Classes are over















NEXT CLASS

Semester Over
It was Fun and I hope
you learned something
in this class. Review this blog in 2033
and see if we were right.


Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Revolutionary Innovation.


BY: Toren Miller

Many people recognize Mark Zuckerberg for his fervent effort to innovate social networking, his success at it, then leave it at that. What people fail to realize is the simple business genius of Zuckerberg. The innovations we take for granted as colloquial web surfers and Facebook users are marks of pure genius! Think about it, every social network including many non-social networks are linked to Facebook. You can sign in to your twitter, instragram, collegeboard, online clothing accounts, just about every website that has a login is linked to Facebook.

What does this all mean? If it is not already clear, Zuckerberg is sticking his hand in every profitable pot across the globe as each company looks to be generationally relevant. Facebook has over a billion users including a myriad of companies who provide promotions through Facebook.  He is literally profiting without any direct contact with any other entity! How genius is that? Between signing in to your email through Facebook to users all over the globe, Zuckerberg wins the entrepreneur of the decade in my book.

Mark Zuckerberg is also cultivating an affluent business through acquisitions. In his words, "We have not once bought a company for the company. We buy companies to get excellent people... In order to have a really entrepreneurial culture one of the key things is to make sure we're recruiting the best people. One of the ways to do this is to focus on acquiring great companies with great founders.” Thus Zuckerberg buys out potential competition and allots for exponential expansion. One of the most recent major acquisitions was Instagram on April 9th, 2012. The application has 90 millions users who log on at least once a day through Facebook. Zuckerberg is literally behind the scenes witnessing his pockets flourish due to his savvy business techniques.  


In accord with the previous statement of companies who use Facebook reveal promotions, Facebook has 21,655 companies on it around the globe. What this does is allow these companies to niche market when a user “Likes” their page. This gives the companies the opportunity to provide ads to every user who likes their page all through Zuckerberg releasing and selling the emails of the users. Imagine having 5,000 emails of people who like Starbucks, now Starbucks is willing to purchase said information with the purpose of providing these people with promotions that may potentially lead to higher sales. Now multiply that 5,000 by 100. Imagine the amount a company such as Starbucks is willing to pay for the information to gain access to those 500,000 emails. Zuckerberg is the largest third party advertising agent in the world through his systematic approach to gaining access to people’s emails and thus access to their personal preferences. Companies such as ESPN, Coca-Cola, Oreo, and Disney, put in a significant amount of work and effort into becoming one of the most popular companies on Facebook because they know popularity breeds consumption.



Mark Zuckerberg’s initial, internet changing invention of Facebook made him the youngest billionaire ever but his illustrious business savvy is cultivating him into one of the most powerful men in the world. I ask that we all take notes of how social media can make us all at least millionaires.


Relevant  Articles Below




http://www.biography.com/people/mark-zuckerberg-507402



Can There Really Only be ONE


BY: Gerald Gorham


In the recent years smart phone manufacturing have really explored all avenues to gain an advantage on other competitors. Although many perceive Apple’s iPhone Line to be the front runner in this competitive race companies such Google are not far behind. Many people currently know the Google’s Android line for their new Samsung Galaxy S4, but that is not their only new device for 2013.

Another major Android phone for 2013 is the HTC One. The HTC One has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 quad core processor, like the Galaxy S4. The HTC One also has 2 gigabytes of RAM, and a 4.7 inch display with 1080p resolution, which provides for a sharper image than the S4. This phone also operates using the Sense Home Screen, which turns your home screen into a live newsfeed, in which you can connect you social media accounts and other information sources.



Videos:







Technology Advancing in Education



By: Caleb Dyson

Technology is always evolving, pushing us further and expanding our capabilities. It continues to have a profound impact on us, transforming nearly every aspect of our lives. Nevertheless, one of the most important aspects of our personal growth education has yet to embrace all of technology’s transformational benefits. The future of education lies in personalized learning learning that is tailored to fit the needs of each individual. Every student has a learning profile that is as unique as a fingerprint. With personalized learning, students can focus on their own skills development to creatively and properly prepare themselves to enter and compete in the dynamic, digital and interconnected world of today.

