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Family of slain suspected PS3 thief to receive $2.45 million settlement
It's been more than a year since the accidental shooting of 18-year-old Peyton Strickland by Cpl. Christopher Long, a deputy of New Hanover County, N.C., during a raid of Strickland's rented home in early December, 2006. The sheriff's Emergency Response Team was serving a warrant for Strickland's arrest in connection with his suspected involvement in two PS3's being stolen from a University of North Carolina Wilmington student. Long mistook the sounds of his own team using a battering ram for gunshots, and opened fire on the unarmed teenager.Long was not charged with a crime, but the Strickland family recently received a small amount of closure on the matter -- a $2.45 million settlement from New Hanover County, and a public apology from Sheriff Sid Causey, who admitted that Long "made a mistake as to the existence of a deadly threat".The Strickland family will put the $2.45 million into a charitable foundation to provide need-based scholarships and other grants. "The Stricklands were not interested in money," said Strickland family representative Joyce Fitzpatrick. "That cannot bring their son back."
SuddenLink makes investment in Eastern NC, plans for more HD channels
Details are admittedly scant on this at the moment, but what is clear is that SuddenLink Communications is writing a check for $16 million in order to improve services in and around Eastern North Carolina. According to Phil Ahlschlager, SuddenLink's North Carolina Regional Vice President, the capital improvements "will enhance the overall quality and reliability of the company's services." Additionally, the 95,000 or so homes in the area currently using SuddenLink can reportedly expect "faster internet connections, better phone service and more HD channels," though we're not told when the improvements will start nor what high-def channels are slated to get added. Looks like it's wait-and-see from here, sadly.
Arbitrator orders Time Warner Cable to carry MASN
It's been a nasty battle between Time Warner Cable and Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, with the latter even going so far as to buy airtime on local North Carolina radio stations pleading for consumers to prod the carrier until MASN appeared on its lineup. Thankfully for fans of the Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals (among other squads), an FCC-appointed arbitrator has finally ordered TWC to carry the network after finding that it "deliberately discriminated" against the station. What has yet to be determined from the decision, however, is whether or not customers will be forced to pay extra to receive it, and more importantly, whether or not this presumably lucrative outcome will push MASN to finally make the leap to HD (if TWC doesn't appeal and win, that is). As it stands, the O's and Nats are two of only a few MLB teams with a home channel that doesn't air any of its games in high-definition, but if you're impetuously determined to see your Birds in HD, you could always find an empty seat (or ten) at Camden Yards. [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family][Via The Wolf Web, image courtesy of Nasty Nats]
Time Warner Cable adds trio of new HD channels in Raleigh area
Time Warner Cable (partly owned by Time Warner, parent company of AOL, which owns Engadget) has historically been a bit slow to add channels in the Raleigh area, but those situated in the Triangle area of North Carolina now have three additional HD options to enjoy over the break. As of now, TWC customers in and around Raleigh have access to National Geographic HD, HGTV HD and Food Network HD, which can be located on channels 279, 277 and 278, respectively. Also of note, the trifecta is broadcasting now to Wilmington customers as well on channels 968, 966 and 967.
Study to equip cars with tracking hardware, send testers faux bills
We've been hearing about these highway use tax trials for years now, but apparently, a new $16.5 million Road User Charge Study will be looking for 2,700 mettlesome individuals that won't mind driving around with a tracking unit riding shotgun. The absurdly expensive initiative is purportedly seeking to figure out whether Americans "would accept the idea of paying by the mile, instead of by the gallon." North Carolina-based Innovation Management -- which will "oversee the study" in the Triangle region of NC -- proclaimed that folks who volunteer to take part in it would have their vehicle fitted with "GPS and computer hardware to track the miles they travel through each state and local government jurisdiction." Best of all, however, is the tidbit noting that these very guinea pigs will also receive "make-believe bills" each month displaying what taxes they would owe if they were indeed being taxed per mile. Anyone want to guess how much revenue they could rake in from accidental payments?[Via The Wolf Web, image courtesy of WRAL]
Next Safety developing nicotine-delivery device to curb smoking
Nah, Next Safety's approach to curbing smoking isn't nearly as fun as puffing on Golden Dragon's Ruyan e-cigarettes, but it just might do the trick. Reportedly, this North Carolina-based startup plans to bring a "nicotine-delivery product" to market which would actually "deliver nicotine to the brain faster and safer than cigarettes," all while protecting children and nonsmokers from secondhand smoke. Interestingly, the pulmonary drug-deliverer (which works similarly to a medical inhaler) is said to provide "a stronger kick" than smoking, but actually administers a smaller amount of nicotine to the body than your average Marlboro. Currently, the firm is hoping to release it into less restricted overseas markets by the year's end, but analysts here in America are questioning its ability to pass through all the red tape required for it to hit our shelves.[Via MedGadget]Read - New nicotine-delivery device is safer than smoking, NC company saysRead - Next Safety's Pulmonary Drug Delivery System
NC State researchers uncover muscle mimicking fibers
While some researchers over in Raleigh are having fun tinkering with PlayStation 3 farms and dodging the RIAA, NC State's Drs. Tushar Ghosh and John Muth are occupied building prototypes with fibers they say "resemble human muscle and can exhibit muscle-like capabilities when electrical currents are applied." The duo sees the development as paving the way for "advancements and potential applications in robotics, smart textiles, prosthetics, and biomedicines," as they have reportedly found that polyurethane and silicone tube structures shaped like human muscle strands can be manipulated with electricity. It was noted, however, that the current models are using strands "roughly the size of a pencil lead," but the next step is to scale down the fibers and integrate them into a robotic Mr. and Mrs. Wuf.
