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Russia previews its post-ISS space station
Russia has offered a peek at its post-ISS space station, but it only exists as a model so far.
Robotic Surgical Simulator lets doctors sharpen their skills by operating on polygons
These days you wouldn't jump behind the controls of a real plane without logging a few hours on the simulator, and so we're glad to hear that doctors no longer have to grab the controls of a da Vinci surgical robot without performing some virtual surgeries first. The Center for Robotic Surgery at Roswell Park Cancer Institute and the University of Buffalo School of Engineering have collaborated to create RoSS, the Robotic Surgical Simulator. Unlike our Ross, who works odd hours and covers fuel cell unveils with innate skill, this RoSS allows doctors to slice and dice virtual patients without worrying about any messy cleanups -- or messy lawsuits. We're guessing it'll be awhile before consumer versions hit the market, but just in case we've gone ahead and put our pre-orders in for the prostate expansion to Microsoft Cutting Sim 2014™.
Ross Erickson leaves MS for Sierra Online
XBLA's Worldwide Games Portfolio Manager and longtime friend of Xbox 360 Fanboy, Ross Erickson, is leaving his position at Microsoft. As the Portfolio Manager, it was Erickson's job to find good candidates for Xbox Live Arcade and decide which ones were right for the service. In an email to X3F (that's us), Erickson noted that he has enjoyed his time with Microsoft, working since the very beginnings of Xbox Live Arcade. He notes that it has been "gratifying to see the success of Live Arcade and the acceptance of this new space as a viable channel for game developers (both small and large) [to] get their creativity in front of consumers."Erickson has accepted the position of Vice President of Content Acquisition for Sierra Online, a branch of Vivendi Universal Games. 360 Fanboy readers will recognize Sierra Online for their Xbox Live Arcade title, Assault Heroes and the upcoming 3D Ultra Minigolf Adventures. Erickson assures us that Live Arcade has been left in capable hands and that there are many great things to come for Live Arcade.We would be remiss if we didn't mention that Greg Canessa, former Group Manager of Xbox Live Arcade recently left Microsoft for PopCap. Erickson assures us that his departure does not signal a shakeup of Live Arcade.Finally, Erickson leaves us with this note: "remember, I've yet to play my most favorite game of all on XBLA ...." Hmm ... what game might that be?We wish Ross luck in his new endeavor.See also:Joystiq interviews XBLA's Ross Erickson
Switched On: Dashing through the slow
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about technology, multimedia, and digital entertainment: Last week's Switched On explained how Dash Navigation's use of wireless technology intends to teach the GPS bloodhound some new tricks, but the company plans to primarily use its new design to tackle two of the hottest trends in portable navigation. Many GPS units now offer real-time traffic information based only on incident reporting, and the devices are not very intelligent about weighing the traffic in alternative routes to determine the fastest path. As a result, you could drive off of the freeway and into the fire. In contrast, Dash's traffic esimates are based on traffic flow. It begins with a historical database of what traffic speeds are like for sections of highways at specific times of the day. Beyond that, Dash GPS units act as probes, reporting back on actual speed of cars on those segments. This clues in those who come after them about construction and other aberrations from traffic patterns. To do this effectively, though, Dash must take advantage of a network effect; the company estimates that a few thousand Dash units should provide good coverage of major roadways within large cities. While the Dash unit includes a point of interest database, it can use its connectivity to query a local search engine such as those offered by Yahoo! and Google, leveraging the efficient if fallible semantic categorizations that these Web-based local search engines offer. Typing in practically any word will return listings, even if they are not in the title of the business. For example, typing "burrito" might return local Mexican restaurants that have them on the menu. Dash is also exploring RSS feeds -- a natural fit for this kind of device -- as well as enhanced business listings that might include, for example, hours of operation.
Switched On: Dash puts wireless in the driver's seat
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about technology, multimedia, and digital entertainment: No one would ever accuse the Dash team of low self-esteem. "What the TV did for entertainment and the cell phone did for communication, Dash will do for driving." the company's Web site crows, A more accurate analogy for Dash, though, would be what TiVo did for television, that is, give consumers a greater degree of control over the media or information they're trying to manage in a contextually relevant way. Dash plans to achieve its five-star impact rating via a portable GPS device. The portable GPS market shifted into high gear a few years ago when Magellan offered a hard disk inside of its Roadmate 700 units. Consumers no longer had to deal with cumbersome PC downloads; street-level maps of the whole country could be pre-loaded. A year later, a gigabyte or two of flash memory is enough to include street-level maps for the United States. Magellan representatives recently noted that it plans to switch completely from hard drives to flash in the next generation. The TomTom Go 910 can even hold maps of the U.S. and Europe for those leisurely drives across the Atlantic Ocean.
Switched On: Why XM should nab Napster
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about technology, multimedia, and digital entertainment:
