Researchers Create Smallest Battery Ever Made

A team of scientists has created a battery so small that it fits into a "nanowire," a wire whose thickness is less than the wavelength of visible light. It's the smallest battery ever made, and it could end up powering a whole generation of nanotechnology.

The potential of nanotechnology—the practice of building machines so small that they can't even be seen—has been talked about for decades. In medicine, for example, the idea of creating tiny robots that could enter a person's bloodstream and target intruders or diseased cells has been touted as one of the most promising applications of the field, but it's remained purely theoretical.

One of the hurdles standing in the way of such wondrous nanodevices is their power supplies—making batteries at such a tiny scale is difficult. Now a team of engineers from Rice University appears to have solved that problem by creating a battery just 50 microns, or about the thickness of a human hair.

To create the battery (see the diagrom below), the researchers first coated a nanowire template with a thin layer of copper. They then filled the pores (which create the individual nanowires) halfway with a nickel/tin alloy to create the anodes. At this point, they put on a thin layer of polyethylene-oxide gel, which acts as both an electrolyte and an insulator from the other nanowires. Next they filled the remainder of the pore with a polyaniline material to create the cathodes. A layer of aluminium goes on top to complete the circuit.

Every nanowire is just 150 nanometers (nm) thin. To put that in perspective, the lowest wavelength of visible light is about 400 nm. However, the complete battery is about 50 microns tall, or about the width of human hair. The researchers ended up creating an array of nanowire batteries that was about 0.08 square inches in area, though it's theoretically scalable to even larger sizes.

With a larger array that includes several layers stacked on top of each other, the tech could theoretically lead to batteries with massive energy density. And since the electrochemical materials don't contain lithium, they're easy to synthesize and manipulate at room temperature.

The nanowire batteries aren't without their limitations, however. After being charged and discharged 20 times, they lose their ability to hold a full charge. The researchers are working on addressing this limitation, however, by playing with the polymer thickness and trying out different kinds of electrodes.

Although it's in the early stages, the new battery technology could help usher in an era of practical nanomachines. With a real microscopic power source, the science-fiction scenario of tiny machines acting as doctors, builders, and explorers just took a step toward reality.

For more from Peter, follow him on Twitter @petepachal.

Google and Pottermore Sign Ebook Deal

Pottermore is bringing Harry Potter to the digital format with ebooks and has signed a deal with Google to use their literary services for this purpose. This fall, Harry Potter will make its ebook debut on Google eBooks, which lets users port their purchases to 80 other readers. The ebooks will be available via Google eBooks, as well as its iOS and Android apps. However, since the Kindle doesn't support ePUB or PDF files, it is not clear how the eBooks will be supported on that device. The books, as previously reported, will be DRM free. Buy your Pottermore ebooks via Google Google also said that it will provide the payment platform via Google Checkout and the video platform via YouTube for this digital Harry Potter experience. This means, that you will be paying for the eBooks directly to Google as opposed to other services like PayPal or Amazon Payments. Pottermore is expected to open up in October. Since the release of the last movie in the series, Potter fanaticism is at an all time high and Pottermore seems to be catching fans just at the right time. Google, too, will stand to gain by partnering with the Pottermore website right at the opportune moment.

Edimax Launches 3G-6218n 150Mbps Wireless 3G Portable Router

Edimax Technology has announced the launch of the 3G-6218n 150Mbps Wireless 3G Portable Router in India. One of the main features of this model is that users can create a Wi-Fi hotspot wherever a 3G connection is available.

The 3G-6218n has a built-in battery, 3G/3.5G support, as well as cable/xDSL Internet support. The 3G-6218n Wireless 3G Router allows converting an Internet connection from either a 3G/3.5G USB modem card or a cable/xDSL modem into a Wi-Fi network. When both these options are not available, users can share an Internet connection via a smartphone with Internet tethering capability.

Edimax Launches New Router

This enables users of major smartphone manufacturing companies like - iPhone, HTC, Blackberry, Nokia; and Sony Ericsson to create their instant Wi-Fi hotspots. The router also consists of an inbuilt rechargeable Li-ion battery, which allows up to 4 hours of wireless connectivity to multiple users in case an electrical outlet is unavailable.

