Killer aps, Dr. Cai!

Dr. Yang Cai, director of the Ambient Intelligence Lab at Carnegie Mellon University, has not only developed some really cool 3D scan technology but also come up with some great ideas for applying it to real-world use.

One day, it will be used to scan human tongues to check for signs of illness. One day, it will be used to scan ocean surfaces to look for possible tsunami threats. But, today, it is already being used in a field that is of great interest to yours truly: genealogy.

How many times have you been wandering thru an old cemetery hunting your ancestors' final resting place only to run across a tombstone that has been rendered completely illegible after the ravages of time?

Not often? Well, then you're not a dedicated root-digger.

Anyway, thanks to Dr. Cai's 3D technology, old stones can now be scanned and their inscriptions deciphered. He's already applied it with great success to some real world stones found in the 200 year old St. Luke's Episcopal Cemetery in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Check out the complete story at:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7024672.stm