Hasta La Gadget!

Mike Lazaridis may now have a considerably smaller role at RIM, but he’s isn’t exactly receding from the technology scene in the company’s hometown of Waterloo, Ontario. That’s no more evident than in the Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre opening tomorrow on the University of Waterloo campus, a science and technology research center that not only bears his name but was built with $100 million of his money. As Lazaridis makes clear in an interview with Bloomberg, he’s also not modest about his ambitions for the center, noting that it is “absolutely” going to be the Bell Labs of the 21st century. Or, perhaps more specifically, a Bell Labs for quantum computing and nanotechnology, areas of research that Lazaridis says are key in order to “break through those barriers” of traditional computing. You can find the full interview and more details on the center itself at the links below.

Filed under: Science, Alt

Lazaridis-backed Quantum-Nano Centre opens tomorrow, aims to be a new Bell Labs originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 16:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What you’re about to see, should you choose to click the source link below, is far from perfect. On the other hand, it’s clearly had a lot of effort and expertise put into it — not only by HTML5-savvy coders, but also by a troupe of performers from the Cirque du Soleil. It’s called Movi.Kanti.Revo, which is a fancy way of saying Move.Sing.Dream, and it involves navigating through an ethereal and slightly laggy landscape using only swaying gestures, your singing voice (mournful sobbing sounds also worked for us) and a bunch of APIs that conveniently fail to work on FireFox, Safari or Internet Explorer. It’s well-suited to those with a mic and webcam, preferably sitting in a open-plan and bully-ridden workplace, and if you don’t like it there’s always Bastion.

Filed under: Internet, Software, Alt

Chrome experiment explores new types of navigation, degrees of embarrassment originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 10:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) puts it into perspective right away: “Eight billion years ago, rays of light from distant galaxies began their long journey to Earth.” It’s important to hold that fact in mind, as we marvel at the first images from deep in the belly of our universe to arrive from the Chile-based Dark Energy Camera (DECam). As that name might suggest, peering at remote galaxies for purely visual gratification isn’t the camera’s primary purpose. The result of eight years of planning and hard work, involving engineers and scientists from three continents, the DECam is mounted on the Victor M. Blanco Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. Sitting atop a 7,200-foot mountain, the camera is part of the Dark Energy Survey, which intends to gather information on over 300 million galaxies. The goal is to better understand dark energy — a concept that represents our best explanation for why the universe’s rate of expansion is speeding up, rather than slowing due to gravity. Gaze past the break for the background on the project.

Continue reading DECam: Gazing deep into the final frontier in search of dark energy

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DECam: Gazing deep into the final frontier in search of dark energy originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 13:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ultrasound is likely most often associated with sonograms, but some MIT engineers are poised to change that. By using two separate beams of inaudible sound waves (one at low-frequency, the other high) the team were able to increase the permeability of skin, in a bid to improve the efficiency of transdermal drug delivery. The technique works thanks to the waves exciting bubbles in a fluid (such as water), forcing them to swell and move chaotically. Once the bubbles reach a certain size they implode, sucking the surrounding fluid into the void. This process creates micro-jets of liquid, which cause miniscule tears in the skin, allowing it to (painlessly) absorb chemicals more effectively. In practice, a pre-treated area of skin is then covered with a patch containing the correct dose of drugs — but don’t worry, the skin is said to grow back just a few hours later.

Up until now, research into ultrasonic administration of drugs has concentrated on low-frequency waves, because the higher end of the spectrum doesn’t have enough energy to pop the bubbles. Higher frequencies do, however, help create more of them and also limits their lateral movement. By using both high- and low-frequencies, the MIT engineers found this produced better over all results, by not only increasing the skin’s uptake of the medicine, but also increasing the number of drugs that can be delivered this way. With pretty much anything that is usually delivered in capsule form being on the cards, this could make the administration of many popular drugs much more convenient and / or effective. Also excellent news for those who really don’t like needles.

Continue reading MIT engineers use ultrasound for improved topical drug administration (video)

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MIT engineers use ultrasound for improved topical drug administration (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 04:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BioWare co-founders Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka collectively announced their retirement today from the studio they founded nearly 20 years ago, as well as from their positions at parent company Electronic Arts. Each is leaving the game industry altogether, with Muzyka heading into philanthropy, and Zeschuk into the world of craft brewing.

Muzyka reflected on his years in game development and management in a blog post. “It’s not often that you can truly say you were able to pursue and achieve your dream job; I know how lucky I am to be able to say that now, in my early 40s,” he said. Zeschuk was similarly reflective. “Building BioWare over the years with Ray and the many other people involved was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I’ll cherish it always,” he wrote. The two former doctors founded Bioware in 1995, and developed iconic titles like Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, and most recently, Star Wars: The Old Republic (an MMO). BioWare was purchased by Electronic Arts in 2007, and its name has since spread to a variety of EA’s other studios.

Filed under: Gaming, Alt

BioWare co-founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk retire, to exit the game industry originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Sep 2012 16:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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