Amazing Future Technology

We Have Moved

2013-01-31T12:13:00.004-08:00

We Have Moved To A New Website. Please Visit Our New Site Below:

Nascent Array.

Kandinsky Chair: Abstract Reality

2012-10-16T14:21:00.002-07:00

Untitled Document

The Kandinsky Chair is inspired by father of modern art – Wassily Kandinsky. The design is extremely playful and is strong enough to play with the perception of the users.

The chair features altered points, sharp line design and of course, mirrored reciprocal legs. One of these in your house and I can bet you will receive visits from people whom you have never seen before!

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Hit the share button please, it barely takes a few seconds.

Foldone – Now That’s Class!

2012-10-16T14:17:00.004-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: NOVAE Architecture

How do you perceive movement with structures that have folded surfaces and very irregular geometric angles?

No matter what you think and what you see, you will have to really embrace the beauty of Foldone. With classy angular folds, the overall structure of the bench gets a seamless form while sturdy nature and visual continuity take paramount importance!

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Hit the share button please, it barely takes a few seconds.

Pirelli Coffee Mug – Weirdo!

2012-10-16T14:13:00.004-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Behzad Rashidizadeh

Well, very in paper, the Pirelli Coffee Mug concept just had a bad luck and the project was shelved. Inspired by Formula One car tire, this cup definitely looks like a concept that could have been a favorite possession for coffee addicts and F1 lovers.

No one knows whether the project will be de-shelved or not but this cup really has something different about it.

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Hit the share button please, it barely takes a few seconds.

Smart Light: Chang-Chi Shih’s Traffic Light

2012-10-16T14:10:00.001-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Chang-Chi Shih

Redesigning traffic lights is not common for iF Design Talents made it possible! Chang-Chi Shih has come up with the design of Smart Light – a new variant of traffic light that comes with integrated street-view camera.

The lights use LEDs and they can be recoded to show various signals. The design is intuitive and the camera will be helpful for cops to catch those freaky motorists who love to violate traffic rules.

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Hit the share button please, it barely takes a few seconds.

Fosterlamp: The Minimalist

2012-10-16T14:06:00.004-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Mikhail Belyaev

Very simple, very modern, very functional – the Fosterlamp by Mikhail Belyaev is one of the simplest and elegant lamps out there.

Designed to fit into almost any lifestyle and interior décor, the Fosterlamp is definitely bit phallic but yes, it is elegant.

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Hit the share button please, it barely takes a few seconds.

T-Bike: Share Your Bike

2012-10-11T15:34:00.005-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Jung Tak

Jung Tak has come up with the ingenious idea of T-Bike – the bike that you share! I will call it a social bike. The idea behind this bike is to find a solution to limited parking space in city of Seoul.

These T-Bikes are stored in stations that very will attract the name 'vending machines'. These stations can be kept in specific areas or they can be fixed on trucks permanently. All you need to do is to use the mobile application to find the nearest station and book a bike. You then go to the station, pay for the book bike and use it. When you are done, simply go and return the bike to the vending station.

The idea behind the truck installation is all the same. You book it but this time, the bike will be delivered to you and again the bike will be picked up from the specified spot. As for the T-Bike itself, the handle can be folded and locked for additional security. To prevent theft, the built in GPS will easily shout out the exact location of the bike. Isn't that cool?

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Share with your friends today!

Innovation Tower: Stratification Of Building

2012-10-11T15:17:00.002-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Zaha Hadid

Innovation Tower is an example where podium and classic typology are seamlessly blended into one, giving a structure that is visually stimulating and fluid.

Innovation Tower is a flawless representation of Hong Kong's layered urbanism and diversity. This tower is a part of the attempt to make Hong Kong Asia's design hub. The Innovation Tower is capable of accommodating Hong Kong Polytechnic University's 1500 students and at the same time, it will also separately book a space of 129,167 sq. ft. for Jockey Club Design Institute.

360° Video View

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Share with your friends today!

Modular Bowl: Freedom Of Infinity

2012-10-11T14:34:00.001-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Laura Fernandez

Everyone I hope has heard of origami where modular systems are used for the creation of infinite forms. The same concept has been borrowed by Laura Fernandez to create the Modular Bowl.

Small triangular pieces can be combined together to form a bowl. There is no limit to the size. It is all about your preference. This structure gives unique geometric pattern that is very visually elegant.

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Share with your friends today!

TPM VIPNI Concept P.C.P. Professional Computer Phone

2012-10-11T13:44:00.000-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Imran Sheikh

TPM VIPNI Concept P.C.P. Professional Computer Phone is big name but it is something class apart! Designed by Imran Sheikh, this phone has a very interesting hidden twist!

