iPhone, Bust or Must?

The iPhone is every person in the universe’s dream.  The phone’s touch screen was the first in the line up, and now is copied by many. The iPhone’s cost has gone down in the past months, but it has still stayed the same old cool gadget of 2008. The iPhone, as every one knows, can surf the web, check how up your stocks are, add your hardest math problems, text, play songs, movies, guide you to a destination, and most importantly, make calls!

The phone is fairly simple to use, and comes in a handy black case with a charger, earphones, a “finger tips” guide, and a nifty polishing cloth.  The iPhone only needs to bee hooked up to iTunes and activated before use.    The Apple©® Gizmo made it onto 2007 top ten list, as one of the top three!  It holds 8GB of memory, and when using it in iPod mode, you can flick through your cover flow.  The ear buds have an on and off switch allowing you to answer calls while doing anything else.  If there is one thing wrong with the iPhone it’s that if you download a lot, it will be slower that frozen molasses.  It lacks some major features of a cell phone and some of the screens, starting with serial number 50000, has dark or messed up screens.  The iPhone only accepts AT&T and has a 36$ activation fee. The phone only costs 60$ a month for the minimal plan. To put it in short, the iPhone is a giant leap into the future for apple as well as many others.  It is imitated by many, but none can stand up to its awesomeness.  The iPhone was, and is the first to be a computer, a cell phone, and an iPod.

Soldier Uses Body to Shield Comrades from Grenade and Survives

Lance Corporal David Croucher, a Royal Marine, was on patrol in Afghanistan when he accidentally set off a rigged grenade. In a fraction of a second he threw himself on top of the grenade and turned on his side, protecting his comrades from the blast. A backpack and his body armor were the only things protecting him. Thanks to the 24-year-old’s armor and backpack, he survived. His only injury was the burst of blood vessels in his nose due to the shockwave of the explosion.

The British soldier’s life was saved by his backpack and lithium battery for his communication equipment. “I knew a grenade like this has a killing circumference of about five meters. The lads behind me would have caught a lot too. I’m very tight with the other three guys. There have been a few times when they’ve saved my bacon. So I went down next to the grenade. I figured that if I could keep my torso and head intact I’d probably survive any other injuries — although I fully expected to lose a limb,” he explains.

His actions of bravery and sacrifice have caused him to be nominated for the Victoria Cross, the British army’s highest award for bravery.

Sharp Shooters

Some of the best brands in digital Cameras, Nikon, Canon, and Olympus, have completely upgraded their new line of Digital SLR’s with better auto-focusing capabilities.

Digital SLR’s can shoot as fast as machine guns, but those pictures can be useless if all of them come out blurry. Autofocus can sometimes fail in low-light situations with quick moving objects. Finally, 2 cameras have come up to the top to show just how good their auto-focusing capabilities can be.

First, the Nikon D300. It packs 1 autofocus points! That is the most ever for a D-SLR! it is designed to to hold focus on a moving subject, like say, a soccer players blue jersey. Users can lock the cameras central focus point on the player, and if he darts to the edge of the frame, the camera passes the auto focus to another point in less than a second.

Next, the Olympus E-3. Each of the E-3’s 11 focus points has an extra row of pixels. This lets it gather twice as much information, which lets it get a more precise reading. They also claim to have the worlds most fastest autofocusing camera.

Overall, the Nikon D300 matched High end Canon 1Ds Mark III, and slightly outperformed other cameras in low light. Did I mention that the Mark III is an $8,000 camera? The Nikon D300 is only $1,800. It is good for shooting in low light situations. Also, the focus tracking worked very well. Although the Mark III, the 8 thousand dollar camera, completely trounced the others, the Nikon performed better than the Olympus.

The F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter

The Worlds most advanced Military Fighter Aircraft is finally making its appearance.

 Military Contractor Lockheed Martin is firing up the Jets 40,000 pound-thrust engine and is preparing for flight tests and analysis.  The jet can fly at supersonic speeds, and deflect radar signals.  Also, by the end of the month, Pilots are preparing to show off it’s most anticipating feature - the ability to take off and land vertically, or strait up and down, like a helicopter, then accelerate to high speed and fly like a normal fighter jet.

It is a variant of the original F-35, commissioned by the department of defense.  Its ability to take off and land vertically makes it perfect for taking off in small spaces, ships, and attack targets from much smaller spaces.  It also doesn’t need virtually any runway space to take off.  The service should put the $300 billon Lightning in service by 2012.  They are planning on replacing the militaries fleet of AV-8 Harriers and F/A-18 Superhornets at bases around the United States.\

What makes the Lightning Fly:

Most other fighter jets need at least 3000 feet of runway to take, the F-35 only needs 500 feet to take off.  The lift fan pushes air down, pushing the plane up.  When  is reaches about 290 miles an hour, it has enough beneath its wings to start flying like a normal airplane.

The Hidden Feature: Google Earth

The following is something I discovered in September of 2007.  It is a hidden feature in Google Earth that can be found in Google, but not really advertised.  Read on for more information.

