Guesswork

Predictions

This is what Toronto and apparently much of North America looks like today, as we get snowed under by a massive, festive pre-Christmas storm system. I know it’s inappropriate to relate specific weather events to the bigger picture of global warming, but seriously, we have to blame somebody.

You know, I was thinking the other day that that there just isn’t enough mayhem on the highways, and that what society really needs is some kind of personal flying device so people can take their road rage to the air. That’s why I got so excited about the Vertipod. This flying deathtrap, from a […]

My recycling fodder from Shoppers Drug Mart features some funky technology this week - a portable stereo that plays both cassettes and CDs. Now seeing as nobody has sold cassettes for the last decade or so, I’m assuming that someone doing inventory at Shoppers’ came across a warehouse full […]

From Asia, where it’s impossible to tell whether they take their Christianity very seriously or are mocking it all to hell, comes the Cross MP3 player. Manufactured by Chinavasion, this gadget is perfect for rocking out while you’re waiting to be Raptured.
The Cross comes in 1GB, 2GB, and 4GB sizes and […]

I lifted the above headline from Yahoo! Canada News except that I wittily added the word “no”, because I’m irked by the way this story is being presented in the media. Now as a regular reader of my increasingly irregular blog, right now you’ll be saying “Big deal, everything irks Metzger” and fair enough. But […]

I should have known it was too good to be true. Last week, Engadget and a few dozen other blogs reported that a Colorado man had had his thumbs surgically altered to make himself a better iPhone user. According to the story, he’d had the tips of his thumbbones cut off and then had […]

A 22 year old student in the UK has developed an unusual new bike helmet which covers the wearers entire face and uses a breathing tube to filter out dust and allergens. With its unique look and identity concealing properties, Luke Pannells’ new “Breathe Air” design is the first helmet equally well-suited for a […]

The iPhone is finally on the street, and even though it didn’t turn up riding on a cloud with an honour guard of trumpet-blowing cherubs, it still got more hype than any chunk of plastic and silicon, however sleek and sexy, should reasonably expect. Still, even if it’s not a category killer like the iPod […]

Just when you thought we’d maxed out voluntary human uglification with the piercing-branding-tattoo thing, Australian artist Stelarc has raised the bar with by implanting an ear made of cartilage into his forearm. At this point the ear doesn’t actually hear or do anything except look grotesque, but I imagine the chicks will […]

BBC NEWS reports on a meeting in the UK where experts will discuss the wisdom of allowing robots autonomous decision-making power. The debate is pointless,of course, because a robot understands free will about the way a dog understands the Immaculate Conception and besides, it’s already happening.
South Korea is planning to […]

Here’s an interesting idea from Australia that doesn’t even involve beer or marsupials - a virtual clone that you can program to be online when you can’t. My Cybertwin is a web-based service that lets you create an online replica of yourself that can chat, answer questions, even tell the story […]

Apple today reported the sale of their 100 millionth iPod, which, while not putting them in McDonald’s hamburger territory, is still pretty impressive for a device that’s only been around for 5 1/2 years.
In that time, they’ve been able to conquer 75% or more of the digital music marketplace in the face of competition […]

First survellance cameras just watched you, then they listened to you, and now they holler at you. A talking CCTV program in Middlesborough, England, has proven so successful that it’s being expanded to 20 other towns throughout the UK. The cameras are designed to discourage anti-social activities like drinking, fighting, or littering by […]

Have ever wanted to say something to someone, but just been too shy? Every wished there was a portable device that would hide your face and change your voice, to make those difficult conversations easier? Well, me neither, but thanks to The Mosaic Show, at least it’s now an option. As the marketing pitch […]

There’s outrage in the UK because local governments are tracking household garbage with RFID chips that have been attached, in many cases surreptiously, to “wheelies” around the country. The chips are designed to identify and weigh the bins as they’re dumped into the truck, to determine how much waste is going into landfills rather […]

“Say, have you lost weight?”. That’s what your colleagues at head office will be saying when you use this bad boy instead of flying in for the big meeting. A company called HeadThere has for some reason created the “Giraffe Video Conferencing Robot”, a mobile 5 foot 8 inch videoconferencing […]

I don’t want to harp on this stuff, but Wired reports that a company in Israel has created the Viper (left), a small mobile robot that can be armed with an Uzi machine gun or a grenade launcher. Right now it’s remotely controlled, but just wait until they hook it up to Skynet the Internet.

This can’t be good.
The BBC reports that a team of experts are meeting in South Korea to establish ethical guidelines for human-robot relations in the near future when, as a government spokesperson says, “robots are expected to develop strong intelligence”.
A British government study in December 2006 predicted that within 50 years robots […]

Isn’t it frustrating when you misplace a pair of gloves and you just can’t remember where you left them? Well , worry no more - soon you’ll be able to call the Pentagon and ask them to retrace your steps until you find them.
Reuters.com reports that the US military is working […]