Maze-like chip helps spot aggressive cancer cells

It’s difficult to spot cancer cells — just one in a billion blood cells are cancerous. How do you isolate them to know the trouble someone is facing and eventually treat it? By drawing the kind of mazes you enjoyed as a kid, apparently. Researchers have developed a microfluidic chip that uses a circular labyrinth to separate cancer cells from the rest of your bloodstream and spot the stem-like cells that will aggressively spread that cancer. Ultimately, it’s a creative use of physics. The curves tend to push larger cancer cells forward (smaller regular cells cling to the walls), while the corners mix things up and put white blood cells in an ideal position.

And importantly, it’s much faster than conventional methods, which use markers and traps to gradually bind cancer cells. Blood flows quickly, so you’re only waiting minutes to pinpoint the cancer. And if you need better results than you got the first time around, you just have to add another chip.

The technique could be the key to a new wave of cancer treatments. If you can single out aggressive cancer cells, you’ll have a better sense of how to treat the cancer in question. In an ongoing breast cancer trial, for example, it’ll show whether or not blocking a immune signalling molecule might reduce the number of stem-like cancer cells. This won’t necessarily lead to cures for stubborn cancers, but it could offer hope in situations where a cancer would otherwise be impossible to stop.

Source: University of Michigan, Cell

Office 365’s revamped web launchers put you to work sooner

Sometimes, it’s not your productivity apps that need a tune-up… it’s how you get to those apps that needs work. And Microsoft knows it. The tech firm has redesigned the Office.com front end and Office 365’s web app launcher. There’s now a recommended section that surfaces the activity that’s relevant to you, so you can quickly jump to where you’re needed — say, a Word file that needs edits or your recent PowerPoint presentation. You can also search for people, apps, documents and sites right from the get-go.

Things promise to be simpler once you’re waist-deep in work, too. There’s a streamlined Office 365 web launcher that focuses just on the most common apps and those you use often, so you’re not wading through menus to return to a favorite tool. You can pin apps if you know you’ll need to use, them, and there’s a prominent recent documents section that will switch you back to that all-important report. If you’re not sure which app to use, you can explore recommended apps to get resources, install desktop apps and otherwise determine whether or not it’s the right tool for the job.

Microsoft expects these updates to reach Office 365 users “soon,” so don’t be surprised if they aren’t visible right away. Whenever you get them, it’s clear that Microsoft is increasingly treating Office’s web version as its own sort of operating system, not just as a collection of apps. This won’t necessarily lure you or your company to Google Apps, but it could make the Office experience more cohesive.

Source: Office Blogs

This D&D 4K touchscreen custom table is a Dungeon Master’s dream

Why it matters to you

Old-school gamers are embracing the latest technology for a fun new retro gaming experience.

Dungeons & Dragons has grown in popularity the last several years, with new digital toolkits that make a Dungeon Master’s job easier to handle. No dice to lose, no rulebooks to thumb through, no smudged graph paper to track your progress. But veteran D&D fan Ken Hinxman has taken dungeon mastering to the next level with a home-built high-tech Dungeons & Dragons custom table that includes a 4K display and touchscreen capability.

Hinxman, who’s known as Caethial on Tumbler and Twitter, built the table in a single day on New Year’s Eve 2016 with two of his friends. Hinxman modestly notes that “there really are no plans for the table, we had a general idea of how we wanted it to turn out, but we made most of the decisions on it on the day we built it.”

The table itself was built with lumber you can buy at any hardware store, along with some brackets and a few screws. According to Hinxman, the table itself cost about $120 to make. It’s furnished with a 40-inch Samsung smart TV and a Dell Precision 5720 4K touchscreen workstation. The touchscreen is a nice touch, but the setup also works well with a laptop keyboard and mouse, as you can see in one of the gallery images above. Building one of these babies in your own gaming den will run you about $2,500.

Caethial’s table set off a firestorm on Reddit when it was first posted, with more than 75,000 upvotes (and counting) at present. We’ve featured custom gaming tables before, but this was a completely homebrew venture and the finished product is remarkable to behold.

The software Hinxman uses to run his games is Fantasy Grounds, a virtual RPG tabletop system that’s officially licensed by Wizards of the Coast and available on Steam. Hinxman says that he prefers Fantasy Grounds over other systems such as Roll20, noting that he finds it far easier to use. Although generally used for online play, he says it works quite well for home games and allows a “fog of war” effect where the map is gradually revealed to the players as they explore it.

