Nokia Patents the Vibrating Haptic-Tattoo to Help You Feel Who’s Calling

On April 11, 2012April 11, 2012 By A.P.In Cell Phone, Communication, Haptic Feedback, Haptic Tattoo, Human Behavior, Inventions, Nokia, Science, Technology, The Future, Vibrating TattooLeave a comment

Nokia is said to be working on new technology that would allow tattoos with ferromagnetic ink to vibrate when the tattooed person recieves a phone call. Via Unwired View:

“Nokia wants to take haptic feedback to a level you haven’t previously encountered. Haptic tech is employed, for example, when your phone vibrates as you type on its touchscreen. Haptics deal with appealing to your sense of touch by applying forces or vibrations to your skin. Which is exactly what Nokia wants to do, proposing the application of tattoos with ferromagnetic inks, that will vibrate based on commands from your phone.

In the first described embodiment of the patent, you’d wear a sort of material that’s attachable to the skin. On your forearm, for example. This material can do two things: detect a magnetic field, and emit a vibration. The material could be paired with a phone, for example, like Bluetooth accessories are paired to electronics. The phone, however, would have to be capable of emitting varying magnetic fields.

So then, for example, when someone calls that phone, it will send out a specific magnetic field. The material will detect that, and will start vibrating in a certain pattern. That pattern could be different according to who’s calling, or it could be different according to what exactly is happening on the phone (a phone call, text message, and so on). For this to work, the phone would have to send out a different magnetic field for each action, because the material would associate a different type of vibration with each kind of magnetic field it detects. The vibrations would happen by magnetically manipulating the material.

The tattoo would be applied using ferromagnetic inks. The ink material would first be exposed to high temperatures to demagnetize it. Then the tattoo would be applied. You’ll apparently be able to choose the actual image you want as the tattoo. The procedure is identical to that of getting a ‘normal’ tattoo – only the ink is special.

After the tattoo has been applied, you’ll need to magnetize it. That means bringing the tattooed area in the close proximity of an external magnet, and going ‘several times over this magnet to magnetize the image material again.’ The tattoo will then have enhanced sensitivity towards external alternating magnet fields, and will basically function the same way the aforementioned material attached to your skin did.”‘

http://www.altpress.com/news/entry/haptic_tattoos_may_soon_help_you_feel_whos_calling

Onlookers jeered as man was beaten, stripped and robbed in Baltimore

On April 10, 2012April 10, 2012 By A.P.In Baltimore, Crime, Empathy, Human Behavior, Violence2 Comments

Onlookers laughed and did nothing to help as a man was beaten, stripped and robbed on the street in Baltimore.

The attack, which police say happened on March 18 after St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, was captured by at least two cameras. Video of it went viral.

“Not only did they rob him, but they attempted to strip him of his dignity. They tore his clothes off; they mocked him. That behavior just will not be tolerated,” said Detective Nicole Monroe with the Baltimore police.

Police say they have identified one suspect, but have made no arrests.

They are not releasing the victim’s identity except to say he was a 31-year-old man from Arlington, Virginia.

The victim was on the way to his hotel from a downtown Baltimore club when he was attacked, according to a police report. The man had been drinking. He told police he couldn’t recall exactly what happened, but the videos fill in the blanks.

In them, a man is seen standing, unsteadily, against a row of mailboxes. A crowd starts to gather and women dance suggestively against him. Someone notices his watch and a hand seems to grab something from one of the man’s front pockets.

He pursues the supposed thief and is punched in the face. The man falls over backward and his head hits the sidewalk so hard it can be heard on the video.

“Smackdown!” someone yells.

His pockets are rifled and his clothes pulled off. Some people can be heard laughing. No one comes to his aid.

According to the police report, the man lost his Tag Heuer watch, which he valued at $1,300, his iPhone and car key.

CNN showed video of the attack to a number of people in Baltimore to gauge their response.

