The chemical sensing prototype plugged into an iPhone
30-pin dock connector with the display-side up.
Nasa scientist has developed a “proof of concept of new technology that would bring compact, low-cost, low-power, high-speed nanosensor-based chemical sensing capabilities to cell phones”. Jing Li, the scientist at NASA, developed the device which can be plugged into an iPhone to collect and process sensor data.
The new device is able to detect and identify low concentrations of airborne ammonia, chlorine gas and methane. The device senses chemicals in the air using a “sample jet” and a multiple-channel silicon-based sensing chip, which consists of 16 nanosensors, and sends detection data to another phone or a computer via telephone communication network or Wi-Fi.
iPhone chemical sensor
Popularity: 58% [?]
New iphones apps updated with recent week travel apps. Here’s an article by Tanya Mohn (link)
Priceline.com released a Negotiator App (free) that lets travelers make last-minute bids on hotels. The app sorts hotels by location and gets a little help from William Shatner, a k a the Negotiator.
Not For Tourists, which fancies itself as a hip insider guide for locals, released iPhone guides for New York City, London, San Francisco and other cities ($4.99 each). In addition to touristy places like hotels, the guide highlights neighborhood amenities like bicycle repair shops and community gardens.
Virgin Atlantic also released an app, but not for what you think. The airline’s Flying Without Fear program, which helped Whoopi Goldberg with her airplane phobia, is now a $4.99 app. It offers breathing exercises and calming answers to doomsday questions like “What if all the engines fail?”
Another cool idea comes from PicTranslator, which turns the iPhone’s camera into a kind of translator: point the camera at a sign with foreign words, and the app translates them into English. It is available so far in 16 languages ($1.99 each), from Czech to Turkish.
Expect many more travel apps in the not-so-distant future. Just this week, Hilton Worldwide announced apps for each of seven of its brands in the United States, including Hilton and Doubletree (free). Among other things, the apps allow users to “e-check in” and order room service.
Travel iphone apps
Popularity: 47% [?]
