posted by admin on Apr 20

Your Basketball or Football can now be made with eco friendly materials at no extra cost to you!

It does seem that some advances in manufacturing could have taken place years ago, but it was all down to laziness that things stayed the same.

What I’m talking about is a sport equipment supplier that are now making all their sports balls (and more) out of ethically sourced materials.  This hasn’t really been done before as people we always happy (or at least not bothered) to change from the cheap and sometimes environmentally damaging alternatives.

All through history, people have found the easiest way to make something, and no-one ever complained.  If someone did offer up an alternative it may well have been a bit more expensive or a bit difficult to get hold of and as no-one really saw the point of changing – everything remained the same.

However now, things ARE changing.  People have found that previous products were damaging the very planet we live on, and even though the manufacturers were making a huge profit – we; the consumers, were only getting their products a little bit cheaper than the more ethical alternatives.  And so we brought the alternative.

The Brand of Ethletic are one such manufacturer, and have found that they can make sports products from sustainable and eco friendly materials, and sell them for virtually the same cost as ‘normal’ sports products.

So that is what they have done.

Their Products:
Ranging from basketballs, footballs, childrens sneakers, sporting accessories, brightly-colored baseball boots and even personalised balloons – all their products have an ethical claim and certification.

Whether it is FSC certified forestry for their 100% compostable latex, Fair Trade certification for their rubber and cotton networks, recyclable or biodegradable packaging or their use of only organic cotton – their products are certainly in a niche of their own.

And you can bulk buy products for your school, college or sports group so you get a fair deal too!  And you can choose the color, logo and other wording on them too!

Now there is no need to NOT buy the Fair Trade version of anything really, as these products are becoming more and more available thanks to new manufacturing and retail developments.

posted by admin on Jan 3

There is lots of speculation – but nothing confirmed?

Seeing as the netbook niche has been so popular – and people aren’t put off by the size of the iPhone, it seems as though Apple are going to merge the 2 ideas and create a giant version of the iPhone – about the size of a closed netbook!

The iSlate seems to be the name in the media at the moment – and apparently Apple have already brought the domain name iSlate.com – so are they right?

Apparently Apple have recently released the patent details for such a gadget, but still the details are not certain. 

The ‘Facts’
Well, a 10.1 inch touchscreen display seems to be the most talked about quality of this new gadget, (or possibly a 7 inch smaller version) but writers are also speculating about it having an embedded front facing webcam as well – which would certainly be a nice touch.

The keyboard would be on the screen itself, with the potential for slightly raised areas within the screen to identify where certain ‘home keys’ are if not all keys having raised lips.

Also, it would have internet access – probably wi-fi – with access to iTunes as well as films, TV and books – making it a huge ebook reader!

Apparently rumoured to run on the iPhone OS software, this tablet computer should have all the standard features of any other laptop or netbook.

It is also rumoured that an industry insider reported that Apple are already in the process of making up to 10 million iSlate tablet computers for release this year; 2010.

The Idea:
Some of the mock-up images of the iSlate look amazing with a magazine front cover on it, or some photo’s of friends, but how will you carry it around?  Yeah, ladies can put it in their purse – but it won’t be fitting in any-one’s jean pocket – so will it be as social as the iPhone currently is?

Without a ‘lid’ so to speak – will it be practical for use and transporting around between meetings or when on vacation?  The screen could be up for a real hard time – unless it stays at home like a coffee table ‘book’ used for parties, get-togethers or instead of the TV!

And the cost will certainly be around the same as a small netbook as well – or more for all the Apple specific features – so people are guessing at around $800 to $1000 for an estimated price.

The Launch:
Apple have apparently rented a stage at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco for an announcement about a ’major product launch’ on January 26th, 2010.

And there is apparently an artists impression of a possible Apple Tablet computer on a Clearwire site showing all the other Apple gadgets! Interesting indeed.

See you at the end of the month!

posted by admin on Dec 28

Why is so much money still be spent on inventions for our pleasure rather than our survival?

There is plenty of talk about the range of new products and technologies that we need to be inventing in the next few decades to make sure that we lower carbon emissions and get energy from water – yet money is still being spent on inventing another mobile phone application to help you call the restaurant down the road without using a phone book!

