Bacteria engineered to turn carbon dioxide into liquid fue

Bacteria engineered to turn carbon dioxide into liquid fuel. Physorg is reporting that researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have genetically modified a cyanobacterium to consume carbon dioxide and produce the liquid fuel isobutanol, which holds great potential as a gasoline alternative. The reaction is powered directly by energy from sunlight, through photosynthesis.
The research appears in the Dec. 9 print edition of the journal Nature Biotechnology and is available online.
This new method has two advantages for the long-term, global-scale goal of achieving a cleaner and greener energy economy, the researchers say. First, it recycles carbon dioxide, reducing greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the burning of fossil fuels. Second, it uses solar energy to convert the carbon dioxide into a liquid fuel that can be used in the existing energy infrastructure, including in most automobiles.
Much More at Physorg.com

Tear down of Toshiba's Dynario Fuel Cell Battery.

Tear down of Toshiba's Dynario Fuel Cell Battery. Tech-on broke down the fuel cell battery, and they were surprised by the large number of components. It is equipped with many circuit components other then fuel cells such as ultra-small pump, valve, microcomputer, controller IC chip and controller board. We were also surprised by the sturdy chassis of the battery, which is made with metal plates and strong reinforcement materials.
The Dynario has two power generating units, a cylindrical lithium-ion battery and two controller boards equipped with a power supply switch and an input-output terminal. The power generating unit is made by sandwiching generating cells between a lattice-shaped stainless steel plate and a resin chassis that works as a fuel feed plate and fixing them with rivets and caulking. Therefore, the cells cannot be taken out without breaking the unit.
The power generating unit is equipped with a fuel valve, a fuel pump and two controller IC chips for controlling them. The controller boards mounted with the power supply and the input-output terminal are used to control power from the power generating units and boot up the power generating units by using the lithium-ion battery.
More at Tech-on

Onkyo Releases High Speck version of the Dual Screen Notebook by Kohjinsha w/ 2 x 1366x768 screens!

Onkyo Releases High Speck version of the Dual Screen Notebook by Kohjinsha w/ 2 x 1366x768 screens! Starting at 84,800 YEN (about $965) Onkyo has started selling a higher specked version of the DUAL SCREENED notebook originally made by Kohjinsha. The Onkyo is called the DX series (Kohjinsha calls theirs the DZ) and features 2 upgraded screens that are 1366 x 768 each (The Kohjinsha has 1024 x 600). Other upgrades are 2 GB of RAM, 320GB HDD, and it is available in White. The DX uses the same AMD Neo 1.6Ghz CPU, ATI 3200 Graphics GPU, and Chipset as the DZ. (Max RAM on the GPU is 896MB.) Basically for and extra $60 you can get an substantially better computer from Onkyo with 2 times the RAM, HDD space, and screen real estate. I think the DX will be the big winner of the two . The DX will start selling from December 21st.
More at PC Watch.
Available for pre-order at Conics.net

Kohjinsha releases First in World Dual Screen Laptop. The DZ Series with AMD Neo chip

Kohjinsha releases the First in the World Dual Screen Laptop. The DZ Series features dual screens that slide apart making it the first retails Dual screen laptop in the world. The DZ starts at 79,800 YEN (about $999 exported from Conics.net) in its basic configuration and uses the AMD Dual Core Neo MV-40(1.60GHz) CPU, 2 x 1024x600 LCD screens and 160GB HDD. The DZ comes Radeon 3200 video chip set. Other specifications include 1GB Memory (maximum 4GB), One-SEG TV Tuner (works only in Japan), Windows 7 Home Premium. 3 USB 2.0 ports, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Gigabit Ethernet, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, SD/MMC/microSD care Slot, and a 1.3 megapixel Web Camera. The battery life is 4.5 hours. Body size is approximately 280 × 210 × 19 ~ 42mm (width × depth × height) and weighs 1.84kg (about 4 pounds). The width of the computer with both screens opened is about 521mm.
The computer will be released in Japan on December 11th. No word if it will ever come to the USA.
Conics.net is taking preorders now for English version of the item:
Kojinsha video here:
A direct link the the Kohjinsha website

A quick video review NEC VersaPro UltraLite VS Sony Vaio Type X11

A quick video review NEC VersaPro UltraLite VS Sony Vaio Type X11

Integrated Golf Bra! Who says Japanese are not creative?

