Everything you know is wrong: lasers are cooling things now

A group of scientists at the University of Washington were able to successfully refrigerate water using an infrared laser. This is a big deal because researchers weren’t even sure this was possible as water tends to heat up when illuminated. However, by using an infrared laser and nanocrystal, it surprisingly created the opposite effect, which is a world first. The team of scientists were able to cool liquid water by 36 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius). The crystal absorbed the light’s photons and then when the photons were released, they had a higher energy value compared to when they first entered. These photons then scattered and carried away heat, cooling the surrounding water.

Via: Slash Gear

Source: University of Washington

Create your own voice activated reminders using Tasker – Android customization

Did you follow all the way through last week’s Android customization project? We had built a tool to schedule delayed SMS messages using Tasker, but more to learn the tools than for the actual functionality. This week will be more review of tools in Tasker, we’ll use variables, voice input, and conditionals to build a little timed voice reminder.

Fair warning, as we’ve seen before, there are some excellent apps out there that can handle this action, including Google Now, which almost all Android devices have installed by default. We’re focusing on the tools, not on bulletproofing the project, so expect some gaps and shortcomings, but it will work.

Before we begin

Tasker – Google Play StoreYou’ve seen these words before – you’ll need a relatively new Android device today with the latest version of Tasker installed. Tasker is $2.99 in the Google Play Store. Also, and this sounds like an odd thing to mention, your device must have a microphone and speaker to get the most out of the project. I suspect that won’t be an issue.

Hold on, hold on. Tasker was pulled from the Google Play Store. You can still grab it from their official site. Update: never mind, it’s back.

Voice reminder using Tasker

Before we start, let’s take a closer look at the plan for today. Our voice reminder will accept voice input to collect the message and the amount of time before playing it back to you. When that time comes, we will actually have the system read aloud the message back to you. That actually sounds easier than it is, hope you are ready.

To make things a little easier, we will break up the message and the time into two voice inputs, we could work harder on manipulating the variables to work it all into one, but I think it is easier to understand this way.

My mind is churning on all the other little things that can be done to enhance this project, but I’ll try to keep the actual tutorial simple. Let’s do it.

Fire up Tasker and head into the Tasks tab.

Start a new Task and name it appropriately, I’ll call mine “VoiceReminder“.

Voice your needs

Tap the “+” button to add your first action. This action will accept voice input for the message.

Select Input.

Select Get Voice.

Provide a Title, something like “What can I do for you today?”

Tap the system Back button to save and exit.

Tap the “+” button to add your second action. This one will save the voice input into a variable for later use.

Select Variables.

Select Variable Set.

Provide a variable Name, I’ll call mine “%VOICEREMINDERMESSAGE“.

Under To, tap the labels icon to find ‘Voice Results,’ or simply type in “%VOICE“.

Tap the system Back button to save and exit.

Tap the “+” button to add your third action. Now we collect voice again, this time for the timing.

Select Input.

Select Get Voice.

Title “OK, when?”

And Back out of the action.

Tap the “+” button to add your fourth action. We need to save the second voice input to a new variable.

Select Variables.

Select Variable Set.

Name “%VOICEREMINDERTIME” and set it To “%VOICE” once again.

Tap the system Back button to save.

Tap the “+” button for your fifth action. We have to split that time variable so that we know how long to wait.

Note: For this project, we are only accepting “# seconds” as input. I will explain at the end quickly how to accept minutes, hours, and specific times of the day, but I won’t actually show them off, sorry.

Select Variables.

Select Variable Split.

Under Name, enter your time variable, mine was “%VOICEREMINDERTIME“.

Under Splitter, you are going to enter a single blank space ” “.

Tap the system back button to save and exit.

So, if you’ve provided a voice input of “90 seconds”, the Split will create two new variables, the first will have value “90” and the second will have variable “seconds”. If you need a refresher on how this all works, be sure to hit our tutorial on the Variable Split from a few weeks ago.

What IF we did things differently?

Tap the “+” button to add your next action.

Now, instead of just pushing through the timer and such, we are going to use the IF functionality to validate the voice input from above. This will prevent errors and provide you with the control needed to add in delays for other units of time. You’ll see what I mean.

Select Task.

Select IF.

Under Condition, type in the Split version of your reminder time variable. If you are following along exactly, you’ll need to input “%VOICEREMINDERTIME2“.

On the right hand side, enter in the word “second“.

Now tap the “+” symbol in the top right to add an additional condition.

Tap the “And” button and change that to “Or“.

Once again, on the left hand side enter that split variable “%VOICEREMINDERTIME2“.

This time, on the right hand side, enter “seconds“.

See that, we are looking at the second voice input for the words “second” or “seconds.” If neither word is present, the project will come to a halt.

Tap the system Back button to save and exit.

Wait, I need to flash something

Tap the “+” button to add your seventh action. We are just waiting here.

