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DNA as art
20
I’ve become pretty fascinated with my own DNA lately. While I know a little bit about my background (Irish, Scottish, some sprinklings of various Germanic tribes thrown in for good measure) I’ve always been curious about what I’m made of.
Last year I joined 23andMe, and through testing was able to determine my maternal haplogroup (W1c) and my paternal one as well (R1a1a* — yes, I was able to convince my Dad to spit in a test tube from 3,000 miles away).
All very cool, and which brings me to the photo you see at the top of this post. DNA 11 is a company that makes art based on your own personal DNA. They offered to let me try their service, using my data from 23andMe (though they will send you a kit of their own if you haven’t done one already) to create a QR code portrait containing my ancestry info (maternal line only in this case) called an Ancestry Portrait. This is what you see when you read the QR:
Neat! The portraits aren’t cheap (the one they made for me retails for $440 [Edit: they'll knock off $150 if you bring your own DNA to the table like I did]) but it’s a cool way to have some (extremely) personalized art. I have it hanging in my den of nerddom, and it’s a nice reminder of where I came from.
Getting a look at the Looxcie
91 year ago
There’s no shortage of ways to capture video clips these days: smart phones, Flip cameras, dSLRs… they can all take good quality video that can easily be uploaded to YouTube or Facebook to share with your friends and family. The downside? It’s an active process. You have to concentrate on getting the shot you want, instead of actually enjoying the moment you’re trying to capture.
On this episode of Tech Unexpected, I take a look at the Looxcie Wearable Camcorder. It sits on your ear like a Bluetooth headset (which technically, it is), and you can use your iPhone or Android device as a remote control to record and play the videos, and to trim the clips and send them off into the Internet aether once you’re done.
Is this something you would want to use? What would you use it to capture? I can also see it being very useful to record concerts or sporting events. At $199, is this something you would integrate into your tech collection?
If you do get one, show it off! Just take a video with your Looxcie camera, upload it to YouTube and tweet us the link to @Cruzearati with the hashtag #LooxcieHere.
Oh, and P.S: When I told Devo she could be internet famous “too,” I was referring to her becoming famous like Mr. Littlejeans. He’s extremely famous on the internet.
Travel essentials
211 year ago
I travel more than anyone I know. This is not bragging; it’s gotten to the point where I’m relating more to the 50-something male business travelers I share the airports and hotel bars with than peers my own age.
One thing makes traveling a cinch for me: technology. There are a few essential apps and tools that I use daily that make life so much easier for me. Without them, I’d be utterly and completely lost.
TripIt
I use TripIt for everything. Flights, hotels, rental cars, car services, etc. If there’s a confirmation email associated with my trip, it gets forwarded to plans@TripIt.com and instantly added to my itinerary. Then, I just pull up the information on my iPhone, and I’ll never forget where the hotel is or what flight number I’m on. I use the Pro account (which has a $60 yearly fee) to keep track of all my frequent flier miles and to alert me to any changes in my itinerary.
FlightTrack Pro
This $9.99 iPhone app works with data from TripIt Pro, and has saved my ass more times than I can count. I typically know a flight is delayed or cancelled before the crew does (well… It seems that way, anyhow). I can use it to cross-reference SeatGuru, find alternate flights, and give me up-to-the-second gate information. A must-have for the frequent traveler.
Expensify
This handy app works on the iPhone and iPad, and allows me to put together expense reports quickly and easily. Using my iPhone, I can take pictures of my receipts, add them to a new or existing expense report, and mail them off to their intended recipient. The only downside is that you need a data connection to work on your reports.
TaxiMagic and Uber
Need a ride to the airport, but don’t know the local cab companies? Try TaxiMagic. In some places, like SF, you can book and pay for Luxor Cabs using the app directly. Otherwise, it lists the local cab companies in your area and helps you to call them from the app. Uber is only available in SF (AFAIK) but this town car booking system is the most reliable and comfortable way to travel. It’s more spendy, at 1.5x the price of normal cabs, but sometimes it’s worth it!
Dropbox and EverNote
I use these apps to sync my data across multiple devices, but I use them differently. Dropbox is mainly for sharing documents (in my case, VO files and scripts) while Evernote I use to keep track of ideas and business cards when I’m on the road. It’s my virtual Rolodex! Instead of taking cards, I snap a photo and upload it to my business cards notebook. Then, once it’s indexed, I can search and access that info from anywhere.
MyLink from OnStar
If I feel like maybe I forgot to lock my car after leaving it at the airport, I use the OnStar app to remotely lock Terry Cruze. You can also see the cars specs, remotely turn it on and off, and get roadside assistance. Now, if only they had an app for turning off the oven…
3G iPad
First I felt kind of guilty buying the 3G version. Then I felt even more guilty paying the $14.99 a month data plan. But after two months of using it, I don’t feel that way anymore! You’d be amazed by how many hotels still charge an arm and a leg for Wifi, and how many coffee shops don’t offer it at all anymore. This 3G tablet has been great for emailing and blogging on the go. Also, it means I don’t have to lug my laptop around, which is a big plus. I actually wrote this post on my iPad on the way home from Portland last night.
Kindle 2
Yes! Even with the iPad, I insist on bringing the Kindle with me on every trip. Why, you ask? The battery life is forever, the screen is much easier to look at after long periods, and it’s smaller.
What are your travel essentials? Anything you can’t live without when you’re on the road?
EpicWin is just that!
131 year ago
One of my new favorite iPhone applications that just launched is EpicWin. It’s a to-do list, combined with some RPG and questing elements that enable you to “level up” your character by completing errands (think Chore Wars on the iPhone). Take a look at their awesome introduction video:
These guys have worked on some of my favorite games of all time, including LittleBigPlanet and Fable II, so they know a thing or two about creating some very addictive content. The “game” looks great, and has a quirky vibe that’ll definitely set it apart from other task managers.
Since you decide how many points you assign to each task, you can level up pretty quickly. Although I was hoping that there’d be some social aspects (competing against roommates for chore completion, etc) I can see how someone could easily cheat by creating easy tasks with high point values.
There’s one thing keeping me from using this app everyday: desktop integration. I currently use Things as my main to-do list manager, and it syncs with the Things iPhone app as well. I don’t really need two task managing applications on my phone at one time, and there’s very little incentive for a desktop client to use another company’s app for mobile use instead of developing their own.
The answer? EpicWin should create a full-featured RPG for the desktop that plays like a game! Yes, perhaps a little “pie in the sky,” but it would certainly hook more gamers.
EpicWin is $2.99 on the App Store.