Gesture-enabled touchpad fits on your thumbnail (Tomorrow Daily 164)

On today's show, SpaceX tries once again to land a re-usable rocket, in the middle of the ocean. And, MIT shows of a touchscreen, that fits on your thumbnail. And some kids are getting to use future tech, to learn in new, incredible ways. It's Tomorrow Daily! [MUSIC] Greetings citizens of the Internet, welcome to Tomorrow Daily, the best geek talk show in the known universe. I'm Ashley Esqueda. Joining me as always, the best, the one, the only, Khail Anonymous. Hey, how's it going? it's pretty great. Yeah, you had a, you had a Star Wars weekend. I had an action-packed weekend. Can I- That's why I wore my Star Wars shirt. Do you want me to do the thing now? Do you do the thing now? Okay, so, so real quick. She went to Star Wars Celebration on Friday. She got a chance to experience it. She said she was going to buy me a t-shirt. I promised I'd buy you a t-shirt, and I did. Oh! I got you a shirt that says-- here, go to my camera-- it says, Visit The Death Star It's No Moon It's No Moon. There's your shirt. There's your shirt. Yeah, awesome. I said I didn't want one that was like Star Wars. So, a celebration. Yeah, I didn't want you to but I wanted to get something cool and stylish and that seemed like a good one and I hope it fits you. Thank you. Yeah, so there's your shirt. Fancy. I'm ruining the mic. Sorry about that. [INAUDIBLE] fancy about it.>> Okay, cool. So alright. With that being said. Let's hit the headline. [MUSIC] So you're gonna see a video of us, and you're gonna be a little bit freaked out, but it's pretty cool. Oh, boy. MIT Media Lab just unveiled what they're calling NailO. NailO, like bingo but NailO. Mm-hm. And it's a nail-mounted gesture input surface, which really translates to, it's a little tiny track pad for your thumb. [INAUDIBLE] red on your thumbnail. [INAUDIBLE] Uuugh. Weird, right? So weird. So you're seeing. If you're just listening, you're seeing a person making a square on their thumb with this like crazy device on it. And they're making little designs that are showing up on a Nexus cell phone. So it'll transmit data via Bluetooth to a smartphone or PC, and they're saying you could top it with nail art. So they were saying it won't be as obvious. So, yeah, to hide it. You can hide it a little bit. You can make it kind of cool so it won't totally be weird-looking. They said the commercial version, they would have, like, maybe switchable, like, top surfaces so that you could match it with your outfit or whatever. Nice. Yeah. Kinda cool. And then they gave a couple of different examples of when you would need to sorta need to use this and I, cause at first I'm like why do we need this? Wha, what is this? But then they mentioned how people would sorta use this and I thought to myself, okay that actually makes a lot of sense. So, engineers who are sorta soldering something and using both hands. If they need to, if they need to do something really quick, like a swipe gesture that would sort of either help them zoom in on printed circuit board designs like while they're soldering, like that might be a really good use for it. They also offered up a mobile typing app for punctuations or emoticons. Without switching keyboards. So, you know, on all of the phones you have to switch to, like, an emoji keyboard or your punctuation is, like, a different space on your keyboard. That was one of the other examples. Better not use it for emojis. I will, I will come to your house. Do not use this for emojis. And then also, they did tests, involving five different gestures, and they actually. Had over 92% accuracy in their test results which is pretty good. That is incredible for a new technology. I I didn't hear them say [UNKNOWN] cuz that would be pretty cool if you're like, you're wearing your goggles and you're seeing like. You're seeing a list, you're, like, cooking or something, and you're seeing the big list, and you're kind of scrolling. Scrolling through your list, or- That would be a really good use of, like, if you were to make it work via Bluetooth with a holo lens, or, or with a, you know, DVR or something. Cuz you're not gonna want to hold a controller, you're gonna want it to be intuitive, so you're gonna. Well you have a little thing on your finger and you can scroll through and move around, and, and you don't have to have, like, a controller or a glove, or. Can you imagine flipping through your email that way, just like, one, one, one, one, one. And it's very inconspicuous, obviously. So if there was a situation in which you wanted to be a little bit more subtle, maybe you were at a meeting or something and you. Email, and they said three years out, approximately for a commercial release. That's not fast enough. Not fast enough