Google Glasses

I’ve worn glasses since the fourth grade and I’ve been called Poindexter, Four Eyes, Specs. You name it; it’s been thrown in my direction. But, I’m the youngest of five boys so there was nothing others said that could bother me, especially since my family nicknamed me Shithead.

Yup, you read correctly: Shithead. When I was but a wee lad, we traveled to DeerIsle, Maine for Thanksgiving. My uncle had hung a banner that read: Welcome Egertons. You too, Shithead. It stuck.

But, I digress. Despite the barbs tossed my way wearing glasses had never been an issue for me. I’ve worn contact lenses and I’ve considered Lasik eye surgery, but it’d always seemed easier to just don the spectacles.

I guess I’ve never understood why wearing glasses was such a big deal. So, I was happy to hear that in the not too distant future, wearing glasses might actually be considered cool.

Google, the company that is working to develop a driverless car, is developing what could possibly be a “must-have” piece of technology, the Google Glasses.

Google Glasses are being developed in the ultra-secret special projects lab near Google’s MountainView, California headquarters, and they could be the next generation of computing apparatus. Techradar reports that the glasses will run Android, will include a small screen in front of your eye and will include motion sensors, GPS and either 3G or 4G data connections. Google still needs to develop a workable interface, such as voice activation.

Initially, people wearing these glasses might seem odd to onlookers. They'll appear to be talking to themselves and bobbing their heads as they walk to avoid virtual obstacles. But as people adopt the technology, Google Glasses will become mainstream.

I think the advantage of these glasses will be the heads-up display that will provide the user with unobtrusive Internet and phone access. FarhadManjoo states that wearable computers could end up being a fashion statement. They actually fit into a larger history of functional wearable objects—think of monocles, wristwatches, and whistles.

If Google Glasses existed when I was a kid I doubt I’d have been tagged Four Eyes or Specs but I can’t imagine any technology that would prevent my uncle from dubbing me Shithead.

Does anyone care to make a functional fashion statement?

Old, Tired Tires

My May 21, 2012 post discussed Google’s driverless car. The concept of a car that does the driving for its passenger wowed me. I had visions of reading and doing crossword puzzles while I sat behind the wheel.

I admit I’m having some doubts regarding the sensibility of a completely automated vehicle. How would such an automobile respond in an emergency situation? The articles I read discussed the car’s reaction to normal traffic issues such as a pedestrian crossing the road unexpectantly. But, what would happen if a tire blew out in heavy traffic at 60-plus miles per hour?

Remember, tires are age sensitive; they have a finite life. The manufacturers add chemicals to the tires to make the treads last longer but rubber still ages, and over time will fatigue. There may not be any visible signs of age, such as cracking or worn treads, but old tires can be hazardous.

Jon Christian Ryter quoted a Ford Motor Co. caution on the subject. "Tires degrade over time," the Ford warning noted, "even when they are not being used. It is recommended that tires generally be replaced after 6 years of nominal service.”

Tirerack.com reported that in 2001 the British Rubber Manufacturers Association (BRMA) stated, "BRMA members strongly recommend that unused tyres should not be put into service if they are over six years old and that all tyres should be replaced ten years from the date of their manufacture."

You may wonder why I think this is an issue. On Friday, June 8th, we drove to Ohio to celebrate our niece’s graduation from The Ohio State University. We were driving in the right lane on Route 90 West, just outside of Cleveland, in fairly heavy traffic, when our left front tire popped. Actually, the tread separated from the wheel. The car jerked to the left slightly but I never lost control and we were able to pull off the highway onto the grassy shoulder. 

Highway Tire Change



We were lucky. I’ve read some horror stories regarding incidents such as this. The tire that blew was over eight years old. I replaced all four when we got to our destination.

How do you know if you have old tires? There’s a manufacture date code on the tire and it is easy to decipher. Right after the DOT there should be a four digit number. The one on my tire was 1704. This means the tire was manufactured in the 17th week of 2004.  

 

What do you think, will you check your tires, even if you’ve just bought them, to make certain they are new?

Asteroid Mining

In 1848, at Sutter’s Creek, California, gold dust was discovered and the rush for gold was on. Within a year, 100,000 people migrated to California with the hope of striking it rich. In 1896, Rabbit Creek, in the Klondike Valley of the Yukon Territories was the scene of another golden discovery. According to The Last Best West, a prospector found a gold nugget and the ensuing Klondike Gold Rush drew 100,000 pilgrims to the gold fields of Canada.

Courtesy Google Images

In May, 2003, the Japanese launched a meteor probe named Hayabusa. It collected granules of meteoroid dust from the asteroid Itokawa and returned to earth with its space dust in June, 2010.

I think this mission was important for a couple of reasons. It gave scientists a glimpse of the composition of an asteroid and it proved that a space craft could land on and return from an asteroid. In 2016, NASA plans to send an unmanned rocket to an asteroid. The Telegraph reports that astronauts have begun training for a manned mission to an asteroid.

The significance to the gold rush? Asteroids could contain a host of precious metals and a group of business people have proposed mining asteroids. ABC News reports that Planetary Resources, Inc has a vision of collecting precious metals and water from space. Co-founder Eric Anderson said, "If you believe it's important to have continued prosperity for future generations, we need resources from somewhere."

The proposition won’t be cheap but these folks have the backing of some high rollers such as Larry Page, co-founder and CEO of Google and Eric Schmidt, Google's executive chairman.

I think it would be cool to mine asteroids; as long as we don't abandon manned space flight. What do you think; will this lead to a rush for metal ores in the great vacuum of space?

California Flying

In the mid-70s the supersonic transport (SST) was thought to be the next great thing in aviation. It travelled at twice the speed of conventional aircraft shortening a trip from New York City to London from seven hours to something under three. It was not cheap. A flight could cost upwards of $10,000.

There were a couple variations of SST; one was built by the Russians (Tupolev Tu-144) and the other through a cooperative venture between the French and the British (Concorde). Both Russian and European planes could transport about 120 passengers.

According to airlinereporter.com, in the 1960s Boeing made an attempt, with a subsidy from the US government, to develop an SST that would have double passenger capacity of either Tupolev or Concorde. In early 1971, funding got cut and Boeing’s program was scrapped.

In 1973, noise generated by the SSTs spurred the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to ban supersonic flight over land in the US by civil aircraft, severely curtailing travel lanes for the SSTs. The Tupolev program was shutdown in 1978, but the Concorde continued to fly until 2003.

However, there is a development which may give resurgence to large passenger transports via supersonic aircraft. ScienceDaily reports that Qiqi Wang, Rui Hu, and Antony Jameson have shown through a computer model that a modified biplane can, in fact, produce significantly less drag than a conventional single-wing aircraft at supersonic cruise speeds. In theory, less drag equates to less fuel consumption and it would produce less of a sonic boom.

Conceptual drawing of a supersonic biplane. (Credit: Christine Daniloff/MIT News based on an original drawing courtesy of Obayashi laboratory, Tohoku University)

Honestly, it’s the design of the airplane that peaked my interest most. It reminded me of a picture of my dad in the backseat of a biplane. The picture was taken sometime in the mid-1930s during flying lessons. It seems that before they were married, my parents took flying lessons in Burbank, California.

The name on the plane is California Flyers. I Googled California Flyers and all I could find was an all star cheerleading group. How disappointing, especially since my mom doesn’t really remember much about the organization.

I’d like to know more about the California Flyers of Burbank, California circa 1938. Does anyone have any information regarding this organization?