Category: technology

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Shocker: Hitting the “Close Door” Button on an Elevator Does Nothing at All

You’ve been here: you decided to wait on the elevator even though you’re running late, but it took forever to show up, and now you’re standing there waiting for the stupid doors to close, wishing the whole time that you’d taken the stairs.

You jab the “close door” icon repeatedly, and a rush of satisfaction rolls through you when, after a pause, the doors follow your internally screamed command.

Except…the button didn’t actually do anything. Just fyi.

The executive director of the National Elevator Industry trade group admitted recently that the close door button has been disabled on all U.S. elevators for a very long time, thanks for the Americans with Disabilities Act. Passed in 1990, the law requires elevators doors remain open long enough to anyone who needs assistance or using a mobility device to get safely in or out.

Since the majority of elevators out there are under 25 years old, the chances of snagging one with working close door buttons is just about nil.

Which should also make you feel good because your elevator is less than 25 years old.

But why bother to put them in new elevators if they’re not going to work?

Well, according to Drexel University professor John Kounios, it’s because the “white lie” of being able to hit the button is actually helpful.

“A perceived lack of control is associated with depression, so perhaps this is mildly therapeutic.”

Or at least, it was before you clicked on this article.

There’s good news, though – if you think you’ve been a generous, thoughtful person in holding the elevator doors open for people, you totally are.

Because those buttons are still functioning just fine.

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A Study Found That Your Smartphone Is Making You Dumber, Even When It’s Turned off

You should turn off your phone once in a while. Better yet, throw it away! According to one 2017 study, you basically get stupider just by sharing the room with a smartphone, even if it’s not turned on.

The idea that smartphones dull your intelligence is not a new one. Many people are cautious about the over-use of screens and what it’s doing to our attention spans, especially for young kids. But one would think that smartphones can only take a cognitive toll when you’re actually using them.

Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin found that that’s not the case.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

In the 2017 study, researchers asked over 400 undergrads to complete several tests of their cognitive capacity. In one test, participants had to complete a pattern. In another, they had to do math problems while keeping a regularly updated sequence of letters straight.

Some of the participants kept their phones on them, in their pocket or face down on the desk, like one naturally would. Others kept their phones in a separate room. The researchers found that the further away the phone was, the better the participants’ brains functioned.

In a second test, some of the participants kept their phones turned off, while others didn’t. Again, some kept their phones on them and some put them in another room. In this case, whether or not the phone was on made absolutely no difference in their test-taking performance – if it was present, it was apparently enough of a distraction to have an effect.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

So, if you’re looking to reduce your smartphone’s impact on your brain, turning it off ain’t enough. You don’t have to really throw it away, but if you’re going into distraction-free mode, leave it in a different room and turn off your notification sounds.

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A 13-Year-Old Developed a Better Hyperloop for Moving Trains

Caroline Crouchley, a 13-year-old student of Garden City Middle School, is proposing a better, safer hyperloop train, building on an idea pushed by Elon Musk in 2012.

Currently, tech companies are working to get a hyperloop functioning in India, hoping to transport people between Mumbai and Pune in only half an hour. A trip like this would normally take many hours by car.

Companies developing hyperloop transportation are using designs that put people into pods that move inside low-pressure tubes. The hope is that with resistance removed, pods will be able to go very, very fast. In fact, they’re being tested running 700 miles per hour.

Crouchley’s design would not move that fast, but her system is still twice as fast as trains in use now.

Her solution involves pneumatic tubes constructed to run alongside train tracks – and according to the young inventor, it should be less expensive to build and operate than the conventional hyperloop technology. It’ll also be safer, which is a major selling point for a mass transit technology.

She told CNN, “My design can rely on 100% renewable energy, so it eliminates the need for a diesel engine or an electric motor, which makes the train lighter, so it can move faster.”

Crouchley’s innovative idea made her a finalist in the 2019 3M Young Scientist Challenge.

The major challenge with hyperloops, which put pods inside a partial vacuum tube, is the potential for collapse – if the tube breaks, the pods aren’t going to survive. But with Crouchley’s design, the train is operating outside of the tube, eliminating that danger and also making use of existing infrastructure and equipment.

It’ll work like this: a magnetic shuttle system will operate inside the pneumatic tubes. More magnets will attach the train to the shuttle, allowing the shuttle to act like the train’s engine.

How does she envision her idea moving forward? She told Fast Company, “My plans are to open-source my project to teams of engineers, scientists, and universities such as MIT and Harvard to solve the complex mathematical equations and physics required to make the idea a reality.”

