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1 #+title: Big List O' Ideas
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2 #+author: Robert McIntyre
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3 #+email: rlm@mit.edu
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4 #+description: list of ideas from the last ~ 7 years
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5 #+keywords: aurellem ideas half-baked random
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6 #+SETUPFILE: ../../aurellem/org/setup.org
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7 #+INCLUDE: ../../aurellem/org/level-0.org
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8 #+babel: :mkdirp yes :noweb yes :exports both
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9
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10 * Ideas
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11
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12 This is a list of all the ideas I've had that I felt like writing down
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13 for the past ~ 7 years. Some of them could be practical inventions and
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14 are "just" waiting the that 95% perspiration to bring them to
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15 fruition, some are ideas for science fiction, and some are simple
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16 observations. Some are really only for my own personal notes and are
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17 not meant to be comprehensible. They are arranged roughly in reverse
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18 chronological order, with the most recent ideas at the top of the
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19 list. The ones at the bottom of the list are heavily influenced by my
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20 time at MIT.
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21
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22 If you find some of these interesting and would like to collaborate on
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23 them with me or discuss them in more detail, I'd love to hear from
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24 you. You can email me at ideas@aurellem.org.
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25
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26 If you want to use one of these ideas as your own and run with it,
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27 please feel free. I'd love to hear about it if you do.
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28
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29 #+begin_quote
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30 There's no end to what a man can accomplish if he doesn't care about
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31 getting credit.
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32 #+end_quote
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33
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34 - aurellem shirt :: I should make an aurellem star symbol tee-shirt.
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35
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36 - high school science :: this is a lesson in scientific ethics. The
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37 goal is to calculate /g/, the local gravitational
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38 acceleration. The students are told that the textbook says it's
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39 /exactly/ 9.81 before they start the experiment. See how they
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40 doctor their results to get closer to the textbook value. It's
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41 neat because for any given school, /g/ is probably *not* exactly
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42 equal to 9.81, because that is just an average!
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43
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44 - opencourseware subtitles :: there are ladies who type up lectures
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45 while they are being given. These recordings should be kept and
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46 given to OCW for subtitles. If the timestamps of keys are
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47 recorded, then it is easy to make subtitles.
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48
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49 - screen locking timing :: you use your computer camera to see if you
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50 are sitting in front of the computer. If you are, then the screen
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51 will never lock. If you are, then the screen will lock with a
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52 30-40 second timeout. It's an extension of using inactivity to
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53 initiate the countdown, just with more information.
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54
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55 - mirror toilet :: a toilet with a square basin made or mirror instead
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56 or porcelain. That way, you can see how good of a
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57 wipe job you have done / watch how your excretion
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58 system works.
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59
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60 - test dummies :: why don't we clone encephalic humans and use then to
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61 test /in vivo/ human organ systems and drugs? It
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62 would be ethical as long as there are women who are
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63 willing to host the clones, and it would be a
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64 tremendous resource for studying the human body. I
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65 see nothing wrong with it morally, since no one is
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66 suffering, and it stands to save many lives throughout
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67 more advanced technology.
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68
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69 - X-ray telepresence :: given that a doctor is operating on a patient
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70 via telepresence, one cool things you can do is shine X-rays into
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71 the patient to view the insides during real time. If the system
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72 was coupled with a Baysean model of the layout of the structure,
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73 and the x-rays were only fired whenever the uncertainty of the
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74 model reached a certain threshold, then the radiation damage
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75 and surgery risk could be minimized.
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76
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77 - superfluid vascular system :: I wonder what would happen if you
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78 replaced the blood in a human with a superfluid. What would the
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79 physical dynamics be? Would the superfluid flow through the
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80 vasculature, or would it ignore it and travel through the cells,
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81 or something else entirely. Since superfluids need to be cold to
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82 retain their superfluidity, how would the dynamics change during
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83 perfusion of a superfluid, where the fluid gains and looses
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84 superfluidity as it goes deeper into the body and is cooled by
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85 superfluid from upstream. In summary there are two things to
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86 simulate 1.) replace all blood in human with superfluid
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87 instantly. 2.) perfuse superfluid into human.
