4K Apple TV Launching Along With iPhone 8, Apple Watch 3

It seems that Apple is intending to release a 4K Apple TV in the near future, with the intention of launching an assault on the living room. The Californian mega-corporation believes that it can become the major player in front rooms across the world, and intends to do this with a new set-top box that delivers 4K resolution.

4K Apple TV highlights

Aside from this increased screen resolution over previous Apple TV releases, the 4K Apple TV box will also have the ability to highlight live television content such as news and sport events. Sources close to Apple suggest that the new television product will launch alongside the iPhone 8 and next-generation Apple Watch at an event in September.

Bloomberg is already leading on the matter, and suggests that the 4K Apple TV will feature a faster processor, which will deliver 4K content rapidly. The financial publication cited sources close to the Cupertino-based company, who have naturally chosen to remain anonymous.

With the release date and apparent pricing of the iPhone 8 also having been leaked recently, it seems that Apple’s September extravaganza is really beginning to take shape. The iPhone 8 is expected to be particularly special this year, with Apple releasing a revolutionary redesign of the iconic smartphone in order to acknowledge its tenth anniversary.

4K mainstream

4K resolution delivers twice the viewing quality of 1080p high-definition video, and is becoming an increasingly mainstream part of the consumer electronics landscape. Netflix was one of the first sources of 4K content, but now television stations and video game console manufacturers are also coming on board with the technology.

According to rumors emanating from the 4K Apple TV leak, the consumer electronics giant is also currently working on an updated version of its TV app. This software first hit the public domain back in 2016, but Apple intends to release a version capable of aggregating programming from apps that deliver live streaming. This will obviously hugely increase the amount of content available on Apple TV.

TV challenges

Despite its dominant position in the mobile marketplace, Apple has yet to make the sort of impression on the television niche that it would have hoped for. Apple TV has been less successful than devices from Roku Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google in the United States, achieving approximately 15 percent market share according to a survey conducted by Parks Associates.

Apple Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri had previously indicated that Apple TV sales had diminished during the 2016 holiday quarter, when compared to 12 months previously. Apple has also struggled to deliver a successful creative department, with the corporation failing to deliver the sort of scripted shows and video content that have been delivered by the aforementioned Netflix and Amazon.

The 4K Apple TV box is effectively an acknowledgement of the growing prominence of this screen technology in television sets. Sony, LG and Samsung all offer a wide range of 4K TVs, and mainstream cable operators are now increasing the quantity of the 4K content available. Thus, the apparent endorsement of the 4K Apple TV box is certainly not a massive surprise, and media had previously reported on this possibility in the recent past.

Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook had commented at a conference that Apple fans would “be hearing a lot more about tvOS later this year,” which referenced the Apple TV operating system. Clearly there is the intention to roll out a major new software update to accompany the 4K box. Cook also announced that the Amazon Prime video service will be supported by the Apple TV later this year, providing additional content for the service.

New Apple content

While unique content from Apple has been slightly thin on the ground, the company has also been working on producing its own material. New video series will appear on Apple Music in the near future, which include Planet of the Apps and Carpool Karaoke. Apple will also invest $1 billion in creating original video content, as the corporation looks to step up its creative endeavours.

With Apple hugely reliant on an iPhone range that is potentially stalling, the need for the company to diversify its revenue model has never been more urgent. iPhone sales declined for the first time over the last 12 months, and there is doubt among analysts that continual growth in the smartphone marketplace is sustainable.

Looking to move into other fields, Apple is currently working on an electric car, while the company was long linked with a physical television set, until this possibility was shelved. But the arrival of a 4K Apple TV box will be hugely welcome, and seems to underline the fact that Apple is looking to move into the televisual sphere in a big way.

Source: Bloomberg

Trained Autism Service Dog to Help Seven Year Old in Stockton, California.

 

Stockton, California – August 24, 2017 – (Newswire.com)

Tyler, a seven-year old in Stockton, California, received a very special Autism Service Dog delivery today Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers . Based in Madison, Virginia, Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers, or “SDWR,” has a mission to provide specially-bred and trained dogs for adults and children with invisible disabilities like Diabetes, PTSD, Seizure Disorders, or in the case of Taylor—Autism Spectrum Disorder. SDWR has almost 600 service dogs working across the US and around the globe.  SDWR is currently serving almost 1,000 families.

