Hasta La Gadget!

Samsung’s Exynos 5-based Chromebook may have been available since last October, but how about one equipped with WiMAX radio? Graced with the presence of Google and Samsung reps in Kuala Lumpur (including a video message from Google SVP Sundar Pichai), today Malaysian carrier Yes 4G unveiled this rather special laptop for the local consumers. In fact, we should have seen this coming as Google’s official blog did hint this last month, but we failed to catch that blurred “Yes 4G” logo on the laptop in the blog’s photo.

As Google mentioned, the ultimate goal here is to help transform Malaysia’s education using the Chromebook. And now we know that this ambition will be backed by Yes 4G’s rapidly growing WiMAX network — from the initial 1,200 base stations in 2010 to today’s 4,000, covering 85 percent of the peninsula; and the carrier will expand into the eastern side with 700 more sites by the end of this year. This is especially important for the rural areas, where many schools still lack access to water and electricity. As a partner of the Malaysian Ministry of Education’s 1BestariNet project, Yes 4G’s parent company YTL Communications has so far ensured that 7,000 local state schools are covered by its WiMAX network, with the remaining 3,000 to be connected over the next six months.

Filed under: Laptops, Samsung

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Source: Yes

We’ve featured a number of stories of robots here at Ubergizmo, with a number of them spelling out the upcoming demise of the human race as they’ve learned to wield chainsaws and have beaten humans in Rock’ Em Sock ‘Em robots. Now, it looks like a robot is expected to infiltrate our schools to learn more about us.

A robot model called Robovie began attending Higashihikari elementary school in Japan this week, and is expected to attend classes for over 14 months in order to learn about human interactions among multiple people.

The Robovie can hold conversations equal to a five-year-old child, although it has been equipped with knowledge from a fifth-grade science textbook as well as facial photos and voiceprints of teachers and students it will come across in the school.

Robovie has already interacted with the students and teachers this week as it answered questions from the teachers during class, and spent time after class to shake hands of the sixth graders and answered any questions they had for it. We’re hoping there’s one student at that school that can keep an eye on Robovie, in case he decides to start doing anything that may spark the robot revolution.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Robot Jumps In An Explosive Manner, Robot Inspired By Moth Tracks Down Smells,

Dentists have Simroid and Hanako to practice on, while doctors also have their own simulator robots which they use to perform simulated surgeries. It was only a matter of time before vets got their own robots to practice on – and that they did get back in 2010, when Robo-Jerry II and Robo-Fluffy made their debuts at Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

Now these ‘bots and their ‘homes’ are getting an upgrade to give better training to the future veterinarians of America who will see to the welfare and well-being of your furry best friends. The University is currently working on a much more advanced robo-dog called ‘Butch’, which will have more realistic features even though it will be constructed using cheap, standard components.

Aside from that, veterinary students will also be working in a new simulation center which features fully equipped exam rooms and two rooms for video-feed observation.

Assistant professor Daniel Fletcher explains: “Our model can enhance CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) scenarios and can simulate a slew of other conditions, and we’ve seen interest in it growing. We’re gathering evidence and tools to help bring the simulation capability and teaching model outside Cornell.”

The simulation center is part of a larger plan for a hands-on lab for students to practice everything from listening to robo-pet vitals, to suturing and other clinical skills.

[via Gizmag]

My heart breaks every time I hear about school shootings and other incidents where people with guns fire at innocent people for no apparent reason. It’s especially heartbreaking if it happens at a school, no less, where almost no one expects to get hurt because they’re there to learn.

In response to the most recent school shooting in Connecticut, military armor maker Hardwire has taken it upon themselves to create something that I never thought you’d need in school – bulletproof whiteboards and bag inserts to provide teachers and students with their last line of defense.
When faced with a shooter, they can basically take the bulletproof whiteboard and use it as a shield to protect themselves. The whiteboard comes with two handles so it’s easy to grip and handle. While the whiteboard might not be large enough to protect the body of an adult, it will be enough to at least shield the vital parts of the person’s body.

Hardwire has also made a bulletproof insert for backpacks, transforming bags into potentially life-shaving shields in the face of danger.

The bulletproof whiteboard is available in two sizes: the smaller clipboard version costs $109 (USD), while the larger 18×20 inch board is priced at $299. It can shield a person’s head and torso. The bulletproof bag insert is priced at $100.

[via CNET]

The Chromebook world has really amounted to a two-horse town: you’ve had to like either Acer’s designs or Samsung’s if you’ve wanted Chrome OS on the move. Lenovo is at last pushing out the borders, however slightly, with the ThinkPad X131e Chromebook. As suggested by the name, it’s a subtle adaptation of the existing X131e to Google’s platform, where the only real hardware difference is AMD’s removal from the options list. The software really is the point, though — Lenovo sees the combination of a rugged, 11.6-inch laptop with web-only software as being perfect for schools that don’t want headaches with damage, security or storage. Accordingly, the only ones buying as of the February 26th launch will be institutional customers making volume bids. The Lenovo Chromebook won’t affect most grown-ups as a result, but it could shake up an OS ecosystem that has remained tiny for more than two years.

Continue reading Lenovo adopts Chrome OS, intros ThinkPad X131e Chromebook for schools

Filed under: Laptops, Google, Lenovo

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Source: Lenovo