ECU Components

The processor is packaged in a module with hundreds of other
components on a multi-layer circuit board. Some of the other
components in the ECU that support the processor are:

* Analog-to-digital converters - These devices read the
outputs of some of the sensors in the car, such as the oxygen
sensor. The output of an oxygen sensor is an analog voltage,
usually between 0 and 1.1 volts (V). The processor only
understands digital numbers, so the analog-to-digital
converter changes this voltage into a 10-bit digital number.

* High-level digital outputs - On many modern cars, the
ECU fires the spark plugs, opens and closes the fuel
injectors and turns the cooling fan on and off. All of these
tasks require digital outputs. A digital output is either on
or off -- there is no in-between. For instance, an output for
controlling the cooling fan might provide 12 V and 0.5 amps
to the fan relay when it is on, and 0 V when it is off. The
digital output itself is like a relay. The tiny amount of
power that the processor can output energizes the transistor
in the digital output, allowing it to supply a much larger
amount of power to the cooling fan relay, which in turn
provides a still larger amount of power to the cooling fan.

* Digital-to-analog converters - Sometimes the ECU has to
provide an analog voltage output to drive some engine
components. Since the processor on the ECU is a digital
device, it needs a component that can convert the digital
number into an analog voltage.

* Signal conditioners - Sometimes the inputs or outputs
need to be adjusted before they are read. For instance, the
analog-to-digital converter that reads the voltage from the
oxygen sensor might be set up to read a 0- to 5-V signal, but
the oxygen sensor outputs a 0- to 1.1-V signal. A signal
conditioner is a circuit that adjusts the level of the
signals coming in or out. For instance, if we applied
a signal conditioner that multiplied the voltage coming from
the oxygen sensor by 4, we'd get a 0- to 4.4-V signal, which
would allow the analog-to-digital converter to read the
voltage more accurately.

* Communication chips - These chips implement the various
communications standards that are used on cars. There are
several standards used, but the one that is starting to
dominate in-car communications is called CAN (controller-area
networking). This communication standard allows for
communication speeds of up to 500 kilobits per second (Kbps).
That's a lot faster than older standards. This speed is
becoming necessary because some modules communicate data onto
the bus hundreds of times per second. The CAN bus
communicates using two wires.

Advanced Diagnostics

Another benefit of having a communications bus is that each
module can communicate faults to a central module, which
stores the faults and can communicate them to an off-board
diagnostic tool.

This can make it easier for technicians to diagnose problems
with the car, especially intermittent problems, which are
notorious for disappearing as soon as you bring the car in
for repairs.

Car Computers

Each year, cars seem to get more and more complicated. Cars
today might have as many as 50 microprocessors on them.
Although these microprocessors make it more difficult for you
to work on your own car, some of them actually make your car
easier to service.

Some of the reasons for this increase in the number of
microprocessors are:

* The need for sophisticated engine controls to meet
emissions and fuel-economy standards
* Advanced diagnostics
* Simplification of the manufacture and design of cars
* Reduction of the amount of wiring in cars
* New safety features
* New comfort and convenience features

In this article, we'll take a look at how each of these
factors has influenced the design of your car.

Sophisticated Engine Controls

Before emissions laws were enacted, it was possible to build a
car engine without microprocessors. With the enactment of
increasingly stricter emissions laws, sophistic­ated control
schemes were needed to regulate the air/fuel mixture so that
the catalytic converter could remove a lot of the pollution
from the exhaust.

Controlling the engine is the most processor-intensive job on
your car, and the engine control unit (ECU) is the most
powerful computer on most cars. The ECU uses closed-loop
control, a control scheme that monitors outputs of a system
to control the inputs to a system, managing the emissions and
fuel economy of the engine (as well as a host of other
parameters). Gathering data from dozens of different sensors,
the ECU knows everything from the coolant temperature to the
amount of oxygen in the exhaust. With this data, it performs
millions of calculations each second, including looking up
values in tables, calculating the results of long equations
to decide on the best spark timing and determining how long
the fuel injector is open. The ECU does all of this to ensure
the lowest emissions and best mileage. See How Fuel Injection
Systems Work for a lot more detail on what the ECU does.

A modern ECU might contain a 32-bit, 40-MHz processor. This
may not sound fast compared to the 500- to 1,000-MHz
processor you probably have in your PC, but remember that the
processor in your car is running much more efficient code
than the one in your PC. The code in an average ECU takes up
less than 1 megabyte (MB) of memory. By comparison, you
probably have at least 2 gigabytes (GB) of programs on your
computer -- that's 2,000 times the amount in an ECU.

The Future of Space Exploration

NASA wants the Orion CEV to be versatile for future space
exploration. They project that it will be able to transport
crews to the International Space Station by 2014, the moon by
2020. Mars will be the next goal.

The main objective of the CEV is a return to the moon. During
the design stage of the Apollo, there were two proposals to
put man on the moon:

* The Earth Orbit Rendezvous (EOR) - pieces of a large
moon rocket would be assembled in Earth orbit and launched to
the moon
* The Lunar Orbit Rendezvous (LOR) - two smaller
spacecraft (command/service module and lunar module) would
meet in lunar orbit

Scientists eventually agreed that the LOR approach would save
more weight and achieve President John F. Kennedy's goal of
landing a man on the moon within 10 years. The flight plan
for the CEV return to the moon incorporates elements of both
the EOR and the LOR.

The CEV lunar missions will establish a lunar base to explore
the moon and search for water at the moon's South Pole
(necessary for surviving on the moon and a potential source
of material to make rocket fuel). They will also allow
astronauts to test equipment and techniques for future
missions to Mars. Since the moon is only three days away, it
is safer and less expensive to launch missions to Mars from
there. A rescue mission would also be easier for a lunar
mission than a Mars mission. The CEV will serve as a model
for designing other deep space, manned spacecraft.

With the CEV, NASA hopes to return astronauts to the moon and
make real the dream of sending humans to explore Mars and the
rest of the solar system.

CEV Service Module, Boosters and CLV

The CEV service module will also be cylindrical. It will
cover and protect the heat shield of the CEV capsule while in
flight and provide power, propulsion, and attitude control.
The service module will be jettisoned prior to re-entry.

Some features of the service module include:

* A single engine propulsion, which will use slightly
more efficient methane/oxygen fuel rather than the hypergolic
mixture of Apollo SM (hydrazine/nitrogen tetroxide).
Methane/oxygen fuel has a greater specific impulse than
hydrazine/nitrogen tetroxide, which means a longer burn time
for the same mass of propellant and greater velocities. In
the future, it may be possible to make methane fuel from
components on the moon and Mars to fuel this type of vehicle.

