Computers-Plus

A long day, an empty road and too much Classic FM: the perfect recipe for a late-night car crash.

But what if your car could tell when you were getting sleepy and ask you to take a break (or at least switch over to Planet Rock)?

Scientists at the Vanderbilt University in Nashville have come up with a webcam that can tell when you are yawning and catch you before you drift off.

Yawn for the camera

The new system is based around an in-car camera hooked up to image-processing software that captures a sequence of images of the driver’s face. It analyses changes in the face and accurately identifies yawning as distinct from other facial movements such as smiling, talking, and singing.

Read more…

(Credit: CNET/Screenshot by Bonnie Cha)

Another week comes to a close, and surely you missed some stuff. Here’s a sample of some of our favorite things from Crave from the last five days.

• Palm throws down with Apple. After last week’s iTunes update cut off the Pre’s ability to sync with the service, Palm came back with its own software update restoring iTunes access. Apple, your move.

• The Plastic Logic e-reader will come equipped with AT&T 3G service built in.

• Scientists build artificial rat’s brain, look to replicate human version next.

Read more…

Need more evidence that camera-equipped iPod Touch and iPod Nano units are in production? Cult of Mac’s Leander Kahney has posted images of dozens of iPod cases produced in China, which appear to be designed for the next-generation Touch and Nano devices. Yes, they contain camera holes, corroborating previous rumor reports that the iPod Touch and Nano would gain cameras. Check out Cult of Mac’s gallery and your skepticism will gradually fade into non-existence.

Photo: Cult of Mac

Let’s step back from the iPhone leak suicide for a minute and just think about the basics of what happened. A phone was lost. A guy was tortured. A guy killed himself or something. Over a fucking phone.

It may have been a very special phone, and it may have been a phone that would have cost a company and its shareholders maybe upwards of billions of theoretical dollars if it had leaked out into a competitor’s hands, but really, it’s a phone. Is it worth a life? No. I think this secrecy thing has gone far enough. Especially since nothing stays unleaked ever anymore!

What caused the death?

Read more…