Your 2 hourly digest for Engadget

Engadget Engadget

GE turns butterfly-inspired tech into cheap, accurate thermal sensors (video) Feb 15th 2012, 06:52 When last we heard from GE and its Morpho-butterfly inspired sensors, all the talk was about detecting chemicals. And, with $6.3 million in funding coming from DARPA, we're not surprised. In the latest issue of Nature Photonics, however, the company's researchers show that the wing-like structures are just as good at detecting heat as they are ricin attacks. By coating them with carbon nanotubes the team was able to create a sensor sensitive to temperature changes as small as 0.02 degrees Celsius with a response rate of 1/40 of a second. The sensors could eventually find their way into imaging devices and medical equipment, and are expected to cost just a fraction of similar technologies currently on the market. Of course, since DARPA is still involved with the project, there are some potential security uses as well -- such as screening devices and fire detection. Head after the break for a video and some PR. Continue reading GE turns butterfly-inspired tech into cheap, accurate thermal sensors (video) GE turns butterfly-inspired tech into cheap, accurate thermal sensors (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Feb 2012 02:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink   |  GE  | Email this | Comments Kinect for Media Center released, why not wave and shout at your HTPC? Feb 15th 2012, 05:34 Kinect hacks previously brought gesture and voice control to Boxee and XBMC, and now that the Kinect for Windows hardware has been released we've got a solution for Windows Media Center. The aptly named Kinect for Media Center brings all the normal playback controls (for WMC and add-ins like Netflix) to your fingertips and lips, at the cost of $6.99. While its control scheme seems to be fully featured there are unfortunately some limitations -- it doesn't work with the Xbox 360 Kinect due to Microsoft's restrictions, and it also doesn't work with WMC extenders. What is included are filters to keep your content from accidentally triggering the voice controls (something some of us have had problems with on the Xbox 360), and configurable settings for right or left hand dominance or sensitivity. You can check out a video demo of the beta version (compare to a demo we saw last year from the makers of the Amulet voice control remotes) embedded after the break, or head directly to the site to try it out yourself if you're sure that finding the remote has simply become to much of a hassle. Continue reading Kinect for Media Center released, why not wave and shout at your HTPC? Kinect for Media Center released, why not wave and shout at your HTPC? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink The Digital Lifestyle  |  Kinect for Media Center, The Media Center Project (Facebook)  | Email this | Comments

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions