Science projects for the real world

Assistive Technology
It's great to see young scientists and engineers setting their minds on assistive technologies. Rather than building war-fighting exoskeletons and ray guns, students at two Massachusetts schools are designing prototypes to help people navigate around their workplaces and neighborhoods.

Science students at Bromfield School in Harvard are crafting a "cane" that will alert its carrier to obstacles and drops more than 20 feet away. The cane might not be a cane at all, once it's completed. Sunglasses or a belt buckle embedded with lasers and other sensors are also possible.

The device will talk in one of two ways: either via a changing Braille interface, or with a computerized voice. It might be able to break in on your iTunes listening, to warn you that a subway staircase is ahead, for instance.

At Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical, the story of an aspiring auto expert (with limited use of his lower body) has his fellow students building a creeper that supports workers who are unable to recline on their own, so they can roll under a vehicle.

The Bay Path creeper will have a surfboard-like look while flat. But a mechanic will be able to raise and lower the creeper, tilt its back down from a seated position, and include a hands-free light.

The Bay Path and Bromfield groups, from sixth grade through high school, recently received grants from the Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams (http://web.mit.edu/inventeams/) program, which aims to promote STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) at the high school level.

Each InvenTeam will receive up to $10,000 to help build its prototype for a show at the Museum of Science in June.

Mobile phones

Touch controls give new device from Sprint an iPhone feel

It's been a tough fall for the Baard family album. First day of kindergarten, first dance class: With the 1.3-megapixel camera on my old dino-phone, I have been ill-equipped to capture these memories.

Recently, I spent a few days rolling around with the new HTC Touch Diamond mobile phone. It looks a bit like the iPhone. It also has a cool circular control button ringed by a white light, which is surrounded by touch controls for making calls.

I was able to take some brilliant shots of my girls' painted pumpkins and the fire-red leaves in the Blue Hills with the phone's 3.2-megapixel camera.

Sprint TV shows, as well as the videos and pics recorded with the Touch Diamond, also looked great on the phone's 2.8-inch screen.

The HTC Touch Diamond, available through Sprint (about $250, after rebate, and with a two-year contract), is a Windows Mobile device with a touch screen that approximates some of what you can do with the Apple iPhone.

The camera's touch controls make sense: Tap once to focus, again to snap. Moving pictures around with your finger is also completely intuitive.

As with the iPhone, you can poke and pull at websites on the Touch Diamond's screen. (The phone comes with the Opera browser.) Just turning the device sideways switches your Web page view from portrait to landscape. The Touch Diamond also works with Sprint Navigation's GPS turn-by-turn directions.

Video games

Gone fishin' - from the couch, that is

I feel for those brave souls dropping their lines into Houghton's Pond as temperatures plummet. As for me, I'm taking my fishing feet up on the couch, with Rapala Fishing Frenzy from Activision, which you can use to fish hundreds of hot spots that are based on real locations.

Fishing Frenzy comes with an accessory that turns your Wiimote and Nunchuk into a rod and reel; the game lets you chose from multiple lures as you target bass, walleye, and other fish.

Fun Labs (www.funlabs.com), which specializes in hunting and fishing games, and Rapala, a maker of fishing gear, have done a fine job making this game an effective tutorial for newbies. But hardcore gamers and fishing experts might not find enough here to keep them interested beyond a few rounds. You can't bring your Mii with you, either.