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88
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89 - projective guessing :: I think that we read and see things by
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90 making a really good guess about what we're expecting to see,
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91 and then searching for our guess in what we see. If it really
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92 doesn't match, then we start to make more guesses / analyze the
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93 image from first principles, but most stuff is projective
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94 guessing.
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95
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96 - Intestinal flora maintenance :: why not inoculate babies at birth
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97 with "ideal" gut flora instead of whatever bullshit they
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98 naturally get, thus giving them optimal digestive/nutrient
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99 extraction capabilities. Might also be able to make their farts
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100 not stink for life, too.
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101
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102 - server culture : mirrors :: make a distributed system where people
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103 can mirror the websites of people they like -- essentially cover
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104 the server costs of favored websites. This could make popular
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105 websites run at no cost. The system would require that the
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106 mirrored content be the same as the official source. Sort of like
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107 bit-torrent for websites.
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108
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109 - map programming :: one problem with functional programming is that
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110 in order to remain functional, you have to pass up arguments up
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111 into each calling function to get the full range of behavior
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112 from the lower level functions. Normally people come to a
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113 compromise involving abstraction and sparing use of dynamic
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114 variables to configure runtime behavior. What would be the
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115 advantages of making a programming language where every function
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116 receives one argument, a map, which contains all the symbol
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117 bindings it would ever need? This map is passed on to all
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118 subordinate functions. This way, you could replace functions on
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119 the fly, and arrange for there to be sensible defaults,
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120 etc. Might cause more harm than good but is an interesting idea.
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121
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122 - rest nest :: a small EEG device you would attach to your head when
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123 you go to sleep at night. ML algorithms would determine
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124 your particular sleep cycles. This would mostly be an
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125 alarm clock that you could give a time range, say
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126 7:00AM - 7:15AM, and it would wake you up during an
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127 ideal time corresponding to then end of one of your 90
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128 min sleep cycles. You would feel much more rested upon
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129 waking up, and would wake up faster. There might be
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130 some other uses for the EEG data as well.
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131
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132 - image compression :: use a library like gimp or opencv to process an
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133 image to make it have less entropy, then store the reverse of
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134 those operations along with the compressed simpler image as a
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135 super-compressed image file (possibly sccapting some
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136 lesses). Trades file size for decompression time, and allows one
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137 to cheat by using information in gimp/opencv to compress the
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138 image.
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139
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140 - fixed cryopreservation :: why not use a fixative to buy enough time
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141 to ramp up cryoprotectants to an acceptable level at room
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142 temperature? Then, the whole system can be rapidly cooled and
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143 vitrified. This method "severs the biological link" in that the
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144 fixatives are highly toxic, but current vitrification procedures
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145 do this anyway since there can be a lot of freezing damage.
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146
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147 - dilated security camera :: a security camera that would capture
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148 full video footage of everything at 60fps but then decide to keep
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149 only every 1 frame every 5 seconds unless there's something
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150 "interesting" happening.
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151
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152 - bitcoin wallet :: Part of "server culture", this would be something
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153 like "coin.your-domain.com" which would serve as
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154 your personal trusted access to your own bitcoins
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155 from anywhere.
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156
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157 - libpay :: this would be a free library which would enable
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158 micro-donations to software projects and other projects,
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159 so that you could donate a penny to "emacs" and it would
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160 be automatically split up to every person who has ever
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161 contributed to emacs in proportion to the amount of
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162 community esteem, code quantity, bugs fixed, whatever the
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163 community decides. This might make it possible for
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164 programmers to live entirely off of free programming.
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165
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166 - distributed graphics :: Browser based graphics-card accelerated
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167 distributed computing API.
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168
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169 - pronouns :: use capital letters A-Z instead of pronouns. They solve
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170 pronoun referents and gender neutrality, are short to
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171 say, and you can encode useful information into the
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172 choice of letter. For example, instead of "Meetings
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173 shall be presided over by the president, unless she is
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174 absent." USE "Meetings shall be presided over by the
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175 president, unless P is absent." We already use this a
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176 little, since I and U are reserved for the subject and
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177 object respectively.