Trevor, a golden retriever Autism Service Dog, has already received thousands of hours of training through SDWR’s service dog raiser program where volunteers raise puppies in training for about a period of one year. The dogs and dog raisers must follow through the foundation and skill set training provided through SDWR trainers at the facility in Virginia.

Trevor is also a very special graduate of the SDWR Fallen Officer Puppy Program. The Fallen Officer Puppy Program, or “FOPP”, is an initiative by SDWR to honor the legacy of service by  American police who have fallen in the line of duty. Trevor is named in honor of fallen Police Officer Trevor Jones of Bakersfield, California who passed away from a heart attack in 2012. Trevor’s Autism Service Dog work with Tyler will carry on in memoriam of Officer Jones’ life of service before self.

Tyler was diagnosed on the Autism Spectrum at 18 months old.  He also carries a diagnosis of Fragile X Syndrome, a genetic disorder that limits normal cognitive development. Because of this diagnosis, Tyler is nonverbal and experiences sensory overload and social anxiety. “[Trevor] can become Tyler’s companion, someone to call friend/buddy/brother. He can learn from [Trevor] and hopefully, he can help with his meltdowns, doctor visits, and help him do better when we are out,” says Tyler’s Mom, Sina. Trevor will work with Tyler to reduce the effects each diagnosis has on the family’s independence and daily life.

BMJ Open, a public health medical journal, recently published research on the positive evidence of the difference a service dog can make in conjunction with Autism Therapy. The study indicated that recipients of a service dog showed improved safety from self-harm and wandering, greater communication ability, and a calmer demeanor. SDWR trainers work directly with each individual to provide service dogs that fit their unique diagnosis.

With the arrival of Trevor, Tyler will have yet another tool, a four-legged one that has received training to assist him to live a happier and more enriching life.   Since Trevor is a service dog and covered under laws in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, he will be able to accompany the family everywhere— from restaurants to doctors visits to school. This training program is what sets SDWR apart from other non-profit service dog organizations. SDWR trainers will continue to return for training sessions with Tyler, his parents and Trevor for the next 18 months every 3-4 months to continue working on Trevor’s customized training, follow up training and training the human to make a successful team and public access certification.

Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers is a non-profit organization based in Madison, Virginia, and relies on donations to help the Organization in its mission, “Until there’s a cure…there’s a dog.”  To make or donation or learn more about SDWR, please visit the website, http://www.sdwr.org. To learn more about Autism Service Dogs visit http://www.sdwr.org/service-dogs/autism/.

To find out how you can volunteer as a puppy raiser visit http://www.sdwr.org/volunteer-opportunities/ .

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/3460715#ixzz4qgTHkGMW

Google will now ask if you’re depressed

Feeling blue? You can now ask Google for help.

The search giant wants people with depression to seek treatment and will prompt US users when they search for depression-related terms: “Check if you’re clinically depressed.”

Users will then be directed to a clinically validated questionnaire, called a PHQ-9, to measure their level of depression, Google explained on its blog. The questionnaire is not meant to replace a mental health professional.

Google — which partnered with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) to create the self-evaluation — hopes the confidential survey will spur more people to broach the subject with their doctor.

Cyborg Bacteria: Wonder Microbes Paving The Way To The Future

Bacteria are not always harmful. Yes, certain bacteria cause diseases in animals and humans but over the years, scientists have found ways to turn them into a cyborg and make human life simpler.

A research presented at the 254th National Meeting and Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS) on Tuesday reveals how bacteria can out beat plants at photosynthesis. Kelsey K. Sakimoto, who led the research at Yang’s Lab, University of California, Berkeley, harnessed inorganic semiconductors on bacteria with an aim to produce useful chemicals from carbon dioxide and water.

