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Dec 20, 2012

7 Ways the World Really Could End Tomorrow

There's no shortage of Doomsday naysayers. And sure, it's easy to ignore the prophecies of ancient Mayans. But you know what? The world could end any time—including tomorrow.

Here's a rundown of the seven most likely ways our world could crumble right on schedule.

Asteroid impact

What did for the dinosaurs could do for us, too. Objects fall to Earth from space every day, but most of them are small enough to burn up on entry to the atmosphere or fall where nobody is around to notice. An asteroid big enough to wipe out civilization on Earth, experts agree, would need to be at least a mile across—and that kind of impact only happens once every 10 million years or less.

For what it's worth, it's thought the dinosaurs were wiped out by an asteroid six miles across. On the off-chance that NASA's failed to spot a rock that size hurtling towards the planet, physcists have worked out that it would be impossible to nuke an Earth-killing asteroid—so it really would be curtains.

Nuclear war

People seem to have forgotten about the nuclear threat since the end of the Cold War—but the risk remains. In 2008, Physics Today published an article that explained the consequences of nuclear war. It concluded that 100 nuclear bombs would bring about a "nuclear winter" featuring the lowest temperatures in 1,000 years, while 1,000 of things would "likely eliminate the majority of the human population."

Now might be good time to point out that more countries than ever have nuclear weapons at their disposal: currently, nine countries are known to have nuclear capabilities, but only five of them are members of the safeguarding Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. With North Koreathrowing rockets into the air like confetti, the nuclear threat is as present as ever.

Volcano eruption

If you thought the 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland caused problems, think again. Over two million years ago, a massive volcanic eruption—which happened where Yellowstone National Park now stands—produced 600 cubic miles of dust and ash. For some perspective, that's 10,000 times worse than Eyjafjallajökull. All it would take to bring the planet to its knees would be a couple of such eruptions in close succession. And the next Yellowstone super eruption is closer than you think.

Biological warfare

It might sound like something straight outta Hollywood, but biological warfare poses a very real and dangerous threat. Anthrax may have been wildly hyped in the past, but in reality it remains an effective means of taking out large swathes of the population. Weaponized in the form of aerosol particles of 1.5 to 5 microns, it could cause fatalities in 90 percent of the population. Things don't stop at toxins like anthrax, either; bear in mind that—even though it might take more than a day—an engineered avian flu could kill half the world's humans. A cursory glance at a list of—officially recognised—institutions involved in biological warfare research suggests that this is something that we should definitely be worried about.

Solar storm

Solar storms happen all the time: the sun sends wave upon wave of charged particles through space, and they whizz through our atmosphere at 4 million mph. Large storms result in particularly amazing light shows, comparable to the Northern lights. However, the Earth hasn't experienced a major solar storm since 1859. Then, the storm was intense enough to instantaneously set fire to telegraph lines—but that was before the days of the electricity grid, power in homes and the slew of technology that we all depend on each and every day. These days, a storm like that—or worse—could wreak untold havoc.

A man-made black hole

Ever since the first atomic bomb was developed back in 1945, scientists have wondered whether the raw power of some of the reactions they set in motion could end up causing catastrophic problems. The worry hasn't faded. When Brookhaven National Laboratory prepared to fire up its Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, speculation circulated that the experiments at the facility could create a black hole which would then consume Earth. When the LHC was first switched on, the same rumors resurfaced. Many physicists dismiss the threat offhand—but nobody's really, reallysure that it couldn't happen.

The computer simulation we live in gets rebooted

Perhaps the most creative explanation of how the world could end tomorrow is that we might just be living in a gigantic computer simulation that happens to get switched off. It might sound ridiculous, but scientists still haven't settled, once and for all, whether we're living a life made of code. Sure, people have recently suggested how we could tell if everything around is happening on a sliver of silicon in a giant server room in the sky—but nobody's yet tested the theory. Let's hope nobody hits ESC.

Dec 19, 2012

Apple Releases iOS 6.0.2 Update for iPhone 5 and iPad mini, Promises fix for WiFi bug


It doesn't look to bring with it any major changes, but Apple has just released its latest iOS update, which takes things up to version 6.0.2. According to the company, this one primarily addresses a bug that "could impact WiFi." An issue that, incidentally, has been at the center of a number of previous iOS updates. You should be able to find the update now or in the near future in either iTunes or Software Update on your iOS device. More here.

Dec 18, 2012

Google Maps Downloaded More Than 10 Million Times in Only 48 Hours


The resurrection of Google Maps for iOS has been a complete and utter success. If there was any question this was going to be a viable alternative to Apple Maps, those doubts have been obliterated—cold hard numbers don’t lie. In just 48 hours after release, the search giant said Google Maps was downloaded more than 10 million times. So much for Apple’s service.

