Geekly Update - 07 August 2013

The AskBobRankin Geekly Update

"Pass the cheese, please." Scientists at Harvard have developed a noninvasive brain-to-brain interface between humans and rats. A human wearing the electronic headset can send a command to the rat's brain just by thinking, and cause it's tail to move. It's only fair, rats have been controlling humans for a long time.

"Who's watching the watchers?" Samsung Internet-enabled “smart” TVs have a security hole that would enable remote viewers to watch you in your living room. It’s just one of many examples of “smart” appliances that have absolutely no security features built into them.

Cool or creepy? With a full-surround camera studio, CapturedDimensions is able to photograph subjects (humans or pets) from all angles, convert digital images to CAD files, and 3D-print color replicas in uncannily life-like detail. Prices for full body figurines range from $445 (1/12th scale) to $2295 (1/5th scale).

"Apple Inside." An Australian woman who posted an online ad looking to buy two iPhones got a response, and met in a McDonald's restaurant with a seller offering "two Apples." She paid $1200, took the iPhone boxes home, and only later discovered they contained actual apples, instead of iPhones.

A Google Web service that will locate your lost Android phone or tablet will debut in August. Using your browser, you can make the device ring at max volume if it’s somewhere nearby, and locate it on a map using GPS if it was left elsewhere.

One piece at a time... New Zealander Ivan Sentch has been 3-D printing only since January, 2013. But he did start small; he’s printing a full-sized 1961 Aston Martin DB4 automobile.

The long arm of social media reached out to grab a criminal in Reno, Nevada. Brewer’s Cabaret uploaded a security camera photo of a man who left without paying his $100 tab. Over 800 people shared the pic on Facebook, and the deadbeat was nailed. Police identified his Face, and Booked him.

The Washington Post was purchased by Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder, on August 5, 2013. For a mere $250 million Bezos gets the iconic newspaper, its subsidiary publications, and of course, free two-day delivery.

Dove, the soap maker, has made a Trojan Horse for Photoshop. The company’s Canadian division is spreading a Photoshop “action” file that purportedly adds a glowing, healthy skin tone to images of models. But it actually reverts the image back to its original, undoctored state. One click undoes the prank.

A wisdom tooth? Researchers at the Taiwan National University have developed a sensor array tiny enough to fit into a tooth. It can tell when you put something unhealthy in your mouth, like cigarette smoke or excessive sugar, and beam its data and a warning to other devices via Bluetooth. (Next step, beaming the data to your health insurance company?)

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