You Can’t Tell Lemurs Apart? Computers Can - Weekly Mash-Up 173

What, You Can’t Tell Two Lemurs Apart? Computers Can
Wired

Much like the technology that Facebook and Google uses to recognise faces, the same as been applied to one of our favourite fuzzy animals - Lemurs. To help protect the 12 species of Lemurs that are becoming increasingly endangered, researchers have come up with LemurFaceID. Instead of looking at facial geometries - like the distance between your eyes, or the length of your nose - the technology uses 10×10-pixel squares to identify differences in fur texture. Read more

The first manned hoverbike could finally fulfill your 'Star Wars' dreams
Mashable

A fantasy world of hovercrafts doesn’t seem so unrealistic anymore. A Russian drone-building startup, Hoversurf, has just released footage showcasing their latest development: the Scorpion-3. It is a single-seat electric quadcopter that looks to be the world's first fully rideable hoverbike and is the closest thing we’ve seen to resemble Return of the Jedi's famous vehicles in real life. Read more

Augmented reality lets cars communicate to reduce road rage
New Scientist

Picture this scenario: You’re driving along and someone cuts you up. You go to honk your horn or make an aggressive hand gesture, when a virtual note flashes up on your windscreen: “Rushing to the hospital”. Your anger dissipates and you feel empathy instead. Road rage is a serious matter that many drivers face on the daily, and researchers at the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands have developed an AR app to help reduce these instances. Read more

Leveling the playing field for women in tech is vital for emerging industries
TechCrunch

Gender equality is considered to be especially important for the future success of emerging tech industries, especially in the augmented reality and virtual reality field. The founders of Women of Wearables argues that the current gender inequality, where only men are developing a range of products, are unintentionally tailored to alienate half of their potential customers. "It’s not simply a fight for equality but a reality that the industry should acknowledge to improve consumer adoption." Read more