tech Archives - Page 7 of 9

Entertainer Christina Milian supports New App that Deters Personal Attacks

The world can be a dangerous place, and it’s always good to be prepared, just in case.

That’s why a new IOS and Android app called STOP-ATTACK can be your new BFF, along with its Brand Ambassador, Christina Milian.

STOP-ATTACK is an assault-response app that when activated, it becomes a virtual witness to assaults (whether verbal or physical).

Per the developers:

The app captures moment-by-moment details through video and audio recording. The recordings are sent real-time to a secured cloud storage area to be accessed when needed and used as evidence. With the Panic List feature, your phone will send email and text message links of the recording and your GPS location to your trusted emergency contacts. There is also an option to notify the authorities from the STOP-ATTACK app when you need immediate police assistance.

The STOP-ATTACK app can be an essential technological support tool to deter, capture and assist you during a crisis. The application is supported by the user-friendly STOP-ATTACK.com website. From the members section of the STOP-ATTACK.com website, you can manage your incident recording, download it, delete it or save it for future reference.

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Bellabeat launches LEAF Stress Tracking Smart Jewelry

Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus? Maybe. But one thing is certain, they are built differently. That’s why apps and wearables have a wide margin of error if they are created with both sexes in mind. They can miss gender specific topics, and that’s where Bellabeat comes in.

Bellabeat, a company dedicated to creating innovative and beautiful technology for women, today announces the Limited-Edition LEAF, the latest in smart jewelry that monitors women’s activity, sleep, stress and ovulation. The LEAF seamlessly combines a stylish piece of jewelry with innovative health tracking technology, particularly its mechanism for tracking breathing in relation to stress levels, to provide women with wellness data and recommendations through the LEAF app. Check out the LEAF in action here.

The Limited-Edition LEAF is nature-inspired, designed with sustainably sourced 7,000-year-old dark Marshwood and embellished with gold leaf plating, available in five different styles. Bellabeat also offers a new collection of chic accessories that can be paired with the LEAF to fit women’s individual styles from Boho Chic to Downtown Edge.

The LEAF stays with you throughout the day, stylishly tracking your daily activity, sleep and stress, revealing life patterns via the LEAF app. Receive real-time feedback in the form of slight vibrations, notifying you to increase or decrease your activity and reminding you about other aspects of your health, such as getting more sleep or even an alarm to start the day. The LEAF app even helps to monitor your monthly menstrual cycle by tracking expected days and providing information based on your activity, sleep and stress levels. As you continue to use the LEAF, it becomes smarter by learning your personal habits and tailors feedback accordingly. The LEAF is truly unique in that it allows you to cross reference your cycle with trends in your daily activity, all easily viewable in your app. It truly is a best friend and health coach combined into one beautiful package. Wearable smart jewelry has never been so beautiful, functional and effortless.

STRESS

The LEAF monitors stress levels by measuring the rise and fall of your breath when worn as a necklace. This breathing data is cross-referenced with stress level entries you input into the LEAF app and, over time, the app learns how your breathing correlates with stress.

MOVEMENT

The LEAF monitors daily activity by tracking every movement you make. The data syncs with the LEAF app where you can view your progress in an instant.

SLEEP

The LEAF monitors sleep by tracking the small movements you make while in bed, learning how long you spend in each stage, and determining how long and how well you’ve slept.

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

The LEAF assists with monitoring your menstrual cycle, and even reminds you in the days leading up to your next period. Women trying to conceive are able to identify ovulation days to increase their chances of successful conception. By cross referencing your daily activity in the LEAF app with your menstrual cycle, women are able to better understand their health trends during this specific time.

Navigate Today’s Entrepreneurial Landmines Without An MBA

We definitely believe in the value of a good education, and an MBA is a good part of that toolbox. But if you do not have one, and one is not on the horizon, then you can still survive and thrive in today’s business environment.

Says says Ed Basler, a veteran entrepreneur and CEO of E.J. Basler Co, “Hard work, working smart, listening and abiding in the examples of those who’ve been successful are the keys to success in business.”

According to Basler, author of The Meat & Potatoes Guide to Business Survival: A Handbook for Non-MBA’s & College Dropouts, “these are some business strategies that can be employed regardless of education:

• Respect the power of your vision. It may sound hokey to some, but not to dreamers like Walt Disney – another giant who succeeded without a degree. In fact, those who criticize the dreams of visionaries are those who’ve either failed or never dared to dream in the first place. To put it simply, big vision = big results; small vision = small results; no vision = no results. Never mind the naysayers. Listen to those who have something to say, including those who fully support your dream, and those who offer constructive criticism. Talk it out with anyone who’ll listen. Be open to improvement.

