i've found a really cool invention.... introducing.. CLOCKY!

it's a research project at MIT, but like, totally more practical than anything i ever worked on in school :)

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PROFILE: Clocky
Clocky is, quite simply, for people who have trouble waking up.

When the alarm clock goes off and the snooze button is pressed, Clocky will roll off the bedside table and wheel away, bumping mindlessly into objects on the floor until it eventually finds a spot to rest. Minutes later, when the alarm sounds again, the sleeper must get up out of bed and search for Clocky. This ensures that the person is fully awake before turning it off. Small wheels that are concealed by Clocky's shag enable it to move and reposition itself, and an internal processor helps it find a new hiding spot every day.

I don't like being told when to wake up but I've come to terms with the idea that I have to. In designing Clocky, I was in part inspired by kittens I've had that would bite my toes every morning. Clocky is less of an annoying device as it is a troublesome pet that you love anyway. It's also a bit ugly. But its unconventional looks keep the user calm, and inspire laughter at one of the most hated times of the day.

I've been known to hit the snooze bar for up to two hours or even accidentally turn it off. I've known people who put the alarm clock in the living room, but then forget to set it before going to sleep. Others say they are trying to wean themselves off of snoozing, as if it was a bad habit like smoking or drinking. In the foggy logic of our drowsiness, we disable the very device that is meant to wake us up. Having the alarm clock hide from me was just the most obvious way I could think of to get out of bed.

Clocky is not trying to solve all of the problems of alarm clocks—for example how they disrupt other people in the room—but I think maybe someday it can. I think the answer rests in the usage of multiple Clockies. Let's say there are two people with different sleep schedules sharing a room. Maybe one person's Clocky can tell the other to hush up if it has sounded off one too many times. Or, maybe they can form an alliance and simultaneously target the offending over-sleeper. I have adopted the philosophy that when two devices communicate, they can solve more problems—that is, two Clockies are better than one.

My work typically focuses on industrial design projects that add some intelligence into the mix in a way that is very simple. So objects do their intended jobs better without additional complexity. I don't want to have to use things that require me to know or learn something beforehand. So those are the kind of designs I try to create.

Clocky would be easy to manufacture and produce since I have focused on using inexpensive chips and sensors. A final cost is estimated at under $20. It could also be available in several soft and durable designs.

I agree with Howard. Thanks for putting the links back - since this is how I read everyone else's pages (yes, I don't have your blog bookmarked). Allen has some interesting tastes hehehe...

hi guys! long time no post eh? it's so good to see all this activity happenning on the site; haha it really warms the heart :) and pink? i didn't think that was your thing, allen, but i guess you really DO learn new things about people all the time!

Hey everyone-

Dang, it's been a while...Not a lurker here, but I forgot about it for a little bit. =)

Happy (Belated) Birthday, Larry! I'm glad your surprise was a success and that your suspicions didn't give it away. Where'd you guys eat? Did you do anything afterwards? Sux 'cuz I'm missing out all the Bay Area action because I forgot to buy tickets. Maybe I'll drive up, or catch a later flight.

Do you guys watch Desperate Housewives? I recognized the neighbor guy (Teri Hatcher's love interest) the other day at a bookstore. I like to get people's autographs, but his big friends came over so I didn't try. Oh well, that'd been weird if I got it anyway, huh? ...be a lil' too fruity if I got a TV "hunk's" autograph.

-Karl

That cinches it - Howard is the one with administrator access, and thus the one that's changing the site design. It makes sense, as the design now looks an awful lot like his cell-phone backdrop...

So, open question: what's a group blog for? Does everyone post about how their day went? Use it to discuss important philosophical issues of our time (Berkeley v. Stanford?) How many lurkers do we have - reading all the posts, never writing...

Babak

Sorry about posting twice. Is there a way to remove it? Allen, do you have some type of super power privilege to remove posts that shouldn't have been there... blogspot took forever when I first pressed the publish button. After reading other news and coming back, it looked like it finished but when I opened another browser, my post was missing... and the initial page in which I pressed the publish button was still there with my post all in the editing box... so I pressed the button again and it worked much, much faster this time. I checked again with another browser window and see my post twice! Sorry about that guys.

Guys,

I was thoroughly surprised and overjoyed - if I didn't show it - I think its because I had a hard time expressing it (its one of those times where your mind is really thinking to itself, wow, this is really awesome). One of those speechless scenarios in which I wasn't sure what to say :o)


I'm not sure what the details were leading to the lunch.
1. When I ask Howard whether we're meeting for my bday, he says he'll ask around.
2. He emails me back saying that Lis is busy with coworkers and Claudia is visiting Babak and that we'll meet the next week possibly during one of the week nights (which I found somewhat strange - the weeknight part).
3. I try to call Gene and he keeps putting off lunch but says dinner is possible. He also says bring Bang!, "I [Gene] really want to look at it..." now that was a strange comment, but he knows I'll bring it :o)
especially since he's leaving for new york very soon... not that I think we're actually going to play Bang! against one another - that is weird.

After all of this, I still thought that I'd just be eating with Howard. Was thinking... Howard, thanks for coming all the way up here despite not anyone else being to make it. Thats really cool. I found it kinda strange that he wanted to drive... does he know that I don't like driving :o)
Then he took the longer route after I suggested the two possibilities to get to the restuarant... which made me think, well, thats ok, the longer route is fine... after all, its just the two of us eating lunch and service is at 4 so we have plenty of time :o)
The longer route meant passing by Claudia's house :o) and seeing her g35 in the driveway. I didn't mean to pass by her house but was thinking it was a good reference point (30th and noriega) and then heading towards 19th ave as thats where I thought the restuarant was going to be. When I wonder out loud why Claudia's car is where it is:
Howard's reply: Crystal must have driven her to see Babak.
Hm... I guess thats definitely possible - maybe its spring break.

And Howard knew the restuarant was near Safeway which kinda surprised me - and he went right when I told him I think he should go left (he was right, granted he dropped off Allen and must have saw the Safeway).

At the restaurant I thought it was somewhat strange Howard was leading us towards a certain area of the restaurant where there were open tables that we passed... I still didn't think it was going to be a surprise. When I saw Noreen, I still wasn't sure what to expect. I hadn't seen her in such a long time but I didn't see anyone else. And then "surpise"! and there was everybody :o)

Wow. No words. Shock turned to awe. Which later turned too, wow, this is cool.

Thanks guys.