About Alan Tilghman

Alan Tilghman

Alan Tilghman's Post Reel

Life:

Genious Idea: Solar Camera Strap

Here’s a neat idea that’s good for photographers and good for the environment. It’s a solar-powered camera strap, so while you’re shooting, your camera charges using only the Sun’s rays. The solar panels built into the strap convert the solar energy into stored power for your camera so you can shoot longer and charge less. Of course that means you’ll also be in the Sun the whole time which can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on how you look at it.

General:

Researchers Develop World’s First Plastic Antibodies

UC Irvine researchers have developed the first “plastic antibodies” successfully employed in live organisms – stopping the spread of bee venom through the bloodstream of mice.

Tiny polymeric particles – just 1/50,000th the width of a human hair – were designed to match and encase melittin, a peptide in bee venom that causes cells to rupture, releasing their contents. Large quantities of melittin can lead to organ failure and death.

The polymer nanoparticles were prepared by “molecular imprinting” a technique similar to plaster casting: UCI chemistry professor Kenneth Shea and project scientist Yu Hoshino linked melittin with small molecules called monomers, solidifying the two into a network of long polymer chains. After the plastic hardened, they removed the melittin, leaving nanoparticles with minuscule melittin-shaped holes.

When injected into mice given high doses of melittin, these precisely imprinted nanoparticles enveloped the matching melittin molecules, “capturing” them before they could disperse and wreak havoc – greatly reducing deaths among the rodents.

“Never before have synthetic antibodies been shown to effectively function in the bloodstream of living animals,” Shea says. “This technique could be utilized to make plastic nanoparticles designed to fight more lethal toxins and pathogens.”

Electronics:

Magnetic Display Unit Suspends Products in Mid-Air

What can I say? This is by far the coolest display unit I have ever seen. It uses magnets to literally suspend a product in mid-air. You’d have a hard time not selling something with this bad boy. Of course if you’re not a merchant, you could also get one just to keep it around your house as a conversation piece.

Win a Wrapsol for your iPhone or iPad

I’ve got this problem. My iPhone is sexy and sleek but I have to cover it up with something to protect it in case i drop it. Most of the cases, though they work fine, are bulky. Well, luckily, Wrapsol makes a thin, clear, protective covering for your device that will keep your phone looking sexy and free of scratches and chips. Seriously, you could drag this thing from a car at 35 mph and you’d still walk away with no scratches. Oh, and we’ve got one to give away for your iPad too. Check the video below.

HOW TO WIN A WRAPSOL FOR YOUR IPHONE

All you’ve got to do to win is add @Tech_Vert on twitter and send out a tweet saying the following:

RT to win a Wrapsol from @Tech_Vert http://bit.ly/98tp3I (RT to enter)

The more you tweet, the more chances you’ll have to win. We’ll choose one person on Tuesday, May 21 at 11:59pm. Then we’ll send the winner a message to let them know they’ve won. Good Luck!

If you don’t win, no worries! We’re doing a giveaway every weekday in May. You might want to add TechVert on twitter or facebook or sign up for our newsletter or RSS feed to be notified when we’ve got another contest live.

Devices:

Apple and AT&T Original Exclusivity Through 2012

Though there has been much speculation about Apple ending their exclusivity contract with AT&T and allowing for an iPhone on another carrier (like Verizon), Apple has recently confirmed that their original contract runs through 2012. This confirmation pretty much squashes any rumors (of which there have been many) of the iPhone moving to another provider.

So what now? Well, even though Apple and AT&T are bound to the agreement by their contract, the contract could always be canceled or amended. So, although it may seem, for now that we won’t see the iPhone on another carrier until after 2012, that may not be the case. According to Engadget, there is an ongoing class-action lawsuit claiming that “Apple and AT&T illegally exerted a monopoly over iPhone service by telling customers the iPhone’s required service contract was two years long when the Apple / AT&T exclusivity deal was actually for five years — thus requiring buyers to re-up with AT&T for three years (and not, say, T-Mobile) if they wanted to keep using the iPhone.”

General:

First Solar Cells to be Printed on Paper

We’re in one of the most fascinating times for the development of technology. We’re harvesting electricity from algae, and steering vehicles with our eyes. And now, according to professionals at MIT, we’re printing solar cells directly onto paper.

Basically, an organic semiconductor material is applied to the paper using a technique similar to that of a standard inkjet printer. This new technology would transform solar cells from large, heavy and expensive products to something you could staple anywhere. Though the technology is not yet ready for commercial markets, the ability to print solar cells is quite exciting.

  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3

Latest on TechVert

More on TechVert