Thanks to technology, personalized learning can take place anytime, inside or outside the classroom. Interactive video content supplements textbooks and can be further adapted to meet each student’s unique learning level. It is interesting to see how technology is growing in education. I remember when I was coming up; teachers were still using chalkboards to help us as students learn. Being that technology has grown so much, children can now be taught on the iPad’s and smart boards. Personally I think that students learn better with using technology in class rather than watch a black and white chalkboards. Technology attracts student’s attention and can keep them engaged because it is fun and interesting. With the amount of people that uses tablets in the education system, that can make the use of paper and chalk go extinct. The future is headed in a direction that will have students taking tests on their tablets and teacher teaching from smartboards.



Acer Aspire R7


BY: Elliot Cotton

We’ve seen some weird and wacky hybrids in previous years, but the newly launched Aspire R7 by Acer has gone further out on a limb than most. Its hinge, dubbed the “Ezel”, resembles the central support strut of an all-in-one PC more than a laptop hinge, and it delivers a surprising amount of flexibility.

With the Aspire R7 fully closed, the strut is flush with the lid, with the hinge itself attached to the center rear of the display. It looks odd, but this arrangement allows the screen to tilt back and forth, lift up above the keyboard so it’s floating like a desktop PC monitor, while spinning vertically to face away from you or fold flat, facing up.

While it can, of course, be used as a standard laptop, and positioning the display “normally” like this reveals the Acer Aspire R7’s other party trick its large, glass touchpad is also positioned above the keyboard instead of below it.




On the other hand, I have concerns about the long-term practicality of this arrangement. While testers were using it on the stand at Acer’s big launch event in New York, they found it difficult to mouse about without resting a palm on the keyboard, inadvertently pressing keys.

The position of the keyboard at the very front of the chassis also means there’s nowhere to rest your wrists while typing. On a hybrid, such as the Sony VAIO Duo 11, this isn’t a massive problem because the keyboard is so thin. On the Aspire R7, however, the front lip of the keyboard rises a centimetre or so above the desk, which makes typing feel distinctly odd.




Also, although this may not be immediately obvious from the photographs, the R7 is a very big machine. The Full HD IPS screen measures 15.6in from corner to corner, and the mechanics of that hinge means it’s a weighty piece of kit, too. Suffice it to say, it isn’t a laptop you’ll be wanting to lug around much and, perhaps in keeping with its all-in-one PC look, it’ll likely stay tethered to a desk.



While innovation is thriving now at an all time high companies are now forgetting the bare necessities and accommodations that all must consumers require. If Acer wants to see the maximum potential of this product they must take into consideration the conformability of their product as it relates to the consumers.  

High Energy Laser Takes Out Rocket


BY: Langston Brown

Recentely, Lockheed Martin has released a video of ADAM, a high energy laser system, destroying a rocket from 0.9 miles (1.5 km) away. The video evidently shows the laser beam striking and tracking a point towards the front of the rocket, before destroying it mid-flight.

ADAM, which stands for Area Defense Anti-Munitions is a laser weapon system that is designed to defeat close-in improvised rocket and unmanned aerial system (UAS) threats. Its purpose is to protect vulnerable assets such as military bases near the frontline, acquiring and tracking short-range targets from a distance of 5 km (3.1 miles), and destroying from a range of up to 2 km (1.2 miles).

Imagine being cooped up with your unit miles deep into enemy territory beyond any immediate help, behind some makeshift stone walls and plywood. Some are sleeping, while others stand watch using night vision to leach signs of danger from the dark. When the attack comes it starts with shoulder launched rockets — but rather than just seeing the flash and yelling for cover, troops are protected by Area Defense Anti-Munitions.

In the test, which took place April 22, an ADAM prototype takes out a "Qassam-like" rocket. Qassam rockets are artillery munitions used by the military wing of Hamas in attacks against Israel.
Lockheed Martin's video of the prototype test can be seen below.



Friday, May 3, 2013

Samsung’s Folding the Competition


By: Christopher Winston


Have you ever dreamed of a flexible phone that bends frontwards and backwards? Well your dreams may soon come true with Samsung’s new Youm Smartphone. Samsung previewed some of its flexible prototype at the International CES back in January 2013. The Youm prototype was an OLED screen the size of a smartphone that could bend like paper but can emit bright colors. The Samsung engineer who displayed the prototype had this to say, "We're so confident in the market potential for flexible OLEDs that we're creating an entire new line under the Youm brand name,"

Youm panels are predicted to hit the market at some time in 2013. The downside is these OLED panels are much more expensive compared to glass based panels. Customers can expect to pay an arm and a leg for this new innovative device. Once the Youm is released it is speculated they wont come out in mass volumes, rather it will be more of a “niche” product.