Select Task.

Select Wait.

Beside Seconds, tap the crossing arrows, then enter the split variable for the amount of time you wish to wait. That would be “%VOICEREMINDERTIME1” for me.

Tap the system Back button to save and exit.

Now, tap the “+” button to add your eighth action. We’ve waited, time to talk.

Select Alert.

Select Say.

Under Text, simply enter your reminder message variable, mine was “$VOICEREMINDERMESSAGE“. I’m thinking now I should have used a shorter variable, oh well.

Tap the system Back button to save and exit.

Finally, we close the IF. Tap the “+” button.

Select Task.

Select End IF.

Done!

Be sure to create a method to start up this project. A button on the Homescreen would work. So would a button on the default persistent Tasker notification, thus, on your lock screen.

What’s next

As you can tell, we kept the project pretty simple. You probably noticed as well that I added a few Alert -> Flash notifications along the way. Go ahead and enter these as often as you see fit and add in the variables to enhance them. As you can see, I added a flash before saying the message, just a heads-up to pay attention. Then I added the actual message as a flash after it was read aloud, just in case I didn’t hear it.

If a reminder with delay of only seconds is not ideal for you, go ahead and duplicate the entire IF -> End If actions, and everything in between. If you catch for the words “minute” and “minutes”, then you can make your Wait delay in the Minutes. This goes for milliseconds, hours and days as well. Just duplicate the IF actions once per time measure.

If you would like to set the reminder for a specific time of the day, you will have to do a bit more grunt work. There are other methods we won’t cover here, but to use the above basic setup, go for the following: Use a new IF to look for the word “o-clock” or “am” “pm” however you can remember to consistently say the time. Now you will need to do some variable conversions into a common measure, I recommend seconds. Compare the requested time to the current time and Wait for the difference. Did that make sense? Let’s try an example.

“Remind me to go to sleep” “10 pm”. (Let’s just pretend that it is 9:30pm.) First, you’ll have to change 10 pm into a full Date Time variable. This works on a 24 hour clock and in the format ##.## I don’t know why they opted for a decimal instead of the colon, but we can work with this. You may use another IF statement nested into the first to check for am vs pm, then either use the number as is or add 12. Like, 10pm is 22.00

Now, use the Variable Convert action to change your completed ‘%DATE Time’ into seconds (Variable -> Variable Convert). Convert another variable with the current date and time into seconds (remember we said it is 9:30 now) and then perform basic math. Subtracting the current time from the reminder time, in our example, offers up a difference of 1800 seconds. And so, that is what you will Wait back in your main project. I admit I’ve somewhat over-simplified the instruction here, just keep playing, you’ll get it.

Last, and I probably should have mentioned this sooner, you are going to often encounter errors with some words. For example, when I try to use “1” or “4”, be it seconds, minutes or other, the voice input often uses the word instead of the number, possibly the wrong words “won” and “for.” So, when the Wait action comes around, I get an error because ‘for’ is not a number. Sometimes it takes my voice as ‘four’ and it works, but not always. I can’t explain “one.” Like I said earlier, we’re learning the tools, sometimes the outcome is not perfect.

Next week

I could have gone on even more with this week’s Android customization project. I hope you get the most out of your new simple reminder and even more out of the extra time spent learning these tools. Next week will be a surprise. Let’s be honest, I had a project in mind, but with Tasker being pulled from the Google Play Store, I’d like to hold off on that. I haven’t decided what to do next instead, so I am very sorry, you’ll just have to check in to see next week, a little Thanksgiving special is in order.

Be honest, how well does this reminder tool stack up vs your other voice activated reminder tools?

New Balance unveils its first 3D-printed running shoe

Following in the footsteps of sportswear rival Adidas, New Balance today introduced its own 3D-printed running shoe. Created in collaboration with 3DSystems, a company known for offering 3D printing tech, New Balance’s sneaker features a 3D-printed midsole made from a newly developed elastomeric powder and DuraForm Flex TPU. By using said materials, New Balance says, the running shoe’s bottom cushion will be able to provide an “optimal” balance of flexibility, durability, strength and weight — which, in theory, should make them comfortable for runners, and that’s important.Slideshow-342153

Source: New Balance

Verizon simplifies its prepaid plans

Every carrier in the United States has been making moves as of late. What better time to do it than the holiday season? Customers new and old are picking up new devices and bolstering their plans with more data. Recently, AT&T brought free roaming to Mobile Share Value plan customers; Sprint upped its network and lowered rates for new customers; T-Mobile launched unlimited video streaming and then gave more data to everyone. Even prepaid carriers Cricket Wireless and MetroPCS have introduced new benefits. Verizon, who last week announced TravelPass, now has simplified its prepaid plans for both basic phones and smartphones.