* A larger fuel capacity to make different lunar orbits
and landing sites possible.

* Solar panels to generate electricity to supplement the
energy from the fuel cells.

* Conduits containing liquid ammonia or water/glycol
mixtures to transfer heat to radiators so it can escape into
space. In outer space, the difference in temperature between
sunlight and shade is about 400 degrees Fahrenheit. This
uneven heating causes thermal stress on the metals in the
spacecraft's structure. To counter this effect, the Apollo
spacecraft rotated on its axis when going to the moon to
allow solar radiation to heat the spacecraft evenly (the
"barbecue roll maneuver"). The CEV will probably do the same.

* Attitude control with thrusters similar to the Apollo.

The Apollo required a massive launch vehicle (Saturn V) to
lift both crew and payload. The shuttle's main engines needed
to supply large amounts of thrust to the vehicle for the same
reasons. The CEV launch booster, will only lift the crew, not
heavy payloads. Because of this, the CEV booster can be
smaller than the Apollo and space shuttle boosters.

The first stage of the CEV booster will be a solid rocket
booster (SRB) named Ares I, which will be similar to the one
on the space shuttle. The second stage will consist of
a single space shuttle engine fueled by liquid hydrogen and
oxygen tanks. Neither stage will be recovered or re-used (the
shuttle SRBs were both recovered and re-used).

Manned space exploration requires placing both astronauts and
payloads into orbit. Past vehicles have combined humans and
payloads on the same rocket, but the CEV concept has
separated these functions. The CLV will lift heavy payloads,
like lunar landers, moon transfer stages and space station
components. If necessary, the CLV can also be configured to
launch humans.

The CLV will consist of two stages:

* The firs t stage will have five main engines fueled by
liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen (named Ares V)
* The second will have either a shuttle main engine or
an Apollo J-2 engine, also fueled by liquid hydrogen and
liquid oxygen.

How the Orion CEV Will Work

Although the space shuttle is still a technical marvel, the
fleet is aging and has become increasingly expensive to
operate. Recent problems with foam insulation have exposed
crews to danger, rendered it unsafe to fly, and caused NASA
to ground the entire fleet. NASA needs a vehicle that is
capable of carrying crew and payloads to Earth orbit, the
moon and Mars. With future exploration in mind, NASA is
designing a new vehicle.

NASA's new spaceship, the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle,
will actually consist of two ships:

* The Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) will transport four
to six astronauts.
* The Cargo Launch Vehicle (CLV) will lift heavy payloads
and astronauts when necessary.

The Orion will use proven technologies from the Apollo and
space shuttle programs. They will also be safer and more
versatile for long-term space exploration.

CEV Basics

NASA has selected Lockheed Martin to design and build the
Orion. Main systems (such as power, navigation, life support,
communications, and computers) will be more advanced versions
of those on the Apollo and the space shuttle.

The CEV will consist of three basic parts:

* A capsule to hold the crew.

* A service module to hold the main propulsion system,
power systems, and attitude controls. Attitude refers to how
the spacecraft is oriented in space (x, y, and z directions
or pitch, roll, yaw axes). Apollo used four units of four
thrusters mounted on the service module for this task, while
the shuttle uses reaction control thrusters located on the
nose and aft sections.

* A booster to lift the CEV into Earth orbit.

For lunar landing missions, there will be a special module.

The capsule will be cone-shaped like the Apollo command
module, because it is more aerodynamic than the shuttle.
Instead of re-entering the atmosphere of Earth orbit at 8
kilometers per second (like the shuttle), the CEV will
re-enter the atmosphere from the higher velocities of lunar
travel, at 11 kilometers per second.

Besides shape, the CEV crew capsule has several other things
in common with the Apollo, along with a few differences:

* The larger diameter (16.5 feet, or 5 meters, instead of
3.9 feet) will hold more crew and cargo.

* The CEV aft heat shield will be ablative, meaning that
it will boil away. Apollo used a single, multi-layered aft
heat shield made of aluminum and epoxy resin that ablated as
it absorbed the heat of re-entry. (It was designed to be used
only once, just like the rest of the command module.) The
shuttle uses ceramic thermal tiles, thermal blankets, and
reinforced carbon resins to absorb the heat. However, this
concept has proven to be more difficult to service than its
theoretical design. The CEV heat shield will be replaceable
up to 10 times and last the design life of the vehicle.

* Air bags on the CEV will enable both land recoveries
and sea recoveries. All of the Apollo's recoveries were ocean
splashdowns.

* The CEV's position atop the launch booster puts it out
of the way of falling debris like pieces of foam or ice.

* An escape tower -- a small rocket that lifts the
command module off the booster in the event of a launch
failure -- is one of the CEV's unique features. This
mechanism is safer than the shuttle's abort procedures.

Japanese Team Crosses Australia, Takes Solar Car Challenge

After nearly four days, 1,860 miles, and lots of baking
Australian sun, a team from Japan's Tokai University edged
out 31 other competitors to bring home a solar victory in the
2009 Global Green Challenge

A team of solar-car scientists from Japan's Tokai University
turned the intense rays of central Australia into victory in
the 2009 Global Green Challenge. The team covered nearly
1,860 miles over four days in their solar-powered Tokai
Challenger to claim first place among the Challenge's
solar-vehicle field.

The win shut down a four-win streak by Dutch utility Nuon,
which as of this writing was still battling the University of
Michigan for second place. The Tokai Challenger, which is
equipped with six square meters of 1.8 kW compound solar
cells developed by Sharp for outer-space applications, placed
fourth in qualifying at an average speed of 50.87mph. During
the race, the team reportedly took the lead on day one, and
stayed there all the way to the finish line.

Thirty-two solar vehicles from 16 countries made the start of
the 2009 Global Green Challenge last Sunday. The bi-annual
Global Green Challenge has separate categories for hybrid,
electric, and other forms of alternative energy vehicles.
Tokai's victory is the first by a Japanese team since 1993
when the Honda Dream II took first.

Liquavista's E-Paper Plays Full-Color Movies

E-readers such as Amazon's Kindle DX, Sony's Daily Edition,
and Barnes & Noble's multi-touch hybrid might want to start
trembling. A new e-paper from Liquivista promises to allow
video-playing and digital note-taking on a multi-touch, color
screen.

Liquivista's secret is an electrowetting display. The
electrowetting technology uses an oil and water layer along
with a hydrophobic surface, and applies light voltage to
change the "wetting" properties of the surface. This helps
create a light switch twice as efficient as LCDs.

The company licensed the electrowetting technology from
Philips, and hopes to roll out three products soon.

It retains the high contrast of e-ink, but it uses
significantly more power, a limitation that likely makes it
more suited for use in a phone with 24-hour battery life than
a Kindle you charge once a month.

