Muslims, police scuffle at Rye Playland over amusement park’s head scarf ban; 15 arrests made

Rye Playland was shut down Tuesday after cops scuffled with Muslims upset that women wearing head scarves were barred from the rides, witnesses said.

Fifteen people, including three women, were charged with disorderly conduct and assault in the chaos, authorities said.

The Westchester County park was packed with Muslims celebrating Eid-ul-Fitr -  the holiday marking the end of the Islamic holy month ofRamadan.

One woman, Entisai Ali, began arguing with cops over the amusement park's head scarf, or hijab, rule, said Dena Meawad, 18, of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

China Analyst: U.S. Can’t Win in Space, So Why Bother Racing?

With access to more than 400 satellites plus at least two tiny, maneuverable robotic shuttles, the U.S. military is the clear leader in military spacecraft. But with 70 orbiters of its own, China is catching up fast. Last year, Beijing matched Washington in space launches for the first time, boosting no fewer than 15 satellites into orbit. It was the first time any nation kept a celestial pace with the U.S. since the height of the Cold War.

The new space race is on. But in the view of one influential analyst, the race isn’t worth the prize. Space “is expensive to enter, hard to sustain assets in, contains no defensive ground, and — barring energy-intensive maneuvering  – forces assets into predictable orbits,” Andrew Erickson, a Naval War College professor and editor of the new book Chinese Aerospace Power, told me as part of a longer interviewover at AOL Defense.

Crash-Prone Hybrid Copter’s New Mission: Hauling the President’s Peeps

It crashed four times in development, killing 30 crew and passengers. An unexplained crash during a combat mission in Afghanistan last year claimed four more lives. Despite its lethal reputation, in April the controversial V-22 Osprey tiltrotor got a high-profile new assignment: hauling cargo for the president’s entourage, starting in 2013.

Now that mission has expanded, and the Osprey will haul the entourage itself. A July solicitation by Marine Corps asks for a company to supply VIP kits for four Ospreys. The kits include a liner to disguise the cabin’s pipes and wires, softer seats and a carpet bearing the squadron logo for the aircraft’s ramp.

U.S. Wasted At Least $31 Billion In War Contracts

It turns out that scattering cash into the wind would have been more efficient than the United States’ system for awarding reconstruction contracts during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. A two-year inquiry by a congressionally created panel finds that at least 15 percent of the $206 billion-with-a-B spent on wartime contracts thus far has been lost to waste, fraud and abuse. That very conservative estimate is likely to grow — and it amounts to an indictment not just of wartime contracts, but the wars themselves.

The Commission on Wartime Contracting concludes that “vast amounts” of contract money in Iraq and Afghanistan provided “little or no benefit” to the war efforts. (.PDF) The commission confirmed $31 billion in contractor cash lost to corruption or dysfunction. But it warned that the true figure could be as high as $60 billion, or “$12 million every day for the past 10 years.”

Russian Firm Got No-Bid Pentagon Contract After Selling Arms to Iran

For two years, the United States regarded Rosoboronexport, Russia’s official weapons exporter, as an international pariah for selling arms to Iran and Syria. Then, in 2010, the U.S. suddenly lifted sanctions against it. By June of this year, the reversal was complete: the Pentagon awarded the company a no-bid contract worth upwards of $1 billion.

How exactly did the United States end up spending taxpayer dollars on Russian equipment with no competition?

Epic slip-and-slide/human slingshot looks like dangerous fun

Here is a video showing people being flung down a gigantic slip-and-slide on a tube pulled by a vehicle, only to be launched off a ramp into a lake. It looks like the most fun thing ever. I just want to know how one gets invited to these gatherings in picturesque environments with attractive people. Sure, this looks to be sponsored by something or another, but I'm not above hanging out and having fun with corporate dollars. Call me, you crazy daredevils.

