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There’s No Great Solution for Data Rot

Anyone who reads Giz probably knows that even though your data is “saved,” it’s still susceptible to the decay of whatever medium is storing it. According to one expert, the problem is nearly unsolvable. In an interview by David Pogue, Dag Spicer, curator of the Computer History Museum in Silicon Valley, noted that there’s no…

Sayid Jarrah, Natural Born Killer?

Oh, Sayid. You’ve done a very bad thing-or is it a very good thing? Oh, Lost, you’ve messed with my mind yet again. Spoilers ahoy! Despite a few awkward moments (*cough*love triangle*cough*), “He’s Our You” was a bang-up episode, to say the least. I think I was about young Ben’s age when I read A…

Windows 7 Might Block Third-Party Video Codecs

Something we love about Windows 7 is that it has much better native codec support, like H.264 and AAC. But the price might be high: It looks like Windows 7 might block third-party video decoders. https://gizmodo.com/windows-7-windows-media-player-12-play-to-and-media-co-5146859 (Before we jump in, here’s our ultimate codec primer, if all this “code” talk is confusing.) Here’s how a…

Star Wars Improves Classic Art

“The Death of Marat” is mesmerizing, but wouldn’t it be even more striking if we replaced him with Greedo? Same for the Tarkin-inserted “American Gothic.” We rounded up a few Star Wars-improved classics. Something Awful pulled together a collection of pure photoshop brilliance. We can’t even pick a favorite, it’s all so lovely. [via Scifi…

Gadget Deals of the Day

Don’t bogart the love—here’s the skinney on some grooovy gadget dealz that’ll rock your caposhi socks off. Awe zooky zooky! (Oh, and free Old Spice to wash off that hippie stench when you’re done). Computers/Laptops: • ASUS Eee PC 9” Netbook for $249.99 plus free shipping (normally $299.99). • HP G70t 17” Laptop (Core 2…

Your Personality Is Being Rewritten On The Fly

Terri Schiavo was “the first celebrity posthuman,” but posthumanism is coming for all of us, according to a group of science fiction writers who met to discuss the future of identity and media. Writer Chris Nakashima-Brown just got back from a three-day colloquium on “parallel worlds” in Mexico, with Bruce Sterling, Linda Nagata, Mark Dery,…

NASA’s Enormous Stir Welder Assembles Rockets With Friction Instead of Fire

Crocodile Dundee once said: “That’s not an Ares I rocket welder. This is an Ares I rocket welder.” He was obviously referring to this toy in NASA’s garage, which fuses aluminum-lithium 2195 alloy via friction. Wired’s Bob Parks, toolman extraordinaire, describes the process far better than I ever could: Stir welding plunges a rapidly rotating…

How Best To Avoid Asteroid Apocalypse

What can you do when asteroids are about to hit the Earth, and Bruce Willis is nowhere to be found? Apparently, the answer may involve nuclear explosions in space to try and speed it up. The unusual suggestion comes from David Dearborn, from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. He modelled a virtual asteroid…

Apple WWDC 2009 Dates Set: June 8-12

Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference, where we’re likely to see all of Snow Leopard’s spots and maybe a new iPhone to go with iPhone 3.0 OS, will take place from June 8-12. [Apple – Thanks Justin!] https://gizmodo.com/apples-os-x-snow-leopard-operating-system-getting-a-dar-5184629

Why Most Gadget Price Comparison Engines Fall Short

If you are a thrifty consumer, you probably already know that using price comparison sites are a great way to save money on gadgets. But I am tired of shopping around for shopping sites. When it comes right down to it, I want to visit one site with a simple selection of core features that…

Rumor: Skype for iPhone To Be Released As Early As Next Week

A tipster GigaOM is calling “very reliable” has revealed that Skype for the iPhone will arrive as early as next week—perhaps at the CTIA Wireless show kicking off on Wednesday. Stay tuned. [GigaOM]

BlackBerrry App World To Open April 1

BusinessWeek says that RIM chief Mike Lazaridis will launch BlackBerry’s long-awaited App Store competitor from CTIA on April 1. Paid apps will start at $2.99, but freebies will exist. [BusinessWeek via BGR] https://gizmodo.com/blackberry-app-world-paid-apps-must-cost-at-least-2-99-5164729

Blackened-Lungs Cigarette Lighter Really Rubs Your Face in It

Cigarette smokers understand the damage they’re doing to their bodies. That’s why “shocking” anti-smoking ads like these blackened lungs won’t do anything to stop them. At this point, everybody fully understands what cigarettes do to people. Yet smokers don’t care, they just like smoking. Maybe we should just respect that instead of grossing everybody out…

Cartoon Network Grows Up, Abandons Cartoons

Is Cartoon Network about to head the way of the Sci Fi Channel? More than half of the shows for next season aren’t cartoons… but that doesn’t mean that they won’t be awesome. Cartoon Network has long been a home for the quietly wonderful, whether it’s Powerpuff Girls or Batman: The Brave and The Bold,…

Nio Tells You When Your Bluetooth Devices Are Being Stolen

Scenario: You’re walking down a dark alley when you get jumped. Someone grabs your bag. They get away. Your nose is broken, ribs bruised. That is, until an alarm goes off in your pocket. If the blood gushing down your face weren’t enough, the Nio, which measures proximity to your connected Bluetooth devices, confirms that…

I spent 3 days over a weekend, and a friday clearing my domain ( 300+ clients ) of the B variant. If like me, you had up to date virus definitions, up to date WSUS, and a quite decent security template with Group Policy, despite this i was still infected. How? the auto.inf file within…

Acne-Exaggerating Light Keeps Awkward Teenagers at Bay

Here’s a mean-spirited way to keep teenagers away from your place of business: a pink florescent light designed to make acne look much worse. British local councils now have this, as well as the famous “mosquito” speaker that produces an annoying high-pitched tone that only young people can hear, at their disposal to give to…

Tesla Model S Electric Sedan Prototype Has a Giant Touch Dashboard

Kevin Rose, the Silicon Valley’s John Mayer, just got a few Tesla S concept shots leaked to him. The S, Tesla’s $50,000ish electric 4-door Sedan, is supposed to be unveiled in Los Angeles today. What’s most interesting to tech enthusiasts is the fact that the middle panel seems to be one gigantic screen. Is it…

Beer Commercials From The Future, Today

This ad for Australian beer Carlton Natural Blonde asks you to "taste the future." If the Australian future includes golden unitards, Geordi glasses, robot handshakes and pogo feet, then I’m drinking this beer.

Floppy Skywalker and Darth Disk Fight to the Death or Something

Second parts are never good, except for the Godfather II and The Empire Strikes Back. This fight between the floppy sides of the Force is also a second part, better than the first one. The author says he took “the audio output of an amplifier and added a clamping diode and feed the signal into…