How To Fix a Broken Collider: the LHC's Restart Checklist

Before scientists can put the Large Hadron Collider back to
work this month solving the mysteries of particle physics,
the LHC’s engineers face critical repairs to the $5-billion
device. First up: Fix the 53 superconducting magnets trashed
in September 2008 when a power cable broke, causing the
magnets to warm above their –458˚F operating temperature and
lose conductivity, or “quench.” Then pipes for helium coolant
melted, further damaging the magnets. Here, the other key
upgrades and a few of the thousand chores still to go:

1. Drill eight-inch relief valves into half of the 1,232
dipole magnets that steer the proton beam around the track,
to allow for a controlled pressure release in case of another
leak.
2. Install a new quench-protection system, which is 1,000
times as sensitive as its predecessor and shuts off the
accelerator if it detects an abnormal voltage increase—
an indicator of a heat spike.
3. Search for and eliminate electrical faults between the
magnets—especially where the cables join—which could increase
electrical resistance, causing the cables to overheat and
melt.
4. Cool the entire 17-mile track back down to –458˚F with
liquid helium. (Engineers brought the sections up to room
temperature so they could work inside the tunnel.)
5. Ramp up the current in the magnets from a couple
hundred amps to 6,000 over a few weeks. During this time,
test the quench-protection system by intentionally
overheating the magnets.
6. Perform the final machine check, covering some 10,000
items, such as the systems that inject the proton beam into
the collider and extract it within 1/5,000 of a second if
a magnet fails.

Google's Turn-By-Turn Maps for Android 2.0 Kicks Pricey Nav Apps to the Curb

Hot on the heels of the Android 2.0 mobile OS release,
Google's sweetening the deal: the Eclair-flavored refresh to
their mapping app turns handsets into feature-rich GPS
devices -- for free.

Sure, previous versions of mobile Maps provided turn-by-turn
directions, but this beta release takes it a step further and
gets chatty. Like a standalone GPS, it will read directions
aloud to you, and you can enter destinations by voice. Also,
if you miss a turn, it will automatically recalculate your
route.

Maps for 2.0 also takes advantage of all Google's views,
including satellite images, Street View, and live traffic
overlays. And, since all the maps are cloud-based, you don't
have to download map updates or points of interest, since
they're all stored on Google itself. Plus, searching (by
either voice or text entry) is just like searching on the
Google Maps homepage; you don't need to know the exact name
of what you're looking for, so you can say things like
"navigate to the bar across the street from Yankee Stadium."

There's tons to play with in the Beta, so we'll get back to
you with plenty more, hands-on details when we get our mitts
on an Android 2.0 phone, which should be very soon.

Verizon Droid by Motorola

We've talked about Android 2.0 and (virtually) walked through
the new Google Maps. Now, it's for real, and it's here.
Motorola's Droid has landed at PopSci HQ, and it's making
good on its promises.

Though it's touted as the thinnest landscape slider cell
phone (a little more than a half-inch), don't be fooled into
thinking the Droid is light; at nearly 6 ounces it outweighs
most BlackBerries and the iPhone -- but at least it feels
sturdy. Its 3.7-inch display is responsive and beautifully
high-res (480-by-854 pixels), and there's nice haptic
feedback when you press, well, anything (I'm already finding
myself defaulting to the virtual keyboard in landscape mode
over sliding out the physical QWERTY).

So...this whole Android 2.0 thing: it's got some nifty tricks
up its sleeve. The universal search pings everything on the
handset and the Web from anywhere you navigate; if, for
example, I'm listening to The Roots, I can search from their
artist page in the media player and get hit back with
everything local, plus extra goodies like YouTube videos
(which render quickly and smoothly, by the way). As for the
contacts integration, pulling all the myriad ways you have to
ping one person (text, Facebook, e-mail, or gasp phone call)
into one spot saves the trouble of clicking back and forth
between apps and windows.

Speaking of windows, if a new e-mail or text message pops up,
you don't have to abandon your current task (be it Web
browsing or YouTube watching); you can pull up the Droid's
Notification menu, see what's up, and hop back where you
started. The Web browser is similarly smart, keeping tabs on
multiple windows at a time and creating a thumbnail view of
your bookmarks.

And, as we said earlier today, Google Navigation Maps ain't
foolin' around. Though it couldn't do much to follow me
around the corridors at PopSci, I was able to track the route
to the beloved burgers of Shake Shack with turn-by-turn with
street view, satellite view, and a traffic layer on top. I
also to added a layer for gas stations along the route in two
clicks. Oh, and I entered the destination by voice.

The Motorola Droid will be available to Verizon customers on
Friday, November 6 for $200 with a two-year contract.

vehicles to their own tastes.

Steampunk Modifications

Perhaps the trickiest part of modifying any gadget is
changing it without breaking it or making it impossible to
use. Ideally, the artist will know how each gadget works
before beginning modifications. For most projects, the artist
doesn't try to change the performance or function of the
original device. Instead, he or she changes the gadget's
appearance to look like an invention from the 19th century.

Let's look at modifying a computer keyboard as an example. To
turn a modern computer keyboard into a steampunk creation,
artists take inspiration from the design of old typewriters
like the Underwood 5. Each artist has his or her own process,
but in general, a keyboard modification requires these steps.

First, the­ artist purchases old typewriter keys, making sure
the back of each key is smooth. If necessary, the artist saws
or sands down any excess metal on the back of the keys.


The artist removes the computer keyboard from its plastic
frame. Each and every key cap has got to go. The key cap
includes the key face (the part of the key you can see) and
an under-cap that snaps into the keyboard frame. Steampunk
artist Jake von Slatt recommends using an IBM Model M
keyboard because the under-caps are flat, which makes it
easier to attach the new key faces later.

Next, the artist removes the key face from each key cap,
making sure the top of the key cap is a flat surface. The
artist then snaps the key cap back into place on the
keyboard.

After taking measurements of the keyboard's components, the
artist designs the new steampunk frame. The keyboard's layout
won't change, but its appearance can undergo a drastic
transformation.

The new frame's design includes a faceplate. Most companies
design modern keyboards so that the keys are flush against
each other. Changing the style of the key faces means that
the user will see more of the keyboard's surface. A faceplate
masks the plastic parts and circuitry that otherwise would be
visible. The artist builds the frame and faceplate using
appropriate materials like copper, steel, wood or brass.

­­Once the faceplate is in place, the artist can glue the old
typewriter keys onto the appropriate key cap. Artists usually
must create customized key faces for certain keys that have
no typewriter analogue.

Last, the artist assembles the frame around the keyboard.
After many hours of meticulous work, he or she has created
a new steampunk keyboard, just like the Victorians never had.