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178
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179 - phone DSP :: software app that inserts an audio DSP between the
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180 input to a phone and the output. The DSP is delicious
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181 and configurable, and can allow men to make their
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182 voices deeper, etc. The app would allow you to hear
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183 your own voice as others hear it. Most people hate how
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184 their own voice sounds. The app would also allow one to
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185 immediately change the parameters of the DSP using good
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186 presets.
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187
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188 - predestined body learning :: a good example of predestined learning
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189 might be the mirror neurons.
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190
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191 - restaurant receipt :: use a carbon copy receipt instead of two stupid
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192 copies.
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193
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194 - anti google glass :: glasses with mounted lasers and computer vision
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195 that targets the cameras in google glass and destroy them.
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196
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197 - wearable towel :: towel with clasp, velcro, whatever, that allows
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198 one to wear the towel more securely than just
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199 wrapping it tightly and hoping for the best.
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200
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201 - crossdressing :: Easiest way to disguise oneself as a woman is to
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202 wear a burka.
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203
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204 - book-mode :: intelligent color highlighting for books and
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205 articles. It would disambiguate pronouns and involved
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206 references. For example, if "Rachael" as red, and "the
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207 blonde haired girl" refers to "Rachael", then "the
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208 blonde haired girl" would he colored red. Also, you
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209 could disambiguate multi part run-on sentences by
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210 highlighting each subcomponent. Maybe would also have
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211 applications to scientific reading.
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212
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213 - Handheld light Rain measurement :: this would be a clear, teflon
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214 coated plastic disk with a camera underneath the disk. You would
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215 be able to hold the device out and it would measure the rate of
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216 accumulation of water droplets from fine mists and light rain by
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217 using computer vision to measure the diameters of the drops.
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218
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219 - Big Brother Farming :: This would be a vision system that would
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220 individually monitor each plant and turn on water, etc to ensure
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221 maximum/uniform growth for each plant.
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222
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223 - Discrete Faucet :: A faucet with discrete ticks instead of
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224 continuous.
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225
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226 - Laser Circle :: take a glass microfiliment and shine a laser at one
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227 end at an oblique angle. It will make a perfect,
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228 large circle on the wall, converting a laser beam
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229 into a laser cone, preserving most of the energy of
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230 the laser.
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231
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232 - Invisible Glass :: Take a container of liquid and embed a
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233 glass sculpture made out of glass that has exactly the same index
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234 of refraction and color of the liquid. Then the sculpture will be
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235 totally invisible in the container, and will only be revealed
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236 when the liquid is drained. The container might be a fancy
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237 wine/spirit bottle or an hourglass.
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238
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239 - Caterpillar people :: A race of caterpillar like creatures gains
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240 intelligence after eons of predation by birds, etc. These
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241 caterpillar creatures still undergo metamorphosis into a large
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242 butterfly-like creature. The metamorphosis process turns the
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243 caterpillar's brain into mush and reforms it into a minimal,
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244 dumb, truly insect-like mind, completely destroying the person
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245 the caterpillar was. The society develops all sorts of customs and
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246 religious interpretations of the metamorphosis. It is viewed as
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247 good and natural by some since it is part of their life cycle and
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248 necessary to propagate the species, as only the butterflies can
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249 mate. Some think that the butterflies are still the same person
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250 because they have the same soul, even they no longer posses the
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251 memories or personality of the original caterpillar. Some see the
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252 butterfly form as the "true form" of the species, since the
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253 butterflies can fly, mate, and are beautiful. Many make a big
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254 deal out of the fact that 1-2% of the caterpillar's mind is
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255 actually preserved in the butterfly. Some see it as a terrible
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256 tragedy and argue that the caterpillars should try to stop the
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257 metamorphosis by technology. Practically, some very important
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258 members of society undergo hormone therapy and/or surgery to
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259 prevent metamorphosis so that they can live longer as themselves.
