In-depth review charts the scientific understanding of rainbows and highlights the many practical applications of this fascinating interaction between light, liquid and gas. There’s more to rainbows than meets the eye. Knowledge gained from studying these multicoloured arcs of scattered light can be incredibly useful in ways that may not immediately spring to mind. Rainbow effects can warn of chemical contamination in the atmosphere, help to develop […]
Can the woolly mammoth be brought back from the dead? Scientists say it’s only a matter of time. In fact this year, the International Union for Conservation of Nature issued its first official set of guidelines on resurrecting extinct species. What’s more, university research labs and non-governmental agencies have projects in motion to bring back extinct species. But is all of this a good idea? A new […]
In a paper presented today at the Association for Computing Machinery’s special interest group on data communication (SIGCOMM) conference in Florianópolis, Brazil, a team of computer science researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst led by professor Deepak Ganesan introduced a new radio technology that allows small mobile devices to take advantage of battery power in larger devices nearby for communication. Ganesan and his graduate students in […]
A new speech analytics tool announced yesterday by Verint Systems is designed to help customer service professionals get real-time guidance for better managing calls. The software-based system can alert service reps to caller insights as they happen as well as help companies ensure compliance with important policies and regulations, the company said. The Melville, New York-based Verint said the new real-time speech analytics capabilities are natively embedded […]
SEOUL South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said on Tuesday it will start selling its third smartphone powered by the company’s own Tizen mobile operating system in India next week. The Z2 phone, equipped with a 4-inch screen and India-specific features such as a safety mode for motorcyclists, will be the cheapest Tizen phone Samsung has launched to date at 4,590 rupees ($68.44). […]
Set to arrive on September 30, iOS 10, the latest update of Apple’s mobile operating system, will offer a number of new features, including a redesigned lock screen, a more intelligent Siri digital assistant and new looks for other apps. One improvement to Siri will be especially welcome for at least one famous iPhone user: Barbra Streisand. In an interview over the weekend, the singer told NPR […]
Beginning “as early as next year,” Samsung may start selling refurbished smartphones directly to consumers. The new resale program is aimed at strengthening Samsung’s earnings as global phone sales slow down, according to report today citing “a person with direct knowledge of the matter.” Offering lower-cost refurbished phones could also help Samsung better compete against Chinese manufacturers whose cheap devices have cut into its sales, especially in […]
T-Mobile and Sprint began yet another duel yesterday by unveiling rival wireless plans with unlimited data usage. Their announcements came just one day after AT&T unveiled new wireless service plans it said will eliminate data overage charges for customers. Starting at $70 per month for one line, the new T-Mobile One plan comes with several caveats, including slower data speeds after customers exceed 26 GB in a […]
Are you ready for a smartphone battery that lasts twice as long as your current one? According to researchers, that battery is coming. MIT News reported this week that a new kind of lithium battery is on the way to being commercialized. Called lithium metal batteries, they can reportedly pack the same energy as standard lithium-ion cells in half the size — or put twice as much […]
By Eveline Danubrata and Glenys Kirana | JAKARTA JAKARTA Asian fans of smartphone game Pokemon Go are hunting out the best telecom providers and network gear to overcome the hurdle posed by patchy network signals in their race to capture virtual cartoon characters. From Indonesia to Hong Kong and Cambodia, the wild popularity of Nintendo’s (7974.T) augmented reality app is also driving lifestyle changes for many gamers, […]
Researchers at the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw, using the liquid crystal elastomer technology, originally developed in the LENS Institute in Florence, demonstrated a bioinspired micro-robot capable of mimicking caterpillar gaits in natural scale. The 15-millimeter long soft robot harvests energy from green light and is controlled by spatially modulated laser beam. Apart from travelling on flat surfaces, it can also climb slopes, squeeze […]
UAE. A new study released today by global strategy and management consulting firm A.T. Kearney concludes that autonomous driving will trigger the 21st century’s first major wave of growth. Key findings from the report, ‘How Automakers Can Survive the Self-Driving Era’, are based on interviews with more than 150 automotive decision-makers around the world. A.T. Kearney consultants sought to identify the products, services and partner strategies with […]
