IBM bets on mind-reading and smarter data

Mind-reading a possibility, junk mail a priority and the use of facial and retina scans to access information – according to IBM, in five years not only will all of this be possible but it will also be the social norm. Every year IBM releases five technology predictions for the next five years, based on the availability of technology and the likelihood of large-scale adoption. And with three out of five hits from its last round, it might just pay to listen.

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Tintin app takes users inside the world of Hergé edit

The Tintin experience just got even better for fans – HarperCollins Publishers, Weta and Moulinsart have collaborated on an app to let viewers immerse themselves into Hergé’s rich fictional world. ‘The Art of The Adventures of Tintin’ for iPhone and iPad is the first of its kind, featuring 360° turnaround characters, video clips and exclusive new content. Users are able to see the transformation of concept illustrations into final shots in the film and listen to the artists and filmmakers, including Oscar winner Joe Letteri, discuss the movie.

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Android to widen gap as Samsung climbs to the top of the smartphone stakes - IDC

Is Apple’s bright light waning? The latest figures from IDC suggest this might be the case, with Samsung overtaking Apple’s top position in the New Zealand smartphone market with a share of 28.5 percent. Huawei, in second place, holds 20 percent of New Zealand’s Q3 smartphone market followed by Apple with close to 13 percent unit share.

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Keeping the bright sparks burning

As all parents know, nut products are banned from the lunchbox. But are we any better at catering to students with extra needs? How, asks Cassie Doherty, do we keep the flame alive for the kids at the top of the bell curve?

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Building sustainable communities the open source way

Open source is well and truly embedded in the digital lexicon. But applying the concept to the physical world? That’s something else entirely. And it’s what a network of farmers, engineers and volunteers has banded together to create: an ‘open source ecology’.

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Icehouse CEO to join GO UK judging panel edit

UK Trade and Investments (UKTI) has confirmed Icehouse chief executive Andrew Hamilton is joining the GO UK judging panel. GO UK is a competition inviting New Zealand companies to submit their business plans for a chance to win a $30,000 prize package. Due to a unique memorandum of understanding between the UK and New Zealand governments, Kiwi businesses get the same opportunities and benefits in the UK as local companies.

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DOC baffles with Mt Aspiring bus plan

The Department of Conservation (DOC) has agreed to a bus tunnel linking Mt Aspiring and Fiordland National Park – despite conflicts with the DOC’s general policy on building roads through Mt Aspiring. The proposed bus tunnel would punch an 11.3 km-long hole beneath the Humboldt Mountains and require about 150m of road to be built in Mt Aspiring National Park

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So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night

And with that, we bid you adieu. Drive safe, don’t forget your sunscreen and never drink and fry. Your next hit of the Daily Bacon will arrive on January 9. See you on the other side.