Students today are using more tech in more places than even Popular Science imagined back in the atomic age. 98% of students own a gadget and 70% of them use a gadget in class–some for note-taking and study, some for poke wars on Facebook during lecture. And while the time spent online in a day might set off some warning bells, the good news is that a breakdown of that time shows much of it is spent learning.
[onlineeducation via DVICE]
Intel is planning to invest $300 million to create what it’s calling a new form of computer to bridge the (somewhat slender) gap between a netbook and a tablet.
According to the company, the Russian doll-like sequence of laptop/notebook/netbook/tablet needs a new family member: the Ultrabook. As is usually the case with hybrid devices, the idea is to take the best parts of two concepts: the instant switch-on, slimline build and lengthy battery life of the tablet, with the processing power and “full” computing of the netbook.
How you make a full-fledged computer with a battery life that covers all-day use and multiple days on standby, while still making it portable, is in this case the $400 question. Intel is going to work on its own processors to try to cut power use, but is also ready to put money into hardware and software companies with relevant ideas.
You certainly can’t accuse Intel of a lack of ambition: not only does it believe it can make such devices available before Christmas for under $1,000, but it reckons that by the end of 2012, 40 percent of all consumer laptops will be in the “Ultrabook” category. It’s not clear if that refers to manufacture or sales: it’s hard to imagine laptops that are anywhere close to a thousand bucks making up 40 percent of sales.
The plan is to release the new models in waves, the first of which will effectively be souped up, slimmed-down and always-connected netbooks, while the second will combine keyboards with a touchscreen and will likely run Windows 8.
And if any of this sounds familiar, Intel has flat-out admitted that one of the goals is to have a competitor for the MacBook Air at far below Apple prices.
The New York Times notes that Intel has already released guidelines on suitable designs for manufacturers to use chips specifically designed for “Ultrabooks.” The problem is that manufacturers working to the first design are struggling to get the device below the $1,000 barrier.
The Google+ Song by Break is a social media-centric version of “Another One Bites the Dust” by Queen. And not bad at all. +1
[via]
This microscopy image provided by Dr. Carl June on Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2011 shows immune system T-cells, center, binding to beads which cause the cells to divide. Scientists are reporting the first clear success with gene therapy to treat leukemia. (Dr. Carl June/The Associated Press)
Three men who were suffering from advanced chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) are now healthy and cancer-free, thanks to a pair of clinical studies for a promising new gene therapy. The results, announced Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine and Science Translational Medicine, have medical researchers in thrall: “I’m getting goosebumps,” says University of Pennsylvania pathologist Michael Kalos, lead author of one of the studies.
Though the sample is small, the findings of Drs. Carl June and Michael Kalos (both of the University of Pennsylvania) indicate the new treatment is better than successful–in addition to eradicating tumors and removing cancer cells from the body for over a year, the reprogrammed T-cells seemingly act as a vaccine, preventing future recurrences of cancer.
The technique works like this: the patient’s T-cells are isolated and genetically reprogrammed using a virus vector that inserts a new gene into their DNA. This new gene prompts the T-cells to create an antibody — known as chimeric antigen receptor or CAR — that specifically targets structures present on the surface of cancer cells.
After the modified T-cells are injected back into the patient, they seek and attach themselves to cancer cells, then obliterate them with a swiftness and efficiency that has researchers astounded. They’ve been dubbed “serial killers,” and each reprogrammed T-cell is responsible for the calculated death of thousands of cancer cells. “Within three weeks the tumours had been blown away, in a way that was much more violent than we ever expected,” said June.
More importantly, however, the “serial killer” cells cause other T-cells to multiply each time they attack, creating more killers with each slain cancer cell. Healthy tissue is left unharmed and the patient’s immune system is not only uncompromised, but bolstered by the additional production of T-cells. “If leukemia does come back, those T-cells (appear to be) armed and ready to eliminate it,” Kalos said.
There’s no reason to suspect that this treatment is only effective against leukemia, either. By modifying the T-cells to target a specific structure on various cancers, the new technique is feasible for treatment of “hard tumor” cancers like breast, lung and prostate. “You can target prostate cancer, for example, by targeting any of the surface molecules that have been shown to be present on prostate cancer,” Kalos says.
These are not the first studies to utilize modified T-cells as cancer treatment, but they are the first to show robust and successful results. The object now is to repeat the process in further studies, which are planned for the coming months.
Flickr user Pepa Quin made these totally awesome Team Fortress 2 characters entirely out of LEGO. Check ’em all out below!
[Source: Flickr – Pepa Quin | Via]
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Portal 2 fan TRP-Chan made this geektastic “life-size” Wheatley puppet to carry around when cosplaying as Chell. And thanks to the instruction provided here, you can even make your own!
[Via TDWG]
I can’t believe someone went through the trouble of making such an elaborate promo video for a simple iPhone app!
Demon Cam™ allows you to record a personalized VIDEO of anyone and transform them into a shocking Demon!