Washington State University has developed a high-tech wearable (I guess you call it a wearable?) to make it easier to take care of a very important test for some babies: a smart pacifier.
You know about the Echo and the Google Home, but do you know about the Butler In A Box? It was a voice-controlled smart home device in the 1980s, and could do many of the same things our smart speakers do today. Plus: it's the birthday of Dr. Mark Dean, a computing pioneer who helped create some of the most important technology we have, and also saw the future of technology quite a few times.
A startup called Beetl is developing an autonomous device that’s ready to clean up after our dogs on demand, thanks to a large scooper on its underside. If they’re willing to do this job, maybe robots aren’t trying to conquer us after all. Plus: "dogfishing" is a problem for online dating.
The Soundshirt, from high-tech fashion company Cute Circuit, has embedded sensors that can sense sound and turn it into vibrations. In other words, it helps deaf people feel music. And since we're talking about sounds, have you heard the Tiptree Sneeze, where a trombonist let loose in the middle of a concert?
The Smart Can is a motorized, automated trash bin that will drive itself to the curb every week. Which means it's already more motivated about garbage day than I've ever been. Plus: the pinball festival known as PinBaltimore is getting underway in Maryland.
The weWALK is a smart cane for blind pedestrians, with ultrasonic sensors to detect obstacles ahead and Google Maps connections to navigate through and describe the surrounding area. Plus: if you like pickles, the Big Dill festival is back this weekend in Baltimore.
