Lifeproof Cases

My brother told me about these new phone cases... they are pretty much made to protect your phone for your entire life. The company makes their cases with four proofs: water, dirt, snow, and shock. I think the coolest is waterproof because your phone could essentially operate as an underwater camera. They also have headphones that you can screw into your phone as well so you could listen to music while you were swimming laps in a pool. These cases are pretty cool but also pretty expensive... they cost about $80-100. It might be worth it though if your phone would never break!

New iPhone 4s

Many buyers were sad because an iPhone 5 didn't come out, just an iPhone 4s. Here are the things that separate the iPhone 4s from the iPhone 4:

1. A5 Chip-- They have a new faster chip called the A5 chip that is double the speed of the other chip because it has two processors instead of one.

2. Camera-- They redesigned the camera to have new optics and an 8 megapixel camera as opposed to the 5 megapixel camera of the iPhone 4. The camera also has face detection and photo editing abilities.

3. Siri Voice Recognition-- The iPhone 4s has a more advanced voice recognition feature called Siri. It seems pretty neat because you can like tell it to text for you or read texts for you. You can also tell it to change your calendar and do other tasks for you. I wonder though if this could be a problem if you were talking to someone else if it would start doing things you wouldn't want it to.

4. iCloud-- It stores your music, photos, aps, mail, calendars, etc. They are telling their users that they don't have to do anything, but it just works. I wonder if they'll start charging for the use of the iCloud later..?

It doesn't seem to be significantly different from the iPhone 4, and I don't think it would be worth the extra money if I were to buy one.

Everyday Object Robot Hand

So these researchers at Cornell University invented a Robot hand/gripper out of household objects that seems to be pretty efficient. It is actually made of a balloon filled with coffee beans! The balloon is pressed onto the surface that needs to be gripped. Then a vacuum sucks all the air out of the balloon which grips the object! Pretty nifty

http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/Oct10/UniversalGripper.html

3D Printer Review: Radman 3.1

http://mkt.alibre.com/3dprinting?_kk=3D%20printer&_kt=5e02460d-19d9-44e0-9766-a3610b0f9db9&gclid=CNuJwKOjnasCFUSW7QodJViTgg

1. Which type is it? That is, does it carve out a block of material or build from layers of material?

a. polymer rolls in a variety of colors and material types ranging from ABS plastic to Poly Vinyl Chloride

2. How much is the device, what is the price?

a. $1,699

3. How much are refills for the material?

a. $80 for 1 kg

4. Is the material easy to buy? That is, is it easy to find the place to buy it

a. Yes

b. You can buy it online from the website that sells the printers

c. http://www.alibre.com/store/pc-202-14-rapman-31-3d-printer-with-alibre-design-personal.aspx

5. How precise is the machine’s printing?

a. Low compared to other preassembled 3d printers

b. See pdf page for specifications

6. What format does the model need to be software-wise for the machine to work? That is, what software do you need to make the 3d model on the computer, maya, sketchup or something else

a. Alibre Design Personal 3D CAD software

b. Includes 3D design, basic 2D documentation, and export options to your 3D printer

c. Comes with the purchase of the Radman Package

7. How would you rank it?

a. Pretty good—are better versions but is a pretty good price

Cool Website

This website is entertaining and contains lots of random facts! It is perfect for when you're bored!

didyouknowarchive.com

Local 3D Printing

Brad Bourgoyne, a local artist, uses 3D printing for art. 3D printing is like regular printing except it uses thin layers of material (plaster for Bourgoyne). After printing something, he has to let it dry overnight then he coats it with a plastic binding. There is a store called Composite Effects that houses the best 3D printer in Louisiana that creates costumes and props. 3D printers can also be helpful in making models for many fields (medical, engineering, and architectural).

http://www.225batonrouge.com/news/2011/sep/01/another-dimension/

Einstein may stand corrected?

Many people have attempted to prove Einstein wrong over the years, but all have miserably failed. However, on Thursday of this week, scientists of France's National Institute for Nuclear and Particle Physics Research and Italy's Gran Sasso National Labratory announced that there was a subatomic particle, a neutrino, traveling faster than the speed of light. If this is indeed true, the physics world today could be completely changed. I think it is great that scientists are making new discoveries and questioning early theories because it means we will not remain stuck in the past. It also makes me wonder just what else is left to be discovered... certainly more than already discovered!