This is What 43,000 Galaxies Look Like On a Map

The image above is the most complete map of our local universe to date. It took more that ten years to create, has 43,000 galaxies and extends out 380 million light years from the earth. The 3D coordinates of each galaxy was recorded so the raw data could potentially be used to build a realistic 3D model of the universe. Throw in some holographic technology and you have something straight from Star Trek.

And if you're wondering where we are in all these dots? Our galaxy, the Milky Way, runs horizontally through the center of the image. 

 

 

Apple Testing A5-packing MacBook Air?

Could Apple really be considering putting its mobile-minded A5 processor in a MacBook Air? According to Japanese website, Macotakara, a trial of the ARM chip is already underway. Apple's reportedly been experimenting with a Thunderbolt-equipped MacBook Air with the A5 on board, and "according to someone who has seen a model running with [Apple's] A5 processor, the performance is better than had been thought." 

Of course, this information has trickled a ways down the grapevine, and the presence of an A5-packing test vehicle doesn't mean much anyway.

 

 

Mosquitoes Bite Because of Your Smelly Feet

According to the research of one Remco Suer, mosquitoes might somehow be attracted to the bacteria in your sweat-soaked feet. That means finding a way to isolate these odors could reduce their nuisance and even slow the spread of disease.

Suer worked with the African mosquito Anopheles gambiae, one of the primary vectors for the spread malaria in sub-Saharan Africa, and tested them against the smells in his lab:

Suer tested their sense of smell in the labratory by pumping additional CO2 into a container to simulate human breath, then added a high concentration of five different foot odors and found that the mosquitoes were unable to react to the CO2 for several seconds. The sole-ful odors actually stopped mosquitoes from sensing CO2 from breathing — which could be a reason why malarial mosquitoes divert when honing in on a person and move instead to the feet at close ranges.

Did You Know Microsoft Makes Five Times More Money From Android than From Windows Phone?

According to Citi analyst Walter Pritchard's lastest big report on Microsoft, the Redmond company makes five times more income from Android than from Windows Phone. You may pick up your jaws now.

Here's how it's happening: Back in April 2010 Microsoft settled an intellectual property infringement case against HTC. In the agreement, HTC agreed to pay Ballmer and his cronies $5 per shipped Android set. Citi says that HTC has sold 30 million sets, adding $150 million of fresh greens to Microsoft's piggy bank.

Now, Microsoft sold two million Windows Phone licenses over the same period, which accounts for $30 million dollars using an estimated license fee of $15 for each Windows Phone shipped.

But there's more. That's not the only way they are going to be getting money from the Android handsets: Microsoft has sued other Android phone makers. And if HTC gave up, you can be sure that those are lawsuits that are also likely going to be settled too. To the tune of $7.50 to $12.50 per handset sold.

So no matter what, they are winning. And on top of that, Windows Phone 7 Mango is only going to make things better for them.

 

 

PlayStation Announces Official Wireless Cans for PS3

Perhaps Sony deemed the Ultimate Weapon too powerful (or too expensive) for PlayStation 3 owners, but these new wireless cans ought to keep your ears warm, at the very least. The new official PS3 Wireless Stereo Headset features 7.1 virtual surround sound, a retractable, mutable microphone, and standard embedded volume controls.

 These proprietary sound-muffs connect via USB dongle, and push headset related status updates (that's your battery status) directly to your TV screen; if you're into that sort of thing. Sony-approved hearing will set you back $100 starting this September.

ASUS Eee Pad Slider Going on Sale 'soon'

ASUS' Eee Pad Transformer might still be difficult to track down, but at least all systems are go for the company's other Honeycomb tablet, the Eee Pad Slider. The company confirmed today that the 10.1-inch tablet, originally slated for May, is "coming soon" -- no word, of course, on whether it will ditch Tegra 2 for an Atom Z670 CPU, as rumored. Next up, ASUS, give us a price, capiche? Last time the company was estimating it would cost between $500 and $800.

