We’ve all done it. You come home from a long day at the office. Sit down on the couch to watch a little Walking Dead. You feel a little guilty that you haven’t hit the gym or gone for a run, but you figure no one will know. But then your television set turns itself […]
Did the Justice Department cause Aaron Swartz’s suicide?
Aaron Swartz was a 26-year-old computer programmer and online activist who died of apparent suicide on January 11, ahead of a scheduled trial where he was charged with 13 felonies. Swartz, founder of Demand Progress, an online group actively working against the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), was a legend in the tech and programming […]
These shoes will tell you when it’s time for a new pair
Apple has a lot of great products: iPhones, iPads, computers, laptops, Apple TV and the potential for many more. (Note the lack of iPad mini on this list because it is a dumb product, but I digress.) It seems the company might be expanding into shoewear with a sensor that will track your steps and […]
“Smart pills” could save firefighters from injury or death
While the idea of “Smart Medication” didn’t go over very well with the ECN crowd, there is a group to which it could be the difference between life and death. Firefighters often work in extreme environmental conditions that can be pretty tough on the body’s vitals. These fire warriors are more prone to dehydration, cardiac […]
This watch could save your kid’s life
If you’ve ever felt that heart-in-throat, hyperventilating, out-of-body feeling of not being able to find your kid in a park or after school, only to have her reappear after a few seconds of mind-numbing panic, you can understand why someone would want to invent a Lojack for children. Technically, it’s a watch, but the Leo […]
This “smart” traffic light could cut commutes by 60 percent
Were you aware of the fact that you waste one week per year sitting in traffic? One week per year. That is 7 days, 168 hours, 10,080 minutes, stuck in traffic. Not only is it a huge waste of time, breathing in the exhaust fumes while you sit and mentally-fume can actually be dangerous to […]
The emergency worker’s best friend: A backpack that maps
Emergency workers risk their lives to keep us safe, and they’re often walking into situations essentially blind. If they run into a problem, they have only primitive ways of warning those coming in behind them. But, with the help of the researchers, the days of flying blind may be coming to a rapid end. MIT […]
This app could save your teen driver’s life
We’ve all seen it. You’re driving down the road and see someone driving erratically only to find that person is messing with the radio, yelling at their reprobate children, shaving, eating, or applying makeup. Distracted driving has taken on an entirely new meaning with the advent of texting. Let me show you how serious it’s […]
The keyboard you can wash
Keyboards are one of those objects that get incredibly dirty but are also really annoying/impossible to clean. So, whether it’s your kid’s sticky fingers or your mom’s habit of spilling tea (sorry, Mom), it might be time to check out the Logitech Washable Keyboard K310. Logitech is known for their functional keyboards, which have […]
Designing a better seatbelt
When it comes to safety in new cars, seat belts are a no brainer. They reduce crash-related injuries and death by 50 percent, according to the CDC. Forty-nine states—New Hampshire is taking Live Free or Die a little seriously—have laws requiring people to wear seatbelts, and it’s estimated about 80 percent of people actually wear […]