Category Technology

What tool is used for accurate measurement?

Accurate measurements are made with the help of various measuring tools. Let’s look at a few of them today

  • Glucometer

A glucometer or glucose meter is a medical device that is used to determine the concentration of glucose in the blood. The device is available in user-friendly forms like small hand-held devices or paper strips. People with diabetes often keep this device with them at home to regularly monitor their blood glucose/sugar levels.

  • Depth finder

Also called the echo sounder, this device is used on ships to determine the depth of water. The device uses reflected sound from the bottom of the water body to calculate the depth. It sends sound waves from the water surface and detects the reflected wave from the bottom (the echo). From the knowledge of the speed of sound in water and the time taken by the sound for the round trip, the distance travelled can be calculated and thus the depth.

The same device is used to detect underwater objects. Fishermen use it to detect the presence of big fish in the water.

  • Speedometer

A speedometer measures the speed of a moving vehicle and displays the speed for easy reference while the vehicle is in movement. The device displays the current speed in kilometres per hour on the vehicle’s instrument dashboard. These days all cars are factory fitted with common device, but in the early 1900s, it was an expensive option.

  • Sound level meter

This device measures the intensity of noise/sound. The instrument is basically a microphone that picks up sound and converts it into an electrical signal which can be measured by a meter that is calibrated to read the sound level in decibels (a unit to measure sound intensity). If the decibel level of zero is the average threshold of hearing, then 120 decibels represents extremely loud sound that is painful to the human ear. Sound level meters are used frequently in some work places to provide sound information relating to prevention of deafness from excessive noise.

  • Light meter (photography)

This device is used to measure the amount of light that is ideal for use in photography. It is an excellent tool for photographers because it can accurately determine how much exposure is required for a photograph. This information can help the photographer to decide the correct camera shutter speed for the best exposure in certain lighting situations.

Picture Credit : Google 

What is meaning of term ‘Painting with words’?

The technical advancement in Artificial intelligence or Al has helped recognise CT scans for doctors, predict oil deposits for engineers, and create and regulate algorithms among other things. But can Al generate art?

Creating art takes a unique combination of skills, creativity and the very human element of aesthetic taste. In April 2022, OpenAl, an artificial intelligence (AI) research laboratory, came up with a text-to-image generator that can draw anything you want virtually. This has been done before but the difference here is that the fleshed-out painting or images created by this system replicated the aesthetic design and taste of a real artist. This new Al system is called Dall-E 2 and is capable of turning any text description into a unique work of art. This is an updated system of Dall-E which was released by the company last year. The high-quality and high-resolution images generated by Dall- E 2 are completed within 10 seconds after one enters the prompts and also feature complex backgrounds, realistic depth, and shadow effects, shading and reflections. This free-for-all Al-powered software has made art more accessible, giving everyone a platform to create pictures with words without having to actually execute them with paint, cameras, or code.

Picture Credit : Google 

What is meaning of term ‘Blockchain, NFT’?

Blockchain and NFT are buzz words in the technology industry today.

Blockchain corresponds to a distributed database that maintains a continuously growing list of ordered records, called blocks. These blocks are then linked using cryptography. A blockchain thus serves as a decentralised distributed and public ledger that is used to record transactions across many computers.

NFT stands for non-fungible token. As it is non-fungible, it cannot be replaced or exchanged for something of identical value. Basically blockchain tokens representing unique digital items. NFT allows you to buy and sell ownership of unique digital items.

Picture Credit : Google 

What is meaning of term ‘loT’?

IoT stands for Internet of Things. It describes the network of physical objects or things that are embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies to serve the purpose of connecting and exchanging data with other devices and systems over the internet. There are nearly 10 billion loT devices today, ranging from simple household devices to sophisticated industrial tools. This number is only expected to rise further, reaching over 20 billion by 2025.

The loT has become one of the most important technologies of the 21st century as it blurs the boundaries between the physical and digital worlds, allowing them to cooperate better than ever before.