What is interesting about the name is that when you pick the component 'VIPNI' of the name a twist it, you will find it converting to 'INdIA'. Now that's clever way to etch India's name on the phone.

About the phone itself, this design is not at all inspired by any mortal phone that exists on earth. However, the features and aspects of phone are pretty much in line with existing technologies. This makes me think that it is possible to see some manufacturer picking up the design and shaping it into a real phone pretty soon.

If this phone really comes out, it is going to become your new favorite pocket PC. PC? Well, it runs on Windows platform! Guess what? The phone comes with dual boot! The OSes are Windows 8 Pro and Windows Phone 8!

Specs of TPM VIPIN

32 bit on ARM architecture.
Blank button.
Keyboard (QWERTY layout on honeycomb design background).
Semi Slide Mode with numeric keys being placed on bottom line.
Top-bottom design.
Split Mouse.
Inclusion of gaming keys.
3D camera placed centrally.
Stylus is redesigned.
UI is tap controlled.
Capacitive bottom-fold mouse.
Dual buttons for camera.
Multimedia Professionals will enjoy professional ports. Blue port for video in, yellow for audio in and red for audio out.
Back stand/cover is completely redesigned.

Enjoy The Video With Some Soothing Music

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Share with your friends today!

MusixCube: Control Music On The Go

2012-10-10T17:17:00.000-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Hauke Scholz

If you are among those people who love to create music, here is something that will grab your attention. The MusixCube is device that is hand-held and acts as a controlling unit for production software of any given digital music.

Made for stuff like Logic, Ableton Live etc., this device combines hardware like MIDI controllers, drum computers etc. This device will actually help the music creators to enjoy time away from their computer. They will now actually be able to interact with their music in real time. The applications used for creating music and the cube actually interact on the basis of Rubik's Tower.

Here are some interesting features of the MusixCube:

Multiple people capable of creating or editing music piece alongside one another.
The device consists of 40 OLED screens that are pressure and touch sensitive.
Each segment can be turned, tilted or moved in other ways for affecting parameters, sequencing samples and even triggering effects.
Sounds that were previously assigned to various fx-slots and pads can be looped and played.
Once a few songs are arranged, the users can work with a minimum of two cubes for mixing music or for live performance.

Images [Click to enlarge]

Liked this concept? Click the share buttons to let your friends know about this design.

Ocean Guard: Keeps Away Jellyfish!

2012-10-10T16:53:00.002-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Bao Haimo, Minji Jeon, Kyung-Hong Kim, Kyung-Rok Kang, Kyung-Chan Han, Jung-Hoon Yang and Dong-Woo Kang

The designers' list is long! Forget that and thank all of them to present the new Ocean Guard concept. This is a buoy series that is meant for keeping jellyfish away!

Jellyfish may apparently look harmless but there are species that can give unbelievable amount of pain with one sting and there are other species too that can deliver fatal sting to humans. The idea of the Ocean Guard is to keep away jellyfish with ULF sound waves. ULF stands for ultra-low frequency. These frequencies will prevent the jellyfish from entering a certain area without harming them. Peaceful, balanced and harmonic ecosystem!

Images [Click to enlarge]

Liked this concept? Click the share buttons to let your friends know about this design.

One Click Clothing Security Tag

2012-10-10T16:41:00.004-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Stuart Kellett

Security tags for clothing can at times be very time consuming as securing tags and removing them can increase the store stocking time as well as customer checkout time. To simplify the process and to save time, Stuart Kellett has come up with a unique design of One Click Clothing Security Tag.

The design features an injection-molded single clip with twin shot that can be attached to garments or removed from the garments with one single movement of the hand. These tags can be clipped to a rack for easy storage. This increases efficiency and enhances the security of the valuable items.

Images [Click to enlarge]

Liked this concept? Click the share buttons to let your friends know about this design.

HTC Apocalypse Droid Concept From India

2012-10-08T15:34:00.000-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Rahul Sharma

The designer from India has again surprised us with a real impressive HTC concept phone. This HTC Apocalypse is powered by Android version 5.1 (Key Lime Pie) OS. Inspired by the motto "Built to Dominate", the design is equipped with nice gadgets and powerful software. This wide phone boasts of a very nice back texture and follows fairly straight forward design ideas, thus appealing to fans that put functionality over form factor. Its impressive width gives the appearance as it there is no real edges, which further accentuates its size.