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260
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261 This is a continuation of Marvin Minsky's ideas about pain being
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262 something that preserves our bodies while destroying our minds,
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263 something that is a remnant from our too harsh animal days that
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264 hasn't caught up to the fact that we have very complex brains
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265 now. It's a worst-case scenario about a maladaptive genetic
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266 legacy. Also, it's inspired by "There She Is!!!", which makes a
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267 compelling point about homosexuality by introducing a second
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268 gender characteristic (bunny/cat, male/female), which makes
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269 homophobia look very silly. Here, our own biological legacy of
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270 pain and death is made to look like the tragedy it is through the
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271 lens of the the caterpillar people.
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272
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273 - relationships as a business :: [[http://thedailywtf.com/Articles/Up-or-Out-Solving-the-IT-Turnover-Crisis.aspx][Turnover-Crisis]] is an excellent talk
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274 about the "culture of quitting," which is about better business
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275 by letting people go instead of keeping them around past their
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276 "apex". Focuses on information transfer. Cool idea of an alumni
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277 network, which for relationships would be a group of satisfied
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278 ex-lovers, who would recommend new people your way, and who might
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279 consider coming to you again, refreshed from their time away with
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280 new stories/experiences. I should look for examples of this and
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281 how they worked out.
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282
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283 - coffee with tea :: /rlm-tea/ contains 2% sugar, 10% cream, and 20%
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284 dylan coffee. /dylan coffee/ contains 5% sugar,
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285 20% cream, and 10% rlm-tea. Start your mornings
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286 with recursion!
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287
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288 - psychic crystal :: in a science fiction story, this would be an
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289 object that is very easy to move physically but is extremely
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290 difficult to move with telekinesis.
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291
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292 - http://betsofbitco.in/ :: what a great place for an AI/person to
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293 prove themselves as a good predictor. I wish this could be
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294 automated.
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295
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296 - true reflection :: don't forget about that mirror in the student
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297 center!, it's two mirrors at right angles, like staring at a
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298 corner of a room. The light reflects so that it shows you what
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299 you actually look like, instead of your mirror image.
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300
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301 - remote control wasp :: use computer to drive wings with remote
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302 power/logic.
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303
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304 - encrypted email phone book :: public (distributed?) database of
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305 email->private-key pairs, to enable automatic encryption.
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306
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307 - universal eye color :: every equivalent creature will see each
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308 others' eyes as black -- it's universal. Even if the creatures
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309 see in radio waves, and their eyes are 2m long pieces of jagged
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310 metal, when those creatures look at each other, they will see
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311 black, the absence of light and color (since it's being absorbed
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312 by the sensor array).
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313
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314 - intelligent microwave :: it learns where the hot nodes of its fields
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315 are, and uses them to evenly heat any food item. It has an infared
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316 camera or something to keep track of how hot the food is. That way,
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317 you don't get bowls where the edges are boiling, while the center is
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318 still frozen. Requires a little bit of intelligence/vision, since
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319 the exact pattern of heating totally depends on the exact shape of
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320 the food. Wouldn't need a carousel, and wouldn't need a timer,
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321 just a desired temperature. Could also detect ice, and automatically
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322 defrost the parts which are frozen. Might be able to work much
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323 faster since it can avoid overheating; might have problems with
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rlm@32
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324 heating the insides of thick things, might need a weight sensor too.
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rlm@32
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325
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rlm@39
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326 + Would be much cleaner than other microwaves, since food would
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rlm@39
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327 "sputter" and splash liquid much less.
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rlm@32
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328
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rlm@39
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329 + Throw in some SIFT+R processing to match previously cooked foods
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rlm@39
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330 and learn the exact heating profiles for things that have been
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rlm@54
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331 cooked before -- it can get faster the more it's used.
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rlm@32
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332
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rlm@47
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333 - compression :: brain-aware image compression algorithm
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rlm@32
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334
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rlm@44
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335 - Credit card proxy :: would be a company which works like paypal
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rlm@44
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336 except for real world transactions
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rlm@32
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337
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rlm@33
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338 - Flesh pillow :: a pillow like the arm or torso of a human, complete
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rlm@33
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339 with simulated temperature, bones, and heartbeat.