but you know, maybe the technology will get better and they'll be able to do it quicker. But they said they, they think right now about three years out. And also my biggest question was what about accidental presses like what if you accidentally touch your thumb? Cause I do that all the time. Like I'm always fiddling around with my, my thumbnails and. Yeah. My fingernails and stuff. And you suck your thumb. I do, everyday before I go to bed. And and so Siri like to activate Siri, like to activate Siri or something, they said it would be like. Period in which you would have like maybe a two-second intentional press to like activate the touch. Okay. The touchpad. Yeah. There you go. It's called Nail-o How weird is that? How's [UNKNOWN] today, TDNail, and my question is, what kind of tech would you want on your thumbnail? Like aside from a touchpad, like what's something, a piece of technology that you would want so small that it could fit on your thumbnail? Nail. Aside from Paul Rudd as Ant Man. Just keep him on your thumb. Just carry him around. Yeah, yeah. Have him fight crime for you. [LAUGH] How about like a, like a little, it's like a, it gives you like a burst of energy? Oh. So, like an. Energy boost thing. So I'm just like, man I am real tired. Whoa. I'm wired. You know what I mean? [LAUGH] Like [CROSSTALK] That's how you do is you just do that, and it's quick, it's easy. You get a cup of coffee. Okay. All right. I like that. [CROSSTALK] Yeah, you need some, you need a boost. I like that. What about you? I think for me it would be, I would like to, like right after I wake up. I would like for some way to, like, record my dreams. Like, to be able to wake up and be like, I'd like to record that. And then, like, you, like, tap your thumb, so you don't have to move or, like, start up anything. That's crazy. [CROSSTALK] Like, ooh, I wanna record that and rewatch it. And then you just, like, hit, you know, tap your thumb a couple times or something, and then it sends that to some device, of course, that you're hooked up to wirelessly, cuz you're half-cyborg. That's my future, that I would like us all to live in. So there you go. Nice. [UNKNOWN] Yea, I'm moving forward in the future guys. I'm just like,combining it with other stuff. O.k. All right, tell me about this school. O.k. so one of the best things you can use tech for is for, teaching. I think. Sure And this company called Z. Space, has decided to help kids learn in the way that I learned the best, which is learning by doing. Mm. And that is through AR and VR. Well, less VR and more AR. 'Kay. What they have created is this giant- Wow. Screen that works with three, these 3-D glasses that the kids put on. And the screen tracks where they're looking. And because of that, they can create almost an interactive digital space for them to work in. That is amazing. So they, they want to teach them through, through all different things. Science and, and, and nature and, and all these different types of things. So one of the examples they gave was, you can see the human heart. Mm-hm. You can pick it up. You use the stylus. You can pick up the heart, peel back layers. Whoa. And look at it, the way it works. You'll see this kid using, like- Look at this. Yeah. He's interacting with robotics. So it's not just putting on a VR headset and disappearing into this world and not interacting. You have kids learning through interaction and learning through do, through doing. Another one of the ones that they have on here is, I don't know if you did this when you were in, in, in grade school, but you can di, you dissect an, owl pellet. Oh. So like owl droppings and you dissect it, and you find like a mouse head, and you find like, you know, like mouse feet and stuff like that, but you see how like That's a good way to do it. the digestive system and stuff works. So you can digitally do the, you know, the deed. I like it. And signed all your rat droppings. Dig through all the poo. Mm-hm. Virtually. So yeah so they're hoping to use science, evolution, history and all that kind of stuff. I also, I really like how collaborative this is. Like cuz if we, if we had virtual reality headsets and we were learning like you were saying we would just put on a headset and then we';d never interact with anybody around us. But this seems like, see they're all like talking to each other and they're both looking at the same thing and kind of. You know, like getting into it together. Yeah. And that's the whole goal of C Space is to not have these kids disappear off into this world, but to interact and they don't have to be- They'll do that at home. [LAUGH] Yeah, no, they've got their- [CROSSTALK] They've got their phones. Yeah. So. So, yeah, there you go. They're hoping to bring this to more classes, right