It boasts of a 2 GHZ dual core AMD processor and GeForce EVGA GTX GPU driver. The display is powered by IPS LED technology with oleophobic coating spanning the 4.8 in screen. The Android Key Lime Pie OS, 2 GB of DDR2 RAM, and HTC Sense 4.5 with Biosense compliments the underlying computing power. It also offer a Speech to Text capability via Audio Browsing, Read Aloud and Smart Voice (could measure up quite nicely with its rival S Voice). The spec also says of 1920 x 1080 screen resolution, which user can switch between 2D/3D modes. An electrosensitive device is also installed, which means that you can navigate without making physical contact, I guess by just hover the finger on top of the screen, directly above your selections.

HTC Apocalypse is also equipped with dual 2MP camera (necessary during 3D video conferencing). The connectivity supports all latest connectivity options available, i.e. quad band, LTE and WiMAX. Facial and movement recognition are also incorporated on this concept phone, alongside with augmented reality. The thickness is an impressive 6.65 mm, which qualifies as the slimmest smartphones ever dreamed of. The internal storage is 64 GB. Other features include microSD card slot, wireless and heat charging (via direct contact with body part), NFC, side scrolling capability, plus a 21 MP SLR-style HD camera (physical zooming and also amazingly retractable lenses).

Stripped of the cover, you will find a 3600 mAh battery (Li Ion), complete with 800 charge cycles. The back cover is coated by the ubiquitous Kevlar (a Motorola trademark). Well I hope this is one phone I can lay my hand on by 2013 Christmas.

Images [Click to enlarge]

In case you happen to like this, share it with others! It won't really cost you your fortune!

Nokia L8: PureView 41 MP And Metal Kickstand

2012-10-08T15:26:00.004-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Saeid Khajevand

Saeid Khajevand unveiled Nokia Lumia 8 (or simply Nokia L8) concept phone powered by Windows Phone 8. His creation comes with a 41 MP camera from PureView, a kick-ass speaker right at the bottom and has similar visual appeals of the trendy Lumia models in fashion today.

Apparently Saeid has built a small slope on the upper end and the handset is probably not as rounded compared to those on market currently. You can find all the major buttons on just one side (on your right) where you power On/Off, adjust volume and operate the camera. At the back, it is affixed with the PureView 41 MP camera. A remarkable aspect of this design is that Windows Phone 8 (WP8) silver logo. It is embossed to the back cover and could function like a kickstand, this is indeed a cool idea. The obligatory microUSB port is located at the bottom, alongside with another speaker.

If you ever pay attention to Nokia Lumia phones (whether 820 or 920 models), you can't help but notice its bulkiness and weight. These definitely do not compare them well with other Android powered phones. Nokia has always explained (and expected understanding) that the size and weight are necessary to accommodate camera sensors and big batteries. My personal list is to have a Lumia model that is thinner and lighter that what it is today. So it is a relief to read about Nokia's commitment to make the future models smaller and thinner. Hopefully in time to come, we will get to see a Lumia which measures 9 mm, or 8 or even lower, to catch up with the models coming out from Motorola and HTC… How do you like the thinner and smaller Nokia L8?

Images [Click to enlarge]

Do you like this? Share it with others!

Old DNA Reveals New Findings For Koala Disease

2012-10-07T14:12:00.001-07:00

Untitled Document

The koala retrovirus (KoRV) is well documented to have troubled the koalas' community for long time. Recently researchers Alex Greenwood and Alfred Roca commissioned a study of their DNA using skin samples from koalas kept in USA and European museums. And the analysis revealed that this retrovirus problem may have persisted for far longer period that we have imagined. Greenwood is based in Berlin's Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (LZW) and Roca is an assistant professor in animal sciences at the University of Illinois.

The confirmation of this retrovirus on museum samples suggested it has invaded the host system for generations. The consequences are dire as the attacks seemed quite drawn out and it is normal to assume that the subsequent generations have suffered its strong pathological effects.

One example of retroviruses is HIV (or human immunodeficiency) virus. These viruses are able to transcribe RNA into DNA that is then incorporated into the host cell. When the attack spreads to the host's germ line (cells that carry genetic materials, examples are sperm and eggs), the disease would affect the offspring that follows.

Our knowledge about retrovirus is not extensive. This KoRV is in fact the only type known to affect a germ line of animal population. For northern Australia, close to all koalas there have endogenous (inherent integration with the host) KoRV. But an interesting situation is observed in the south, as only very small portion of koalas are affected, likely the retrovirus is not as widespread or it is a young virus.