Sony details two new tablets that aren't just wannabe iPads

We've known about Sony's plans to crash into the Android tablet scene with two interesting designs — the S1 and S2, as the pair was formerly called — but didn't have much in the way of details. Well, Sony still needs to work on its naming scheme, but the newly christened Tablet S and Tablet P are delivering on a promise to be different.
Both the Tablet S and Tablet P will come in Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi/3G variants, have a 5-megapixel camera at the rear and a 0.3-megapixel front-facing camera for video chatting, have both a USB port and an SD card expansion slot, and run Android 3.2 and 3.1, respectively (Tablet P could see a boost to 3.2 sometime in the future, however).

Chemical process turns biological tissue completely transparent

There's still an awful lot that's not understood about how complex biological systems (like our bodies) really work. Part of the problem is that we can't just go look, since the only way to really see inside a brain (for example) is to cut it open, which by definition destroys its structure. Japanese scientists have a better idea: just turn everythingtransparent.
Scientists from Japan's RIKEN Brain Science Institute have been testing a new chemical reagent called Scale that can make just about any kind of tissue more or less completely see-through. By using genetic modification to cause certain types of cells to fluoresce, it then becomes possible to generate exceptionally detailed and intricate images of even the most delicate biological structures. The picture below, for example, shows the network of neurons inside a small area of a mouse brain:

Ford Evos concept car soars into the cloud on four gullwings

Cloud computing sounds great in theory, but in practice, it's sometimes hard to see how it's going to make our lives better. Ford's new Evos concept tries to stuff as much of that that nebulous cloud information into a car as possible, and it definitely makes the cloud-car marriage an attractive one, indeed.
The Evos car itself isn't anything special, really: it's got cool concept car looks, it's got a fancy and be'hyphened lithium-ion plug-in hybrid-electric drive-train, and it sports features you'll never, ever, ever find on a production car. I'm looking at you, quadruple gullwing doors.

Sony's next big Walkman has an Android inside

Sony officially killed off its cassette line of Walkman music players toward the end of last year, which also killed off pretty much any interest we had in anything Walkman (more on that inside). What could bring us back? Well, a smartphone that's more into music than calling isn't a bad start.
So, why the dig at the Walkman? No, we don't hate the brand. Think: when's the last time you got excited about an MP3 player? There's no reason to have one if you have a decent smartphone (unless you want something for, say, a jog, like a Shuffle). Hell, even Apple barely mentions the iPod.

NASA Desert R.A.T.S. field testing

NASA's Desert Research And Technology Studies (D-R.A.T.S.) is beginning field testing out in the Arizona wilderness. This year, they will focus on technologies for future manned missions to the moon, Mars or asteroids. Check out the video below to see some of the technology they will be testing.

Sony's OLED VR goggles display virtual 750-inch cinema screen

Holy tacos, it's real, it's really real. Remember Sony's prototype for a pair of OLED 3D virtual reality goggles from back at CES? Well, it's a prototype no more, because Sony actually plans to sell it in Japan later this year, and it'll cost a pretty penny.

We seriously thought Sony was spitting smoke from its butt when it said it was seriously considering and working on a 3D virtual reality, but lo and behold Sony's unveiled its "Personal 3D Viewer HMZ-T1" — a head-mounted display that can project a 750-inch screen in 2D and 3D.

Sights and sounds of Halo 4 revealed in this concept art video

343 Industries, the new stewards of the Halo franchise, has put out a new trailer showing off some lovely Halo 4 concept art. Just a bunch of slides would have sufficed, but 343 decided to pull out all the stops and make this one atmospheric ride. Not too many plot points have been revealed just yet, but you can see everyone's favorite cyborg in green, Master Chief, gazing out across a variety of landscapes. It looks like the Covenant is going to crash the party at some point as per usual, and their ships are looking decidedly boxier this time around.