Hyperloop has many critics who say it will never be practical to use, but Crouchley sees her solution as an intermediary design that has viability in the near future.

At any rate, technology usually starts with the big picture question. It’s the little steps that make the answer reality.

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This “Revolutionary” New Air Filtering Device Might Be a Big Deal in the Fight Against Climate Change

Are you listening? Good.

A carbon dioxide filtering device that can capture carbon dioxide from the air at just 400 parts per million has been hailed as a “revolutionary” instrument for tackling our climate crisis.

Sahag Voskian and T. Alan Hatton, chemical engineers at MIT, developed the method, which captures CO2 by passing air through special charged plates.

Carbon dioxide from the gas intake reacts with the electrodes in the device. Each electrode is coated with a carbon nanotubes and a polyanthraquinone compound. The device acts sort of like a battery, and as it charges, it absorbs carbon dioxide passing over the electrodes. As it discharges, it releases the greenhouse gas it has collected.

The carbon dioxide it releases during the discharge can be recycled to feed greenhouse plants, or even used in carbonated beverages.

Dr. Voskian said, “All of this is at ambient conditions — there’s no need for thermal, pressure, or chemical input. It’s just these very thin sheets, with both surfaces active, that can be stacked in a box and connected to a source of electricity.”

The biggest advantage to this way of filtering is the low energy cost: one gigajoule of energy for every ton of carbon dioxide captured. Compare that to the 1-10 gigajoules (depending on the concentration of CO2 taken in) used by alternative methods. Plus, if to expand the systems capacity, they only need to add more electrodes!

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

The study describing the new system was published in the journal Energy and Environmental Science.

The scientists have even created a company called Verdox that plans to build a plant to scale the process up for commercial use.

Cleaner air with lower energy. There’s a real future for that.

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A Woman Is Teaching Her Dog to Speak…And It Looks like It’s Working

When I was a young boy, I dreamed about my dog Quincy being able to talk. I’d think about the conversations we’d have and all the great adventures we’d go on together. He was my best pal, and his being able to talk would just be the icing on the cake…

As you’ve probably figured out by now, Quincy never learned how to talk and my childhood was ruined. But this story gives me hope for the future!

Christina Hunger is a speech-language pathologist who is working on teaching her 18-month old dog Stella to speak…seriously. Hunger (what a name) says that Stella already knows 29 words…which is 29 more than Quincy ever knew…

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Hello there everyone!! ? Welcome to the Hunger for Words community! I’m THRILLED you’re here! I feel completely honored by this outpouring of enthusiasm and inspiration ✨✨ Here is a fun Stella series to kick off this new chapter! • Jake and I were discussing taking Stella to Petco. She was certainly listening…! • Video 1: Stella said “Goodbye outside.” This is the third time in the past few weeks that Stella has combined “good” and “bye” to say “Goodbye” instead of just “bye”! • Video 2: Jake said he wanted to hang our spice racks first, started the project, and Stella told him, “Later Jake” ?? (Translation: Do that later, I want to go!) • Video 3: Stella came full circle with her message and told us she was REALLY ready to leave by saying, “Bye bye bye good bye!” (Looks like we have ourselves a little @nsync fan ?) • I hope you all have a great day!

A post shared by Christina Hunger, MA, CCC-SLP (@hunger4words) on

So how is she doing this? Well, Hunger is training Stella to use an adaptive device usually used by young children.

Hunger also says that, in addition to the 29 words, Stella can form five-word phrases and sentences.

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Stella uses language differently when she’s in a heightened state versus when she’s calm! • Today when she heard some noises outside and wanted to go investigate, I told her we were staying inside. • Stella responded by saying, “Look” 9 TIMES IN A ROW, then “Come outside.” She was clearly in a more frantic state, and her language use matched that. We all sound differently than normal when we’re in distress, Stella included! • I’m impressed that Stella is communicating with language during her more heightened states, not just when she’s calm and in a quiet space. This shows me that words are becoming more automatic for her to use. It’s similar to when a toddler starts using language to express himself during times of frustration instead of only crying. That happens when it’s easy for the toddler to say words, not when he’s still learning and it takes a lot of focus to talk ?? • • • • • #hunger4words #stellathetalkingdog #slpsofinstagram #speechtherapy #AAC #ashaigers #slp #corewords #SLPeeps #slp2be #earlyintervention #languagedevelopment #dogsofinstagram #dogmom #doglife #dogs #guarddog #animalpsychology #doglover #dogvideos #sandiegodog #catahoula #blueheeler #smartdog #dogcommunication #mydogtalks #animalcommunication #interspeciescommunication #loveanimals

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Stella is using a system that has a number of buttons, each of which plays a particular word out loud when it is touched. Hunger started teaching Stella how to use the device when the pup was only eight weeks old, and Stella can now let her owner know when she needs help, when she wants to take a walk or go play, if and when she misses a certain family member, and if she’s feeling distressed.