Image [Click to enlarge]

It is the goal of both Greenhood and Roca that their study could lead to discovery on how the attachment of a retrovirus onto the germ line could take place. There are also external collaborations involving researchers from Copenhagen and Berlin and Copenhagen who specialize in ancient DNA. These experts are helped by cutting edge laboratories/facilities to decode genetic materials out of ancient and/or less-than-perfect samples that are really too small for general research.

A total of 28 museum koalas were used for this experiment, stretching from late 19th century to 1980s. Sequencing of mitochondrial DNA was then carried out on 18 of the koalas pool. They were stumped when they realize 15 out of the 18 samples are positive for KoRV.

The team has expected to find less incidents of KoRV in the samples that went a far way back and that more recent samples would show up hints of the progression in KoRV, ideally a chain of events which marks its transmission from an infectious virus to being an integral part of the germ line.

Two samples which tested negative against KoRV were hailed from southern Australia. All the 15 KoRV positive samples came from northern Australia. This finding shows tremendous similarity on recent study conducted to determine the geographic spread of KoRV.

Image [Click to enlarge]

One other finding was that KoRV seem to have reached stable state as the sequencing is just about the same across old and new samples. This revealed that the retrovirus has stabilized as far back as 120 years, and by the late 1800, their presence has been well established in northern Australia. It then spreads at a much slower pace, likely because of sedentary nature of koalas.

The initial conclusion is that this presence of KoRV has made koalas more prone to a number of diseases, like leukemia and Chlamydia, over the last century and more. In 1887 – 1889, there have been diseases reported which exhibit similar symptoms to those of Chlamydia, and it wiped away millions of koalas from Australia surface.

Organic Concoctions On Ice May Reveal How Life Started On Earth

2012-10-07T14:01:00.001-07:00

Untitled Document

Icy organics may not be your idea of coffee to die for, but over in Pasadena, California, NASA's researchers are busy making icy organic concoctions, or carbon-bearing molecules. These molecules are then zapped with lasers. The goal is noble: to find out how life began on our planet.

According to the latest edition of Astrophysical Journal Letters, those researchers drew their inspiration when gazing out into the vastness of our solar system. They must have wondered about the origin and the chemical makeup of those icy particles which float freely in the chilly environment among the stars. It is a popular belief that life originates from organics and water, but not many folks know that these lonesome icy particles are probably responsible to start life on Earth. Scientists believe that the combination of organics and ice particles would very likely to have bumped into asteroids and comets, which subsequently crash-landed on Earth, thus providing the necessary "prebiotic" ingredients to jump start life here.

It may be difficult to visualize the transition from icy organics into slimy molds but the experiments conducted at NASA's lab definitely demonstrated that the process to turn an organic material into prebiotic ingredients can taken place while the organics are deep inside icy structure.

"The very basic steps needed for the evolution of life may have started in the coldest regions of our universe," according to lead researcher of the new study at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA (or simply JPL), Murthy Gudipati. Indeed the researchers were stumped as the organic chemistry was re-enacted inside the extremely cold temperature settings inside the lab.

Image [Click to enlarge]

The organics in question here are PAHs (acronym for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons). They are filled with carbon-rich molecules and also common sights on Earth; like candle soot and even carbon vapor coming out of the exhaust pipe of motor-vehicle. They exist in abundance in outer space in asteroids, comets, and even distant objects, e.g. the void space separating the stars and in far-far away galaxies, as confirmed by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.

Murthy and his JPL colleagues have successfully mimicked the icy PAH molecules in outer-space with laboratory settings. With temperature sets to a low of 5 Kelvin (i.e. -450 degrees Fahrenheit, or -268 Celsius), UV rays are beamed onto the particles, to simulate the bombardment from stars. It was then followed by a special laser system called Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption and Ionization (a.k.a. MALDI) to reproduce the same chemical reaction. MALDI is meant to zap the ice with both UV lasers and infrared rays.

Under such lab settings, PAHs did transform: additional hydrogen atoms were absorbed and a new yet complex structure emerged. The resultant organics have lost their circular shape and aromatic bonds. Past scientific experiments have proven that this is the sort of change that a material would need to go through before it eventually turn into nucleotides and amino acids – fragments of DNA and protein, respectively.

It was a surprised finding. PAHs are known to be strong and resilient, so the chain of chemical reactions under super cold temperatures was unfathomable in the past.

An expected bonus for this experiment is that scientists may have found their answer about why the absence of PAHs on ice grains. Given that this strong and resilient organic is almost omni-present in the universes, hot dusts and gases, it was indeed puzzling there is no trace of PAH on ice. The fact that PAHs could quickly turn into more complex structures as they got stuck to the ice should help explain their absence on ice surface.