Check out the photo gallery for some great images from Hinxman’s Tumblr page to see more detail of the build itself, as well as exciting action shots of a game in full swing.

This D&D 4K touchscreen custom table is a Dungeon Master’s dream

Why it matters to you

Old-school gamers are embracing the latest technology for a fun new retro gaming experience.

Dungeons & Dragons has grown in popularity the last several years, with new digital toolkits that make a Dungeon Master’s job easier to handle. No dice to lose, no rulebooks to thumb through, no smudged graph paper to track your progress. But veteran D&D fan Ken Hinxman has taken dungeon mastering to the next level with a home-built high-tech Dungeons & Dragons custom table that includes a 4K display and touchscreen capability.

Hinxman, who’s known as Caethial on Tumbler and Twitter, built the table in a single day on New Year’s Eve 2016 with two of his friends. Hinxman modestly notes that “there really are no plans for the table, we had a general idea of how we wanted it to turn out, but we made most of the decisions on it on the day we built it.”

The table itself was built with lumber you can buy at any hardware store, along with some brackets and a few screws. According to Hinxman, the table itself cost about $120 to make. It’s furnished with a 40-inch Samsung smart TV and a Dell Precision 5720 4K touchscreen workstation. The touchscreen is a nice touch, but the setup also works well with a laptop keyboard and mouse, as you can see in one of the gallery images above. Building one of these babies in your own gaming den will run you about $2,500.

Caethial’s table set off a firestorm on Reddit when it was first posted, with more than 75,000 upvotes (and counting) at present. We’ve featured custom gaming tables before, but this was a completely homebrew venture and the finished product is remarkable to behold.

The software Hinxman uses to run his games is Fantasy Grounds, a virtual RPG tabletop system that’s officially licensed by Wizards of the Coast and available on Steam. Hinxman says that he prefers Fantasy Grounds over other systems such as Roll20, noting that he finds it far easier to use. Although generally used for online play, he says it works quite well for home games and allows a “fog of war” effect where the map is gradually revealed to the players as they explore it.

Check out the photo gallery for some great images from Hinxman’s Tumblr page to see more detail of the build itself, as well as exciting action shots of a game in full swing.

Intel cancels Project Alloy wireless VR headset, but is still investing in AR/VR

Why it matters to you

It’s inevitable that we will cut the cord for augmented and virtual reality, and this project helped us to see the possibility.

During last year’s Intel Developer Forum opening keynote, company CEO Brian Krzanich revealed the company’s virtual reality project, aka “Project Alloy.” The headset was completely untethered, meaning users could move about freely without cords, and without an additional PC and battery strapped to their back.

And now it’s dead. Road to VR reports that Intel has cancelled plans for the device, which was supposed to launch the fourth quarter of this year.

“Intel has made the decision to wind down its Project Alloy reference design, however we will continue to invest in the development of technologies to power next-generation AR/VR experiences,” Intel said in a statement to Road to VR. “This includes: Movidius for visual processing, Intel RealSense depth sensing and six degrees of freedom (6DoF) solutions, and other enabling technologies including Intel WiGig, Thunderbolt, and Intel Optane.”

The tech conglomerate went on to say that Project Alloy turned out to be a great proof of concept, and showed what could be done with the technology.

We tried the first generation version of the headset at CES 2017 and found it to be a bit rough. We were expecting this with such an early model, but the problems hurt the usability of the product. The tracking was the main issue — the headset scans the room to make a map of objects. Unfortunately, it wasn’t very accurate and we found ourselves bumping into things.

Project Alloy featured a built-in battery on the backside of the device’s head strap. The only cord that was used during Intel’s keynote presentation was one to project the wearer’s viewpoint onto the big screen for all to see. Project Alloy did not require external sensors, nor did it require controllers for moving and interacting with the environment. Instead, the headset relied on a pair of Intel RealSense sensors.

Wearers had a full six degrees of freedom within the virtual world. The sensors could track every movement, enabling room-scale mobile VR. One sensor mounted on the front could even “scan” real objects and bring them into the virtual realm in real time, such as the wearer’s hand or another person’s head.

In a demo, the user approached a virtual X-ray machine with his real hand and saw the bones underneath. He then interacted with a virtual switch using his actual hand too. After that, the demo went on to reveal that Project Alloy supported multi-room environments, allowing the wearer to physically walk into the new virtual area.

Users aren’t limited to just their hands. The RealSense sensor could bring in any object that can be used to interact with the environment. In the demo, the wearer used a real dollar bill to shave a virtual spinning object. You could actually see the wearer’s hand holding the dollar bill in the virtual realm, not a rendered stand-in.

