- Low Cost Killer Robot11 March 2010, 8:12 pm
One of our most prolific commenters, [mrgoogfan], shared with us his working BattleBots style robot. Built for under $500, it is capable of zipping around at 25 miles an hour under load. Chances are, this robot would be just as much fun as a Bar Stool Racer as it is with all the weapons attached. [...]...
- DIY scratch controller11 March 2010, 7:00 pm
There’s something viscerally pleasing about simple solutions. [Kip] came up with one in the form of a scratch controller. The spindle from an optical drive is used to hold a CD in place, which acts as the LP for scratching. The sensor from an optical mouse is mounted upside down below the CD and detects [...]...
- Update: Nintendo DS camera control11 March 2010, 6:00 pm
All of the juicy details needed to control a camera from your Nintendo DS are now available at the Open Camera Control project. This is the descendant of [Steve Chapman's] setup from a few years ago. The system has been polished up and has seen many feature additions. It’s been used in movie production and [...]...
- Hardware jailbreak eases reboot pains11 March 2010, 4:35 pm
This device can jailbreak an iPhone. It doesn’t require a computer and it can either reboot a phone that was one-time-boot jailbroken using the blackra1n exploit, or jailbreak a factory fresh unit. We wouldn’t say this solves the tethering problem caused by blackra1n (needing to return to a computer to reboot the phone), but it [...]...
- Coffee powered Car-puccino10 March 2010, 10:29 pm
We can only imagine how amazing this coffee burning car smells at it speeds down the highway at a maximum of 60mph. Don’t jump out of your seat so quick to get your own, while the idea sounds fantastic, the mileage will bring you back to earth rather quick. At 3 miles per kilo of [...]... - 50MHz to 100Mhz scope conversion10 March 2010, 9:00 pm
[Ross] is the proud owner of a 50 MHz Rigol DS1052E oscilloscope. He’d like to have the 100 MHz version but the $400 difference in price puts it out of his reach. After some extensive poking around on the PCB and pouring over datasheets, he managed to reverse engineer the design and upgrade to a [...]... - Jeri makes integrated circuits10 March 2010, 7:25 pm
[Jeri Ellsworth] made this silicon inverter at home, by hand. It took her two years to get the process figured out and achieve something we didn’t think was possible. The complexity of manufacture, and the wide range of tools and materials needed seem insurmountable but she did it anyway. Her home chip fab Flickr set [...]... - Noisy Super 810 March 2010, 6:25 pm
[Matt Kemp] remade this super 8 film camera into a synthesizer. Inside you’ll find a light sensor pointed through the lens. This way, zooming, focusing, and pointing the lens elsewhere will change the sound. He also refit the original controls to monkey with the output. Turn your speakers up when you watch this, your co-workers [...]... - Game glove learns your weakness10 March 2010, 3:43 pm
[Steve Hoefer] pulled together a great hack for the friendless. This glove will play a heated game of rock-paper-scissors against you. [Steve] realized that the middle and fourth fingers are all that need to be monitored to decide which of the three signs you are making. He used flex sensors on the back of these [...]... - R2D2 build video10 March 2010, 2:30 pm
Follow along with [Victor] through the journey of building a life size replica of R2D2. While you may not be able to scrape too many specific details from the video, it is still great to see the project progress from his first cut to the finished product as well as some fun little outings. His [...]...
- IBM and Stanford Unveil Green Chemistry Breakthrough11 March 2010, 7:33 pm
Scientists from IBM and Stanford University have unveiled discoveries that could lead to the development of new types of biodegradable, biocompatible plastics. The result of a multi-year research effort, the breakthrough also could lead to a new recycling process that has the potential to significantly increase the ability to recycle and reuse common PET and [...] Related posts:Dell O2 PC: A New Approach to “Green Computing” IBM: Five Innovations We’ll See in the Next Five Ye...
- Sony makes its Move into motion control11 March 2010, 6:10 pm
Sony has unveiled its answer to the Wiimote and Project Natal: a motion control system named Move. The company hasn’t confirmed a release date or a standalone price yet. However, it says there will be a bundle deal with one controller, a Playstation Eye camera (which is needed to receive the control signals) and one game [...] Related posts:PS3 motion controller makes its public debut Sony working on a universal console controller PC games on Sony PS3 using Game Streams ...
- The Video Game Bosses’ Lament11 March 2010, 4:30 pm
Bowser, Dr. Robotnik, Gannon and many others are starting to see a pattern. “All we have to do is keep him from going to the right…that’s it.” [Via Digg] Related posts:Video game industry suffers major slump Grand Theft Auto: The Board Game (Video) Hot New Video Game Consists of Shooting People in The Face Related posts:Video game industry suffers major slump Grand Theft Auto: The Board Game (Video) Hot New Video Game Consists of Shooting People in The Face ...