now it's just touring and going to specific schools. Oh, cool. Yeah. Maybe there's one locally. We should go see if maybe they have a local school. Just go to an elementary school, just show up. Just show up and be like, hey guys. We're Tomorrow Daily. And of course, all the kids will know us because we're so popular. Hey, Grandma and Grandpa. Get out of here. We got to finish watching our vine videos. Who are these old people? Get 'em out of here. Yeah. That's awesome. I really like that. That's super cool. I, I, again, I like when we're starting to use the AR and the VR, not just. Just like, look, I recreated Zelda. But, like to actually teach [UNKNOWN] Cuz one of the things that the brought up was what is it? Where an object in motion stays in motion? Yeah. New. Like. Newton's. Newton's Law? Yeah. The Newton's. Yeah, sure. Newton's Law. [INAUDIBLE] But they said that it was hard for kids. Kind of grasp what that was, what that meant, because we don't have zero gravity in which to you know, show that as an example. Okay. So they were able to show it in this virtual reality space of an object continuously going without having any constriction. Oh,. And so, yeah. I like that. Able to show you things that you can't learn in our own universe. I say, I like that. In our own world so. I like that a lot. That's awesome. Love it. Good job, ZSpace. Super cool. Okay, I'm gonna tell you a little bit about SpaceX. So we were super Star Wars wasted last Thursday. So we kinda forgot to go over this. Super Star Wars drunk, yep. We, we were drunk on Star Wars and we're sorry everybody, but SpaceX last Wednesday attempted a, a third round. Oh to try to land the rock, one of the rockets. Oh, boy. The Falcon 9 rocket on a barge in the middle of the ocean. Here it goes. It's off. Oh just so close! Look at, wait. And you think oh my gosh did they do it? I think they did it. I think they did it. And then all of the sudden as the smoke is about to clear, it falls over. [LAUGH] The rocket falls over, and it didn't work [INAUDIBLE] Oh no. Explosion. It's terrible. [INAUDIBLE] no. That's why I love this goPro footage from the actual barge. Like, check this out. So here it is. It's, like, boom, and then not so good. So, they were really close this time. So the first time, there was, i, it was too fast. It just literally exploded. It was not good. The second time, it missed the platform entirely, it went right into the drink. It. it didn't even hit the barge, just went right in the water. [LAUGH] And then the third time was, was this time. So, Okay. What if they said, what, have they said a response to this? Cuz they usually have well, like, well, we know there was one time but. Science takes multiple tries. Very true, very true. So Elon Musk said it failed due to a quote, slower than expected throttle valve response. So they're getting closer. And I, I think that every time that they kind of do this, they learn a little more about., you know, what exactly needs to be done. I know that they delayed this launch, this Falcon 9 launch. For. I think one or two times because of weather. So, I think that they sort of know that for now, like they really can't do this unless it's under like the most optimal of circumstances, but it wasn't a total failure. They actually set up a. Supplies and cargo. Scientific cargo. The the International Space Station. Which there was a really great picture of one of the astronauts up there taking a picture with it in the background. Like, out the window with like Earth behind it. It was so weird and she was dressed in. I think she was dressed in like a Star Trek outfit. It was great. Whoa. So fantastic. So so yeah. It tipped over on the platform. Didn't quite hit the target perfectly. They, they, I, they're saying it's two months until the next attempt. So we have another, about eight weeks or so until they try it again. But I like that they're not stopping. They're not going to be like, oh, you know, third time. Forget it. We, yeah, I mean, I guess it just can't be done. They're determined. Well, I hope they don't give up, like- I don't think they will. I, I, would love to, yeah, I'd love for this thing to work out for them. I mean- It seems like they're so close. More of this stuff, like, the morph. I, I just get this, the internet and that sort of mentality is way, it's like every time it fails, it's like, see. Not gonna work, instead of realizing that science takes multiple tries to like get stuff right sometimes. Well and failure's just part of science I mean that's. And life. And life in general. I mean it's just, nobody ever accomplished something without some kind of failure behind it. So I, like, I think that they're very well aware of this. And, you know, it could really revolutionize not only commercial