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Bill Gates Regains Title of World's Richest Person

17 May 2013

Bill Gates may be more philanthropic than ever since leaving the top job at Microsoft, but he still owns a ton of stock in the company, which today just so happened to close at a five-year high. As Bloomberg reports, that shift was finally enough to push Gates' net worth back above that of telecom mogul Carlos Slim, who took the title of "world's richest person" away from Gates way back in 2007. As things stand now, Gates has some $72.7 billion to his name, while Slim stands at $72.1 billion. A situation that offers no material for puns whatsoever.

-Engadget

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How Does Space Affect Your Senses? An Astronaut Explains

13 May 2013

International Space Station Commander Chris Hadfield, who commands quite a following here at DVICE, recently completed a five-part series that explores the side effects space has on the five senses.

For the privilege of going into the cosmos, astronauts trade in clear vision, peace and quiet, sharp taste buds, and almost their entire sense of smell. Click through these quick videos to learn exactly what happens, and why.

Hearing

Space is quiet and no one can hear you scream, but the ISS itself is a loud, continuous hum of fans and machinery.

Sight

Uh, apparently space can flatten your eyeballs. Also, astronauts see some trippy things when their eyes are closed.

Taste

Astronauts like spicy foods in space because their taste buds are dulled. Hadfield's favorite? Shrimp cocktail with horseradish sauce. Yum.

Smell

Being in space is like having a constant head cold.

Touch

All systems are go. The only real differences can be found on their feet since no one walks in space.

-Dvice

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Google Glass: What You Really See - VIDEO

13 May 2013

Google Glass Screen

Despite all of the videos (including some that are hi-lari-ous) from showing us non-Glass Explorers how the device works, many people still can't fathom what it is that you actually see through its tiny glass prism.

The Android blog Phandroid has posted one of the best eyes-on videos of Google Glass in action, from the perspective of a person wearing it. That is, they've placed Glass right over a camera and filmed a detailed video of its capabilities.

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The 'Fountain of Youth' is Hidden in Your Brain

07 May 2013

The adventurous among us have been hunting for the fountain of youth since the dark ages. As it turns out, it just might exist, though not in Bimini or Florida, as we once thought. It exists in our brains. Specifically, the hypothalamus, because it is there, that resides a peculiar signaling pathway — one like no other that we have discovered to date.

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Humans Must Escape Earth or Perish- Stephen Hawking

18 April 2013

The floating Hawking

Acclaimed British scientist Stephen Hawking has issued an urgent call for the continuation of space exploration programs. According to Hawking, if humans don't find somewhere beyond Earth to live within the next millennium, our entire species could very well become extinct. "We must continue to go into space for humanity," Hawking recently said at an event at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

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What Constantly Texting Probably Says About You

15 April 2013

Here’s some news you probably figured out if you’ve good bit of life experience under the old belt: folks who send more than 100 texts a day tend to be more shallow than those who don’t. In this study, shallowness is defined as being more interested in wealth and image than in being generally ethical. Add a comment

Most People Wouldn't Buy a BlackBerry, Ever

15 April 2013

Sure, some mystery man bought one million BlackBerrys and made us all, for a moment, think that particular brand of smartphone might be making a comeback. But that was just a gosh-darned lie, turns out.

Here are a depressing Surveymonkey result (well, depressing if you have money invested in the BlackBerry). Eighty-three percent of folks didn’t know the BlackBerry 10 had launched.

Worse, though, is research firm Raymond James’ finding that 71.4 percent of consumers just simply wouldn’t buy a BlackBerry. Ever. I presume this doesn’t involve hostage situations in which buying a BlackBerry is the only way out, but these folks said “nothing could convince” them.

For comparison, 19.7 percent of folks said this about the iPhone and 31.3 percent said it about the Android.

Poor BlackBerry.

-Dvice

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Smart Herb Garden Does All The Work for You

08 April 2013

Mattias Lepp's Smart Herb Garden Kickstarter campaign has already received pledges totaling $230,646 from an original goal of just $75,000. That's over 300% funded, and the contribution deadline isn't until the end of April. So, what's so special about this herb garden? For the user, there's nearly no work required. You just plug it in, add water, and let the garden do the rest.

What's more interesting about this garden, though, is the material in which the herbs grow. Rather than a standard soil, Lepp and his team were inspired by NASA to think of new ways to optimize growth. The plants grow in nanomaterial that provides the perfect amount of oxygen and nutrients, meaning that there's no compacted soil that inhibits oxygen flow and no continuous watering that can wash away important nutrients. It also has a built-in light designed by some of the best LED companies in the world.

The Smart Herb Garden can grow up to three plants at one time. The beginner kit comes with basil, thyme and lemon balm, but there are refills of tomatoes, chili peppers and strawberries, as well. Hm, maybe even I can grow something with this kit.

-Dvice

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