telescopes

Microsoft shows off multitouch sensor prototype

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--Microsoft researchers on Thursday demonstrated a new, low-cost method for manipulating a digital desktop or wall display with two hands.

Called LaserTouch, the prototype is the latest invention of computer vision specialist Andy Wilson, a researcher from Microsoft Research's Redmond, Wash., campus. Wilson has worked on Microsoft's Surface computing, among other projects. But more recently he's developed a sensing technology system that would allow people to retrofit any display--e.g., a desktop or projector--so that they could use their hands, instead of a mouse, to interact with the computer.

The system uses a low-cost … Read more

Microsoft exec: Survival is all about research

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--If you ask Rick Rashid why Microsoft is still around, he'll respond that it's because of research.

Rashid has no small stake in that answer. The founding member of Microsoft Research in 1991 and now its senior vice president, he said the unit has been responsible for everything from early code for Microsoft's entertainment products to its Xbox 360 game system.

"The reason you do basic research is for survival. You (provide) the agility to change when change is critical," Rashid told an audience at Microsoft Research's Silicon Valley lab here. &… Read more

Travel through the universe

Last night, Microsoft Research released WorldWide Telescope--new, free software that enables users to explore the universe with impressive content from the Hubble Space Telescope, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, the Chandra X-Ray Observatory Center, and other famed ground- and space-based telescopes. Colorful nebulae, distant galaxies, black holes, and radiation clouds are all accessible from your desktop with a few clicks. The software has been released for free in honor of Jim Gray, a Microsoft researcher who was lost at sea last year.

Google Earth added a similar feature called Google Sky with its Version 4.2 release. Google also … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 723: Best bad idea ever

The military has proposed creating their own botnet to help combat cyberfoes. Kevin Poulsen at Wired thinks this is idiotic. We think there's a certain amount of mad genius to it, and debate the points. Meanwhile 6 million Chileans had their personal data leaked to the Internet. Don't worry it's not all shock and awe. Harvard says violent video games are A-OK! Shoot 'em up, kids! Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 723

Note: We are making a change to our podcast feed system on Friday, May 16. However, you do not need to subscribe to … Read more

Microsoft launches space tours on the Web

Microsoft is ready to boldly take Web surfers where none has gone before.

The software giant on Monday launched its WorldWide Telescope, a free Web-based program that allows Web surfers to explore galaxies, star systems, and distant planets. The program, which was developed by Microsoft's research arm, weds images from the Hubble Space Telescope, the Chandra X-Ray Observatory Center, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, and others.

"Users can see the X-ray view of the sky, zoom into bright radiation clouds, and then cross-fade into the visible light view and discover the cloud remnants of a supernova explosion from … Read more

Microsoft Research launches WorldWide Telescope, Scoble cries

You probably have heard about Microsoft Research's WorldWide Telescope referred to as "the thing that made Robert Scoble cry". Today, the world finally gets to check out what all the buzz is about.

WorldWide Telescope is a desktop application for Windows which does exactly what you would think. It essentially turns your computer into a telescope. You can choose from a variety of options from roaming the universe freely, to guided tours of various celestial features. You can join communities of stargazers and also connect your own telescope to your computer and control it with this application. … Read more

TechFest catch-up

There was plenty of TechFest coverage last week, but we have a couple more bits to add to the mix.

Up now are several videos from last week, including highlights of a walk-around I did with Craig Mundie, Microsoft's chief research and strategy officer.

There was a lot last week--from Micropedia, to the much-touted WorldWide Telescope to a new operating system called Singularity. To make it easier to find it all, check out this roundup of all our print and video coverage.

Also worth checking out is a video that colleague Kara Tsuboi did looking at some image-editing software … Read more

Microsoft's telescope looks beyond space

REDMOND, Wash.--One of the key things in Microsoft's new WorldWide Telescope software has nothing to do with space.

The software uses a new Microsoft "visual experience engine" to gather and stitch together images from multiple data sets as well as allow a variety of users to author their own guided tour. While space was a good area to try out the technology, principal researcher Curtis Wong notes that it's not the final frontier for the visual experience engine.

"It's a core one to start with," he said, but noted that the idea … Read more

A M*A*S*H-up at TechFest

Microsoft aimed to spice up its TechFest keynote event Tuesday by inviting actor and PBS science show host Alan Alda onstage to chat with executive Craig Mundie.

Though perhaps an odd pairing, it's not uncommon for Microsoft to have celebrities and executives mingle onstage at its events.

During the talk, Alda and Mundie talked about how computer science is moving into new areas such as biology. One topic they adressed was the notion that at some point drugs may be able to truly be tested on computer cell simulations rather than living beings.

Alda pressed Mundie on whether Microsoft … Read more