Gizmag News - Apple expected to update MacBook Pro line this week

Welcome to the newsletter for gizmag Emerging Technology Magazine. These are the headlines for February the 21st, 2011. Apple expected to update MacBook Pro line this week Apple's MacBook Pro line is due for a refresh with all the signs on the magic eight ball that is the Internet pointing to Thursday February 24 as launch day for updated MacBook Pros with Intel's latest Sandy Bridge processors. As usual, Apple has been playing its cards close to its corporate chest and hasn't confirmed (or denied) that new MacBook Pros are on the immediate horizon, but a couple of listings of unexplained MacBook Pro part numbers by retailers online may just have let the cat out of the bag before Apple has had a chance to announce the new models. Read More Killzone 3 reviewed: PlayStation Move gets serious When I reviewed PlayStation Move last year, I named Killzone 3 as one of the games that would show us whether Move controllers were destined to gather dust in the cupboard or play an important role in the longevity of the PlayStation 3 platform. It is unquestionably the latter. Read More Keyboard that uses sonar to protect sensitive data While the simple act of logging off a workstation is an obvious way to protect sensitive data – like that used by healthcare providers, pharmacies, banks and government agencies – it is all too easy for users to forget and leave the data not only viewable, but also editable by anyone who happens to pass by. Custom keyboard supplier Key Source International (KSI) has developed a keyboard that does the remembering for you, logging out as soon as the user physically leaves the keyboard. Read More World's first anti-laser demonstrated Much to the distaste of James Bond villains everywhere, scientists from Yale University recently demonstrated not a new, more powerful type of laser, but actually its opposite – the world’s first anti-laser. The device receives incoming beams of light, which interfere with one another in such a way as to cancel each other out. It could apparently have valuable applications in a number of technologies, such as optical computing and radiology. Read More Take a multi-touch break with Touchscape's 47-inch coffee table We've seen huge multi-touch tables and displays being used in medicine and for exhibitions, but now you could start seeing such things when you take a coffee break. With a 47-inch display, the Touchscape Multi-Touch Table uses the company's patented multi-touch technology to deliver full 1080p high definition touchscreen interactivity for cosy one-on-one business presentations, student/teacher learning collaboration, sharing photo or video collections or unique gaming applications. Read More Rolls-Royce set to show Experimental Electric Vehicle for the ultra-luxury segment Rolls-Royce, one of the most enduring brands of automotive excellence, is developing a fully electric Phantom. The 102EX experimental vehicle will be shown in Geneva on March 1, and will tour Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North America this year to evaluate the opinions of its key stakeholders. The brand is launching a special web site which will be used to deliver information about the vehicle, the tour and to elicit stakeholder response. Read More Does the global elite serve the masses? Many of today's global elite (those with enough brains, money or influence to affect the lives of large numbers of others), have become influential by doing clever things, such as inventing (or finding ways to popularise) things that make many people's lives better. However, some argue that many members of the elite—for instance, those in the financial sector—have profited from rules, whether on financial-sector bonuses or income-tax rates, that they have had a hand in deciding. And as the very rich have done far better than everyone else over the past couple of decades, inequality within countries has exploded. Should we accept, even laud, this inequality as the logical result of the greater rewards for brilliance in a globalised world? Or is it right to worry about its less savoury origins and decry its possibly disruptive consequences? This latest Economist debate has just concluded and with the world seemingly being reshaped before our eyes in the Middle East, it makes for some thought-provoking reading at a precipitous time in world history. Which side do you think won? Read More Thought-controlled car demonstrated Since its formation in 2006, Freie Universität Berlin’s AutoNOMOS team has been researching and developing systems that could someday result in driverless, autonomous cars. Previously, they have successfully used an iPhone, an iPad, and an eye-tracking device to maneuver their Volkswagen Passat MadeInGermany test car. Now, using a commercially-available Emotiv EPOC brain-machine gaming interface, they have demonstrated that the car can be controlled by mind power. Read More Luxury accommodation goes underground for golfers and environmentalists London’s Hersham Golf Club has joined forces with international hotel and resort architects RearsdonSmith to submit a proposal for a five star subterranean hotel. Their objectives were to design a sustainable luxury hotel and spa that would meet the requirements of London’s Green Belt. In working with the area’s strict planning guidelines, the team came up with the idea to build all 200-plus guestrooms underground. Read More Pull Ties offer a simple solution to a common problem Scientists may be working on things like increasing the efficiency of solar cells, finding new methods of filtering water and growing hardier strains of wheat, but they have been woefully neglecting one important task for decades ... creating a better way of closing plastic bags. Currently, options include twist ties, spring-loaded clips, plastic tabs and zip-lock bags. The first three of those aren’t particularly sturdy, while it’s often difficult to get zip-locks to seal properly. Perhaps, however, all of us frustrated plastic-baggers might have better luck with the recently-released Pull Ties. Read More LipoControl helps reshape the body using laser technology A new advancement in laser therapy has recently received the green light from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and may become the latest tool in removing unwanted fat cells. Osyris Medical has created the LipoControl system for laser-assisted lipolysis – the breakdown of body fats. However, unlike Coolsculpting, LipoControl does not bypass the need for invasive surgery. The system has been specifically designed for use in the operating room, along with laser lipolysis procedures. Unlike common liposuction units, this device is used to accurately zap unwanted fat cells using a laser, which then allows for an easier and cleaner suction out. Read More Nissan shows ultra-frugal Micra DIG-S (Direct Injection Gasoline - Supercharger) While electric, hybrid and diesel power trains have been grabbing headlines in recent times, work continues unabated on the good ol’ gasoline internal combustion engine and some significant headway has been realized with the news of a new Nissan Micra which will run a supercharged, direct injection 1.2 liter power-plant. The lightweight, low-friction, three-cylinder engine emits just 95g/km, produces 72kW (98PS) and 142Nm, and delivers combined cycle fuel economy figures of a staggering 68.9mpg. The car will debut in Geneva, will be available in both manual and CVT transmissions and will have a healthy top speed of 112mph. Read More If you would like to refer this newsletter to a friend or colleague, please point them at our free subscription page. Please don't try to forward this email, as the formatting is unlikely to remain intact. And don't worry, we don't share email addresses. 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