 

 

Lenovo IdeaPad K1 Tablet

Lenovo still hasn't officially confirmed it, but all signs are pointing to an imminent US launch of its Android-based IdeaPad K1 tablet. The specs include a 10.1-inch display, a Tegra 2 processor, 32GB of storage, dual cameras (5 megapixel rear and 2 megapixel front-facing), a microSD card slot, a micro HDMI out, and even a SIM card slot -- somewhat notably it's also listed as coming with Netflix pre-installed. While most of those specs seem like a safe bet, others apparently aren't quite set in stone, the listing alternatively mentions both Android 3.0 and Android 3.1, for instance, and both a 1280 x 720 and 1280 x 800 resolution (though the latter seems likely). What's more, while Buy.com isn't providing a price just yet, the tablet has also hit Krex Computers of all places, where it's listed at $510. 

 

 

The Everlasting Deliciousness of the Candwich Sandwich

The world was denied a breakthrough in food-in-a-can technology and deliciousness when a petty thing like money kept Candwich, the sandwich in a can, off of store shelves. But now it's here.

Peanut butter & grape jelly to start, with BBQ chicken (oh sweet christ) and PB & strawberry jelly on the way. These undying sandwiches run $12 for a 4-pack or $72 for a 24-pack. Pricey! But how many foods are "perfect for emergency food storage needs in the event of natural disasters" and totally delicious? Not very many.

 

 

Windows tablet OS preview coming next week?

It was heard an awful lot about a Windows tablet OS this past year, with stirrings of a 2012 launch -- heck, even Steve Ballmer's fanned the flames of speculation -- and now the rumor mill's been set in motion with word of an impending preview expected next week. According to Bloomberg, three sources have confirmed Microsoft's plan to flaunt the much-anticipated UI.

The showcase is supposedly set to run the touchscreen-enabled software on a Tegra-equipped machine. 

 

 

Japanese Emergency Toilet

When disaster strikes and society comes to a halt, the necessity to relieve yourself doesn't. If anything, you'll be more inclined to crap your pants. But it needs to be clean, or else disease spreads. Enter, the Japanese emergency crapper.

It's definitely a low-tech approach to pooping in the field. But hey, what do you expect? This is an emergency—anything to keep you from having to just do it behind a tree or something. Still, it's essentially just a big black plastic bag that you wear and squat down in. There are also some strange pellets that seem to absorb liquids and re-solidify. Not sure how that helps you when you've gotta go number two, but that's a scenario I'll leave for your imaginations.

 

 

Hasselblad's 200 mmegapixel H4D-200MS Camera

This latest piece of kit is nearly identical to the 50 megapixel H4D-50MS externally, but internally adds an astonishing 150 more megapixels to the mix -- yes, that's an astounding 200 megapixels! Don't feel forgotten just yet if you have the older model, though, as Hasselblad can upgrade your sensor for €7,000 (roughly $10,000) -- a great deal considering the full kit costs €32,000 (about $45,000). With that said, the details are null on the medium-format sensor's native resolution -- similar to the multi-shot feature on the 50MS, the new 200MS combines six shots to create ridiculously detailed 200 megapixel still images, and it handles less intensive photos with a four-shot 50 megapixel still mode. Should you dare to venture outside the studio, there's a 50 megapixel single-shot live mode for quick shots as well.  

Kingmax Flaunts World's First 64GB MicroSD Card

Kingmax used to have a thing for setting small records -- even if it meant one-upping itself. Four years later, the king is back and he brought a 64GB microSDXC card with him. If history repeats itself, we can expect similarly sized storage from SanDisk and other manufacturers soon. But don't get too excited: only a handful of devices currently have the architecture to support microSD cards bigger than 32GB, so make sure you have a compatible device before you empty your wallet. Don't have one? Don't sweat it; there's no word yet when the new cards will be available, so you have plenty of time to upgrade. 

 

 

A Wrench Necklace

The makers of this necklace say it's a "Honeycomb pendant with cord." But we all know what we're looking at: a set of four wrenches that hangs around your neck. It fits 8, 10, 12, and 14mm bolts. And in my opinion, $55 for a set of four wrenches and a necklace is a pretty good bargain. You can find them here.

Xperia Play First in Line for Mobile Minecraft

If you want to be the first in your hood to take Minecraft with you wherever you go, you'll have to pick up an Xperia Play. The block-building game where cubed avatars hide from creepers and create virtual CPUs will land on the so-called PlayStation Phone before coming to other Android devices and iOS later this year. The Play version will have customized controls that take advantage of the gamepad and button layout found on the Sony Ericsson handheld, though when exactly it will launch or how much it will cost is still unknown.