• A few features of this router are:
• Smartphone Internet tethering capability
• 3G/3.5G and Cable/xDSL support
• 3G/3.5G and Cable/xDSL connection fail over
• Built-in rechargeable Li-ion battery
• Green Ethernet technology
• Hardware WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) button
• 1 x 10/100Mbps Ethernet port for WAN or LAN
• 1 x USB port for 3G/3.5G USB modems
• Compatible with IEEE 802.11b/g/n standards

True blue: The Lakes of Ladakh

"So is it Pangong Tso tomorrow or Tso Moriri?" asked Dorjee, my guide and driver as I stretched my legs and gulped another cup of green tea. Most tour operators recommend just one of these high altitude lakes, but I was greedy. I wanted to visit not just two, but the third lake, Tso Kar as well. Dorjee grinned when I told him our plans and he suggested that we camp at Pangong. On an impulse, we agreed.

It was barely dawn when we drove from Leh. The mountains reveled in the golden light. The sky was fast changing colours as the clouds showed up in the horizon. It was bright and sunny within a few hours. The weather, I realized in Ladakh is downright moody. I went there expecting some snow and all I got was some harsh sunlight burning my skin.

The journey however was a dream. Our jeep was packed with our tents and we had a new travel companion, our personal cook who brought in some hot steaming momos.  We stopped by a mountain stream amidst the mountains and out came tiny chairs and a dining table. It was breakfast time.

The landscape changed drastically as we gained altitude. We crossed Changla Pass at 17590 feet and stopped for tea .and then plunged a few feet downhill to about 14270 feet.  We saw the marmots and had a close encounter with a pair of black necked cranes on the way. But there were no roads. The mountains circled us. And then we saw it! A thin sheet of blue, almost like a mirage, appearing out of the various shades of greys and browns. It was the first view of the lake.

Pangong is one massive stretch of blue, except that one can see various shades of blue. The colours kept changing by the minute. We were there rather early and had the lake to ourselves for a while, until the tourists finally arrived. We drove down, looking for a place to pitch our tents as we crossed Spangmik, the smallest settlement and possibly one of the last Indian villages which housed less than ten families. It was like almost being on the edge of the world for the Line of Control does pass through the lake itself.  In fact locals told me that only one third of the saline lake lies in India and the remaining in Tibet.

Dorjee decided to pitch a tent in a small enclosure, located right on the banks of the lake. I looked around and saw some fields in the distance and a small house further away. And the tents came up – there were four of them, one for the bedroom, another for the dining, third for the kitchen and the last for the dry toilet. It was our private piece of paradise. The sky was clear as we walked along. A soldier with a prayer wheel guarded the border at the further end. The villagers brought their precious pashmina goats home. The stars came up as the lake was bathed in moonlight, the mountains beaming with a glow. A sumptuous meal was waiting for us, as we tucked into our sleeping bags for the night.

We drove back to Leh the following day, took a break and then continued onto the next lake, Tso Moriri . A different village, a different lake .Korzuk, the village had one of the most charming monasteries in all of Ladakh and it was getting ready for its festival.

We spotted birds and beasts and loads of the Changpa nomads grazing their cattle. Tsomoriri is indeed a birder’s paradise. The saline lake is one of the breeding grounds for a variety of birds, most of them rare and endangered. The mountains reflected in the bright blue waters, their tips glistening with ice and snow. The landscape was vivid with colours . Most of my friends prefer Tsomoriri to Pangong , but my favourite however remains the latter .

Meanwhile the weather changed. The bright blue skies turned dark as the rains lashed the mountains. The waters drenched the lake. The temperature suddenly dropped and the tented camps where I was staying had no heaters. We shivered and quivered, finally putting the thermals to use as the temperatures slid below zero.

Dorjee predicted it would snow and we decided to leave early the following day stopping by at Tso Kar, the third lake which seemed more like a wetland to me. The colours had turned into a monotone and all the blues had melted into shades of white. We stopped at a local shop for lunch-a quick bite of noodles and momos and just as we neared Tanglang La at 17580 feet, it started snowing. And before we knew it, the snowstorm interrupted our journey as a truck, stuck in the heaps of snow stalled all the vehicles.

We were still very far from Leh and we remained there, high up in a mountain road surrounded by snow. Finally Dorjee got bit impatience and walked out into the snow storm, in his thin jacket and shoes to remove the snow with bare hands. Soon a crowd gathered to help and many hours later we were back on the road. I did want to see snow capped mountains, but I had no idea it would be a stormy experience.

Soon we were back on familiar territory. It was not the bright blue sky that welcomed me to the plains but the blue of the River Indus that greeted us. My tryst with the mountains was heading to an end as it was my last day in the Land of high passes.

Lakshmi Sharath is a media professional, a traveler, travel writer and blogger. After 15 years of sitting in front of a desk in several media organizations, she decided to travel and see the world. Since then she has covered 20 countries across five continents; her passion lies in exploring the nooks of India.

