Year On Earth

Beyond Morph – a visit to Nokia Research Center Cambridge

CAMBRIDGE, England – Getting into a Nokia Research Center laboratory isn’t easy. The security doors remain open long enough for one or two people to enter and if held open too long, will sound what we’re told is an exceptionally loud alarm. Lucky then that we were part of a group taken around NRC’s Cambridge laboratory to see some of the latest scientific problems being solved there. We were treated to demoes of three different strands of research; Nanowire Sensing, Stretchable Electronic Skin and Electrotactile Experience. Each one as amazing and eye-opening as the next. Read on after the jump for a lowdown including pics and video.

The Nokia Research Center in Cambridge was set up in 2007 as a partnership with the University of Cambridge. Soon after it was established, the Morph Concept was unveiled, to help build a picture of where the research at the labs was heading. Led by Dr Tapani Ryhänen the Cambridge team is one part of a two-location European NRC operation, the other location being in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Dr Tapani has a team of about 25 Nokia researchers working in Cambridge (and a further 10 in Lausanne), but they also work closely with the University of Cambridge, giving access to a much wider team. The focus of the research though is very much around nanotechnology and executing what Dr Tapani refers to as “meaningful engineering at a smaller scale”. Nanotech isn’t something which we’ll see appear on a device as a feature. Rather it’s a way of working which offers a whole new world of possibility, some of which we’re previewing below.

Nanowire sensing
The lowdown: The team involved in this project is effectively working on an artificial nose. By placing a nanowire on top of a chip, they can train it to recognise different substances which are placed close to the sensing surface. This all happens at a nanometer scale, where the current passing through the nanowire is influenced by its immediate surroundings. Place a different substance near it and the current running through the wire will react differently. There’s still a lot of work to do on it, but the team were able to show us the nanowire and its accompanying software (which used a sniffing dog as it’s icon) correctly identify a substance.

The potential application: In the future, this kind of technology could be used to monitor environments and measure a variety of things including air pollution, food-based contaminants or bio-chemical processes. Right now it’s restricted to identifying particular molecules but the long term aim is to enable it to identify complex molecular mixtures – similar to how our own noses work.

Stretchable electronic skin
The lowdown: Right now, circuit boards are solid. The team at the University of Cambridge and NRC however are working on a technology that’ll enable them to be flexible, creating something akin to “electronic skin”. By using evaporated gold as a conductor, they have created an electronic touchpad which can be stretched like a rubber band, but still respond to touch and pressure. The team has been testing it to stretch by up to 20 per cent of its original length without any drop in performance. The process of creating the material is pretty unique and the results are utterly mind-boggling, when you start to think about the possibilities it offers.

The potential application: This research has at its heart new form factors for devices of the future. The possibilities might sound hard to believe, but working technology which can be twisted and distorted like a rubber band could enable a unique range of wearable devices or even enable technology to feasibly become part of our clothing. After we’d seen it, the talk from the group was of us having completely different ways of us interacting with technology in the future. What is solid and known to us right now, could be flexible and entirely different in the future.

Electrotactile experience
The lowdown: The third of our demoes was also the most realistic, as it was being shown off on a Nokia N900. The team is working on ways to enable touchscreens to offer more realistic feedback. This goes way beyond simple haptics to deliver genuine tactile response. The team are influenced by the belief that the sensation of touch isn’t currently well understood so they’re trying to work out ways to make it more effective when interacting with technology. Part of the team’s research is looking at ways to try and replicate textures, potentially offering users new experiences when it comes to interacting with a touchscreen. Using the concept of electrovibration, which was first documented in the 1950s, the team have been working on the concept for about a year now but have already made tremendous progress. As part of the project, the team has been working with the electrical engineers at Nokia’s Research Center in Beijing who managed to miniaturise the required hardware to fit into a modified N900 (using a half-size battery).

The potential application: This technology would enable a new level of feedback from touchscreen devices, taking our way of interacting with them to a whole new level. Of course this is just a concept prototype so don’t expect it on your device any time soon. However, given the speed with which the team have reached this phase of research, progress does seem to be pretty rapid.

Nokia Research Centers have 12 operations across the globe, from Palo Alto in USA to Beijing in China. Together they are tasked with solving scientific problems, exploring technology and delivering real results to Nokia. In our follow up piece, we’ll look at how thetechnology created at NRC laboratories works its way into real devices and services.

Best of 2008 in Future Technologies – Morph

LOBAL – Morph managed to capture the imaginations of so many us when it was first unveiled as a concept device back in March 2008, showcased at the The Museum of Modern Art “Design and The Elastic Mind” exhibition. By boldly waving a red rag of future mobile possibilities in front of our eyes and we collectively rushed towards it intensely intrigued.

It was a glimpse at a future, and not necessarily the future, nonetheless, looking forward inspired reaction, contemplation and an air of positivity and promise.

Something we reckon that is worth championing.

The concept emerged through a collaboration between Nokia Research Center and Cambridge University Nanoscience Center in the UK.

