Back in 1994, Microsoft’s first ergonomic keyboard showed us that the traditional design maybe wasn’t as comfortable as it could’ve been, and that we didn’t have to deal with a crippling pain in our wrists just to send an email. An age of ergonomic accessories was born, and the piece de resistance of the past 20 or so years would have to be Microsoft’s new Sculpt Ergonomic Desktop set, featuring a trio of comfy input options.
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A group of MIT researchers (we assume they’re all Philip K. Dick fans) have successfully implanted false memories in the minds of mice, according to a study published in the journal Science. This “mouseception” experiment was designed to examine the phenomenon called false memory syndrome, in which the brain concocts recollections of events that have never happened. By manipulating the memory engram-bearing cells in the hippocampus, the research team convinced a few unsuspecting mice that they had experienced a shock to their feet when one had never actually occurred. One can only assume that after finessing this false memory implantation, the next logical step is going into the mice’s dreams and stealing all their secrets. Christopher Nolan would be so proud. Or horrified. Jury’s still out.
Source: Science
When experimenting with laboratory animals, it’s important to completely eliminate any outside factors that could influence the results. So to prevent infection from human handlers, Japan’s Nikkyo Technos and Yaskawa Electric have completely eliminated people from the equation with this robotic system that can autonomously care for up to 30,000 mice at once.
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The problem with laptop trackpads: they’re usually not very good. But would turning the touchpad into a mouse solve the problem? Perhaps. That’s what MSI seems to be attempting with its MouseBook concept. In essence, it’s a laptop with a trackpad that can pop out and then be used as a standalone mouse. As you can see in the photo above, there’s a release switch for removing the pad. Once it’s out, you can move it across your desk as you would a mouse, as opposed to just using it as an external trackpad. It connects over Bluetooth and, as you’d expect, it recharges when it’s inside the laptop. What we find most intriguing, perhaps, is the fact that when you remove the trackpad, a flat surface rises up to fill the space so that you’re not left with a gaping hole in your palm rest. Since this is just an experiment at this point, MSI can’t say if it will ever make its way into a real product. If you’re curious, though, we’ve got a walkthrough video after the break, showing everything except, uh, how it works — MSI still doesn’t have a fully functioning unit to show off.
Gallery: MSI MouseBook concept hands-on
Filed under: Laptops
File this under “things we could have sworn already existed.” Microsoft just announced two mice, the Sculpt Mobile Mouse and Sculpt Comfort Mouse, and believe it or not, this marks the first time Redmond has made a pointing device with a hotkey for the Windows 8 Start screen. In addition to bringing up the Start Menu, you can use it return to the desktop, all without having to hit the keyboard. While the Mobile Mouse has just the Start key and a scroll wheel, though, the bigger Comfort Mouse takes things a step further: the button there doubles as a capacitive surface you can swipe to toggle through open programs in Windows 8. If you swipe that strip the other way, you can also bring up a list of open applications running along the left-hand side of the screen. Note: the Comfort Mouse’s Start button is located on the left, meaning it was clearly designed for righties. Or, you know, someone with a strong left pinky.
Some other differences: the Mobile Mouse requires a dongle, whereas the Comfort uses Bluetooth. Oh, and the Comfort has a more ergonomic shape, too, but you probably gathered that just by glancing at the name. Expect the Mobile version to go on sale first — it’ll hit shelves later this month for $30. The Comfort model will arrive in June, with a higher MSRP of $40. In the meantime, we’ve got some hands-on photos (heh) for you to check out.
Filed under: Peripherals, Microsoft
Source: Microsoft
Whether you’re looking to instill fear in the hearts of enemies at LAN, or just want to edit spreadsheets in style, this Iron Man mouse will do everything a normal mouse can… just cooler. To capitalize on hype for the third installment of the superhero film franchise, Japanese company e-blue (aka E-3LUE) has released this gold and hot-rod red peripheral with Tony Stark’s blessing (read: under official Marvel license). Two AAA batteries power the wireless mouse (some say an Arc reactor was too expensive, and fictional), which has a resolution of 1000 dpi and, most importantly, light-up eyes. For 699 Chinese yuan (roughly $113), you also get a “Proof that Tony Stark has a heart” presentation case to show it off in. We’re not sure whether e-blue’s mouse with make it over to the States, but instead of worrying about that, check out the Iron Man 3 trailer below to inject some excitement into Monday morning. Can we have a War Machine version now, please?
[Image Credit: PCPOP]
Filed under: Peripherals
Via: Engadget Chinese
Source: e-blue
A beefed up computer ensures you can actually play the latest and greatest PC gaming titles, but if you want to compete online with even a marginal level of success, you’re going to need to get yourself a kick-ass mouse as well. Gigabyte’s new Aivia Uranium seems to fit the bill, particularly if you want to go wireless without having to swap batteries every few days. More »
We know in the animal kingdom, the human brain is probably considered the cream of the crop as we can do pretty much anything and everything, that is, unless it has to do with going underwater or into space. Then we’ll need some special gear in order to keep our precious brains from exploding in our skulls. But a new experiment may have just shown what the human brain can do when combined with animals.
Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center injected new properties of human brain cells known as astrocytes into mice, using them to boost their learning ability. The astrocytes, which were once thought to be helper cells, gave the group of mice the ability to learn their way through a maze faster than another group of mice that were given extra brain cells from their own species. Not only that, but the human-brain infused mice were also able to quickly associate a particular sound with an electric shock. (more…)
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: NEXThaler Dry Powder Asthma Inhaler, Smart Wound Dressing Glows Whenever Bacteria Are Around, 
A team of British researchers have successfully grown a tooth from human gum tissue—which might make false teeth a thing of the past. More »
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