New Tablet Case Recognizes Sign Language and Translates It Into Text | WIRED


When you’re deaf, finding a job isn’t easy. The trickiest part, explains Ryan Hait Campbell, is the interview. “You’re not required to tell an employer you’re deaf until the interview, but sometimes, they’re a little shocked,” says Campbell, who has been deaf since birth. “They don’t know how to handle it.”

Because of things like this, he says, unemployment rates are staggeringly high among the deaf. Hard numbers are tough to come by, but some figures estimate that around half of people with hearing disabilities are unemployed.

But Campbell wants to change this. He’s the co-founder and CEO of MotionSavvy, an Alameda, California-based startup that’s developing a case for tablet computers that can serve as a virtual interpreter for the deaf. Known as UNI, the case uses gesture recognition technology developed by Leap Motion to translate sign language into audible speech.

READ MORE: New Tablet Case Recognizes Sign Language and Translates It Into Text | WIRED.

How An Octogenarian Preserved An Endangered Native American Language | Gizmodo


Marie Wilcox is the last fluent speaker of Wukchumni, one of 130 different endangered Native American languages in the United States that dont have any kind of digital—or analog—legacy.

Over the course of seven years in Californias San Joaquin Valley, she worked with her daughter and grandson to catalog everything she knows about the language. First, she hand-scrawled memories on scraps of paper; then, she hunt-and-pecked on an old keyboard to complete a dictionary and type out legends like “How We Got Our Hands.” Next, she recorded the whole thing on audio for pronunciation—its very specific!—and posterity.

via How An Octogenarian Preserved An Endangered Native American Language | Gizmodo

Definitely recommend watching the video. I am in awe of Marie’s dedication to preserving the Wukchumni language. Amazing, inspiring story!

The NSA Is Funding a Project to Roll All Programming Languages Into One | Gizmodo


Why bother having to learn HTML5, JavaScript, PHP, CSS and XML, when you could just learn one? Well, thats exactly what an NSA-funded project at Carnegie Mellon University seeks to achieve.The “polyglot” programming language is called Wyvern—the name comes from a a mythical dragon-like reature with two legs instead of four—and is designed to help unify the way apps and websites are created.

READ: The NSA Is Funding a Project to Roll All Programming Languages Into One | Gizmodo

How mobile phones are democratising education | Guardian Sustainable Business | Guardian Professional


The ubiquity of mobile phones is providing a new low cost tool for teaching in some of the poorest communities.

The following programs are discussed:

  1. MobiLiteracy
  2. Dr. Math
  3. Worldreader
  4. MoMaths

READ MORE: How mobile phones are democratising education | Guardian Sustainable Business | Guardian Professional.

Dolphin translator chirps out first word | CNET


Scientists working on a two-way dolphin communicator have made a breakthrough — their device may have translated a single whistle in real time. Read more: Dolphin translator chirps out first word | CNET.

Which Programming Language Should I Learn First? | LifeHacker


Dear Lifehacker,

With all the buzz about learning to code, I’ve decided to give it a try. The problem is, I’m not sure where to start. What’s the best programming language for a beginner like me?

Signed,
Could-Be Coder

Dear Could-Be,

That’s probably one of the most popular questions from first-time learners, and it’s something that educators debate as well. The thing is, you can ask ten programmers what the best language is to get your feet wet with and you could get ten different answers—there are thousands of options. Which language you start with depends not only on how beginner-friendly it is, though, but also the kind of projects you want to work on, why you’re interested in coding in the first place, and perhaps also whether you’re thinking of doing this for a living. Here are some considerations and suggestions to help you decide.

Read the answer: Which Programming Language Should I Learn First? | LifeHacker?

This Sign Language Ring Translates Hand Movements Into Spoken Words | Fast Company


This Sign Language Ring Translates Hand Movements Into Spoken Words | Fast Company | Business + Innovation

A winner of the coveted red dot awards for design concept in 2013, Sign Language Ring is a device that detects sign language motion and “translates” that to voice by emitting audio through a speaker.

Comprising a bracelet and set of detachable rings worn on select fingers, Sign Language Ring was inspired by Buddhist prayer beads, according to its six designers from Asia University. The wearable device can also translate voice to text, transcribing spoken language picked up by a microphone into text that’s displayed on the bracelet’s screen.

Read: This Sign Language Ring Translates Hand Movements Into Spoken Words | Fast Company | Business + Innovation

News: Education & Technology, Librarianship


Education & Technology

Xbox One News: Xbox One’s DRM policy reversal: an oral history | Engadget and Xbox One won’t play 3D Blu-rays — for now | CNET

Intel Has Acquired Kno, Will Push Further Into The Education Content Market With Interactive Textbooks | TechCrunch
We had a tip about, and have now confirmed, Intel’s latest acquisition: Kno, the education startup that started life as a hardware business and later pivoted into software – specifically via apps that let students read interactive versions of digitized textbooks.

Librarianship

Expanding your site to more languages | Google Webmaster Help | YouTube


Handwriting support hits Gmail, Google Docs | CNET News


Gmail and Google Docs now can handle handwriting input in dozens of languages, even if you don’t have a touch screen. Read: Handwriting support hits Gmail, Google Docs | Internet & Media – CNET News.