The gigantic figure was amassed in just two short days, which says a lot about consumer interest in Google’s excellent service. With Google Maps being such a runaway success, it’ll be interesting to see how Apple responds. The company can improve its service all it wants, but the spotlight is clearly on Google at the moment. When iOS 7 is introduced, Apple will need to come up with a feature, integration, or something, that makes its own mapping platform a must-use. If not, then Google Maps will continue to rise up, and probably leave Apple Maps lost in the Australian wilderness. More here.

Dec 17, 2012

Hanger Brush Keeps Your Blazer Looking Spiffy

When most people look at hangers, all they see is a way to hang clothing, or a means to open a locked vehicle. Not designer Tim Parsons. He looked past their use as a tool for grand theft auto and saw a better way to both hand and maintain your stylish blazer.

Not only does the extra-strength Brushanger support even the heaviest of overcoats—keeping the shoulders at the perfect angle while it's hanging in a closet—it also does double duty as a way to maintain the fabric itself. Just fold down the arms and it instantly becomes a horse hair brush perfect for meticulously maintaining your favorite blazer. It seems a tool more apropos for those living a Downton Abbey-like lifestyle, and with a $65 price tag it even seems targeted at wealthy turn-of-the-century British lords. More here.

Your Instagram Data Is Now Officially Facebook Data

A new Instagram privacy policy goes into effect on January 16th, 2013. The service will now be sharing your data with its new owner Facebook.

Basically, Instagram has updated a few of the subhead sections of its policy to reflect the fact that it is a part of Facebook now. Instagram can now share information like cookies, log files, device identifiers, location data, and usage data,with "with businesses that are legally part of the same group of companies that Instagram is part of." According to the Instagram blog, it's a wonderful thing for you:
Our updated privacy policy helps Instagram function more easily as part of Facebook by being able to share info between the two groups. This means we can do things like fight spam more effectively, detect system and reliability problems more quickly, and build better features for everyone by understanding how Instagram is used.
Less spam? Great! Of course, this also means that Instagram is heaping its data over with the privacy nightmare that's Facebook. The data will definitely be used to target better advertising at you on Facebook, and to serve you advertisements on Instagram whenever that starts happening. Here is the relevant section from the new policy:
Affiliates may use this information to help provide, understand, and improve the Service (including by providing analytics) and Affiliates' own services (including by providing you with better and more relevant experiences).
This was inevitable, but at least now it's official. More here.

Dec 16, 2012

The Moon Marks 40 Years Without a Human Visitor, Prepares for Impending Probe Crashes


It's likely not an anniversary anyone thought we would meet after the first moon landing, but today marks 40 years since Gene Cernan left the last footprint on the moon as Apollo 17 ended its mission. That was the last of six manned missions to the lunar surface (nine including those that didn't land), which saw twelve men actually walk on the moon in all. The years since have of course seen continued exploration of the moon through other means, though, and next week will see another major event when NASA's twin GRAIL spacecraft conduct a planned crash into a mountain near the lunar north pole. 

Those have been in orbit since January 1st, creating a high-resolution map of the moon's gravitational field and collecting data that promises to provide more detail than ever about its internal structure and composition. You'll be able to follow along on NASA's website as that happens beginning at 5PM Eastern on Monday, December 17th. More here.

Dec 15, 2012

Apple Stock Hits 10 Month Low, Assembly Issues Still a Supply Concern

Apple’s stock is currently trading around $511, the lowest price the company’s shares have been traded at since February of this year. Why? There are concerns that Apple still has supply chain issues related to the iPhone 5 and the iPad mini. It’s also possible that part of the sell off was due to investors taking capital gains ahead of potential tax hikes.

According to Jefferies analyst Peter Misek, Apple is still facing “assembly execution issues [that] are taking longer to resolve than expected.” In addition, the firms that supply parts for Apple’s iPhone 5 have reportedly seen “larger order cuts” during the past two days. That’s alarming, because Apple’s iPhone 5 just launched in 33 new countries today and earlier reports suggestedApple’s supply problems had been ironed out.

As a result of the supply issues, Misek now estimates that Apple will sell 48 million iPhone units this quarter, down from his original estimate of 52 million units. More here.

A Tiny Tulip Shaped Humidifier Is the Cutest Humidifier


This is the most adorable little humidifier I've ever seen. The Tulip Stick Ultrasonic Humidifier is shaped like a sweet flower stalk and plugs right into your USB port.