Perhaps the aspect that most fiercely tapped that nerve of excitement was the sheer nature of how untypical a future vision Morph really is – defying conventional routes of perceived evolution of mobile technology, and presenting a scenario that is barely tangible and verging on sci-fi. Regardless of the out-there-ness of the concept, it succeeded in sparking debate, fresh thinking and an openness to alternative approaches – as voiced by people such as Olga Kharif and his exploration of biomaterial research for devices in a special report he wrote for Business Week inspired by Morph.

Here’s an in-depth video that Reuters posted back when it was first announced.

Dawn of a new decade for Nokia – discussing future technologies

he dawn of a new decade is a welcome invitation for glimpsing back – we recently rounded up the best of 2009, plus you’ve been busy discussing the Nokia device of the decade– but we reckon now is also the ideal opportunity to look forward (neatly coinciding with this week’s upcoming innovation-fuelled International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which we’ll be reporting from this week) and open a hearty debate on what future technologies you think are going to prove the most exciting and significant over the coming 120 months.

We’ve pulled together a few of your favourite future concepts and developments that we’ve covered previously here on Conversations – hopefully these may help ignite inspiration and fuel a discussion on what you believe will be the real breakthroughs for Nokia and mobile technology as we gaze excitedly at the horizon.

Over the past couple of years there have been a bunch of future technologies and concepts that have struck a chord with many of you here on Conversations.

Most recently the video of Your Nokia in 2015 was home to a heap of chatter. Watch it here…

Likewise we’ve been graced with some exciting concepts and projects from the Nokia Research Center – this time last year we were treated to the first look at the Locate Sensorresearch project at the International Consumer Electronics Show, which triggered someinteresting ideas from many of you.

How the Grinch Stole the iPad

Analysis: Rumors of Apple's iPad 2 may dampen iPad holiday sales.

By Tom Kaneshige, CIO    Dec 12, 2010 7:09 pm

The latest Apple rumor landed under the Christmas tree with a thud: Apple's Chinese manufacturer, Foxconn, will begin shipping the next version of the iPad, dubbed iPad 2, within the next 100 days, sources told DigiTimes. This means a spring launch, which makes sense given that the original iPad debuted last spring.

This rumor comes at an especially bad time for Apple. Surveys point to a very merry Christmas for tech gadgets, with the Apple iPad leading the way. Consumer electronics shopping site Retrevo surveyed more than 1,000 U.S. consumers about their plans for the holiday spending spree, and the iPad came out on top.

Would you still buy an old iPad with a shiny iPad 2 on deck? My bet is that a lot of people will put off the purchase, whether they are buying an iPad for themselves or someone else.

If the rumors hold up, we're looking at a very minor upgrade to the iPad. Expect a thinner body, front-facing camera for FaceTime video chat, back-facing camera, USB port and maybe the iPhone 4's Retina display. The latter is probably the most compelling feature given the iPad's value as an entertainment device, although developers will be challenged to adjust to a massive spike in resolution.

FaceTime is a wild card upgrade: Video chat looks cool but hasn't really taken off yet among iPhone 4 owners. It's not the kind of thing that will drive people to the iPad 2. What about a camera? While a back-facing camera may be nice to have, the truth is that the form factor doesn't fit. That is, people won't grab the iPad first to take pictures with a mobile lens.

If the new features aren't going to convince people to wait for the iPad 2, what will? Consider it the blowback of Apple's marketing hype machine. Apple makes such a big deal about the newest thing that no one really wants the old thing. Just stand in the mind-numbingly long line at an Apple Store on the day of a product launch, and you'll know what I mean.

Getting an iPad now for someone would be like regifting last year's ugly sweater.

If you're in the market for an iPad yourself, you'll also hold out for the iPad 2. Let's face it, you've already demonstrated your willingness to wait, so what's a few more months? Besides, the holidays are for giving gifts to other people; gifts for you can slide into next year. And if you don't like the iPad 2, it's very likely Apple will slash the price of the old iPad. That's good news for your wallet, which is probably taking a beating right now.

Consumers expect Apple to cut prices of old models, which Apple has done with the iPhone 4 by reducing the cost of the iPhone 3GS to $99. By slashing prices, Apple is telling consumers that it's all about the new, because the old doesn't matter anymore.

With the iPad 2 rumor surfacing this week, the original iPad is now old at precisely the wrong time for Apple. Unfortunately for Apple, the rumor is the Grinch that stole the iPad Christmas.