Prepaid basic phone plans:

• $15 per month for 300 minutes, texts, or messages with unlimited mobile web
• $30 per month for unlimited talk, text, and mobile web

Prepaid smartphone plans:

• $30 per month for unlimited talk and text, WiFi-only for data
• $45 per month for unlimited talk and text with 1GB of data (enroll in auto-pay for extra 1GB)
• $60 per month for unlimited talk and text with 3GB of data (enroll in auto-pay for extra 1GB)

If you ever need more data, Big Red has your back. The carrier will give you 500MB for $5 (lasting 30 days), $10 for 1GB (lasting 90 days), or $20 for 3GB (lasting 90 days).

Verizon says that these plans are all good for people that want to avoid contracts and credit checks. Their prepaid plans allow customers to pay ahead of time and choose their own commitment. Without any hidden fees, prepaid customers can come and go on Verizon’s network easily.

Source: Verizon

Come comment on this article: Verizon simplifies its prepaid plans

Cricket Wireless has a new rewards program packed with goodies

Just in time for the holidays, Cricket Wireless is launching a rewards program for its loyal customers.

Through a partnership with mPLUS Rewards, Cricket Wireless customers can rack up points to be redeemed for gift cards, contest entries, donations, and more. So how do customers get said points? Things like creating an account, enrolling in auto-pay, and making on-time payments are simple ways to get points. But apps and games that are connected to mPlus Rewards, which totals more than 1,500, can be used also be used.

Source: Cricket Wireless

Introducing Cricket Rewards: The Only Integrated, Mobile Loyalty Program No-Contract Customers

Rewarding customers for the simple things they do every day through an exclusive agreement with mPLUS Rewards by SessionM

ATLANTA, Nov. 19, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Cricket Wireless announces a new twist on the traditional customer loyalty program with the launch of Cricket Rewards. The only program of its kind in the no annual contract space, Cricket Rewards gives customers a super easy way to earn redeemable points through the things they do naturally like checking the weather, tracking their fitness, or just being a Cricket customer.

Powered by an exclusive relationship with SessionM’s Mobile Marketing Cloud and mPLUS Rewards (the world’s leading mobile loyalty platform), Cricket Rewards is accessible through the Cricket Rewards app, MyCricket app or Cricketwireless.com website. Customers who sign up can start earning points quickly through Cricket activities like opening and registering an account, adding AutoPay or making on-time payments. They can earn even more by participating in an integrated points-sharing universe that includes over 1,500 mPlus Rewards powered applications and a number of other offers that will be included in the program through social media, events, and sponsorship activities.

And as these points rack up, customers are able to redeem them for things they love and things they love doing, like:

• Shopping with gift cards at participating retailers including AMC Movie theaters, Amazon, GameStop, Old Navy, Sears & Target and loads more.
• Entering sweepstakes to win big prizes and exclusive experiences.
• Making charitable donations to local and national organizations including the American Heart Association, ASPCA, the Make-a-Wish Foundation and more.

There are even special holiday bonuses:

• Cricket is teaming up with AMC Movie Theaters to give consumers a chance to earn more points by simply checking in when they see a flick. 
• And Cricket is launching a new $25,000 Selfie Sweepstakes – customers who enter not only get a chance at the big grand prize and lots of other cool swag, they also get extra Cricket Rewards points just for entering.  More reasons Cricket is the “Merrier Carrier” this holiday season.

“Cricket Rewards is unlike any other loyalty program in the no-contract industry,” said Janna Ducich, vice president & CMO, Cricket Wireless. “We listened to our customers and delivered a program that is quick, easy, and fun – with lots of options for rewards. While other carriers charge you to belong to their rewards program or take loads of your time just to sign up or redeem, we don’t.  We reward customers for simply doing what comes naturally. We reward you for being you.”

The My Cricket app and Cricketwireless.com include a fully integrated dashboard so consumers can easily track their mPLUS Rewards. There is no limit to the number of points customers can earn, and there is no expiration date on points as long as you stay engaged/active in mPLUS Rewards – so customers can save up for something special or sample a variety of rewards. 

About the New Cricket Wireless
Cricket is bringing consumers more value with a simple, friendly, and reliable nationwide wireless experience with no annual contract. The power of Cricket is our nationwide 4G LTE network that covers more than 310 million people; easy and affordable plans prices that include taxes and fees – no surprises; and a great selection of phones customers love. Cricket, Something to Smile About.  To check out the new Cricket or find a store near you, visit www.cricketwireless.com. And connect with us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cricketnation  and Twitter at www.twitter.com/cricketnation.

Cricket is a subsidiary of AT&T Inc. Coverage not available everywhere. © 2015 Cricket Wireless LLC. All rights reserved. Cricket and the Cricket logo are trademarks under license to Cricket Wireless LLC. 

Come comment on this article: Cricket Wireless has a new rewards program packed with goodies