Who knew a humidifier could be this small and pleasant? This $92 product comes in four different colors—pink, yellow, green, and ivory, and it weighs just an ounce. It has a timer, too, in case you only want it to shut off after you fall asleep, for example. More here.

Dec 14, 2012

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Now Available for Android


Grand Theft Auto: Vice City launched for iOS and Android last week, but Rockstar quickly pulled the Android version due to several launch issues. Fear not, however, because it’s now back in the Google Play store for download. The game, which promises enhanced graphics and a similar experience to the original, is available for $4.99. Be warned, however – the app is 1.4GB in size, so you may need to free up some space before installing. More here.

Swappable Lens Wheel Puts 18 Crappy Filters On Your DSLR

You've been able to turn your iPhone into a low-quality Holga camera for some time now with this case that puts a spinning wheel of filters at your disposal. But DSLR users can now make the images from their thousand dollar cameras look like they were taken by a $30 plastic toy.

Just slap this Holga lens to the front of your shooter, attach one of the two included wheels of colored and distorted filters, and snap away. All in all you get 18 creative options to choose from, so when you post your shots online people won't be fooled into thinking you actually spent money on a nice camera. More here.

Dec 13, 2012

Google vs. Apple Maps: Total Domination

Google Maps for iOS is so much better than Apple's attempt at a replacement that it will make you giggle. But you can't grasp just how much better—almost perfect—iOS Google Maps is unless you see it in action. Here it is, head-to-head with Apple Maps. It's not even close.

Google Maps is exactly what it should be, aside from being the comforting Maps we used to know on our iPhones. It beats the hell out of the last version. Google Maps isn't just back, it's better than it's ever been—the best map app, period.

  • It's fast. Your neighborhoods will load very, very quickly.
  • It's accurate. No stupid erroneous listings.
  • It's beautiful. Cleanly designed.
  • It's easy to use—you can quickly swipe menu options in and out of view.
  • It has public transit.
  • It has Street View.

You won't find yourself frustrated, lost, or yearning like you might've been with Apple Maps. You probably won't have any complaints at all, unless you miss Siri giving you directions.

This is the map app we should have had all along, and you should download it right now if you haven't already. More here.

Dec 12, 2012

In China They Have Pepsi Flavored Potato Chips

Soda-flavored snacks sound like something invented by a lazy stoner, but apparently chicken wings cooked in Coca-Cola are a popular comfort food in China. So hey, the fact that Pepsi Chicken-flavored Lays are launching over there isn't that surprising.

AdAge says the taste is "vaguely similar to barbecue with a sugary aftertaste." These have to come to America, right? I'd eat them. More here.

Multiple Leaked Photos Show Off RIM’s BlackBerry 10 L-Series

Someone out there with Research In Motion’s L-Series has taken it upon themselves to take a whole gallery of high-resolution photos, and of course they’ve wound up on the Internet.

This is our best look yet at the upcoming all-touch device, which will help usher in RIM’s new BlackBerry 10 OS. It certainly isn’t too terrible as far as looks are concerned, and there’s plenty to discern from the pictures alone: microSD card slot, 1800mAh battery, 3.5-millimeter headphone jack, micro USB, HDMI and a teenie-tiny microphone under the BlackBerry logo on the front of the device.

It looks super clean, minimal, with an anodized metal that frames the handset’s display. There are a toooooon of images, so check out the source link to see what’s basically an entire exhibit’s worth, and remember that this is what’s we’re edging toward when RIM finally launches BlackBerry 10 on January 30. More here.

Dec 11, 2012

Here’s a USB Drive in a Deep Fryer Because Hey Why Not


There's probably a term you learn if you're an econ major to describe the point at which your product is so similar to every competitive product that you deep fry it in order to differentiate. Here it is.

LaCie makes great portable storage stuff—hard drives, flash drives, and the like. Their little XtremKey is a stylish ruggedized redneck orange number with USB 3.0 support. It has a dumb name, but it's fast and can hold a lot of valuable things. It can also, according to this marketing video, withstand five minutes in a deep fryer. So if you're Kim Dotcom or just generally looking for a flash drive that you can also drop into boiling fat, here is one. This one does that.

Dec 10, 2012

Your Twitter Profile Is About to Change Whether You Like It or Not

Back in September, Twitter introduced a new design for profiles with a header, which made your Twitter profile look a lot like your Facebook profile. Until now, uploading a header and switching over to the new profilehas been optional. Starting December 12th, it won't be any more, and your profile will be converted to the new design.

According to the blog post from Twitter:
On December 12, we're rolling this out to all users: you'll automatically get this new version of the profile on twitter.com. If you don't upload a header photo by then, you (and everyone else) will only see a default grey image on your page. That's not fun! To get inspired about what you can do, check out this video to see how to make your profile a little more "you", less generic. Have fun out there. More here.

