According to a recent article by the New York Times, Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes is planning to open a new social networking site called Jumo. The site is based on the concept of making finding charities as easy as entering in your preferences on a site and searching for pages that interest you. He believes that users want to be able to connect and network with charities that are relevant to them just as people connect with one another over Facebook. Hughes says that his goal is to make Jumo “do what Yelp did for restaurants”. What are your thoughts? Does it make sense to digitize the charity market, and allow people to review a charity as they would a restaurant? Should people be able to make comments and connect with charities like they can for musicians or actors on a fan page on Facebook? Or will it undermine the legitimacy of a charity by a few disheartened donors?

Voice your thoughts in the comments!

Source: New York Times

A team of researchers at the University of Arizona has developed a prototype of what they call a “holographic screen” that could be used for TVs and computers, according to an article published in Information week today. Yes ladies and gentlemen, you read that right – a TV screen that shows 3D holographic images is close at hand. While that may sound like a wild proposition, let’s not forget that only 10 years ago 3D television was something left to science fiction – yet today, we can go and watch a large number of movies in 3D at the movie theater. And, there are televisions available (all though not quite mainstream, but getting there) that let the viewer watch 3D TV shows at home if he or she has 3D glasses. Even major designers have jumped on the 3D trend, with brands like Gucci and Oakley putting out their own versions of 3D glasses for use with the televisions. Do you think that holographic TV will take off like 3D television has? Or do you think it’s just a fad that will pass as the next best thing comes along? Let us know in the comments!

Source: InformationWeek

It’s not often that a company creates something with the potential to change the very way that people communicate, but it seems that Intel has just done it.

Intel has created a proof of concept “phototonic” chip that uses laser beams, rather than copper wire, to transmit data. This enables the chips to transmit data at astronomical speeds, up to 6.25GB per second. At that speed, a high definition movie recorded at 720p could be transfered in one second. Yes, you read that right. One second to transfer the same amount of data it now takes the average user 5 times longer to do with traditional copper wire. The implications this technology has for the future are endless.

Consumers could transfer humongous amounts of data between computers, or between a video camera and a computer, in mere seconds, freeing them up to spend more time editing or sharing their data rather than waiting for it to transfer.

Super computers and servers could also benefit; and consumers that use free services like Gmail, which rely on networks of servers to store their data, would see definite speed increases in those services due to the new processing power of the servers. Additionally, data and number crunching done by supercomputers, especially those in the financial sector, would drastically increase, making investing decisions and compiling financial data and statements much faster and easier.

Science can see a benefit too; for example, the computers that are used to decode and sequence DNA would now be almost 5 times faster, meaning more time could be devoted to understanding how our DNA works rather than trying to decode it.

And this is just the beginning. Intel says that while the technology is no where near ready for market, higher and higher rates of transfer are being tested for more proof of concepts. According to a spokesperson, later developments in this technology could result in terabit per second data transfer speeds.

What do you think are some possibilites for this new technology? How can you see it changing your life?

source: Electronista

A few more thoughts on Robots…..
Should we adopt them as friends or members of the family, give them names and bring them along on family vacations or leave them behind to take care of things while we’re away? Would your Robot have a party while your away on vacation or give third parties access to your home without your knowledge? Or would your Robot dutifully protect your home so you could enjoy your vacation without any worries?

What do you think?

http://www.technewsworld.com/story/69871.html

I just read this article that talks about our Robot Obsession as a society.

Why we are so fascinated with robots? Is it just that we a little help from someone “or somthing” that does what ever task needed with precision and efficiency? Will robots become the new nanny or family pet? What legal issues would arise if someone bonds with a robot and it “dies?”, will the owner sue the manufacturer?

Robots really aren’t my cup of tea….What do you think? Do you want a robot of your very own someday?

http://www.technewsworld.com/story/69813.html

Came across this editorial opinion article in WiredScience about a movement to nominate the internet for the Nobel Peace Prize. It made me think back to a time of life before the internet and then fast forward to today. It’s hard to imagine a day without logging on; but should we give the Internet a Nobel Peace Prize? What do you think?

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/03/from-the-fields-internet/

Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow yesterday- so it looks like there will be six more weeks of winter. Take heart though- many other groundhogs across the US didn’t see their shadows and predicted an early spring. Looks like it’s a close call-

http://www.groundhog.org/

Check out this article in Yahoo Finance and rethink your password choice.

http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/108641/If-your-password-is-123456-just-make-it-hack-me.html?mod=family-love_money

I was looking for ways to help contribute to the relief effort in Haiti and came across this article.

There was a brain storming session put together by CrisisCamp Haiti over the weekend that brought IT professionals together for a free-form session creating ideas and then turning the ideas into tangible actions.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/01/15/haiti.tech.camp/index.html

Check out this clip from Yahoo

http://news.yahoo.com/video/tech-15749651/could-your-new-clothes-make-you-sick-17501732