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rlm@33
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340
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rlm@47
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341 - super screw :: a screw which has only one or two threads and instead
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rlm@47
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342 uses compression to fit into a hole (the whole shank
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rlm@33
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343 of the screw is split into multiple pieces to
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rlm@33
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344 accomplish this; the tip is a point, then the middle
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rlm@33
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345 bulges out and gets compressed when screwed in.
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rlm@33
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346
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rlm@47
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347 - light filter :: (like light tweezers) to mechanically separate
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rlm@33
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348 fluids with different index of refraction
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rlm@33
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349
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rlm@33
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350 - chalk eraser project :: maybe make a directional eraser, for easy
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rlm@33
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351 release of chalk dust, like fur, and how it likes to rest in a
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rlm@33
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352 certain direction.
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rlm@33
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353
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rlm@44
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354 - silver socks :: socks laced with silver for the antimicrobial
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rlm@44
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355 properties.
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rlm@32
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356
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rlm@53
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357 - UROP :: magnet gear/metal teeth tape
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rlm@53
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358
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rlm@53
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359 - rod of moses :: device to distill urine through evaporation and
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rlm@53
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360 easily dispose of urea crystals for use in desert --
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rlm@53
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361 produce drinkable water.
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rlm@32
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362
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rlm@47
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363 - UROP :: Make the LED in line with the flow for the micro injector, so
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rlm@44
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364 that it may transmit maximum flow. Motor that changes
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rlm@44
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365 distance of internal magnet from windings depending on
|
rlm@44
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366 desired speed so as to obtain maximum power efficiency.
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rlm@32
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367
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rlm@47
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368 - lottery scraper :: web scraper which monitors various lotteries,
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rlm@44
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369 looking for "special" gimmick changes in the rules (like 4x
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rlm@44
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370 winnings on Wednesdays) and computes expected value...
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rlm@34
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371
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rlm@34
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372 - Memristiors novel design :: make an evolutionary algorithm to make
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rlm@34
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373 old stuff using all four basic circuit elements.
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rlm@34
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374
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rlm@44
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375 - Conductive concrete :: concrete that has embedded metal fibers so
|
rlm@44
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376 that it can conduct electricity.
|
rlm@34
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377
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rlm@44
|
378 - little bitty melting pot :: might be useful for some types of
|
rlm@44
|
379 manufacturing/3D printing -- how small can an induction melter be
|
rlm@44
|
380 made, for example.
|
rlm@34
|
381
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rlm@44
|
382 - power strip/timer programmable combination :: meh
|
rlm@34
|
383
|
rlm@47
|
384 - algorithms :: which learn what their inputs are and in what order,
|
rlm@44
|
385 and can adapt to changing circumstances -- they
|
rlm@44
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386 remember previous arguments and adapt so as to respond
|
rlm@44
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387 to different connections.
|
rlm@34
|
388
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rlm@47
|
389 - true pure tones :: hear a true pure tone by direct stimulation of the
|
rlm@44
|
390 nerves of the ear
|
rlm@43
|
391
|
rlm@43
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392 - mechanical analogue to the electrical op-amp :: would be an object
|
rlm@43
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393 with two levers -- you pull on one lever and the other moves the
|
rlm@43
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394 same way, no matter what's in the way or what it is driving. This
|
rlm@47
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395 analogy could be useful to teach op amps to people.
|
rlm@34
|
396
|
rlm@47
|
397 - paper folding device :: make it convenient to fold lots of papers in
|
rlm@34
|
398 various ways.
|
rlm@34
|
399
|
rlm@34
|
400 - concrete epoxy :: epoxy with sand/ some other solid material.
