WarningSystem
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Chrome will soon warn you about tricky mobile subscription signups
Starting in Chrome 71, the browser will serve up warnings to keep you from accidentally signing up for a subscription service. The new protocol will address mobile websites that require visitors to enter their phone number before viewing content. Those prompts can lead to charges showing up on your next phone bill even if you didn't explicitly agree to it.
This color-changing polymer warns of tiny damage you can't see
Tiny cracks can actually be a big deal when they're forming inside parts of your car or, say, a metal shell that's flying into space. University of Illinois research, led by Professors Nancy Sottos and Scott White, has lead to a polymer coating that could be an important early warning system, making it easier to find trouble spots before something really bad happens. When cracks form in the polymer, micro-beads also crack open, causing a chemical reaction that visibly highlights the damage with color. The capsules are pH sensitive, meaning any damage will cause a strong color change, from yellow to red, with no additional chemicals needed. Deeper, more serious, scratches and damage will create stronger hues of red as more capsules break open.
BMW presents car-to-x communication, wants vehicles to talk more (video)
What good is an Ultimate Driving Machine if it can't get a little help from its friends? A new hazard-dodging system from BMW could help these Bavarian autos get a bit more chatty, each vehicle talking to nearby traffic across long-range wireless networks. In a series of video demonstrations, the car maker shows how the car-to-x system could give advance warnings of traffic, emergency vehicles and weather hazards by enabling one car to beam warnings directly to others. BMW hopes to connect the system to mobile phone networks as latency times improve and possibly even access data from traffic light systems. Sure, GM and Ford got there a bit earlier, but you can see BMW's implementation demonstrated after the break, and check out the via link for more videos of the world's most boring game of GTA.
BMW left turn assistant uses lasers to help you avoid running people over
BMW continues to fight the good fight: making sure you hit fewer people with its luxury vehicles. The German automaker is developing a vehicle warning system aimed at curbing collisions caused by drivers making left turns -- a leading cause of accidents and motorcycle fatalities. The system, which can be enabled for vehicles making left or U-turns while traveling under 10mph, detects movements using the vehicle's navigation system and a single camera. Once a left turn is recognized, three lasers are used to scan for hazards up to 328-feet away -- if one is detected, the car will automatically brake and throw up corresponding alerts for the driver. The company is set to show off the system as part of INTERSAFE 2, this week in Wolfsburg, Germany. In the meantime, the rest of us will have to rely on things like mirrors and looking over our shoulders.
Japan's earthquake warning system tested out
It's a good thing that Japan's Meteorological Agency actually had the nationwide earthquake warning system ready to rock in March, as the fiber optic system was put into use this month in an attempt to warn citizens of an imminent tsunami. Reportedly, a "huge tremor" struck and triggered the system, which allowed warnings to be beamed out en masse "within a single minute." Although the system was tested before in false alarm fashion, this was the first time it had been used in a legitimate emergency, and it beat the previous options "by around one to two minutes." Sadly, it still wasn't quick enough to save everyone from the 6.9-magnitude quake, as 170 people suffered various injuries while one individual passed away, but the statistics could've been much worse had the speedy system not kicked in at all.
Japan Meteorological Agency develops earthquake warning system
Okay, so JMA's newest pre-quake warning system doesn't cover as much ground as SMS alerts, but with only 10 to 20 seconds of available panic time before an earthquake hits, we'd probably be toppling over one another before we could even find our cellphone anyway. Japan's Meteorological Agency is currently testing a prototype system which detects the oh-so-subtle "P Waves" that precede the destructive "S Waves," and alerts major operations to halt their hustle and take cover. Since the primary waves travel more quickly than the comparatively sluggish secondary waves, the system picks up on the magnitude and speed at which the quake is approaching, and beams the data over fiber optic networks to emergency relay stations setup in corporate towers, governmental buildings, hospitals, and transportation venues such as railways. The typical alert allows under half a minute to shutdown operations and dash for safety, but the agency claims this crucial shred of time can be enough to scurry away from any treacherous hazards nearby. The government plans to expand a fully-featured system to provide alerts via television, radio, and "wireless communications" by March 2007, but until then, we suspect the ole "ear to the ground" method is the best you've got.[Via Pink Tentacle]