While this finding points us to those very cold regions of the universe as we continue our pursuit of life origin, one fundamental question to follow would be: Where the icy particles come from, way beyond our sun? Nobody knows for now, but this finding is surely a huge step in our efforts to unlock the mystery of life on Earth.

Pacific Ecosystem To Experience Major Shift By 2100

2012-10-07T13:52:00.002-07:00

Untitled Document

Imagine waking up one day to realize that your favorite grocery store had shifted out a few miles away again? If this pattern persists, it won't take long for you to embark long trip just to feed your family. It does not make sense in our world yet but it could possibly be a not-so-distant reality for marine animals as climate change continues its threat.

A recent Nature Climate Change edition undertakes to explain how global ocean temperatures increase in the next 100 years could affect the habitat of open ocean animals in the North Pacific. While the researchers admitted that certain habitats are not likely to be severely affected, but the geographical distribution of other ocean habitats may just shift drastically, being relocated as far as 600 miles away from their current positions.

Image [Click to enlarge]

Not all animals are affected the same way. Larger creatures like blue whales, sharks and loggerhead turtles will have to face the brunt of this eminent move, but certain seabirds could stand to benefit. But the overall impact is drastic. As the natural predators are displaced from the original habitat, it could bring about irreversible changes to communities and industries on shore. For example, fisheries and ecotourism would be badly hit.

Undoubtedly, a sudden change of habitat and the time spent to migrate would be stressful for the marine life, especially those which have come under pressure due to over-fishing and other human activities. But there is also positive to pick up from here. Elliott Hazen, a researcher at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, who is also an affiliate member of the Center for Ocean Solutions at Stanford suggested that if we can successfully build a model on the marine ecosystems to come, then it makes it more plausible to manage these scenarios more effectively.

The TOPP (short name for Tagging of Pacific Predators) project is central to this study. Over the last 10 years or so, it has successfully place 4,300 electronic tags on 23 species. As a result, enormous amount of data has been generated in relation to migration patterns and hotspots of certain predator species, especially around the northern Pacific region. Complex mathematical models were then applied onto these data to make sense out of it.

More data is required. Sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-a (to measure surface productivity level) were measured with the help of satellites. The tracking data is necessary so as to pinpoint "key habitat areas" for a number of predestined predator specie. Through a 'climate modeling' approach (using both ocean temperature data and productivity level), the researchers then determine the kind of changes to certain key habitat areas as the ocean continues to warm.

Image [Click to enlarge]

The North Pacific Transition Zone is one critical habitat. It is the marker between cold, nutrient-rich polar water on the north and warmer, nutrient-poor water over to the south. It represents an important corridor for various predators (marine mammals included like seabirds and tunas) to cross over to the Pacific Ocean basin. This finding revealed that the entire area could move by close to 600 miles. And the habitat move means that there is going to be a 20 % drop of species diversity.

There may be other critical habitat areas which would not as be greatly affected (if any). The California Current runs parallel to North America west coast. Each year it hosts a great deal of open ocean predators when cold, nutrient-rich water induces an environment of high productivity. Despite the threat of ocean warming, it is set to continue this so-called upwelling cycle.

Individually, those species most at risk from habitat changes (due to Pacific warming) are sharks, turtles, and marine mammals like whales. For some habitats, researchers rate their confidential level of such loss to be at a relatively high 35 %.

On the other hand, animals such as turtles and seabirds would likely gain from climate-change-related shifts. As these species have better tolerance level on temperature fluctuations, they can possible take advantage with potential expanded habitat.

Image [Click to enlarge]

It all boils down to one's adaptability to temperature change and to use multiple ocean spaces for hunting ground, according to Hazen. "Having multiple sources of food, migration corridors and areas to call home provides a buffer against climate variability and change."

The science director of the Center for Ocean Solutions, Larry Crowder, explained that modeling based on various scenarios has been employed in financial investments, national security, and whole lot of critical areas. So it is natural to use this model to identify large predators under severe threat of ocean warming, and allow us to successfully manage them. This is necessary for both commercial and conservation purposes. Crowder is involved in the study as well.

Indeed, the modeling would lend us glimpses on the impact of climate change on ocean life, so that marine and coastal managers may be able to react or change track accordingly.

Quasars Light Can Possibly Map Universe's Structure And Spread

2012-10-07T13:31:00.001-07:00

Untitled Document

Space scientists must have envied Columbus since he was able to set sail and go to places where no one else has been. But, as scientists at Case Western Reserve University found out, they don't have to travel far to figure out the structure and spread of the universe. Instead of sail, they depend on quasars.

