We are entering a new age of cool! Apple's iPhone is a game changer! Here the iPhone serves as an interface between a device and our experience with the device in real world use, enhancing the experience by bringing us a richer context in real time. (Of course, that's only part of this brilliant story.)
I'm wondering when we will begin to see such application in the field of education. Maybe it's already out there and I've missed it? All I am aware of are educational applications that pretty much emulate the way we have been doing school already. I'm having a hard time myself, getting my head around ways the iPhone/iPod Touch can be interfaced into a learning environment to add a really deep contribution that extends the experience in real time. I wish I were just more creative!
The bike wheel contains all you need so that no sensors or additional electronics need to be added to the frame and an existing bike can be retrofitted with the blink of an eye. ...By using a series of sensors and a Bluetooth connection to the user's iPhone, which can be mounted on the handlebars, the wheel can monitor the bicycle's speed, direction and distance traveled, as well as collect data on air pollution and even the proximity of the rider's friends. ...
The Copenhagen Wheel is part of a more general trend: that of inserting intelligence in our everyday objects and of creating a smart support infrastructure around ourselves for everyday life... The Wheel has a smart lock: if somebody tries to steal it, it goes into a mode where the brake regenerates the maximum amount of power, and sends you a text message. So in the worst case scenario the thief will have charged your batteries before you get back your bike."
