The Largest Computer Ever Built - SAGE

What was as big as a building, weighed 300 tons and had less computing power than an old 386 computer? The largest computer ever built, that's what.

Each of the 27 computers that made up the system was a dual core 32 bit CPU made of 60,000 vacuum tubes 175,000 diodes, and 12,000 of those newfangled transistors. Memory: 256k of magnetic core RAM (invented for this project) clocking in every 6 microseconds. These things weighed 300 tons, consumed 3 megawatts of electrical power and ran a blistering 75,000 operations per second.

Apple Cuts iPad Mini Shipments For 2Q13

DigiTimes, citing anonymous industry sources, claims that Apple has cut iPad mini shipments by as much as twenty percent.

Apple has reportedly cut its shipments of the iPad mini to between 10-12 million units for the second quarter of 2013, according to industry sources. The figure is based on shipment information given from multiple sources who provide various components for Apple's iPad mini.

Idaho boy detained after list, weapons found

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (AP) — An eastern Idaho junior high school student who police say compiled a list of students and police officers he planned to kill and gathered weapons for that purpose has been taken into custody.

Rigby Police Chief Keith Hammon said the boy's parents called police Monday evening when they found the list on an electronic tablet.

"It wasn't a huge list," Hammon said. "All of the parents of the students whose names were on the list have been notified."

Woman opts out of Powerball pool, but co-workers give her cut anyway

Imagine you work in a small office. A group of co-workers asks if you'd like to go in on some Powerball tickets. You decline. You're on a tight budget, and you've only been there a few weeks, anyway.

You show up for work the next day to find out they won.

That's exactly what happened to Jennifer Maldonado, an administrative assistant at Keller Williams Partners Realty in Plantation, Fla.,whose co-workers matched five numbers in Saturday's $338 million Powerball drawing, winning $1 million.

North Korea to cut all channels with South as "war may break out any time"

SEOUL (Reuters) - Reclusive North Korea is to cut the last channel of communications with the South because war could break out at "any moment", it said on Wednesday, days of after warning the United States and South Korea of nuclear attack.

The move is the latest in a series of bellicose threats from North Korea in response to new U.N. sanctions imposed after its third nuclear test in February and to "hostile" military drills under way joining the United States and South Korea.

U.S. law to restrict government purchases of Chinese IT equipment

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congress quietly tucked in a new cyber-espionage review process for U.S. government technology purchases into the funding law signed this week by President Barack Obama, reflecting growing U.S. concern over Chinese cyber attacks.

New ‘Wolverine’ Trailers Reveal New Women, New Trouble for Furry X-Man

A shaggy, unkempt figure wanders into a dingy bar on a rainy night. He's greeted by a beautiful but mysterious woman he does not seem to know, and she tells him, "It's an honor to meet the Wolverine." The man replies, "That's not who I am anymore."

But that guy with the beard and the big mop of hair is indeed Wolverine, and this attractive stranger isn't the only woman who figures into the troubles faced by Hugh Jackman's furry mutant alter ego in two new trailers for "The Wolverine," which arrives in theaters in this summer.

US Swipes at China for Hacking Allegations

The U.S. has taken its first real swipe at China following accusations that the Beijing government is behind a widespread and systemic hacking campaign targeting U.S. businesses.

Buried in a spending bill signed by President Barack Obama on Tuesday is a provision that effectively bars much of the federal government from buying information technology made by companies linked to the Chinese government.

It's unclear what impact the legislation will have, or whether it will turn out to be a symbolic gesture. The provision only affects certain non-defense government agency budgets between now and Sept. 30, when the fiscal year ends. It also allows for exceptions if an agency head determines that buying the technology is "in the national interest of the United States."

College sophomore anti-rape video gets attention on the Web

An anti-rape video posted on the Web with the line, "Real men treat women with respect," has gone viral: So far, it's been viewed over 1.4 million times.

Filmed by University of Oregon sophomore Samantha Stendal, the 26-second video, "A Needed Response," was made in reaction to the Steubenville rape trial in Ohio, which convicted two high-school football players of raping a drunk and passed out 16-year-old girl.

The victim was unconscious during the crime, and in addition to the rape itself, had to endure a response on social media that often made light of the situation.

Largest Oklahoma Earthquake Linked to Oil Extraction Wastewater

The largest-ever recorded quake in Oklahoma was caused by the injection of wastewater, a byproduct of oil extraction, into the ground, new research confirms.

