Ok, well, maybe not a LITERAL vortex. But these Arduino-controlled LED lights coupled with an infinity mirror will make it look like there’s a vortex in your house. Go ahead and give making your own a try! [via Obvious Winner]
The United Kingdom’s National Museum of Computing has unveiled a gallery marking the undersung achievements of women in computing. The gallery’s creation was a response to the fact that only one in ten students who visit the museum as part of its computer learning program are female. Although the gallery is currently a standalone display, […]
The Formula E racing championship, planned to launch next year, won’t just be a demonstration that zero-emissions racing can still be exciting. It’s now looking as if it will be a testing ground for elecricity-based tech. Qualcomm, best known for making smartphone chips, has signed on as a sponsor. Bur rather than just handing over […]
British researchers have successfully tested a method of quantum cryptography that that could make it a more practical system for large-scale communication. Quantum cryptography works by sending each unit of binary data as a light particle (photon) in one of two states, representing a 0 or 1. Not only can this binary information be encrypted […]
A new gadget lets you replace passwords and other log-in methods with a wristband that measures your heart activity. It’ll be launched next year, with the makers hoping to strike deals with a variety of gadget manufacturers. The device, Nymi, doesn’t actually measure your heart rate, which clearly changes depending on your activity. Instead it […]
Featuring HDMI, 2 USB ports, an ethernet port, and running on a Raspberry Pi board, John Badger created this “mini Mac”! It is 1/3 the size of the original Macintosh, but way more powerful! [Via]
Shops and restaurants in the US have joined a coalition against the abuse of patents. The group says patent trolls are now targeting businesses that aren’t even involved in the relevant technologies. The Stop Bad Patents campaign, run by a group called the Internet Association, gives the example of somebody claiming to have a patent […]
Skype has confirmed rumors it has been working on 3D video conferencing. But the company says it could take many years’ work before it becomes viable. Speaking to the BBC, Skype chief (and Microsoft vice-president) Mark Gillett said the company had indeed been carrying out lab work to explore 3D calls, something he said was […]
A British man has brought together two forms of communication technologies, making a tickertape machine that can print tweets. Tickertape machines were used in the late 19th century to transfer stock prices over telegraph lines, printing them out on paper tape at the destination. In effect they were simply Morse code machines that printed out […]
The definition of a second could get even more precise thanks to a new model of atomic clock. The advance has been made by changing the element used for the timekeeping. An atomic clock uses the same principle as a pendulum in a physical clock, just on a tiny scale. It measures the signal emitted […]