Bareilly baby boy with 34 fingers and toes sets new Guinness record

Bareilly (Uttar Pradesh), July 20 (ANI): Akshat, a baby boy over the age of one, registered his name in the Guinness world records for having a total of 34 fingers and toes.

He has set the record for having the highest number of fingers and toes and hails from the Bareilly district in Uttar Pradesh.

Amrita Saxena, the mother of the child, said it was difficult for her to believe that her son broke the world record, until a family friend convinced her.

"He (family friend) read on the internet about the baby born in China with 31 fingers. Then he said that my boy has broken the record of having 34 fingers. At first, I was not convinced at all. It was hard to believe that my son has broken the record. But later, he along with my husband and my younger sister registered the data in the Internet. Then I was asked to submit certain documents after which his name was in the Guinness World Records," added Saxena.

Doctors attending to the child informed the mediapersons that it was a rare phenomenon and diagnosed it as polydactyly.

"The person who is diagnosed with it is polydactylic. It is due to certain defects in the bone development of the uterus. The reason behind this defect can be either developmental congenital formation or chromosomal anomalies, which is due to maternal infection or drugs," said Dr. Parul Gupta, a gynaecologist.

Gupta further explained that this congenital physical anomaly could be easily cured by performing a surgery.

"Yes, it is absolutely curable. Mostly people go for plastic surgery. And sometimes when polydactyly is minimal, it can be cured normally, without an operation. And if there is a major problem, then people prefer to go for a plastic surgery," added Gupta.

Meanwhile Saxena was a little worried for her son's future. She aspires for her son to lead a 'normal' life and wants him to undergo proper treatment for it.

It is quite interesting to know that Polydactyly or polydactylism is also known as hyperdactyly. It is a congenital physical anomaly in humans, dogs, and cats having supernumerary fingers or toes. (ANI)

EchoSign Acquired by Adobe

Adobe’s very own document exchange services are all set to get a major makeover. Adobe Systems Incorporated has acquired EchoSign, a popular provider of electronic signatures and signature automation. From now on, EchoSign’s services will be given out alongside Adobe’s online document exchange services. Other Adobe services, on which EchoSign will be enabled, include SendNow, FormsCentral and CreatePDF. With EchoSign services being enabled on Adobe and its cronies, users will be spared of having their documents signed by the traditional methods.

Now, with Adobe!

The usage availability of EchoSign is flexible. Users can pick the apt ‘subscription plans’ for EchoSign based on the size of their business – on an individual level, small to medium sized businesses, among others. The entire process, EchoSign claims ,has been automated in the sense that the entire process from the request for a signature for distribution, to the execution of the action happens in a single click.

Also included in the partner package are a wholesome set of APIs for tailor made needs of each company.

Should Facebook Add a Music Service?

 A software engineer on Thursday uncovered references to a music download service called "Vibes" in Facebook's new video chat desktop software.

Jeff Rose, of lifeisagraph.com, uncovered the code when looking into how the FacebookVideoCalling.jar file worked on his Apple machine. He noticed references to two Facebook services, one called "Peep," a video chat plugin, and "Vibes," a music download dialogue. (See the code below).

if (paramString.equals("com.facebook.peep"))
return this.window.getMember("VideoChatPlugin");if (paramString.equals("com.facebook.vibes")) {
return this.window.getMember("MusicDownloadDialog");
}

Rose and Mashable, who also picked up the story, are guessing this could be a reference to Facebook's upcoming music service.

Now that we're starting to see solid proof of some sort of Facebook music service it begs the question, does anyone really want a Facebook music service? I'm guessing that depends on what its definition of "music service" is.

We heard rumors that it might involve a variety of existing music services that will work with Facebook to share users listening habits with their friends. Enabling users to share information about themselves (if they choose to do so) is a part of what Facebook already does and makes this option a pretty logical choice.

Where things get dicey is if the social network hopes to start selling MP3s to its 750 million users.

I'm all for competition, but quite a few services out there aready allow people to purchase their music online. If Facebook enters the digital storefront game, it's going to need to give its users a reason to buy songs through Facebook instead of somewhere else.

Facebook might also want to be careful not to adopt too many new features all at once. Considering it just announced the addition of Skype-powered video calling to its chat client last week and hinted at similar partnerships in the future, that might be a problem.

The last thing Facebook wants to be is a Swiss Army Knife website where its users can do anything and everything they would ever want to do online. Or maybe that's exactly what they want. Either way, I'm pretty sure that approach didn't end too well for MySpace.

What do you think about the idea of Facebook Music and what would you like to see the service look like?