Integrated Golf Bra! Who says Japanese are not creative? The Japanese branch of German lingerie maker Triumph International has created a new gimmick bra meant to attract media attention to their brand. Let the cup jokes begin...

Kohjinsha PA series Unboxing Video

Kohjinsha PA series Unboxing Video. This thing is small!

My girlfriend is the PRESIDENT Video Game from Japan

My girlfriend is the PRESIDENT Video Game from Japan with English dubbing. Need I say more?

CNN's Kyung Lah sinks her teeth into the 7 patty Wopper!

CNN's Kyung Lah sinks her teeth into a 2100 calorie 7 patty Wopper via a promotional deal between Burger King and Microsoft. Sadly only available in Japan Engadet has info on hacking your own region free version.

Kohjinsha PA series went on sale today in Japan

The Kohjinsha PA series went on sale today in Japan. Pricing starts at 69,800 YEN and the specs are as previously reported: CPU:Intel Atom Z520 (1.33GHz), Chipset: Intel US15W, Graphics: GMA500, Memory: 512MB (Max), HDD: 32GB SSD, WiFi, Bluetooth Ver.2.0, micro SD card slot, USB 2.0, 1,130 pixel Web CAM, built-in microphone,Headphone output, speaker monaural, analog VGA with cable, One-Seg TV tuner (only works in Japan), Battery life: about 7.5 hours, Size: approx 161 × 111 × 10 ~ 26mm (width × depth × height)Weight: about 400g.
Available though resellers like Conics.net
PC Watch did a nice write up on it and review in Japanese so grab your translater and check out the link here:
We should have a video review up soon as we will have ours in a few days.

Bridgestone Unveils 'World's 1st' Flexible E-paper Device

No flexible enough to fold and put in your pocket just yet, Bridgestone Corp announced a flexible electronic paper (e-paper) device based on its "Quick-response Liquid Powder" Oct 26, 2009.
The company expects that the device will be used for browsing electronic books and electronic data. It will be tested with the assistance system for liaison officers at Kansai Urban Banking Corp from the spring of 2010.
The device comes with 13.1-inch touch-sensitive e-paper that can display 4,096 colors. The e-paper has a higher reaction rate than other companies' e-paper and can refresh a 13.1-inch (A4) screen in 0.8 seconds. It has data processing and security functions and is capable of data communication via a mobile phone.
Bridgestone also developed an e-paper device whose e-paper, touch panel, drive circuit board and other parts are all flexible. The company claims it is the world's first flexible e-paper device.
The size of the e-paper is 10.7 inches, and the thickness of the device is 5.8mm.

Bridgestone plans to exhibit those e-paper devices at FPD International 2009, which will run from Oct 28 to 30, 2009, at Pacifico Yokohama, Yokohama City, Japan.
More at Tech-on

Kohjinsha PA UMPC series to be released in Japan in early November

Kohjinsha PA UMPC series to be released in Japan in early November. It will be priced at 69,800 yen or about about $770 USD at current rates. It will be equipped with a 4.8" 1,024 × 600 dot LCD touch screen that rotates and become a tablet The left side of the display bezel and keyboard have optical pointing devices. It comes with a built in 1Seg TV tuner (Japan Only) and can withstand 100kg of weight on the body. The CPU is an Atom Z520(1.33GHz), Intel US15W Chip-set, 512MB Memory (cannot be upgraded) and a 32GB SSD. It comes with 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, a micro SD card slot, 1 USB 2.0 port, and 1 audio input and output. For VGA out there is a cable that extends to D-Sub 15 pin connector. The body size is approximately 161 × 111 × 10 ~ 26mm (width × depth × height) and weighs about 400g. The battery life is approximately 7.5 hours. This is a great size for using on a crowed train or in the toilet... That's why we call it the Toilet-book!
More at the Kohjinsha Website.

Video: Kohjinsha Dual screen laptop @ CEATEC Japan 2009

Elecom's "Lego (TM)" style Playbrick earphones - a lawyers wet-dream ?