If you know Google, you are aware of Maps and Earth.  And now, there newest feature is Moon.  But many people are not aware of a feature that they’ve passed through many times while visiting Google.  It is a flight simulator.

In order to have the flight simulator, you need to have version 4.2 of Google Earth.  To download Google Earth, click here.

Requirements

O.S.:  Windows 2000, XP & Vista, Mac OS X, Linux

Tips

For best performance of the flight simulator, it is suggested that you have a very fast computer.  If your computer is very slow, don’t download this software!  If your computer performs at moderate speeds, the display during gameplay will be a little “choppy” and will be less enjoyable.  In order to avoid “choppiness”, download Google Earth on a fast computer.  Performance is key if you want to use the flight simulator at its best.

Next:  Getting Started

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Once you’ve downloaded the software, you’re ready to get started.  Open Google Earth.  When it is open and the Earth is visible, enter this key combination:  CTRL + ALT + A.  A dialog box that looks like the image below should appear.  First, choose which airplane you would like to fly.  For beginners, I would suggest the SR22.  It goes really slow but it is good to teach you the basics of control.  If you are an experienced user I would suggest the F16, which can reach up to Mach 2.  That’s two times the speed of sound!

After selecting your aircraft, you need to decide your start position.  You have two choices now, but three later.  First, you can choose the current view that is displayed on the map.  Second, you can choose one from the few airports listed in the drop down menu.  Third, you can select “Last Position in Flight Simulator” after you have flown at least once.

If you have a joystick, it is supported by Google Earth.  Just plug it in, and enable it by checking the box in the last section of the dialog box.  Once you are done selecting your options, click “Start Flight”.

Next:  Controls

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Congratulations!  You’ve installed the software and set up the Flight Simulator.  Now you’re ready to fly!  How do you fly?  Here are all of the controls you’ll ever need.

	Command	Windows/Linux Keystroke(s)	Mac Keystroke(s)	Result or Comment

The smallest HD Camcorder

The new Panasonic HD camcorder has 12 lenses in a compartment the size of your thumb for shake-free video.

Light enters the front of the camcorder through the multiple high grade lenses which are made of extremely pure glass.  These bend the light to magnify the image but not to spread out the colors.  Looms lenses inside slide back and forth to adjust zoom.  The camera can capture enough light to see in a candle lit room.

Next, the light passes to image stabilizers that smoothes out shakes and jitter from your hands.  Advanced sensors in the camera send a signal to electromagnets on the position and movement of the camera, and in turn make tiny adjustments to the lenses, as many 4000 a second, that compensate for movement.

Before the image is recorded, the light has to be divided into red, green, and blue.  Panasonic uses prisms, instead of color filters, which doesn’t take away the light.  Each stream of light strikes an image sensor that measures intensity on over 560 thousand pixels to produce vivid video.

SPECS:

Size:  2.6 x 2.6 x 5.3 inches

weight: 14 OZ.

Resolution:  1920 x 1080 pixels

Cost:  1,000$

more information:  panasonic.com

recording:  5 hours of HD video on a 32 GB SD card

The Flying Laser Cannon

Boeing’s new laser cannon will melt a car from five miles away, in seconds.  -Its ready to fly this year too.

Scientists at Boeing’s Laboratory will put a 40,000 pound chemical laser into the belly of a C-130 gunship and take aim at targets over five miles away! We are not talking about soda cans - Boeing’s laser can melt cars, trucks, and even tanks!  These are the kind of things that missles and rockets would hit.  The ATL, advanced tactical laser, can strike in rapid succession, and move at the speed of light.

Precise control over the beam allows it to hit targets a few inches wide and focus its power on that one spot.  Future versions could be mounted on smaller vehicles like trucks and helicopters.

How to melt a car in 3 seconds:

When a C-130 airborne laser cannon flies in, it picks out its target.  The computers automatically stay locked on, so the gunner doesn’t have to constantly change it.  Then, here comes the laser.  In a fraction of a second, chlorine gas mixes with hydrogen peroxide and this creates highly energetic oxygen molecules.  Pressurized nitrogen pushes the oxygen through a mist of iodine, transferring the energy into the iodine.  This puts it into a form of light.  Mirrors then amplify the beam further increasing its power.  The beam then travels into a chamber called the optical bench.  Sensors determine the lasers quality and mirrors constantly adjust it from the movement of the airplane.  The chamber also has temperature monitors and humidity monitors, helping the beam stay powerful.  A reverse telescope type chamber expands the beams diameter to about 20 inches.  It then travels to the turret, which aims and fires the beam.  Computers calculate distance to adjust the beam to the right focal point.

Facts:

the beam can heat up objects to thousands of degrees in a few seconds.

the laser will burn everything in its path(that includes birds - but don’t worry, there is a very small chance.)

The left over used chemicals are stored in a sealed chamber.