It is indeed ground-breaking. With millions more quasars at far-away distant expected to be discovered in the coming years, scientists are offered an unprecedented opportunity to re-examine the Big Bang. It is indeed a rare chance, it is like to be able to travel back to check out the infant universe when it was just a fraction of what it is now.

Image [Click to enlarge]

The idea struck the researchers as they were analyzing the visible light out of quasars. Apparently the light patterns analyzed over time were deemed to be consistent across quasars when compensated by redshift. This quasar redshift is a phenomenon which can be explained this way: when a universe keeps on expanding, the quasars are getting further away from us, and the light becomes redder, and apparently time passed more slowly.

Put it simply, we are able to see how the universe evolves when information is conveyed to us with time delay effect. As more quasars get discovered, we would be able to re-evaluate the different phases of universe when we examine the first lights emitted from those quasars. The implications are nothing to scoff at. When we can take control of time, we are in control of our destiny, if not history.

Image [Click to enlarge]

As redshift expands, it implies that the light source is older and further away. Consistent with the working of researchers, more and bigger samples of quasars are expected to confirm the patterns.

One such mission is spread headed by De-Chang Dai, Amanda Weltman, and Dejan Stojkovic. Apparently light samples were collected and analysis of dark matter in and around the Milky Way was deliberated. A sample of 14 quasars was decided and the light patterns were recorded and examined over an extended period of time.

Image [Click to enlarge]

The findings were consistent, that everything we thought we know about lights applies. When the light curve was compared to a straight line, slopes would invariably appear. By working on these slopes, scientists are able to calculate individual quasar's redshifts, often with margin of error no more than 2%.

The second experiment to determine the size of redshift is more challenging; the researchers took two quasars and compared individual segments of the curves, in order to find the best fits. And the result is an astonishingly accurate of 1.5% points.

The co-relation drawn here is significant. For example, a star with redshift size of 7.1 means that we are seeing lights when the universe assumed 1/8 of its current size. And the implications are huge. If this method of co-relating light source and universe size is proven to be accurate, scientists would have millions of markers available to them (subject to the number of quasars are discovered) which allow them to construct a comprehensive model that traces back to potentially the Big Bang era and we should be able to find out whatever happened to our universe.

Vesta Received Hydrated Material Package As Special Delivery

2012-10-07T13:19:00.001-07:00

Untitled Document

It seems like ages ago when scientists from different camps just kept arguing on where water originates from among the many terrestrial planets. Recently, NASA also gets into the argument now that its Dawn mission to Vesta has suggested moisture was made available through degenerations of small particles at a time when the Solar System was filled with dust.

This is yet another radically different argument about bringing hydrous materials to planets and moons. It is definitely very different hypothesis as compared to the vaporization temperature differential is the central part of water supply. When the European Planetary Science Congress commences in Madrid on 26 Sep, Maria Cristina De Sanctis from the Dawn team will present its argument and findings.

De Sanctis who is hailed from the Institute of Astrophysics and Space Planetology in Italy noticed that the Vesta is definitely blessed with hydrated components on certain regions. These are regions which you don't count on solar illumination or temperature differential to produce the moisture, as would be expected in the planet earth. The finding is unexpected and it suggests that another theory will have to be put together to explain the availability of water in such planet or asteroid.

De Sanctis's team believes that the Dawn's visible and infra red (VIR) mapping spectrometer would show the way. They studied the data and realized that high hydroxl bondage of hydrogen and oxygen atom) concentrations tend to focus on highly-cratered terrains and the Oppia crater.

Image [Click to enlarge]

Hydroxyl is believed to be the result of continuous interaction of protons from the solar wind with the lunar regolith. Interestingly the 2 poles on Vesta as well as craters which are perpetually shadowed represent the areas with the highest hydroxyl concentration. Of course these areas are cold, at all times. In contrast, the seasonal weather change which brought about short term coldness does not seem to influence the concentration level of hydroxyl on Vesta. Another observation is that the concentration reading seems to be fairly stable, which means that the content of hydroxyl is not going to be influenced by short term weather change or extremely cold temperatures over short time.

One interesting observation from mission Dawn is that high hydroxyl areas on Vesta seem to congregate on its oldest surfaces. Definitely not all craters are equal, as researches found out that those craters resulted from more recent impacts tend to show low concentration hydroxyl (if any); this suggest hydroxyl is not part of an ongoing process within the asteroid or moon.

