That's right, an Air Force aerospace engineer has developed a plan—well, let's call it a method—for altering the path of potentially harmful space objects by tethering them, via hilariously long cord, to a multi-billion pound weight. Theoretically, the weight would alter the menacing rock's orbit enough to avoid an Earth impact and certain doom. Oh, but that alteration would take anywhere from 10 to 50 years, which could be problematic based on our current detection capabilities. And we don't actually have a way of sending anywhere near that much weight into space in the first place, much less an idea of how to tie it around an asteroid. Maybe a really, really big sailor's knot? [Wired]

The resulting fire eventually burned down the two-story house, which was about 250 square meters (about 2,700 square feet) and made partially from wood…

His 55 year old mother was also in the house but escaped without injuries."

That giant Gundam in Tokyo must really be stoking the flames of fanaticism. (sorry)
[The Kobe Shimbun (translated) via Anime News Network via Current]

I'm normally a Hander-boxers guy, but I need something more for my workouts on the iPhone Treadmill—that's where these tighty-whities shine. The Handerpants are made of 95% cotton and 5% Spandex to ensure a comfortable fit, and are a bargain at $11.95 a pair. If you still can't get enough Handerpants magic after watching the video, there is a free ringtone so you can relive the wonderment everytime you get a call.
[Handerpants via Craziest Gadgets]

Yeah, that's pretty insane all right—and they did this shit twice a year:

Notice that Crazy Eddie spokesman Jerry Carroll was somewhat less insane in the late '70s. He didn't truly fly off the handle until the '80s:

Crazy Eddie started in Brooklyn in 1971, but eventually went down in a way that was as dramatic as their commercials. In 1986, co-founder Eddie Antar abruptly cashed in millions of dollars worth of stock and resigned from the company. In 1987 he was charged with several crimes related to fraudulent business practices, leading him to flee the country for his native Israel in 1990. However, his exile only lasted until '93 when he returned to the US to stand trial. Eventually, he spent several years in prison for his crimes. Looking back on it now, these commercials should have been the first sign that something wasn't right.

Gizmodo '79 is a week-long celebration of gadgets and geekdom 30 years ago, as the analog age gave way to the digital, and most of our favorite toys were just being born.

In what's a very awkward ending to what seemed like a relatively calm interview, Ballmer bolts up goes into a crazy shout-fest, trying to excite the audience. Other than the fact that this should have been done at the start of the interview, the whole thing just seems inappropriate for the venue he's at. The best part is the end, where it seems like (the tape ends there) he just bolts off the stage without saying goodbye or thanking the interviewer.

Not to shit on Ballmer more than we already have, but man, is he a horrible public speaker. If Microsoft wants to revamp their image, it starts from the top. [WPC09]

I had to watch his dementedly baroque video—which is featured at The Standard Hotel, New York—a few times to get all the details. In the process, I got scared but aroused at the same time. Strangely enough, now I want pizza.

Pizza topped with tomato, cheese, little people, marshmallows, flames, and naked angels. [Motionographer via Dark Roasted Blend]

A 50-year-old woman told 21-year-old computer programmer Jun Ando to stop playing cellphone games because the Shinkiba-bound train was supercrowded. (Some older people in Japan also just have a thing about cellphones—there are sections of some trains where you're not supposed to use them at all.) He then allegedly told her to shut her face before proceeding to blast it with punches, breaking her jaw. But it gets better!

After Ando was taken off the train and forced into the station's office by the staff, he punched the woman again. Man, he must've been in the middle of a boss fight in Metal Gear Touch or something.

Has anyone ever annoyed you enough with their cellphone in a crowded space in a way other than talking on it that you wanted to grind their face into cheap hamburger meat with your bare hands? [Japan Today via Alafista via Kotaku]

Or maybe is this one?

[Thanks Ariel]

The double jump was made by Levi LaValle at the Winter X Games on a 450-pound Polaris snowmobile. I'm more the giant Antarctic snowmobile type, the one that can carry planes and have a small apartment inside, but I can appreciate the absolutely nutterini risk this jump involves. [Freecaster—Not available in the US or Canada]

That's an Eurocopter EC135, which is being used by Bond Air Services to do windmill farm maintenance in the United Kingdom. I'm sure they stop the windmill before going up-unless the stop mechanism is the thing that is broken-but looking a the scale of that little man going down, it's quite scary anyway.

And here I was, thinking they had elevators or really long stairs inside.

Update: As you can see in the crazy video, the reason is that these wind turbines are in the middle of the sea. [Flight Global-video thanks to GitEmSteveDave]

The jet pack debuted last year, but this has been the first time that it has been used in such a risky stunt, with no safety measures whatsoever for the pilot. It's based on a military design made by Bell Aerosystems back in the sixties. That model wasn't good because it was too heavy, so the people at Jet Pack International—where Eric works—redesigned it using carbon fiber technology.

The result is a jet pack that weights a lot less and, therefore, has more range although not that much: About 33 seconds vs 20 seconds of the old model. I don't know about you, but making a jump over a gorge like this with just 12 seconds of overhead doesn't seem like a lot of fun to me. [Jetpack International via Denver Post and Sky NEws]

[Reuters]

Texas has a new law that makes it mandatory for computer repair technicians in the state to have private investigator licenses. This is being contested by at least one advocacy group that's suing, as many techs don't know they're being criminals by doing their jobs. The strange new law comes about because sometimes in the course of repairing a computer some investigation is needed, and in the great state of Texas that's a felony without a license. It can take up to three years to get one, so this whole thing is messed up. Hopefully no poor minimum wage Windows jockey will wind up in jail over this, but stranger things have happened in Texas. Looks like those Geek Squad guys will get real badges, though. [Gear Log]

[Nest Rotterdam via rebel:art via Neatorama]