By 2014, Bionic Spectacles Will Impart Vision to the Blind

Beginning from 2014, the vision-impaired will have the scientists at the Oxford University, United Kingdom to thank for bringing back the lost hopes of regaining vision. The scientists have readied what they call bionic spectacles that integrate the use of mini-sized cameras and a pocket computer to give the wearer indications about any object in their way, and also to the people walking in their direction.

Regained lost hopes..

According to a report in The Hindu, among the several highlighted features of the spectacles, are its inexpensiveness and light weightedness.  Using these glasses, the blind will find it possible to do the basic tasks like finding their way on crowded roads, read bus numbers, among others. The spectacles primarily derive their information from the Light Emitting Diodes that have been fitted into the lenses, which light up, thereby giving the wearer all the necessary details.

Although a fixed price tag for the same has not been added, the researchers state that the price tag would be kept affordable.

A Conversation with PKX Thomas, COO, Cleartrip.com

A read-up on their swanky new app on the iOS platform, and a look-see at their impressive website later, we were sure of where we were headed. Cleartrip.com is a name that instantly brings to mind the image of pocket-friendly holidays tickets - that you might've indulged in too.

A quick rush through the busy lanes of Mumbai, and some interesting bits on the city’s mill days, courtesy an enterprising cabbie, we reached the Cleartrip office. We were ushered in, and in the walk through the large space we could see dozens of heads, buried in work, probably helping ‘you’ make that trip memorable, and of course, keeping their motto in mind, simple.  We were there to meet Mr. PKX Thomas, and were eager to know more about him and the popular site. Below is our tete-a-tete with Mr. PKX Thomas, COO, Cleartrip.com.

PKX Thomas, COO, Cleartrip.com

Could you tell us a bit more about the profile you manage at Cleartrip?
Well! My profile at Cleartrip is multi-faceted.  In a way you could say what jobs nobody else does, is done by me (chuckles).  Technology has been an integral part of my profile here at Cleartrip, and fascinatingly it has been my steady passion, too. Apart from that, I do look after the business side of things, too. I look at the things on the product side, too. Also, HR operations are taken care of by me. So, in that sense, I don lots of hats.

What idea led to the beginning of Cleartrip?
Cleartrip was started between Stuart (Stuart Crighton, CEO), Hrush (Hrush Bhatt, Founder & Director), and a few others. At the time we began operating, the space was virtually empty. Booking a ticket, for most parts was a paid thing. If I wanted to book a ticket to some place I would have look out for a travel agent, whom I would expect to do the needful. I joined Cleartrip, somewhere around the same time as Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers joined as investors to Cleartrip, i.e. end of July, 2006.

In India, the concept of booking a ticket online is still in its infancy stages, in such a situation, what were the risks you had in your mind before taking the plunge?
People are now changing their view pertaining to the idea of buying a ticket. We are experiencing a growth rate, which is currently higher than that of the airline industry.  More and more people are now looking at websites like that of ours as a convenient option to buy their tickets from. The transition from offline to online is happening steadily.

Book while on the go..

Also, users have now understood that the online medium adds more transparency to the whole buying process. Like earlier, if you approach a travel agent to book your ticket, you were forced to believe the price he quoted, simply because there was no way you could cross-check. However now, that is not the situation. If the agent quotes you one price, you can visit us, and get the same trip costing you much lesser.  However, having said that, these dual markets will continue to exist. The online medium is self-serviceable – you search, you pay.

However, the challenge that remains is that people have got used to conventional means of buying a ticket. The risk here was that when booked online, the ticket comes in an email, the print out of which has to be produced at the counter at the railway station, or the airport. It most definitely lacks the look, and feel of the good old ticket. Initially there was a lot of uncertainty about whether that particular format would be accepted. But, today, it is accepted everywhere. Also, the ease of the usage of our travel website instills the confidence in the user.  In many ways, during the pre-purchase period, we empower the user to make the decision.  Then comes the decision, in that, you will always pick something that’s more cost-effective, and not something that’s plain exorbitant.

Additionally, if for any reason, the user feels the need to change his purchase decision, then the quality of the services provided, refund given for the same, et al further helps us to build the confidence of the user.3
What edge can I expect while booking my tickets via Cleartrip vis-à-vis the conventional ‘standing in a queue’?
These days, like I mentioned before, users have the option to check with the prices on our portal before they decide to approach a travel agent. This way the agent would find it difficult to make the customer agree to a pre-decided price, since the users will be armed with the knowledge that the fare is lesser, elsewhere.  This helps to keep the prices down, and empowers the customer. So this way, even if a particular user is not an online travel booker, he will turn into one sooner or later, due to the confidence that we instill into his psyche.