Do You Want Restaurants Following You on Twitter?

This receipt is from a restaurant in San Francisco. Typical. On one hand, the thought of a restaurant following you on Twitter and Instagram, stalking you, liking your arty snapshots and faving your 140-character quips is obnoxious. And on the other hand, gift cards.

Does this annoy you? Or do you even care if restaurants want to follow you? More here.

Dec 9, 2012

Starbucks to Open 1500 More Locations for You to Find Free Wi-Fi

Starbucks announced today that it was opening 1,500 more stores in the U.S. over the next five years. For some this means more places to buy coffee, for others it means 1,500 more places to find free Wi-Fi.

It appears that the gigantic coffee seller is going to do something about that, and according to USA Today, it announced at its most recent investor day that it would be opening another 1,500 locations over the next five years through out the U.S. Canada, South America and China are also prime targets for further expansion. More here.

Dec 8, 2012

America Is Just So Beautiful at Night

NASA's Suomi NPP satellite was able to grab this beautiful image of the United States of America at night because of a new infrared sensor on the satellite. The sensor is able to detect natural light versus man-made light at extremely high resolution. That's how you get this perfect image of Earth at night.

Wired writes:
The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite has a "day-night band" that can detect natural and man-made light with unprecedented resolution and clarity. It can resolve everything from the nocturnal glow of the atmosphere to the light of a single boat at sea. It can detect auroras, wildfires, the reflection of moon and star light off clouds and ice and the lights alongside highways. The sensor has six times better spatial resolution and 250 times better resolution of lighting levels than anything that came before it.
What's interesting is that the pictures from the Suomi satellite are available to the public, giving most people the clearest look of Earth at night ever. Before, the Air Forced had nighttime sattelites in play but most of the data was classified and not nearly as clear as the image above. To see more angles that the Suomi satellite was able to take, check it out here

A USB Flash Drive That Might Be More Beautiful Than a MacBook

This sleek flash drive is the perfect complement to your beloved Apple hardware, even going so far as to match its silvery finish.

Available in 16 and 32GB capacities for $60 and $82 respectively, these ultra-compact flash drives from Elecom add a bit of stylish extra storage to your hardware. And given their compact cylindrical design sits flush to the edge of your laptop, in theory you'll never need, or want, to remove it. Besides, why would you ever lend it to someone and risk never getting it back? More here.


Dec 7, 2012

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Now Available for iOS


Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is now available for the iPod touch, iPad and iPhone, as expected. Oddly, however, Rockstar hasn’t yet released the Android version, which was also due out today. The game has been tailored specifically for touchscreen devices and features updated graphics with improved character models and lighting effects, the ability to save games to iCloud, support for Retina displays and the option to play your own iTunes playlists. Here’s a bit about the game:

From the decade of big hair, excess and pastel suits comes a story of one man’s rise to the top of the criminal pile. Vice City, a huge urban sprawl ranging from the beach to the swamps and the glitz to the ghetto, was one of the most varied, complete and alive digital cities ever created. Combining open-world gameplay with a character driven narrative, you arrive in a town brimming with delights and degradation and given the opportunity to take it over as you choose.  More here.

Dec 6, 2012

Secret Elixir Makes Any Glove Touchscreen-Friendly

By now it's almost impossible to find a winter glove that doesn't work with touchscreen devices. But if you've got a favorite pair that predates the iPhone, this AnyGlove potion will let you use them with a touchscreen display without having to resort to sewing conductive thread onto the fingertips.

Just a few drops is all that's needed for your smartphone or tablet to recognize your gloved gestures. And while the liquid might stain lighter colored fabrics or yarns, it's completely invisible on darker materials. It's not permanent, though, you'll need to reapply the AnyGlove elixir as often as every few days depending on how active you are in your gloves. But a single $15 bottle should last until the warm summer returns. More here.

The Mathematical Formula For a Perfectly Decorated Christmas Tree

It turns out that decorating your Christmas tree isn't necessarily all about taste. Mathematicians at the University of Sheffield in the UK have developed a formula for the perfect way to deck the halls. More specifically, what ratio of ornaments to lights to tinsel will make your tree most aesthetically pleasing.

Since the geniuses behind the formula hail from the UK and embrace that new-fangled metric system, you'll need to know the height of your tree in centimeters. But you're just a tape measure away from having the data you need to use their handy online calculator. Did you know your average six foot tree only needs 37 ornaments to look its best? More here.

