February 25th, 2010 . by Steve Greenberg and Lois Whitman
We have to applaud our good friend Mitchell Kaplan, who owns the Books & Books chain in Miami for always adding innovation to the art of reading. Books & Books is one of a number of retail outlets across the United States where you can buy the new EyeGlow glasses. Offered in various stages of prescriptions, the reading glasses feature miniature spotlights on both sides of the front frame so you can read in the dark. They work. We tested them in a dark room and the light actually shined on the individual page, just enough to read.
This is just perfect for the person who doesn’t want to turn on the bedroom light for fear of waking his or her significant other. Also ideal for when you are on an airplane/train/automobile and you need direct light. In our opinion, the EyeGlow is far better than any gizmo that attaches to a book. They always fall off and they make the book too heavy.
The EyeGlow requires four CR927-3V lithium batteries. The reading glasses are packaged with the first set of batteries. The batteries last about 16 hours and they are very simple to replace. No tools required. The company is EBX2 Optik (800) 697-7397 x225
That’s right — the Coconut Grove Arts Festival, one of the nation’s premier outdoor Fine Arts Festivals, attracting more than 150,000 people each year, had several art pieces that were made from recycled bits of technology from a time gone by.
Cynthia Wynn used her blow torch to turn gears and farm equipment into furniture. Other artists turned old cameras, computers, and phones into human looking sculptures. Using a raw material with history seems to add more meaning and value to the end product. It’s also satisfying that these bits of technology aren’t taking up space in some landfill. And who knows, maybe today’s iPhone will be tomorrow’s candy dish?
When Tricon owner, Christos Livadas, first laid eyes on the Glasair Sportsman, he didn’t have to think twice. That was the perfect object to place on the sprawling sundeck of his new Argos Gulfstream being shown today at the Miami Yacht and Brokerage Show. The luxurious 92 foot yacht offers more space and greater versatility than most other vessels its size. Livadas’ idea captured more attention for the Argos than many of the thousands of other boats on display. Here is what CBS had to say.
The art of sampling wine goes back centuries. The glass, the bottle, the cork—it’s a ritual which, for the most part, has gone unchanged over the years. But, like just about everything else in our lives, technology has found its way into wine tasting.
Check out Eno’s Wine Bar on Lincoln Road on Miami Beach. Here your wine isn’t served by sommelier, bartender, waiter or waitress; instead it is served to you by a machine. When I stopped by the other day, I was greeted by a wall of wines that were placed in attractive refrigerated glass cases. Each bottle was attached to a spout and a digital display indicated a price value for different amounts that would fill my glass.
I purchased a wine card, which could be bought in $20, $50 and $100 denominations and after taking a glass I was ready to make my first selection. Each time the card was entered in the slot above a case, my credit amount would be displayed. By pushing a button above each bottle I could choose a 1 ounce, 3 ounce or 5 ounce pour for my glass. It was sort of like a wine bar crossed with Horn & Hardart’s Automats. There were 64 different wines from around the world to sample making my choice from this high tech wine bar very challenging. And in case you were wondering there is also food available to compliment the wine.
Sure, some sommeliers and bartenders might loss their jobs, but there’s no stopping technology. And if you’re sad about the loss of human interaction–don’t “wine” to me.
Here is a video clip of Chris Kelly, Chief Privacy Officer of Facebook, explaining why he is running for Attorney General in California. Why should the rest of the nation care? Chris said that he has many ideas about how to use high tech and innovation to fight crime that the whole nation might be interested in.
Gadget Nation