- Gaming Goes to the Clouds11 March 2010, 3:20 pm
I would use the phrase the BBC did, but I’m sick of hearing of ___ killers in general. ( I’ll believe it when I see it, y’know?) But regardless of terminology, BBC News had a very interesting little piece in their technology section this morning about OnLive, an internet-based gaming company that essentially kicks the [...] Related posts:Is PC gaming on the way out? Long live consoles? Gamers Still Love Their Playstation 2 Illusion Labs brings multi-touch gaming to the big s...
- Inuvik Gets Artificial Sun11 March 2010, 2:51 pm
Ok, this is super awesome. Since people in Inuvik, Canada, are permanently enshrouded in darkness during winter, Tropicana (the juice company) decided to bring sunshine into their lives by installing 100,000 lumens worth of lights into a large helium balloon, raising the whole thing into the sky. Check it out: [Via Gizmodo] Related posts:Newtonian Physics of a [...] Related posts:Newtonian Physics of a Helium Filled Balloon Bear-4 Sends HD Camera to the Edge of Space Toshiba’s Amazing...
- The LXD: In the Internet Age, Dance evolves…10 March 2010, 9:36 pm
In the following video, the LXD (the Legion of Extraordinary Dancers) electrifies the TED2010 stage with an emerging global street-dance culture, revved up by the Internet. In a preview of Jon Chus upcoming Web series, this astonishing troupe show off their superpowers. Related posts:Power-generating Dance Clubs McCain Versus Obama Dance-Off Captain Picard Loves the Internet Related posts:Power-generating Dance Clubs McCain Versus Obama Dance-Off Captain Picard Loves the Internet ... - Beyond the Reaches of the Sun10 March 2010, 6:48 pm
More than 20 years later, I can still remember the first time my mind was truly blown. While at elementary school in the mid 1980s, we were taught about the Voyager probes which had been launched in 1977 to take advantage of a rare event (“the planets in alignment”, in this situation, not being a [...] Related posts:G’bye little V’Ger, see ya in 2271 The Wind from the Sun: From Fiction to Reality Discovered: Fifth Rock From The Sun ... - Galactica: Sabotage10 March 2010, 4:47 pm
Galactica: Sabotage is an awesome mashup that pays homage to both Battlestar Galactica and The Beastie Boys’ Sabotage video. If you start the video below (at 0:34) with the one on the top at the same time, you’ll see that the mashup is an almost exact copy of the original clip, shot for shot. [Via Buzzfeed] Related posts:Deal [...] Related posts:Deal of the Day: 47% Off Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series | Blu-ray + DVD Sci-Fi Channel Picks Up Battlestar Galactica Preque... - Featured 3D Short: A Gentlemen’s Duel10 March 2010, 3:33 pm
Not only is A Gentlemen’s Duel one of the best 3D short we’ve ever seen, but it’s one of the funniest too. Enjoy! Thanks Ross! Related posts:Featured 3D Short: Handle With Care Featured 3D Short: Pivot Featured 3D Short: Samurai Related posts:Featured 3D Short: Handle With Care Featured 3D Short: Pivot Featured 3D Short: Samurai ... - Breaking News: Some Bullshit Happening Somewhere [Video]9 March 2010, 11:43 pm
Warning: Video contains strong language. Related posts:Breaking News: Giant Neutrophil Bullies Little Bacteria! [#video] BREAKING NEWS: Adults Play Video Games! Breaking News: The “Star Wars Kid” – Where Is He Now? Related posts:Breaking News: Giant Neutrophil Bullies Little Bacteria! [#video] BREAKING NEWS: Adults Play Video Games! Breaking News: The “Star Wars Kid” – Where Is He Now? ...
- News: Change in Focus10 March 2010, 12:00 am
Change in Focus... - News: Twitter attacker had proper credentials18 December 2009, 12:00 am
Twitter attacker had proper credentials... - News: PhotoDNA scans images for child abuse18 December 2009, 12:00 am
PhotoDNA scans images for child abuse >> Advertisement << Can you answer the ERP quiz? These 10 questions determine if your Enterprise RP rollout gets an A+. http://www.findtechinfo.com/as/acs?pl=781&ca=909... - News: Conficker data highlights infected networks16 December 2009, 12:00 am
Conficker data highlights infected networks... - Brief: Google offers bounty on browser bugs2 February 2010, 12:00 am
Google offers bounty on browser bugs... - Brief: Cyberattacks from U.S. "greatest concern"28 January 2010, 12:00 am
Cyberattacks from U.S. "greatest concern" >> Advertisement << Can you answer the ERP quiz? These 10 questions determine if your Enterprise RP rollout gets an A+. http://www.findtechinfo.com/as/acs?pl=781&ca=909... - Brief: Microsoft patches as fraudsters target IE flaw21 January 2010, 12:00 am
Microsoft patches as fraudsters target IE flaw... - Brief: Attack on IE 0-day refined by researchers18 January 2010, 12:00 am
Attack on IE 0-day refined by researchers... - News: Monster botnet held 800,000 people's details4 March 2010, 12:00 am
Monster botnet held 800,000 people's details >> Advertisement << Can you answer the ERP quiz? These 10 questions determine if your Enterprise RP rollout gets an A+. http://www.findtechinfo.com/as/acs?pl=781&ca=909... - News: Google: 'no timetable' on China talks4 March 2010, 12:00 am
Google: 'no timetable' on China talks...