Digital ink pen revolutionizes the art of creating art - Inkling

One of the best things about writing about technology is that every now and then you run across something that is such a leap ahead it seems like you're witnessing magic (for example, the first iPhone). This was my reaction when I got my first look at the new Wacom Inkling digital sketch pen. Back when I was in art school, the one of the most coveted (and expensive) tools an artist could have was a set of Rapidograph pens, renowned for their ability to deliver amazing detail and produce a line unmatched by any other drawing pen. I have the feeling that the Inkling will quickly attain similar status. What the Inkling does is finally connect the world of free hand sketching and digital art in a way that a tablet never could by preserving the flourishes and organic quirks that only happen when an artist renders on paper.

13 critical steps that'll get our butts to Mars by the 2030s

We wish we had better news to report, but the official timetable for that next "small step for Man" isn't all that timely. Our species has fallen depressingly short of the star-hopping future we were promised in the post-Apollo orgy of interplanetary sci-fi — and that was all before the global economic train wreck.
Still, the next few decades aren't entirely without promise. Two trends are in our favor: 1) space exploration is becoming an increasingly international sport — more competition will breed more results — and 2) the advent of a commercial space industry will shepherd a nimbler, more efficient approach to exploration.
To that end, we present some of the projects that hold the most promise for Humanity's Big Move into the final frontier. While plenty of cool scientific toys will be flung out into the cosmos in the coming years, for this piece we're concentrating on the missions and projects that will directly lead to getting our species' collective butt back into the cosmos.
Earth is so yesterday. PHOTOS

This is a human heart, alive and beating, in a box

It's like something out of science fiction or a horror movie or both: in order to facilitatetransplants, we can now keep human hearts alive and beating and toasty warm inside a special electromechanical box full of fresh blood.
Up until this point, live organs have been transported from donors to patients in coolers, buried in ice to keep them "fresh." This only works for about six hours, which is why private jets, helicopters, and ambulances are used to speed these irreplaceable and lifesaving items around the country as quickly as possible.

Particle physicist devises fastest way for airlines to board passengers

Science: is there anything it can't do? Dr. Jason Steffen, a scientist at Fermilab, got frustrated with how inefficiently airlines board customers. So he used simulations with a Monte Carlo optimization algorithm to come up with a better way.

Chinese want to capture an asteroid into Earth's orbit

While most astronomers seem to be understandably worried about the best way to steer asteroids away from Earth, Chinese scientists are instead trying to figure out how they can capture nearby asteroids into Earth orbit. And then mine them.
At first glance, nudging an asteroid closer to Earth seems like one of those "what could possibly go wrong" scenarios that we generally try and avoid, and for good reason: large asteroid impacts are bad times. The Chinese, though, seem fairly optimistic that they could tweak the orbit of a near-Earth asteroid by just enough (a change in velocity of only about 1,300 feet-per-second or so) to get it to temporarily enter Earth orbit at about twice the distance as the Moon. The orbit would be unstable, and eventually (after a few years) the asteroid would head back out into space from whence it came, but it would stick there long enough for us to poke around on it.

Stereo mic interface gives your iPhone 4 some better ears

The iPhone 4's camera shoots pretty decent video if there's plenty of light, but the mono audio quality is kind of lame. This versatile audio interface from Fostex gives your iPhone 4 some real microphones, so you can get decent sound to go with your iPhone video masterpieces.

Inappropriate genre babysitting techniques

Airlifts planned to supply cut-off Vt. towns

NEWFANE, Vt. (AP) — Vermont began mobilizing National Guard helicopters to airlift food, water and supplies Tuesday to small towns cut off by flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Irene.

Emergency Management spokesman Mark Bosma said the helicopters would head to about a dozen towns where roads and bridges were washed out, including Cavendish, Hancock, Pittsfield, Stockbridge, Strafford and Stratton. Officials also planned to use heavy-duty National Guard vehicles to reach towns where roads may be passable.

The relief supplies arrived at National Guard headquarters early Tuesday in a convoy of 30 trucks from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

In a deluge that caught many communities off guard, Irene dumped up to 11 inches of rain in some places in Vermont, turning placid mountain streams into roaring brown torrents that smashed buildings and ripped homes from their foundations. At least three people died in Vermont.

