Smart Thermostat

iPod creator switches attention to ‘smart’ thermostats

The thermostat is able to "learn" and adjust itself

The man known as the “godfather” of the iPod has invested his energy in a home appliance: a thermostat.

Tony Fadell caused surprise when he quit Apple in 2008 after heading its music player division. Fortune magazine once tipped him as a successor to former chief executive, Steve Jobs.

Mr Fadell has now revealed his efforts went into the Learning Thermostat.

The smart device adjusts the temperature based on the presence of people and their habits.

It can “learn” about a house’s cooling and heating patterns to optimise its performance, and adjust itself to the weather conditions.

Mr Faddell said the device could cut 20 to 30% off the average household’s energy bill.

He said it is also possible to control the $249 (£156) thermostat remotely via a smartphone app.

The price is around fifteen times higher than what basic thermostats sell for in the US.

Smart gadgets…

Source: BBC News Read more about smart gadgets.

 

Man’s Finest Hour

Javan rhino ‘now extinct in Vietnam’

Genetic analysis of rhino dung samples revealed that there was only one individual left in Vietnam

A critically endangered species of rhino is now extinct in Vietnam, according to a report by conservation groups.

The WWF and the International Rhino Foundation said the country’s last Javan rhino was probably killed by poachers, as its horn had been cut off.

Experts said the news was not a surprise, as only one sighting had been recorded in Vietnam since 2008.

Fewer than 50 individuals are now estimated to remain in the wild.

“It is painful that despite significant investment in Vietnamese rhino conservation, efforts failed to save this unique animal, ” said WWF’s Vietnam director Tran Thi Minh Hien.

“Vietnam has lost part of its natural heritage.”

The authors of the report, Extinction of the Javan Rhino from Vietnam, said genetic analysis of dung samples collected between 2009-2010 in the Cat Tien National Park showed that they all belonged to just one individual.

Shortly after the survey was completed, conservationists found out that the rhino had been killed. They say it was likely to have been the work of poachers because it had been shot in a leg and its horn had been cut off.

Source: BBC News

Cát Tiên National Park , a diverse landscape

Possibly the rarest large mammal on earth

The Javan Rhinoceros (Sunda Rhinoceros to be more precise) or Lesser One-horned Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus) with only one known population in the wild, and none in zoos. It is possibly the rarest large mammal on earth.

Cát Tiên National Park Bau Sau (Crocodile Lake)

 

This post has been posted simultaneously on Tomus Arcanum