Avaialble soon in 6 colours, from Conics.Net

Dow Unveils Solar Shingles that install like regular Shingles

Dow Unveils Solar Shingles that install like regular Shingles. From the NYT:
Dow Chemical has unveiled a residential roof shingle in the form of a solar panel designed to be integrated into asphalt-tiled roofs.Jane Palmieri, managing director of Dow’s Solar Solutions unit, said the Powerhouse thin-film shingle slashes installation costs because it can be installed by a roofer who is already building or retrofitting a roof. “As a roofer is nailing asphalt shingle on roof, wherever the array needs to be installed he just switches to solar shingle,” said Ms. Palmieri, who said the solar singles are similarly attached to the roof with nails.“You don’t have to have a solar installation crew do the work or have an electrician on site,” she added. “The solar shingle can be handled like any other shingle – it can be palletized, dropped from a roof, walked on.”An electrician is still needed to connect the completed array to an inverter and to a home’s electrical system, but unlike conventional solar panels that must be wired together, the solar shingles plug into each other to form the array.
More at the New York Times

60-foot tall pneumatic cannon shoots pumpkins over a mile

60-foot tall pneumatic cannon shoots pumpkins over a mile! From the Youtube blurb:
Gary Arold of Kingston and John Gill of Hurley built the coolest toy around, a 60-foot tall piece of farm artillery that can shoot bowling ball-sized objects -- such as pumpkins -- up to a mile. On most weekends during the summer and fall, the owners are busy entertaining customers by hurling various calibers of squash at Gill's Farm Market on Route 209 in Hurley. On Tuesday, they fired a few rounds off for Reporter Adam Bosch, Photographer Steve Borland, and Videographer John Pertel.

Video of the new Kohjinsha PA series and overview

Video of the new Kohjinsha PA series and overview. This model is well past the prototype stage and is probably in pre-production as there were at least 7 of them on display for anyone to play with and all had Windows product key stickers on the bottom. We expect to see this on sale before the end of the year.

New kohjinsha Dual Screen Netbook! 1.8kg, 2 x 10.1" screens!

It has been a busy day for Kohjinsha at the Createc Japan 2oo9 trade show held in Makuhari Mese. Kohjinsha displayed a Dual Screen Notebook prototype with two 10.1" WSVGA touch screens! (1024x600 x 2). The "Dual Display" worked by sliding the right side screen behind the other so that it could fold into a standard sized notebook. The prototype weight in at a respectable 1.8kg. The entire screen can swivel making it great for presentations.
Thankfully tossing the Atom cookie cutter mold, the specs include a 1.6Ghz AMD Athlon Neo CPU (MV-40), Max 4GB of RAM, Windows 7, 2.5" HDD, and a Direct X 10 compatible video card.
No word on when this unique notebook will be on sale.


More at PC watch
Video to come soon.

NEW Kohjinsha PA series - 400g Micro UMPC / MID 1.33GHz w/ 7.5 hour battery life!

NEW Kohjinsha PA series. Kohjinsha has just introduced there newest micro note book / MID / UMPC, the PA series. At 400g this 4.8" screened UMPC / MID comes with a 1.33GHz (Z520) Atom CPU, 512mb RAM, 32GB SSD and an astounding 7.5 hour battery life!

The PA series also comes standard with XP Home, 1.3 megapixel web camera, One Seg TV Tuner, Wifi b/g, Bluetooth 2.o, Micro SD card slot and a 4.8" 1024x600 touch screen.

The stand out features are the nifty optical mouse located in the front of the keyboard which makes using the keyboard feel like a normal laptop as well as scroll, mouse, and left right click buttons located on the screen. This thing is small and measure a measly 161×111×10～26mm. No word on pricing or release date but we predict it to debut for between 59,000 to 69,000 yen.

More info at PC Watch.
We will post Video in about 18 hours.

Lightning Packs Backpack Generates 40 Watts Just By Walking

This power-generating backpack was filmed at the Modern Day Marine trade show in Quantico. Proposed several years ago by Lightning Packs the prototype is now reality. It can generate over 40 watts just by walking at a cost of a candy bar worth of human energy if used all day! The backpack is mounted on rails that it slides up and down on when its wearer walks or runs. The movement generates electricity that charges a lithium ion battery to power your gadgets or the juice can go directly to a device. An added benefit is that the design relieves stress for the wearer. I want one! No word on when the military is getting these or a commercial version.
Via Gizmodo
http://www.lightningpacks.com/