On Nov. 6, 2011, a series of earthquakes, including a 5.6-magnitude temblor, struck the rural town of Prague, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) east of Oklahoma City, crumbling homes in the area and damaging a federal highway. The quake could be felt as far away as Milwaukee.

"We don't normally feel earthquakes, it was shocking," said study co-author Katie Keranen, a seismologist at Oklahoma University.

Osama bin Laden’s death: New details surface

There were “the Shooter” and “the Point Man.” Now a third member of SEAL Team 6 offers another account of the raid on Osama bin Laden that led to his death in 2011.

The report from CNN appears to contradict Esquire’s widely circulated story, "The Man Who Killed Osama bin Laden," by Phil Bronstein.The unnamed source from CNN calls the Esquire account "complete B-S."

The SEAL team member in the Esquire profile, who was described simply as the Shooter, claimed that he entered the compound and found bin Laden with a gun in reach and shot him.

“In that second, I shot him, two times in the forehead. Bap! Bap! The second time as he’s going down. He crumpled onto the floor in front of his bed. He was dead. I watched him take his last breaths,” the Shooter told Esquire.

How Much the World's Most Iconic Logos Cost Companies to Design Them

The price tag for some of the most iconic logos of all time varies drastically. While some of the most iconic brands in the world cost hundreds of millions of dollars to create, others got away with a check for just $15. Some spent nothing.

A good logo is crucial for a company's branding strategy.

While Pepsi recently redesigned its bottle, it decided to keep its logo, which it redesigned in 2008 for $1 million. (Signing Beyonce as a multi-year brand ambassador cost the company $50 million.)

Stock Logos—a site that offers, well, stock logos—has compiled a list that reveals how much Coca-Cola, Nike and other companies spent creating their logos.

Adam Lanza Newtown search warrants released

NEWTOWN, Conn.—Police investigating the school massacre here seized a small arsenal of firearms, knives and swords along with medical records and computer equipment from the 20-year-old gunman's home in the days after the shooting, court documents released Thursday reveal.

China takes aim at Apple. Why?

The state-owned Chinese media have gone into full William Tell mode this week, taking aim at Apple in a string of angry and critical articles accusing the US giant of multiple sins.

The question is, why?

China’s Central TV (CCTV) launched the campaign two weeks ago, on International Consumers’ Day, with a report blasting Apple for treating its Chinese after-sales customers worse than their counterparts elsewhere in the world.

The government-run TV station has been beating that drum repeatedly this week in follow-up pieces, and the ruling Communist Party’s official organ, the People’s Daily, has also taken up the cudgels, charging Apple with “unparalleled arrogance.” 

Google picks 8,000 winners of 'Glass' contest

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google has picked out 8,000 people who will be given a chance to don a pair of Internet-connected glasses and make a fashion statement likely to be envied by gadget-loving geeks around the world.

The pool selected by Google won a contest conducted last month requiring U.S. residents to submit 50-word applications through Twitter or Google's Plus to explain how they would use a technology that is being hailed as the next breakthrough in mobile computing.

After sifting through a litany of ideas submitted with the hash tag "ifihadglass," Google Inc. began notifying the winners Tuesday.

How Mexico’s Drug Cartels Recruit Child Soldiers as Young as 11

In case you thought Mexican drug cartels had sunk as low as they could get, a new report details how they use children as young as 11 years old to do their murderous bidding.

In the last decade, the cartels “have recruited thousands of street gang members, school drop-outs and unskilled workers,” (.pdf) the International Crisis Group recently reported. The ICG, a non-government organization that seeks to prevent conflict, notes many of these “recruits” — to use a clumsy term — are younger than 18, considered expendable, and deliberately ordered to attack superior Mexican military forces.

Activision Shows Off NVIDIA's Character Tech Demo

Activision is giving you a better look at the character tech demo we saw at NVIDIA's GTC keynote one week ago today.

The Current State of 'PC Gaming'

Despite what the industry naysayers would have you believe, PC gaming is not dead. In fact, a new reportshows that PC gaming is not only alive and kicking, it is showing strong growth year over year. 

"The PC Gaming industry showed strong overall growth of 8% in 2012, partly as a result of the Chinese market gaining traction in the $20 billion global market with record revenues of $6.8 billion," said DFC analyst David Cole. "In spite of media focus on mobile games and struggling social network games, there are now over 1 billion PC gamers worldwide and that number will continue to grow as more PCs connect online. The ‘PCGA Pinnacle Report for Software’ describes this in close detail."