Wireless Card Reader Lets You Share Your Shots Without Stupid Cables

Wireless devices are usually far more convenient than their tethered alternative. But in this case losing the USB cable has made the REX-WIFISD1 SD/SDHX/SDXC and flash drive reader a bit on the bulky side. So what do you really gain for it being wireless? The ability to access it from any mobile device.

Apple already sells a memory card adapter for its iOS devices, but this is a more universal solution letting Android hardware and Windows/Mac PCs access the data from an attached storage device. Of course the onboard wireless hardware is powered by a 3,000 mAh battery, which should give upwards of nine hours of operation. And not surprisingly, given the extra functionality the REX-WIFISD1 is priced bit higher than your average card reader at $97. So is this one worth importing? If you abhor cables the answer is obvious. More here.

Dec 5, 2012

Feel Free To Spill Whatever You Want On This Waterproof PC




You can be as reckless as you want with your bottle of Moutain Dew around Stealth's new fanless WPC-525F computer. As the name implies it relies on its aluminum chassis as one large heatsink to dissipate high temperatures.

So besides near silent operation, it's also sealed making it completely waterproof and dustproof. The $1,595 base configuration comes with an Intel Dual-Core D525 processor running at 1.8GHz, 4GB of DDR3 memory, and a 120GB SSD so there's basically no moving parts inside. And in order to provide connectivity like USB, video, and LAN while keeping water out, the case uses watertight bayonet connections and adapter cables. So if one unfortunately wears out, they're not exactly common or easy to replace at your local computer shop. More here.

This Is Now the Coolest Microwave of All

Sure, this other microwave is "the most beautiful," and it certainly is "classy," "modern," and maybe even "timeless." But this microwave is a god damn dome. And because it's a dome, it wins it all. It wins microwaves.

The Fagor Spoutnik has two major things going for it: it's called the Spoutnik and it has a dome cover. Also, sike, it has three things going for it: it comes in a ton of wacky colors. Green! Purple! It does everything you'd expect from a microwave—cooking things, cooking things with a timer, etc.—but it does all of it under a dome. This does serve some functional purpose besides being a sweet rainbow dome: you can get a 360-degree view of what you're cooking, and fit odd-shaped foods that might not fit in a rectangle. The microwave used to be a symbol of Space Age luxury—and now that it's no longer a luxury, we can at least pretend we're living in The Jetsons. More here.

Would You Trust a Doctor Checking Your Heart with an iPhone?

Meet the Alivecor Heart Monitor iPhone case. The FDA just approved it. Affordable electrocardiogram (ECG) screening is actually a real need (the AliveCor monitor is just $200), even though you've probably never heard of it. Failure of the ECG screens to detect underlying heart conditions is suspected to have led to many young athletes going into cardiac arrest, and sometimes death. Children's lives literally depend on these things. And being FDA-approved is about as good an endorsement as you can get.

Appending sensors onto the computing power of a device you probably already have is a fine and efficient idea. There are other medical iPhone uses, like blood sugar tests for diabetics, or simple heart monitors. And again, AliveCor has all of the backing of the FDA, as well as the encouraging responses from the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology. More here.

Dec 4, 2012

It Takes 20 Seconds Before People Get Annoyed About Waiting for the Elevator

Theresa Christy, a mathematician who works for Otis Elevator Co (they probably power your building), told the WSJ that once you press a button and wait for the elevator, it takes about 20 seconds before you start getting impatient and annoyed.

Is that it? Or is that on the long side? If I imagine a 20-second count in my head, it seems on the long side. But if I can see the elevator light up the floors, maybe it's not so long. What do you guys think?

Christy actually revealed a lot of interesting tidbits about elevators and how they work and solve problems with math. Like how to tweak elevator speed to accomodate more rides, how many people squeeze into elevators in Western Countries versus Asia and how she uses a computer simulation program that replays elevator decision making (like a video game!) to analyze what to do. More here.

Dec 3, 2012

How To Easily Build the Most Useful Keychain You’ve Ever Owned

If you've got access to a bucket of Lego Technic pieces, then you've probably already got everything you need to build what could possibly be the most useful keychains ever devised. As for the building instructions, just take a look at the image above and you'll easily figure it out.

It's cheap, it's compact, and removing a single key doesn't require you to tear your fingernails to shreds trying to pry open a keyring. And because Lego is produced to such exacting dimensions, there's little to no chance this thing is going to come apart until you want it to. As a bonus it's even easier to build a spot to hang the keychain when you get home—just stick a Lego baseplate to the wall near your front door. Done. More here.

Insane Blasts of Heat Could Make Flash Memory Live Longer Than Ever

Flash memory is fast, it's stable, but it's not without its flaws. It has a tendency to wear out after too many write-erase cycles, for example. Now there's a way to deal with that problem, and it could lead to self-healing NAND flash memory that could last for much, much longer than the stuff we have now.

