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Tesco wants robots and wearables to help shape the supermarket of the future
For Britain's supermarket chains, it's no longer just a case of selling food, it's about how you can do it better. Tesco has long thought about how technology can give it an edge over its rivals, but it's now experimenting with robotics, wearables and cognitive computing in an attempt to secure future success. That's according to Mike McNamara, Tesco's chief information officer, who revealed that the company has become the latest in a long line of retailers to leverage IBM's Watson supercomputer to explore new ideas using old data. Tesco's Labs division, the team behind its Google Glass app and other tech trials, fed Watson "thousands" of recipes and ingredients and asked it to come up with some unique meal ideas. The supermarket is already trialling smartwatches in a bid to better manage stock, but it looks increasingly likely that machines will take over such jobs in the future. McNamara believes robots that can gauge depth and height could free up time for stockroom associates, but that also brings another danger -- the risk that they'd replace workers completely.
Spielberg is developing a 'Minority Report' TV show, according to reports
According to reports from both The Wrap and Deadline, Steven Spielberg is trying to resurrect Minority Report as a TV series. The original movie was a science-fiction styled thriller set in the near-future - and its ideas on gesture-based interfaces have been referenced ever since. Fast Company even elaborated on seven crime-fighting technologies featured in the movie that had inspired real-life techniques. Other tech referenced in the 2002 movie included e-paper, retina scanners and advertising with facial recognition built-in. Spielberg wants the show to be produced by his company Amblin Entertainment and is looking to hook Godzilla writer Max Borenstein to pen it. Deadline adds that the project remains at the "very early stages of development." And in case you forgot, the movie itself was (pretty loosely) based on a short story by Philip K. Dick. If the TV series does happen, maybe it'll get a novelization -- and the circle will be complete.
North Korea's vision of the future looks like classic sci-fi
When a country is essentially cut off from the rest of the world, peculiar things can happen. In Cuba, the half-century-plus trade-embargo means antique Chevy Bel Airs roam the streets like pigeons, and apparently North Korea's communist ideology translates to some pretty interesting views of the future. A tourism firm in the region gave a state-employed architect free reign to imagine how the mountains of Myohyangsan would appear with a high-rise bridge connecting them in one instance, and what a floating house/hovercraft hybrid (seriously) or a hotel and gondola in Nampo's port would look like in others. The whole of the idea was to experiment with what a "sustainable tourism model" might resemble, according to CNN. And, if you ask us, the four-year project has a certain pulp sci-fi vibe to it. The concept drawings will be on display at Venice's Architecture Biennale until November if you'd like a first-hand look, otherwise hit the source if you can't make it to Italy by then.
Future to spare CVG from publication cuts
UK gaming site CVG will not close down this year following a round of cutbacks at its publisher, Future, MCV reports. CVG will decrease its writing staff to three – it currently has five full-time employees plus support staff in the US and Australia. Future will review CVG in December. In May, Future announced a restructuring effort that would result in the loss of 170 jobs in the UK. Future handles gaming publications OXM, PC Gamer, Gamesradar, Edge and CVG. Future planned to focus its attention on Gamesradar, the bigger US brand, but support for CVG and attempts to purchase the site prompted Future to keep it around through December at least, MCV reports. There's no word on the fate of Future's other gaming holdings. [Image: Future]
If graphene is the next big thing, is Apple already way behind?
