We've known think tanks to come up with some fairly unbelievable determinations before, but the Machine Industry Memorial Foundation may not be too far off with its latest assessment. It's suggesting that the jobs of 3.5 million people in Japan could be filled not with younger folks, but with mechanical creatures by 2025. Currently, Japan's population is declining, and the proportion of those 65-years and up is continually swelling; analysts are asserting that the nation could save around ¥2.1 trillion ($21 billion) in elderly insurance payments by 2025 if it relies on robots (instead of humans) to monitor the health of the geriatric set. Of course, Japan's been creating bots to do our dirty work for years, so it's not like the idea of being ruled by robotic overlords is a completely foreign concept over there or anything.

[Via I4U News]

Hey, we can't all live in the pimped out mansions or nicely appointed lodges, but an NYU graduate student is making it her personal mission to do something substantial about it. The living portable project has yielded a cardboard-based Shell House contraption that requires just $35 worth of material, a bit of time, and a hearty dose of generosity. The DIY project allows interested citizens to build collapsible houses for homeless individuals, and moreover, gives them an opportunity to experience ubiquitous computing by way of an integrated radio network. Moreover, you can couple this with a homegrown solar heater, and you've got yourself a date with nature.

[Via Core77]
Read - Instructions on building a Shell House
Read - Shell House homepage

For those dwelling in England who enjoy a touch of privacy in their day to day lives, help could be on the way. Amidst the smattering of new surveillance methods being installed and implemented within the nation's border comes a second inquiry into the "constitutional implications" of such invasive measures. If you'll recall, the Commons' Home Affairs committee has already planned its own review, and now the UK's Constitution Committee will be "conducting an inquiry on the consequences of the collection and use of surveillance and personal data by the State." Basically, the group is trying to visualize just how damaging all these CCTV installations, car trackers, and behavior monitors are on the "relationship between individuals and institutions." Another aspect will be to scrutinize whether UK citizens need additional protection under the law from such voyeuristic tactics, and judging solely by the sheer multitude of surveying going on over there, we couldn't complain with a little extra shielding. [Warning: Word Document read link]

[Via El Reg]

Sure, there's a bevy of ways to effectively conceal the real you while out and about in public places, but Alice Wang's new lineup of Peer Pressure conquerors let you utilize surrounding technologies to boost your self-esteem (and your image). If you're not already rockin' the iPod suit to work, and don't want your cubicle buddies to overhear faint whispers of "Everybody Hurts" in the background, the two-sided headphones are for you. They play that sad, sad song into your ears, but emit a (presumably positive) song of your choice outwardly, giving everyone around you good vibes while you're down on your luck. Next up, the Popular Mobile software sporadically and continuously sends you fake text messages in order to show off just how popular you are whilst in a group of higher-ups, and while we're not sure if each message come pre-programmed with fortune cookie taglines, it's a surefire way to flaunt your appeal. Additionally, Alice has designed the Fast Typing Keyboard in order to make your office mates think you can crank out 120 words per minute, and the Positive Printer helps printer snoopers discover awfully amazing things about you that the upbeat software spits out. Of course, we're not expecting these admittedly handy creations to make their way into Office Depot anytime soon, but we'd love to be proven wrong.

[Via NOTCOT]

Although bribery isn't exactly smiled upon here in the States, we've got a hunch that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam political party in India is on to something. In news likely to cause turmoil (or not) among culturally-planted Americans, the DMK promised a bevy of new electronics to folks who cast their vote for them, and apparently, it worked. After falling from power in 2001, the party has stormed back into prominence by offering poor citizens niceties (such as stoves and TVs) which most could never afford on their own. By wording the goodies as "social welfare" benefits, the sets they hand out supposedly aid the voters in receiving news critical to their life, health, and work, which in turn benefits society the DMK as a whole. While America hasn't had the best luck so far with all these e-voting implementations, and considering a good few don't even cast a passing glance at anything political, we'd bet a "Free HDTV" campaign would result in surefire admission into the Oval Office.

[Via Fark]

If you've got someone who loves you, holds down a steady job, helps you out, reads your mail to you, takes care of you, and even gives birth, it's only fair that they enjoy the same rights and liberties as everyone else, right? What if that individual is powered by an Intel processor? Concerns over the status of robots in our society around 2056 have emerged from "one of 270 forward-looking papers sponsored by Sir David King," the UK government's chief scientist. Essentially, folks in favor of robotic rights suggest that if conscience bots are made to interact with humans, they should share a certain level of rights. Currently, the machines we know and love (and fear) are classed as "inanimate objects without rights or duties," but if rights were passed, somehow these creations would be forced to obey traffic lights and potentially pay taxes. Of course, a large concern is ethics towards these creatures, but some say that if robots in society are "correctly managed," it could lead to increased labor output and "greater prosperity." Although this stuff may seem pretty far-fetched right now, the logic behind it could actually grow legs in the (somewhat) distant future, but until there's a robotic candidate on the presidential ballot, we'll just keep on keepin' on.

[Thanks, Fred R. and Laura O.]