Smartphone App to Give Earthquake Warning

A smartphone app designed to give early warning of earthquakes could be ready as early as next year, according to scientists at the World Science Forum in Rio de Janeiro. Researchers from the University of California showed off the project this week at a conference on how to use technology to ward off natural disasters. The app is based on technology used in an early warning system prepared by a team under Professor Richard Allen, director of the UC Berkeley Seismological Laboratory. 

 

Ex-Nokia Engineers Launch New Smartphone

Engineers who used to work for Nokia are hoping to grab a share of the lucrative and highly competitive smartphone market with a new handset. The Jolla smartphone  is based on the former world No. 1 mobile phone maker’s old software and is faintly reminiscent of its recent models. The Jolla handset’s Sailfish platform has been developed from the MeeGo operating software, Nokia’s last open-source platform which it abandoned in 2011 when it switched over to using Microsoft’s Windows system. 

 

 

Sony Files Patent for ‘SmartWig’

Sony has filed a patent application for “SmartWig”, as firms jostle for the lead in the wearable technology sector. It says the SmartWig can be worn “in addition to natural hair”, and will be able to process data and communicate wirelessly with other external devices. According to the filing, the SmartWig can help navigate roads and collect information such as blood pressure.