In this edition of the Worldwide Wrap: after nearly two years of face time with and feedback from early adopters, Google is ending its Glass Explorer programme, and German researchers have built shoe-sized devices that harvest power from the act of walking. Get the details on these stories and more below.
Google Glass production ceased
Google is to stop producing its wearable technology Google Glass in its present form, but says it is still committed to the idea of smart glasses.
The company said in a statement the Glass team would move out of the "Google X" incubator labs and become a separate division under current manager Ivy Ross.
Via: The Guardian
Shoe generates power
German researchers have built shoe-sized devices that harvest power from the act of walking. The technology could be used to power wearable electronic sensors without the need for batteries.
There are two separate devices: a "shock harvester" that generates power when the heel strikes the ground and a "swing harvester" that produces power when the foot is swinging.
Via: BBC
Apple beams fingerprints
Apple may be envisioning a world where buying a latte is as easy as holding up your index finger.
A patent application published online by the US Patent and Trademark Office would allow the iPhone maker to share your fingerprint data between devices via the cloud.
The new patent, which Apple has not officially been granted, extends this idea to cover uploading and storing fingerprint data.
Via: Huffington Post
3D without glasses
Researchers claim to have cracked the problem of creating giant displays that can show images in 3D without the need for glasses.
Austrian researchers have developed a laser system that sends different images to each eye - and say it could lead to New York's Times Square having its first 3D ads.
It could also mean the end of having to don cumbersome glasses at the cinema, they say, and perhaps be used to show sporting events on huge screens in 3D - allowing hundreds of people to see the image at the same time.
Via Daily Mail
Google Translate update
The Google Translate app is getting an update that promises to let users carry out a conversation with someone speaking a different language, with little delay.
The update features a new "conversation mode" that acts as a near-real-time translator that will allow for bilingual conversations, as well as a "camera translation" mode that interprets words found in images.
The way it works is fairly simple ? open up the app, select the two languages you'd like to translate between, tap the microphone icon, then speak.
Via: Wall Street Journal
Turning waste to water
Bill Gates wants to turn poop into clean drinking water, and he's got just the machine to do it.
In a recent blog post and video, the billionaire entrepreneur and philanthropist showed off what he called an "ingenious machine", a steam-powered sewage processor that burns up solid waste and creates both potable water and electricity.
Via: Live Science