The unit was likely going to see a reduction in size as Intel fine-tuned the components within. The Intel-powered computer resided inside the device.

Intel was using Project Alloy to expand upon the foundation established by the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive by mixing the real world with a virtual environment. It was the exact opposite of Microsoft’s HoloLens headset, which projects holograms into the user’s view of the real world. However, Krzanich indicated that Project Alloy would be able to bring the virtual into the real world at some point in the project’s future.

Intel’s initial keynote opened up with the possibility of VR becoming so life-like it will be hard to distinguish it from the real world.

Update: Added information on Project Alloy’s cancellation and our hands-on experience. 

Intel cancels Project Alloy wireless VR headset, but is still investing in AR/VR

Why it matters to you

It’s inevitable that we will cut the cord for augmented and virtual reality, and this project helped us to see the possibility.

During last year’s Intel Developer Forum opening keynote, company CEO Brian Krzanich revealed the company’s virtual reality project, aka “Project Alloy.” The headset was completely untethered, meaning users could move about freely without cords, and without an additional PC and battery strapped to their back.

And now it’s dead. Road to VR reports that Intel has cancelled plans for the device, which was supposed to launch the fourth quarter of this year.

“Intel has made the decision to wind down its Project Alloy reference design, however we will continue to invest in the development of technologies to power next-generation AR/VR experiences,” Intel said in a statement to Road to VR. “This includes: Movidius for visual processing, Intel RealSense depth sensing and six degrees of freedom (6DoF) solutions, and other enabling technologies including Intel WiGig, Thunderbolt, and Intel Optane.”

The tech conglomerate went on to say that Project Alloy turned out to be a great proof of concept, and showed what could be done with the technology.

We tried the first generation version of the headset at CES 2017 and found it to be a bit rough. We were expecting this with such an early model, but the problems hurt the usability of the product. The tracking was the main issue — the headset scans the room to make a map of objects. Unfortunately, it wasn’t very accurate and we found ourselves bumping into things.

Project Alloy featured a built-in battery on the backside of the device’s head strap. The only cord that was used during Intel’s keynote presentation was one to project the wearer’s viewpoint onto the big screen for all to see. Project Alloy did not require external sensors, nor did it require controllers for moving and interacting with the environment. Instead, the headset relied on a pair of Intel RealSense sensors.

Wearers had a full six degrees of freedom within the virtual world. The sensors could track every movement, enabling room-scale mobile VR. One sensor mounted on the front could even “scan” real objects and bring them into the virtual realm in real time, such as the wearer’s hand or another person’s head.

In a demo, the user approached a virtual X-ray machine with his real hand and saw the bones underneath. He then interacted with a virtual switch using his actual hand too. After that, the demo went on to reveal that Project Alloy supported multi-room environments, allowing the wearer to physically walk into the new virtual area.

Users aren’t limited to just their hands. The RealSense sensor could bring in any object that can be used to interact with the environment. In the demo, the wearer used a real dollar bill to shave a virtual spinning object. You could actually see the wearer’s hand holding the dollar bill in the virtual realm, not a rendered stand-in.

The unit was likely going to see a reduction in size as Intel fine-tuned the components within. The Intel-powered computer resided inside the device.

Intel was using Project Alloy to expand upon the foundation established by the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive by mixing the real world with a virtual environment. It was the exact opposite of Microsoft’s HoloLens headset, which projects holograms into the user’s view of the real world. However, Krzanich indicated that Project Alloy would be able to bring the virtual into the real world at some point in the project’s future.

Intel’s initial keynote opened up with the possibility of VR becoming so life-like it will be hard to distinguish it from the real world.

Update: Added information on Project Alloy’s cancellation and our hands-on experience. 

Twitter Lite site gets the inevitable app, now being tested in the Phillipines

Why it matters to you

With 45 percent of global smartphone connections on 2G networks, lightweight versions of apps are key to success. Twitter is jumping on the bandwagon with Twitter Lite.

Facebook has done it, YouTube has done it, Twitter is doing it, too. We’re talking, of course, about offering a lightweight version of the platform to make it easier for users in countries with less robust access to data to use Twitter. In April, Twitter product manager Patrick Traughber published a blog post announcing the debut of Twitter Lite, described as “a new mobile web experience which minimizes data usage, loads quickly on slower connections, is resilient on unreliable mobile networks, and takes up less than 1MB on your device.”

Though the we do have Twitter Lite, it was inevitable that an app would be released, and Tech Crunch reports it’s being tested in the Phillipines.

