Health

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EyeQue Unveils its VisionCheck 2 Smartphone Vision Test

Andrew Orr ·

EyeQue has a smartphone vision test you can do at home, and the company has a Kickstarter to fund the second-gen product called VisionCheck 2.

Some claim to have online or app-based refraction tests, but they are merely prescription verification services based on visual acuity estimates. EyeQue users are actually performing a self-refraction test while proprietary algorithms process, personalize, and store results.

‘Fitness Coach by JumpyCat’ Gives You AI Workouts
Cool Stuff Found

‘Fitness Coach by JumpyCat’ Gives You AI Workouts

Andrew Orr ·

“Fitness Coach by JumpyCat” is an app I discovered over the weekend. It gives you personalized workouts entirely created by artificial intelligence. You’ll get audio instructions and videos to watch as you power through over 15,000 bodyweight workouts. There’s a workout for everyone and across different categories like cardio, HIIT, stretching, anti-stress, knee-friendly, and more. App Store: Free (Offers In-App Purchases)

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APHL Wants to Build Central Server for COVID-19 Data

Andrew Orr ·

The Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) wants to build and host a national server to hold data collected from exposure notification apps. It’s partnering with Apple, Google, and Microsoft to do so.

Rather than each state and territorial public health agency bearing the burden of building and hosting its own key servers, a national server can securely host the keys of those affected users, eliminate duplication and enable notifications across state borders. APHL is also championing the effort to build and host a national key server on behalf of the public health community. This will allow users to continually benefit from exposure notifications as they travel across state lines, and help state and territorial agencies deploy their apps quickly.

Just two days ago, Trump removed control of public COVID-19 data from the CDC, and now someone wants to build a national server? What could go wrong?

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EyeQue’s Update Lets You Try On Glasses at Home

Andrew Orr ·

EyeQue’s new Try-On Glasses service means you can try on several pairs of glasses based on your vision results to find a pair you like best, all while staying safely at home.

EyeQue Try-On Glasses are a low-risk way for consumers to experience their vision through lenses made using their EyeGlass Numbers® (EGNs) – the lens power required to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. EGNs are obtained by taking EyeQue’s self-administered refractive error tests using either the VisionCheck or Personal Vision Tracker, and are in the same format as a traditional prescription.

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Meditation App ‘Headspace’ Offers Free Year of Premium Content

Andrew Orr ·

Headspace is offering Americans a free year of premium access of the full library of guided meditations and courses.

“The current state of unemployment in the US has become an alarming crisis,” the company website said. “To help those affected, we’re offering a full year of Headspace Plus for free. Discover meditation and mindfulness tools to help you feel less stressed, more resilient, and kinder to yourself.”

Nice move. Self-care is important.

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The Inside Story of How Apple and Google Worked on Contact Tracing

Andrew Orr ·

CNBC has a report today on how a small team at Apple started developing ideas on how to help with the pandemic. It was codenamed Project Bubble.

In mid-March, with Covid-19 spreading to almost every country in the world, a small team at Apple started brainstorming how they could help […] Within a few weeks, the Apple project — code-named “Bubble” — had dozens of employees working on it with executive-level support from two sponsors: Craig Federighi, a senior vice president of software engineering, and Jeff Williams, the company’s chief operating officer and de-facto head of healthcare.

It’s a fascinating read.