Seven Must-Read Stories (Week Ending December 13, 2014)

Another chance to catch the most interesting, and important, articles from the previous week on MIT Technology Review.

December 12, 2014

A Feminist Critique of Silicon Valley
Shanley Kane challenges the assumptions and practices of the tech industry.
HP Will Release a “Revolutionary” New Operating System in 2015
Hewlett-Packard’s ambitious plan to reinvent computing will begin with the release of a prototype operating system next year.
“Nanobuds” Could Turn Almost Any Surface into a Touch Sensor
Stretchy, conductive films made of novel nanobuds could bring touch sensors to more surfaces.
Communication App Works Without a Cellular Network
An app called MeshMe lets you communicate without a cellular or Wi-Fi connection, providing enough other users are close by.
Artificial Skin That Senses, and Stretches, Like the Real Thing
South Korean and U.S. researchers have developed a stretchable material that senses touch, pressure, and moisture, and could be used to give artificial limbs feeling.
A Coal Plant That Buries Its Greenhouse Gases
The first commercial power plant to use carbon capture and sequestration shows the potential of a crucial technology.
How to Measure Planck’s Constant Using Lego
If you’re searching for the perfect present for the physicist who has everything, how about a Lego kit for measuring one of the universe’s fundamental constants?