For massive companies like Apple and Samsung, continued success often depends on pioneering new technologies and staying ahead of the curve. Graphene, an ultra-thin and ultra-strong arrangement of carbon atoms is one of the front runners for the category of "next big thing" in tech. A graphene sheet is as thin as a single atom and still retains its electrically conductive and heat dissipating properties, making it a fantastic material for the ever-slimmer world of mobile gadgets. When it comes to graphene, Samsung has been snatching up patents like crazy, filing over 400 (with some duplicates between regions) with mentions of graphene, worldwide. The filings range from manufacturing processes to methods of applying graphene on different surfaces, but the most interesting patents relate to touchscreens (an image from one touchscreen filing is shown below). If the future of smart devices include flexible screens, graphene would be a fantastic material for such an application, as it's bendable, conductive, and extremely durable. Apple thus far has filed exactly two patents mentioning graphene -- one for a graphene heat dissipation system and one for a "graphene current collector." That's it. So are we seeing the foundation for a future where Apple pays for the privilege of using patented processes and material applications? Not so fast. The angle du jour seems to be that Apple and Samsung are in an all-out race for graphene patents, and whoever has the highest number wins. That's a valid, if perhaps a bit shortsighted, way of looking at it. Yes, having patents related to an emerging technology is indeed a good thing, but Apple has never really been a big player in the R&D game at such a basic level. Apple doesn't need to have a patent on an industrial production method for making graphene in order to use the resulting material in a creative and innovative way. Apple's most valuable patents have always been related to actual products and services. Samsung being ahead of the game on potential graphene touchscreen applications is indeed something the company can stick in its cap, it's not as though Apple has ever had a problem paying a competitor for its manufacturing prowess. Remember, while mainstream news sites create goofy TV graphics showing Apple and Samsung logos in a boxing ring over the hugely publicized patent disputes, Apple's ultra-powerful mobile chips are still manufactured by Samsung. If Apple were to end up buying graphene sheets from Samsung for use in its mobile devices, it's not a sign of Apple kneeling to its new master. It's business as usual. [Photo credit: University of Exeter]
Future publishing restructure resulting in loss of 170 UK jobs
Restructuring at magazine publisher Future will result in the a loss of over 170 jobs in the UK, the publisher reported in its half-year financial results (ending March 31, 2014). Known for gaming publications like OXM, PC Gamer, CVG and Edge, Future announced its global plans to "refocus and simplify" at the beginning of the month. Future reported an increase in its normalized UK revenues by two percent to £41.5 million ($69.4 million), which accounted for 85 percent of the group's total revenue. Its normalized U.S. revenue was down 14 percent for the half-year to £7.3 million ($12.2 million). Part of Future's plans involves the sale of the company's sport and craft properties to Immediate Media for up to £24 million ($40.1 million). The sports magazines include Procycling, Cycling Plus and Mountain Biking UK, whereas the craft publications in question include both the UK and US Mollie Makes magazines, The Knitter and Simply Knitting. [Image: Future PLC]
MIT's CityHome turns tight spaces into futuristic abodes
Pulp sci-fi novels have painted a picture of a bleak future, with dense, dystopian urban sprawl forcing us into ever-shrinking living spaces. Such ignominious abodes would probably benefit from something MIT Media Lab's Changing Places team has been working on. It's called CityHome, and it's a concept that could turn even the most modest studio apartment into a space befitting the stylish futurist lurking in us all.
New York's next big neighborhood is its smartest
"It was always going to be tomorrow's city today. A new heart of New York City; Midtown expanding west." -- Thad Sheely, SVP operations for Related Companies Tourists come to stop and stare, and sometimes throw pennies. This isn't a long-standing tradition. There are no wishes to make here. It's just a construction site they're filling with change; "the largest development in New York City since Rockefeller Center." Its 28 acres span west from 10th Avenue to 12th Avenue and the Hudson River, and north from 30th Street to 34th Street. The site is home to the final piece of the High Line park; an extension of the number 7 subway line; five office towers and nearly 5,000 residences; 14 acres of public space; a public school; and an active rail yard, from which it gets its name. This is Hudson Yards: New York City's first truly smart neighborhood. Or, it will be when New York University's Center for Urban Science and Progress (CUSP), a partner for the development, finishes outfitting it with sensors.