 It's also unclear how long the title will be exclusive to the gamer-centric smartphone. Now is the time to wrap up any loose ends in your life before what little free time you have left gets buried beneath a pile of bricks and mobs -- even when your PC isn't handy.

 

 

Ford Car Seat Keeps Its Sensors on Your Heart

Chevy had the whole "Heartbeat of America" thing cornered in the 80s, but now its Ford's turn to get in on the action. The car maker's European research team unveiled a prototype car seat capable of monitoring a driver's heart courtesy of six embedded electrodes, which can take measurements without coming in direct contact with skin.

 The technology, the latest in a recent string of health-related in-vehicle concepts from the company, can detect whether the driver is having a heart attack and transmit that information to the vehicle's safety system. According to the researchers, the system is already highly accurate in its prototype state, making correct readings for 98 percent of drive time with 95 percent of the drivers tested.

 

 

Gigabyte's ECO600 Mouse Boasts 12-month Battery Life

Gigabyte's ECO600 wireless laser mouse just landed at the FCC, which means it and its tiny 2.4GHz adapter should be in the hands of consumers very soon. As far as mice go, the ECO600 is actually pretty interesting -- two buttons on top allow you to quickly cycle between resolutions of 800, 1200, and 1600 DPI for either more accuracy or better battery life which, the company claims, is up to a year on a single pair of (generously included) AAs.

 

 

Windows Phone 'Mango' Will Be Used On first Nokia WP Devices

Nokia has noted Microsoft's announcement of the new Windows Phone 7 (aka Mango) with word that the software being demonstrated today will be the one we'll see on the first Nokia with Windows Phone device. It also slightly contracts the roadmap for the first handset born from the Microkia partnership, though Nokia's statement makes sure not to make any promises about when said device will show up. Finally, the "Nokia with Windows Phone" phrasing somewhat peculiar, don't be surprised if you see it turn into a branding strategy for Nokia's smartphones going forward. Here's the relevant statement, straight out of Finland:

"Today Microsoft has announced the key new ingredients of the latest 'Mango' release of the Windows Phone operating system. This is the software that will be used on the first Nokia with Windows Phone device, and so should be of keen interest to Nokia-watchers everywhere."

 

 

MF Doom Sneaker Speakers

The professional sneaker customizer has significantly stepped up his game after being commissioned by Sneaker Freaker Magazine, creating two pairs of speakers from some giant suede Pumas.

The finished Sneaker Speaker Doomsday Edition models have mic inputs and red, green, and blue lights with eight effects, like speed control and a dim function. They've got plenty of power and can only be fired up by someone with the key.

 

 

Ballmer: 'Next Generation of Windows Systems' Coming Next Year

The name "Windows 8" may have been tossed around a lot as of late, but Steve Ballmer himself has only just now uttered the name for the first time in public at the company's developer forum in Japan. What's more, while he didn't divulge a ton of specifics, he did say that the "next generation of Windows systems" will be coming out next year, and that "there's a whole lot more coming," including "slates, tablets, PCs, a variety of different form factors." As ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley notes, the distinction between "slates" and "tablets" as two separate form factors is certainly an interesting one, as is the fact that he curiously didn't use the name Windows 8 in connection with those next generation Windows systems. 

What does it all mean? Perhaps Microsoft's Windows chief, Steven Sinofsky, will have more to say during his appearance the D9 conference next week.

 

 

Kogeto Dot Brings Bite-Size Panoramic Video Recording to iPhone 4

The Kogeto Dot snaps onto an iPhone 4 in your choice of pastel colors, and catches 360-degree video when placed face down. It's got an accompanying iOS app that will un-distort the video for sharing, or even broadcast it on the net in real time. 

This implementation requires your iPhone be held perpendicular rather than upright, making previewing a capture virtually impossible until after you've stopped the recording, which seems unnatural. Combine that with a minimum Kickstarter pledge of $98 to secure one of your own, and suddenly the less-portable and lower-degree alternatives start sounding a little more attractive.