Hunger said, “The way she uses words to communicate and the words she’s combining is really similar to a two-year-old child.”

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I AM MIND BLOWN ? Last night after coming inside, Stella said “Come eat come play.” I was pretty sure she meant that she wanted to eat dinner then play, but I asked, “Do you want to eat or play?” to clarify. • Stella licked her lips, paused, and responded, “Want come eat.” After Stella ate, she immediately dove at her toy and started playing. • AHHH! This is amazing for so many reasons! Stella told me a sequence of two things she wanted to do. Then, I asked her a question containing two options, and she answered with a short phrase confirming her original message! Stella even expanded her own phrase from “Come eat ” to “Want come eat.” The speech therapist side of me is completely amazed, and the dog mom side of me is incredibly proud. Yay, Stella!! • • • • • #hunger4words #stellathetalkingdog #proud #slpsofinstagram #speechtherapy #AAC #ashaigers #slp #corewords #SLPeeps #slp2be #aacawarenessmonth #earlyintervention #languagedevelopment #dogsofinstagram #dogmom #doglife #dogs #animalpsychology #doglover #dogvideos #sandiegodog #catahoula #blueheeler #smartdog #dogcommunication #mydogtalks #animalcommunication #interspeciescommunication #loveanimals

A post shared by Christina Hunger, MA, CCC-SLP (@hunger4words) on

Hunger is basing the training off of Augmentative and Alternative Communication, known as AAC. Hunger has learned that even though dogs can’t speak like humans do, they can express themselves in other ways, such as barking and jumping. Hunger also said that she wants to eventually teach other dogs to “speak” as well.

You have to admit that this is a pretty incredible story and the progress that Hunger has made is very impressive. Follow her Instagram page to follow this excellent journey. Go Stella!

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Microsoft Japan Adopted a 4-Day Work Week and It Boosted Productivity by 40 Percent

Might this be a sign of things to come on this side of the Pacific Ocean? Let’s hope so.

Microsoft Japan recently trialed a 4-day work week and announced the results from the experiment.

Two big takeaways: the employees enjoyed the four-day week very much and productivity increased by 40%. Shorter, more efficient meetings were noted as one factor for the boost in productivity (DUH).

Microsoft called the experiment the “Work-Life Choice Challenge Summer 2019,” and it lasted for five weeks for the company’s 2,300 employees in Japan. Microsoft Japan president and CEO Takuya Hirano said, “Work a short time, rest well and learn a lot. It’s necessary to have an environment that allows you to feel your purpose in life and make a greater impact at work. I want employees to think about and experience how they can achieve the same results with 20 percent less working time.”

The employees of the company had to be more efficient with their time, which meant shorter meetings or remote meetings. That in turn led to more productivity. In addition to that good news, electricity use by the company dropped 23.1%, and employees printed 58.7% fewer pages of paper.

A whopping 92% of Microsoft Japan’s employees said that they enjoyed the shorter work week (surprise surprise). The company said it plans on repeating the 4-day work week trial next summer and might expand the experiment to other times as well.

I, for one, think this is a great idea if you work in an office or another job where people have to be present in order for things to be accomplished. I know that I would’ve preferred working four 10-hour days in my old office jobs as opposed to five 8-hour days.

What do you think? Share your ideas about this topic in the comments.

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15 Photos That Prove Japan Is Living in the Future

I haven’t had the opportunity to travel to Japan, but it is definitely at the top of my travel list. Why, you ask?

Well, all you really need to do is look at these photos. Not only are the people incredibly gracious, the food is great, and there are amazing sights to see, but the Japanese are really ahead of the curve as far as integrating technology into the day-to-day.

And these photos prove it. Take a look and start dreaming about your next overseas trip…

1. A robot restaurant!

2. That looks like a great dining experience.

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Just came to get sushi in Japan ?

A post shared by @ lucia.konya on

3. Coming right up!

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If all food was served like this… ??