Thursday, May 2, 2013

Money is Debt. Debt is Money.


BY: Ed Ehite


Federal Reserve Notes, known as dollar bills are printed by the Federal Reserve and then lent to the United Stated. Since the Federal Reserve is a private corporation, like all loans this one bares an interest. Almost all loans are made up of the principal amount and accrued interest. If the entire money supply is borrowed from the central bank and then put in circulation by commercial banks through loans, only what is referred to as the principal is in the money supply. The first question should be is when does the accrued interest to be paid back in addition to the principal amount come into existence

Most money, around 97%, exists only virtually in the cyber world rather than dollar bills or coins. This means that only 3% of the total money supply can be held in the physical world. How does this work? The economy runs on faith that the credits and physical currency issued by the government take on the formal role actual goods or gold. If the people did not accept this relationship then this method would not be successive.

The real deception is the devaluation of currency which is known formerly as inflation. How can we expect to solve the problem of debt by increasing the money supply without a proportional expansion of goods and services? The only way to create more money is from loans. Therefore, if everyone in the country were able to pay off all debts, including the government, there would not be one dollar in circulation.

Technology is only allowing this debt ceiling to rise at an even higher rate. Marrine Eagles stated, “If there were no debts in our money system, there wouldn’t be any money.” Marrine Eagles served as Governor of the Federal Reserve and stated this September 30, 1941 at House Committee Hearing.




Started From the Bottom, Now We Here


BY: Darrell Frye

The future of flying vehicles has been undoubtedly a controversial topic that many individuals continue to engage in. However, the question regarding flying cars is more "when? rather than How?". Through thorough research of the evolution of the normal household car, it is evident that many prototypes have been created. These prototypes are being enhanced with daily innovations in order to securely promote this new form of transportation. Propellers have been designed, exteriors have been crafted, and engines have been created uniquely in order to cater to these flying crafts.  


Flying Cars? How will these cars land and take off? Is this Safe? The questions continue to mind boggle many of the brightest engineers who have dedicated their time towards this creation. Fortunately some have come closer in both designing and manufacturing this magnificent machine.

"Developers of a flying car say they're about $80 million closer to giving your morning commute a real lift. For years, Moller International has been working on a way to make the old science fiction dream of turning tires into turboprops a reality. Their SkyCar, designed for speeds of over 300 MPH at altitudes as high as 36,000 feet would seat four people and isn't trying to replace commercial air travel."
-DailyMail.co

The Topic of the Day:

"What a way to beat the traffic! Flying car developer says he's $80 million closer to making sci-fi dream a reality"



The "Moller Sky Car" has been named the "magic carpet" by its creator, Dr. Paul Moller. It is a vertical take off and landing flying car. The pods rotate to direct thrust with fans powered by 2 engines. Dr. Moller has experienced machine failure more than two times, but ensures the consumer that the technological brain of the flying machine will solve any immediate failure. I also found it interesting that Dr. Moller is considered an astronautical genius who earned a doctorate in engineering without any undergraduate experience.  


(embed video: http://www.dailymail.co.uk : Flying car that can hover short distances, drive on road)

The myth of flying cars is soon becoming a reality in this new generation. With the commitment of Dr. Moller, our society is one step closer of navigating through the air. I guess the next question is how will the GPS be innovated? 



Feel Free to share your thoughts. 

Where Will You Be After Graduation?



By: Vincent Carter

I have often wondered where college students around the nation go once they graduate. I know everyone is not going to work at JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, so where are they going? A new study reports that nearly half of college graduates are working as sales clerks, waiters, janitors and other jobs that do not require a college degree. The problem is the recent downturn in economic growth in the last few years mixed with the high volume and high expectations of college graduates.



Everyone is not going to receive a glamorous high paying job with a luxurious office right out of college. You have to work to earn these things and gain knowledge and experience to be able to be effective in your position. After graduation students face stiff competition not only from classmates but from current unemployed people, retirees, and other college grads from previous years who are still job hunting.