Weird, Birdlike Mystery Drone Crashes in Pakistan

It looks a bit like silver bird. It probably was used to spy on insurgents. And now it’s in the hands of the Pakistanis.

WIRED editor-in-chief Chris Anderson flags pictures of an unusual, unfamiliar drone that reportedlycrashed crashed over southwestern Pakistan late last week. It’s a surveillance drone, with a camera attached — recovered from the crash but not apparently visible in this photo — rather than the larger, deathly flying robots that shoot missiles. This one looks tiny, with a wingspan not much longer than a man’s outstretched arms, and clearly light enough for a grown man to carry.

Invention site Quirky finds Edison in the masses

NEW YORK (AP) — At first glance, the offices of Quirky Inc. appear much like those of any number of Internet start-ups.

A mostly young staff of 50 sits in front of computer screens. Bikes, ridden to work, hang from the ceiling. A young visionary sets an eager, nontraditional vibe.

The rolling toilet, though, is a clue that Quirky is a bit different.

Quirky is an invention website that takes ideas from its online community and makes them into real consumer products. Ben Kaufman, 24, founded the Manhattan-based Quirky two years ago with the aim of making invention accessible.

Though it uses the en-vogue model of crowd-sourcing, it still relies on nuts-and-bolts creation of tangible goods. Beyond Quirky's rows of desks lurks a design shop, complete with a 3-D printer and various work-shopped inventions — along with the curious leftovers of development.

Google to shut down Slide social apps

Apparently the age of “superpoking” social network friends and throwing sheep at them is coming to a close.

Google plans to shut down the social applications developed by Slide, a company it acquired a year ago for $182 million. Slide products include SuperPoke and photo management and decorating tools like Slideshow and FunPix.

Slide’s applications like Slideshow were very popular on MySpace during its heyday, and found success on other social networking sites, including Facebook, where the sheep-throwing feature of SuperPoke caught on, entertaining and annoying many.

But usage of Slide applications has apparently been declining and disappointing, according to a message Slide posted on its blog on Thursday.

Why You Should Not Teach Your Child Chinese

With the start of the new school year, the usual topics around which school to send your child, and the extra-curricular activities your child is attending become the common topics of conversation around the water cooler at work. For Asian Americans those conversations are a little more intense, and a little bit imbued with criticism when your responses don’t quite match up to the other person’s expectations.

10 years after 9/11, one family fights on in court

BOSTON (AP) — Nineteen hijackers died on their Sept. 11 suicide mission. Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden was killed by Navy Seals and dumped at sea in May. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the attacks, and a handful of his henchmen are in custody at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Mary Bavis believes there are still more to blame for the death of her son Mark — more who have not been punished, or held accountable, or even publicly identified. In a wrongful death lawsuit due for trial in November, Bavis accuses United Airlines and the security firm Huntleigh USA Corp. of negligence for failing to keep the planes safe.

Ninety-four others also sued, forgoing the chance for a quick payout from a $7 billion victim compensation fund. Ninety-four others also sued and have all settled.

Video of the Day: HTV-2 hypersonic glider reentering the atmosphere

Earlier in August, DVICE reported that DARPA lost contact with their $308 million dollar hypersonic Falcon HTV-2 aircraft. Although DARPA had about two dozen stations set up to collect data on the HTV-2, a crewmember on one of the monitoring vessels (with a handheld camcorder) was the only one to get footage when the flight was lost. Check it out below. 

Demolishing a Vegas Hotel Before its Grand Opening

The days of the Harmon Hotel tower in Las Vegas may be numbered -- even before the hotel welcomes a single guest. Begun during the Las Vegas high-rise condo boom, the hotel tower -- first proposed as a 49-story mixed-use condo and hotel project -- is an empty, if flashy, shell that its owner, MGM Resorts International, seeks to demolish.

The building's downfall has been blamed on massive construction defects and the market downturn. MGM and the building's general contractor, Perini Building Co., are embroiled in litigation over the building's problems -- and the outcome may ultimately decide its fate.