• Fly with eagles. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Join your industry’s trade association. It is a wealth of ideas, information and networking opportunities. Meet the leaders in your fields. Join your local Chamber of Commerce and find a seasoned experienced mentor. They can be found.

• Never pay retail. In some ways, a college degree is retail. There’s no guarantee that you’ll get the expected result, such as a good job, but you certainly pay a financial price. In business, frugality pays. The easiest and most frequently cited price is usually one that can be improved. You can buy office furniture at a store, or you can cut those prices by half or more by going to an auction. Always be on the lookout for a more cost-efficient way.

• Use a checklist. No, this is not an app or a new way of thinking about business. Instead, it’s an old, tried, tested and true way of accounting for the most important things that need to be done. As the leader of your business, you need it, but you should also encourage everyone under you to keep a list, too. If something is worth doing at work, then it’s worth the extra daily reminder. Put the most important item at the top and then check it off once done. This lets you know with certainty that the task has been accomplished and clearly indicates what’s needed next.

• Deadlines orient your attention to goals with each passing hour. What if President John F. Kennedy did not announce his ambitious deadline on May 25, 1961, to safely send a man to the moon by the end of the 1960s? We may never have made it. Ambitious deadlines foster excitement for accomplishment. Our attention as human beings is prone to wandering. Deadlines guide us back to our ambition.

• There’s no end to improvement. There’s no end to improvement. Everything you are currently doing can be improved. Ignore this at your own peril. Your competition believes this and is ready to pass you up the moment you become complacent and settle for the status quo. If you are not growing in innovation, quality, and customer service, you may soon find yourself out of business.

FLARES App answers the Big Question – Where are You? – without Texting

“Where are you?” is one of the oldest questions since the telephone was invented (think about it… not much of a question before the telephone since you were standing right in front of them). But nowadays, sometimes you want and need to know quickly, and without a lot of drama or texting.

Enters, “Flares.” Flares is a new mobile messaging service that enables you to shoot visual signals to your friends and family to let them know exactly where you are – when it matters to them the most. The signal works just like a real flare! Flares are accessible for 60 minutes after sending and viewable for up to 40 seconds before expiring from the recipient’s phone

Use them to indicate a meeting spot, let everyone know you’re running late, pester a sibling to get a move on, coordinate drop-off and pick-up locations… Flares can be used anytime you need to quickly send a signal that you care.

Q: Is this only for adults, would it work for families on vacation or shopping?

FLARES: Flares was designed to be a universal mobile messaging protocol based on visual cues- particularly when texting is less effective or not as safe. Today, one can try to explain to their other family members where they are at a ski resort or shopping mall, for example, or simply shoot a flare to all of them as a group in less than one second.

You can update friends and family that you’re stuck in traffic without the unsafe distraction of texting while driving. Flares isn’t just easier than texting, it’s much safer as well.

Q: What is the code base for the app (language)

FLARES: Flares was written in Objective C for iOS 7.0+ mobile devices (iPhone and iPad). The Android version is currently in development and scheduled for an October release.

Q: How long did it take to develop?

FLARES: 5 months.

Q: Do you do all of the development in-house?

FLARES: Server-side development and technical architecture is built and maintained in-house. Client-side iOS engineering was completed by a contact-team based in China with specific expertise in interactive UI experiences. Moving forward, client-side engineering will also be conducted by a FlareWorks in-house team.

Q: What kind of privacy setting options are available?

FLARES: Core privacy is built into the concept of Flares which features a custom-designed, double-trigger, expiry technology. Location flare maps are available for a limited viewing time (40 seconds) before disappearing. Also, if a Flare is not viewed within 1 hour, the flare data (personal location information) will also automatically disappear.

Q: Was there any external funding for the project?

FLARES: To date, Flares has received a small tranche of angel funding from prominent investors based in San Francisco, Seattle and New York City. The company is currently raising a venture seed round of funding.

Q: Is the app also the entire company’s current product line?

FLARES: Yes, Flares is the flagship product developed and published by FlareWorks, Inc.

Q: What’s next?

FLARES: Our short-term focus is on perfecting the current user experience surrounding the use of location flares. This visual device is a communication technique that is less about “where you are” and more about “what where you are communicates to those with whom you share a context”- family, friends and work associates for example.

Ultimately, a flare is a signal that can mean anything the user intends-

Did you pick up the kids?

Did my daughter arrive safely at JFK?

I’m going to be 10 minutes late., etc.

We’ll then propagate the Flares experience across all major smartphone platforms, then open up the service on a global, localized basis.

Version 2.0+ of Flares will incorporate other signal types including customizable flares, photo/video flares, audio flares and note-based flares (for context setting).

