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Black Silicon
Black Silicon
Leaked Documents
MacBook and MacBook Pro Repair Document Leaked, Confirms "Late 2008" Update
In case you needed more, here's a proof that seems to completely confirm that—as expected—both the MacBook and MacBook Pro will be updated this Tuesday at the Apple MacBook 2008 event in Cupertino, where heads may be rolling after a PDF document referring to the "MacBook/MacBook Pro (Late 2008)" line was accidentally posted today in their support site. The document—now gone from Apple servers—details the full procedure for replacing the display in the new notebooks. [MacRumors]
Lego
20-Foot-Long Lego Battlecruiser Can Probably Sink Oil Tankers on Impact
This is a 20-foot-long Lego model of the HMS Hood, a Royal Navy battlecruiser built in 1920 and sunk by the German Kriegsmarine Battleship Bismarck in 1941. This stunning piece of brick engineering, built to minifig scale, has a robotized mast and is actually bigger than the 16.4-foot-long Lego U.S.S. Harry S. Truman. Check the gallery to get the idea of how gigantic this thing is, and see how the Lego frames to support its weight are built inside. More »
Space
Spectacular Video of Jules Verne Apocalyptical Re-Entry
Here's the video of the fiery re-entry of the Jules Verne Autonomous Transport Vehicle, the huge European Space Agency spacecraft that carried almost five tonnes of food, air, water and fuel on board the International Space Station. It was taken in high definition from a NASA's DC-8 at 37,000 feet, 90 miles north of the entry path. The debris was scattered through a 157,000-square-mile corridor about 1,250 miles east of New Zealand, where hobbits everywhere thought it was Sauron was coming back to eat them all deep-fried. [Aviation Week]
5:00 PM on Sun Oct 12 2008
By Jesus Diaz
1,893 views,
9 comments
Latest by strider_mt2k: Look here brother, WHO YOU JIVIN' WITH THAT COSMIC DEBRIS??? more »
Turntables
$56,000 Four Arm Turntable is an Octopus DJ's Ticket to Fame
DJs or other beat mashing fiends with more than two arms are being held back by today's traditional turntables, so it's a good thing Highwater Sound is around to create $56,000 four arm Frankensteins like this thing. The table is built around a TW-Acoustic Raven AC and implements three motors. The arms were assembled from parts from Breuer Dynamic, Graham Engineering, Triplanar, and Ortofon, and the cartridges are the work of Dynavector, Ortofon, and Miyabi. We imagine that if you're a DJ, that last sentence caused the ol' heart rate to increase just a tad, among other things. [Highwater Sound via DVICE]
It's alive!
Computer Nearly Passes Turing Test for Artificial Intelligence
Today, the machines became a little smarter, as a computer named Elbot managed to achieve a 25% success rate when convincing a human being that they were talking to another human. The experiment is called the Turing Test, after mathematician Alan Turing, and Sunday's saw six Artificial Conversational Entities (ACEs) trying to ace the exam. Word is there was one human dunce in the mix, as all six computers managed to fool at least one interrogator into thinking they were speaking to another person, but none of the machines could officially pass Turing's strict standards. More »
AirPod
This post is almost half a Retromodo, in that compressed air cars have been peddled by companies like MDI for the last 20 years. But this compressed air-powered pod, the AirPod, is all new. The three-seater is powered by MDI's proprietary compressed air system, which uses electricity to force the air to power the engine's pistons. The car might appear in U.S. cities by 2010, and possibly India and Europe a bit sooner.
More »
AirPod is Like a Smart Car Full of Hot Air, and That's the Idea
This post is almost half a Retromodo, in that compressed air cars have been peddled by companies like MDI for the last 20 years. But this compressed air-powered pod, the AirPod, is all new. The three-seater is powered by MDI's proprietary compressed air system, which uses electricity to force the air to power the engine's pistons. The car might appear in U.S. cities by 2010, and possibly India and Europe a bit sooner.
More »
3:30 PM on Sun Oct 12 2008
By Jack Loftus
1,649 views,
12 comments
cartel
CarTel Device Attacks Traffic Jams with Fleet of Networked Smart Cars
Researchers at MIT are using computer networks and cabbies to tackle a routine problem that I, personally, can attest to: Boston area traffic jams. Called CarTel (get it?), the system creates a network by way of cell phone-sized black boxes. The boxes currently sit on board 50 cars and taxis in the Boston area. Drivers access the CarTel web portal for real-time info on their own vehicle as well as those around them. "Everybody's data is contributing to collective views of what congestion looks like," said MIT associate professor Samuel Madden. More »
Robots
Robot Prototype Finds, Attacks and Kills Breast Cancer Cells
Here's one in the plus column for the looming robot uprising: a prototype developed by University of Maryland professor Jaydev Desai could one day diagnose, hunt, and destroy breast cancer cells all in one sitting, and in a much more efficient manner than we ham-handed human beings. More »
MacBook
Chinese blog MacX is showing some very legit looking pics of what they allege is the MacBook Pro casing today. We will have to wait for the MacBook 2008 event this week to see if it is real or not, but they are crystal clear and in line with both series of previous leaked images.
More »
New MacBook 2008 Alleged Aluminum Case Photos Hit the Web
Chinese blog MacX is showing some very legit looking pics of what they allege is the MacBook Pro casing today. We will have to wait for the MacBook 2008 event this week to see if it is real or not, but they are crystal clear and in line with both series of previous leaked images.
