Month: April 2012

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From Technology Review RSS Feeds: If You Have a Smart Phone, Anyone Can Now Track Your Every Move

Navizon I.T.S. makes it easy to pinpoint Wi-Fi devices anywhere its listening nodes are installed.

Location services company Navizon has a new system, called Navizon I.T.S., that could allow tracking of visitors in malls, museums, offices, factories, secured areas and just about any other indoor space. It could be used to examine patterns of foot traffic in retail spaces, assure that a museum is empty of visitors at closing time, or even to pinpoint the location of any individual registered with the system. But let’s set all that aside for a minute while we freak out about the privacy implications.




from Technology Review RSS Feeds

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From Engadget: Boeing CST-100 capsule could shuttle astronauts to ISS, shows off its innards in Colorado Springs

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With the Space Shuttle now officially grounded, NASA has been researching alternatives for ferrying astronauts from Earth to the International Space Station, orbiting some 230 miles above the planet. One such vehicle has made its way from Boeing’s HQ to the National Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, where a full-size model is on display for conference attendees. Externally, the spacecraft appears very similar to the reentry modules of yesteryear, measuring 14.5 feet with room for up to seven people. The craft is designed to make its way through the atmosphere mounted to an Atlas V rocket, and is rated for up to 10 roundtrip missions. As is typical with spacecraft, it looks like astronauts won’t be traveling with first-class accommodations — things will likely feel quite cozy when the CST-100 is at capacity — but such conditions come with the territory. There’s no date set for delivery, but the craft could be making its way to space as early as 2015, and has reportedly been tested in the Nevada desert as recently as this month.

 

from Engadget

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From Engadget: AT&T opens Watson API up to developers

Um… yet aNOTHER API?!  o.O

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Admit it, you don’t have nearly enough opportunities to talk back to your phone. AT&T is giving you more. The company today announced that it will be offering its Watson real-time speech-to-text software to developers as APIs aimed at a number of different application types — things like web search, question and answer apps and anything that uses AT&T’s U-Verse TV services. A number of additional varieties are also in the works, including gaming and social media. Check out a cheery informational video after the break.

Continue reading AT&T opens Watson API up to developers

 

from Engadget