12 bizarre real-life plants that look like sci-fi alien monsters

e plants the missing link between ancient astronauts and Earth? One look at these freaks of nature is enough to convince us. We combed the planet to find 12 plants that make the horrific Day of the Triffids look as tame as The Happening.

Hydnora Africana

Razer Blade gaming laptop: beauty meets beast

There's a certain finesse to designing PC gaming equipment. Whether it's the neon glow from all the LED lights, chunky weight or boxy frame — you can immediately tell when a desktop rig or laptop is built specifically for gaming. Razer's beastly Blade takes all the Alienwares, Maingears and XPS laptops out there and raises the bar, not just in terms of raw power, but with features like 10 adaptive and programmable keypad buttons (a design carried over from the Switchblade) and a multitouch LCD trackpad that doubles as an separate screen.

Even Captive Customers Need to Be Coddled

Pepco, the utility that services the greater Washington DC area, has few friends among its customer base thanks to spotty reliability. I should know, I am one of them and in the spirit of full disclosure, can tell you I have made my fair share of complaints to and about the utility.

This sentiment by the way, was recently captured by American Customer Satisfaction Index when it rated Pepco Holdings the "most hated" company in America. (To understand in greater detail how Pepco earned this dubious distinction the Washington Post delivered an excellent analysis of the utility and its performance last year, tellingly entitled “Why Pepco Can’t Keep the Lights On.”)

8 awesome sci-fi movie skins that mess with your MacBook Apple

If that Apple on your MacBook laptop is looking kinda lonely there all by itself, maybe it's time you spiced it up a bit with skins depicting characters from great sci-fi movies, just like these guys did.
Here are eight awesome examples plucked from allphotoz, Dave and Thomas and Fat Retro Bastard so no one will ever accuse you of owning a boring machine ever again.
Check them out below! PHOTOS

Liquid metal shoes harvest massive amounts of power

We're tired of hearing vague promises about how our shoes will one day be able to power our gadgets, but this particular vague promise got our attention for two reasons: one, it involves liquid metal, and two, the amount of power that it can harvest from walking is ridiculously huge.
Most systems that harvest energy from movement use piezoelectrics. That's fine, there's nothing wrong with that, except that piezoelectrics generally produce power measured in milliwatts. Milliwats of power can potentially run low-power sensors, trickle charge a battery, or (if you're lucky) run something like an iPod shuffle.

17 ways humanity's first contact with aliens could go down

We're fairly certain that we haven't yet made contact with any extraterrestrial intelligence (ETI), but when we do — and yes, let's go with when — it's definitely going to be big news. What is somewhat less definite is what form that news will take: will it be beneficial to humanity, with ETI offering to solve all of our problems, or will ETI turn out to be hostile and eat our entire species for dinner?
A group of scientists from Pennsylvania State University and NASA's Planetary Science division have put a lot of thought into many different scenarios of ETI interactions with humanity, and here are 17 different ways that first contact might (or might not) go.
Paper, via Inhabitat

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 Click Image to Enlarge

(1 of 17)

1. ETs ignore us Just like in Star Trek, it’s possible that ETI has some kind of Prime Directive or other non-interference policy with other species for whatever reason, so that even if we did know for sure that they were out there, they might not respond to us. They also might not communicate simply because as a species, humans don’t interest them, whether it’s because of our primitive nature or violent tendencies or terrible taste in music or otherwise. Or, they could show up in the form of a giant alien probe, have a pleasant conversation with the whales, and then leave, without sparing us so much as a glance. PHOTOS

The best ways to track Irene using your computer and phone

Live on the East Coast? Well, just because there's a storm a-comin', that doesn't mean you have to wait for it blindly. Here are some ways to keep tabs on Irene.

On The Web

These Han Solo ice cube trays are the trays you're looking for

Well, this is certainly better than your boring old ice cubes. Yep, it's an ice cube tray that will allow you to make ice that looks like Han Solo frozen in carbonite. Awesome, awesome, awesome.
Amazon via Kottke

Final survivor of south tower collapse struggles with scars of 9/11

Ron DiFrancesco's voice softens and trails off. He barely finishes his sentences as he recalls his experience on Sept. 11, 2001. He speaks as if it happened yesterday.

