This Is Where Each of Your 1.421 Trillion Dollars Is Going In 2010

Want to know where your tax money is going next year? Here's more than you can handle in the new 2010 edition of the Death and Taxes poster. Zoom in to see how much those F-35 fighters and lasers cost. More »

Death and Taxes Shows Fascinating, Terrible View on Military Tech Spending

Death and Taxes 2009 is a detailed graphical account showing where your tax dollars will go next year in the most detailed and fascinating way: Everything is set to scale according to the amount of money spent on it, showing the amazing weight that military-related spending has in the total Federal budget. It's just mindblowing to see it all with one look. It's easy to get amazed with military technology and, like with Dubai's architecture and its slaves, I keep forgetting how much money really gots into developing hypersonic missiles, airborne lasers, invisible bombers, next generation fighters, body piercing tanks, torpedoes capable of splitting a huge ship in two, ever-vigilant drones, scary helmets, and other deadly gadgets. When you zoom in the interactive map, the numbers are just staggering. For sure, the military research and manufacturing that Darpa or companies like Boeing and Lockheed Martin do not only push the scientific and industrial envelope-with long term benefits for everyone-and some may argue that it provides with work and fuels the economy-although this is kind of a fallacy and a vicious circle-but seriously, is this the only way to achieve it? What about the rest of the stuff? Hopefully, this will all change. Someday. [Wall Stats via Dark Roasted Blend]

Army's Miniature Spy-Bat Concept Makes Lucius Fox Drool

Army dudes sat down with scientists at University of Michigan and other schools and asked for a simple frickin' bionic bat with frickin' stereo cameras, miniaturized radar, ultra-sensitive self-guidance, "energy scavenging" recharging capability and a radio to send data back to troops in urban combat zones. Was that too much to ask? Here's how it's working out for them: More »

Femtosecond Laser Ideal for Killing Cancer, Installing Adamantium Skeletons

/>Did you know that the same ultra-fast, ultra-intense laser (UUL) that can blast individual cancer cells without harming any good cells in the vicinity can also be used to fuse metal to bone? A new laser lab at the University of Missouri has been built to test the awesome power of this system, whose pulses last just one quadrillionth of a second, known in street terminology as a "femtosecond." Here's why the American Dental Association, the American Cancer Society and the Pentagon would be equally interested in this developing technology: More »