Picture Credit : Google 

Winged robots that can land like a bird

A new method has been developed by researchers that allows a flapping-wing robot to land on a horizontal perch using a claw-like mechanism.

Mimicking nature has allowed us to master many things. The sight of a bird landing on a branch makes it seem like the manoeuvre is probably the easiest thing in the world. The act of perching, however, is far from easy. It involves a delicate balance of timing, high-impact forces, speed, and precision.

The move is so complex that no flapping-wing robot or ornithopter has been able to achieve it so far. That has changed now with researchers from the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland along with colleagues at the University of Seville, Spain being able to achieve it in a controlled environment. The results of the study have been published in Nature Communications in December 2022.

Engineering challenges

The engineering challenges for an ornithopter included slowing down significantly as it perched while still maintaining flight; building a claw strong enough to support its weight while grasping and perching, without being too heavy that it can’t be held aloft; and being able to perceive its environment with respect to its own position, speed, and trajectory.

By equipping their ornithopter with a fully on-board computer and a navigation system that was complemented by a motion-sensor system, the researchers were able to overcome all these challenges. Once perched, the robot was able to remain perched, without expending energy.

Next up, unpredictable environment

The flight experiments were carried out indoors so that the flight zone could be a more controlled environment. The next task is to increase the robot’s autonomy to perform these perching and manipulation tasks outdoors in uncontrolled environments.

Once that is achieved, these ornithopters would be ready for more real word applications, such as unobtrusively collecting biological samples or measurements from a tree. This is because ornithopters, like many unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). have limited battery life. The ability to land on a perch would enable flapping-wing robots to possibly recharge using solar energy, making them viable options for long-distance missions.

Picture Credit : Google 

What is UPI and how it works?

UPI saves people from Cash on Delivery hassle and running to an ATM

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushes for a digital India, many of us may have used Unified Payments Interface (UPI). But do you know what it is?

What is UPI?

UPI is a system that allows multiple bank accounts into a single mobile app, thus, merging several banking features, seamless fund routing, and merchant payments under one umbrella.

The UPI has made bank-to-bank money transfers simple and secure, enabling everything from purchasing vegetables from roadside vendors to sending money to friends and relatives.

UPI was launched by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) on April 11, 2016, by Raghuram G Rajan, then-Governor of RBI, at Mumbai.

Features

Some of the unique features of UPI is that it allows immediate money transfer through mobile phones round the clock 365 days.

Besides, it saves people from Cash on Delivery hassle, running to an ATM, or rendering exact amounts.

People can also pay multiple bills from a single mobile app via Utility Bill Payments, Over the Counter Payments, QR Code-(Scan and Pay) based payments.

As per the latest guideline issued by the NPCI, a person is allowed to use UPI to send a maximum of Rs 1 lakh per day. The restriction varies from bank to bank.

Besides, there is a cap on the total amount of UPI transfers that can be made in a day. Twenty transfers are permitted per day using UPI.

HOW TO REGISTER IN UPI ENABLED APPLICATION

Steps for Registration

User downloads the UPI application from the App Store/  Bank’s website

User creates his/her profile by entering details such as virtual id (payment address), password, etc. User goes to “Add/Link/Manage Bank Account’ option and links the bank and account number with the virtual id

Generating UPI – PIN

User selects the bank account from which he / she wants to initiate the transaction

Change UPI PIN

User receives OTP from the Issuer bank on his / her registered mobile number

User now enters last 6 digits of Debit card number and expiry date

User enters OTP and enters his/her preferred numeric UPI PIN (UPI PIN that he/she would like to set) and clicks on Submit After clicking submit, customer gets notification (successful or decline) User enters his / her old UPI PIN and preferred new UPI PIN (UPI PIN that he/she would like to set) and clicks on Submit After clicking submit, customer gets notification (successful or failure)

Picture Credit : google