space flight in, in the way that, you know, maybe we'd be able to get things back and forth. But it just makes space, space life so much cheaper. Mm-hm. So, or even just getting things to and from, you know, the International Space Station in general, it'd just make it so much cheaper. Yeah, so cut 'em a break. Cross your fingers. Yeah, give 'em some encouragement. Pray to your space gods. [CROSSTALK] Whatever, whatever it is that you do, do those things. And yeah, so maybe fourth time will be a charm. It wasn't the third time. I was hoping it was and they were so close, and I got so excited when I was watching it, and I was just like, come on, come on, come on, they're gonna do it, they're gonna do it! Were you blowing on your screen, to tip it back? And then it, and then it just tipped over, and I was like, oh no, and then it exploded, and I was like, aw. Like, it was just the most depressing, like parable. Yeah. But you know- [INAUDIBLE] played the Price is Right, that [NOISE] I know. [NOISE] Yeah. So that's that's what happened with SpaceX. We just want to keep you posted, cause I know we follow this pretty closely. Yeah. Like we're really excited to see what happens. So we're going to take quick break. We'll be right back with a [INAUDIBLE] that I know you will be super interested in. And and I think you're going to be excited. And then we have your emails and feedback about Star Wars which is really good. Woo! And we have our phonetograph for today, so don't go away, it's Tomorrow Daily. [MUSIC] Welcome back to the show. It's Monday, which means it's time to talk about a crowd funding effort [INAUDIBLE]. That we're maybe a little bit excited about, or maybe not. This is Back It or Hack It. Alright, this week we're talking about a virtual reality headset? It's called Wearality Sky. Wearality. Hm, Wearality. Wearality Sky. It's portable, you can fold it up and put it in your pocket. That I like. Okay, it's a head set. Cool. It uses your smart phone, five to six inch smart phone. Here it is. So you're gonna see a little bit of this video of people using it. and, it is basically a VR-opted headset with a one hundred and fifty degree field of view which is impressive compared to other VR headsets. They were, they said on, on their kickstarter that most other headsets are between ninety and a hundred degrees. So, it's quite a bit more, as the field of view is quite a bit. Bigger. Which is good. They are using a very interesting piece of technology for the lens on this. So what they're using is, they're using what is called a double Fresnel lens. And it's technology that was developed by Lockheed Martin for defense and aerospace industries. [LAUGH] Okay. So it's serious, like this is really serious. The lens is really thick and it looks like Mr. Magoo glasses, like they're really weird. Right. And I think we have another video like showing the actual. Like Professor [UNKNOWN] glass? Yes, like Professor [UNKNOWN] it's exactly like that. So, they're saying that the open design of these, this, like, this disposable headset, and the expanded field of vision, is gonna eliminate a lot of the motion and simulation sickness that people report when they use, things like the Oculus Rift [UNKNOWN] Yeah. And they also are saying that it will, because of the field of vision they, they will also eliminate a lot of eyestrain. So a lot of eyestrain involved in the VR, that might not be there-. Okay. With this particular type of headset. Okay. There's also removable blinders on the sides, so if you wanna like close off the world around you, you can like put the blinders on. kind of weird. So -- okay. So they have this video, it shows you, like, okay, here is all the different degrees of field of vision. So there is a tablet that is 25 degrees. You've got a laptop, also 45 degrees field of vision, and then, oh, here is your flat screen TV, 50 degrees. So you are thinking like how many degrees wide you can see. So flatscreen tv, 50 degrees. Movie theater, 75 degrees. Which is pretty good, 75 degrees wu, theater. And then 110 degree field of vision IMAX screen and then there is you know, their headsets 150. So they are saying it is a pretty big field. The mission. It's almost entirely like, from one side to the other, which is kinda crazy. So, yeah, 115 degrees, Wearality Sky. Hopefully they have an actual image of like, there it is. So there's the device, the lenses you can see, look how thick they are They're shaped like actual glasses They're really thick, they're super thick, they're like- Okay, so it's a kickstarter. So how, how much are they trying to raise and how much does it cost? Okay, so they want well, let me tell you how much it costs first. Okay. Okay. To back it it's gonna cost you $69. Not bad. And, and you get, and you