What probably keeps the customer away from making a transition into the online space is the provision of security, or the lack of it that one usually experiences in the online space. A goof-up, or a glaring error in the online space can only be addressed via an email, on the other hand, in the offline scenario he has the benefit of reprimanding someone, even physically if need be. That’s probably the only difference.

Especially in times like these where you get to hear about hacking, what is the kind of security that Cleartrip promises to its users? What has been the most recent security addition that Cleartrip has added?
Security has been our prime concern since day one of our operations. For starters, we don’t make the user put down his credit card number during the transaction. Instead, he is directed through the whole process using an IVR number.  Only then is he asked to punch in his credit card number. However, the information that reaches our database is encrypted. We store in the masked number of the user’s credit card, which is virtually worthless for a hacker, as using that he would gain nothing.  It’s essential for us to store the masked credit number in our database, since it’ll help us redirecting any grievance queries of the user using the masked number provided.

You recently introduced your services, and optimized them for use on the iPhone, complete with Retina Display. Will the experience be just the same, like it would be while using Cleartrip on the conventional PC? What has the response been like?

With Retina Display..

Well, the experience isn’t exactly the same. In my view, a mobile device is meant to enable the customer. Usually, our travel decisions are on the spur of the moment. Suppose, I want to book my return to Mumbai, from Delhi, and I’m not in the confines of my room, or don’t have access to internet, at such times, the only thing that most of us have ready access to is a mobile phone. So, using our iPhone-optimized website and the Express Checkout feature enabled for HTML5, users can book their tickets directly using that. The best part is that except for the first time, users don’t have to punch in any details for any bookings, thereafter. So, the idea is that the mobile-optimized website will help the user make the purchase decision, and once he’s done deciding he can then log onto the site on his desktop and make the purchase. Currently, we have over 5,000 users using the mobile platform to make their searches.

So, currently, we have domestic flight searches made available, as well as trains. International will come soon, too. However, we plan to include hotel searches towards the end, since that’ll require a lot of bandwidth, and with the lack of 3G connectivity for the major part, it seems difficult now. Also, people don’t find it comfortable to book a hotel without seeing it, unless it’s someone who travels frequently. Also, the style sheets on our mobile platform optimize themselves, according to the phone.

Do you see people, especially in India, managing their entire trip (flights, hotels, and trains) on an online portal, like yours?

Truly, a SMALL WORLD!

Yes, to that effect, we have a new service that we launched – Small World - wherein the user gets all the information he wants to know about the place he wishes to visit. Using the Small World service, users can avail information on -  currency v/s rupee rates, places of interest, weather updates, photo gallery, maps, traveller ratings and reviews, flights, hotels, time zone details and other details.

What concept, technology would you tout as the next big thing for Cleartrip?

Now, on your smartphone..

When travel and technology converge, it is the end user who’s set to benefit, for sure. Suppose, last few seats are available in a particular flight, the airline will never want to sell it at a cheaper cost. So, we are working on a way to get around that – convincing the airlines on how to do it. That way you will have the customer choosing a flight over his frequented mode of traveling, thereby adding more value to the entire chain. We’re planning to add a car booking service, too.

The Guinness World Record for iPad Typing Speed Has Been Broken

The Guinness World record for the fastest typing speed on an iPad has been broken. The record broken by the 15 year old son of the Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, is the new world record holder for typing the entire English alphabet (A-Z) on the iPad keyboard in 5.26 seconds. The previous record was 6.31 seconds, held by Charlie Joseph McDonnell set in late June of last year. All this while, Apple's reworking its keyboard software for the iPad. iOS 5 will bring changes to the iPad keypad including allowing users to split the keyboard when in landscape mode.

Fastest finger first

According to reports, Saakashvili "spent months getting ready for those few seconds". However, he cannot break the world record for typing on a computer keyboard. That record is held by Sudhakar Raju in 3.52 seconds. This record cannot be taken over to the iPhone either. The Guinness Book of Records recommends this phrase: "The razor-toothed piranhas of the genera Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus are the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world. In reality they seldom attack a human," which has only been attempted on a Samsung Galaxy S smartphone and not on an iPhone yet. That sentence has been done in 25.94 seconds.

