technology

Earlier this month, a University of Washington researcher was able to send a brain signal over the internet to control the hand motions of a fellow researcher.  What do emerging brain technologies mean for the future of privacy and identity?  Sara Goering joins us with some answers – and some questions.  She’s a professor of philosophy at the UW and she leads the ethics thrust at the UW Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering.

With so many global challenges — climate change, overpopulation, natural-resource depletion — Ramez Naam argues that the only solution is innovation. Naam is a computer scientist who spent a decade at Microsoft, where he helped develop early versions of Outlook and Internet Explorer. He’s currently adjunct faculty at Singularity University.

Brain surgery is now done by lasers. But doctors must still open up the skull in an incredibly difficult procedure. Scientists are developing a transparent skull to make it easier. The transparent skull will serve as a window into the brain allowing immediate access to check the progress of cancer without repeated surgeries.  It could take a decade before the see-through skull is perfected. Ross Reynolds talks with Masa Rao, assistant professor in mechanical engineering at the University of California Riverside who is working on the skull.

The University of Washington's Center for Game Science has an outrageous claim: By playing a computer game called DragonBox Adaptive for 90 minutes, 92 percent of first graders can master algebraic linear equations.

But that's not just an untested claim — it's the result of tests done in Washington state's public schools. Amazingly, that statistic also held for the few kindergarten classes that have tested the game. Most school districts don't introduce this material until middle school. Today, Ross Reynolds speaks with the Center for Game Science's director, Zoran Popović.

University of Washington computer science professor Oren Etzioni will lead a new institute on artificial intelligence founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. Etzioni designed the technologies behind startup companies Netbot and Farecast. He talks with Ross Reynolds about what he could do working for Allen that he couldn’t do at the University of Washington.

Two new iPhones are hitting the market later in September. The upscale iPhone 5S, and the cheaper iPhone 5C . But will the iPhone 5c be cheap enough?

There used to be a time when a new iPhone meant a jump in Apple’s stock. This time, not so much. Apple's stock fell 5 percent due to concerns that the new  iPhone 5C is not cheap enough to compete with Google's Android phones, which currently lead the pack. Joining us to talk tech is Todd Bishop co-founder of the independent technology news site and online community Geekwire.

Seattle Times tech columnist Monica Guzman is back on the grid and using her phone to help navigate the city. Guzman tells us about a smart phone app that helps her get where she needs to go with the least amount of trouble. The app is called Waze.  It incorporates user data and the more you drive, the better it gets. Ross Reynolds chats with Guzman about how she gets around town.

Author Alex Soojung-Kim Pang has spent years studying people, technology and how devices have invaded our lives. In his book, "The Distraction Addiction," he explains how overusing technology is "destroying our souls." Ross Reynolds talks with Pang about how people can be more mindful with their technology.