Top Costa Rica News

• Venton Medical in Costa Rica developed a new multi-layer extrusion technology for the next generation of catheter based medical devices. These new thin walled, large bore, multi-layered tubes are ideal for emerging therapies in the treatment of diseased heart valves.
• On May 30th, President Laura Chinchilla Miranda reaffirmed her support of the International Telegraphic Union’s Child Online Protection (COP) initiative, during a visit to ITU headquarters in Geneva. ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun Touré thanked President Chinchilla for her sustained efforts in taking up the COP agenda with world leaders. He also commended Costa Rica for the pro-active policies that have been put in place to encourage women and girls to consider careers in the growing field of information and communication technologies (ICT).

Top Mobile Device News

• QR codes are used to save lives in Marin County, CA. Lifesquare is working with the Marin County emergency services to provide instant access to health information. Residents register their health information with Lifesquare. Livesquare mails QR code labels that the resident places on the refrigerator and personal items. In case of an emergency, the emergency responders can scan the QR code to retrieve the residents health information. This process eliminates the writing of the information on forms, and then transferring the information to a computer.
• On July 3, 2012, the photo sharing app PicPlz is shutting down, and all photos on the site will be deleted. PicPlz users have until then to download their photos. While PicPlz was an early competitor to Instagram, it just never gained the popularity of Instagram. This notice effects users of both their iPhone and Android apps.
• Android Developers conducted a study of the Android versions that accessed Google Play over a 14 day period ending on June 1. The study shows that 65% of the devices ran a version of Gingerbread, while 7.1% of the devices ran Ice Cream Sandwich. 19.1% of the devices still run Froyo. As mentioned in the article What is the Android mobile operating system?, Android versions are names of desserts, and are in ascending alphabetical order.
• New Scientist Connect reports that those over 55 years of age choose passwords that are twice as strong as teenagers. Internet users from Germany and Korea tended to select the strongest passwords, with Indonesians having the weakest passwords. Surprisingly, the users who tended towards weak passwords, also tended to have weak passwords for accounts that protected financial data.
• Just days before Apple is to announce its own 3D maps at the WWDC on June 11, Google will announce a 3D update to Google Maps.

Other Top Technology News

• University of Illinois researchers developed a new device that detects bacteria behind the ear drums. The new device will help doctors diagnose chronic ear infections. Studies have shown that patients suffering from chronic ear infections may have a thin film of bacteria, or other microorganisms, that buildup behind the eardrum. The new device provides a clear image of this biofilm.
• According to a New York Times article, the Stuxmet worm that destroyed many of Iran’s centrifuges was initiated by the US, with help from the Israelis. The program began under the Bush administration, and continues under the Obama administration. The official name of the program is Olympic Games. The recently discovered Flame worm is a separate program. These are old worms, and there is little doubt that cyperwarfare continues to evolve. The New York Times article was adapted from the book “Confront and Conceal: Obama’s Secret War and Surprising Use of American Power” to be released next Tuesday.
• Enjoy your Sunday evening with this fun video of 30,000 photos turned into a time-lapse of Disneyland. Photographer Daniel Navarrete captured these photos over a one-year period.