Smartphone Slider Device Can Detect Early Cataract, Inexpensively

One of the major causes of blindness, which have been worrying the medical experts, worldover, is the clouding of the lens of the eye, better known as Cataract. In response to the growing number of cataract affected, there hasn’t been much of a relief as far as costs go. And not everyone can afford getting a cataract removed. A few enterprising researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have brought forth what they believe to be an inexpensive way of detecting cataract, especially when it is in its early stages. Cataract diagnosis in progress.. The device, essentially a slider eyepiece that can be easily attached onto a smartphone, has been developed by Media Lab Camera Culture group director, Ramesh Raskar. Called the CATRA System, the device enables users to peer through the eyepiece. Users can press a button, almost as soon as they start finding their vision getting cloudy. On the press of a button, the device begins scanning the lens of the eye, basically to generate a map of the same. A prototype of the CATRA System   The CATRA system, as opposed to the slit lamp theory uses the forward scattering technique, using which the patients respond to what they see. The device, in a very systematic manner scans the lens, each section at a time. And, it is during this process, that the user presses the buttons as per the light movements that he can see. It is these feeds from the patient that the device uses to draw up its diagnosis. In the promo video below, it is visible that the CATRA treatment can, in a matter of minutes; reveal details such as the position, size, shape and density of the clouds, thereby helping the preparation of an accurate diagnosis.

Lightly guarded India temple holds $22B treasures

NEW DELHI (AP) — A vast treasure trove of gold coins, jewels and precious stones unearthed at a lightly guarded Hindu temple in India was expected to grow further in value Monday as the last two secret vaults sealed for nearly 150 years are opened.
The government has increased security since the treasure's discovery in recent days, which has instantly turned the 16th-century Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple into one of the wealthiest religious institutions in the country.
Four vaults recently opened at the temple in Trivandrum, the capital of the southern state of Kerala, held a vast bounty that unofficial estimates peg at $22 billion.
The treasures unearthed so far include statues of gods and goddesses made of solid gold and studded with diamonds, rubies, emeralds and other precious stones, crowns and necklaces, all given as gifts to the temple over the centuries.
The volume of gold and silver coins was so enormous that the investigators weighed the coins by the sackful, rather than counting them, officials said.
The temple, built by the maharajas who ruled the then-kingdom of Travancore, remained under the control of the erstwhile royal family after India's independence in 1947.
India's Supreme Court ordered the inspection of the vaults after a lawyer petitioned a local court asking the state government to take over the temple, citing inadequate security. The current Maharaja of Travancore had appealed to the Supreme Court against the petition.
The inventory began last week and the final vaults were to be unlocked Monday afternoon. The public knew the temple had treasures but not the quantum.
Before the trove was uncovered, there was almost no visible security at the temple, save for a few local security guards patrolling the complex with batons, mainly for crowd control.
Kerala's police chief, Jacob Punnoose, said he sent extra police officers to guard the temple and is planning a high-tech security system to protect the treasure.
"We plan to enhance security in a manner which will not interfere with the activities of the temple or devotees," Punnoose said.
The security plans include the installation of digital electronic networks, closed circuit cameras and metal detectors at the entrance and exits of the temple.
Manoj Abraham, city police commissioner, said two battalions of special armed police would provide security outside the temple complex.
"Later, we will discuss with temple authorities and members of the former royal family what kind of permanent security system should be put in place," Abraham said.
Every year, devout Hindus donate millions of rupees worth of cash, gold and silver to temples. Some temples in India are so wealthy, they have formed trusts which run schools, colleges and hospitals that offer free treatment to the poor.
The discovery has sparked a debate over the future of the treasure trove.
Vellappally Nateshan, a Hindu leader, said the wealth should remain with the temple authorities.
Some social activists in Kerala have demanded the treasure be handed to a national trust to help the poor.
Kerala's top elected official, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, however, assured the people that the wealth would remain with the temple.
"It is the property of the temple. The government will protect the wealth at the temple."
Chandy said the government would bear the cost of stepping up security at the temple and ensure that worshippers were not inconvenienced.

SatNav GPS Systems to Monitor Rickshaws in New Delhi Soon

Public travel in the three-wheeler i.e. the country's colorful rickshaw, at least when in the capital, is all set to get a much needed facelift. If you’re a frequent rickshaw-rider (for want of a better term) in Delhi, chances that you encountered an unreasonably rude driver must be quite high. Not that it's any different in any other city of course. But in the capital we often also hear about the plight of the female travelers, who fear for their safety when commuting via this mode.

Under the scanner..

