Tech to truck
UK supermarket chain Sainsbury’s is taking traffic safety to a new level with some pretty hi-tech lorries that transport its goods, according to news reports there. Apparently 14 cyclist deaths in London last year involved lorries, prompting Sainsbury’s to introduce a carrier with sensors to alert drivers to other road users, more LEDs for clearer indication, and cameras at the front, sides and rear. If successful the chain hopes to transform its entire fleet.
Noise in your ear
Headbones. Oh, you mean headphones? No, we did mean headbones – a recently funded Kickstarter project that puts a twist on headphones as we know them.
The UK creation is bluetooth enabled and sits on your temporal bone, using that bone to conduct vibrations to the inner ear. If you use headbones with other earbuds, bone conduction is switched off and the headbones become a bluetooth receiver. Alternatively there’s a built in microphone for making and taking calls, which lets you hear surrounding noise in the process. The project nearly doubled its 50,000 pound funding target.
On demand?
Watching online TV on your TV set is either an oxymoron or the ultimate in convergence. Whatever is it, it seems to working for Right This Minute, a US show that reportedly gets more than two million broadcast viewers for each episode. It seems a pretty cheap format, with hosts simply seeking out and commenting on what they watch on their laptops – which could be anything. Now they just need to offer it on demand and it would really mess with our minds. In case you were wondering, it seems they don’t have a YouTube channel.
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An app for health
Childhood obesity is a growing global problem, but Kurbo Health is doing something about it with its app for US kids. The mobile app is pitched at 8-18 year-olds and is taking on the tough challenge of making it fun to lose weight. It’s got a food tracker, games, progress screens and real time coaches on hand via video and text. Beyond the initial 10-week scheme, the app’s purpose is to get whole families eating healthier.