Of course, keyboards are just one example of gadget
modification. Other devices might have more or fewer steps,
but the principle is the same: Change the object's outward
appearance so it looks like it could exist in a steampunk
universe. Artists have created steampunk computer monitors,
computer mice, electric guitars, mp3 players and watches.

Steampunk Original Creations

Not all steampunk art relies on modifying existing gadgets.
Some steampunk artists create completely original pieces.
While most of their work tends to be ornamental, a few
inventive gadgeteers have created functional -- if not
practical -- devices based on the steampunk style.

Jake von Slatt designed and built a telegraph sounder that
accepts data from RSS feeds, converts the information into
Morse code and taps out the messages. He first researched
telegraph sounders to find out what materials he would need
to build his own. After buying aluminum, brass and other
supplies, he used various power tools to cut and shape the
raw materials. Using some hitch pins, a few washers and some
electric wire, he fashioned the electromagnets needed to make
the telegraph sounder work. Once he had assembled the
telegraph sounder, he connected it to his computer keyboard
so that the sounder intercepted the signal sent to his
keyboard's LED lights. He used a program called Morse2LED to
translate text into Morse code. Normally, the LED lights on
his computer keyboard would blink out the encoded messages,
but since he had hooked up the telegraph sounder to intercept
those signals, it tapped out the messages instead.

Von Slatt's creation is a good example of steampunk. It
accomplishes a high-tech task -- transmitting information
from RSS feeds -- using antiquated technology. Is it
practical? Not unless you're fluent in Morse code. But many
people in the steampunk community praised von Slatt's
inventiveness.

Other creations have little or no practical purpose beyond
establishing a steampunk theme. Some are relatively simple,
like a pair of goggles made out of brass and leather. Antique
tools and furniture are also commonly used to create
a neo-Victorian atmosphere. Many steampunk fans are
do-it-yourselfers who tailor their costumes, houses or


Although most steampunk gear is custom-made, a few companies
offer mass-produced options. Weta Workshop in New Zealand is
famous for two things: designing and building props for films
like the "Lord of the Rings" series, and creating and selling
collectibles. Weta's collectibes include a line of limited
edition steampunk prop rayguns. Dubbed "Dr. Grordbort's
Infallible Aether Oscillators," the gun designs bring to mind
old science fiction pulp series like "Flash Gordon" or "Doc
Savage."

The art and design of steampunk has its origins in both the
history of engineering and in science fiction.

Steampunk

Flickering gas lamps puncture a thick London fog. A metallic,
rhythmic noise begins to drown out the normal sounds of the
evening. An army of copper clockwork automatons comes
marching out of the darkness. Overhead, a looming dirigible
barely clears the tallest buildings. Brass nozzles emerge
from the airship's gondola, blasting fire down upon the
rooftops. This is the world of steampunk.

­The term "steampunk" originally referred to speculative
fiction -- science fiction, fantasy and fictional historical
tales -- set in an alternate Earth's 19th century. In this
universe, Victorian inventors made great leaps in
technological advancement with materials like iron and brass
and using steam engines for power. From a fictional
standpoint, real-life inventor Charles Babbage might have
succeeded in building his proposed Difference Engine,
an early computer. In reality, Babbage never saw his
computational engine realized.

Today, people use the term "steampunk" beyond its literary
meaning to refer to a style of art and design. There are
dozens of artists who modify or create objects to achieve
a steampunk aesthetic. Some of these projects have
a practical purpose, while others are pieces of artwork or
part of a costume. The designs merge the mundane with the
exotic, and many steampunk artists have enthusiastic fans who
will pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for one of their
creations.

What sort of people create steampunk gadgets and what tools
and materials do they use? What's a typical steampunk gadget
modification (mod) like? And just what do some of these
strange contraptions do? Keep reading to find out.

Steampunk Materials and Tools

The typical steampunk artist is also part inventor, part
engineer and part mad scientist. Many describe themselves as
gadgeteers or tinkerers. Steampunk art has a very industrial
appearance. Some feel that the use of materials like metal
and wood make objects appear more permanent than technology
made out of plastic and other modern materials.

Many steampunk artists are self-taught and work out of
basements or garages. Most treat their art as a hobby. The
amount of time and effort that goes into creating a single
piece of steampunk art makes it difficult to make a living
from selling art alone. Some are happy to share their design
and building processes, even including step-by-step
instructions so that others can create similar pieces.

Steampunk artists regularly use certain materials to achieve
an antiquated appearance. The most common materials in
steampunk art and design include:

* Metals like copper, brass, steel and iron
* Rivets
* Gears and cogs
* Wood
* Glass
* Antique light bulbs
* Leather

There aren't any stores that sell steampunk gadget kits, so
most artists have to do a lot of legwork to find materials
for their projects. Many scour arts and crafts shops,
pawnshops, thrift stores, flea markets and antiques shops for
parts. Some regularly search the Internet, particularly eBay,
for material.

As for tools, every artist has his or her own favorites. For
many artists, the most important tool is a drafting table or
similar design space. The most intricate pieces of steampunk
art require a lot of forethought in the design process. For
this reason, most steampunk artists own traditional drafting
tools like compasses, protractors, rulers, drafting triangles
and T-squares. By drafting meticulous designs, artists can
avoid problems when they're in the building phase of the­
process.

Other common tools include:

* Band and table saws
* Sanders
* Drills
* Screwdrivers
* Hammers
* Pliers
* Wire cutters
* Soldering irons
* Metal files
* Vises
* Glues or epoxies

Some of these artists have created designs that turn mundane
devices into gadgets that look simultaneously atiquated and
high-tech. Pieces of steampunk art can be pretty expensive,
but there are ways to commission a less expensive piece. One
cost-cutting technique artists sometimes use is to spray
metallic paint on their creations to achieve the desired
look. A can of copper metallic finish might cost one-tenth
as much as a sheet of copper.

How do the battery testers on battery packages work? The little disposable battery testers that you see on batteries or battery packages are a grea

How do the battery testers on battery packages work?

The little disposable battery testers that you see on
batteries or battery packages are a great example of combined
technologies -- several existing technologies have been
combined in a completely new way! Battery testers depend on
two special types of ink: thermochromic and conductive inks.
Thermochromic ink changes color depending on its temperature.
Conductive ink can conduct electricity. By applying layers of
these special inks along with a layer of normal ink using
a fairly normal printing press, it is possible to create an
extremely inexpensive printed design that changes depending
on the amount of electricity it receives.