"It was a living hell," he says. "I was mere seconds from death. ... I didn't know I was going to get out."

DiFrancesco is believed to be the last person out of the South Tower of the World Trade Centerbefore it collapsed. According to some reports, he was one of only four people to escape from above the 81st floor.

Logitech Fold-Up Keyboard for iPad available for pre-order

Logitech is huge in the peripheral and accessory market for computers and tablets among the things. The company unveiled a new speaker specifically designed for the iPad not long ago called the Tablet Speaker. Logitech is back with another new accessory specifically for the iPad 2. The new accessory is called the Logitech Fold-Up Keyboard and it also has a case to protect your tablet and props the tablet up for easier viewing.

Jobs at Apple: Master inventor, master marketer

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Steve Jobs started Apple Computer with a high school friend in a Silicon Valley garage in 1976, was forced out a decade later, then returned to rescue the company. During his second stint, Apple grew into the most valuable technology company in the world.

Jobs invented and masterfully marketed ever-sleeker gadgets that transformed everyday technology, from the personal computer to the iPod and iPhone. Cultivating Apple's countercultural sensibility and a minimalist design ethic, he rolled out one sensational product after another, even in the face of the late-2000s recession and his own failing health.

One of the world’s ‘most feared’ pests found in Chicago

One of the world's "most feared" pests was discovered on American soil. The Khapra beetle, in larva stage, was identified by customs officials last week in a 10-pound bag of rice that came from India.

In a press release, Customs and Border Protection described the bug as "one of the world's most tenacious and destructive stored-produce pests because of its ability to damage grain."

The beetles originated in South Asia but have invaded parts of northern Africa, the Middle East, and even Europe, Asia and South Africa.

Motion FX uses Lion to add video effects in real time

Autodesk on Wednesday launched a new video-effects application for Macs, one that uses the face-tracking technology of OS X Lion to create exotic images using your computer’s camera.

Motion FX uses Autodesk’s Maya animation software to offer 80 visual effect filters—including smoke, fire, and “rainbow plasma”—all designed to react in real time to your on-camera movements. Users can set the application to apply the effects using motion, face, or color detection. Animated thumbnails allow you to preview effects before using them. (See the video below for a demonstration.)

Quake rocks Washington area, felt on East Coast

MINERAL, Va. (AP) — The most powerful earthquake to strike the East Coast in 67 years shook buildings and rattled nerves from South Carolina to Maine on Tuesday. Frightened office workers spilled into the streets in New York, and parts of the White House, Capitol and Pentagon were evacuated.

There were no immediate reports of deaths, but fire officials in Washington said there were at least some injuries.

Earthquake Magnitude 5.3 - COLORADO

DENVER — The largest natural earthquake in Colorado in more than a century struck Monday night in the state’s southeast corner, but there were no reports of damage or injuries.

The quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 5.3, was centered about nine miles from the city of Trinidad and hit at 11:46 p.m. local time. It was felt as far away as Greeley, about 350 miles north, and into Kansas and New Mexico, said Julie Dutton, a geophysicist at the National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colo.

Colorado, with its mix of mountains and plains, sits astride a seismically stable part of the nation where earthquakes are mostly mild and far between. But the area around Trinidad is regularly hit by tiny quakes as a result of a local fault zone, Ms. Dutton said.

The Dark Knight Rises bids farewell to Pittsburgh with full-page ad, Bane pics

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Don't expect to see any more set images from The Dark Knight Rises coming out of the 'Burgh, as the production of Christopher Nolan's final(?) Bat-film has just completed its shoot in Steeltown.

Was Jason Momoa to blame for Conan's failure to conquer the box office?

That resounding thud you heard this weekend was the sound of a Cimmerian dropping like a stone as the Conan the Barbarian remake rounded up a mere $10 million in box office receipts over its opening weekend. The film, which cost $90 million to produce and debuted on some 3,000 screens, is a flop by any measure, and now it's time to point some fingers.

