There is an interessting new market comming up: organic pesticides. Companies like Marrone Organic Innovations are searching for microorganisms (e.g. one cell animals) that kill weeds and pests. Currently they are experimentating with a component of a herbal Hepatitis C medizine. Another product (based on citrus oil extract) is supposed to be marketed this year. [...]
Sunny Optics and Varioptic announced to launch a 2 Megapixel liquid lens auto focus camera module. The substantial improvement: It’ just made of a combination of oil and water and doesn’t need traditional mechanical parts. Under voltage the differences between electrically conducting water and non conducting oil are used (more technical details about “electrowetting”). This [...]
In 1956 Robert Adler patented the enhanced version of his “Flashmatic” and named it “Space Commander”. These days most people in the industrial countries use it nearly every day. What am I talking about? It sounds a bit like a story taken from the movie “Back To The Future” but in fact it is the [...]
During this week I’ve made some incremental changes in this blog. I’ve integrated Google AdSense. I think it’s done in way that doesn’t disturb my readers!? My motive to do so was primarily to “monitor” the development of web ads in general and needless to say blog ads in particular from a user perspective. Of [...]
Nathan Ball, a 23-year-old MIT student has won this year’s Lemelson-MIT Student Prize with the invention of his “Atlas Powered Rope Ascender“. It’s a device to “fly” up buildings up to ten times faster than if you have to use the stairs. Especially fire departments and the military may have practical applications for Ball’s new [...]