get a pair. Mm-hm. Okay. All right. $69 is the pre-order. Yeah. And let me see, actually Logan can we get this shot really quick, I just want to show everybody. So that's the, that's the image right there, that's what it looks it. It's like a really weird, like heads, headset kind of thing, that's like so. See that? Yah. Alright. Kind of bizarre. Yah. $69 bucks. Pretty good. Not counting the cost of your phone. They want $100,000, which isn't a huge goal. No, it's not. And they have about half that, and they've got 15 days left, so they're halfway there. Maybe they'll make it, maybe they won't. And it flattens down, it goes in your pocket. Foldable, you can put it right in your pocket. What do you think? Yup. Back it. You in? Yeah because google cardboard, I've always said is amazing and incredible. And it's 30 bucks. Yeah, and this is just taking it from the non crappy, Cardboard. version of that, for a little bit more and you know, that sort of VR experience. I was telling, I think, producer Logan, that you, you're camera has that ability where you can take a picture and do like that thing where you. Oh, yeah. You look around and you get [CROSSTALK] You can get a 360 degree look at where you are. Well, you just pop that in one of these. [CROSSTALK] And you can show somebody, look, I went to Disney World. Look at this 360, or we could show you this studio [INAUDIBLE] Very true. 360 degrees. So, I man Okay. We're moving towards that sort of photo experience so yeah, definitely, what is it 360? Yeah. Yeah, 70 bucks. Once you try Google Cardboard, you'll know exactly why this sort of like, portable easy It's super fun It's super cool. So yeah, 69 bucks to back it. It ships in October this year, so this year. Pretty good. I guess that's the targeted ship date. We always, we never know about delays guys, we take no responsibility for delays. But yeah, that's what it's called wear, wearality. Sky, is the name of it. So. I like it. I'll back it too. I say I'm in. Under a hundred bucks? Okay. Very cool. It's pretty cool. All right, guys. It's time to talk about what you think of the show, and we're pretty excited cuz it's all about Star Wars. So here's your user feedback. You realize I'm never going to have a good. Segue way for that. It's like, oh, hey, guys, it's time to talk about what you think. So you guys are, you guys exist. [CROSSTALK] Let's see what you guys have to say. Hey, wait a minute. There's people watching. Okay, so Frank wrote into us, this is TD Star Wars. With the hashtag. We were saying, what are you excited about? Who are you excited about seeing? Who's your favorite character from the new trailer? Could be an old character, it's all good. And Frank said, I'm excited to see the new villain or villains, new droids, new Jedis, Solo, and Chewie! [APPLAUSE]. [APPLAUSE] Yeah. [INAUDIBLE] I love that. I love how they can just show us one new, like cause there's going to be more trailers. Yeah. They can be like, in this next one we're going to show Leia. In this next one we're going to show, you know, Luke. I know. And they could just stretch it out. But that- They could totally stretch it out. Hun and Two were a good start. That was a good moment. Real good start. Good moment. August wrote in and said, I'm with KhailAnonymous on this one. I want to see the villain and what he's capable of. Yeah August. He's scary. He was scary for the five seconds he was in this trailer. He's like. Yeah, and then everyone was like. I'm just like, you win. I know. Okay. All right. I give up. You win, bro. Dan wrote in and said, I agree with Ashley about having the trilogy be for my generation. I just want to see the older characters be part of the movie. Totally agree. I think they are [UNKNOWN] partners. You have to have them as partners. Did I do that too? It;'s like yeah.>> Yeah. Yeah, he's right I said that. Yeah, we both. [UNKNOWN] About the generation thing. Oh, yeah, yeah.>>This is my, this feels like it's going to be my>> generation [UNKNOWN] That's cool and see it in the theatre and what not.>>Yeah, yeah, and it's not going to be made. For kids. Like I felt like the prequels were made for kids, and I was already an adult by then. I feel like I missed out, and I feel like this is the trilogy that's gonna be made for me. And then lastly I got, we got an email from Jimmy H, and he says, I was eleven. And when I saw Star Wars in the theater, my dad took me and I loved it, so when I saw the latest trailer I got so choked up, no other Star Wars got me so emotional. I was thinking to myself, yes, they did it. The whole feeling I had nearly 40 years ago came back. I am so happy at what they did. They captures all the elements of the original series. I always wanted to see the later films made, not the prequels. For me, the newest