There are two types of thermochromic ink: liquid crystal and
leucodye. Liquid crystal based thermochromic ink is sensitive
to very small changes in temperature, but it is fairly
difficult to manufacture. This makes it perfect for use in
items like thermometers where you need the sensitivity, but
troublesome in an item that needs to be inexpensive and in
which a large, abrupt change in temperature will occur.
Leucodyes are specially formulated substances that change
from a specific color, like blue, to a clear state when
subjected to a temperature change of about 5 degrees F or
more. Thermochromic inks can be formulated to change color at
specific temperatures. For battery testers, the desired
temperature is usually around 100-120 degrees F.

To create a battery tester, you start with a layer of
conductive ink that gets progressively narrower as you move
across the tester from "good" to "bad." In the picture above
the tester has 3 bars. In other testers the ink is
wedge-shaped. The narrowest point indicates the weakest
charge; the widest area indicates a full charge. When current
passes through the thin layer of conductive ink, resistance
in the ink creates heat. A small amount of current can
generate enough heat to affect the smallest area of
thermochromic ink; but, as the area widens, more current is
needed to change colors.

On top of the conductive ink is a layer of normal ink that
conveys the design. In most battery testers, this is some
type of "fuel gauge" graphic or text that indicates that
a battery is good. The design can be anything, since the
normal ink layer does not affect the way the conductive and
thermochromic layers interact.

Finally, there is the thermochromic layer. In the photo of
the battery tester above, the thermochromic layer is black
when cool. By touching a battery to the conductive ink on the
back of the paper, a connection between the positive and
negative terminals is created. As a current is generated, the
thermochromic ink will turn clear. This reveals the design
that is printed in normal ink. If there is enough current,
most or all of the thermochromic ink will heat to the
temperature needed to become translucent.

One question you might have right now is, "Doesn't the
battery tester drain some of the battery's energy?" The
answer is, "yes, but not enough to matter." If you tested the
battery every 5 minutes it might be a problem, but most
people don't do that.

One type of battery tester available now has the tester right
on the battery. You press two small dots indicated on the
battery to test it. These points complete a circuit between
the battery and the tester, and electricity flows through the
conductive ink in the same way as in the tester discussed
above.

What happens to your discarded old computer?

Remember how good it felt the last time you hauled your
clunky, old computer and monitor out to the curb and went
back inside to turn on your shiny, new PC? Well as it turns
out, that quick trip to the trash wasn't the best idea you
ever had.

A growing number of advocacy groups are working to educate
the public on what happens to their discarded, old computers
and why they may want to take more precautions when disposing
them. What many of us don't realize is that our electronics
and other household electrical gadgets are potential Molotov
cocktails, filled with unsavory heavy metals and toxic
chemicals.

Before we talk about the dangers, let's first examine how
ubiquitous these types of products have become in the U.S.
and around the world. Americans own billions of electronic
products, including 200 million computers.



With high technology turnover and obsolescence rates, in the
next five years, about a billion computers around the world
will be discarded [source: Ladou]. And how quickly are we
discarding computers in the U.S.? The Environmental
Protection Agency ­estimates 20 million computers were thrown
out in 1998. By 2005, that number had more than doubled, with
estimates at 130,000 computers being discarded daily. In
addition to computers, Americans toss out millions of cell
phones and TVs each year. On the other side of the pond,
Europeans discard about 6.5 million tons of household
electronic items each year.

The technical term for all this high-tech garbage is e-waste.
It refers to products like TVs and computers (including
keyboards, monitors, ­mouses, printers, scanners and other
accessories). E-waste also includes cell phones, DVD players,
video cameras and answering machines. The term refers to any
products that use electricity, like refrigerators, toasters,
lamps, toys, power drills, and pacemakers. For simplicity's
sake, this article will refer to all of these devices as
electronics. For a more in-depth look at e-waste and what it
involves, read How E-waste Works.

Dangers of Old Computers

So where do these electronic relics go to retire? Between
2003 and 2005, as much as 85 percent of the disposed
electronics in the U.S. went straight in the trash and headed
directly to local landfills or incinerators. Worldwide, as
much as 50 million tons of old electronics are discarded
annually.

Some of you may be thinking, "So what? All my other garbage
goes to the landfill, why not my old computer?" But let's
think back to what we touched on briefly on the previous page
-- the potentially lethal chemical combination that could
seriously harm the environment if not properly handled.

The dangers of discarded, old computers stem from what's
inside them. Your typical piece of electronic equipment --
especially one like a PC with many circuit boards -- may
contain up to 8 pounds (3.6 kilograms) of lead, along with
lower levels of mercury, arsenic, cadmium, beryllium and
other toxic chemicals. These elements are all toxic at
varying exposure levels. There is also a fairly poisonous
family of flame-retardant chemicals used in most electronics.
Find out how lead affects the body by reading Why do CRTs
contain lead?

Many of the aforementioned hazardous chemicals and toxic
substances are known to cause health problems -- and in some
cases death -- when exposure occurs in large doses. Less is
known about the dangers of exposure in small doses over
a long period of time, like elevated levels of toxic
chemicals in the water supply or inhalation of chemicals by
factory workers. It's safe to assume the effects aren't
good.

As you may imagine, landfills are a particularly harsh hotbed
for pollutants. In the U.S., e-waste accounts for
approximately 4 percent of the total amount of trash, but it
contributes about 40 percent of the lead content in
landfills. Of the other heavy metals in landfills, e-waste
accounts for about 70 percent of that pollution. While most
landfills are strategically located in an attempt to contain
potential soil and water contamination, having this much
hazardous waste on the ground may be cause for concern.

There is an even darker side as to what might await your
discarded, old PC. In the U.S., even if you made
a well-intentioned effort to properly recycle your computer,
there's a 50 to 80 percent chance that your computer didn't
end up where you thought it would.­ Continue
to the next page to learn more about your ex-computer's
potential world tour.

Recycling Old Computers

Recycling old computers can be accomplished when people
follow proper, valid channels. When the recycling trend is on
the upswing, the market inevitably starts to respond.
Manufacturers are taking back some old electronics from
customers and recycling or refurbishing them. In certain
instances, companies are improving their products so they
contain fewer toxins to begin with. Some companies are doing
this voluntarily; others are being forced by government
regulations. Legitimate e-waste recycling centers with
on-site facilities are also springing up in various cities.

But the sad reality is that for years -- and even to this
day -- many so-called recycling operations are simply
collection points. Collected electronic devices and parts are
sold to scrap brokers, who ship this cargo to developing
nations for deconstruction.

So why bother transporting e-waste? Why not recycle it right
where it is? Like many aspects of the global economy, the
cost of shipping e-waste is more than made up for by the
cheap labor available at its destination. Recycling
electronics in developing nations (including China, India,
Pakistan, Ghana, Nigeria and Ivory Coast)­ is achieved at
a fraction of what it would cost in developed countries. Part
of the savings also stems from the fact that occupational and
environmental laws tend to be weaker in those regions.