Apple aims to win over video editors

The backlash over Apple's redesign of Final Cut Pro video editing software two years ago was so severe that even slashing the price by $700, to $299, caused an uproar.

Video editors jeered that Apple had abandoned loyal professional users to create a cheap product aimed at consumers. References to "Apple's lemon" and "debacle" became common refrains in blog posts and industry trades scrutinizing the fallout.

Plotting the next Silicon Valley -- you'll never guess where

QUITO, Ecuador--Imagine it's 2023. Things have shifted in the world of technology, and I'm not just talking about the elimination of the standard-transmission vehicle in favor of autonomous transport. Companies in Asia, the United States, and Europe still produce many of the world's major innovations in everything from energy efficiency and biotechnology to IT and consumer electronics, and many of those products are still made in China.

She’s Just Not That Into You: Air Force Warns of Online ‘Sextortion’

Hey, airman, that strange lady who Facebook-messaged you an enticing offer of sex via webcam is actually throwing all kinds of red flags. If somehow you didn’t know this already, the Air Force doesn’t want you to be a victim of — wait for it — sextortion.

White House Can’t Afford Its Shapeshifting Alien Reptile Guards

A shapeshifting reptile from outer space guards President Obama, according to a new conspiracy video. Yet according to the White House, the extraterrestrial heft behind Obama’s protection detail is a mere allegation — and one that congressionally mandated budget cuts would have to ax, anyway.

If you believe the video above, recently posted to YouTube, the White House deployed at least one reptile guard as recently as this month. The narrator, using a text-to-speech program, suggests a bald-headed G-Man protecting Obama during his March 4 speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee “could be a shapeshifter alien humanoid working for the powers that be, caught in a high-definition video during an event of the Zionist cabal.”

iPhone 5S expected to launch late June, says analyst

Apple will likely bring out its next iPhone in late June, projects Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster.

Assuming that forecast comes true, Munster believes Apple will sell 4 million units of the new phone before the month and the quarter are over. That estimate compares with the 5 million iPhone 5 handsets sold during that model's opening weekend.

Dancers move this interactive light show

A dancer takes the stage, melts to the ground, and then rises as a silhouette bathed in a downpour of digital light. This isn't a hallucination, but rather Apparition, an interactive light show by Austrian media artist Klaus Obermaier.

Best Buy Brings Founder Back On Board

Wait, I thought this guy was forced to resign by the same board that now has "full confidence" in him? Probably the smartest thing they've done in a while but they are still running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

Best Buy said today that its founder, Richard Schulze, is returning to the company as chairman emeritus. Schulze is also bringing with him a pair of new members for Best Buy's board of directors, former company executives Brad Anderson and Al Lenzmeier. The two are joining the board immediately and then will stand for election at the annual shareholder meeting in June, Best Buy said.

Store Charges Customers $5 'Just Looking' Fee

What's the best way to combat "showrooming?" I don't know, but charging customers a $5 "just looking" fee is probably not the smartest way to do it. 

Restaurant Uses Twitter To Shame People

Have you ever missed a dinner date or cancelled a reservation? Well, you'd better not eat at this restaurant or the company will try to shame you by tweeting your full name for not showing up.

"Invariably, the assh*les who decide to no-show, or cancel 20 minutes before their reservation (because one of their friends made a reservation somewhere else) ruin restaurants (as a whole) for the people who make a reservation and do their best to honor it," writes the owner." Either restaurants are forced to overbook and make the guests (that actually showed up) wait, or they do what we do, turn away guests for some prime-time slots because they’re booked, and then have empty tables."

f the Military’s Future Stealth Jet Fails, the Navy’s Got a Backup Plan

The U.S. Navy is carefully backing away from the troubled F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program — and putting in place a backup plan in case the trillion-dollar, jack-of-all-trades stealth jet can’t recover from mounting technical and budgetary woes. So much for the F-35 being too big to fail.

New North Korea video shows ‘defeat’ of U.S. troops

North Korea has submitted yet another entry to its ongoing propaganda film festival. This time, it has released a video that threatens an attack on U.S. forces using "powerful weapons of mass destruction" and depicts an invasion of Seoul in which 150,000 American citizens are taken hostage.

Posted on North Korea's official Uriminzokkiri website and YouTube channel, the video comes less than a week after one showing the White House in its crosshairs and the explosion of the U.S. Capitol building.

