children

Taser International, the company that makes Taser guns to help law enforcement subdue unruly suspects, now has a product aimed at children. At CES, the company announced the Protector Family Safety Program--a series of products designed to help parents monitor and control what their kids are doing with their phones.

Lets parents listen in Protector goes further than most parental control products in that it doesn't just provide a summary of activity--such as the incoming and outgoing numbers of people the kids call or text--but allows parents to listen to actual calls and read text messages.

Depending on … Read more

Somewhere, Theodor Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss) is smiling. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" for iPhone turns the classic tale into a superb interactive e-book, one that's as much a learning tool as it is an entertaining diversion.

With all the fuss over Kindles, Nooks, and other e-book readers, I've often wondered why there's been so little focus on children's books--arguably the ideal media for a portable device.

After all, what parent hasn't wished for something wholesome to keep young kids occupied during car rides, long waits in a restaurant, endless hours on a … Read more

As MP3 players become more popular, the age at which a child is introduced to them continually decreases. And finding appropriate headphones for youngsters presents a few unique challenges.

First and foremost, any responsible parent wants to ensure that any sounds being piped into their little ones' ears are coming through at safe listening levels. While it's important to consider music volume and hearing protection at any age, kids' ears are more sensitive the younger they are, which is why it's important that their headphones employ a volume limiting feature. And then there is the lesser--but still important--issue … Read more

In the classic Simpsons episode "Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?", Homer's long-lost brother Herb invents a baby translator. The baby cries, the machine announces its meaning (in Danny DeVito's inimitable voice) in plain English.

Seventeen years later, there's an app for that. Cry Translator promises to identify the "five distinct cries" made by infants.

In other words, you no longer have to wonder if your ankle-biter is tired, hungry, mad, stressed, or just bored. It's like Stanza for crybabies.

My first reaction: That's cheating! My second reaction: Why wasn't … Read more

Old MacDonald (by Duck Duck Moose, the makers of Wheels on the Bus) is an interactive storybook for preschoolers based on the time-honored song of the same name. Kids navigate forward and back through the book's 12 "pages" using touch-screen arrows, and every page offers multiple opportunities for interaction with a simple slide or "poke." The song plays in several languages (English, French, Spanish, Italian, and German) or with just instrumental accompaniment (piano, cello, violin, or kazoo)--or best of all, with a do-it-yourself recorded sing-along, which the app walks you through using karaoke-style subtitles.… Read more

Old MacDonald is a musical, farm-themed educational game designed for kids ages 1 and up. Based on the time-honored song ("Old MacDonald had a farm, e-i-e-i-o!"), kids choose from a spinning touch-screen wheel of 21 different animals, including a duck, cow, beaver, octopus, and more. As each animal is selected, you hear its name spoken aloud, along with a matching animal sound effect. You then touch the animal to see if it "belongs" on a McDonald's archetypal farm.

Many of them don't belong, and the narrator will let you know ("A fox? A … Read more

Talking Flash Cards aims to improve math, spelling, time-telling, and toddler basics with visual and audio tools. Its simple navigation and a variety of options allow this program to be a favorite of parents and kids.

We could see children really enjoying these cards, especially since they look exactly like physical flash cards, but tack on a digital element that can't be matched with traditional cards. The math cards gave us multiple-choice options, the spelling cards and time-telling function read the answers aloud for us, and the toddler learning tools felt more like a digital See-and-Say than a computer … Read more

There are many medical conditions that involve medication with intermittent doses on an as-needed basis, and often, that medication cannot be taken orally.

Scientists have long struggled with how best to deliver medication under these circumstances, where the delivery system might meet three key needs: intermittent dosing, with extreme precision, over the long term.

Research led by Daniel Kohane at Children's Hospital Boston may have hit on an effective new approach: a tiny, implantable device that releases the medication through a membrane whose porousness responds to the switching on or off of a magnetic field.

The membrane is embedded … Read more

I know it's hard to prevent your children from gaining an early fascination with drugs, violence, weapons, World of Warcraft, and illicit personal behavior.

The phenomenon that is Webkinz is but one brave attempt.

In case you inhabit a particularly large hole in Nova Scotia, Webkinz turns your children into loving, caring humans online.

On the Webkinz site, your children can look after their new pets. Well, as long as they buy the physical, three-dimensional stuffed version at a friendly neighborhood store.

So it is my heartfelt privilege to be able to tell you that should you choose to … Read more