The discovery comes from Taiwan-based company Macronix who realized that the key to long-lasting NAND memory is the strategic application of heat. If you bake the memory at a heat of around 480 degrees Fahrenheit for a few hours, you can breathe some of the life back into it. The problem is that isn't exactly practical.

Macronix is working on a solution that is more practical, though: a chip with on-board heaters. Instead of baking the whole chip, it would jolt unused-but-aging sectors with a super blast of heat (about 1,400 degrees) every now and then. This could give chips a lifespan of roughly 100 million cycles, orders of magnitude more than the current highs of 100,000 to 1 million.

Before you get too excited, commercial versions are not inbound yet. Macronix will instead be presenting the tech at the IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting. It's still an exciting development nonetheless and is sure to make it into consumer goodies sooner or later. Hopefully sooner. More here.

This Minimalist Christmas Tree Is Great for the Irredeemably Lazy

Christmas is coming. The goose is getting fat and whatnot. Maybe you're in the market for a Christmas tree, maybe you're not. Maybe you'd like to be in said market, but you are extremely, extremely lazy. Treeasy's got your back, that is, if you don't mind something bare and metallic.

Designed by José Manuel Rebert Alarcon, Treeasy (in addition to being a halfway decent pun) is a single sheet of aluminum cut just so that you can just push it from the bottom and it pops out into a little Christmas tree with almost no effort involved. Granted, it's not your standard Christmas tree by any means, but if you're sufficiently lazy—but can't just not have a tree of some sort for some reason—Treeasy is at least identifiably tree-like, and kind of clever. More here.

Dec 2, 2012

Raspberry Pi's $25 Model A Enters Production, Could be in Tinkerers' Projects Early Next Year


Raspberry Pi's Model B computer will be no stranger to regular readers. If you were holding out for the cheaper, lower specced Model A however, your time is near. A recent post on the official Raspberry Pi site confirms that the first Model A samples are rolling off the production line. The main differences? 

Whereas Model B has two USB ports and 512 MB of RAM plus Ethernet, Model A sports only the one port, has half the RAM, and no Ethernet connection, making it more power economical as well as $10 cheaper. Price likely isn't the issue here, but if you were after the even more stripped back version, it's estimated they'll be ready to purchase online early next year. More here.

Dec 1, 2012

Hi-Tech Parenting: The DIY Kid-Tracking Surveillance Copter

Parents can be unnerved by the thought of sending their children off to school by themselves. In the past, that usually meant walking the child or following close behind, diving behind bushes to avoid embarrassing the tot. Now, it involves something else — a quadcopter, a GPS signaler and a little know-how.

Paul Wallich rigged a drone with a camera and then stashed the GPS unit in his son’s backpack. Using navigation software, he made sure the copter would stay a certain distance behind the child as it followed the kid to the bus stop.

In concept, it’s a brilliant stroke of hi-tech parenting that allows Wallich to keep an eye on his son remotely. But as a real-world safety measure, it’s questionable. It’s one thing to make sure dangerous strangers don’t approach the boy, but it’s another when the surveillance/tracking copter makes him a target for bullies. More here.

Nov 30, 2012

Researchers Can Make Bread Stay Fresh for 60 Days

Most foods deteriorate over time, but bread's a major culprit, often going stale after just a couple of days. Now, though, a US research company claims to be able to make your loaf stay fresh for up to 60 whole days.

The secret? Um, a gigantic microwave. No, seriously. The company, called—wait for it—Microzap, has developed a long, metallic microwave device for the purpose. The concept was orignally developed to kill bacteria like salmonella, but the team put a slice of bread through the thing and noticed it didn't go stale. In fact, even after 60 days the bread "had the same mould content as it had when it came out of the oven." Nice!

Crucially, this microwave is a little fancier than the one in your kitchen. Don Stull from Microzap explained to the BBC:
"We introduce the microwave frequencies in different ways, through a slotted radiator. We get a basically homogeneous signal density in our chamber - in other words, we don't get the hot and cold spots you get in your home microwave."
Of course, it remains to be seen whether consumers want bread that lasts for 60 days. There's something about the concept that seems a little unnerving—but what price a fresh sandwich? More here.

This Portable Bluetooth Speaker Is Different Because It Looks Weird and You Can’t Break it

The world is seething with a billion cheap, portable Bluetooth speakers. To differentiate itself from the pack, Boom Movement has created this thing. It's called the Urchin, and the silicone cloaked beast looks as bizarre as its name implies. It's also certified shock and water-resistant.