“Rather than rely on inefficient chlorophyll to harvest sunlight, I’ve taught bacteria how to grow and cover their bodies with tiny semiconductor nanocrystals,” Sakimoto was quoted as saying in a news release published by the ACS. “These nanocrystals are much more efficient than chlorophyll and can be grown at a fraction of the cost of manufactured solar panels.”

A video, published on YouTube by Headline Science, an ACS production, shows how Sakimoto worked with a naturally photosynthetic bacterium, M. thermoacetica, which produces acetic acid from carbon dioxide as part of its normal respiration.

He fed the bacteria with cadmium and amino acid Cysteine. These bacteria then synthesized cadmium sulfide that functioned as solar panels on their surfaces. Using the solar energy, the genetically engineered bacteria (M. thermoacetica-CDS) can synthesize food, fuel, and plastic, according to Sakimoto. While further research is underway to find more benign light absorbers than cadmium sulfide, scientists hope these genetically engineered bacteria — that operates at an efficiency of 80 percent — can produce the required chemicals in future.

The bacteria are said to be more efficient than plants. “Synthetic biology and the ability to expand the product scope of CO2 reduction will be crucial to posing this technology as a replacement, or one of many replacements, for the petrochemical industry,” he said.

A research paper published in June last year referred to a similar artificial photosynthetic system that tapped solar energy and used carbon dioxide and water and at an efficiency of 10 percent, much higher than natural photosynthesis that converts about 1 percent of solar energy into carbohydrates used by plants. The scientists combined the hydrogen-oxidizing bacterium, Raistonia eutropha, with a cobalt-phosphorus water-splitting catalyst. The industrial mimic can be used to synthesize biomass, fuels and other useful products, according to researchers.

Apart from carbon dioxide reduction, cyborg bacteria can also be used for degradation of environmental pollutants. In a video published by iBiology, an online platform for the latest findings in modern biology, Victor de Lorenzo talks about how a bacterium, Pseudomonas putida, can be turned into a cyborg for decontamination and bioremediation — a waste management technique that involves the use of naturally occurring organisms to break down hazardous substances into less toxic or non-toxic substances. Lorenzo is a professor of molecular environmental microbiology at The National Center for Biotechnology, Madrid, Spain.

Many other innovators across the globe have been exploring the possibility of using bacteria for cleaning the environment. Interestingly, a Japanese research team from Kyoto Institute of Technology and Keio University last year discovered a species of bacteria — Ideonella sakaiensis — that naturally breaks down polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, a lightweight colorless plastic used to manufacture water bottles and polyester clothing, among other products. This particular type of plastic was notoriously resistant to being broken down, according to researchers.

Another research released last year revealed the findings of scientists from ETH Zurich. In a step towards the future of biopharmaceutical production, the researchers developed a hybrid creature from E. coli bacterium, used frequently in biological research. The cyborg bacteria developed by the scientists could be controlled by a computer, according to the researchers. The scientists underlined how the modified bacteria reacted to change in environment and its growth could be controlled by exposure to light. When the hybrid creature was exposed to green light, the production of methionine, an amino acid essential for bacterial growth, was stimulated, the research revealed.

Windows 10 S Can Now Be Installed on Any PC With New Tool

As Apple Watch 3 expected to gain LTE, a quarter of owners already using ‘daily’ for phone calls, says survey

A survey of how U.S. consumers use their smartwatches produced mostly unsurprising results. Notifications and texts are of course the most frequent use, with activity-tracking number two

But one stat did rather jump out at me: NPD’s data, collated by Statista, claims that a full 26% of smartwatch owners use them ‘daily’ for phone calls.

While current Apple Watch models don’t have the ability to handle standalone calls, they do allow you to make or receive iPhone calls on your watch provided that it’s within range. This isn’t expected to change even with the upcoming LTE model, which is reported to limit use of the eSIM to data connections.

Personally, this is a feature I use a few times a month – usually when the phone rings while I’m in a different room, and generally only to ask the caller to hold on while I get my phone. The sound quality and volume is so poor that I’m amazed at the idea of anyone doing this routinely, but perhaps others do?

 

PSA: Tesla reduces price of its home charger by 10%

Therapy dogs to comfort travellers at Vancouver International Airport

August 23, 2017