Clemson
Latest
ESPN's 4K National Championship broadcast airs on Comcast, DirecTV and Altice
Back in October ESPN started broadcasting college football in 4K, and now it's time for the National Championship Game. For tonight's matchup between LSU and Clemson the network will present a Samsung-sponsored feed from the Field Pass view -- with "free flowing commentary of the game" and SkyCam angle in Ultra HD. There's still no HDR in the broadcast yet, but viewers with appropriate setups from Comcast, DirecTV and Altice can tune in. Hopefully the broadcast won't suffer from any glitches, as Awful Announcing pointed out the the Cotton Bowl on New Year's Day ran into numerous "technical difficulties" for DirecTV viewers.
Toyota's concept for the next generation has a 3D-printed dash
Toyota is looking to the future of car ownership with its latest concept, the uBox, which it created in collaboration with graduate students at Clemson University's International Center for Automotive Research. The carmaker imagines uBox customers as entrepreneurs and members of "generation Z" -- the vehicle is designed to be fluid, transforming from a recreational vehicle into a kind of mobile office via a reconfigurable interior. Owners would be able to customize the vents, dashboard display fixtures and door trim with 3D printing, plus there would be an online hub for people to share their designs. The uBox has a curved glass roof and 110-volt sockets along the inside and outside of the vehicle so Gen-Z-ers can power their electronics, too.
ICYMI: Multi-headed 3D printer, robo plant grafting and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-815575{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-815575, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-815575{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-815575").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Autodesk built a 3D printing assembly line that gives different jobs to several print heads, allowing them to work collaboratively and quickly spit out a finished project. Clemson University used a Korean robot to graft up to 3,000 plants an hour. And a Kickstarter project for an augmented reality shirt is designed to teach kids and interested adults all about the internal organs. The Milky Way is looking stunning in newly released photos from the APEX telescope. As always, please share any great tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
Bite Counter knows how many donuts you devoured, shames you into eating less
Because all you ever really wanted was an $800 bracelet that counts calories... enter the Bite Counter. It's the retro-lookin' lovechild of two Clemson University researchers that helps its hosts approximate caloric consumption by counting how many bites they take. Color us skeptical, as the meatbag wearing the gizmo has to -- gasp! -- actually remember to both start and stop the device each time they feast. The duo is hopeful it'll glean useful data for future research, as the contraption can be used "anywhere, such as at restaurants or while working" -- you know, places where scribbling how much you eat in a secret diary is frowned upon. Best of luck fellas, but until it hits a sub-century price point, we'll just stick to eating salads. PR after the jump.
Clemson develops ballin' system to measure slam dunk intensity
For those of you who think knowing the miles per hour of each pitch is the best part of a baseball game -- and sometimes, it really is -- Clemson University civil engineering professor Scott Schiff and his students have created a system that'll measure the force of the dunks and display it on the overhead screens instantly. In one game against East Carolina, Clemson forward Raymond Sykes managed a dunk that measured 30 G's -- which we're told is mighty impressive, but really, we don't have much comparison at this point. The team hopes its system gets adopted for other venues, and for sake of having more excuses to stare at the giant TVs and not the court, we hope so, too. Hit up the read link to see video of the system in action.[Via PhysOrg]
Shock-absorbing carbon springs to protect falling gizmos
The Tigers down at Clemson University are doing more than deciding whether an all-purple uniform really sends a sense of fear to the opponent, as they're also crafting shock-absorbing carbon springs which could theoretically protect gadgets when they crash to the ground. In working with researchers at UC San Diego, the crew has determined that layers of tiny coiled carbon nanotubes can act as "extremely resilient shock absorbers." The team envisions their discovery finding its way into body armor, car bumpers, bushings and even in shoe soles, but we're hoping that cellphones and PMPs get lined with this stuff to protect from those butter-finger moments. [Via Physorg]
Microsoft developing virtual headphone algorithm
Considering that Vista isn't exactly getting perfectly positive praise, it looks like Microsoft is looking into other ways to bring cashflow to Redmond. While we already know the firm is diving head first into the VoIP handset market, it looks like it'll also be involved with a new virtual headphone. In an effort to allow VoIP / computer-based communications to be handled without tethering yourself to your PC and also allow you to hear ambient conversations around the office, researchers at Microsoft have "developed an algorithm that adjusts the timing of sound waves emitted from each speaker in an array, creating a focused beam of sound that acts as virtual headphones." Essentially, the speakers would create a "sweet spot" so that computer users could hear the audio perfectly, while individuals just inches away from the sound zone wouldn't hear much more than a peep. Furthermore, the focused wave technology could even bleed over into the tracking realm, which could actually allow the tones to follow one around as they move. Ideally, the creators want to conjure up a beamforming system that is easy to configure and relatively inexpensive, but we're hearing (ahem) that it'll be at least three years before these aural luxuries break into the corporate sphere.
