A round-up of the latest technology news from around the globe.
PLANICOPTER: Helicopters have blades, even when they have wings as well, like the Eurocopter X3 (X cubed) hybrid helicraft. It has two short aircraft wings with forward facing propellers, a rotor overhead, but no tail rotor. It will fly long distances at up to 220 Knots, around 400Kph - around twice as fast as current helicopters. There must be some interesting air flow interactions. More at Reuters and video on YouTube (the action begins around 5 minutes in).
SPEED TRAINING: The Harmony is a new high-speed train in China that runs the 202 Km from Shanghai to Hangzhou. In recent trials the train reached 416 Kph, so the journey could take less than half an hour. Except for the stops along the way, of course. More at PeopleDaily and video on YouTube.
WHERE R U?: GeoSMS is a new standard for adding GPS location data to SMS messages. Developed by a student at Australia's RMIT University, it places location identifiers in the text. Smartphone apps could use the information by displaying a map, a compass, distance information or the like. Make sure it's turned off before fibbing about where you are. More at GeoSMS.
WHO R U?: India's new national identity scheme for a billion people uses biometrics, including iris scans, photos and fingerprints. All Indians will be issued a 12-digit ID number that will be used for welfare, opening bank accounts and applying for passports. India says theirs will be the biggest such national database in the world. I bet Amazon's database is bigger. More at the BBC.
TOUCHING IMAGES: Nokia's prototype N900 smartphone fools touch receptors in the skin into perceiving texture on the screen. This could mark out icons or give images texture, for example. Nokia added thin layers of indium tin oxide, a transparent conductor, and hafnium oxide, a transparent insulator, above the LCD. Holding the phone creates a closed circuit and the user's finger is attracted towards the screen with varying strength, generating a textured effect. Let's guess which industry will be first to provide textured cellphone images. Details at NewScientist.
- Miraz Jordan knowit.co.nz
