Tech and the Government: The Future Is Now

I'm a strong proponent of the government using science and technology to reach out to us in innovative ways. I was happy to read that several representatives of Congress have adopted Twitter as a platform of communication. I'm glad to see that the leaders of our government are engaging us in spaces that we already occupy.

Vice President Joe Biden is holding a video chat via Google+ hangout on Thursday, Jan 24th at 1:45pm EST.  While I understand that the conversation will be heavily filtered and scripted, I hope that people begin to feel more connected with their leaders.

This follows the excellent video chat that President Obama held last year, which I've embedded below. 

If you can't see the video below, click here.

Internet video sure as come a long way since I was buffering terrible video on Real Player over my 56k connection ...

CES 2013 Wrap Up Video & Tweets

Last week, I attended the Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas. Below is a video of some footage that I took on the floor. Unfortunately, my microphone adapter broke so I was not able to hold any interviews - gotta get that fixed for next year!

If you can't see the video below, click here.

Also, I've embedded a list of Tweets that I shared if you weren't following the action last week. Check it out! If you can't see the tweets below, click here.

We Fly High, No Lie, And You Know This

One hundred and nine years ago, the Wright Brothers set off the aeronautical revolution by making short flights with their Kitty Hawk glider.  Their arcraft wing design is the result of extremely precise wind tunnel data that gave them " the most detailed data  in the world for the design of aircraft wings".

Check out NASA's section on the Wright Brothers for more info.

The Science of The Eye: The Damn Eye Puff Exam

The above pic is me, showing off my effortless swag that caused me to shatter my glasses on the pavement. While I wait a week or so for my new pair to arrive, I'll be rocking the ugly tape that decides to peel off at least once a day. Yeah, I'm awesome.

For those of you that have never had an eye exam, there's more involved than the eye chart reading that you've probably seen in the movies. The most notable part is the one that used to scare me as a kid - the glaucoma "eye puff" test. Otherwise known as The Puffy.

The test involves putting your head in front of a machine and resting your chain on an always dirty chin strap (seriously, they never clean them).  You hold your eye wide open for as long as possible, without blinking, until they put a strong puff of air into your eye to measure fluid pressure.

According to VSP blog:

That little puff, (and it has become smaller and more gentle as technology has evolved) is measuring the fluid pressure inside the eye. There is fluid constantly being produced in your eye and a drainage system that ferries it back into the bloodstream. When the drainage system malfunctions, the pressure inside the eye starts to rise. We know from large-scale studies that keeping the eye pressure low enough helps prevent loss of sight. High pressure acts to dampen the circulation to the optic nerve and cause a slow, painless loss of vision. Over 50% of the nerve may be dead before you become aware of the loss of vision, so annual eye pressure checks are good, preventative medicine.

Sounds horrible, and it is definitely uncomfortable. But it could be worse! In the 19th century, a similar machine known as a tonometer measured eye pressure by pressing small weights onto the eye.  Yeah ... I'll pass on that.

Stay puffy my friends!

Windows 8 Navigation Tips

Have you received a new computer for the holidays? You'll probably be surprised that Windows 8 looks completely different from what you may used to.  Here are a few shortcut commands that have helped me out - if you don't see the video above, click here.

The most helpful tip is that to search, all you need to do is begin typing! As you can see in the above video, you can find the Control Panel by just typing "Control Panel".  Even before you spell it out fully, you'll begin to see results. These results are separated by Apps, Settings, and Files. You can use this searching methodology to find anything that you're used to seeing, from setting your resolution to launching the Notepad

If you want to go back to the Windows experience that you're most familiar with, hold the Windows button and press D to enter Desktop view.  Here you'll be able to access My Computer, the task bar  and other familiar areas of Windows 7. To get back to the Windows 8 tiled view, simply press the Windows button.

One last thing: Microsoft has not made it clear how to actually shut down your computer! The easiest way is to press Control + Alt + Delete, and then select the power button in the lower right corner.

I think Windows 8 is a great operating system, but it takes some getting used to.  Hope you have a great time!