On June 23rd 2015, Google announced that its Google Play Music will be adding a free, ad based tier to its music streaming service. The launch of the new service creates a companion to its $9.99 a month subscription option. Analysts see this as a move to get ahead of the release of Apple Music, which is due later in the month. Google has said that it is offering the free service as a way to entice listeners to buy a subscription to the ad free version.
Some features are missing from Google's free service. Free users will be limited to six song skips per hour. Users can pause songs but there is no ability to rewind or scrub through tracks. While the paid version allows users to save playlists and listen to songs offline, the free version dose not offer that feature. Google Play's free tier is more like radio, but has at least on nice perk. All of the music that's stream is at a rate of 320kbps.
The new ad supported version of Google Play Music is similar to Songza, a company which Google purchased for what was rumored to be, the sum of $39 million, in July of 2014. The playlists are curated by music experts that also include Songza music staffers. Users can browse music by genres, mood, decade, activity, artist, song or album. Listeners will also be able to choose from themed stations such as "Driving," or "Working Out."
The new ad supported version of Google Play Music will launch first in the US. It will be available on the web on Tuesday June 30th 2015, and it should be available for iOS several days before that.
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Rosetta Mision Update: Philae Lander Awakens
On June 14th 2015, the European Space Agency announced that comet lander, Philae, which landed on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in November of 2014, had finally awaken from its hibernation. Philae went into hibernation after landing in the shadow of a cliff, which prevented it from receiving enough sunlight to recharge its solar batteries. Philae sent back data for 57 hours before it ran out of power.
Stephen Ulamec, Philae's project manager, stated that, "the lander is doing well, operating at a temperature of -35 degrees Celsius and a power of 24 watts." The lander has already analyzed 300 of its more than 8,000 data packets. In the coming days, scientist hope to access those data packets in an effort to determine where Philae actually landed.
Scientists are set to change the orbit of the Rosetta spacecraft, which has been orbiting comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Their goal is to bring the orbiter within 180 kilometers of the comet's surface, in order to give the Rosetta spacecraft stronger and longer communication links with the Philae lander. The Rosetta spacecraft can only receive a signal from Philae while the lander is in direct sunlight, and in a direct line of sight.
Philae's mission is to study whether comets may have contributed to life on Earth. It is equipped with a small drill and two mass spectrometers that are designed to analyze the chemical composition of the comet's soil. Scientist are hoping that the comet's proximity to the sun will provide Philae with enough energy to carry out its objective.
Stephen Ulamec, Philae's project manager, stated that, "the lander is doing well, operating at a temperature of -35 degrees Celsius and a power of 24 watts." The lander has already analyzed 300 of its more than 8,000 data packets. In the coming days, scientist hope to access those data packets in an effort to determine where Philae actually landed.
Scientists are set to change the orbit of the Rosetta spacecraft, which has been orbiting comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Their goal is to bring the orbiter within 180 kilometers of the comet's surface, in order to give the Rosetta spacecraft stronger and longer communication links with the Philae lander. The Rosetta spacecraft can only receive a signal from Philae while the lander is in direct sunlight, and in a direct line of sight.
Philae's mission is to study whether comets may have contributed to life on Earth. It is equipped with a small drill and two mass spectrometers that are designed to analyze the chemical composition of the comet's soil. Scientist are hoping that the comet's proximity to the sun will provide Philae with enough energy to carry out its objective.
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
A Rat's Limb Is Grown In The Lab
On June 3rd 2015, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital announced that they had successfully grown a rat's limb in the laboratory. The limb is a functioning artificial leg that not only responds to stimuli, but also circulates blood. Dr. Harald Ott, one of the researchers, believes that this is the first step in the creation of made to order body parts for humans.
To create the new rat limb, Dr Ott and his team used a process called decellularization. In this process, the limb of a dead rat is stripped of any living cells to expose the "scaffolds," or non living parts. The limb is then recellularized by planting the cells that make up the muscles and blood vessels onto the "scaffolds". The materials were then placed in a bioreactor and allowed to grow for two weeks.
After two weeks the researchers grafted some skin on to the leg, which had no bone or cartilage. Next, the rat limb was attached to a living rat. It was found that the living rat was able to circulate its blood through the biolimb. A test of an unattached biolimb revealed that the muscles moved normally. With electrical stimulation, the rat limb's paw clenched and unclenched with 80% of the strength of a newborn animal.