More »
Firefox Mobile
First Screens of Firefox Mobile Surface with Few Surprises, No Release Date
Early October saw Mozilla CEO John Lilly claiming Firefox Mobile would be available in a few weeks. That's still the case today, but one additional bit of info we can deliver to you are some of the first screen shots of the browser to hit the net. According to the Unwired, these screens are of Firefox Mobile running on a Windows Mobile Professional touchscreen smartphone. In a separate screen, developers were able to run an Acid3 test with a score of 88/100. Not too shabby for a mobile browser. [The Unwired]
2:00 PM on Sun Oct 12 2008
By Jack Loftus
2,582 views,
3 comments
Latest by chickdigger802: This better be on iphone somehow >.>" (cydia anyone?) more »
iPhone Fusion
OLO Wants to Fuse the iPhone with Netbooks
For those of you out there who are too impatient for the day when iPhone-like mobiles and netbooks converge into one carry-all uber device, there's OLO. On Monday, the company will announce plans for an iPhone-powered netbook. As you can see in the image, there's all sorts of FAIL going on right now. Wrong OS for starters, so we can probably chalk this pic up to poor Photoshopping and/or planning on OLO's part. However, the company is adamant that the device is real, and coming soon. Of course, if Apple unleashes a MacBook netbook on the world this week during its MacBook event, calling the OLO device a moot point will be the understatement of the year. From the looks of the OLO web site, that may happen even if Apple decides to cancel the event and show nothing. [OLO Computer via ITWire]
1:30 PM on Sun Oct 12 2008
By Jack Loftus
5,522 views,
12 comments
Latest by gazork23: I think the biggest hurdle attempting such a device (or even trying to do this hack by yourself) would be more »
EMP Boogeyman
Green, Renewable Microgrids Protect Our Tech From EMPs, Boogeymen
Their press release reads like a speech from the 2004 GOP presidential convention, but Instant Access Networks still has some pretty cool tech up their sleeves when it comes to protecting our technology from electromagnetic pulses (EMPs). Citing one megaton nuclear bombs over Kansas and rogue terrorist states, IAN says its renewable energy-powered, EMP-protected "microgrids" are just what today's society needs to protect itself from tomorrow's unseen threats. More »
Storage
We doubt that the LaCie 5big Network storage array will one day spontaneously become self-aware and take over your office, but the visual nod to HAL is unmistakable nevertheless. And on purpose. Designer Neil Poulton said he created the array thanks to inspiration from the supercomputer at the heart of 2001: A Space Odyssey. However, aside from that all seeing eye thing on the front, this beast is all about affordable storage, not ending your life.
More »
LaCie 5Big is Slightly Less Infamous Than HAL 9000
We doubt that the LaCie 5big Network storage array will one day spontaneously become self-aware and take over your office, but the visual nod to HAL is unmistakable nevertheless. And on purpose. Designer Neil Poulton said he created the array thanks to inspiration from the supercomputer at the heart of 2001: A Space Odyssey. However, aside from that all seeing eye thing on the front, this beast is all about affordable storage, not ending your life.
More »
Rotating Plasma Screen
Drop-Down, Rotating 103-Inch Plasma Screen Video is Pure, Glorious Gadget Porn
I can't decide if it's the subtle piano playing in the background or the slow, seductive movement of this 500-lb., 103-inch plasma that's got me all hot and bothered today. I guess I could care less either way, because this dancing television is all sorts of wonderfulness. And it's practical too, as the 180-degree rotation makes any room in the crib the best seat in the house. [Ballerhouse]
Geeks In Space
Richard Garriott Reaches Orbit, Can Finally Act Out Plot of Tabula Rasa
Computer game millionaire Richard Garriott is now in orbit. At about 3 a.m., the current luckiest geek in the world blasted off in a Soyuz TMA-13 capsule alongside U.S. astronaut Michael Fincke and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov. The three will circle the Earth a few times before docking with the International Space Station on Tuesday. At that time, Garriott will conduct a series of experiments that will probably not include level grinding in his sci-fi MMORPG, Tabula Rasa. One thing Garriott and company may not be able to do when they reach the ISS? Go to the bathroom. Update: Now with video: More »
City of Ember
City of Ember: Bill Murray, Two Kids, Saving a Post-Apocalyptic City From Aging Tech
With City of Ember, a post-apocalyptic adventure tale starring Bill Murray, two kids, and some aging gadgetry, the mecca of Bill Murray gadget movies, Ghostbusters, has some good company. In Ember, Murray plays the hapless mayor of Ember, an underground city that humanity created to escape calamity in the not so distant future. Trouble is, the big honkin' generator we built to power the city was only meant to last 200 years, and now it's on the fritz, which leads to some harrowing periods of darkness as it sputters and struggles to power the city. Cue the adventure. More »
Dealzmodo
Dealzmodo: Free iPhone Games from Hudson
Hudson, makers of Bomberman and Mario Party, among others, is giving away three of their games for the iPhone platform for free. Aqua Forest, Neo Same Game, and Catch the Egg are all available at no cost for the length of the Tokyo Game Show, which means you've got until October 12th to snatch up some worthwhile freebies. [Thanks, Kevin K.!]
8:00 PM on Sat Oct 11 2008
By Dan Nosowitz
13,647 views,
27 comments
Latest by elislider: "purchase of this item is not currently available" "this item is being modified". they are probably removing the free-ness because more »
