Lives That Matter Not

With the presumed racially bigoted killing of Black people, we got Black Lives Matter. 

Now with the sniper attack murdering 5 police officers, we have Blue Lives Matter. 

From the unfortunate political response to both, it seems that No Lives Matter. 

With all the violence, and revenge violence, and cycles thereof, it was amazingly sad to hear our President say last week, “I firmly believe that America is not as divided as some have suggested.”

Oh, really!

From Trayvon Martin to Freddie Gray to the five police officers killed last week–there sure seems to be a lot of bloodletting for a country that is not all that divided. 

The problem is that the serious racial divisions are only a part of it. 

Economic inequality is another big factor in the equation with the top 1% owning more than 50% of global wealth, and the gap continues to widen. 

And on top of that you have the political elites who perhaps are not only above the law, but are so much intertwined with the law of the land that they can be “100% confident” on doing what they want and not getting in any trouble.  

So does the 99% matter? Perhaps only as much as your vote and/or donation count for the 1% to get and keep their beloved and worshiped money and power. 

One thing that is amazingly clear across the spectrum from the likes of Donald Trump to that of Bernie Sanders is that the system is rigged.

Yet as disparities and inequalities exist in treatment from black to blue, the elites are most able to manipulate the “echo chamber” with loads of spin to give the perception of calm and stability and some breadcrumbs for all. 

Everyone has a chance to live and to prosper except when they don’t.  

Still we can gloss over the spilled blood and the ridiculous inequality with some promises, gestures, and maybe even a few handouts–and make you 100% confident that you do matter so very much. 😉

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Helping The Disabled Get Their Groove Back

I love this evolving technology using bionics to help the paralyzed stand and walk again.This technology for exoskeleton suits with motors, sensors, and external power supplies was first developed for the military to run farther, lift more, and so on.However, the application has been expanded to those who have had strokes, accidents, or otherwise have lost use of their limbs and movement.

Additionally, there is potential for industrial workers to use these robotic suits to do their work with less effort and more impact by augmenting their movement with hydraulic and battery power.

What Exso Bionics seems to have really gotten right is that the suit looks almost perfectly sculpted for a human body, appears to go on the person with relative ease, and helps the person move in a balanced and controlled fashion.

While these suits are still pricey and according to Fast Company (April 2002) cost approximately $130,000, Exso is looking get the rates down to between $50,000 and $75,000 retail.

Further, the article notes that other companies are building competing devices, such as Argo Medical of Israel that offers the ability to climb stairs and that activates by gesture without a therapist pressing buttons.  Similarly Rex of New Zealand offers a device that is controlled by a simple joystick.

I think the future for these bionic suits for the military and industrial use will be truly transformative in terms of providing superhuman speed, strength, and stamina to advance our capabilities and increase our productivity.

Moreover, the use of these exoskeletons by people who are elderly, frail, or sick is compelling and provides hope for people to live with greater mobility, self-reliance, and human dignity.

Fitting Every Consumer A VIP

Check out this new augmented reality virtual fitting room technology called Virtual Interactive Podium (VIPodium) by Russian Company, Fitting Reality.

Using Kinect, motion-sensing technology, you use simple gestures to:

– Select, mix and match, and try on clothes in 3-D.

– Twirl around and see yourself in 360-degrees

– Take pictures, email them or share them on Facebook

– Get outfit information including sizing, and

– Place clothing in wish lists for future consideration or into the online shopping cart for purchase

Here is another video of a very cool implementation of this technology at the men and women’s TopShop store in Moscow.

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The people are visibly engaged and excited shopping and trying on clothes using the latest here for “tech-savy fashionistas.”

Honestly though, I see this more as an augmentation to the physical fitting rooms, in terms of helping select clothes, rather than a replacement, since really seeing how something fits, means actually putting the outfit on.

VIPodium beats simply holding up an new outfit to yourself and looking in the mirror, but it doesn’t come close to seeing how it really feels when it’s when you put it on.

However, add in the interactive social media features, available information, and ability to shop online and I think you got something that makes every consumer feel like a VIP.

Happy shopping!

Computer, Read This

In 2002, Tom Cruise waved his arms in swooping fashion to control his Pre-Crime fighting computer in Minority Report , and this was the tip of the iceberg when it comes to consumer interest in moving beyond the traditional keyboard, trackpads, and mice to control our technology. 

For example, there is the Ninetendo Wii and Microsoft Kinect in the gaming arena, where we control the technology with our physical motions rather than hand-held devices. And consumers seem to really like have a controller-free gaming system. The Kinect sold so quickly–at the rate of roughly 133,000 per day during the first three months–it earned the Guinness World Record for fastest selling consumer device. (Mashable, 9 March 2011),

Interacting with technology in varied and natural ways–outside the box–is not limited to just gestures, there are many more such as voice recognition, haptics, eye movements, telepathy, and more.

– Gesture-driven–This is referred to as “spatial operating environments”–where cameras and sensors read our gestures and translate them into computer commands. Companies like Oblong Industries are developing a universal gesture-based language, so that we can communicate across computing platforms–“where you can walk up to any screen, anywhere in the world, gesture to it, and take control.” (Popular Science, August 2011)

– Voice recognition–This is perhaps the most mature of the alternative technology control interfaces,and products like Dragon Naturally Speaking have become not only standard on many desktops, but also are embedded in many smartphones giving you the ability to do dictation, voice to text messaging, etc.

– Haptics–This includes touchscreens with tactile sensations.For example, Tactus Technology is “developing keyboards and game controllers knobs [that actually] grow out of touchscreens as needed and then fade away,” and another company Senseg is making technology that produces feelings so users can feel vibrations, clicks, and textures and can use these for enhanced touchscreens control of their computers. (BusinessWeek, 20-26 June 2011)

– Eye-tracking–For example, new Lenovo computers are using eye-tracking software by Tobii to control the browser and desktop applicationsincluding email and documents (CNET, 1 March 2011)

– Telepathy–Tiny implantable chips to the brain, “the telepathy chip,” are being used to sense electrical activity in the nerve cells and thereby “control a cursor on a computer screen, operate electronic gadgets [e.g. television, light switch, etc.], or steer an electronic wheelchair.” (UK DailyMail, 3 Sept. 2009)

Clearly, consumers are not content to type away at keyboards and roll their mice…they want to interact with technology the way they do with other people.

It still seems a little way off for computers to understand us the way we really are and communicate.  For example, can a computer read non-verbal cues, which communication experts say is actually something like 70% of our communications?  Obviously, this hasn’t happened yet. But when the computer can read what I am really trying to say in all the ways that I am saying it, we will definitely have a much more interesting conversation going on.

(Source Photo: here)