The Urchin will cost $150 when it's available at the beginning of February. Additional colorful silicone covers will be available for 20 bucks a pop, if dressing up consumer electronics is your thing.

Boom Movement's audio and design pedigree is impressive: It's an offshoot of the same company that owns undeniably legit Polk Audio. The Urchin is supposedly designed to maximize the full-range potential of its pair of dinky speakers with minimum distortion.

But even if The Urchin sounds better than the competition, you have to wonder if that's going to be enough to help it stand out from the other $150 Bluetooth numbers out there. If not, maybe people will find it while searching for an odd, indestructible fashion statement. More here.

You Can Buy an Unlocked iPhone 5 Now


If you've been waiting to buy an unlocked iPhone 5, you have your chance now. Apple just began selling the unlocked iPhone 5 after promising it'd become available "several weeks" after the initial launch. The prices will be $649 for 16GB, $749 for 32GB and $849 for 64GB. Ship time is a week and be sure to check if the unlocked iPhone 5 works on your carrier. More here.

Nov 29, 2012

Moebius Hanger Bends Time and Space To De-Wrinkle Your Shirts

Don't even try to wrap your head around this twisted plywood hanger. It's clearly only designed to support the shirts, belts, scarves, and other accessories of the world's greatest mathematicians and physicists. No one else has any chance of understanding the mysteries of the universe that let this hanger exist.

So be warned; Etsy will gladly let you drop $13 on one, but you'll be getting far more than you bargained for. On the bright side at least you'll have someplace to hang your straight jacket after you go completely insane trying to comprehend this creation and have to be committed. More here.

Japan Unveils Prototype of New Maglev Train, Promises Speeds of up to 311 mph


More than a year after the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Tokai) received construction approval to get going on its maglev railways, it has finally unveiled a Series L0 prototype that would put its current bullet train system to shame. Designed to travel at 311 mph, a single one of these high-speed marvels is designed to carry about 16 carriages, which translates to about 1,000 commuters. 

While Japanese travelers already enjoy a speedy 90-minute trip from Tokyo to Nagoya, this new maglev system promises to cut that journey to just 40 minutes. Announced nearly five years ago, the project has since been extended to include an Osaka-Tokyo leg and will cost around nine trillion yen (approximately $112 billion) when all is said and done. 

Don't pack your bags just yet though; the maglev's Nagoya rail isn't scheduled to go live until 2027, and the boarding call for Osaka isn't until 2045. Of course, if you need to ride electromagnetic rails now, there's always China's Shanghai Transrapid, which has been ferrying passengers to and fro the Pudong airport since 2004 -- it once reached speeds of 501km/h (311mph). More here.

Nov 28, 2012

The World’s Most Expensive Lego Is A $14,500 Solid Gold Brick

With all the insane, high tech Lego contraptions running around these days, it's easy to overlook the beauty in a single, elemental brick — unless that element is solid, 14-carat gold.

These standard-sized, 2x4 Lego bricks were only given out once or twice a year from 1979-1981. Even then, only select business partners and Lego employees clocking in 25 years of employment had a chance of getting their hands on these rarest of accolades.

But thanks to the internet, these bricks aren't just restricted to Lego legends anymore. Anyone (with $14,500 to burn) can buy their very own, shimmering block from Brick Envy, an online store that has somehow found one in their possession.

This particular brick's origins remain a mystery. So for whoever does end up being the lucky buyer, hopefully the bright, shiny object will be enough to keep away thoughts of the mysterious fate of its original master. More here.

Cadbury Chocolate Will Literally Melt In Your Mouth, Not in Your Hand




The bright minds in Cadbury's R&D department have done something amazing—they've createdchocolate that won't melt. Willy Wonka has to be real. Just has to be.

The "temperature tolerant" candy remained solid, even after spending three hours in an incubator where the temp was 104 degrees, according to its patent filing. At that point it was still solid when pressed with a finger, and it didn't collapse into a brown sticky, molten mess like you'd expect. The logical fear here is that it might not actually melt in your mouth at this point, which would pose a threat to your digestive system, but apparently with a little more pressure it can be broken.

So how does it work? First of all, assuming Oompa Loompas play an important role in the process. But also, researchers at Cadbury found a way to break sugar particles into even smaller pieces, diminishing the amount of fat they're coated with, which apparently makes chocolate bars impervious to heat. Do you live south of the equator? Do you have a habit of leaving candy in a hot car? Do you find melted chocolate in your pant pockets often? Your worries are over. More here.