A recent report in The Telegraph, has added a shade of optimism to the bleak reality. By the end of this week, as many as 250 rickshaws plying on the streets of New Delhi will have GPS from SatNav installed, a number which by the end of this month will soar to a good 55,000 rickshaws. These GPS devices will further be connected to a government server. Among the many purposes it is expected to serve, the device will track the journeys the rickshaw covers, thereby giving officials a way to check if the drivers are taking the easiest, fastest routes. Also, considering the increasing instances of indecent, rude behavior of the drivers towards the customers, especially female travelers, the monitoring will help the officials nail the guilty.

Appreciatively, the rickshaws will also include a panic button which female passengers can press to raise an alarm, to alert the cops if they sense danger. The move, for now at least has met with stiff resistance from the rickshaw drivers, owing to the high costs of the device. However, the officials have offered them an option of ‘renting’ the SatNav systems. This move comes as an attempt to improve the services of the three-wheelers in the busy metro of New Delhi, which accounts for good manners, professional behavior, personal hygiene, vehicle maintenance, among others.

Although this does seem to be a great move, considering the amount of dependency that metro dwellers have on their services, it remains to be seen if these services reach the other metros too.

IIT Techfest 2011: Saw Other Technologies as Well

IIT Techfest held at Powai was not only about robots. Just like CES 2011, where tablets are reigning supreme, we also caught a glimpse of some interesting tablet related tech here.�

Check out the Sledge-Hammer Keyboard and Tactile Interface System.

Sledge Hammer Keypad

At one section of the exhibition hall we saw a keyboard with giant size keys. Keys that required a sledge hammer to get your point across! Simply put, a firm punch gives a small font while a hard one brings up a larger font. Not too practical, but there’s a reason for this exhibit. 

Taylor Hokanson the designers notion was that we take our keyboards for granted and quite often shorten an even-easier task of typing by using 'text talk'. This tiring process should hammer the thought of how easy it actually is to type full words into people's minds. 

Tactile Interface System

Here's something a lot more practical, something that really "touched" us. This stall was headed by two Japanese engineers and they have worked on a tactile touch interface system that is provisioned to give you feedback as the original surface of the choice you make . 

Haptic-king

There were two devices, one with in-built hardware while the other was using a dock connected to the iPad. The interface replicated different textures that gave haptic feedback. You could touch different surfaces like gravel, wool and even a stony option that generated life-like feedback making it feel like you were actually touching the real thing.�

Check out these videos of the feedback system in action. 

On the regular touch device

On the Apple iPad

The Techfest has a lot more to show, stay tuned to this space for more innovations.

China opens world's longest sea bridge

This photo taken Tuesday, June 21, 2011 released by China's Xinhua news agency shows the Jiaozhou Bay Bridge in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province. China opened Thursday, June 30, 2011, the world's longest cross-sea bridge, which is 42 kilometers (26 miles) long and links China's eastern port city of Qingdao to an offshore island, Huangdao. (AP Photo/Xinhua, Yan Runbo)

QIngdao Jiaozhou Bay Bridge is seen in Qingdao, Shandong province, in this general view taken June 27, 2011. The world's longest sea bridge spanning Jiaozhou Bay of Qingdao City, Shandong Province, opened on Thursday, June 30. The bridge is 36 km (22 miles) long, Xinhua News Agency reported. Picture taken on June 27, 2011. REUTERS/China Daily

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This photo taken Wednesday, June 29, 2011 released by China's Xinhua news agency shows the Jiaozhou Bay Bridge in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province. China opened Thursday, June 30, 2011, the world's longest cross-sea bridge, which is 42 kilometers (26 miles) long and links China's eastern port city of Qingdao to an offshore island, Huangdao. (AP Photo/Xinhua, Yan Runbo)

Overwhelming Response Causes Google to Close Invites for Google+

Yesterday, Google went public with its ambitious move to launch a social tool of its own, Google+. Just as tidbits of Google’s latest venture started trickling out, every social networking enthusiast out there waited to sample it out. Some were just plain curious to see if this ‘Facebook competitor’ really had it in it to beat the ‘700 million users’ giant.

Got an invite, yet?

Putting it out for ‘limited trial’, entry to Google+, at least till a few hours ago, was in the hands of the first wave of adopters who were given the leeway by Google, themselves to send out invites to others. Google realized it quite later that letting the invites out, and that too, in that manner was a glaring mistake. What followed next can be anyone’s guess. Unable to contain the ‘mad rush’ that followed, Google found it best to snap the invite services. In a blog post, Vic Gundotra, Google Engineer stated, “We've shut down (the) invite mechanism for the night. Insane demand. We need to do this carefully, and in a controlled way. Thank you all for your interest!"

That’s how it remains for now. Have you got the Google+ invite?