|
rlm@34
|
401
|
rlm@47
|
402 - light capacitor :: suspend some ball of material with a high index
|
rlm@43
|
403 of refraction and shine light into it so it gets stuck -- would
|
rlm@43
|
404 the light stay trapped forever? Could you build up unlimited
|
rlm@43
|
405 quantities of light inside the sphere (which could then be
|
rlm@43
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406 released slowly by frustrated internal reflection?
|
rlm@34
|
407
|
rlm@40
|
408 - movie screening :: Movies always are too long at first. One way to
|
rlm@34
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409 shorten them ``scientifically" is to record blink rate during the
|
rlm@34
|
410 move and then remove / shorten the frames of the parts in which
|
rlm@34
|
411 there are a lot of blinking (average this over multiple people)
|
rlm@34
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412 better yet, put it online and do it across thousands of people. I
|
rlm@34
|
413 got this from youtube in which there is an episode of kill bill
|
rlm@47
|
414 which is composed entirely of the parts in which people had their
|
rlm@34
|
415 eyes closed. slogan: want to make a movie people can't take their
|
rlm@34
|
416 eyes off of? Just take those parts out!
|
rlm@34
|
417
|
rlm@47
|
418 - optimize an article :: capture reading of a scientific article via
|
rlm@44
|
419 screen capture while people read it, then use it to make the
|
rlm@44
|
420 article better. like the movie-pruning idea.
|
rlm@35
|
421
|
rlm@44
|
422 - super reading program :: teaches people the ideal mental mask to
|
rlm@44
|
423 apply during reading so as to read very fast.
|
rlm@35
|
424
|
rlm@44
|
425 - explosive thermite epoxy putty :: one part would contain the rust,
|
rlm@47
|
426 one part the aluminum.
|
rlm@34
|
427
|
rlm@44
|
428 - reading comprehension :: use the above screen capture routine to
|
rlm@44
|
429 make a quiz program that constructs questions about the content
|
rlm@44
|
430 you seemed to gloss over while reading. could be easy if the pdf
|
rlm@44
|
431 came with embedded questions. Dylan: automatically generate
|
rlm@44
|
432 word-cloud about the parts you found most interesting; help
|
rlm@44
|
433 others who read the same stuff by drawing attention to the
|
rlm@44
|
434 interesting parts.
|
rlm@34
|
435
|
rlm@44
|
436 - hard sword :: make a samurai sword, but use osmiridum instead of
|
rlm@44
|
437 martensite for the cutting part; it should be a better
|
rlm@44
|
438 sword.
|
rlm@32
|
439
|
rlm@44
|
440 - close range wireless :: use the induction technology used to
|
rlm@44
|
441 recharge electric toothbrushes with no metal links to send data
|
rlm@44
|
442 without any metal at all!
|
rlm@32
|
443
|
rlm@44
|
444 - reading :: is a form of synsethesia
|
rlm@32
|
445
|
rlm@44
|
446 - DNA printer :: A machine which translates the text eg, "ACTGAC" into
|
rlm@44
|
447 actual DNA
|
rlm@32
|
448
|
rlm@44
|
449 - black generator :: ferro-fluid magnetic field suspended micro
|
rlm@44
|
450 generator to make electricity
|
rlm@32
|
451
|
rlm@44
|
452 - alcohol battery :: alcohol/fluid flow powered battery
|
rlm@32
|
453
|
rlm@44
|
454 - folding razor blade sword ::
|
rlm@32
|
455
|
rlm@44
|
456 - perfect pitch :: learn perfect pitch using another sense in
|
rlm@44
|
457 combination (sight or touch)
|
rlm@32
|
458
|
rlm@44
|
459 - kaleidoscope projector ::
|
rlm@32
|
460
|
rlm@44
|
461 - razor blade de-sharpener :: for guilt free disposal
|
rlm@32
|
462
|
rlm@44
|
463 - bricks :: filled with luminescent plant material
|
rlm@32
|
464
|
rlm@47
|
465 - bio metallic structure :: metal grids with seeds inside, which grow
|
rlm@44
|
466 together and form a durable biological matrix. The metal
|
rlm@44
|
467 substrate delivers water. (maybe use plastic instead of metal?)