Those Skinny New iMacs Go on Sale November 30

Announced in September at Apple's iPhone event, the latest desktop machines are just 5mm thin. The base 21.5-inch model has a 2.7 GHz quad-core processor and starts at $1,300. The 27-incher starts with a 2.9 GHz quad-core i5 processor and pricing begins at $1,800. Each machine can be bumped up all the way up to i7 if you please.

The bigger of the two has a resolution of 2560 by 1440. Both have four USB 3.0 ports and two Thunderbolt, 32GB of RAM, and as much as 768GB of flash storage. There's also an SD card, gigabit ethernet, and a fusion drive, which is 128GB of flash storage plus 1 or 3 TB of hard drive combined into one hard drive. And they're skinny enough that they'll fit nicely under that Douglas fir. More here.

Nov 27, 2012

Nintendo Sold 400,000 Wii Us in Its First Week, And Almost As Many Old Wiis

The numbers are in and it turns out the Wii U launch went pretty well with around 400,000 consoles sold in its first week. It's not as much as the 600,000 Wiis sold at launch, but it's nothing to sneeze at. And neither are the 300,000 aging Wiis that sold last week, either.

For perspective, the Xbox 360 was able to take the title for most popular console in October by moving 270,000 units. With the help of Black Friday, both Nintendo consoles were able to beat that number. What's more impressive than the Wii U's sizable opening sales is that the now six-year-old (and admittedly cheap at $100 and lower for some Black Friday promotions) Wii managed to achieve 50 percent of the enormous peak it hit all the way back in 2006, which seems like practically forever ago.

Overall, Nintendo managed to move 1.2 million devices including the Wii U, Wii, and a number of handheld devices last week. While it looks like the Wii U is coming out of the gate reasonably strong, it's future—especially considering a (probably) imminent next-gen offerings from Microsoft and Sony—is a bit unsure, but maybe it's inhereited its predecessors staying power. We'll have to wait and see. More here.

Nov 26, 2012

Massive Mars Dust Storm Tracked

NASA keeps on delivering some awesome footage from the red planet. Now NASA brings us a massive dust do storm spotted by its Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). The effects of the dust storm has showed a drop in atmospheric clarity, drop in air pressure and increased nighttime temps from rovers Curiosity and Opportunity.

The dust storm is quite large to the point it is classified as a regional dust storm. Instead of reflecting sunlight, it is absorbing it and causing the entire planet to heat up 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

If the dust storm keeps expanding, there is slight chance Opportunity’s solar panels can be caked with dust, reducing its energy supply. Curiosity on the other hand has radioisotope thermoelectric generator that won’t be affected by the dust storms. More here.

Samsung Galaxy Note II Global Sales Exceed 5 Million Units


Samsung announced Sunday that sales of its 5.5-inch phablet have exceeded 5 million worldwide since it first began selling two months ago. The South-Korean consumer electronics company stated the sales of the Note II have exceeded far more quickly than its predecessor which saw worldwide sales reach the same 5 million mark in five months after its release.

Apple just added the Note II on the long list of devices it is asking the court to include with its recent win against Samsung. It is no surprise the Note II is selling at such a quick pace considering its large screen, multi-tasking, and speedy quad-core processor. More here.

BlackBerry 10-N Series Parts Leaked

With BlackBerry 10 and its associated devices slated to be released early next year, news and leaks keep hitting the Internet with increased frequency. Last week a BlackBerry 10 L-Seriesimage made the rounds and now this weekend we get treated to an alleged image of N-Series keyboard parts.

Immediately one change that is noticeable is the elimination of a curved keyboard that previous QWERTY BlackBerry devices have sported. Which makes sense considering a curved physical keyboard takes real estate that could otherwise be used for a larger display or be consolidated for smaller form factor.

For BlackBerry users out there, are you likely to go with touchscreen or QWERTY keyboard? More here.

Nov 25, 2012

Facebook Proposes Changes, Closer to Instagram Integration

Facebook Inc is looking to make some changes to its policies and terms of services, starting with eliminated the current process that allows users of the social network to vote on changes.

Additional changes include who can email users, opening the emailing network to everyone, not just to those in your immediate social network. When asked about potential spammers gaming the system, Facebook spokesman Andrew Noyes said Facebook will monitor user interaction and feedback to improve services.

Finally, Facebook hopes to merge Instagram and Facebook profiles in to one shared social network profile, making it users to share photos through Facebook.

These changes are meant to improve Facebook profitability, especially since Facebook’s stock has taken a beating for not being able to monetize at a rate that investors had expected.

Through this week, Facebook is allowing users to comment on whether to approve these changes. If the more than 7,000 comments are made the changes will be put to a vote, if vote reaches 30% yeses then it is approved.

What do you think of the proposed changes? More here.