Stories tagged TV
This TV cried so hard its head exploded.
Courtesy Kevin SteeleRemember how TV was going to be totally different way back in February? And it sort of didn't happen, because we all weren't quite ready to have different TV yet? Well, this Friday TV will be changing. For realz this time. On Friday, June 12th, all TV stations are required to switch off their analog transmitters, completing the switch to digital TV.
If you don't have a digital television or a converter box yet, brace yourself for a new, television-free life. It's going to feel like dying. If you are all sorts of prepared, maybe spend some extra time with old fashioned TV this week, because when it goes away, it's going to feel for you like a long-lived pet is dying. Like a parrot, or a turtle. Or a chimp.
You can learn more about the digital switch and the related sciencey stuff at Buzz's Digital Television feature.
Tags : The future: TVs on bullets, inserted directly into brain
in Life Science, Structure of Matter, Scientific Enterprise, and Human Organism
Not Annie: I tried this on my own eyes, bu they were too gross.
Courtesy tryingmyhardestOh, my goodness. What did I just write?
What I meant was “TVs on contacts, popped directly into eyes.” Except that I would never write “popped” and “eyes” in the same sentence.
Anyway, it’s looking like the future is still a bright place to live. Especially if the TVs stuck to your eyeballs are malfunctioning. See, Ian Pearson, a British “futurologist” (that means that he’s a guy who thinks about living in the future, even though he actually lives in Britain), has gotten some press lately regarding his prediction that we’ll have contact lens TVs/computer monitors within the next ten years. Displays integrated into contact lenses would superimpose images over what we see of the real world (or, as I like to call it, the “real” world), and, potentially, could be powered by our own body heat.
The technology such products would be based on already exists, according to Pearson. It’s just a matter of shrinking it down to size, and sticking it on your eyes. Contact lenses with non-functioning circuits and lights have already been tested on rabbits, which, after 20 minutes of exposure, had no particular complaints.
While the lens TVs might add a slight tint to your eyes, other people (or, as I like to call them, other “people”) would not be able tell what you were watching. So, while everybody might assume that the guy with the glowy eyes is stumbling around watching something very naughty indeed, I’d actually be watching the video of my sixth grade play, Annie. The joke is on you! (Although I suppose it depends where I have to insert the VHS tape—the joke might also be on me.)
Pearson also declared that we all could also have “digital tattoos” in the near future. Aside from letting the world know what you thought was cool the day you got the tattoo, this digital ink could potentially “pick up on the emotions portrayed by actors in TV shows and create impulses allowing us to feel the same emotions.”
I’m really into this digital tattoo thing, and I’ll tell you why. First of all, I have always really wanted to feel what it looks like Will Smith feels like (I’m guessing “sassy” but it’s hard to say at this point.) Also, I’ve found that my favorite emotions are the ones I feel in my skin. Emotions like “humiliation,” and “second degree burn”. Yeah, those are about two of my favorite emotions (so naturally “Home Alone” will be viewed frequently), and I think I’m not the only one. This one is going to take off. Zoom!
Now, it turns out that this report on the future was commissioned by the British electronics retailer Comet. I don’t think that this fact should affect our reception of the predictions in any way (Comet, after all, probably just wants to know what they’ll be selling in a couple years, so it’s in their interest to have an honest report), but I am a little sore that Pearson is getting paid for this sort of thing, and I’m not. Come on, now! I’m always coming up with great ideas for the future.
Instant cat whiskers
Instant cat whiskers… for girls!
TVs on bullets
The last meal you’ll ever eat (trademarked)
Playstation 5
TVs on teeth
Laser-powered lasers
Better spaceships
Hinged money (for folding)
TVs on money (regular money, not the hinged kind)
Non-functional t-800 model robots
Electronic smile cream
The technology exists, people, it’s just a matter of time and engineering. So where’s my freaking check, Comet?
Do you often find yourself watching those prime-time crime dramas on TV asking yourself, "Wow! I didn't know they could figure out whom the killer is based on a single carpet fiber sample found on the sidewalk outside of a crime scene! Can they really do that?!?" Well, some of the processes we see on TV may not be quick as quick and easy, or even possible compared to real life crime investigation.
Lisa Smith, of the University of Leicester School of Psychology, is doing some research to see how these portrayals of forensics on TV are affecting how jurors view forensic evidence in actual court cases. Jurors make their decisions based upon their knowledge, perceived understanding, and beliefs regarding forensic evidence. So the next time you are watching some evening television or even hear a news story regarding some forensic evidence, think twice about the validity of what you see!
Oh, and if you like, there is an online questionnaire for the study!
Were you a fan of the Mentos and Diet Coke fountains that EepyBird created? If so, you might tune in to "Samurai Girl" tonight (7pm, ABC) to see EepyBird's experiments with more than 250,000 sticky notes. You can also check out an extended version of the video, complete with how-tos, at EepyBird.com.
Here's a sneak peek, but definitely check the EepyBird site tonight for more.
Professor Julius Sumner Miller educated and entertained generations of Australians on television with his TV series called "Why is it so?"
Now you too can watch some "enchanting experiments" with the good professor! Both dialup or broadband connections available (click the link above for dozens of episodes).
The PBS TV show "Design Squad" is doing a casting call. You have to be 18-19, passionate about engineering, and excited to spend the months of June through August in Boston (and traveling) tackling design challenges and competing for the $10,000 prize. The program's goal is to get viewers excited about engineering and the design process. Apply by Friday, April 11.
The Wired Science crew: Evidentially the lighting is really poor in the future.Wired Magazine, who bring us monthly nerdy technology news with a pop culture ilk, are embarking on a PBS TV show about science, Wired Science. This is an interesting set of leaps and I hope the funky graphic design, future forward thinking, and nerdy yet populist approach of the magazine translates to a new medium and topic area.
Simpson science: Researcher says cartoon showcases principles
I like science, but I'm not a fan of "The Simpsons." But this story shares how a researcher has found scientific principles being shared and explained in episodes of the popular cartoon show.
1928: W3XK, the first American TV station, begins broadcasting from suburban Washington, D.C.
Friday nights at 9 pm.
"Numb3rs" is currently the most-watched program on Friday nights, attracting nearly 12 million viewers. Now in its third season, Numb3rs, along with the program's co-creators, Nick Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, will receive a National Science Board group Public Service Award for 2007 "for their contributions toward increasing scientific and mathematical literacy on a broad scale".
The annual Public Service Award recognizes individuals and organizations for their extraordinary contributions to increase public understanding of science. Recipients are chosen for their contributions to public service in areas such as: increasing the public's understanding of the scientific process and its communication; contributing to the development of broad science and engineering policy; promoting the engagement of scientists and engineers in public outreach; and fostering awareness of science and technology among broad segments of the population. NSF
Mathematical CSI
Cryptanalysis, probability theory, game theory, decision theory, principal components analysis, multivariate time series analysis and astrophysics are just some of the many disciplines employed in the series thus far. If you have not seen this show I recommend that you check it out.
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