Microsoft Announces Special Edition Chrome Series Xbox 360 Controllers

There's no console to match, but Xbox 360 owners who prefer things a little shinier than your run-of-the-mill controller will soon have a trio of new options to consider courtesy of Microsoft. It's just announced three new Chrome Series special edition controllers that will be available in "mid-May" for $54.99 apiece. Those come in your choice of blue, red or silver, and each feature the so-called "transforming" D-pad along with everything else you'd expect from a wireless Xbox 360 controller.

Ashton Kutcher to Play Steve Jobs in Upcoming Movie

Since Steve Jobs' death, there's been some speculation as to who might play him in the inevitable string of biopics. Here's the first:according to Variety, Ashton Kutcher is set to play the role of Jobs in a new indie movie.

Over the weekend, Jeff Sneider wrote for Variety that Kutcher will appear in an indie flick directed by Joshua Michael Stern from a script by Matt Whiteley. Apparently, the movie already has funding and filming will commence in May. More here.

Lightweight Carbon Fiber Axe Is More Of an Artistic Masterpiece Than a Tool

Who says artists can only use paints and canvas, or musical instruments, to craft a masterpiece? The folks at Blue Ant Studio deserve a spot in the Louvre for its lightweight but strong Carbo Axe made from titanium and carbon fiber.

The axe was designed with help and input from the military's EOD—or explosive ordnance disposal—community and features a hardened titanium core and a carbide-tungsten cutting edge sandwiched between layers of carbon fiber. The rest of the axe, including the handle and fastening hardware, is a mix of carbon fiber and titanium as well, resulting in an incredibly light tool that's perfect for camping adventures when you have to carry all your gear. Or for just framing and mounting over a fireplace. More here.

Where Better To Store Your Earbuds Than On a Pair Of Ears?

Tired of spending ten minutes unraveling your headphones like they're a MENSA puzzle when you take them out of your pocket? Then you need a cable wrap, and what's more apropos for storing a set of earbuds than a disembodied set of ears?

They're made from soft silicone so you can actually stick the 'bud' end of your headphones inside each ear, and then wrap the remaining cable around the bridge that connects them ensuring they'll be untangled the next time you need them. More here.

Sinking Mugs Are a Functional April Fool’s Day Prank

You're probably not going to fool most adults into thinking these ceramic coffee mugs have actually sunk into a table. But kids are easy targets, and this sight gag is sure to blow their minds. Even if it's not April 1st.

For those who might be wondering how such sorcery is possible—don't worry—the mugs don't bend the laws physics or require the mastery of a portal gun. They were just moulded with the bottoms sheared off to create this effect.

Full sizeAt $15 each in brown or white it's definitely a pricey gag, but the mugs are still functional. And as an added bonus, their limited capacity could be an easy way to cut down on your caffeine consumption every morning. More here.

Apple's App Store Revenue Still Leading, but Amazon Appstore Close Behind

Flurry's latest round of analytics -- which measured revenue of 11 million daily active users from mid-January through the end of February 2012 -- shows Amazon's Appstore pulling in a shocking amount of revenue given the short life that it has lived. Apple's strength in sales has been well documented, but the latest report shows that for every $1 generated in the iTunes App Store, $0.89 is being spent in the Amazon Appstore. Looking more broadly, the numbers show that just $0.23 are generated in the Google Play halls for every $1 spent in the App Store, but that's hardly a new phenomenon; the ease of sideloading (amongst other factors) has raised complaints from Android developers for years now.

Flurry's conclusion is that Google's core strength simply isn't in running a store -- something it's about to do once more with Android slates -- while both Apple and Amazon excel in doing just that. Curiously, Windows Phone and BlackBerry were left off of this report, hoping to see those cats thrown in the next 'go round. After all, RIM sure seems certain that its developers are making out just fine. More here.

This Super Face-Scanning Software Thinks It Can Guess Your Age

Here's a pleasant first little look at Skynet—Face.com, which develops facial recognition software, now boasts that it can pinpoint your age based on your mug alone. Let's test it out.

The software is meant for developers to use in their apps—say, a browser extension that would block certain sites when kids were on the computer. Sure it's a little eery to think a computer can know us so well, but, God, get over it. And as it turns out, it's still pretty rough around the edges.

Explanation of Einstein’s Most Famous Equation: E=mc2

Most of us don't know much about Einstein. Minutephysics has spent the past month trying to beat a little context into our pea-sized dummy brains beyond, like, E=mc2. But it's about time we got to learning the big one.

How Many Explosions, How Much Duct Tape and How Many Myths Have the MythBusters Busted So Far?

Everyone's favorite iconoclastic show, Mythbusters, has been around for 9 years, 10 seasons and 187 episodes. Ever wonder what they've done with all that TV time? Well how about testing 833 myths, conducting 2,510 experiments and using 13.5 tons of explosives? More here.