Thai war airship going over like a lead zeppelin

If you're going to fight an Islamic insurgency, you'd think there would be more practical tools than an airship.

But that's just what Thailand has been using to track militants in its restive southern provinces. Its manned Aeros 40D Sky Dragon, manufactured by California-based Aeros, has again run into technical trouble, making an emergency landing in the south's Pattani Province recently.

The Sky Dragon developed propeller problems and began losing altitude. It sustained some damage in an emergency landing, but no one was hurt, the Bangkok Post reported.

How about global thermonuclear war? WarGames remake gets a screenwriter

Who would have ever thought a Today Show producer would be tasked with writing a remake of an '80s classic about nuclear war? MGM has set Noah Oppenheim to script its planned reload of the 1980s Cold War flick WarGames. Oppenheim is a former producer on NBC's flagship morning show whose Jackie O script generated heat in Hollywood, and now it's up to him to reboot JOSHUA.

'Astronaut Suicides' shows why we need to return to space

In first grade, my teacher asked my class what our desired occupation was in the future. Several other friends and I answered "astronaut." None of us ever did come close.
It's an uncertain time for American astronaut hopefuls. The Space Shuttle program's over and we're not even sure how we're going to send new men and women into space without piggybacking on a Soyuz rocket or hopping in a private SpaceX capsule. Yes, things look cloudy and gray now, but we have to remember that as long as we can dream it, we can do it.

U.S. Spies Totally Confused by Wall Street, Too

In the last few weeks the stock market has gone ballistic, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average swinging up and down by 400 points seemingly every day. Top-notch economists are scratching their heads; Wall Street traders are hysterical. Even the U.S. intelligence community is flummoxed. So those spies have decided to take matters — or markets — into their own hands.

'Tron'-inspired scooter could make geek kids rejoice

If your kids think traditional bicycles are boring, why not have them ride this "Tron"-inspired training bike instead?

$300 toothpaste squeezer helps you get your money's worth

Squeezing every last blob out of toothpaste out of its tube is hard. How much would you pay to never waste another ounce of toothpaste ever again? $5? $10? Try $300 for this Italian toothpaste squeezer.

Teen racing champion Zach Veach tells you to put down your phone

At the age of 16, Zach Veach (you can also find him on Twitter and Facebook) has probably spent more time behind the wheel of a car than most of us will in our entire lives. But when he's not racing for Andretti Autosport or writing his own book (99 Things Teens Wish They Knew Before Turning 16 came out this spring), he's a fan of tech toys, just like anyone else. Tecca recently had a chance to catch up with Zach and talk tech.

Kate Winslet escapes fire at Branson's island home - Necker Island

In this image issued Monday Aug. 22, 2011 by Virgin Limited Edition shows British entrepreneur's Sir Richard Branson's luxury home, on Necker Island, in the Caribbean, in flames as a fire which ripped through the luxury home. Guests including Academy Award-winning actress Kate Winslet escaped uninjured when fire destroyed Richard Branson's Caribbean home during a tropical storm Monday, said the British businessman. The Virgin Group boss said about 20 people, including Winslet and her children, were staying in the eight-bedroom Great House on Necker, his private isle in the British Virgin Islands. PHOTOS

Apple’s iPad Already Replacing Cash Registers by the Bushel

Mobile payments may still be in the infant stage, but mobile devices — and especially Apple products — have become fairly mainstream at retail locations around the country.

And there are more significant deployments underway.

Lowe’s announced last week that it was rolling out 42,000 handheld devices in the U.S. and Canada. That closely followsannouncements by Home Depot, Nordstrom and Urban Outfitters.

While some of the retailers are a little shy about saying which devices are being deployed, for the most part they are using Apple products — an iPhone, an iPad or an iPod touch. And while the devices may eventually be used to accept payments, many of them are starting off as tools for salespeople to look up answers or to check on product availability.