“That’s pretty sad,” said Finley George of Virginia, who was visiting the city with family. “I mean he obviously didn’t do anything to anybody. They just got up on him and started beating him.”

http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/09/us/maryland-beating/index.html

Autism may be linked to obesity during pregnancy

On April 10, 2012April 10, 2012 By A.P.In autism, Diabetes, Food, Health, Human Behavior, Obesity, PregnancyLeave a comment

Obesity during pregnancy may increase chances for having a child with autism, provocative new research suggests.

It’s among the first studies linking the two, and though it doesn’t prove obesity causes autism, the authors say their results raise public health concerns because of the high level of obesity in this country.

Study women who were obese during pregnancy were about 67 percent more likely than normal-weight women to have autistic children. They also faced double the risk of having children with other developmental delays.

On average, women face a 1 in 88 chance of having a child with autism; the results suggest that obesity during pregnancy would increase that to a 1 in 53 chance, the authors said.

The study was released online Monday in Pediatrics.

Since more than one-third of U.S. women of child-bearing age are obese, the results are potentially worrisome and add yet another incentive for maintaining a normal weight, said researcher Paula Krakowiak, a study co-author and scientist at the University of California, Davis.

Previous research has linked obesity during pregnancy with stillbirths, preterm births and some birth defects.

Dr. Daniel Coury, chief of developmental and behavioral pediatrics at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, said the results “raise quite a concern.”

He noted that U.S. autism rates have increased along with obesity rates and said the research suggests that may be more than a coincidence.

More research is needed to confirm the results. But if mothers’ obesity is truly related to autism, it would be only one of many contributing factors, said Coury, who was not involved in the study.

Genetics has been linked to autism, and scientists are examining whether mothers’ illnesses and use of certain medicines during pregnancy might also play a role.

The study involved about 1,000 California children, ages 2 to 5. Nearly 700 had autism or other developmental delays, and 315 did not have those problems.

Mothers were asked about their health. Medical records were available for more than half the women and confirmed their conditions. It’s not clear how mothers’ obesity might affect fetal development, but the authors offer some theories.

Obesity, generally about 35 pounds overweight, is linked with inflammation and sometimes elevated levels of blood sugar. Excess blood sugar and inflammation-related substances in a mother’s blood may reach the fetus and damage the developing brain, Krakowiak said.

The study lacks information on blood tests during pregnancy. There’s also no information on women’s diets and other habits during pregnancy that might have influenced fetal development.

There were no racial, ethnic, education or health insurance differences among mothers of autistic kids and those with unaffected children that might have influenced the results, the researchers said.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/story/2012-04-09/Autism-obesity-pregnancy/54126558/1

Tom Winter: The Nebraska Skateboarding Professor

On April 10, 2012April 10, 2012 By A.P.In Exercise, Health, Nebraska, skateboard, skateboarding, Skateboarding Professor, Tom Winter, University of NebraskaLeave a comment

Tom Winter finished a lecture on passive and past-tense Latin verbs, pulled his skateboard from the desk and rolled into a cool spring afternoon.

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln classics and religious studies professor became an Internet sensation last week when a photo of him skateboarding across campus became the top item on the social news website Reddit.com. The photo inspired dozens of memes, which are photos with humorous text superimposed.

“Nine pages of memes and a site I never knew about before yesterday,” Winter told the Lincoln Journal Star on Thursday. “It’s a pretty good photo.”

By Thursday afternoon, the photo had gotten more than 756,000 views on Imgur.com, the Internet image hosting site on which it originally appeared, and 1,300 comments on Reddit.com. Users of Imgur.com wrote mock captions for the image, which features a skateboarding Winter, arms out and holding a briefcase.

The top-rated caption: “They see me rollin,’ I’m gradin.'” On Reddit.com, users created memes using the photo of Winter with captions such as, “Write a two-page paper on shredding the gnar,” and, “Has a PhD in righteousness.”

Winter said he heard about the photo from students Thursday and thinks he knows who took it.