For users in the Phillipines, the app can be found in the Google Play Store for those who have Android 5.0 and above. It has English and Filipino support, and can be used on 2G and 3G networks.

“The test of the Twitter Lite app in the Google Play Store in the Philippines is another opportunity to increase the availability of Twitter in this market,” a Twitter spokesperson told Tech Crunch. “The Philippines market has slow mobile networks and expensive data plans, while mobile devices with limited storage are still very popular there. Twitter Lite helps to overcome these barriers to usage for Twitter in the Philippines.”

The app is under 3MB and has a “data saver mode to download only the images or videos you want to see,” according to the app’s download page.

While smartphone adoption is growing at a rapid rate around the world, infrastructure isn’t necessarily keeping up. In fact, the GSMA reports, 45 percent of mobile connections remain on 2G networks. And given that smartphone adoption is now at around 3.8 billion connections, that’s a lot of phones on slower networks.

The Twitter Lite site not only requires less data, but promises 30 percent faster launch times and quicker navigation throughout the platform. Users can still be able to see the core components of the social media service, including timeline, Tweets, Direct Messages, trends, profiles, media uploads, and notifications without an app. No word if Twitter’s new night mode will come to the Lite platform.

And to make things more efficient still, Twitter’s data saver mode, could potentially reduce your data usage by up to 70 percent. Twitter Lite also offers offline support so you’ll be able to maintain your session even if your connection is spotty.

You can check out Twitter Lite at mobile.twitter.com on a smartphone or tablet. More information can be found at lite.twitter.com, and if you’re interested in learning how the tool was built, you can do that here.

Update: Added information about Twitter Lite app being tested in the Philippines. 

Best new songs to stream: Arcade Fire, Mac Demarco, and more

Every week, there are thousands of new songs hitting the airwaves — and it’s just too much for your two ears to handle. With all those options, you can’t be wasting your time on tracks that deserve a thumbs-down click — you want the best new songs to stream right now.

But don’t worry, we’re going to save you the hassle. We listen to some of the most-hyped and interesting songs each week, and tell you which are worthy of your precious listening time.

Here are our five best new songs to stream this week. And don’t forget to subscribe to our Spotify page for a playlist of our weekly picks, which can also be found at the bottom of this post. Not sure which streaming service is best for you? Check out our post about the best music streaming services, or go in depth and learn the differences between Apple Music and Spotify to better weigh your options.

Arcade Fire — Mind Games (Live at Spotify)

Arcade Fire’s recent appearance at Spotify’s studio produced this slick rendition of John Lennon’s Mind Games. A thoughtful take on an oft-forgotten classic, it features a clean arrangement complete with beautiful string tones, as well as frontman Win Butler channeling the late Beatle.

Mac Demarco — Dreams From Yesterday

Mac Demarco recently moved to Los Angeles, where he’s been hard at work writing and recording even more chilled-out singles for his rabid fanbase. This 360-degree video from California’s KCRW radio showcases one of his recently penned numbers, a soft and groovy song called Dreams From Yesterday that is sure to please your ears.

Charlotte Gainsbourg — Deadly Valentine

Musician and actress Charlotte Gainsbourg pairs up with rapper Dev Hynes (aka Blood Orange) in this video for her recent single Deadly Valentine, which features young look-alike versions of themselves slowly evolving into the pair’s current selves on screen. The song itself is a forward-leaning, Daft Punk-like jam that will push you through even the toughest workout with ease.

Bibio — Phantom Brickworks III

If you’re looking for a gentle single, Bibio‘s Phantom Brickworks III is the perfect option. Soft voices and reverb-laden piano dominate the track, which belongs on the speakers of every day spa and massage parlor in the nation.

Dave Depper — Do You Want Love? (And more, live on KEXP)

Dave Depper has made a name for himself as a guitar-slinging sideman for some of the biggest names in indie rock, from Death Cab for Cutie to Ray Lamontagne, . Fresh on the heels of his first solo album, Depper and his excellent live band recently appeared on Seattle’s KEXP Radio, where they performed hyper-clean renditions of pop songs like Do You Want Love? and more.

That’s it for now, but tune in next week for more songs to stream, and check out the playlist loaded with our recent selections below:

Best BlackBerry Phone

• Best Overall
• Best for Less
• Best Slider

Best overall

BlackBerry KEYone

See at Amazon

BlackBerry is legendary when it comes to mobile device management and security, and follows that trend when using Android to power its phones. With the KEYone, you also get the keyboard experience that only BlackBerry can offer. The KEYone is a great way to enjoy Android for people who still want a physical keyboard on their phone, and peace of mind that knowing a company is concerned about security.