Once the e-waste arrives in these economically challenged
regions, laborers earn their incomes by recycling these old
computers, TVs and cell phones for their core components. And
the process is ugly.

In some communities, the young, the old and everyone in
between dismantle e-waste every day. Laborers smash and
unhinge devices, spraying toxic shrapnel all over the ground,
where people with no shoes walk. Then workers employ
a variety of methods to track down and remove the metals from
objects like circuit boards, semiconductors and wires.

Fire can burn away the flame-retardant cocoons that cradle
copper wiring, releasing soot and smoke into the air. Fire
also melts the metal off circuit boards and other electronic
organs. This allows workers to harvest gold, lead, copper and
other materials from the burned plastic husks.

Another method is an acid bath. Soaking the circuit boards in
powerful solutions of nitric and hydrochloric acids (highly
corrosive to human tissue in strong concentrations) can free
the metals from their etched electronic pathways. This
process is often done by hand. After that, the recovered
resources are sold and re-enter the manufacturing cycle.

The acid, hazardous waste and worthless byproducts are often
burned or find their way into local water sources, often by
outright dumping. Tests performed on the air and soil that
surrounds large recycling operations show a high level of
pollution. Researchers are studying how this e-waste
recycling affects the local populations. Preliminary reports
are expected to show negative results.

Now you have a better idea of the sad journey your computer
may have taken after it left the warmth and security of your
home office. Continue to the next page for great links about
how you can properly dispose of your next outdated, broken
computer.

Google Shows Off Android 2.0's

The second version of Google's mobile OS (codenamed Eclair)
borrows ideas from existing (and upcoming?) phones for
an improved user experience

When we saw the Motorola Cliq and the way it married all your
contacts simply in one place (a la the Palm Pre), we finally
saw the light at the end of the Android tunnel. This morning,
that light got even brighter with Android 2.0--the next
iteration of Google's mobile software.

The big news is in contacts handling. Developers can now add
a widget called Quick Contact into their apps; QC pulls all
the ways you can reach someone into one pop-up menu that can
overlay any app in addition to Android's native address book.
Also on the address-book-sorting-front: the new API can pull,
save and sync contact information from any source a developer
chooses to code.

Apps can also now control the device Bluetooth, which allows
for more peer-to-peer play to share data or go head-to-head
in games.

Screens on Android devices, like the Archos 5, have been
outgrowing the original T-Mobile G1 for a few months now. 2.0
is finally catching up; one set if code will now render
correctly on screens with varying sizes and resolutions. On
their , Google's advising app-builders to make sure their
wares will render on screens as high-res as 800-by-480 pixels
(helpful comparison: the iPhone is 480-by-320).

And the camera also has some new tricks up its sleeve,
including digital zoom, flash support, scene modes, while
balancing, macro mode and color effects.

On the whole, Eclair has all the ingredients of a tasty
treat. Now we just have to keep an eye on the developers and
watch out as new hardware starts cropping up.

Coming Soon: Non-Latin Character URLs

Since its inception, the World Wide Web has been dominated by
English. Even websites that use a different language still
use the Latin-character "www" format, with a URL spelled out
with the English alphabet. Well, that domination will soon
come to an end, as Icann, the committee that regulates the
Internet, has begun finalizing steps towards approving web
addresses in non-Latin characters.

Icann plans for the first of the URLs to go up by the middle
of next year, with many more to follow after that. According
to the committee, the shift is natural, as over half of
current Internet users speak a language that does not use the
Latin alphabet.

The plans for the switch first started in 2008, but Icann
officials said testing began much earlier. Currently, Icann
runs the Domain Name System program that converts URLs into
the numerical IP addresses that computers need to actually
speak with one another. Icann began designing software that
can translate Mandarin or Hindi text into IP addresses years
ago, and plan to deploy it within a year.

Right now, China and Thailand already provide services that
translate English alphabet URLs into the local language, but
those services remain unofficial and outside the jurisdiction
of Icann.

So that leaves me about about eight months to learn how to
spell "poker room" in Mandarin. Ni hao, suckers.

Google Voice Lite Lets You Keep Your Number

Google Voice A new lite version of Google Voice lets users
take advantage of some of the service's best features without
changing their phone numbers.

So you want all the bells and whistles that come along with
Google Voice: call recording, call screening, text messages
via email, etc. However, after years of broadcasting your
familiar digits via business cards, email footers, and
crumpled cocktail napkins, you just can't bear to switch from
your old cell number to a new "Google number," the requisite
for taking advantage of the service. At least, it was
requisite; Google is now offering a lite version of Google
Voice that lets users retain their phone numbers while taking
advantage of some features of Google Voice.

Now, when you sign up for Google Voice, you will have the
option to choose a Google number or to keep your own old
number. Keeping your own number means you give up amenities
like in-call voice recording and call forwarding. However,
you get to keep the cream of Google Voice's offerings: Google
Voicemail. The voicemail option will transcribe voicemails
(to the best of its computer ability) just seconds after
recording them and either text or email them to you. From
there, it's easy to organize them on your PC or within your
phone. You can also still set up personalized voicemail
greetings for individual phone numbers.

Existing Google Voice users can also add Google Voicemail to
individual numbers they've linked to their accounts. For
those not in the Google Voice loop, it's invite-only, but you
can request one here.

Robotic Pathologist Performs Precise, Clean Autopsies on Humans

Autopsies, for all the useful information they provide, have
significant downsides. They are often upsetting to the
deceased's family, they prevent people from receiving certain
kinds of religious burials, and they leave a bit of a mess.
To correct for those problems and more, a team at the
University of Bern, Switzerland, has developed a robot that
can perform virtual autopsies.

The robot uses stereo cameras to record a 3-D image of the
body's exterior, and a CT scanner to record the body's
internal condition. This results in a complete, 3-D,
computerized model of the entire body. Doctors can control
the robot to perform micro-biopsies for tissue examination,
doing away with any serious deformation of the body. The
medical examiner can then analyze the image, perform virtual
biopsies, and store the data for future use. The process
leaves no pile of used organs, and no jars filled with
alcohol and tissue.

In addition to making the whole process much easier, the
robot-conducted virtual autopsy also makes it easier for
medical examiners to compare the current corpse with previous
cases, and build a database for future reference.

Additionally, the robot used for the autopsy is much cheaper
than the robots usually used for surgery. Since there's no
chance of hurting someone who's already dead, the robot that
does the job can be a less precise, industrial model, the
type designed to assemble a car, not remove an appendix. For
similar reasons, surgical robots need a doctor monitoring
them at all times, but the robo-medical examiner can operate
autonomously.