Dr Ott and his team believe that this process can also be used to grow biolimbs for humans. The technique of using a recipient's own genetic material has already been used to build synthetic human bladders, windpipes, and other organs. These organs, however, are simple in comparison to limbs, which contain nerves, muscles, and blood vessels, and are required to perform in a complex manner.
If biolimbs for humans comes to fruition, they will look, and respond like the real thing. And, because they will be made from the recipients own cells, the chances of rejection are unlikely.
To create the new rat limb, Dr Ott and his team used a process called decellularization. In this process, the limb of a dead rat is stripped of any living cells to expose the "scaffolds," or non living parts. The limb is then recellularized by planting the cells that make up the muscles and blood vessels onto the "scaffolds". The materials were then placed in a bioreactor and allowed to grow for two weeks.
After two weeks the researchers grafted some skin on to the leg, which had no bone or cartilage. Next, the rat limb was attached to a living rat. It was found that the living rat was able to circulate its blood through the biolimb. A test of an unattached biolimb revealed that the muscles moved normally. With electrical stimulation, the rat limb's paw clenched and unclenched with 80% of the strength of a newborn animal.
Dr Ott and his team believe that this process can also be used to grow biolimbs for humans. The technique of using a recipient's own genetic material has already been used to build synthetic human bladders, windpipes, and other organs. These organs, however, are simple in comparison to limbs, which contain nerves, muscles, and blood vessels, and are required to perform in a complex manner.
If biolimbs for humans comes to fruition, they will look, and respond like the real thing. And, because they will be made from the recipients own cells, the chances of rejection are unlikely.
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
Microsoft Annouces Windows 10 Release Date
On June 1st 2015, Microsoft announced that it would release Windows 10 as a free upgrade on July 29th 2015. The upgrade will be made available via download, to current Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users. The upgrade will remain free until July 29th 2016, at which time it will cost $119 for the Home version and $199 for the Pro version.
Microsoft says that Windows 10 will come with a host of new features that include: The Start Menu, which makes its return, Cortana, Microsoft's voice enabled digital assistant, the new Edge browser, Windows Hello, which is a biometric login service, Windows Store, and more. Windows 10 users will be able to download the touch versions of Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. It is also expected that Outlook and OneNote will ship with Windows 10 at no additional cost.
There are a few things that will not remain after an upgrade to Windows 10. One change will be the absence of Windows Media Center. Separate playback software will be needed in order to play DVDs. However, Microsoft plans to release a DVD option later in 2015. Gone too are Windows 7 desktop gadgets, as well as Windows 7 versions of Solitaire, Mindsweeper, and Hearts. The upgrade will also uninstall and reinstall your antivirus software, provided that it is up to date.
Those who wish to get a free upgrade to Windows 10 must be running either Windows 7 service pack one or Windows 8.1. A new Windows icon will appear in the lower right corner of your system tray. When you click this icon a window will open that will explain how to reserve your free upgrade. When your upgrade is ready, it will automatically download onto your computer. There is an option for choosing when you wish to install your upgrade.
If you should change your mind you can cancel your reservation by clicking the icon and then clicking the three horizontal lines in the upper left corner of the window. A menu will open. Go down and click on view confirmation. In the lower left corner of your confirmation is a cancel link.
Microsoft says that Windows 10 will come with a host of new features that include: The Start Menu, which makes its return, Cortana, Microsoft's voice enabled digital assistant, the new Edge browser, Windows Hello, which is a biometric login service, Windows Store, and more. Windows 10 users will be able to download the touch versions of Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. It is also expected that Outlook and OneNote will ship with Windows 10 at no additional cost.
There are a few things that will not remain after an upgrade to Windows 10. One change will be the absence of Windows Media Center. Separate playback software will be needed in order to play DVDs. However, Microsoft plans to release a DVD option later in 2015. Gone too are Windows 7 desktop gadgets, as well as Windows 7 versions of Solitaire, Mindsweeper, and Hearts. The upgrade will also uninstall and reinstall your antivirus software, provided that it is up to date.
Those who wish to get a free upgrade to Windows 10 must be running either Windows 7 service pack one or Windows 8.1. A new Windows icon will appear in the lower right corner of your system tray. When you click this icon a window will open that will explain how to reserve your free upgrade. When your upgrade is ready, it will automatically download onto your computer. There is an option for choosing when you wish to install your upgrade.
If you should change your mind you can cancel your reservation by clicking the icon and then clicking the three horizontal lines in the upper left corner of the window. A menu will open. Go down and click on view confirmation. In the lower left corner of your confirmation is a cancel link.
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