KillerApp Sightings

Have you ever felt like playing God -- shaping continents, creating rivers, pulling mountains up out of the ground? Landcraft, a 3-D terrain generator created by a team of Russian developers, may be just what you've been looking for.

The online interface lets you select surface textures, add undulations and change the angle and intensity of the sun’s light. Try replicating a real-world environment, or get creative and sculpt a Martian landscape.

This new method for visualizing terrain promises to be useful to developers and students alike (no more flour-and-water paste landscapes for me!).

Posted by Editor at 1:46 PM | Permalink

The Spitzer Space Telescope, launched in 2003, is the largest infrared telescope ever launched into space. During the two and a half years of its mission, it took pictures of the cosmos by detecting infrared energy (or heat) radiated by objects in space. The telescope captured a series of spectacular images from such formations as the Orion Nebula and the Andromeda Galaxy, and even peered into the galactic center of the Milky Way.

These images are now available for viewing here. You can not only see them but actually zoom in and pan on the images, a feat made possible by Zoomify, whose software lets you create zoomable, interactive images for any Web site. The no-frills version of Zoomify is free.

Posted by Editor at 3:23 PM | Permalink

"We want to know what young people think," say the sponsors of Film Your Issue's 2007 film competition. Young filmmakers (ages 16 through 25) have until April 15 to shoot and edit a short film on a contemporary issue of their choice and upload it to a microsite hosted by Yahoo!'s video editing software subsidiary, Jumpcut. Not only will the finalist films be shown on the FYI Web site, but they may be screened at the United Nations and broadcast on Starz. Winners may also receive a summer internship with Universal Pictures, another sponsor.

Posted by Editor at 1:27 PM | Permalink

The Intelligent Community Forum, a think tank focused on economic development in the broadband economy, recently ran an article about broadband applications by KillerApp.Com editor Masha Zager in its newsletter, iCommunity. The article describes the new opportunities broadband is creating for entertainment, health, education, business, social participation, home design, public safety, art and science. You can read the article here -- or read what we've written about all of these subjects on KillerApp.Com.

Posted by Editor at 2:58 PM | Permalink

No, not that Amazon, the one in South America. Marathon swimmer Martin Strel, who has previously swum the Danube, the Mississippi and the Yangtze, is planning to swim 3,375 miles from Peru to the Atlantic Ocean starting next month. The feat, if successful, will be not only an athletic achievement but a milestone in telemedicine. An international medical team headed by Dr. Rifat Latifi of University of Arizona's Telemedicine Program will be responsible for keeping Strel and his support team safe during the 70-day-long trip.

Using equipment provided by telemedicine companies Second Opinion and General Devices, the virtual medical team will monitor Strel round the clock. Strel has dedicated this swim to the preservation of the rainforest, to raising awareness for Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders and to promoting telemedicine as a valuable tool in bringing modern medicine to remote areas.

Posted by Editor at 2:09 PM | Permalink

Telephone conversations may never be the same again, now that KishKish has introduced its Lie Detector. An add-on for Skype's voice over IP service, the KishKish Lie Detector gives you a graphical representation of the stress levels of the other party to the conversation. For the first 10 seconds, the software calibrates the speaker's general stress level. Then, it monitors changes in stress as the person speaks. The theory is that because lying is stressful, it tightens the vocal cords and pushes the voice into above-normal registers. KishKish also makes other add-ons for Skype, including answering-machine software and a conversation recorder.

Posted by Editor at 10:56 AM | Permalink

What new broadband applications are you waiting for? Tell us what you think the next killer app will be.

Posted by Editor at 8:19 AM | Permalink