Welcome to the future: if you're not killed by a robot, then
at the very least, a robot will figure out how you died.

Cardboard + Smartphone = Sweet DIY Augmented Reality Goggles

Looking to get away to Paris this winter, but concerned about
the cost? Worry not; for the price of a pair of lab safety
goggles, a cardboard box and an HTC Magic (even better if the
HTC magic comes in a large cardboard box), this DIY augmented
reality headset can transport you anywhere in the world, just
as long as the Google Street View team has been there first.

The rudimentary setup takes advantage of the Magic’s compass
to enable the viewer to pan around in Street View simply by
turning his or her head. While our demonstrator, Recombu’s
Andrew Lim, takes his Google goggles for a staycation spin
around Paris in Street View, we’re more intrigued by the
possibilities of taking the Goggles out of the house, using
an AR app like Layar to layer information over the view from
the Magic’s camera. Or, as Gizmodo’s John Hermann points out,
you could swap to an iPhone 3GS and take Yelp’s new AR resto
hunting app for a spin.

Of course, searching for a lunch spot on Park Avenue with
a cardboard box tethered to your face might draw some
sideways glances from passers by. But while Lim’s DIY
virtual/augmented reality box resembles elementary science
fair fare, it’s an interesting look into what will likely be
the heads-up displays of the future: glasses that double as
displays for all kinds of information that augments the world
around us. Kind of like the vision Nokia released in a video
a couple of months ago, but without the lame Lilith Fair
soundtrack and egregious overuse of emoticons.

Fastest Supercomputer in the World Models Dark Matter, HIV Family Tree Simultaneously

In November of last year, scientists at Los Alamos National
Laboratory switched on Roadrunner, the world's fastest
computer. IBM and the Department of Energy built the machine
to model nuclear explosions, but two new studies, both
released today, are proof that the computer's massive power
has been at least as devoted to peaceful science as to
simulating thermonuclear weapons.

In one experiment, the Roadrunner created the largest family
tree of HIV ever produced. The family tree incorporated over
10,000 HIV DNA sequences culled from over 400 infected
subjects. And in another use, Roadrunner simulated the Big
Bang in an attempt to figure out how dark matter came to
pervade the universe.

For the HIV study, Roadrunner donated its processing power to
allow scientists to compare the ecosystem of viruses across
a number of different patients. A single person can have as
many as 100,000 different versions of the the HIV virus in
their body at once, and learning how these mutants branch off
from the initial infecting agent could help develop
a vaccine. Until now, doctors didn't have the computing power
to analyze that many sequences at once. By looking at so many
different strains across so many different people, the
researchers hope to find common elements that a vaccine could
attack.

The dark matter story, on the other hand, fell more into
Roadrunner's wheelhouse, since the explosion of the Big Bang
isn't too dissimilar from the hydrogen bomb detonation
Roadrunner was originally tasked to perform. To create the
model of the early universe, Roadrunner calculated the
physics behind 64 billion proto-galaxies, each one about the
size of of a billion of our Sun. Once Roadrunner crunched
those giant numbers, the results predicted five-times more
dark matter than astronomers have observed to date.

All that, and I bet you could play a pretty awesome game of
Call of Duty, too. Although I guess that would defeat the
"swords to plowshares" vibe of using a computer designed to
model nuclear weapons for helping medicine and physics.

Implications of Thought-Controlled Games

Emotiv hopes the excitement about its thought-controlled
gaming technology will live on forever in the Emortal,
an online portal for players. Here, people can walk through
a cityscape and find new applications and games to download.
They can also encounter community spaces and chat with other
players. People can even upload their own music and photos on
the Emortal.

If the EEG gaming technology eventually catches on, it could
revolutionize the way people think about video games in much
the same way the Nintendo Wii did (or perhaps more). On the
one hand, with its facial expression interpretations, the
Emotiv EPOC attempts to close the gap further between the
real world and the virtual world to create a more realistic
experience, much like the Wii does. On the other hand, the
Emotiv EPOC also tries to bridge the gap between human
thought and the outside world to create an experience that's
less like reality and more fantastical and dreamlike. The
technology behind EPOC eliminates the middleman of motion
altogether -- a staggering thought to consider.

It makes sense, then, that Emotiv and IBM have announced they
want to pursue the possibilities of this technology beyond
just the world of video games. One idea is that people would
be able to experience realistic virtual training with the
Emotiv technology. Time will tell if the EPOC and similar
technology will extend beyond the gaming market or even
permeate the gaming world at all.

But not everyone is as excited as IBM to see the world dive
into this kind of technology. Though there are certainly
plenty of gamers who are excited to usher in an age of
thought-controlled video games and interfaces, there are
others who find the whole idea, and even the ex­perience of
playing it, "unnerving" [source: Reed]. Some question the
possible harmful applications of such devices. Should
researchers continue making more breakthroughs to advance EEG
technology, it could plausibly lead to computers that can, in
essence, read someone's mind. Those with the technology could
be privy to the private thoughts, opinions and emotions of
others. Granted, this could be very far off, considering
where the technology (and our understanding of the human
brain) is now. Nevertheless, we can't rule out the
possibility entirely. Perhaps we shouldn't dismiss the
prospect of Thought Police (like that in George Orwell's
"1984") as mere alarmism.

Regardless, if you're just interested in developing the Yoda
in you and lifting rocks with your mind, you can expect the
Emotiv EPOC to come out in 2009, for an expected cost of
about $299.

EEG Gaming

As electroencephalogram (EEG) readings get more sophisticated
and our understanding of the brain advances, scientists can
delve further into the meaning of the scratchy graph. If the
test can convey more than just the evidence of a medical
abnormality and actually interpret a patient's thoughts, it
can have wider implications. If you remember, the presence of
beta waves indicates that a mind might be particularly
excited or stressed. It turns out that people emit certain
patterns of brain waves in conjunction with particular
emotions or even thoughts.

Researchers have been working to develop EEG technology
specifically for people living with loss of muscle control.
The idea is that, when the technology is perfected, patients
with paralysis will be able to control things through
a computer using only their thoughts. They would be able to
type e-mails or adjust the thermostat with mere concentration
[source: Singer]. Another application can offer a person
suffering from paralysis a virtual reality and an avatar
through which he or she can move vicariously.

Emotiv Systems, the company behind the new EPOC, has applied
this technology to the gaming world so everyone can
experience it. The company claims it has developed the first
high-fidelity brain computer interface (BCI) that reads and
interprets both conscious and nonconscious thoughts as well
as emotions [source: Emotiv]. The headset also processes
facial expressions. According to Emotiv, the range of the
system spans 30 different expressions, emotions and actions.
The emotion of boredom, the facial expression of smiling and
the thought of pulling are just a few examples of things the
system picks up on and translates to your avatar's actions on
the screen.

