Children
Of all the childhood allergies, an allergic reaction to eggs is one of the most common. Typically, reactions can include wheezing, nausea, headache, stomach ache, and hives. In extreme cases, however, anaphylactic shock can result, which can itself sometimes lead to death. Eggs are difficult to avoid, too - they find their way into many foods that might not seem particularly "eggy," and are even used in flu vaccines. Needless to say, for some time now, scientists have been working on making eggs safe for everyone. A team from Australia's Deakin University is now claiming that they're well on the way to producing not just hypoallergenic eggs, but the chickens that lay them. Read More
Children in the First World have a lot of choice when it comes to scientific toys. In fact, there are whole stores devoted to selling things like robotics kits, ant farms, and simple microscopes. In the developing world, however, such fancy toys are relatively scarce. So, what's an adult to do if they want to get the local children interested in the sciences? Well, in the case of Arvind Gupta, they show the kids how to make scientific toys from trash. Read More
Spot brings long-overdue update to vision screening
For the past 150 years, ophthalmologists have used the Snellen chart – with its rows of letters in descending sizes – to check patients’ vision. While it has done the job reasonably well, PediaVision CEO David Melnik believes that his Spot device offers some distinct advantages. Most importantly, instead of being required to read and recite letters, patients simply look into the device as it takes some pictures. Based on those images, it will proceed to notify clinicians if it detects potential vision problems. Read More
Scientists develop child-like synthetic voice for children who can't speak
You may think that Stephen Hawking’s synthesized voice sounds a little ... unusual, but imagine how much weirder it would be to witness a child using that same adult voice to communicate. For many children who are unable to speak, however, they have no choice but to use assistive devices that utilize just such a voice. Now, help may be on the way. Norwegian researchers have developed a new method of creating synthetic speech, that actually sounds like it is being spoken by a child. Such technology could also allow computers to better recognize words spoken to them by young users. Read More
Ahh kids. They grow up so fast - much to the consternation of parents faced with continually having to buy larger shoes and clothes. As much as any kid loves their first bike, they quickly outgrow these as well. But what if there was a way to save the hip-pocket nerve for a couple more birthdays without having the little dears look like they should be riding around with the clowns on miniature bikes at the circus? Well, there is and it comes from Spanish bike manufacturer Orbea, which has come up with its line of Grow bikes that - as the name suggests - grow along with your child. Read More
According to figures reported by the University of Tennessee, even though 85 percent of a child’s learning is vision-related, about 80 percent of American children have never had their eyes tested before starting kindergarten. Even when tests are performed, they are usually only capable of detecting no more than a couple of conditions. Unfortunately, this means that vision-related learning disabilities such as dyslexia can be missed, and may not be noticed until they are well-established. Now, however, researchers at U Tennessee’s Space Institute have developed a new type of vision-testing system for young children, that could catch a variety of vision problems while they’re still reversible. Read More
Pudding vending machine tells kids to scram
Let's say you had a sweet dessert that you wanted to market specifically to adults. Now to spice things up, let's say you're also a Scooby Doo villain and can't stop wringing your hands over all the "meddling kids" who are going to ruin your campaign trying to steal delicious treats from your intended audience. Well, what can you do about it? Make a vending machine that detects the age of its users and tells any approaching children to get lost? Apparently yes, as Kraft Foods has introduced a new machine that scans a person's face to determine their age and dispenses free samples of their Jell-O Temptations dessert only to adults. Read More
A new teaching app has been released for iDevices where Mozart, Scott Joplin and Clara Schumann - and a friendly onboard instrument tuner called Toonr - join forces to make music practice less of a chore. The My Note Games system is said to be the first children's app to make use of note recognition technology and uses a suite of simple games to help kids develop sight reading, timing and tuneful playing skills. Read More
Crayola Trace and Draw case lets kids create art with an iPad 2
While a tablet can be a great toy for kids, it's best to give little Johnny the likes of a VINCI Tab or a LeapPad, instead of your precious iPad 2. Otherwise, a kid-resistant tablet case may prove useful. The Crayola Trace & Draw case not only protects the iPad from children, but actually encourages toddlers to treat the tablet as a coloring book or a drawing board. Read More
MobileMinder app keeps an extra eye on children
Realizing that the huge demand for parental monitoring programs for computers could also apply to phones, Dublin-based mobile web service company Associate Mobile has developed MobileMinder - a smartphone application running on a secure and encrypted network that allows parents to monitor their child's location, contacts, call history, photos, and web use. Read More