“Nine pages of memes and a site I never knew about before yesterday,” Winter told the Lincoln Journal Star on Thursday. “It’s a pretty good photo.”

He teaches Latin, Greek and English classes, including Classical Mythology, Ancient Warfare and the Ancient Novel. His favorite course is Science and Technology in Antiquity.

He’s been teaching since 1970 and rides his bike 4.5 miles to work each morning. To get around campus easier, he uses his Arbor Pocket Rocket skateboard, which is just short enough to fit in his desk. He said he built the first recumbent bicycle to appear in Lincoln back in 1975.

A champion roller skater, Winter said he began skateboarding 15 years ago because it’s faster, and it’s easier on his body.

“I’m 19, but my joints are all of 68 years old,” he said. “Sometimes, walking is simply unpleasant.”

After watching Winter take off on his skateboard Thursday, UNL English professor Joe Goecke said it’s wonderful to see his colleague roll across campus.

“We used to smoke together, but we don’t anymore,” Goecke said. “He quit.”

http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/ba599649782e434ba81b40ccb079525f/NE–Exchange-Skateboarding-Professor/

January Jones (Betty on Mad Men) Ate Her Placenta

On April 10, 2012April 10, 2012 By A.P.In Afterbirth Ingestion, January Jones, Mad Men, Placenta PillsLeave a comment

January Jones credits eating her own placenta, along with a healthy diet and vitamins, to helping her get back to work on the hit series, “Mad Men,” in a matter of weeks.

She told People.com, “Your placenta gets dehydrated and made into vitamins. It’s something I was very hesitant about, but we’re the only mammals who don’t ingest our own placentas.”

“It’s not witch-crafty or anything,” said Jones, who plays Betty on the TV show. “I suggest it to all moms.”

In some cultures, it is commonplace to consume the afterbirth. While placenta encapsulation is not FDA-approved in the U.S., the practice has become more popular as midwifery and home births continue to rise in this country.

Research has shown that the afterbirth is indeed a nutrient-packed pouch, and it has been touted as a way to prevent post-partum depression and promote a fast recovery after pregnancy. There is no hard evidence that humans benefit from consuming it, though.

“There is certainly a potential medicinal use,” Dr. David Katz, founder of the Yale Prevention Center, said of placentas last year. “This is a time-honored cultural practice of eating the placenta. It is nutrient-rich and a source of hormones.”

Along with the growing popularity of consuming one’s placenta, new companies have seen the demand and offer services to process a woman’s afterbirth. Many companies will pick up the new mom’s placenta from the hospital, then steam it, dry it and encapsulate it before returning it to the mom in a few days time. Other reports show that some people make a dish that would normally contain meat, like stew or lasagna, then replace the meat with placenta.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2012/03/26/mad-mom-january-jones-eats-her-own-placenta/

Thanks to TLR for bringing this to the attention of the It’s Interesting community.

Project Glass

On April 9, 2012April 9, 2012 By A.P.In Cell Phone, Facial Recognition, Google, GPS, Inventions, Project Glass, Technology, The Future, The InternetLeave a comment

Google says, “We think technology should work for you—to be there when you need it and get out of your way when you don’t. A group of us from Google[x] started Project Glass to build this kind of technology, one that helps you explore and share your world, putting you back in the moment. We’re sharing this information now because we want to start a conversation and learn from your valuable input. So we took a few design photos to show what this technology could look like and created a video to demonstrate what it might enable you to do.”

https://plus.google.com/u/0/111626127367496192147/posts#111626127367496192147/posts

Dating Websites to Help You Find Your ‘Doomsday Partner’

On April 9, 2012 By A.P.In Doomsday Partner, Global Economic Collapse, Global Warming, Human Behavior, Relationships, The FutureLeave a comment