The EPOC headset incorporates 14 extensions of electrodes
(seven pairs), mostly centered around the front of the scalp.
But rather than using the wires of traditional EEG tests, the
headset is completely wireless, allowing the player free,
natural movement. To go along with that, the headset also
includes a gyroscope that allows the player's head motions to
control the camera or curser. In a doctor's office, it might
take a sticky gel to keep the electrodes in place, but the
EPOC headset fits on your head similar to the way headphones
do. The system costs significantly less, too -- instead of
the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars that EEG
machines usually cost, the EPOC costs only a few hundred.

Playing the Emotiv EPOC

Whenever you're frustrated, your mind emits a particular
pattern of brain waves. And while the pattern might stay
consistent, it's probably a little different from the pattern
another person emits whenever he or she gets frustrated.
Because all brains are unique, the Emotiv EPOC has to get to
know your brain before you can get your Luke Skywalker on.

First, as you're putting on the headset, you need to finagle
the electrodes to make appropriate contact with your head.
Because it doesn't use the adhesive material of medical
electroencephalogram (EEG) machines and the headset is meant
to fit all sizes, you need to arrange the electrodes manually
until they're just right. Refrain from making jerky movements
to avoid disconnecting an electrode. Bundled along with the
Emotiv EPOC headset is a game in which you're challenged to
perform tasks for a sensei. In this game, you're told to
practice concentrating on a specific motion, such as lifting.
The headset's electrodes record the resulting brain waves
during your concentration, and from then on, the system
recognizes that pattern as the lift function. Concentration
is key, which can be challenging. Creators of the system
recommend that you physically pantomime the motions so that
you stay focused on the task at hand and are able to repeat
it later in the game.

A few of the actions the game asks you to practice and
perform are:

* Lifting an object
* Dropping an object
* Pushing an object
* Making an object vanish
* Rotating an object on six axes

Other aspects of the EEG readings don't have to be quite so
unique to you to work. For instance, the system can pick up
on general boredom even if it hasn't asked the player to
practice boredom before. The system recognizes that if you're
emitting more theta waves than usual, you're basically zoning
out. The system can respond by ramping up the excitement in
the game.

Some emotions it reads are:

* Excitement
* Tension
* Boredom
* Immersion
* Meditation
* Frustration

Aside from actions and emotions, remember that the headset
can also read facial expressions. As you wink or frown,
a corresponding cartoonish face on the screen mimics the
action. This can be incorporated into the game as well. In
demonstrations of the game, players are shown scaring away
fanciful creatures by grimacing.

Here are some of the actions Emotiv says the headset can
read:

* Winking
* Laughing
* Crossing eyes
* Appearing shocked
* Smiling
* Getting Angry
* Smirking
* Grimacing

What does the future look like for this technology? While
some consider the EPOC just fun, games and Jedi mind tricks,
others see this technology as having far-reaching
implications -- some good, some bad.

The Emotiv EPOC

Video game developers constantly strive to make their games
more realistic, both in terms of visuals and (perhaps most
importantly) game-player interaction. Players want to be
able to do more in their virtual worlds. While in the past
this has led to more complicated joystick controllers that
look like they'd take a week to master, the tide is turning.
Developers are responding to the desire for a more intuitive
interface to match the lifelike alternate reality. The
Nintendo Wii, for instance, revolutionized the gaming
industry with simple-looking joysticks that interpret
movement. But now, the Emotiv EPOC is taking the next radical
step.

Far from the complicated controllers of other systems, the
controller the Emotiv EPOC uses is one you've been familiar
with all your life. No, we're not referring to your beloved
Atari Pong paddles -- we're talking about your brain. The
EPOC uses a headset that actually picks up on your brain
waves. These brain waves can tell the system what you want to
do in your virtual reality. In other words, you think "lift,"
and a virtual rock actually levitates on the screen.

For every Star Wars fan who's ever fantasized about having
the Force of Jedi Knighthood, this is a sort of dream come
true. Now, mere thoughts can translate into actions (albeit
virtual actions). This might sound too space-age and
incredible to be true, but the basic technology behind the
Emotiv EPOC is decades old.

But before we delve into how the EPOC itself works, we'll
take a look at your brain. First, we'll peer into the brain
to see exactly what brain waves are­ and how machines are
able to read and interpret them accurately. Then, we'll see
how Emotiv has adapted the technology for the gaming world.
And finally, we'll talk about the implications and
applications of thought-controlled technology.

EEG Technology and EPOC

If you've read How Your Brain Works or have ever taken
a psychology class, you probably know that your brain is home
to billions of neurons, which are nerve cells. Using
electrical impulses, they send messages to and through each
other. Whenever your brain is working (and that means always,
even during sleep), all these messages firing from neuron to
neuron amount to an electrical current.

Although the brain continues to be an enigmatic subject of
study, scientists have known about brain waves, which are
a map of the electrical current firing from neuron to neuron,
for a while. British physician Richard Caton first noticed
the brain's current in 1875. By 1924, German neurologist Hans
Berger found a way to read the current by developing what's
known as an electroencephalograph. This kind of machine
produces a graph measurement of brain waves, known as
an electroencephalogram (EEG).

The system involves hooking up several pairs of electrodes on
a patient's head. These electrodes are disks that conduct
electrical activity, capture it from the brain and convey it
out through a wire to a machine that amplifies the signal.
Scientists attach electrodes in pairs on the head because
they're measuring the difference in voltage between the pair.
Soon after starting his research, Berger noticed that the
electrical activity of brain waves correlated to a person's
state of mind.

As we mentioned, your brain fires out this electrical current
even when you're sleeping. Your brain waves are usually
slowest during sleep. However, slow is relative. In deep
sleep, the brain transmits delta waves, which fire one to
four times per second. In light sleep, theta waves fire about
four to seven times per second. Alpha waves, which we emit
when we're in a relaxed, conscious state, come next at about
seven to 13 pulses per second. Lastly, beta waves, which
reflect a very excited or stressed mind, fire fastest at 13
to 40 times per second. Your brain doesn't emit just one kind
of wave at one time; rather, it emits multiple kinds of waves
simultaneously. Nevertheless, one kind of wave can dominate
in a given moment.

Today, doctors are able to use EEG tests for a variety of
applications, such as diagnosing epilepsy as well as other
seizure disorders. The test is appropriate for diagnosing
epilepsy because the everyday brain wave patterns of patients
with epilepsy tend to be abnormal. EEG tests can also reveal
sleep disorders, tumors and the effects of a head injury or
determine whether a coma patient has become brain dead.