Google's Online Privacy Piracy


BY: Jordan Price

Google, we all use it just about everyday and most of us would admit that it is very useful and convenient, but is it safe? Google has been caught on numerous occasions now attempting to & successfully working its way around preset privacy settings for both Apples safari browser and Microsoft’s Internet explorer. Microsoft claims that Google has been circumventing their “P3P privacy protection” feature, which is a web standard that forces a website to reveal what they plan to do with the information collected from a user. Microsoft claims that Google is able to use a nuance if the P3P specifications that allows them to bypass a users specific privacy settings. This which means that even if a user sets their internet browsers privacy settings to deny third party cookies, Google will still be able to track what sites they look at and what they do on those sites; and extreme invasion of privacy in the eyes of many. Google has also been more recently accused of using these same deceptive tactics to bypass the privacy settings on smartphones, allowing them to monitor users behavior on their phones similar to the way their Internet use is monitored.  

Google Claims that they bypass these privacy policies to in fact, enhance users web browsing experience and allow for better functionality of Google’s “+1” features. However Google has always used our information for not only our benefit but also for their own as they sell much of this information to company’s that want to target us with advertisements. Google is now even planning collect all of this information they have been “monitoring” and put it in one place, giving its users a “profile,” where information bout what we do and search online in private may become public. 

The collecting of our information into once place & the concept of new Google technology such as Google glass calls for a more advanced understanding of the what you do on the web and how it can affect you in the real world.


Google Glass



Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Wednesday May, 2013 - Last Class

In class we will discuss:

  1. Final Grades - You need to calculate your own Final Grade. You have the Learnboost grades and the syllabus. Use algebra to calculate your final grade. Then add the Extra Credit where you wanted it placed. - The Fusion Table grades will be updated over the weekend, so check learnboost for that new grade. I will send an email/text blast once Fusion Table grades are updated.- If you have any issues with the reported grades in Learnboost, email me proof of my mistake to os3@aol.com and I will correct it and email you back.
  2. Homework #10 - Macros is discussed in more detail below.
  3. Final Exam - This Exam will open Thursday May 2, 2013 at Noon and Close on Sunday May 12, 2013 at midnight. Any graduating Seniors need to complete the exam by Saturday morning May 4, 2013 at noon. This exam will be on classmarker.com and will have 20 random questions from previous Excel Exams #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6 (new), #7 and #8. HW#9 and #10 will not be included in the final.
  4. Homework #9 - Due to the problems with add-ons for Apple, I am going to reactivate HW #9 and give students until Sunday May 5, 2013 at midnight to find a PC with the add-on to complete this exam. In order to do this, everyone will have a chance to retake this exam, if case you want to improve your grade. You can find some of the computers in the second Floor lab and Douglas that have Exam with the add-on. You will have to find by trial and error (check Excel menu or try to add it). You may want to ask an Economics Professor or Decision Science Professor which computers their students use, because they use Multiple Regression in their class. The best option maybe to ask a friend to use their PC. The Business Computer Lab on the second floor of the Leadership Center has the add-ins. They have Excel 2007. Watch this video or this video to add it in.
  5. Google Place Assignment - I will not grade this assignment until Wednesday May 8, 2013. This is to give some students more time to get their code. Once I get this assignment graded, I will send a blast email/text to everyone.
  6. Blog ebook - I will be converting this blog into an ebook and placing it in the cloud. You will get a blast email/text once that is done. I suggest you download and save the ebook on your own cloud drive for future reference. This blog will remain active for a few more months maybe years. The new address is http://misspring2013.blogspot.com/. the old address will go away soon www.hba322.info.
It will take me a day or two to get back to you, because of the last minute volume I may get from students.

If you would like to meet with me, I will be available by phone and join.me starting on Wednesday May 8, 2013. You need to text me first to make an appointment.



Homework #10 - Macros

I want you to create two different macros using any data you want. You can create your own, use data from a previous homework or find some data on the web. Then email me a copy of your excel file to osistrunk@gmail.com. This assignment is due Sunday May 5, 2013 at midnight. I will grade your spreadsheet based on both macros working.

Review some of the videos below:








Pros and Cons on Defense Spending


BY: Russell Richey


Recently there has been a huge uproar in the American Economy around the issue of decreasing federal spending. It was intended to serve as incentive for the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (aka the “Supercommittee”) to come to a deal to cut $1.5 trillion over 10 years. If the committee had done so, and Congress had passed it by Dec. 23, 2011, then the sequester would have been averted. However both the Democratic and Republican Parties have shown that they are on different agendas. Republicans have sentiment towards Defense spending and Democrats want to protect domestic spending.



