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Fans of the film Blade Runner may remember a scene in which the maker of an artificial snake is identified by a microscopic serial number on one of its scales. Well, in a rare case of present-day technology actually surpassing that predicted in a movie, we’ve now gone one better – bar codes on embryos. Scientists from Spain’s Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), along with colleagues from the Spanish National Research Council, have successfully developed an identification system in which mouse embryos and oocytes (egg cells) are physically tagged with microscopic silicon bar code labels. They expect to try it out on human embryos and oocytes soon. Read More

It's only been a few weeks since Ricoh unveiled its G700 rugged camera and already the next phase in its evolution has been revealed. The new G700SE retains much of the feature set of the earlier model – including the 12.1 megapixel sensor, wide-angle zoom lens and 720p high definition movie capability – but adds Bluetooth and Wi-Fi functionality to the mix. It's also water and dust resistant and able to withstand the odd rough bump. The new camera also caters for the addition of optional units to provide GPS and laser barcode reader functionality. Read More

Canon has announced a “Studio Version” of its popular EOS 7D DSLR. With an optional new barcode system that allows users to embed information directly into images and a “locking” feature that allows users to disable unwanted features and settings for studio environments the EOS 7D Studio Version is geared towards studio, event and school photographers looking for a way to streamline the organization of images. Read More

Newly developed radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology could usher in the era of checkout line-free shopping. The inexpensive, printable transmitter can be invisibly embedded in packaging offering the possibility of customers walking a cartload of groceries or other goods past a scanner that would read all the items at once, total them up and charge the customer’s account while adjusting the store’s inventory. More advanced versions could even collect all the information about the contents of a store in an instant, letting a retailer know where every package is at any time. Read More

I remember encountering the ugly black-and-white stripes of a barcode for the first time – defacing the front of my favorite magazine. Of course, Mad found a way of dealing with the UPC code by making jokes at its expense. But now, some ground-breaking work at MIT could see the visual blight of barcodes replaced altogether by Bokodes, tiny tenth-of-an-inch optical data tags that can hold thousands of times more information and be read by the camera on your mobile phone. Read More