INTERNATIONAL. Global bank rating trends were negative again in 1H16 for the fourth consecutive negative six-month period, says Fitch Ratings. The global distribution of Outlooks deteriorated in 1H16 as Negative Outlooks (22%) far outweighed Positives (5%), a level not seen since 2009. Emerging market (EM) banks experienced the majority of negative ratings trends, heavily influenced by rating actions in Brazil, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Nigeria. In EMs, […]
Starting Sunday, AT&T is launching new wireless plans that it said will eliminate data overage charges for customers. Instead of generating extra fees once they exceed their monthly data caps, the network speeds of customers with Mobile Share Advantage plans will be slowed down to limit further data consumption. Verizon, the largest wireless company in the U.S., made similar changes to its mobile plans last month with […]
A new certification program is aimed at assuring users that USB Type-C chargers won’t damage their devices or fail to provide adequate charges. Announced yesterday by the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF), the program sets compliance standards for original equipment manufacturers of USB-C products. Introduced in 2014, the USB-C standard for universal serial bus connections is a more compact type of connector that’s easier to plug in and […]
Has Samsung finally come up with a giant killer of a mobile device that can give it genuine leverage against Apple in that market? If the early reviews of the Galaxy Note 7 are any indication, that just might be the case. The Samsung Galaxy Note 7, set for release this week, has drawn almost unanimously positive reviews from technology media outlets. The Galaxy Note 7 is […]
While it already offers several ways for users to make video calls over various platforms, Google today launched a new phone-based app called Duo that’s designed for simplicity. Available for both Android and iOS smartphones, Google Duo doesn’t require anything more than a phone number to launch once the app is downloaded. Unlike Google’s Hangouts messaging, voice and video calling tool, people don’t even need Google accounts […]
Now, all you need is a phone number to start a video call with any contact who uses an Android- or iOS-based smartphone. Google on Tuesday launched Google Duo, pitting it directly against Apple Inc’s (AAPL.O) FaceTime, which allows video calls only between Apple devices. Duo will also compete with Microsoft Corp’s (MSFT.O) video-calling app Skype, Facebook Inc’s (FB.O) Messenger and even its own Hangout app. Duo […]
With the clock ticking toward Apple’s scheduled fall release of the iPhone 7, iOS 10, macOS Sierra and more, the rumor mill about new products and changes by the company is switching into high gear. Several outlets are reporting leaked images purporting to show the iPhone 7 Plus in new colors, including black and rose gold. There are also reports that Apple is in talks that could […]
INTERNATIONAL. What would your ideal robot be like? One that can change nappies and tell bedtime stories to your child? Perhaps you’d prefer a butler that can polish silver and mix the perfect cocktail? Or maybe you’d prefer a companion that just happened to be a robot? Certainly, some see robots as a hypothetical future replacement for human carers. But a question roboticists are asking is: how […]
Despite recently weakening consumer sales for both the iPhone and iPad, Apple devices and software have enjoyed a growing presence in business enterprises. Out of net sales of nearly $234 billion in 2015, some $25 billion came through sales to large business customers, according to Apple’s most recent annual report, released in October. While those sales were just a small fraction of the company’s overall revenues, they […]
The newest smartphones in Samsung’s Galaxy line come with contactless mobile payment capability. That’s good news when it comes to convenience, but it might be bad news when it comes to security. During a presentation given recently at the Def Con security conference in Las Vegas, a computer science student demonstrated a variety of attacks against Samsung Pay, Samsung’s mobile payment service. The attacks Mendoza described were […]
A man uses a mobile phone in front of an advertisement board bearing the image of Pokemon Go at an electronic shop in Tokyo, Japan, July 27, 2016. Reuters/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File Photo SAN FRANCISCO Top video game companies, caught off-guard by the runaway success of Pokemon Go, are wrestling with how to play catch-up to the augmented reality app that has become a worldwide phenomenon. Nearly a dozen […]
Eyeing the opportunity to grow its e-commerce sales, Walmart today announced it will shell out $3.3 billion to acquire the online retailer Jet. Since launching a year ago, Jet has grown rapidly to reach $1 billion in merchandise sales. While Walmart dominates the brick-and-mortar retail ecosystem in the U.S., its online sales trail that of its greatest e-commerce competitor, Amazon. In 2015, Amazon reported net sales of […]