Physicists on the Money

	Abu Nasr Al-Farabi (870-950) appears on the 1 Tenge note from Kazakhstan. A scholar in many areas, including philosophy, linguistics, logic, and music. He also wrote about the nature of science and argued for the existence of the vacuum (empty space).
	Kristian Birkeland (1867-1917) appears on the Norwegian 200 Kroner note. Birkeland was a pioneer in studying the magnetic field of the earth and the aurora borealis. He made the suggestion that the aurora were caused by charges emitted by the sun being guided into the earth's atmosphere by the earth's magnetic field. An apparatus of his simulating this effect is shown on the bill at the left.
	Niels Bohr (1885-1962) appears on the Danish 500 Kroner note. Bohr was one of the main architects of the quantum theory, the basis of our understanding of the properties of matter. He created the first quantized model of the atom (the Bohr model) and played a major role in developing the modern interpretation of the quantum theory.
	Ruggero Boscovich (1711-1787) appeared on a series of Croatian notes. (The 25 Dinar is shown here.) Boscovich made contributions to the theory of orbital mechanics and was one of the first to speculate about the forces between atoms.
	Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543) appeared on the Polish 1000 Zloty note. He was the first modern scientist to propose a model of the solar system in which the sun was at the center, circled by the planets moving in orbits, but not supported by any invisible crystal spheres. He surpressed publication of his work until after his death. To read a brief biography and to link to further sites about Copernicus,
	Marie and Pierre Curie (Marie: 1867-1934, Pierre: 1859-1906) appear on the French 500 franc note. (45 K) They led the discovery and classification of radioactive elements and shared the 1903 Nobel prize for that work. Marie Curie won a second Nobel in 1911 for her work on radium. Their daughter, Irene Joliot-Curie also won a Nobel prize!Marie Curie also appeared on a Polish 20,000 Zloty note.
	Democritus (about 460 BC - 370 BC) appears on an old 100 drachma note from Greece. He was one of the earliest of the ancient philosophers to describe matter as made up of small indivisible particles (atoms) moving in empty space.
	Albert Einstein (1879-1955) appeared on the Israeli 5 pound note. The greatest physicist of the twentieth century, Einstein not only invented the theories of special relativity (behavior of rapidly moving object) and general relativity (theory of gravitation), but made fundamental contributions to the beginnings of quantum theory.
	Leonhard Euler (1707-1783), the Swiss mathematical physicist appears on the Swiss 10 franc note. (65 K) He made numerous contributions to mathematical physics including the theory of fluid flow (used in studying how to make airplanes fly) and the theory of rotations of rigid bodies (used in controlling satellites).
	Michael Faraday appears on the British 20 pound note. Faraday was one of the primary discoverers of the properties of electricity and magnetism and their relationship. This work made possible the construction of electric motors and dynamos. (30 K)
	Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) was a pioneer in the field of electricity. He first proposed the conservation of electric charge. He appears on the American 100 dollar bill. (42 K)
	Galileo Gallilei appeared on the Italian 2000 Lire note. In some sense, he was the first modern scientist. He made critical discoveries of how to think about moving bodies.
	Carl Frederich Gauss appears on the German 10 mark note. In addition to his many contributions to mathematics, Gauss made important discoveries in the theories of electromagnetism. (36 K)
	Christian Huygens (1629-1695) appears on an out-of-date 25 guilder note from the Netherlands. Huygens was a contemporary of Newton's who made many important discoveries and inventions. As a result of improvements that he made to the telescope, he was the first to realize that Saturn had rings. (Galileo thought it was a "triple planet".) He made the first pendulum closk, which substantially improved the accuracy of the measurement of time. His description of how waves propagate form the basis of modern wave theories.
	Lord Kelvin (William Thompson) appears on the Scottish 100 pound note. He made contributions to thermodynamics and electricity including proposing an absolute zero of temperature and participating in laying the first trans-oceanic cable.
	Guglielmo Marconi, the developer of the first successful radio, appears on the Italian 2000 Lirenote. (28 K)
	Isaac Newton appeared on the British one pound note. Newton was probably the greatest physicist in history. His work established fundamental elements of the scientific style of inquiry. He made major discoveries in the theory of motion, our understanding of the nature of light, gravitation, and the properties of matter. (20 K)
	Hans Christian Ørsted (1777-1851) appeared on the Danish 100 kroner note. He discovered in 1820 that an electric current will deflect a magnetic compass needle. This marked the beginning of the unification of electric and magnetic phenomena. (125 K)
	Olaf Rømer (1644-1710) appeared on the Danish 50 kroner note. He was the first to establish that the speed of light was not infinite. He used the anomalies in the occultation of Jupiter's moons to get an estimate of the speed. (120 K)
	Ernest Rutherford (1871-1937) appears on the New Zealand 100 dollar note. Rutherford and his students performed and interpreted experiments that led to the understanding of atomic structure -- that most of the mass of the atom is contained in a very small bit in the center (the nucleus) and that the size of the atom is determined by very light particles -- the electrons. (52 K)
	Erwin Schroedinger appears on the Austrian 1000 Schilling note. Schroedinger was one of the primary developers of the quantum theory, the theory that explains the properties of matter as arising from the properties of its constituent parts -- electrons and nuclei. The success of this theory has made possible the development of modern electronics, including transistors and lasers. (48 K)
	Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) was born in Croatia and immigrated to America. He contributed to the development of electrical technology. Here he is displayed on black and white scan of a 10 Billion Dinar note from the period of the great inflation just before the breakup of Yugoslavia. (The Europeans call it 10 Milliard. In any language that's 1010! A good reason for using scientific notation.)
	Allesandro Volta (1745-1827) constructed the first chemical battery. He appears on the Italian 10,000 Lire note. (36 K)