SEE THE VIDEO

The Sugar Lab’s 3D Sugar Printing System

INNOVATOR PROFILE: The Sugar Lab

Milestone

Winner of the 2014 Innovation Award by the TASTE AWARDS. Acquisition by 3D Systems. Press coverage in major media, as well as launch of Los Angeles studio space.

Founders or Inventors

Liz and Kyle von Hasseln, co-founders of The Sugar Lab.

Their background

Kyle and Liz both have backgrounds in molecular biology, but about 5 years ago they decided to transition to architecture, and graduated from SCI_arc with Masters of Architecture. SCI_arc makes it a point to embrace emerging technologies as design tools, and that institutional stance meant that they were exposed to a lot of cool technology during their time there, and were encouraged to use it in novel ways. Throughout graduate school both Kyle and Liz were fascinated by free form fabrication in general, and unorthodox 3D printing configurations and materials in particular. Their graduate thesis, although it had nothing to do with sugar, centered on the development of a novel fabrication system. Their shared curiosity for the range and utility of 3D printing definitely contributed to an interest in applying the technology to the genre of food.

Concept & Innovation

The Sugar Lab is a micro-design firm for 3D printed sugar. 3D printing transforms sugar into a structural, sculptural element that can interact with food on different terms. 3D printed sugar can be used to sweeten or to ornament, but it can also start to define the form of the food instead of the other way around, or even to support it structurally. For example, Kyle and Liz are very excited to be working right now with several talented cake artists at a well-known bakery in Hollywood. The goal is to design a four-tiered wedding cake with a 3D printed sugar cake-stand, plus 3D printed sugar-tiers supporting cake tiers. It will be a traditional cake silhouette in which sugar plays anything but a traditional role.

That’s an exciting part of 3D printing sugar — transforming sugar into a structural, sculptural medium that can start to define the form of the food instead of the other way around, and even to support it structurally.

Inspiration

It started about two years ago, when they were graduate students in architecture. Kyle and Liz were living in a tiny apartment in Echo Park (Los Angeles) with a correspondingly tiny outdoor kitchen. They didn’t have an oven, and when they realized that meant they couldn’t bake their friend Chelsea a cake for her birthday, it was decided to try to 3D print one instead. Eventually Kyle and Liz managed to print a simple cupcake topper that spelled out ‘Chelsea’ in cursive sugar. Chelsea loved it! After they graduated, they optimized the printing process and started The Sugar Lab.

Company URL http://www.the-sugar-lab.com/

EXCERPTED FROM THE SEPIA REPORT

The Canary Home Security System

INNOVATOR PROFILE: The Canary Home Security System

Milestone

Crowdfunded $1,960,884 on Indiegogo.com

Founders or Inventors

Canary was cofounded by CEO Adam Sager, CTO Chris Rill, and Design Director Jon Troutman in New York City.

Their background

Adam Sager: Former Israel

Defense Forces, security advisor to CEOs and Fortune 100 companies, founder of nation’s largest security non profit organization. Chris Rill: Built embedded systems and electronics for the US military, startup technical co-founder, FIRST robotics mentor. Jon Troutman: User Experience & Product Designer, former product design lead at General Assembly, former art director at brand strategy agency.

Concept & Innovation

Canary is a single device that contains an HD video camera and multiple sensors that track everything from motion, temperature and air quality to vibration, sound, and activity to help keep you, your family and your home safe.

Controlled entirely from your iPhone or Android device, Canary alerts you when it senses anything out of the ordinary — from sudden temperature changes that can indicate a fire, to the sound and movement that could mean an intrusion. Instantly receive, view and act on the alerts wherever you are. Over time, Canary learns your home’s rhythms to send you smarter alerts.

Canary packs all of the technology necessary to keep your environment safe within one beautifully designed device, and learns your household’s habits and behaviors to constantly provide better security, at a price point available to anyone.

Containing an HD camera, audio, temperature and other life-safety sensors, Canary connects directly to your mobile device and alerts you or your designated loved

ones when anything is out of the ordinary. Canary empowers individuals – whether they rent or own their homes – to take control of their own security.

canary2 Inspiration

Canary came out of personal experiences. Both Chris and Adam had looked for security solutions such as this: simple, intelligent, and designed for their homes.

The first thing they did was think through what security in the home really is, and what it boils down to. It isn’t about placing sensors everywhere, nor is it about alarms that alert call centers. Rather, security is about two things: receiving the right information from your home about what is going on at any particular time, and knowing who to communicate with should there be a problem. With Canary, they are innovating in both ways, and have built a smart home security device for anyone.

Company URL http://canary.is/

EXCERPTED FROM THE SEPIA REPORT

NEW IDEAS FOR A NEW WORLD