Or inventing a talking, dancing giant hamster for kids to play with?

Should the world start looking at more pressing inventions, and stop funding things ‘for fun’ or just ‘to find out what so-and-so does’?

Yes, Because…..

There could be a massive argument that without funding of alternative energy sources or a reduction in the emissions from current energy practices – there won’t really be a captive audience left to buy that hamster!

If the scientific facts floating about at the moment about the effects of our emissions and our other activities, then there are going to be some major changes to the way we view ‘normal’.

People can get quite frustrated with the governments or science bodies when they hear about apparently pointless studies and inventions.  People want to see things being achieved that will change their lives – not finding the elusive Higgs -Boson!

No, Because…..

So many things have been invented for one purpose – but then changed slightly to do something completely different – and what if that new thing was the best invention ever?

I know this money all comes from us somewhere down the line (as does all funding) but the more people there are tinkering with this and that – the more chance they will find something great.

We all know the story of Post-It notes and the like, where it’s all a big mistake, but maybe we are looking at the environment in the wrong way and we need a scientist to accidentally turn up with the answer to everything!

posted by admin on Dec 24

The University of Western Ontario has received a $200,000 grant to find out!

There has long been the idea that sensors in contact lenses could help to identify certain medical conditions including diabetes.  In the latter it could be of use if it kept changing color when sugar levels rise or fall in the body and other conditions could be monitored in a similar way.

There is much debate over whether this is of real use to everyday adults with the condition – and many people have commented that they don’t want other people to know they have an illness by using the color change lenses.  However, there is overwhelming support for it’s use in less able individuals who need home support or other forms of care – as a much better alternative to test needles.

And, it is just in contact lenses at the moment – so a normal sighted individual would have to start wearing plain lenses.  But, as technology advances, this could be moved to other areas of the body which are easy to monitor (it’s tricky to see your own eyes) and easier to apply (have you ever tried to get lenses out of your eyes when you aren’t a lens wearer?).

The Big Idea:
Put simply, the fluid secreted from your tear ducts to moisten your eyes can be analyzed for sugar levels and therefore be used to indicate your blood sugar level.

More technically, the use of extremely small nano-particles embedded into the material of the lens will allow for a chemical reaction with the blood sugars secreted by the body allowing for a color change to occur across the whole surface of the lens.

Therefore, the sufferer does not have to repeatedly test their blood sugar levels with a needle testing kit to make sure they are not about to become gravely ill – they just look in a mirror! 

Obviously, diabetes is just one of many conditions that this technology could benefit, but it is one of the world biggest health issue affecting around 220 million people worldwide according to WHO so this technology could save many lives – as around 500 people a day die of the condition.

Imagine if just a quick glance at your friend could save their life! 

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posted by admin on Nov 16

Right, here we go with a fun-packed Latest Inventions Autumn Blog Carnival;

John Laugherton starts us off with a short article in the Top 50 Web Design Resource Blogs for those of your in the industry, and Katy Unitek takes us to another industry – the renewable energy industry with her post: Moving Away from Oil-Powered Energy – Boots on the Roof

Next we have an interview with an inventor: so Surbhi Bhatia offers us An Interview with Dr. Iqbal Ahmed, Creator of World’s Smallest Steam Engine.

Squeezed in next is the obligatory iTunes link, this month from Linda Jones: 100 Awesome iTunes Feeds for Every Kind of Teacher

Next we have a few posts that may or may not be of interest to everyone, but they offer up some ideas that others might no have thought of, so please give them a look:  First we have some speculative but interesting science from Mike with his Brain-Computer Interface and the Wireless Neurosociety article.

Then, Carolyn Friedman gives those starting out a college a very impressive list of 75 + Useful Web Tools for Your First Year of College, followed by some ebook dilemmas from Marco Gustafsson who offers us both: Know More about EBooks and E-Book Readers and E-Ink: their Past, Present and Future.

And tagged on at the end is a very thorough article detailing the pros and cons of the new Hero Sprint technology by Adam Pittaway: HTC Hero (Sprint).

See you in December!