Want more MythBusters numbers? According to executive producer Dan Tapster, who sends out biannual updates on these stats, this is what the MythBusters have done so far (episodes through June 2012):

• Total Numbers of Myths: 833
• Myths Busted: 461
• Myths Confirmed: 194
• Myths Plausible: 178
• Total Number of Experiments: 2,510
• Total Number of Explosions: 792
• Total Amount of Duct Tape Used: 33,500 yards
• Number of Vehicles Destroyed: 146
• Pounds of Explosives used: 13.5 tons
•  

Raspberry Pi Shipping Has Been Put on Hold

Bad news for those champing at the bit to get their mitts on the Raspberry Pi – both Element 14 and RS are waiting on CE markcertification before they ship their inventory of Pis to customers causing a further delayon orders.

The good news is that 2,000 boards arrived in Britain on Monday and the Foundation are working flat-out to get all the boards certified and marked, so hopefully it won't be too long before they ship. No firm dates for certification and therefore shipping are available at the moment. More here.

A Slim and Simple iPhone Money Clip

Merging their phone and wallet is the dream of those with limited pocket space. And now iPhone users in that same predicament don't have to settle for a chunky case with card slots thanks to this easy-to-install minimalist money clip.

There is some-assembly-required with the $33 Poddities clip, but all you need to do is use the included micro tool to remove the two screws from the bottom of the iPhone, place the clip over the dock connector, and then secure it with the longer screws included in the kit. More here.

Forget the Pharmacy: Thyme Might Be Your Best Pimple Cure

Growing up, you always assume you'll reach an age where you're pimple-free. Never happens. Don't fret! New research suggeststhat you can hit up your herb garden instead of shelling out bucks at the pharmacy. A little bit of thyme could clear your skin up better than any cream.

Researchers from Leeds Metropolitan University in the UK have been testing out herbal treatments on Propionibacterium acnes—the bacteria which infect pores to produce all sorts of spots, from innocent white heads through to puss-filled cysts. In the process, they've found that thyme is more effective than most acne creams and washes.

Most commercially available treatments rely on benzoyl peroxide to work as an antibacterial. Turns out, thyme contains the exact same active ingredient in high concentrations. Across the researchers' tests, a tincture made from thyme beat remedies you'd find at your pharmacy, hands down. The researchers are presenting their work this week at the Society for General Microbiology's Spring Conference.

But what the hell is a tincture, and how do you make one? Dr Margarita Gomez-Escalada, one of the researchers, explains to EurekAlert:

"The plant material is steeped in alcohol for days or even weeks to prepare a tincture. This process draws out the active compounds from the plant."

Whether a DIY tincture made using vodka and homegrown thyme will be up to the job, I'm not entirely sure. Worth a shot, though. More here.

The Miracle Drug That Could Kill All Cancers

It sounds like science fiction, but researchers have discovered a single drug that they think can shrink, or even completely cure, all human tumors. But how does a drug like that work, and when will it be available?

An article in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science explains that a new treatment—based on an antibody that blocks a "do not eat" signal normally displayed on tumor cells—helps persuade the immune system to destroy the cancer cells. To date, it's been shown to shrink or cure human breast, ovary, colon, bladder, brain, liver, and prostate tumors that have been transplanted into mice.

The treatment targets and blocks a protein called CD47, a marker that tells the immune system to not kill healthy blood cells. But cancers use the same protein to avoid being destroyed by the body, too—so by strategically blocking the protein, it's possible to use one antibody to kill all types of cancer tumors.

Over the past few years the technique has been applied to treating lymphomas and leukemias, but this latest research suggests it could be used on all types of cancers. Irving Weissman, one of the researchers, explains to Science:

"What we've shown is that CD47 isn't just important on leukemias and lymphomas. It's on every single human primary tumor that we tested... We showed that even after the tumor has taken hold, the antibody can either cure the tumor or slow its growth and prevent metastasis."

Even though some normal, healthy cells are attacked as a result of blocking CD47, the researchers found this was short-lived, and negligible compared to the effects on the tumor.

Sadly, it will be some time before such a drug makes it to clinical practice. But with the researchers having just received a $20 million grant to move the findings from mouse studies to human safety tests, you can expect progress to be as quick as possible. More here.

Microsoft Is Blocking Pirate Bay Links in Instant Messages

The Pirate Bay goes to great lengths to keep itself widely available, but here's something it can't stop: Microsoft is now blocking links to the site in instant messages across all its systems.

"We block instant messages if they contain malicious or spam URLs based on intelligence algorithms, third-party sources, and/or user complaints. Pirate Bay URLs were flagged by one or more of these and were consequently blocked," explained Microsoft in a statement to The Register.

The Pirate Bay doesn't have a reputation for pushing more malware than any other torrent site, though—but Microsoft has declined to comment further on their banning of the site's URLs. The move signals Microsoft's joining of ranks with an already burgeoning collection of anti-Pirate Bay organizations.

With a rumored police raid in the offing, this could be an interesting time for Pirate Bay.

New Pain-Free Needles Will Actually Stab You Twice

It's counter-intuitive, but a new syringe design could eliminate the pain when getting a shot by using two separate needles that work in quick succession. A technique that could be hard to accept for those who hate being pricked.

