Google finally ditching Java APIs for open-source alternatives in next version of Android

Remember that long, drawn-out, ongoing legal battle between Oracle and Google over whether or not Java’s APIs can be copyrighted and if Google infringed on them and all of that other boring legal garble? Well, it’s still not over, but Google has made an interesting change in regard to the next version of Android.

A new codebase commit seems to imply that Google is dropping Java APIs in favor of the open-source OpenJDK. Google confirmed the change, although they didn’t clarify if it was because they’re legally required to thanks to a recent development in their current legal battle or if they’re simply moving away from Java’s implementation to avoid any more liability in the future.

Google says some new features in Java 8 last year prompted this change, and it does mean that things should be simpler for developers, as they’ll only have one codebase to deal with instead of multiple. Simplicity is always great, but this seems like something Google should have done months or years ago.

This legal battle, and this programming change, mean a lot for the tech industry going forward. Keep an ear out for any major developments over the next few months.

source: Venture Beat

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Google Cardboard used to save a baby’s life

I remember the day Google gave out the Google Cardboard and everyone thought it was a joke. A device made of cardboard, how good could it really be? Well, good enough to be used by doctors to save a baby’s life.

A four-month-old was born with no left lung and a deformed heart, any chance of survival was not looking good. However, doctors in Miami, Florida, managed to look “inside” the baby to save her life.

Heart surgery is no joke and is especially difficult on such a small baby. Normally, the doctors would just look at the scans of the heart, but the pediatric surgeons at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital decided to try something new. They uploaded the images into a phone, and placed it in a Google Cardboard to view them in 3D.

Dr. Redomond Burke, a cardiovascular surgeon at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital said:

“The old VR images we used to get were just too grainy not specific enough for the fine detail you need to do open heart surgery on a baby,”

After the Doctors planned everything out to get a clear understanding of what needed to be done, the 7 hour surgery began. Thankfully, the surgery was a success and baby Teegan Lexcen is recovering.

Source: CBSMiami
Via: Engadget

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Doctors use Google Cardboard to explore a heart, save a life

Four-month-old Teegan Lexcen was born in Minnesota with a small, malformed heart, no left lung, and the faintest chance of seeing her first Christmas. Now she’s recovering after open-heart surgery at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in Miami, Florida, where a team of enterprising doctors used a smartphone and Google’s Cardboard VR headset to peer into her chest and save her life.

Tackling such a delicate operation would’ve been harrowing even if the patient were an adult, but Teegan’s situation was made trickier by her fragile frame. A successful surgery would have required an astute understanding of the shape her tiny heart was in, and 2D MRI scans could only tell part of the story. The answer? Dr. Juan-Carlos Muniz, head of Nicklaus Children’s MRI department, converted those 2D scans into stereoscopic images, loaded them onto an iPhone and stuck it inside Google Cardboard for his colleague, cardiovascular surgeon Dr. Redmond Burke to peek at. The experience, Burke told UploadVR, was like “standing in the operating room” two weeks prior to surgery.

Armed with clearer knowledge of Teegan’s heart, Dr. Burke figured out where to make his first incision — right in the middle of her chest. Seven hours later, Teegan got a new lease on life and the VR movement got a brand new feather in its collective cap. Most of the medical VR experiences we’ve seen have been centered around touring the deep recesses of the brain, be they abstract or unflinchingly complex. While those simulations tend to rely on high-grade VR setups like the Oculus Rift, the events of the past few weeks prove you don’t need pricey gear to change minds and lives — just a willingness to look at things a little differently.

Source: CBSMiami.com

Google Glass for work is sleeker, tougher and foldable

You won’t have to wait for Google to reveal the next generation of Glass (aka Project Aura) — regulators just stepped in on its behalf. A newly published FCC filing shows the previously rumored Enterprise Edition headset, and it’s clearly a big improvement over the Explorer model from years earlier. The work-focused eyepiece touts a much slicker (and likely more durable) design with both a larger display prism and a hinge that lets you fold it up for travel. The test photos also reveal a spot for a magnetic battery attachment and what looks to be a speedier Atom processor.

There’s still no word on when Google will announce this headset, although the FCC presence hints that it might not take long. Not that you’ll likely wear this particular model as it is: sources for 9to5Google understand that it’ll only be distributed through Glass for Work companies. You’ll need to wait until more consumer-focused models show up sometime in the future, and there’s no guarantee that they’ll have a ton in common.

Via: 9to5Google

Source: FCC