A post shared by Hannah (@hannahttyler_) on

4. Or delivered by train.

5. Heated toilet seats.

6. Photobooths are on point.

7. Look at that vending machine.

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이건 뭐.. 거의 누들로드?: Afuri 라면편

A post shared by Stella⚡ (@stella_gaeun_lee) on

8. Tiny sleeping capsules.

9. Sparkling subway.

10. That’s gas station food in Japan.

11. Really nice desserts.

12. Food on the train is darn good, too.

13. That’s what you can get at a baseball game.

14. Fish for your dinner!

15. Museum design is fantastic.

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Borderless between art and science

A post shared by kenny (@rollingcurtain) on

What year is it again? See what I’m talking about?

Like I said, way ahead of the curve…

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A Teenage Girl Invented a Simple and Innovative Way to Get Rid of Your Car’s Blind Spots

The creative spirit and innovation of young people is so refreshing! Sometimes, they have the best ideas because they’re thinking forward while a lot of us older folks are set in our ways. In other words, when a young person has an idea about something, listen up, because it might turn out to be a game-changer.

That’s what happened with a 14-year-old named Alaina Gassler, who came up with a project called “Improving Automobile Safety by Removing Blind Spots” for the Broadcom MASTERS competition, which features science and engineering projects from middle schoolers.

Gassler built the system with a webcam, a projector, and other 3D-printed materials, and together it all works to fill in the space that a car’s frame blocks from drivers’ view.

Gassler hails from West Grove, Pennsylvania, and she took first place in the competition and won the $25,000 Samueli Foundation Prize. Her invention works like this: she mounted a webcam outside the passenger side of the car, which steams a live video onto the inside pillar of the passenger side from a projector attached to the sunroof above the driver’s seat.

Gassler also resurfaced the interior frame with a retro reflective fabric to make the projection clear. She said the material “only reflects light back to the light source, which is the projector in this case. Since the driver’s eyes are next to the projector, the driver can see a crisp, clear image, and the passengers only see a black piece of fabric.”

Take a look at the video below to see it in action.

This is quite impressive, I must say. Great work, Ms. Gassler, and we’ll be looking for more work from you in the future.

These kids today, I’ll tell ya…

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15 Cleverly Converted Buildings

I love seeing repurposed buildings and structures. I used to live down the street from a Walgreens (#8 on this list) that was previously a bank, and they kept some very cool touches from the original structure.

Take a look at these clever conversions. I think you’ll be impressed.

1. A little different now…

My college used to be a shopping mall from mildlyinteresting

2. That is very cool.

My apartment building used to be a school. from mildlyinteresting

3. Pump iron where the tellers used to work.

This gym that used to be a bank from mildlyinteresting

4. I’d love to live in a place like that.

My house used to be a police station and my bathroom is an old jail cell, the original window is still in place from mildlyinteresting

5. Feel the history come alive.

Supermarket in Venice used to be a theatre from mildlyinteresting

6. Love the floors.

This thrift store used to be a bowling alley. from mildlyinteresting

7. Leave the bucket up!

This Jamba used used to be a KFC so they painted over the bucket from mildlyinteresting

8. Walked by here many times.

This Walgreens in Chicago used to be a bank, and now it has a vitamin vault from mildlyinteresting

9. Have a seat inside the vault.

The Subway I went to today used to be a bank. Instead of removing the vault they just added more seating inside from mildlyinteresting

10. Spooooooooky, isn’t it?

My apartment used to be a prison from mildlyinteresting

11. This is amazing!

This grocery store used to be a hockey stadium from mildlyinteresting

12. Just go ahead and repurpose that.

Local Mexican restaurant used to be a Chinese restaurant. Instead of painting over a mural, they just put sombreros on the pandas. from mildlyinteresting

13. Love that marquee.

This gym used to be a movie theater from mildlyinteresting

14. Another great awning.

This Walgreens built on an old movie theatre from mildlyinteresting

15. Drive on through!

My local Dunkin’ Donuts used to be a car wash so the drive thru is inside the building. from mildlyinteresting

Do you have any cool converted buildings in your town?

Tell us about them and share some photos in the comments, please!

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10 Random Facts About All Sorts of Stuff for You to Ponder

We’re serving up some good facts for you here today!

So sit back, relax, and let’s learn about a bunch of different subjects together.

Start now!

1. Do you know anyone who might need this?

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2. That makes sense…

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3. Placebo sleep.

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4. I’ve always wondered about that…

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5. This can’t be real!

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6. You’re not alone, fruit flies…

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7. Two kinds of nostalgia.

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8. I love this!

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9. I did not know that!

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10. Please don’t tell me this.

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Nothing like a good fact set. NOTHING.

Please feel free to share with your family and friends…it might do them some good.

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