Bottom line: BlackBerry continues its reputation of excellent mobile security and having a great keyboard with the KEYone.

One more thing: The BlackBerry is usually the first phone to get the monthly Android Security update — often hours before Google releases the bulletin itself!

Why the BlackBerry KEYone is the best

The keyboard form factor you love.

BlackBerry’s iconic candy bar keyboard design has been merged with Android, bringing you the best of both worlds with the KEYone.

The KEYone has everything a BlackBerry fan would want or need. A big bright screen, all-day battery life, a great camera and the legendary BlackBerry keyboard. With Android and BlackBerry’s comprehensive suite of productivity and security applications, you’ll get more done and be able to stay in touch with business and personal contacts across social media as well as through email. And when the work day is done, you’re able to enjoy over a million apps from Google Play.

The KEYone is the best BlackBerry you can buy.

Best for less

BlackBerry DTEK60

See at Amazon

The DTEK60 features a mostly stock Android experience that’s accentuated with BlackBerry’s added layers of security along with the BlackBerry Intelligent Keyboard which is jam-packed with useful gesture controls. You’ll also get the full suite of BlackBerry productivity tools.

The DTEK60 is packed with some really handy features including the classic BlackBerry notification LED on the front, a programmable convenience key, and a fingerprint scanner on the back. Powered by a Snapdragon 820 processor and a 3,000mAh battery, it’s a quality phone all around.

Bottom line: The DTEK60’s price a welcome addition for many users and IT managers.

One more thing: Scott Wenger, VP of design and devices for BlackBerry says DTEK stands for “Detection.”

Best Slider

BlackBerry Priv

See at Amazon

BlackBerry’s first phone running on Android was a bold attempt to buck the latest smartphone trends. In a world dominated by slabs of aluminum and glass, BlackBerry went with a slider design to incorporate a physical keyboard and a soft-touch back that’s great for maintaining your grip.

While it may have lost a bit of luster when the KEYone launched, it’s a great option for folks who were interested a full-screen sliding keyboard experience.

Bottom line: With its physical keyboard and top-notch Blackberry security features, the Priv is a unique and powerful option in the Android marketplace.

One more thing: The Priv may be all about the physical keyboard, but BlackBerry’s virtual keyboard is actually one of the best in the business, too.

Best overall

Best overall

BlackBerry KEYone

See at Amazon

BlackBerry is legendary when it comes to mobile device management and security, and follows that trend when using Android to power its phones. With the KEYone, you also get the keyboard experience that only BlackBerry can offer. The KEYone is a great way to enjoy Android for people who still want a physical keyboard on their phone, and peace of mind that knowing a company is concerned about security.

Bottom line: BlackBerry continues its reputation of excellent mobile security and having a great keyboard with the KEYone.

One more thing: The BlackBerry is usually the first phone to get the monthly Android Security update — often hours before Google releases the bulletin itself!

Update August 2017: Added DTEK60 as the best for less option.

Ace the Project Management Professional (PMP) exam with this certification prep course!

Whether you are looking to start a new career or just advance the one you are in currently, you’ll need some certifications under your belt to make you stand out above the others. Unfortunately, getting certifications can be a time-consuming and expensive process. You need time to study, money to pay for the courses, and then you just have to hope that you can keep up with that and your regular job. Well, it doesn’t have to be that way.

How does lifetime access to more than 76 courses that contain just shy of 40 hours of training sound? Well, with this awesome certification training package you can work towards becoming certified in one of the industry’s most respected certification organizations. You’ll be able to access the material 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so you can do things on your schedule, and this will also help you meet that 35 contact-hour requirements for the exam and certification.

For just $50 you’ll have access to:

• Get lifetime access to 76+ courses & 35+ hours of training
• Become certified by one of the industry’s most respected & in-demand certification organizations
• Take lessons from a company that’s approved by Project Management Institute® to meet the strict educational criteria necessary to earn the PMP® & CAPM®certifications
• Access the material 24/7 so you can learn when you have time
• Meet the 35 contact-hour requirements for the PMP® exam & certification
• Maintain your certification by meeting the required Professional Development Units

Normally, this certification training would set you back nearly $1,500, but if you act quick you can pay just a small fraction of that. What better way to work towards you new goal than on your own schedule, right?

Don’t miss out on this huge 96% savings because this deal won’t last forever. Make the purchase now, and thank yourself later.

See at Android Central Digital Offers