Restructuring and redundancies at Future
Future, known for game magazines and websites such as OXM, PC Gamer, CVG and Edge, is undergoing further global restructuring, which will result in layoffs across the company. "No part of the business will be unaffected," according to CEO Zillah Byng-Maddick. That includes the management board, which will be "streamlined" as part of the process. MediaWeek reports that Future will "no longer be structured around content types like technology but instead a single content and marketing team will produce all content." Strategically, Byng-Maddick says Future plans to "refocus and simplify," leveraging its ability to "attract large communities of highly engaged customers who want to buy things." Byng-Maddick's new plan seems to be at odds with former CEO Mark Wood's plan to transition Future to digital publishing. Attempting to move to digital "diluted [Future's] focus and distracted our talent," she said. Future currently owns dozens of brands across nine different categories, ranging from cars to tech, music, sports and, of course, video games. Exactly how these brands will be affected remains to be seen, as the number of redundancies will be decided after a 45-day consulting process.
The Nexus Telegraph: In which no WildStar injuries happened
My performance on the dance floor during PAX East 2013's WildStar party is the stuff of dark legends (in my mind, anyway), but it was not replicated this year. Indeed, when I tried to get into this year's WildStar community party, the entranceway was inaccessible due to the sheer mass of people. As I naturally handle crowds about as well as a Mechari handles knock-knock jokes, I opted to turn around and go back to my hotel room. There was a Ghostbusters marathon on, so it was still kind of awesome. This did not, however, mean that the convention was devoid of interesting stories; it just was devoid of stories in which I sustained injuries greatly impacting my normal hiking routes. So let's talk about what things really stuck out in my mind through the whole con. For my money, that comes down to the focus on the endgame and a really stupid statement. Where to start?
Americans are optimistic about technology, except drones... and robots... and...
If you asked the average American what they think about the coming crop of technologies, you'd probably get some generic optimism. According to a recent Pew Research survey found that 59 percent of Americans expected that technology would make our lives better, only 30 percent worried that we'd be worse off because of scientific progress. More than eight in 10 even expect us to be growing replacement organs in labs within the next 50 years. But when dig into specific technologies, opinions start to turn a little more sour.
This $6,500 robotic lady should be the only iPhone dock on your holiday wish list
iPhone docks come in all shapes and sizes, but this is probably the first such device that you might need to take out a bank loan for. It's described simply as "Robot Girl," but its basic nickname belies how ridiculously ostentatious it really is. Standing more than 46 inches tall, the creepy statue was created by sculptor Mark Robert Ricci, and it's now for sale on eBay. Aside from sporting a built-in iPhone dock, the statue also includes hidden Bluetooth speakers and color-changing LEDs. Oh, and the robotic female even nods to the beat of whatever music you play, because why not? The unnamed lass sports a futuristic pistol on a lawman's belt with a buckle labeled "Texas Ranger" for good measure. The body is largely fiberglass with a steel structure underneath. Currently, the auction sits at US$6,500 with a total of zero bids, but with more than five days of bidding left, it just might get swooped up in the Black Friday shopping frenzy. You can check out a few additional details on the auction page or simply gawk at the video above and figure out who you can borrow $6,500 from.
World of Warcraft's lead content designer on the future of the game and the franchise
World of Warcraft has had a tumultuous time. The past three years have seen the game shed about five million players, but it still counts 7.6 million subscribers, far more than its closest competitor. And the most recent expansion announcement has certainly generated plenty of interest. But lead content designer Corey Stockton explained in a recent interview that the game still has more places to go. He mentions exploring the recent trends toward user-generated content and procedural content to allow more variety at the top levels, something to ameliorate how quickly players consume the elaborately designed dungeons and raids of the game. Stockton doesn't see that sort of content ever replacing the core of the game, of course, but he does note that there's a persistent issue with new content not coming out as fast as players can go through it. He goes on to explain that the developers would like to have a new expansion out every year, certainly at a faster rate than the team's previous content releases, and that the current goal is to work several expansions ahead rather than focusing on the immediate future. For more details and talk about the potential for Warcraft IV, take a look at the full interview.
