Serving the GW Community since 1904

The GW Hatchet

AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904

The GW Hatchet

Serving the GW Community since 1904

The GW Hatchet

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GW In Brief

Washington eatery mocks GW professor, “fat suits”

An eating establishment in Washington state recently began requiring customers to sign a liability waiver before eating a new dessert, “the Bulge,” mocking proponents of obesity lawsuits.

The waiver is a semi-serious effort by the owners of Seattle’s 5 Spot Diner to protect their business from any sort of obesity-related lawsuit, and express the absurdity of restaurants being held accountable for their customers’ eating habits, according to the Washington Post.

The main target of the gimmick is GW Law School professor John F. Banzhaf, who played a large role in a lawsuit against McDonalds, claiming the restaurants contributed to the obesity of two of its customers.
Andrea Nurko

GW alum creates sign language translator

GW alumnus Jose Hernandez-Rebollar invented a talking hand.

The AcceleGlove, which he completed to obtain his doctorate in electrical engineering from GW, is a sensor-studded glove with accompanying computer software, which translates sign language to spoken word.

“I wanted to apply the research to something useful and interesting at the same time,” said Hernandez-Rebollar, who began his work in the summer of 2000.

The AcceleGlove essentially consists of three parts – the glove itself, a “skeleton” which fits around the arm and computer software.

When the user wears the glove and signs, the computer reads the gesture and search for it in the dictionary.

The glove by itself is completely accurate, Hernandez-Rebollar said.
Ryan McGlone

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