North Carolina cops offering cash and console to stop vandalism
We've heard of the Federales handing out aging Xbox consoles in return for random pieces of weaponry, but a modern day case of Jet Grind Radio has Garner, North Carolina officials miffed. In a peculiar bout with vandals who are littering the town with "Ghost" graffiti tags, the local police are actually offering up some handsome rewards to informants that lead the boys in blue to any rightful arrests. Of course, the $1,000 cash prize looks tempting enough, but if the "miscreant is a juvenile," police are offering $500 or their choice of a Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3 (the 20GB flavor, we presume), or Nintendo Wii on top of the cool thousand just for participating. Here's to hoping the bandits are kids, eh?[Via NintendoWiiFanboy]
Survey sez LED lit parking garages seem safer
We had a sneaking suspicion that there was an ulterior motive behind Raleigh getting lit up as the "world's first LED city," and aside from savings tons of dough on energy bills over the next decade or so, it seems to make motorists feel a good bit safer, too. According to a before and after survey conducted by Mindwave Research, the number of respondents who "perceived the garage as very safe increased by 76-percent after the LED fixtures were installed." Admittedly, the newfangled lighting certainly added a new level of brightness to the situation, and the number of individuals who gave the garage an overall rating of "excellent" increased by 100-percent in response. The (unnecessarily lengthy) survey also added a few more minor figures to further prove that LED lighting is simply superior to the other stuff , but we're not yet sure if Cree will successfully use this ammunition to grab even more contracts to freshen up the city lights.
NC State researchers devise new ways to invade your bloodstream
While schools in the ACC are certainly making noise on the hardwood, it seems that the Atlantic Coast Conference is also interested in shoving microbots all around your innards. Just days after a team from Georgia Tech envisioned a new internal method for monitoring blood pressure, research conducted at NC State is hoping to cram even more robotic creatures into deep, dark places within your body. A team led by Orlin Velev has discovered that "a simple electronic diode" could spark a new form of propulsion which could power robots and other diminutive devices from a distance. By exploiting "a phenomenon known as electro-osmosis," the diodes can push microscopic material through internal fluids "at speeds of several millimeters per second," which could allow cameras and medicines to reach critical locales that are presently isolated. Of course, there's still a good bit of work to be done, as the prototype device still has become substantially smaller before it will even fit in most of the tiny tubes within your skin, but it's looking more and more like we'll have nursebots shoving spinoffs of themselves into our beings before too long.[Via NewScientistTech]
Raleigh officials envision "world's first" LED lit city
While it's no secret that LEDs light up the night in a more efficient (albeit expensive) manner, few locales have given the idea of lighting up the town en masse with LEDs any serious consideration. In a feat that would surely oust Brussles' Dexia Tower in terms of magnitude, city officials in Raleigh, North Carolina are hoping to make the Capital City the "world's first LED city." Reportedly envisioned by the mayor, officials are teaming up with RTP-based Cree, Inc. in order to "save money and help the environment," and in a pilot program completed late last year, a LED-equipped parking deck purportedly burned "40-percent less energy" than those with "standard lighting systems." Additionally, the quality and brightness of the lighting was said to have improved, which paved the way for LEDs to hit up street lights, architectural and accent lighting, and pedestrian and walkway lights over the next 18 months. If things go as planned, the entire city will "convert permanently to LED lighting," hopefully saving around $80,000 a year in parking deck utility bills alone -- and hey, if nobody in charge can figure out how to use an extra 80 large per year, there's a few potholes craters on Hillsborough Street that could use some attention.[Via TWW]
NC State preps Lotus Elise for 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge
If the Cardinal (or Tartans) think that the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge will be a gimme, they may want to sneak a peek at the looming competition. Students from NC State's College of Engineering are readying a highly modified Lotus Elise for next year's autonomous vehicle contest, and are working with Insight Technologies as well as Lotus' own engineering group to craft what's likely to be the sexiest unmanned vehicle on the track. Dubbed the Insight Racing team, the crew is loading the whip with "sensors and onboard computers that have been programmed to autonomously maneuver it through an urban setting complete with traffic, intersections and traffic circles." Moreover, the highly-coveted machine will be able to handle its own parking duties (and pose for glamour shots) when the day's done. After finishing 12th overall with just a Chevrolet Suburban in the 2005 Challenge, the Pack hopes its newfangled toy (and subsequent cornering abilities) can propel them to the top come next November.
No future for desktop and laptop PCs?
According to Graham Brown-Martin, founder of UK-based Handheld Learning Ltd., the PC as we know it will be extinct by 2010. Its replacement? The portable consumer devices you use today, connected to server farms where all of your personal media can be accessed. At this week's Interactive Entertainment Festival in Edinburgh, Brown-Martin commented, "I've spent quite a lot of time talking to computer manufacturers and they are seeing more value in selling servers that connect to consumer electronic devices such as the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS. They see this as the food chain, rather than lots of desks with computers on them."Oracle's Larry Ellison made a similar prediction a decade go when the Network Computer was thought to be the eventual successor to the PC. The thin client NC had no secondary storage and required constant network access to application and data servers. Brown-Martin believes this concept is the path to true mobility: "Mobility isn't just about little devices – it's about the user being mobile and having all their stuff in one location, on a hard-disk farm."Do you agree? What impact would such a paradigm shift have on the gaming industry, and how comfortable would you feel if all of your game data and personal media were stored remotely?