iPad soft launches may be the new normal
With today's unannounced retail debut of the iPad mini with Retina display, a whole lot of Apple devotees and critics cried foul. A lot of people seemed confused, simply because an Apple tablet has never launched in such a way. Yes, it's strange for an iPad to launch without a parade in its honor, but it's not unusual for Apple products in general. As the iPad line continues to evolve from a set of devices that must constantly validate its own existence to a core part of Apple's long-term strategy, release practices will fall in line with that of the company's other offerings. In short, while today's quiet launch may be due in part to low stock of the new slates, we could also be moving toward a future where Apple's tablets are upgraded incrementally on a schedule similar to how MacBooks, the Mac mini and other Apple stalwarts receive their seasonal refreshes. When a product line is due for a physical facelift or major overhaul -- a new iMac, the Retina Macbook Pro, etc. -- Apple shows it off at an event. But when a device needs a bump in specs to ensure it stays competitive with the its rivals, Apple's online store simply goes down for an hour or two and when it comes back, the more powerful products are in place. A press release is issued; news sites run their impressions; and the public knows about it before lunchtime -- all without a single Apple figurehead taking a stage. Eventually, Apple will no longer have to prove that the iPad deserves to exist with huge presentations, and I think we're fast approaching that day. I don't think today's soft retail debut was done solely to get us used to the idea of not knowing exactly when a more capable iPad will be available -- the production limitations are likely to blame for this as well -- but I do think that the company may be testing the waters a bit. 2014 is right around the corner, and as Tim Cook has teased, Apple is gearing up to take on new product categories. As it stands today, Apple holds dedicated events for both the iPhone and iPad every year, and crams some news about Mac into these where it can. The company could add events to showcase the all-new products alongside the existing annual upgrade events, but to keep from overwhelming consumer consciousness with constant Apple chatter (Apple has always taken a "less is more" approach when it comes to this), it would make sense for the public to expect the iPad to be upgraded regularly without having to hold an event around it. The iPhone has always been fighting a much more intense battle in a faster-paced environment that that of the iPad, which means it will likely never graduate to a level where Apple could afford to skip a gold-plated annual event. The iPad, on the other hand, would lose very little by adopting yearly upgrades that come with less hullabaloo, and it would free up the company's event schedule a bit to fight wars on new fronts. If Apple unveils an iPad Pro (which I think it will), it would be all too easy to upgrade three tablets -- mini, Air and Pro -- with new processors and software updates each year with nothing more than a press release or short preview video to accompany them. In fact, I think this is where Apple was headed when it dropped the numerical label from the third- and fourth-generation iPad, though the decision to basically reinvent the iPad with the new Air meant we never saw that plan fully pan out. Apple's not there yet, but I can't imagine the day is very far away. We know the iPad isn't going anywhere and we know that the company doesn't make a habit of holding events for every incremental hardware upgrade, so it's just a matter of time before we see those two truths converge.
From the Future: An iPhone accessory that reads your brain waves to discover your interests
Your iPhone already knows a lot about you, but everything it's learned about you is a direct result of you inputting information on a screen. Wouldn't it be way more convenient if your fancy handset could just read your thoughts instead? If Toyko-based Neurowear has its way, that very thing may be possible sooner that you think. The first example of the technology at work is with a new prototype device called the Neurocam. Using a not-so-stylish headset -- called the MindWave Mobile -- to read and analyze your brain waves, the company claims that the Neurocam attachment and accompanying software gauge your interest in whatever you look at. Using the data from the brain-wave scanner, your iPhone assigns a value to everything you see, from 1 to 100, and when it senses a spike, a short five-second video is created to capture it. It's a pretty wild idea, and the teaser video created by Neurowear lands somewhere between futuristic and downright goofy. Still, it's a remarkable use of the technology, and would almost certainly be a treat to play around with. At the moment, there don't appear to be any plans to bring the existing version of the product to retail, though the company seems enthusiastic about eventually integrating brain scanning into a consumer device.
Apple has been hiring former fashion executives, but why?
