First came across this documentary on Netflix, and it just blows your mind to think about and try to comprehend. Nature of reality, nature of ourselves, check it out! http://www.whatthebleep.com/
Intel Ivy Bridge Setting the Bar at 22nm
02 May
The release of Intel’s much anticipated CPU update called Ivy Bridge case come with mixed reviews. But why? They are using a more sophisticated 22 nano meter process that no one yet has. It’s because as hardcore computer enthusiasts try to squeeze more performance out of the chip by running the chip beyond it’s factory set operating frequency, it gets very hot (PC World). It get’s hotter than the last generation of CPU’s (Sandy Bridge) running the 32 nano meter process running at the same speed. The cause isn’t 100% clear but it’s likely due to the fact that the Ivy Bridge was designed to work at a lower voltage and has a higher transistor density than before. This bad news isn’t really bad news for those not trying to push the envelop, as the 22 nano meter process is a huge achievement because it is the first CPU that uses Intel’s 3D transistor technology. 3D processors as described by Intel’s website:
Until now, transistors, the core of microprocessors, were 2-D (planar) devices. Intel’s 3-D Tri-Gate transistor, and the ability to manufacture it in high volume, mark a dramatic change in the fundamental structure of the computer chip.
Intel has always tried to keep up with what Intel co-founder Gordon E. Moore observed as the doubling of the number of components in integrated circuits of every year from the invention of the integrated circuit in 1958 until 1965 and predicted that the trend would continue “for at least ten years”. Which he later amended to every two years, and has proved to be uncannily accurate, so much so it has become known as “Moore’s Law”. From this graphic you can see that Intel has kept of with this tick-tock cycle of processor improvement. 
Photo Credit: ExtremeTech
As you can see from the graphic, the next step will be 14 nano meter. I for one look forward to seeing where and how far this technology can go.
Changes are a Coming!
01 May
I’ve neglected my blog for too long, and I know it. I plan on rebooting the site with new content, hopefully better content. So stayed tuned.
Stolen NASA Laptop Contained ISS Control Code
01 Mar
NASA had 5,408 computer security lapses in 2010 and 2011, including the March 2011 loss of a laptop computer that contained algorithms used to command and control the International Space Station (ISS), the agency’s inspector general told Congress Wednesday.
“These incidents spanned a wide continuum, from individuals testing their skill to break into NASA systems, to well-organized criminal enterprises hacking for profit, to intrusions that may have been sponsored by foreign intelligence services seeking to further their countries’ objectives,” Inspector General Paul Martin said in written testimony before the House Science, Space and Technology Committee investigations panel.
Stolen NASA Laptop Had Space Station Control Code : Discovery News
Circuit Lab – Sketch, simulate, and share schematics
29 Feb
Circuit Lab has come out with a great website for sketching out circuits, using only the browser, and then being able to run them like a SPICE circuit simulator. It’s free, and allows sharing using unique web links to show off your circuits and allow other to run them too, check it out at CircuitLab
Optical Memory & How it Will Improve the Internet
28 Feb
Bits of data travelling the Internet have a tough commute — they bounce back and forth between optical signal lines for efficient transmission and electrical signal lines for processing. All-optical routers would be more energy efficient, but their development has been hindered by a lack of optical memory devices. Now, researchers have developed just such a device, paving the way towards a faster, more energy-efficient Internet.
The devices, described today in the journal Nature Photonics1, are based on optical cavities that can be switched between light-transmitting and light-blocking states to construct digital signals. The researchers at NTT, a telecommunications company based in Kanagawa, Japan, and others have been working on such devices for several years, but previous versions used too much power and could not retain data long enough. The new memory cells use just 30 nanowatts of power, 300 times less than previous designs, and can retain data for more than 10 seconds, much longer than the previous record of about 250 nanoseconds. That’s long enough to support processing, says lead author Masaya Notomi, director of the Photonic Nanostructure Research Group at NTT.
Optical memory could ease Internet bottlenecks : Nature News & Comment
Brad Burnham on SOPA: Innovation Blackout
28 Feb
What is at stake? Why it’s more than a rich persons game. The blackout of innovation.
Check out Our Watching TWiT Page
26 Feb
Watching TWiT has to be a geek hobby, and is observed here as well. Head over to http://www.meadvillegeeks.com/livestream/lets-watch-twit/ and watch the TWiT live stream as well has have the ability to have a video/text chat with other fellow geeks!
Close Proximity 560Mbps Device-Device Transfer by Toshiba no Wires
23 Feb
Ever wanted to transfer large files from one phone to another? Well I haven’t either, but thanks to a technology called TransferJet, it is possible to transfer a 170MB file in a few seconds. Here is the description from the TransferJet website:
TransferJet is a Close Proximity Wireless Transfer technology featuring simple operation, safe connection and efficient transfer of data.
Simple Operation
Just touching two devices together automatically initiates transfer of files.Safe Connection
A short transmission distance minimizes any risks of data theft.
Users can specify and restrict which other devices can be connected by TransferJet.Efficient Transfer
Very high-speed transfer of large data files.
Physical layer transmission rate is 560 Mbps, maximum data throughput is 375 Mbps
Toshiba TransferJet moves data at 560Mbps, needs no wires
Hands-On Demo of Toshiba’s Transfer Jet Technology for Android
Toshiba TransferJet technology demonstrated | Ubergizmo
Toshiba TransferJet LSI starts to ship | Ubergizmo
Google to Sell Heads-Up Display Glasses by End of the Year
22 Feb
People who constantly reach into a pocket to check a smartphone for bits of information will soon have another option: a pair of Google-made glasses that will be able to stream information to the wearer’s eyeballs in real time.
According to several Google employees familiar with the project who asked not to be named, the glasses will go on sale to the public by the end of the year. These people said they are expected “to cost around the price of current smartphones,” or $250 to $600.
The people familiar with the Google glasses said they would be Android-based, and will include a small screen that will sit a few inches from someone’s eye. They will also have a 3G or 4G data connection and a number of sensors including motion and GPS.
Google to Sell Heads-Up Display Glasses by Year’s End – NYTimes.com