Category Archives: Technology, science, and math

Dan Wallach: Energy Pricing 2013

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Note: The following is a guest post by my friend Dan Wallach For the past two years, I’ve written a guest blog post here about electrical rates. Let’s do it again, shall we? Last year, I switched from a variable … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Making the world a better place, one baby at a time

Posted on May 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is awesome. Conditions associated with premature birth, often related to breathing problems, are responsible for about 30 percent of neonatal mortality. In the developed world, these conditions can be treated using bubble Continuous Positive Airway Pressure machine. But these … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Making the world a better place, one baby at a time

Medicaid expansion is now double secret illegal

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever. In a surprise turn in the House on Monday evening, a bill to reform Medicaid long-term and acute care services became a vehicle for the GOP’s platform against Medicaid expansion. “Many of us are very weary of Medicaid expansion,” … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Three four six

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Meet your new area code, Houston. The Public Utility Commission (PUC) on Thursday announced the addition of area code 346 to accommodate continued growth in and around Houston. The 346 area code will overlay existing area codes 713, 281 and … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Three four six

Check this out

Posted on April 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Scan while you shop, and other technological advances to get you checked out faster. In February, San Antonio-based H-E-B invited customers to try out a new scanning “tunnel” for the first time at its McCreless Market location on South New … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Check this out

Mobile payments

Posted on April 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Austin is a hot spot for the hot new thing in retail technology. Mobile payments technology is gathering steam across the country, but Austin is one of the hot spots, both for deployment of new technology and for development of … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The HPV vaccine

Posted on March 31, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This story about HPV and its vaccine is from a couple of weeks ago, but it needs to be read. The vaccine that blocks a sexually transmitted infection that causes cervical, oral and other cancers was hailed as a home … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on The HPV vaccine

What other environmental groups think about “One Bin For All”

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, last week the city announced that it had won the $1 million runnerup prize from the Bloomberg Foundation that would enable it to begin work on a single-bin solution for solid waste and recycling. While this announcement … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Nationwide WiFi?

Posted on February 10, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This sounds like a big deal. The federal government wants to create super Wi-Fi networks across the nation, so powerful and broad in reach that consumers could use them to make calls or surf the Internet without paying a cellphone … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

TEC approves texting campaign contributions

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From Jerad Najvar: After brief discussion and comments by Jerad Najvar, attorney for Harris County Republicans, the TEC voted unanimously to approve a draft opinion permitting Texas political committees to accept contributions by text message. APPROVED OPINION HERE (the first … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Free WiFi finally coming to Houston airports

Posted on February 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

And there was much rejoicing. Free WiFi is set to land at Houston’s two main airports by year’s end. As wireless fidelity service becomes a consumer expectation, the Houston Airport System told the Houston Chronicle it is working to develop … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The 311 app is here

Posted on January 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been waiting for this. The brand-new Houston 311 app will allow residents to file a complaint and then track its progress. The program officially goes live Tuesday, city officials said. Here’s how the 311 app works, city spokesman Chris … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Green batteries

Posted on January 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is very cool. In one more step of a global effort to develop greener battery technology, researchers at Rice University say they have found a way to replace a costly metallic component in lithium-ion batteries with material from a … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Green batteries

Aereo

Posted on January 15, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From Dwight: Aereo, which already has disrupted the television landscape in New York City, is coming soon to Houston and 21 other U.S. markets – but only if it survives legal attempts to kill it. On Tuesday, Aereo CEO Chet … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Aereo

Open source textbooks

Posted on January 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is a great idea. The words “free” and “college” aren’t often used in the same sentence, but a philanthropic venture at Rice University is drawing attention for bringing them together. OpenStax College, a nonprofit publishing organization founded by a … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Open source textbooks

CompSci in the curriculum

Posted on December 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

HISD Trustee Paula Harris coauthors an op-ed in the Chron advocating computer science to be part of the standard school curriculum. While STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education is a hot topic in education circles these days, only math … Continue reading →

Posted in School days, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Recreating a Galapagos tortoise?