Does your partner roll their eyes at your drums of water and cache of gas masks? Do you long for someone to share the last adrenaline-filled months before the apocalypse, as predicted by the ancient Mayan calendar? Look no further than Survivalist Singles, PrepperDats or Kwink, new dating sites specifically for those preparing for life after the world comes crashing down. You can look for fellow members of a post-apocalyptic tribal commune that scavenges the land in a marauding band, or that perfect partner who is savvy about water filtration, yet strong enough to protect your young from said scavenging hordes. And even if the Mayans were wrong about 2012, or your conspiracy theories don’t pan out, at least you’ll be dating someone who shares your interests. Your crazy, crazy interests.

http://now.msn.com/now/0408-dating-sites-apocalypse.aspx

Qantas Plane passenger finds live MAGGOTS crawling inside packet of nuts (which she’d already started eating)

On April 8, 2012April 6, 2012 By A.P.In Maggots, Nuts, Peanuts, Qantas1 Comment

An Australian woman told Monday how she was horrified to discover live maggots in a snack she was eating while on a Qantas flight from Los Angeles to Melbourne.

Victoria Cleven began tucking into her snack of nuts and dried fruit as she made her way home on Thursday. At the time, she did not turn on her overhead light as the cabin was darkened.

“It tasted strange, and I turned the light on and looked at the rest of the packet, and just started seeing maggots coming out of it everywhere,” Cleven, 42, told Melbourne’s Herald-Sun newspaper.

“I couldn’t talk. I was nearly throwing up. I was beside myself.”

Her 15-year-old son then checked two other packets of the snack and found they also were seething with maggots.

Qantas said it had apologised to the woman and would investigate how the situation arose.

“We’ve apologised to her for her experience,” a Qantas spokesman told AFP. “We’re speaking to the supplier of the trail mix to try to establish how it could have happened.

“We’re taking it very seriously,” the spokesman added.

http://www.relax.com.sg/relax/news/1040064/Woman_finds_maggots_in_Qantas_snack.html

Here is the video she and her son posted.

Cheeus

On April 8, 2012April 6, 2012 By A.P.In Cheesus, Cheetos, Christianity, Dallas, Religion, TexasLeave a comment

In Dallas, Texas Dan and Sarah Bell discovered a Jesus shaped Cheeto in 2009. Nicknaming the Cheeto “Cheesus,” Sarah noticed that one of the chips looked oddly familiar “I was putting them in my hand and I had eaten most of the ones in my hand, and one was left lying there. And I said, ‘Oh my gosh, look at this. It really looks like a person in a robe praying.”

CBS News reported the Cheeto in question is about 2 inches tall and missing a right arm. Other than that, one might see a distinct robe, long hair and a man praying.

The couple looks at the Cheeto as memento as a momento from god of how blessed they are. For now they are keeping the “Cheesus” in a plastic box and contemplating a possible eBay auction. In the past, a piece of toast with the likeness of Mother Mary ingrained in the bread sold for $28,000. The Bell’s said they just be happy with $25.

http://www.manolith.com/2009/05/18/cheesus-jesus-likeness-found-in-cheetos-bag/

Face Of Jesus Appears On Stingray

On April 7, 2012April 6, 2012 By A.P.In Christianity, Jesus Stingray, Nature, Religion, South Carolina, Stingray1 Comment

New religious/internet icon Sad Stingray Jesus spotted in South Carolina. Via Charleston’s Post and Courier:

It’s not as famous as Grilled Cheesus or Nun Bun, but the image a James Island woman found Friday on the back of a dead cownose ray may be one day.

“I just kind of thought it looked like a bearded homeless man,” said Erica Scheldt, 24. “But when I posted pictures on Instagram, one of my friends was like, ‘That’s Jesus.’ And I was like, ‘Oh my God! You’re right!’”

Scheldt also pointed out that she is from Nashville, home of the famous Nun Bun, a cinnamon roll that bears a strong resemblance to Mother Teresa.

http://www.disinfo.com/2012/04/face-of-jesus-appears-on-stingray/