In total the Sequester has accounted to cut more than 8% of the nation’s total defense spending. Most of the programs being cut are in the area of future weapons systems. Weapons used to finance the United States most recent military operations have not seen much shrinking. However, some of the military’s top secret programs have been put on hold due to the issues in Washington DC.

As illustrated in the picture below, many programs are losing money to enhance current conditions of military equipment. Some of the videos will help you understand how the cuts will affect the economy. One should consider how the overall economy will be affected and what kinds of stocks will outperform or underperform due to this action taking place on Capitol Hill. 

  Defense cuts could delay or cancel programs to modernize aircraft. Technicians here work on a Boeing AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter flown by the Army.
 


This video will help you better understand the bigger picture of what is going on behind the cuts.


iPhone 5 vs. the World: How Apple’s Device Stacks Up?


BY: Denzel Butler

Apple’s iPhone 5 features a larger display, more powerful processor and 4G LTE connectivity, but does that mean it’s also the most advanced smart phone ever? I do not think so, according to the specs  the iPhone 5's Retina Display is  one of the sharpest screens on the smart phone market. However, it falls short of the Nokia Lumia 920, which features a 4.5-inch 1280 x 768 display, and as well as the Motorola Droid RAZR HD Maxx. The video below shows an in depth comparison between the Nokia Lumia 920 and the iPhone 5.



From this video I believe the Nokia Lumia is a better phone. Another debate is between the Samsung Galaxy S3 and the iPhone 5, personally I believe the S3 is superior but this video will give incite to let you be the judge.



I do not believe that the iPhone 5 is the most advanced smart phone on the market, I believe there are at least 3 other phones, at least spec wise, that are better. I am in no way saying that the iPhone 5 is a bad product it is a great product, it is just not the greatest.  

I Heard it Through the VINE


BY:  Martavius Leonard

Social media has proven to be a stakeholder within today’s society. With such platforms as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, and YouTube, one would think that this generation has reached the peak of the social media phenomenon. Think again! Take a look at the new form of social media that has emerged on the scene.





In January 2013, Twitter released Vine video, its free video-sharing application that enables brands, businesses and consumers to shoot and upload six-second snippets to blogs, presentations, e-mails and social media sites. Vine is Twitter’s six-second video. The idea is to create quick, easy and interesting short films to share with friends and network on Facebook and Twitter. It is an app, currently only for iOS, that records six seconds of video and posts it on an endless loop to your Twitter account. The video below shows a more in-depth depiction of how the Vine works.





This new and innovative application is extremely attractive to consumers and businesses alike. More specifically, businesses can use the vine app to create unique marketing strategies to appeal to consumers and to restructure the way that people, brands, government agencies, and celebrities interact with one another. Businesses can use the Vine app to showcase its brand, send messages to fans, encourage fans or customers to contribute or donate to a particular cause, or to leverage existing video content. Below are some examples of how users are utilizing the Vine app.





Another advantage of using the vine app is the ability to share these videos with other consumers. Most individuals will share videos that they like with others, thus causing such user-generated marketing to spread significantly. According to the IAB Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence, 92% of mobile video viewers share mobile phone videos with their friends and social networks, with ‘tweeting’ accounting for 12% of all shares. That figure could rise if Vine turns video into a more prominent part of the Twitter service. 


Thus, if implemented correctly, Vine could become the next prominent marketing tool. This application is not yet available for Android users; however, its implementation on such devices could be the key to Vine becoming an household name and an international phenomenon. 

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Monday April 29, 2013 - Extra Credit

Today we will go over Google Fusion tables. Those who did not get a good grade can redo their assignment in class and have it regraded.



Those received a good grade can help their classmates and receive extra credit to be used on another assignment.

Finally, there will be a quiz in class. The points from this quiz can be used to boost an older completed assignment.

Atlanta Street Vendors: A Nuisance or Free Commerce at its Best?

BY: Alexander Terry


Anyone who has ever been to a Braves, Falcons, or Hawks game is familiar with traversing the maze of vendors outside the games in order to attend. Stalls jammed the sidewalks to the point that use of them was nearly impossible unless single file. The vendors constantly pushing their wares and trying to out compete their neighbors. Sometimes the tactics used to persuade purchasing was not the nicest around. It was a lively hood for many though. And Atlanta has not only restricted this commerce but it has given control of all policies on vending to a single company.