- MetaLab Accuses Mozilla of Ripping Off UI Elements In Mockups12 March 2010, 2:08 am
CWmike writes "Canadian interface design firm MetaLab has accused Mozilla of stealing user interface elements for a development tool in the browser maker's Jetpack project, which aims to simplify add-on making. MetaLab leveled the charges on Tuesday when the 11-person firm's founder, Andrew Wilkinson, blogged about the similarities between his company's designs and those posted by Mozilla for FlightDeck, a Jetpack editor. 'What they did was pretty ridiculous,' Wilkinson said on Thursday. 'There'...
- William Shatner Takes On Social Networking11 March 2010, 11:22 pm
nut writes "Everybody's favourite actor, author and starship captain is bringing some new ideas to the world of social networking. Myouterspace.com is, in the Captain's own words, '...a Sci Fi Social Network for those with a passion for the arts.' Facebook and Myspace should be worried. Sign up now. Go on, you know you want to." Read more of this story at Slashdot. ...
- Researchers Beam 230Mb/sec Wireless Internet WIth LEDs11 March 2010, 10:38 pm
MikeChino writes "A group of scientists from Germany's Fraunhofer Institute have devised a way to encode a visible-frequency wireless signal in light emitted by plain old desklamps and other light fixtures. The team was able to achieve a record-setting data download rate of 230 megabits per second, and they expect to be able to double that speed in the near future. While the regular radio-frequency Wi-Fi most of us use currently is perfectly fine, it does have its flaws — it has a limited ...
- SolarPHP 1.0 Released11 March 2010, 10:18 pm
HvitRavn writes "SolarPHP 1.0 stable was released by Paul M. Jones today. SolarPHP is an application framework and library, and is a serious contender alongside Zend Framework, Symphony, and similar frameworks. SolarPHP has in the recent years been the cause of heated debate in the PHP community due to provocative benchmark results posted on Paul M. Jones' blog." Read more of this story at Slashdot. ...
- Best Smartphone Plan Covering US and Canada?11 March 2010, 9:54 pm
j00bhaka writes "I am a US citizen attending university in Nova Scotia, Canada. I currently have the Verizon America and Canada plan (also known as the North American plan). My bill is currently around $80-$100 per month. I chose this for a couple reasons. One, I have had my number for about 7 years. Two, I do not permanently live in Canada. I live in Canada for 8 months out of the year at school, then travel home for the summer months. Either way, I would be dealing with international roaming w...
- Pennsylvania CISO Fired Over Talk At RSA Conference11 March 2010, 9:07 pm
An anonymous reader writes "Pennsylvania's chief information security officer Robert Maley has been fired for publicly talking about a security incident involving the Commonwealth's online driving exam scheduling system. He apparently did not get the required approval for talking about the incident from appropriate authorities." Read more of this story at Slashdot. ...
- Half-Male, Half-Female Fowl Explain Birds' Sex Determination11 March 2010, 8:48 pm
Kanan excerpts from a BBC report out of Scotland: "A study of sexually scrambled chickens suggests that sex in birds is determined in a radically different way from that in mammals. Researchers studied three chickens that appeared to be literally half-male and half-female, and found that nearly every cell in their bodies — from wattle to toe — has an inherent sex identity. This cell-by-cell sex orientation contrasts sharply with the situation in mammals, in which organism-wide sex id...
- T-Mobile's First HSPA+ Modem Goes On Sale Sunday11 March 2010, 8:24 pm
adeelarshad82 writes "T-Mobile announced that the webConnect Rocket USB Laptop Stick, the first HSPA+ device for the US, will be available beginning on Sunday, March 14. The device was originally announced at MWC in February. HSPA+ is interesting because it could enable 4G LTE-like speeds using existing 3G infrastructure and according to a hands-on, it smokes Wi-Max. Right now, it's still just for Philadelphia, although we should see several major cities light up with HSPA+ on both coasts well b...