trailer is perfect. I am so happy to get to experience a film that needed to be made. I feel we needed another series of fils to close the Star Wars Saga. And then he says, I like Boba Fett, i think he is a great character, I don't know much about the expanded universe but from the movie he is a complex character and hope, will hopefully play in a big role in the new movies. I also like Jango Fett in the prequels so a lot of history to be played out. Out. That's what Jimmy H said. Well it depends on whether or not J.J. Abrams believes that Boba Fett is dead or not. I know. It's going, that's going to be some- Because they ret-conned all those books. So- They did. So could be, he could be dead. So [INAUDIBLE] may be dead. Oh man, if J.J. Actually he wouldn't be dead, he'd just be digesting. J.J., the second J.J., like if J.J. put. Bobafett in there. [CROSSTALK] Like that's the one, that's the one he's going to get super smug about when people, like, are like, oh my god. Bobafett's back. And he'll be like- Yup. Yeah. You love me. Yeah. [UNKNOWN] I, I pulled him out. He'll be the biggest hero of all time if he brings back Bobafett. Pull him out of the pit. JJ Abrams will be, will be, they'll construct monuments to him. He's being digested by a [UNKNOWN] currently. So if they can find a way to get him out of there, I will be impressed. I'm one of the rare. Few human beings that couldn't give a crap about Boba Fett. I, I don't really. He's that guy. I don't really care. I don't care. I don't care. Not, one not positive or negative. But I know that people will, will make monuments of JJ Abrams for sure. Yeah. Jabrams. So, of course, that was your Star Wars feedback, and now it is time for a very special phonetographer of the day. [MUSIC] So we have some folks who write into the show who are kind of like, I would consider them super fans. Like, they write in every day, they're always part of user feedback, they love the show, and one of those people is Gail. And Gail writes in today, or last week, and he says, any chance this would be a Phonetographer Choice, my wife and I are expecting our first. Oh my God! Taken with a Lumia 520. That is, your wife is, you and your wife, congratulations. On your brand new- Yeah, congratulations, Gail. Whoa! Is that a squirrel? I don't know. It looks, maybe it could be a baby. Is this a, a shot from space? Shot from space. Oh, yeah. That was taken from ISS. This is, this is amazing. Best news ever. Congratulations. Gail, Neil Gail. But he's got like a whole thing on Twitter, it's like a long name. You know what camera that he used? A Lumia 520 to take that picture. [LAUGH] They have that app where you can see pregnancy too. Oh yeah, so you just hold the phone. Nobody knows that about Windows phones. That's amazing. Secret, secret app. That's super cool. Thank you for sharing that. Yea, congrats. [FOREIGN], whatever other congratulatory phrases we can throw out, confetti, all that stuff. Genghis is really excited for you. Yeah, very cool. Congratulations. So, yeah, that was, I thought that was a really good phonetography. If you guys want to share your phonetography, feel free to send it to tommorow@cnet.com. Include what phone you took it with, give us a little story about it, we always like to read stories. And of course you can send in show ideas, you can send in story, story ideas, whatever you want. Send in babies. Send in your baby. That's fine. You can do that. I mean I don't know how you do that via email, that's kinda weird, but if you can figure that out. Pretty, oh yeah, send it in attachment, there you go. Or [UNKNOWN] put it in a Dropbox, and we'll get you [CROSSTALK]. Dropbox it to us, yeah. It's probably a little too, maybe probably a little too big of an attachment via email. Probably there's a limit there. Yeah, you need to use Megaupload. Yeah, yeah, definitely, or like you send it or something? Mm hm. Alright, and then if you wanna find us on social media, we're on Snapchat, Tumblr,. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, we're at tomorrow daily on all those things, and tomorrow daily tv on google plus. And if you're watching on YouTube, my favorite subscriber with a comment. And if you're listening on the iTunes podcast, you missed the baby picture You did. But don't forget to rate and. Review, and thank you for your follow. So there you go, and don't forget to follow us on our personal Twitters. I'm @khailanonymous. And I'm @ashleyesqueda and that's it for the show today. We'll be back tomorrow for the weird, wonderful world of technology, science fact, science fiction, blowing up together. In our faces in the best way possible. Good? Yeah. All right. Yeah, it's true enough. All right. Until then be good humans. We'll see you guys next time. Bye. [MUSIC]