Atlanta, in the heart of conservative state with very lax marriage laws, boasts one of the most restrictive sets of laws regarding vending in the country. This type of economic chokehold not only hurts the vendors but the city as well. Atlanta is growing and attracting many companies to set up shop but it is the small businesses and the local entrepreneurs that really determine how well economically a city is doing. They are the backbone of commerce and this restrictive climate extends not only to vendors but anyone trying to do mobile food trucks as well. The city of Atlanta has made it illegal to vend on any public property. The Atlanta Street Food Coalition (ASFC) as well as the Atlanta Vendors Association (AVA) are continuously fighting for new legislation to alleviate such rigid measures against free commerce.




The question is what kind of message does Atlanta really want to send to the world. Most Fortune 500 companies were incorporated in Delaware because of their lax code on incorporation yet Atlanta says they want to attract this type of commerce while restricting its own people and its own sources of tax revenue. This economic hodgepodge of rules gives very mixed messages and could scare away potential companies from moving to Atlanta. Then a little over a year ago Atlanta gained a monopoly on public property vending which is sure to halt this commerce. And just in time for the Final Four and Braves Opening Weekend, that company made a huge push to eradicate vendors in front of Braves Stadium and the Georgia Dome. The vendors are in an uproar and rightfully should be as many of the vendors have been doing this for 20+ years, putting kids through college on the income from their operations.





Does Atlanta want to attract business or discourage it? Many of their practices say yes but the climate they are creating around these types of small businesses speaks volumes on their true intentions. 

Saturday, April 27, 2013

Technology and Sports


BY: Justin Rhim
 
Technology has become very relevant within the world of sports. In fact, there have been many groundbreaking inventions within the sports medicine and rehab world that have helped reduce the length of time an individual is injured for. Companies such as Under Armour have began to create new technology that prevents injury and enhances training abilities through wearable tech. Under Armour recently put out a commercial revealing a sports suit that has the ability to control temperature as well as monitor their activity during performance.

In the commercial entitled, “I Will”, Under Armour revealed its Armour39 performance suit in which a monitor fits around their torso to measure activity. The touch screen tracker that is inputted into the suit gives it a very futuristic look which seems to come right out of a movie. What makes Under Armour’s ad interesting is the fact that these futuristic suits will probably be available in the near future.



In terms of marketing strategies, I believe this a brilliant and innovative advertising scheme. This is the first commercial that I have seen involving futuristic technology from any of the sport brand companies such as Nike, Adidas, or Under Armour to name a few. Also, Under Armour decided to use fresh, new players from major sports such as young Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Bobcats. Under Armour seems to be making a strategic move to surpass Nike if their #iWill campaign proves successful.



Smartphone for the Visually Impaired


BY: Phillip Tyrus

If everything with the testing goes as planned, the world could see the first ever Braille smart phone this year.  Three years in the making, the phone is being designed by an interaction designer who makes short sci-fi films. Sumit Dagar is the designer’s name, and he has been working with the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi and the L V Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabadon on developing the prototype for the phone. Dagar won the money to fund this project in a contest through Rolex for enterprise. He is from India, and his motivation for making this phone is the millions of blind residents that the country of India has who cannot use a smart phone like you and I can. He is also looking to make the phone reasonably priced as well, looking to make it about two-hundred dollars retail.

The phone uses a touch screen that elevates and depresses the content in which it receives, making it possible for the blind to read the information on the screen. This is referred to as a haptic touch screen. When having a video conversation with someone, the user will even be able to feel the specific facial expressions that the person they are talking to has, as the screen will contour to their face. This technology is also beneficial in allowing the users to interpret maps, and do many more important activities on their smart phone. The technology will be able to interpret Braille text, images, animations, graphs, charts, and videos.
         
The technology used for the screen of the phone will use pixels to change the height on the screen, rather than the color, as a normal smart phone does. This is done using a grid of small pins that move up and down as the text and images change to form patterns that the blind are able to read.

The designer of the phone said in an interview, "Technology is giving everyone superpowers, but many blind people are not able to tap into these cool, new features, and the technology is making them even more disabled.” I could not agree with him more. I love the idea of him making this phone, and allowing a new demographic to partake in the technological advances that the rest of the population is privileged to enjoy. I hope the testing is successful and the phone makes it onto the market as soon as possible.