|
rlm@44
|
468 Dylan: enrich plants with inorganic compounds; electrical
|
rlm@44
|
469 interfaces in cellular plant matter => remote-controlled
|
rlm@44
|
470 photosynthetic/bioluminescent structures.
|
rlm@32
|
471
|
rlm@44
|
472 - conducting extracellular matrix :: to allow better control of
|
rlm@44
|
473 organic systems and an enhanced nervous system.
|
rlm@32
|
474
|
rlm@44
|
475 - cross-modal memory hashing :: a way to retrieve memories more
|
rlm@44
|
476 robustly.
|
rlm@32
|
477
|
rlm@47
|
478 - flossing thimble-guards :: (these actually exist)
|
rlm@32
|
479
|
rlm@44
|
480 - rules + lattice learning :: integrate lattice learning with rules by
|
rlm@44
|
481 generating hypothetical examples
|
rlm@32
|
482
|
rlm@47
|
483 - wooden refrigerator :: to give food a better taste Dylan: like
|
rlm@44
|
484 barrels for wine, or planks for salmon. Maybe just have "flavor
|
rlm@44
|
485 planks" for your pre-existing fridge. Need to mitigate effect of
|
rlm@44
|
486 temperature on volatility?
|
rlm@32
|
487
|
rlm@35
|
488 - radioactive transmutation molecule by molecule :: create precious
|
rlm@35
|
489 metals or something else economically advantageous.
|
rlm@32
|
490
|
rlm@47
|
491 - crowd preservation :: inoculate food with tons of harmless
|
rlm@44
|
492 bacteria so that there's no room for bad bacteria as a method of
|
rlm@44
|
493 preservation
|
rlm@32
|
494
|
rlm@47
|
495 - old school preservation :: Pasteur - style holding jar with siphon
|
rlm@47
|
496 as a way to store liquids at room temperature indefinitely w/o
|
rlm@47
|
497 refrigeration.
|
rlm@32
|
498
|
rlm@47
|
499 - restaurant policy :: Throw rude people out of restaurant as a matter
|
rlm@44
|
500 of course -- make ambiance much better.
|
rlm@32
|
501
|
rlm@47
|
502 - clean windows :: make something that mixes soap with fire hydrant
|
rlm@44
|
503 water (and reduces the pressure a bit) and use it
|
rlm@44
|
504 to clean windows of buildings.
|
rlm@32
|
505
|
rlm@44
|
506 - ocarina :: make an ocarina out of pure silver
|
rlm@32
|
507
|
rlm@35
|
508 - fire pen :: pen which burns words on to the page, thus never needing
|
rlm@47
|
509 any ink. Is there a way to make it runnable from the
|
rlm@35
|
510 human's energy?
|
rlm@32
|
511
|
rlm@44
|
512 - website to design your own soda :: and label, and have it mailed to
|
rlm@44
|
513 you / sell it from your own online store.
|
rlm@35
|
514
|
rlm@44
|
515 - solar panels :: that float on the ocean
|
rlm@43
|
516
|
rlm@35
|
517 - handcuffs with more than two cuffs (3?) :: great for daisy chaining
|
rlm@43
|
518 people, binding them to environment, etc.
|
rlm@35
|
519
|
rlm@35
|
520 - vector based SOUND files :: like the pictures but with SOUND. codify
|
rlm@35
|
521 sound in a language with enough symbols so that it can describe
|
rlm@35
|
522 everything and encode it in that. would be like going from speech
|
rlm@43
|
523 to text or smtg. Could also store sound as an image of the
|
rlm@35
|
524 wavefront encoded as a vector image.
|
rlm@32
|
525
|
rlm@44
|
526 - Mouse :: with a horizontal scroll wheel in addition to the vertical
|
rlm@44
|
527 scroll wheel
|
rlm@32
|
528
|
rlm@47
|
529 - logic maintenance system for big institutions :: to make sure the
|
rlm@44
|
530 things they are thinking about doing are not retarded
|
rlm@32
|
531
|
rlm@47
|
532 - http://www.regulations.gov/ :: cool site
|
rlm@32
|
533
|
rlm@44
|
534 - genetically engineered glowing fruit :: sell seeds?
