Pacific’s plastic pollution and create new habitable land as many of the world’s coastlines are lost to rising sea levels.
Thursday, July 01, 2010
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)