Skip to Content

Try your hand at the Spore Creature Creator and win free stuff from Big Download!
AOL Tech

Posts with tag homeless

Security Cameras, Mobile Phone Help Man Track Down Mysterious House Guest


Look, we're just as down on crazy Japanese stereotypes as the next guy. We watched 'Lost in Translation.' We're with it. We know it's not all cosplay and weird game shows (but seriously, that human Tetris one? Awesome) and people dressing up as vending machines (pictured). That said, this story isn't doing Japan any favors. A homeless woman was recently arrested in Tokyo after living undetected in a man's closet for a year and sneaking food out of his kitchen. It was the missing food that tipped him off, so he installed some security cameras in his home to transmit images to his phone. Some motion was detected, so he called the police, and soon enough they spotted her in the closet -- where she had planted a mattress. Moral of the story? Move to Japan. Better cellphones and bigger closets. You can't lose.

[Via ixplora]

Google Gives Free Phone Numbers and Voicemail to Homeless

Google Gives Free Phone Number and Voicemail to San Francisco HomelessGoogle's one phone number for everything service, GrandCentral, is getting a new trial of sorts. Google is taking its 'Do no evil' mantra to the streets of San Francisco -- literally. A partnership between Google, the San Francisco city government, and Project CARE (Communications and Respect for Everybody) is offering a free phone number and voicemail box to every homeless person in the city for life.

The philanthropic program is aimed at helping the homeless not just communicate with friends and family, but also land jobs. One of the big stumbling blocks for the downtrodden is their inaccessibility. When emerging from job training programs, folks need a method of contact, preferably a phone number. By calling from any phone, including pay phones, the homeless will also be able to get a phone number and set up the voicemail box.

Project CARE also sees the voicemail box as a doorway to proper medical testing and care. If the project is successful, Google will expand it through the rest of the state, and hopefully the country.

From MSNBC

Related Links:


    AOL Tech Network



    Latest Reviews from CNET.com

    CNET provides the latest tech news, unbiased reviews, videos, podcasts, software, and downloads, making tech products easy to find, understand and use.

    Top Product Reviews

    Weblogs, Inc. Network

    AOL News

    Other Weblogs Inc. Network blogs you might be interested in: