Emerging Technology News

Communication technology continues to break new ground – this time literally. A new form of coding messages and sending them has been demonstrated for the first time; rather than relying on light or frequency, this communication technology is using ‘neutrinos.’ While neutrinos may sound like a breakfast cereal, it was recently in the news when tests found an anomaly that could prove there are variations that travel faster than light; this discovery would completely change what we know about the theory of relativity, but it is a footnote compared to this concrete discovery. Still impractical with communication and information technology similar to a dedicated server hosting albeit with a multiple-ton router buried 100 metres beneath the earth’s surface and a phone that is 2.5-miles long. The message was contained in a subatomic particle which was sent 240 metres through solid rock which is an amazing feat; the message simply yet aptly said ‘neutrino.’

World leader in sports technology for shoes and clothing, Nike has always been at the forefront of creating innovative designs and utilising hi-tech materials to enhance the performance of athletes. Their latest addition to their sportswear range is no different. Nike has recently announced the launch of their revolutionary new running shoe, which uses an advanced knitting technique to create a seamless one piece upper. The Nike Flyknit upper gives athletes unbelievable comfort and a precise fit, and can be compared to a second skin for runners. Shoe and accessory hangers for shops will be fitted with a very different type of sports shoe in upcoming months, although the date of the release has not yet been announced.

When Neil Harbisson was diagnosed with a very rare strain of colour blindness, Achromatopsia, he was told there wasn’t a cure. Rather than fear wallow in his affliction he was determined to learn more about it, so he decided to study art at the age of 16 to understand more about colour. His teacher was taken aback but had no choice but to accept Neil. Testing colour blindness may give us some insight but it’s hard to imagine what experiencing that on a daily basis would be like.

Anyone with a hearing disability often finds himself or herself struggling to keep up with new technologies, as the chances are high that their disability might hinder their ability to fully embrace the technology. There is however a new technology in Tunisia that is ground-breaking in its contribution to those with a hearing loss disability.

Hearing impairment often goes hand-in-hand with illiteracy, especially in third world countries. The disability means that sign language becomes an integral part of cognitive improvement. At the University of Tunis they are working on the ”WebSign project”. The project sees Information Communications Technology bridge the gap between those suffering with a hearing disability and the rest of the community.

The sixth of March saw the world’s largest motor show take place, The Geneva International Motor Show. It was here where the latest releases and concept cars were being paraded, rotated and gawked at as the abandoned warehouse space was converted into a mecca for motor enthusiasts. This all took place in Geneva, Switzerland, and for twenty-four hours engine fundis were treated to some inspired motor vehicle technologies. Henry Ford would be throwing a party in his grave. To think in days gone by this warehouse was used as industrial storage space. The scores of toolboxes and industrial shelving most probably were the closest connection to the luxury motor vehicles that have just occupied the venue.

As we push the limits of science and technology, we risk serious harm to ourselves trying to account for the unknown. Even with every university of science and technology adding to the brain-trust, we’ll never know the full extent of the dangers nanotechnology poses to humanity if unobserved. Nanotechnology is a fairly new branch of science and technology that deals with items on an atomic or molecular scale; items practical in medicine, electronics, biomaterials and energy production. These items are sometimes hard to envision, literally, with a one dimensional size ranging between 1-100 nanometres. The information on science and technology that we wish to discover from these materials is if we can directly manipulate matter on the atomic scale.

Discovery, along with ESPN, are aiming to deliver all the wonder of the 3D experience to satellite television around the world, and eventually in South Africa. Building on the success from the IMAX filmed documentaries on amazing natural occurrences, Discovery aims to enchant cable and satellite television users with the ability to watch a selection of documentaries in the wonder of 3D. The plans for the channel and programmes has been under development since 2010 with the project being showcased at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and over the past two years, hardware and broadcasting technology has in fact developed sufficiently for the broadcast and receiving of 3D channels signals from satellite television to become a reality.

Fresh off CES 2012 in Las Vegas, the talk of the town is centred on electronic clothing and what the future holds for the fashion industry. While fashion can have a variety of functions for the technology, multiple industries are excited by the breakthroughs highlighted in the last year. OLED technology allows electronics to be woven into clothing that can display whole movies on the back of a shirt. Although the concept is sound, there are the fundamental hurdles still needing to be overcome, such as how to wash electronics (although they are working on nanotechnology for moisture protection), the technology may change the way that we look at clothing, in more ways than we actually expect.

A major breakthrough in medical advancement is the development of a tiny smart pill that monitors bodily responses to medication. The medical monitoring system could hit the shelves soon according to a recent announcement by the British pharmacy chain LloydsPharmacy, who partnered with the American technology firm Proteus Medical to produce the smart pill. The major question is whether consumers will buy the product from pharmacies and medical couriers, which on paper reads like something from a sci-fi movie.

Turnitin is an online resource used by most university and college professors worldwide to check plagiarism. Created by iParadigms, the resource has proven incredibly popular yet controversial although used only to check a paper or essay for plagiarism. Some feel having their essays checked out by Turnitin is akin to an ‘admission of guilt’ which is unconstitutional by education governing bodies of universities although the jury is still out on how accurate that is. The process is that the college or university buys a licence to use the service and then submits papers for review. While on the surface the service seems straight forward enough its popularity is waning although the objective is positive. Plagiarism has no place in a learning institution and the danger of ignoring such practices can result in gross misconduct if one is indeed plagiarising. For example, if a doctor you see happened to pass his final examination through plagiarism and time comes for a medical translation that concerns you, you could be at risk of an uninformed practitioner who cheated his way into a qualification; your health is at risk. The software to check plagiarism is traversing a grey area though between two factions warring over its merits.