Some research in India, quoted in today’s Telegraph points out that mobile phone usage prompted a demonstrable decline in the population of a honey bee hive.

Now researchers from Chandigarh’s Punjab University claim they have found the cause which could be the first step in reversing the decline: They have established that radiation from mobile telephones is a key factor in the phenomenon and say that it probably interfering with the bee’s navigation senses.

Not good at all. Would you give up your mobile to save the honey bees?

The location based app market has been popular for quite some time now, with its major players becoming household names. Foursquare, Gowalla, and upstarts like Booyah’s MyTown are showing impressive user numbers and gaining traction among mobile users. Yet at TechCrunch Disrupt last week, two new startups showed promising twists on location-based services (LBS). DeHood aims to create a new community vibe through its iPhone app and website, each of which pulls in information about their local area. Yet possibly more disruptive is SCVNGR, which takes the game dynamics present in Foursquare and makes them the center of the service, instead of placing them on the periphery as Foursquare does.

Making Checking in Fun Again
Foursquare is designed to one day become a social and local utility, with social gaming mechanics designed to encourage checkins and to get people to use the platform more frequently. With SCVNGR, going to somewhere and checking in isn’t enough. Instead, they make the entire world a scavenger hunt. At Disrupt, challenges included “Double Down,” with users suggesting companies for venture capitalists to invest in, or “Give me a ‘T’,” wherein users had to spell out TCD with random scraps they found at the conference.

SCVNGR has spent the past couple of months working with institutions like colleges and museums to build “treks,” which are essentially scavenger hunts. These are designed to drive more traffic and interactivity with the institutions. One could theoretically travel through the Metropolitan Museum of Art doing a trek, a highlights tour of sorts that was designed with SVNGR. The app includes social features as well, allowing users to see where they rank against their friends and the treks their friends had previously completed.

SCVNGR’s Disrupt Tasks

SCVNGR has clearly caught on. After the launch of their 3.0 iPhone app at Disrupt, they’ve seen a steep increase in traffic and use of their app. Download their iPhone app today to get in on the fun!

FREE!

SCVNGR

iPhone App – Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2009-08-01 :: Category: Social Networking / Action

[ SCVNGR Brings Innovation to Location-Based Gaming is a post from 148Apps ]