emergentfutures:

When Your Therapist Is Only a Click Away

Ms. Weinblatt, a 30-year-old high school teacher in Oregon, used to be in treatment the conventional way — with face-to-face office appointments. Now, with her new doctor, she said: “I can have a Skype therapy session with my morning coffee or before a night on the town with the girls. I can take a break from shopping for a session. I took my doctor with me through three states this summer!”

Full Story: New York Times

infoneer-pulse:

Scientists use brain imaging to reveal the movies in our mind

Imagine tapping into the mind of a coma patient, or watching one’s own dream on YouTube. With a cutting-edge blend of brain imaging and computer simulation, scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, are bringing these futuristic scenarios within reach.

Using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and computational models, UC Berkeley researchers have succeeded in decoding and reconstructing people’s dynamic visual experiences – in this case, watching Hollywood movie trailers.

As yet, the technology can only reconstruct movie clips people have already viewed. However, the breakthrough paves the way for reproducing the movies inside our heads that no one else sees, such as dreams and memories, according to researchers.

» via UC Berkeley

emergentfutures:

Your Heartbeat on an iPhone

An innovator delivers a cheap, instant, and mobile way to monitor heart problems.

Full Story: Technology Review

emergentfutures:

9 MIT Media Lab Ideas That Are Changing Lives (or Will Soon)

See the original story to look at the nine ideas. I particularly liked the device which clips on to a smartphone to give an accurate prescription for glasses in two minutes

Full Story: The Atlantic

emergentfutures:

Opportunities in Mobile Health

The United States and other industrialized countries can learn from experiments in the developing world that use the humble cell phone as a platform for innovation.

Full Story: Stanford Social Innovation Review

Last fall California-based Berkeley Bionics unveiled a “wearable robot” called eLEGS, an exoskeleton adapted from technology currently being tested for U.S. foot soldiers. Users strap on a backpack containing a battery and microprocessor, then bionic legs with motorized joints at the hips and knees. Sensors in handheld crutches issue instructions to the backpack computer, which relays them to the legs. Walking is simple: Shifting weight to the left crutch, for example, initiates a step forward with the right foot. Trials begin this year. 

emergentfutures:

The future of 3D internet and computer interfaces

3D tech is revolutionising how we interact with our gadgets

Full Story: TechRadar

infoneer-pulse:

Our latest report, Americans and Their Cell Phones, takes a look at how cell phones have worked themselves into our lives—what we do with them, how we feel about them, whether we can even bring ourselves to take a break and turn them off.

About a third (35%) of adults in the US own a smartphone, specifically, including over half (52%) of young adults under 30. This table shows how smartphone users in different age groups use their devices, but the full report has a lot more information about other demographic groups, as well as how smartphone users compare to the rest of the cell phone-using population. If you haven’t already, check it out: Americans and Their Cell Phones (2011)

» via pewinternet

emergentfutures:

An Inside Look Into The Amazon.com Warehouses (video)

The following are a few videos that offer a peek into the fulfillment centers behind the website.

Full Story: Singularity Hub

Reminder: your stuff comes from someplace, even if you get it off the Internet.