Thinking Tech

Archive: 03-2012

• How to make your own tricorder

  Dr. Peter Jansen has built a real-life tricorder, and he’s hoping you’ll use his open-source plans to build your own.

  March 30, 2012, 9:53 AM PDT | By Mari Silbey

• World’s smallest .45 caliber pistol

  The DoubleTap handgun is only 5/8ths of an inch thick and weighs 14 ounces.

  March 30, 2012, 5:10 AM PDT | By Tuan C. Nguyen

• TVs may soon be used to spy on you

  Technology designed to adapt to the preferences of each individual user may also be used to pass that information along to hackers or advertisers.

  March 30, 2012, 5:05 AM PDT | By Tuan C. Nguyen

• Watch as a blind man drives Google’s self-driving car

  Google has released a video of a blind man being perfectly at ease behind the wheel of one of the company’s test vehicles.

  March 30, 2012, 5:01 AM PDT | By Tuan C. Nguyen

• BumpPay lets you transfer money by tapping phones

  BumpPay, the newest app from BumpLabs, allows users to pay each other back by tapping phones together.

  March 29, 2012, 9:45 AM PDT | By Jenny Wilson

• Spray-on pavement used to fill potholes

  A new technology that provides a cheaper, faster and more lasting way to fill potholes has been tested out in an Ohio district and may soon be implemented throughout the state.

  March 29, 2012, 7:48 AM PDT | By Jenny Wilson

• Believe it! Car gets 3,000 miles per gallon

  Engineers have proven that it’s possible to drive from coast to coast with only a gallon of gasoline.

  March 29, 2012, 5:10 AM PDT | By Tuan C. Nguyen

• Feds find new spectrum for mobile Internet services

  The government has found a 95 MHz spectrum band it wants to repurpose for mobile broadband services, but relocating federal agencies and figuring out spectrum sharing won’t be easy.

  March 28, 2012, 9:48 AM PDT | By Mari Silbey

• People choosing learning to code over learning a foreign language

  For many, JavaScript is viewed as more useful than the ability to order a cup of java in a foreign country.

  March 28, 2012, 8:47 AM PDT | By Jenny Wilson

• Recharge your smartphone simply by breathing

  Goodbye power outlets? The AIRE Mask converts inhaling and exhaling into electricity.

  March 28, 2012, 5:10 AM PDT | By Tuan C. Nguyen