Yesterday's hiring of former Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts by Apple is just latest example of what is becoming a trend for new Apple hires: A lot of them have a background in fashion. As The Mac Observer points out, Ahrendts' appointment to senior VP of Retail and Online Stores was preceded by a pair of former Nike designers and an executive from French fashion house Yves Saint Laurent. In short, Apple is looking downright fabulous. But why would former fashion industry insiders be useful to Apple? It's simple: wearable tech. We've been hearing rumblings of an iWatch for some time -- though at the moment the competition seems to be doing more harm to the would-be smartwatch market than good -- and if Apple plans to release one in the future, it's going to have to be mighty sexy. Of course, there are other areas you could wear a gadget besides your wrist -- Google Glass being a fine example of this -- though if the new fashion-forward hiring trend is indeed intended to help influence new Apple products as they take shape, it's likely that we're nowhere near actually seeing them in the flesh... or on the flesh. [Image credit: Miss Karen] [via The Mac Observer]
Apple patent suggests devices could protect themselves from falling damage
Your iPhone probably wasn't cheap, and if you're relying on a budget case (or, worse yet, nothing at all) to protect your investment, there's a good chance a long fall will do some serious damage. But what if your device was smart enough to protect itself from damage in the event that you knock it off your kitchen table or drop it during a spirited run in the park? That's exactly what a new Apple patent is suggesting. The patent is titled simply "Protecting an electronic device," but the technology behind it is anything but ordinary. The description details a number of ways that a future iPhone could protect itself from a fall by orienting itself in relation to the ground. In the event of a drop, your phone would sense that an accident is happening and then turn itself so that it lands on an edge, where damage to the screen would be the most unlikely. The patent describes a couple of ways this could be accomplished: Either by a system of internal motors that would spin up and alter the device's falling pattern, or a propulsion system that could produce a jet of air to correctly orient the phone on its way to the ground. Of course, as with all patents, there's a very good chance that this technology will never make it into a retail device, but I'm willing to bet anyone walking around with a busted iPhone screen wishes they already had it. [via VentureBeat]
The Mog Log: After the story of Final Fantasy XIV
First of all, putting this front and center: there are spoilers aplenty in the article past the cut. You have been warned, and will be warned again. I wrapped up the main story of Final Fantasy XIV a little while ago, got to see the final cutscenes that last for about a month, and was rewarded with a nice new mount for my trouble. I also got some big metaplot advancement and access to the endgame dungeons that I'll be running until we get more of them, so that was nice. But today I don't want to talk about how Amdapor Keep and Castrum Meridianum do an excellent job of being an endgame without being one, I want to talk about the actual story as a whole. Including the final revelations, the pacing of the plot, and where the game has to go from here. Again, spoilers past the cut. If you have not beaten the main story and want it to remain a secret, please, don't read past this point.
Perfect World reassures players regarding the future of RaiderZ
There are certain things that trigger instinctive fears from MMO players. Things like having your game of choice shut down in its country of origin, which rarely bodes well for the future of the game as a whole. RaiderZ has shut down in both South Korea and Europe, but Perfect World Entertainment's senior product manager Mark Hill insists in a recent interview that this does not mean the title is in any risk of shutting down in North America. Hill states that the game is still developing a new expansion for release in the near future and that the development team is in close contact with the North American staff. He also points out that the game is not region-locked, allowing players to still register and play for the American version regardless of their countries of origin. While this doesn't mean the game is invincible in this market, it should help make current players a little more comfortable while playing.
Future Publishing continues restructuring, lays off 55
Future Publishing's transition from a print to digital business affected another 55 employees today at the company. The layoffs impacted several departments, including games art and editorial. There is no indication at this time that the layoffs will include shuttering any of Future's brands, which include GamesRadar, CVG, Edge and official magazines for consoles. "Where revenues are declining we simply have no option but to look at reducing costs. In July we began a recruitment freeze and we decided to defer the annual pay review," Future CEO Mark Wood wrote in a memo to staff. "We have been reducing staff numbers by not replacing vacancies and minimizing unnecessary external costs such as travel." He continued, "These changes are a necessary part of the continuing transition of our business. We must ensure our operations are in the best possible shape for the long term success of Future, and I know that the issues involved are well understood around the business." The layoffs continue years of restructuring for the company, which included the departure of its CEO and CFO in 2011, along with a merging of US and UK operations. Last year, the company began cutting US operations, which concluded the year with the closure of legacy magazine Nintendo Power.
