The Menlo Briefs

World of Warcraft Shines a Light on Bioterrorism - I'm not a fan of the World of Warcraft myself, but there are certainly more than a handful of folks at Menlo who are. This article points to a real world advantage to these types of games. According to the article, "Virtual terrorists blowing themselves up and spreading disease inside World of Warcraft could provide counter-terrorists with a window into real-world plots." Scary. [more]

How much is a kilogram? - Stop before you answer -- its seems that the official kilogram is losing weight, approximately 50 micrograms at last check. [more]

Feeling Faint of Heart? - There may be yet another avenue of hope for those with heart disease: an intelligent, motorized webbing that wraps around your heart. It's a pretty low-tech solution, and the team has high hopes the the uncomplicated nature of the device will have applications from transplant assistance to heart therapy. Currently there's no word on when simulator trials and prototyping will be over. [more]

It's time for Wii-hab - The use of video games during patient recovery isn't necessary new, but use of the Wii console is. Because playing the Wii requires the player to act out the physical movements involved, it's providing particularly useful for certain types of patients. Specialists say using the Wii brings back flexibility to damaged areas and that most importantly - patients actually enjoy their treatment. [more]

#42 Rules! - No, I'm not talking about football, or even basketball, but rather the 100 best places to live and launch a business. Ann Arbor -- Menlo's hometown -- was named #42 on the list based on the its mix of business advantages and lifestyle appeal. Go Blue! [more]

A New Use for Lasers - Diagnosing diseases can currently be a laborious process involving painful tests, but researchers at the National Institute for Standards and Technology and the University of Colorado think they have a better idea: lasers. They've developed a method for detecting specific chemical compounds in the breath of people with cancer, asthma, and diabetes. [more]

Next Time You'd Better Look Twice - Contrary to popular belief, identical twins are not as identical as we'd like to believe. It turns out that there's a differences in copy number variation in DNA. Copy number variation (CNV) occurs when a set of coding letters in DNA are missing, or when extra copies of segments of DNA are produced. [more]

Warning: Time Waster! - Ah, the good ole Commodore-64, the starting point for many a programmer's passion for the craft. While C-64 emulators are available for every platform from XBox and PSP to Windows, Mac, and Linux, many of them can be finicky to set up. If you're looking for a quick hit of C-64 goodness but don't want to commit to a hackathon to get things working right, check out Commodore Gaming's Play Classic Games page. [more]

Life in the Looking Glass - Sometimes when I look at our industry I start feeling like Alice when she fell through the looking glass. Nearly all companies have failed investments in software initiatives -- many in the six and seven figure range -- and yet they insist on acting as if nothing's wrong! Curiouser and curiouser, indeed! The good news is that the leading causes of these failures can be avoided by applying Menlo's High-Tech Anthropology^® practice. Join us for the next FREE 90-minute presentation on April 25th to learn how our approach creates the right software for the right application.

Less is More - Have you seen the Flip? It's a tiny little video camera (about the size of a digital camera) that's storming the market by doing less than more traditional video cameras. This stripped down video camera has captured 13% of the market since its introduction. [more]

Free iPhones for Freshmen? - Abilene Christian University (ACU) recently announced that they would be issuing iPhones or iPod Touches to incoming freshman for use in their college courses and day to day lives. They specifically mention the use of web applications that they've developed, but extend this concept in a demonstration movie called Connected. The movie details a fully integrated iPhone and college experience, with integration into coursework, class participation, payment system, directory and 3d mapping. [more]

Cyborg Bugs are All Grown Up - Modified insects in a DARPA project have survived to adulthood. These insects have modified body structures and embedded micro-electromechanical systems. [more]

The Answer is 150,000 - The question: How many coconuts does it take to fly London to Amsterdam? And why in the world would we feel compelled to share this information? Well we think it's pretty darn cool that Richard Branson put his "Green" money where his mouth is and made the first bio-fuel flight. [more]