|
rlm@32
|
535
|
rlm@36
|
536 - memory slide :: IF memories are encoded using particular sensory
|
rlm@36
|
537 impressions, what happens if the sensory organ
|
rlm@36
|
538 itself changes? those memories would become
|
rlm@47
|
539 inaccessible. maybe this is why we can't remember
|
rlm@36
|
540 much from our childhoods. also, could this happen
|
rlm@47
|
541 throughout life as well? Could S remember stuff from
|
rlm@36
|
542 his childhood?
|
rlm@32
|
543
|
rlm@47
|
544 - make a completely indestructible phone :: no moving parts or display
|
rlm@36
|
545 you should be able to slam it around all you want, and it will
|
rlm@36
|
546 just work. brutally simple. aerogel around the battery, minimal
|
rlm@36
|
547 interface - never gets too hot, and can be dropped into water. no
|
rlm@36
|
548 holes -- uses field effects for everything from the buttons to
|
rlm@36
|
549 inductive charging and data transfer.
|
rlm@32
|
550
|
rlm@44
|
551 - midi to ocarina "tabs" program :: (online website? buy ocarinas from
|
rlm@44
|
552 it too)
|
rlm@32
|
553
|
rlm@44
|
554 - 3d printing with sound pulses (or just patterns) :: like the 8.03
|
rlm@44
|
555 lecture
|
rlm@32
|
556
|
rlm@40
|
557 - lighter flint on spring :: make hot, throw it at something, and it
|
rlm@40
|
558 makes sparkles!
|
rlm@32
|
559
|
rlm@44
|
560 - nuclear energy :: Rebranding New+Clear Energy with informational
|
rlm@44
|
561 campaign and public debate forum to enforce its
|
rlm@44
|
562 transparent and open nature. France needn't be the
|
rlm@44
|
563 world leader in nuclear energy. (Dylan)
|
rlm@32
|
564
|
rlm@44
|
565 - bubbles :: Engineer a material which has both ductility and high
|
rlm@44
|
566 surface tension to make the "third"
|
rlm@44
|
567 minimal-surface-energy solution to a bubble suspended
|
rlm@44
|
568 between two equal-diameter rings. (Solutions are
|
rlm@44
|
569 cylindrical catenary curve, two separated half-bubbles,
|
rlm@44
|
570 and a double-cone)
|
rlm@38
|
571
|
rlm@38
|
572 - Textbook whose content can be varied continuously :: alter level of
|
rlm@38
|
573 difficulty, rigor, diction, emphasize crossover with certain
|
rlm@38
|
574 other discipline, etc. Content generated dynamically from
|
rlm@38
|
575 knowledge base, along with questions that are moreover altered to
|
rlm@38
|
576 guide knowledge acquisition. Motivation: One book of
|
rlm@40
|
577 knowledge. /One./
|
rlm@40
|
578
|
rlm@40
|
579
|
rlm@40
|
580 ** From Jacob's idea list
|
rlm@40
|
581
|
rlm@47
|
582 - Roommate-canceling headphones: uses roommate's laptop mic to seed
|
rlm@43
|
583 noise cancellation alg in your headphones (would this
|
rlm@40
|
584 work?). -Update on sound canceling headphones that take feed from
|
rlm@40
|
585 tv: how about ones that cancel people talking on the phone by
|
rlm@40
|
586 receiving the phone signals and playing inverse sound
|
rlm@40
|
587 waves. #signalprocessing ~jcole@mit.edu
|
rlm@40
|
588
|
rlm@40
|
589 - ClackerAlert -- tells if you slam the keys too hard using sound data
|
rlm@40
|
590 (and speed/jerkiness data)!.Prevents RSI ~jcole@mit.e
|
rlm@40
|
591
|
rlm@40
|
592 - Panic Pin :: separate pin that you can tell someone if forced to
|
rlm@41
|
593 identify your PIN (idea from idea about credit cards)
|