Top 5 Google Tools for College Students

Google is a part of our daily lives.  It’s mentioned everyday and when you’re looking for something, you go there.  In this article, you will discover the top 5 Google tools and services that college students use.

Top 5 Google Tools and Services for College Students

1. Google Docs

Google Docs is Google’s online word processor.  If you have a Google account you can access this tool from anywhere around the world, as long as you have Internet connection.  This is special because you do not have to use your computer for it.  College students think that Google Docs is useful because they can access it if they spend a lot of time in libraries or computer labs.  You can import and export Word documents, as well as saving them in a PDF format.  But the best feature has to be collaboration.  Yes, you can send links to people.  Once they open up your document they can edit your document (if you allow them to) and save it.  Multiple people can edit the document…AT THE SAME TIME!  While one or more people are editing your document, you’ll be able to see all the changes in real-time.  But Google Docs isn’t used for just documents, you can choose to create spreadsheets and presentations as well.

Though Google Docs doesn’t have the exact interface as Microsoft Word, Excel, or PowerPoint, it is still a useful product.  So if you plan on sharing documents, don’t send e-mail attachments, use Google Docs!  To watch a video with more information about Google Docs, click here.

Average User Rating:  7.3/10, VERY GOOD
My Rating:  7.5

2.  Blogger

Blogger is what it sounds like.  A personal blog for you.  College students use it to write posts and keep their friends and family up-to-date on college life.  Creating a blog takes only three short steps.  Once you’ve created your blog you can publish your thoughts, receive feedback, post videos and pictures, and edit it mobile.  Click here to take a tour.

Average User Rating:  8.0/10, EXCELLENT
My Rating:  7.0

3.  Gmail

Why use the tacky e-mail system that the university gives you?  Gmail is free and offers you over 6522 MB of storage.  You can also chat with your friends in your e-mail’s inbox while checking your e-mail.  Find e-mails faster with a search queue instead of creating specific folders for messages.

Average User Rating:  9.7/10, SPECTACULAR
My Rating:  9.9

4.  Maps

Google Maps is very useful and has been innovated in such a way that makes it much better than before.  On the weekend, college students just want to relax after a hard week of classes.  After they do their homework, they sleep (or the party animals go out and party).  Let’s say a student wants a pizza.  They can go on their computer and get on Google Maps.  They’ll type in “Pizza” in the search queue and many balloons will pop up on the local map.  What makes Google Maps so powerful is that it is so much more than a conventional map.  They can read reviews and comments on specific pizza parlors, find coupons and discounts, and so much more.  As well as finding information not related to maps, new features have been added for planned trips.  You can change your route to your desired destination.  But most importantly, you can plan transit trips.  Here is a video about the “Transit Trips” feature.

Average User Rating:  10/10, PERFECT
My Rating:  10.0

5.  Calendar

Google Calendar is a great way to share events with people.  College students use it to organize their events, study/homework time, and to keep their family informed about their schedule.  You can manage multiple calendars and can control who sees it and who doesn’t.

Average User Rating:  10/10, PERFECT
My Rating:  6.2

Tomorrow’s Hybrid

Have you ever thought about how much money you waste on gasoline because your car has a bad gas mileage?  Volvo’s new concept hybrid has the potential to squeeze 160 miles out of 1 gallon of gas.  The neatest thing about it is the car doesn’t have a transmission or driveshaft.  Scientists and researchers have done extensive tests at Volvo’s test track and factory on the car.  By taking the transmission out of the engine, it saves 10 to 20 percent more power.  Each wheel has its own motor, so to say.  An interior disk is mounted on the inside of the wheel bearings, with electromagnets that emit a magnetic field in response to electricity.  Mounted around the outer rings with the electromagnets are the permanent magnets.  When you accelerate, the electromagnets rapidly change polarity, attracting the permanent magnets as each one comes around.  So, with no gear box, the car should accelerate like a rocket.  When the car’s power drops below 30%, the motor will kick in to recharge the batteries, and when it’s not running, and you can plug it in at home.  This car is important because it can save people hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on gasoline each year, and reduce emissions and greenhouse gases building up in the atmosphere.  Don’t expect this to roll off the lot in a couple of months though.  Not until 2015 will this car be road worthy.

SketchUp: Who Said Powerful Isn’t Easy?

Who said that powerful tools were complex and challenging to use for novice users?  As you may have read in my first article on “What’s Up Wakefield”, I showed you a list of the services and tools that Google had to offer.  Surely, you didn’t read that whole list, so you must have skimmed by SketchUp.  But let’s take an in-depth look at this specific tool that Google has created.

Google SketchUp is a 3D modeling tool designed for anyone who has an interest in designing virtually anything.  Users can build anything from a house to a car.  The possibilities are endless!  So why use SketchUp?  Well, there are two versions of SketchUp.  One is free and the other version costs $495.  I suggest using the free one, just to see if you like it.  Also, why design your dream home or other blueprint on Paint?  All you’ll see is a bird’s-eye-view.  With Google SketchUp, you can see your model virtually anywhere and at any angle.

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