Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, face masks have become a global necessity, with people required to wear them by law when out in public in certain parts of the world, including the UAE.
As well as reducing the wearer's risk of contracting the coronavirus, manufacturers have endeavoured to make masks that are fashionable, charitable and eco-friendly. It was only a matter of time until they became a technical feat, too.
Japanese company Donut Robotics has found a way to make face masks "smart", with a device that translates what the wearer is saying into eight different languages. The technology could prove very helpful when travelling in the age of Covid-19.
The C-Face is an electronic attachment, which fits on top of standard face masks. It works with smartphones to translate what the wearer is saying as they speak.
On its website, Donut Robotics explains that the C-Face "delivers your voice to the smartphone of the other party", so the words you speak appear on a smartphone app, typed in message format.
It works in Japanese, Vietnamese, English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Thai, Indonesian and French. It is also able to take minute notes of conversations.
The website adds: "Currently, only sounds and characters are used, but in the future, it will be expanded to image systems (AR, VR, etc). It is a new communication device in the rapidly progressing online and digital world."
The masks will be available to buy in December, and will cost ¥3,980 (Dh137). A monthly fee is also applicable to cover the translation and minutes functions.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
'Outclassed in Kuwait'
Taleb Alrefai,
HBKU Press
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Hotel Silence
Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir
Pushkin Press
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
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