Category: Internet & Technology

Face Hacking or Face Tracking? New Projection Technology to Create Waves

By James Robert Shaw (The Wind up Geek)

SmapProjecting light onto other objects has been around for some time. What started as a simple way to show movies on a flat film screen has made way into installation art pieces. But now it is being used in a new way to put virtual makeup on people’s faces with the help of computers, 3D rendering and an array of light projectors. It is being called “Face Hacking,” and early demonstrations of this technology shows how light can be projected onto moving objects — in this video’s case, two human faces — and be updated fast enough to make it look like one person can transform into another. Just how it works is both entertaining and awe-inspiring.

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One Tech Geek’s Dream for Christmas Day

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If there’s another nerdy wish list for Santa to look at, I can only hope that maybe one item from this list will be under my tree.

In this case, maybe a few items will finally get a proper release date because they are still stuck in their development cycle. Just maybe, one day, I will find a TARDIS waiting for me to take me on a whirlwind trip around the world. Who doesn’t want to time travel just to witness how the Egyptian pyramids were truly built? And besides, with the first item on my list, I can take home some souvenirs!

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Weighing in on Nintendo’s Latest Two Dimensional Offering

At least with the consoles that are out there, Mario, Luigi, Donkey Kong, Zelda and Link show that they can be enjoyed on any gaming device Nintendo is selling.

super_mario__nintendo_1280x960Nintendo enthusiasts now have a menu of portable hardware options to choose from: they can go 2D, 3D or XL. Each unit has their pros and cons, but as for whether or not their newest unit, the 2DS, will fly hinges on the upcoming Christmas shopping season.

The unit is essentially a stripped down version of the 3DS. The third dimension is being tossed out the door since medical experts are saying that can hinder the development of young eyes. But the big question is if the MSRP of $129.99 the right price? Maybe, in a nearly tax-free shopping zone of Alberta (Oregon for American shoppers) or a weekend when sales tax isn’t applied to purchases. Within Canada, the electronics tax may well be a hindrance than a god-send in select regions that have implemented this measure to deal with electronic waste.

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The Future of CGI Films: Creating True Photo-Realism

James Cameron may invest into this new system of rendering CGI films f he truly wants to remain ahead of the game

CGI Films and UnchartedIf keen observers of video game cinematics and CGI films think the computer graphics look great now, especially in how cloth material and hair are rendered, the next wave is going to be amazing.

The science behind how these surfaces are rendered have been restudied and restructured in such a way, where if there was a real world analogy: the way any type of thread is weaved on a loom in specific patterns is what the team of computer engineers from the Jacobs School of Engineering/UC San Diego looked at, but at a microscopic level. What they have discovered is a simpler method which matches this real world analogy and the ‘virtual threads’ are more cylindrical.

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