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Tech companies preparing for battle over impulse purchases

Danielle Manley Retail

Retailers use impulse items in checkout lines in a last-minute attempt to increase the transaction amount. But, with the increase in e-commerce, checkout lines are not as busy as they once were. Now, Internet-based retailers have created a new form of impulse items.

Bright future for plastics in electronic devices

Don Rosato Engineering

The road ahead for plastics has the potential to significantly impact future electronic device applications. In commercial applications, polymer development is pushing plastic properties in response to ongoing demand for smaller electronic devices that call for smaller, thinner electrical components in hotter environments at higher electrical frequencies.

Why BYOD policies are crucial for the workplace

Betty Boyd Business Management, Services & Risk Management

Bringing your own device (BYOD) to the workplace has been around for several years, and will not be going away anytime soon. In fact, it is a growing concern for both the public and private business sectors. How does an organization handle BYOD in the workplace?

The death of the iPod: A glimpse into the history of electronics

Christina Nava Science & Technology

Since the days of the cassette player and landline phone, it's safe to say that technology has come a long way in a short time. This was illustrated Sept. 9 when Apple decided to introduce the Apple Watch and remove the iPod Classic from the list of products on its website.

Apple Pay is poised to revolutionize the checkout process

Danielle Manley Science & Technology

Apple has become one of the most well-known, innovative companies of this century. From iPods and iPhones to the recently debuted Apple Watch, the company has stayed ahead of its competition by being the innovators of personal technology.

Internet Slowdown effort protests FCC’s proposed ‘fast lanes’

Ross Lancaster Science & Technology

If you've noticed that your favorite website or Internet service has been showing a loading screen today, don't fear that your connection speeds are dropping dramatically — at least for now. The Internet Slowdown is part of plan by a group of websites and advocacy organizations to protest new net neutrality rules proposed by FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler that could create so-called fast lanes for various services and Internet service providers.

Apple unveils new iPhones, enters wearable tech arena

Jessica Taylor Science & Technology

At 1:30 p.m. today, I had a friend tell me that he was creating a Twitter account just so that he could follow the updates on Apple's new products. Did I think this was weird? Yes, but quite amusing. It's astonishing how one company has this amount of power over its customers.

E/E plastic material and process advances to watch

Don Rosato Engineering

Convergence among computer, consumer electronics and telecom industries continue to blur the lines between information, entertainment and communication. Electrical and electronic (E/E) applications polymer development is pushing plastic resin properties. This is in response to ongoing demand for smaller electronic devices where high heat and high-flow grades permit more intricate, miniaturized parts in electronic applications.

The top 5 emerging technologies in oil and gas

Lucy Wallwork Natural Resources

Despite the common misconception, innovative technologies are not confined to renewable energy. They are driving changes in dirty hydrocarbons, too, indeed often making them far less dirty and far more efficient ways of supplying our energy needs. The pace of technological change is quickening. This is in part because the low-hanging fruit in the oil and gas sector, the so-called era of easy oil, is gone. Many of the newest technologies are focused on getting every last drop out of mature fields, or on accessing hydrocarbons in hostile and complex environments.

Machines serving people: A continuous debate

Linchi Kwok Travel, Hospitality & Event Management

Every time when a machine replaced labors in an assembly line, we gave a big round of applause. Now, when machines are replacing the service staff in hotels, shall we make a big toast to celebrate a new revolution? Or shall we mark it the beginning of "the end of humanized service" in the hospitality industry? As customers, we probably have had enough negative experience with those automatic services provided by machines, such as calling the cable or telephone companies. Now that Starwood is introducing a "Botlr," or robotic butler to the Aloft Hotels, will the hospitality industry follow the same path of other businesses, offering more "cold" automatic services?

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