Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
Fact: every robot is controlled by a tiny robot pulling all sorts of levers in its chest, just as every human is powered by a gnome yanking on your lungs, heart and various coils of intestine. The Little Big Man kinetic sculpture by Nemo Gould outlines this principle, and was commissioned by the San Jose…
Remember the drum table? Well, stick it next to this table with built-in marimba at a dinner party and you’d have a percussively good time. Designer Fumiaki Goto came up with the idea of building the instrument into the surface, so that whenever you put a glass or plate down you’d sound a note— you…
The FAA has accepted the Aeroscraft Aeros ML866 for certification, the aircraft which is neither an airship nor a dirigible or an airplane or an helicopter or a UFO, but is “classified as a fourth type of air vehicle, a buoyancy assisted air vehicle.” However, don’t hold your breath for a pleasant trip in this…
Blockbuster has offered $6 minimum per share to buy out Circuit City, with the intention of creating a $18 billion global retail enterprise. You can almost see the point of mixing media and device retail, but is this actually a good move for two companies facing a not-so-bright future? Read more in the Blockbuster press…
Over two months after The Mystery of Godzilla and the Undersea Cables, a mini-series starring Tom Selleck and Dyan Cannon, at last we have closure. Two ships, one Korean and one Iraqi—typing fingers at the ready, conspiracy theorists—were impounded by the authorities in Dubai a couple of months ago and, following payment of a rather…
Organic Light Emitting Diodes are getting used in phones, lamps and now the world’s first professional camera color OLED viewfinder. The HDVF-EL100 sports an 11-inch screen, and apparently it’s Sony’s first non-consumer application of the display technology. The 960 x 540 pixel screen’s wide acceptance angle and deep contrast is designed to help operators achieve…
We brought you the good news that Hitachi’s swanky UT range of LCD TVs would be coming to the US, and now Hitachi has dished the dirt on their specifications. The 32-inch version will have a 1366 x 768 screen, versus the 1920 x 1080 of the bigger 37- and 42-inch versions. But all are…
NAB in Las Vegas saw the unveiling of Panasonic’s HPX-170 P2 solid-state camera. The 1080p camcorder has the widest zoom lens in its class, a 13x Leica Dicomar with 28mm wide-angle setting, and an SDI interface, all in a 4.2-pound body. Full press release of the HPX-170 P2 after the jump. LAS VEGAS, NV (April…
Looking something like the love child of an OQO and an HTC Tilt, Sharp-Willcom’s new D4 WS016SH UMPC is apparently the first of its type to have the new Atom Centrino fizzing away inside. That 1.3GHz Atom Z520 is matched with a five-inch LED back-lit 1024 x 600 touchscreen, 1GB of memory, a 40GB drive,…
The December, 1949 cover of Science and Mechanics featured this illustration of “Man Made Sea Legs for Ships.” See also: Commuter Helicopter (1947) Personal Helicopter (1943) ‘Flying Saucer’ Buses (1950) Will War Drive Civilization Underground? (1942)
This is THE Millennium Falcon toy that never arrived when every 9-yo kid wanted it in 1977: the 2.5-foot Hasbro’s Star Wars Legacy Collection Millennium Falcon, worthy of the most mind-blowing SW collections. It’s probably the most realistic Falcon toy you can buy this side of an actual prop, with LEDs everywhere, sound, movable parts,…
MRDV is a design group that put together this absolutely crazy roof extension in Rotterdam. I’m wondering how they managed to get planning permission for the blue monstrosity, as it just doesn’t look right on the outside. Frankly, it doesn’t look right on the inside either—check out those crazy floating stairs in the gallery below.…
This is what you get down on the beach on a Saturday afternoon—if you’re in the West of England. Experts detonated a German mine from the Second World War after they discovered it in Bridgwater Bay. The 10 x 2.5-foot mine was dropped during the war by a German bomber, and was discovered sitting in…
Speedo’s controversial LZR Racer swimsuit spawned its first copycat this week, a prototype from Arena International that pushes the definition of tight-fitting fabric. With a green light for the LZR from swimming’s official body, and the Summer Olympics looming large on the horizon, I think it’s safe to say that the swimsuit arms race has…
HearWare is clothing that listens. Like any good listener, the concept design by Younghui Kim and Milena Iossifova understands the sounds around it, and produces an appropriate response. In HearWare’s case this means using LEDs and electroluminescent wires embedded in the fabric of your favorite skirt, bags or pants. A calming ocean surf might become…
Wired has done a handy cut-out-and-keep guide to spotting geeks. Third from the right is gadget geek, who apparently “writes ferocious comments on Giz” (FIRST! and Will It Blend? are not examples of ferocious comments, before you ask.) James Chiang’s fabulous photo just begs the question, however: What kind of geek are you? Gawker Media…
In what appears to be the endless spread of Firefox, a new addition to the unofficial Firefox catalog has been spotted—in India. On the back of a bus. We’re guessing the bus doesn’t have on board Wi-Fi to make use of its web browser of choice, but we admire the support. Also, if that text…
They say smoking and squalor can kill a human, but that’s turning out to be equally true for the Nintendo Wii. The hardware’s disc-reading laser seems incapable of cutting through the grit, grime and second-hand smoke that accumulates on its lens’ glassy veneer. The issue first appeared with Super Smash Bros. Brawl double-layer DVD, and…
Captain Witwicky had an excuse; he didn’t know the Decepticons were after the All Spark. In fact, he didn’t even know what the Decepticons were. If you opt to purchase this All Spark USB hub, with four ports and retailing at £13.99 ($28), what exactly would be your excuse? Still, if you do decide the…
Five years in the making, Pharad’s wearable antenna is aimed at troops in covert operations, and, I guess, undercover cops and agents. Waterproof and flexible, the wearable antenna, which is made out of dielectric material, supports and is aimed to be integrated into body armor vests and helmets, and there’s even a snug-fitting undershirt that…