Perhaps the more significant aspect about this research is that Vesta's hydroxyl happens to be replenished by small particles over a long stretch of time. This period could have corresponded to the primordial solar system, or the Late Heavy Bombardment era, when there were significant evidence of moisture or primitive material dust (which subsequently turn to hydrous products).

But the story on Vesta does not end here. Its Oppia Crater is known to be laden with hydroxyl, but there is a lack of primitive material there. Apparently there is something else at work which is responsible for hydroxyl deposit on that part of Vesta.

It is a still big puzzle as far as hydroxyl content is concerned. While we are able to pinpoint certain delivery mechanism of hydroxyl, these are definitely not exclusive in hydroxyl production. Everything we are about to learn about the delivery of hydrous materials on Vesta asteroid would lend some insights about how our solar system is formed.

Motorola Nexus RAZR

2012-10-07T11:29:00.000-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Bob Freking

The following observations are based on a chain of events started by a fellow member, Anthony. Anthony (a reader of Concept Phones) previously requested that all his preferences to be fitted into a new concept phone and habitual designer Bob Freking gleefully took up the challenge.

The request was simple enough: turn a Motorola RAZR into a Google Nexus phone. There are two catches here; work on his prescribed specs and the resultant phone should not put the RAZR branding into jeopardy. But fret not; we always have the very dependable Freking on our side:

To start with, the new Nexus RAZR would come with a dual 15 MP Carl Zeiss camera with solid handlings of both 2D and 3D photo shots and dual LED flash, and also a 1080 pixels video recording at 60 frames per second. The handset is furnished with brushed aluminum at the edges and the video playback capability can tackle both 2D and 3D content competently, with the help of stereoscopic 3D projection. For the display option, Freking proposed a 5 in (across) Super AMOLED Plus screen (1080 pixels). Other attributes of this Nexus concept are light weight (107 grams) and really slim (8.7 mm thick). It can be supplied with 2 GB RAM, and internal memory is split into 32 GB, 64 GB or 128 GB in size.

A 3 MP camera takes its place at the front and under the hood is a Snapdragon S4 Pro (quad core) 1.7 GHz processor. Some additional features expected are camera button, microSD card slot and the charging port right at the bottom. For sound quality, Freking incorporates Bose audio speakers at the two ends of this handset. NFC capability and Jelly Beam (Android 4.1) OS complete the software configuration. A 4000 mAh battery takes charge here; itself is permanently attached to the device. It looks simple enough to operate, and boasts of aesthetic effect (I especially love its slim waist and small curves built at the bottom).

Now YOUR concept phone does not have to stay as a pipe dream. Turn your ideas over to us and we take care that our friends, the designers here, see that your dream is fulfilled.

[Big Thank You for Bob Freking on his marvelous ideas and Anthony for suggesting]

Image [Click to enlarge]

Like this? Share with the world!

Nokia Lumia 3310: Humorous Tribute

2012-10-07T10:25:00.001-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Bob Freking

Probably inspired to work on a lazy weekend, renowned creator Bob Freking has a humorous take on this new Nokia concept phone. He equates the new Nokia Lumia 3310 to the Thor's hammer or Chuck Norris's phone.

It is no doubt a tribute paid to the once ubiquitous Nokia 3310; most phone users would readily admit that they have used this phone at least once in their life. Being a tribute phone, it is surprising to find that it only resembles the original to some extent, but the more fundamental difference here is Windows Phone 8 as OS.

On the front and to the lower side sits the 3310 unmistaken trademark, i.e. the big Home. The previous number pad is now replaced by a virtual one. Freking really let his creative juice flowed. This concept phone is boosted by a 7 billion GHz 56 core processor (probably taking a dig at the handset manufacturers' relentless drive to up the ante in term of hardware spec), at the same time a "9,3024,823,904 Petapixel PureView Camera" is also affixed on that phone. The impressive hardware would end with an out-of-the-world "ultra mega ultimate HD screen", really pushing the envelope with Nokia's claim of super duper Lumia 920.

On the functionality side, this model is really godsend. It can withstand meteor strike, has built in mechanism that ensures survival in case of mass extinction and there is also a cancer (and AIDS) curing app inside … Talk about creativity and originality! But jokes aside, if Nokia does revive 3310, the romantics in the world would buy it, regardless WHAT specs the manufacturer decides to pack inside!

Image [Click to enlarge]

Liked the humor? Let others laugh too! Hit the share button!

Nokia Lumia M Concept Phone

2012-10-07T10:02:00.002-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Michael Schroder

Deviantart user Michael Schroder (codename Loki Bartleby) has come out with another creation, a Nokia Lumia M. This concept phone ditches the polycarbonate exterior and goes for aluminum. Yeah, the M stands for metal, I guess! By checking out the artist impression or graphic illustration, you would get a sense that it resembles the good old N8.