- EMI Cannot Unbundle Pink Floyd Songs11 March 2010, 7:40 pm
smooth wombat writes "Before the advent of iTunes and MP3s, EMI and Pink Floyd entered into a contract which stated that EMI could not unbundle individual songs from their original album settings. This was insisted upon by the members of Pink Floyd, who wanted to retain artistic control of their works, which they considered 'seamless' pieces of music. However, with the advent of digital downloads, EMI has been selling individual songs through its online store. Pink Floyd sued, claiming EMI was v...
- Bill To Ban All Salt In Restaurant Cooking11 March 2010, 7:22 pm
lord_rotorooter writes "Felix Ortiz, D-Brooklyn, introduced a bill that would ruin restaurant food and baked goods as we know them. The measure (if passed) would ban the use of all forms of salt in the preparation and cooking of food for all restaurants or bakeries. While the use of too much salt can contribute to health problems, the complete banning of salt would have negative impacts on food chemistry. Not only does salt enhance flavor, it controls bacteria, slows yeast activity and strengthe...
- I’m getting old for Starcraft II12 March 2010, 3:16 am
So after the 7th probe comes out, I should have just enough minerals to warp in a Pylon. Then two more probes to get the Gateway and … finally Zealots. Or wait .. did the first Pylon come after the 5th probe? OMG. That was me a couple of days ago. Twelve years ago, circa 1998 [...]...
- You’ve never seen a Blackberry like this12 March 2010, 1:14 am
You are looking at a Blackberry Tour 9360 smartphone built entirely out of LEGO bricks. Yes, you read that right. It’s not the handheld variety, either. This Blackberry is over five feet tall, and incorporates a flatscreen TV, because the client who commissioned the giant Blackberry wanted it to have a working screen. It’s so huge that [...]...
- Stealth Geek: Adidas X-Wing Shoes11 March 2010, 7:57 pm
Back in December, we told you about a new line of Adidas gear designed for the Star Wars enthusiasts. Like some kind of wacky hot tub time machine, here we are in the future – 2010 – and some of the shoes are out. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any sign of the dope Stormtrooper or [...]...
- Photoshop Fun: Street Fighter Street Sign11 March 2010, 9:37 am
[photo via reddit] In 2005, I was dating this chick who I was just kinda into. She was alright, but she lived pretty far away and she smoked, so it wasn’t a good match. It was a Sunday afternoon, and I was out on a blind date with this small whale when I decided to fake [...]...
- Can “PlayStation Move” compete against Wii & Natal?11 March 2010, 2:06 am
At the Game Developer’s Conference today, Sony held a press conference where the name of its long-discussed motion controlling wand device was unveiled: PlayStation Move. The device has some obvious similarities to the Wii Remote, but it takes the same basic technology to sophisticated new heights, thanks to the PS3’s tremendous horsepower. The PSMove is made [...]... - State of the Multiverse 6810 March 2010, 8:12 pm
It looks like Marvel have been listening to me, and my love of the 8-page story format, as once the Dark Reign draws to a close in the Siege of Asgard, we launch into the Heroic Age.... - BSG Goes MMO – On a Related Note, I’m Locking Myself in my Room and Never Coming Out10 March 2010, 12:49 pm
Raise your hand if you’ve ever spoken to Tricia Helfer, Six from Battlestar Galactica, for more than 10 minutes. Anybody? Oh, I guess it’s just me then. Back in September, I interviewed her for a magazine I was working for at the time. 30 minutes later, I had the best interview I ever did on [...]... - Tron Legacy Trailer 2 Released10 March 2010, 8:37 am
Apparently, I’m on trailer duty this week. First Iron Man 2, now the sequel to the cult classic Tron, Tron Legacy. The newest trailer is out now, and it’s definitely worth the 2:20 run time, because this movie brings me back. My first experience with Tron wasn’t in the theaters, it was at the local arcade, [...]... - Flying saucer projector10 March 2010, 3:44 am
Okay, so it doesn’t actually fly, but it sure looks like a flying saucer, don’t you think? It even has little fold-out landing legs! (Actually, I think maybe it was separated at birth from this thing from Star Wars. Or maybe one of those robots from WALL-E? But I digress.) This is in reality the OO [...]... - WoWeekly: Patch 3.3.3 Ready for Download!9 March 2010, 9:13 pm
As of this writing, I am currently at 1.75MB of 77.3MB of Patch 3.3.3. Still a long way to go! If you’re on the same boat as I am and you’re noticing that your download is a bit slow, don’t panic, fellow WoW geeks. The patch download is only for preparation when WoW 3.3.3 actually [...]...