New advancements in science and technology bring with them the potential to provide doctors, surgeons and other health-care professionals with a range of more effective tools and resources. Addressing the illnesses, ailments and other serious or life-threatening conditions that are beyond the reach of current medical technology has the potential to improve and extend the lives of countless patients, and is not a concern that should be taken lightly or overlooked. Nanotechnology offers the chance to make vast improvements over conventional techniques by using tiny machines and robots that are Read the rest of this entry »

Gamification is where you attach some kind of reward or consequence to your everyday life and your everyday actions. It’s meant to incentivize certain ways you live while deterring certain other kinds of behavior. A lot of the major world news networks you can find on Direct TV were talking about it.

It seems like a really popular way of life and you can find everything from iPhone apps that keep score to websites that keep track of your progress.

Question is, does it really work?

For some people it does. For some people who can really quantify their actions and attach a very real point value, it works. The trick is being able to develop the discipline to stick to it and being happy with an arbitrary point value that honestly has no bearing outside of your own little game world.

Some people have to attach real incentives in order for it to work like if you work a full 8 hours with no nonsense or wiki-trawling or Facebook time-wasting, then you can buy yourself that new Batman Blu-ray you’ve been eyeing.

The fact of the matter is that gamification is only as good as your level of discipline and willingness to suspend disbelief. Technology is there to facilitate the illusion that your life is a game, but it’s not always enough. In some cases where an arbitrary point value won’t do as an indicator of personal integrity – real-life rewards are necessary and that’s where gamification can become something totally different – simply treating yourself.

It has been decades since man last walked on the moon, and ever since then many have wondered when man would return. Well, the Apollo space program, although it proved a larger success, was incredibly expensive and has been abandoned for some time now. However, in order to return to the moon and possibly set up settlements, it is necessary for unmanned devices to go ahead of us, in order to search out the best landing locations, not to mention perform tests on the minerals and other make up of the moon. This way, possible uses of Read the rest of this entry »

Stroke victims need extensive therapy to regain control of their bodies and their lives. Major strokes can leave entire sides of a body paralyzed so it is imperative to focus therapy on that side of the body.

While some techniques and time-tested therapies have proved their value time and time again, many physical therapists are seeing the value in using video games for helping stroke victims.

Video games require several different skills that will help stroke victims recover. Playing video games requires manual dexterity, coordination and fast reflexes. Stroke Read the rest of this entry »

When it comes down to it, cars, trucks and other driving vehicles actually only make a small fraction of the pollution found in the earth’s ecosystem. The difference between a large SUV and small, hybrid vehicle in terms of pollution is actually minuscule when you look at the big picture. What causes a significant amount more pollution is jet planes, as hundreds of different jets fly across the globe, each and every day, expelling massive amounts of Read the rest of this entry »

Project Glass involves an emerging and innovative technology called “augmented reality” (AR). In essence, a virtual computer-generated imagery, graphics, and information are overlayed onto the real world. An example of AR are the Heads-Up display (HUD) utilized by fighter jet pilots. A special LED-type screen displays range, fuel, navigation, weapons status, altitude, and many other functions simultaneously with views of the real world. In the same way, Project Glass are special glasses for the user that overlays information about the world, people, objects, that are being viewed. In a sense, Read the rest of this entry »

With many details and considerations that need to be seen to, land surveying has always been a labor intensive task. The use of new technologies and new tools has allowed the job to be done with less time and effort than ever before. These new resources have also allowed a level of detail that is historically without precedent. More effective technological solutions for effective survey efforts have ensured that the raw data needed about a region can be more readily available than ever before. The Read the rest of this entry »