Posted on December 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

How amazing would this be? Lonesome George, the late reptile prince of the Galapagos Islands, may be dead, but scientists now say he may not be the last giant tortoise of his species after all. Researchers say they may be … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Recreating a Galapagos tortoise?

When will we have truly electronic voting?

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

When will there be an app to cast a vote in a US election? So at a time when we can see video shot by a robot on Mars, when there are cars that can drive themselves, and when we … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Texting campaign contributions

Posted on October 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I see no reason why this should not be allowed. A Houston-based PAC is asking the Texas Ethics Commission to approve a proposal that would allow the committee to solicit text message contributions from donors in the state. The Federal … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Driverless cars in Texas

Posted on October 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You have perhaps heard the news that Google’s driverless car has been approved for street usage in California; specifically, California Governor Jerry Brown has signed a bill that requires the California Department of Motor Vehicles to draft regulations for autonomous … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Electric cars and the power grid

Posted on August 26, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating. It doesn’t take too long for visitors of Mueller, a 700-acre master-planned community in Austin, to realize that the neighborhood is peculiar. The planned community, built on the site of the former Mueller airport, boasts almost too-perfect rows of homes with cheery … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Dan Wallach: Energy pricing 2012

Posted on August 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This is a guest post that follows up on an earlier guest post. Last year, I wrote a guest article for Off The Kuff where I discussed the complexity of trying to get a good price on your electric bill. … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Hang up and walk

Posted on August 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We all know that texting and other smartphone tomfoolery while driving is a bad idea. Turns out that texting while walking isn’t so safe, either. On city streets, in suburban parking lots and in shopping centers, there is usually someone … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Hang up and walk

Pothole app

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County now has an app for reporting potholes and other problems. Users must download the app and set up a profile. After that, one can take a photo of the problem, point to its spot on the map or … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Happy birthday, Atari

Posted on July 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The iconic video game company turned forty last week. Although it wasn’t the first company to make video games, Atari was the first to make a lasting impression on an entire generation. At arcades — or at video game bars … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Environmental drones

Posted on July 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! A plane! A drone! One year into a $260,000 two-year grant from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, [civil engineer Thom] Hardy and his crew of biologists, geographers and spatial analysts have … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Environmental drones

Apps for apes

Posted on July 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This new program at the Houston Zoo sounds great, but we all know how it ends, right? A digital revolution is sweeping the ape house, and now its denizens, formerly preoccupied with classic chimpish activities, are turning their attention to … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Apps for apes

Fighting identity theft

Posted on April 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The U of Texas is studying it. Identity theft is a cradle-to-grave problem that costs U.S. businesses $50 billion and affects at least 10 million consumers each year. At least 1 million children’s identities are stolen over the course of … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Fighting identity theft

New frontiers in spam

Posted on April 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Text message spam. Frankly, I’m surprised it’s taken this long to be seen as a major problem. Once the scourge of e-mail providers and the Postal Service, spammers have infiltrated the last refuge of spam-free communication: cellphones. In the United … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Electric car update

Posted on April 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

From the Texas Green Report. NRG Energy has committed $10 million to launch America’s first privately-financed electric vehicle charging network and plans to fully wire Houston to support electric cars without straining the grid in the next couple of years.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Electric car update

Mobile broadband in Texas

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

For your perusal. Almost half of adult Texans, about 8.9 million, use mobile broadband devices — cellphones, laptops or tablets using a cellular network — to keep the Internet a constant companion, according to a survey by Connected Nation, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Mobile broadband in Texas

Homeless Hotspots

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You’ve probably heard about this by now. If you’re looking for WiFi at the South by Southwest tech conference this week, instead of heading to a cafe or bumming off of a neighbor, you might just ask a homeless person. … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Pluto stamp petition

Posted on March 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the least we can do. Two decades ago, the Postal Service issued a series of stamps depicting Earth, its moon, and the spacecraft sent to explore each of the other planets in the solar system. The 10th stamp, featuring … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Pluto stamp petition

Cover that cough

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating. A decade-long study found passengers on certain Metro bus routes were more likely to have tuberculosis, raising the question of whether they contracted the disease on the bus. “We see a higher prevalence of clustering with bus riders,” said … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Cover that cough