The first impression is that this handset looks kind of longish. Indeed its length measures 61 mm, largely to accommodate a 720 pixels display (4.3 inch across). It is 9 mm in thickness. Loki mentioned that this Nokia Lumia M belongs to the midrange category, so I hazard a guess by assuming it is powered by a Snapdragon dual core S4 processor with 1 GB RAM onboard. The underlying OS has to be Windows Phone 8. The graphics also demonstrate a prominent PureMotion logo on the screen, so that got to be the technology of choice. The camera fixed at the back looks like it falls within 8 or 12 mega-pixel range; seems like it has nothing to do with Pureview technology.

On side of the phone is equipped with On/Off button and camera button, and you can locate the volume button on the other side. Right under the display are the capacitive buttons and a microUSB port and speakers. Now this Nokia Lumia M does not come with the usual glossy Lumias' appearance that Nokia seems to be proud of, so I bet it would not fall off the user's hand as easily.

Images [Click to enlarge]

Love it? Share it! It won't cost you money!

Xperia Nexus: Curves In Action

2012-10-07T09:52:00.002-07:00

Untitled Document

Designer: Slatd from Deviantart

Slatd from Deviantart has come out with yet another impressive work. This time he has his eyes set on Sony, instead of meshing Nokia and Android together as his earlier design. The result is the next generation Android powered Sony Nexus. Unveiling the Sony Xperia Nexus… a real slim handset blessed with all the right curves. The hint of Xperia TX is hard to miss as the designer did openly claim that he was impressed with its sleek look.

It is natural to assume that Android's Key Lime Pie will run this version. The phone will be equipped with 12 MP camera, Snapdragon S4 Pro CPU (quad core) and complemented by a decent RAM size (1.5 or 2 GB will be nice for me). Other niceties could include NFC, LET and microSD card slot(s), and of course, it won't be complete without an impressive looking 4.5 inch 768p screen. This display choice is getting popular anyway; even Nokia also fits this onto their latest Lumia offerings. From the early graphic illustrations, this Sony/Google Nexus handset curves real nice and it looks slim, real slim. Maybe we can anticipate a thickness that breaks the 7 mm limit, which would surely beats the pants off mainstream phone makers that are still hawking those over 7 mm sets to us.

For a long time, this Google Nexus combination is more associated with manufacturers like Samsung or HTC. Of course, LG is always featured as another potential and now Motorola naturally (since Google completed its acquisition). For some reason, Sony was never on the radar. But comes year end, Sony may just offers up to 5 new Nexus models for Christmas, as far as the rumor mills go…

Images [Click to enlarge]

Like it? Share it!

Samsung Galaxy S4 Concept

2012-10-07T09:45:00.001-07:00

Untitled Document

Sources: computerbild.de and mobiletechcity.com

With all these rumors being churned out about Samsung Galaxy S4 on almost daily basis, you would have imagined that it would be a breeze to gather intelligence on their impending product. Granted, some interesting pictures and bits size info are out there, but they are all one of a kind. So it was a tougher job than what I have imagined earlier. Anyway, my intelligence gathering can be summarized as follows:

It is alleged that Samsung would unveil its latest version for its flagship product at 2013 Mobile World Congress. The specifications on the web state that it would be powered either by Qualcomm's Snapdragon S4 Pro CPU (quad core) or an Exynos 5 CPU (ARM15). RAM will be a respectable 2 GB size and the display of choice is rumored to be a 5 inch screen this time round, complemented by OLED technology and a Full HD resolution. Connectivity and OS would be 4G LTE and Jelly Bean (Android 4.1.1.) respectively with users offered choice of 16/32/64 GB for storage. This Samsung concept phone will be powered by battery with improved life span, but strangely creator favors the idea of fixing a dual camera at the back, apparently for some reasons.

Other bells and whistles you can expect: a powerful front camera, NFC, standard microSD card slot and impressively a nano SIM slot also. My personal wish is for Samsung to ditch those plastic cases and opt for more professional appearance. Glass or aluminum, I don't mind so long it is not plastic. Ideas of anodized aluminum or even kevlar (remember Motorola) are also being floated around so you get a sense of unhappiness from Samsung users regarding this aspect of their products. Very likely Samsung Galaxy S4 is going to be a striped down version of Galaxy Note II, but I keep my fingers crossed…

Images [Click to enlarge]

Like it? Let the world know! It takes only one click on share buttons.