The first needle is actually considerably smaller than the second, and delivers a small amount of local anesthesia that numbs the skin around the entry point. Its inventor, Oliver Blackwell, claims the first injection feels akin to a fly landing on the palm of your hand. And by the time the second larger needle delivers its payload, the patient shouldn't feel a thing.

Not only does the new needle design cut down on the number of syringes needed if a patient does require an anesthetic before a shot, but it should also make life for those who have to perform their own injections—like diabetics—a little less agonizing. More here.

How Do Cats Survive Massive Falls?

Everyone knows that cats can somehow survive falling out of a tree, but last week a cat survived a 19-story fall in Boston. So just how the hell did it manage it?

Science, as usual, can help explain: it's mostly anatomy. But sadly, there is a lack of empirical evidence—scientists seem reluctant to throw cats out of windows in pursuit of their studies—but there has been plenty of research into way they fall.

In comparison to most mammals, they have a large surface area for their weight, which means their terminal velocity is low. In fact, according to a 1987 study by veterinarians Wayne Whitney and Cheryl Mehlhaff, an average-sized cat with its limbs extended achieves a terminal velocity of about 60mph, while an average-sized man reaches a terminal velocity of about 120mph. The result? When a cat hits the ground, it's subjected to smaller forces and suffers fewer injuries.

But there's more. Cats have also evolved a keen sense for knowing which way is up. Weirdly, given a big enough fall, that means that they're capable of righting themselves in mid-air by spinning their tails, to ensure they land feet-first. "Everything that lives in trees has what we call an aerial righting reflex," explains Robert Dudley, a biologist at the animal flight laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, to the BBC.

Finally, when they do hit the ground, they have legs designed to soak up the impact. "Cats have long, compliant legs," explains Jim Usherwood of the structure and motion lab at the Royal Veterinary College, again to the BBC. "They've got decent muscles. In that they're able to jump quite well, the same muscles divert energy into decelerating rather than breaking bones." And by stretching out the duration of the impact, the forces transmitted through their bodies are once again greatly reduced.


Sadly, not all domestic cats can survive a massive fall, and that's for one reason: they're often overweight because they get fed treats and snacks all day long. But if your cat is lean and agile, it should happily survive a modest drop. Just please don't treat that as an experimental challenge, though. More here.

How Apple Plans to Define the Industry Standard in SIM Cards

Last week Nokia, Motorola and RIM were squaring up to Apple over a disagreement about the future of nano-SIM cards. Now, Apple is proposing that its patented design could be used for free, by anyone—dependent on one, rather large, condition.

Currently there are two competing nano-SIM card designs, and Motorola, Nokia and RIM are nervous that Apple's design might win out and lumber them with expensive ongoing licensing costs. Apple's response to ETSI, the European Telecoms Standards Institute, is simple.

According to Foss Patents, Apple is happy "to grant royalty-free licenses to any Apple patents essential to nano-SIM, provided that Apple's proposal is adopted as a standard and that all other patent holders accept the same terms in accordance with the principle of reciprocity."

So, while Apple might be happy to make no profit from the concept, in return it demands an increased dominance and power over the market. More here.

You’ll Always Have an Emergency Hood While Wearing This Backpack

You probably won't always remember to bring an umbrella when the weather is gloomy, but as long you're wearing thisPuma Urban Mobility Backpack from designer Hussein Chalayan, you'll always have a quick way to keep your head dry.

As an added bonus, when the backpack is particularly full and heavy-laden, you can put the hood up for some extra support. After all, haven't doctors been telling us to lift with our necks all these years? There's no word on pricing for the pack just yet, but it will be available as part of Puma's upcoming Spring/Summer line.

Instagram Opens Signup Page for Android Port, Release Date Still Unknown

It's no secret that one of the most popular apps to ever hit the App Store will soon be coming to Android, and if you'd prefer to be one of the very first on your block to be notified... well, there's a website for that. 

Instagram has just opened up a signup page for Android loyalists, enabling folks to input their email address and await word on the download going live. Sadly, there's no hint on the aforesaid page that gets any closer to a specific release date, but hey -- it's one less unspecified thing you have to remember, right? Get in line here.

Windows 8 Will be 'retina' Display Friendly

Microsoft didn't have to make Windows 8 play nice with the new rash of extremely pixel-dense displays. But, that would be tantamount to OS suicide. So, the latest and greatest Windows will support resolutions up to 2560 x 1440 on screens as small as 10.1 inches. That's a pretty impressive 291 pixels per inch. Of course, it's not quite as simple as it sounds. While in an ideal world, every UI element would be resolution independent, that's simply not the case and the infrastructure isn't there to support it. Instead graphical elements, including text, must be scaled to fill the available pixels. 

Microsoft's scheme will use 100 percent for standard density displays, 140 for HD and 180 for quad-XGA panels. Thankfully, the company was smart enough to include support for SVG files as UI elements, meaning that density and resolution independent future is at least one step closer.