Al-Qaeda Hacked!-Now what left

The online communication platform of the global militant, Sunni Islamist group, Al-Qaeda was brought down by a group of ‘seasoned’ computer hackers. The militant group has since been unable to manage their flow of videos, and other communications.

Caught off guard..!

According to a report in msnbc.com, Evan Kohlmann, from Flashpoint Global Partners, the firm monitoring Al-Qaeda’s communications, stated that, “Al-Qaeda's online communications have been temporarily crippled and it does not have a single trusted distribution channel available on the Internet.” It was further learned that, the nature of the hack wasn’t like the usual modes, which were observed. Instead, the hack was almost an ‘unusual cocktail of relatively sophisticated techniques’, in Kohlmann’s words. Although, any kind of detail about the hacker(s) is still out of the reach of the investigators, it is for sure that the militant group will take long to get their systems up and running again.

This attack comes a year after Al-Qaeda’s online system suffered a hack attack of a similar nature. At that time, it was found that the U.K. government had replaced the bomb-making recipe on the site, with that of a cup cake. And, even then, it took a while for the militant group to put their site back on track.

Panda Global Protection 2011: All Round Protection!

Since the Internet is used on nearly every PC, there is always a threat of being infected by malware. Licensed anti-viruses offer the best protection to it. With the release of the latest version of Global Protection 2011, Panda seems to be making its mark on the industry.

The list just gets better!

Features
The Global Protection 2011 security suite features an antivirus, firewall, anti-spam protection, parental controls, identity protection, system optimization, backup, multimedia and gaming modes, network manager, file encryption and shredding, remote PC access and safe browsing. The installation of the security suite is pretty simple and so is the user interface.

Performance
The identity protection module is quite awesome; enabling the feature pops up a message asking you permissions for sending critical information such as username, passwords, bank account numbers, email addresses, PIN and credit card numbers over the Internet. This module is very useful for those using messenger applications. Phishing websites are also blocked depending on the sensitivity settings in the application.

Filter your kiddie's content

The built-in anti-spam feature also works well. It is almost automated and can also be trained by the user for more accuracy. Parental control is not installed by default, but getting it there is a matter of a few seconds. Though the parental control is useful, configuring it can be a little tedious. Another brilliant add-on is the maintenance module, which allows you to wipe out crucial cached information such as IE history, cookies, temporary files, etc. Also included in the suite is a disk defragmenter and automatic backup feature. The antivirus suite also offers anti-spam and anti-id theft features. We did find the test PC slow down a miniscule amount due to the number modules occupying the system memory, but considering the protection it offers, it is worth the wait.

Verdict
The Panda Global Protection 2011 is priced at Rs.1, 299 (Single PC). Considering the expanse of protection it offers, which includes protection against virus, spams, as also lending parental controls, identity protection, system optimization, backup, multimedia and gaming modes, the price shouldn’t be a constraint.

Village in U.P Renamed Snapdeal.com Nagar

So, the next time someone asks you for directions to Snapdeal.com Nagar in Uttar Pradesh, India, don’t be surprised. For the villagers belonging to this humble village in the northern Indian state, actually took up the name of the brand which adopted it as a mark of gratitude. Shiv Nagar, a lesser known part of the larger state is now well under the protective wing of Snapdeal.com, the popular online group buying brand as a part of the latter’s CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility).

Way to Snapdeal.com Nagar, U.P.

As a part of the project, Snapdeal would look after the village’s infrastructure, water facilities, and support for the local school and hospital. The change of name wasn’t a part of the plan, the company had initially wanted to further its social services, and it were the villagers who thought to thank them in a befitting manner; a privilege last earned by Jamshetji Nusserwanji Tata (Tatanagar), and Gujarmal Modi (Modinagar).

With more and more companies implementing CSR-istic policies into their business models, instances of these kinds will only mean a pleasant surprise.

Source: The Economic Times

BBC News App for Android, Now Available Worldwide

In case you’re wondering why the BBC has taken this long to come out with an app for the Android Market, the fact is that they had come out with one last month. However, that was exclusive only to the United Kingdom. Thankfully, they’re spreading the love to other countries, as well.

News on your Android handset

BBC has always been renowned for delivering the latest, accurate news as it happens. An app for Android is a good idea in keeping with the times and like most Android-based news apps, the BBC app is free and can be downloaded from the Android Market.

The screenshots show that the app looks quite decent in terms of the interface’s look and feel. Users have access to live BBC World Service Radio and can watch a video of a news story that they’ve checked. Users can personalize the homescreen by adding or removing sections of their choice and they can also choose to automatically update content in the background.