Gates Foundation offers $100k for 'next-gen condom'

We're not quite sure what a next-generation condom would look like (gesture control? a tiny touch screen?), but we may find out sooner rather than later if the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation succeeds in its new quest.

The foundation is seeking new ideas that improve on condom design, which it describes as having seen "very little technological improvement in the last 50 years." The winning proposal gets a cool $100,000, and could potentially earn more in additional funding.

Turns out most laser pointers are illegal

Rumor has it that, at one time, laser pointers were used by presenters to point out important information on blackboards and such. Of course, the more common usages of these devices now are confusing cats and annoying movie theater patrons. Some have been developed that can cause permanent blindness and instantly set fire to skin, but these are the exception, not the rule.

LED quadrotors form 'Star Trek' logo over London

I can't say I'm a fan of the "Star Trek" reboot, preferring the days when the franchise was so bad it was good, but I have to admire this marketing stunt for "Into Darkness."

We've seen LED quadrotor displays before, and there's no denying that lighting up the night sky with small flying machines has enormous potential.

HTC One launch delay: Blame camera shortfall, HTC says

The launch of the HTC One has been stymied by a limited supply of cameras.

HTC chief marketing officer Benjamin Ho confirmed the component shortage in an interview with the Wall Street Journal yesterday.

"Our friends in the media have been asking why there has been a delay in shipments for the new HTC One, whether there is a component shortage," Ho said. "There is some shortage, because the phone's camera was designed specifically for us, and production cannot be ramped up so quickly."

Do not attempt: Mixing alcohol with a Krypton laser

Good things happen when you don't drink but do fire lasers.

Last time we checked in on the antics of Scott Stevenson (aka WorldScott), he was vaporizing a row of 100 balloons with a Spyder Krypton laser.

The Super Guppy

The Super Guppy has never been to space, but it has a long history of helping NASA get there. The odd-body, oversize aircraft has helped transport components of the Gemini, Apollo, and Skylab missions, and more recently played a key role in the construction of the International Space Station. 

10 Sketches From Inside Guantanamo Bay’s Military Courtroom

• 9/11 defendants Walid bin Attash, left, and Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, appear at their Guantanamo Bay arraignment, May 5, 2012.

Virtual Reality Gets More … Realistic!

Intel Labs and the U.S. Army have signed an R&D agreement to dramatically improve virtual reality tools used to train troops. The work could allow thousands of soldiers to concurrently participate in virtual training exercises -- a 10-fold increase over the current technology. Eventually, the technology could aid other professions including first responders working on disaster simulations. It can also help model that massive paintball war you're planning this weekend. Intel research scientist Huaiyu Liu has additional thoughts on this technology.

Tomas Young > Wounded Iraq Vet Prepares to Die, Saying He's 'Ready to Go'

Tomas Young is "ready to go" as he puts it. After nine years of suffering and with his body quickly deteriorating he has decided to end his struggle.

Young, 33, was paralyzed from the chest down by a sniper's bullet in a battle in Sadr City, Iraq on April 4, 2004, less than a week after he got to the country. He had joined the Army just two days after September 11, 2001 and assumed he would be sent to Afghanistan. Now nine years after that battle he is choosing to end his suffering. He is in hospice care and getting ready to die.

Callaway’s 2014 Corvette Stingray Aerowagon concept gets tongues waggin’

Chevrolet never built the 1954 Corvette Nomad wagon that Harley Earl built for General Motors' Motorama traveling road show, but ever since a few hearty after-market designers have attempted to graft a taller hatch onto the Vette's rear flanks to form a proper two-door shooting brake (British for "sports car station wagon") — often with questionable results. Now long-time Corvette customizersCallaway Cars has announced it may produce an add-on kit for the 2014 Corvette Stingray that would create what it calls the Aerowagon.

So It Begins: Darpa Sets Out to Make Computers That Can Teach Themselves

The Pentagon’s blue-sky research agency is readying a nearly four-year project to boost artificial intelligence systems by building machines that can teach themselves — while making it easier for ordinary schlubs like us to build them, too.

When Darpa talks about artificial intelligence, it’s not talking about modeling computers after the human brain. That path fell out of favor among computer scientists years ago as a means of creating artificial intelligence; we’d have to understand our own brains first before building a working artificial version of one. But the agency thinks we can build machines that learn and evolve, using algorithms — “probabilistic programming” — to parse through vast amounts of data and select the best of it. After that, the machine learns to repeat the process and do it better.

See the intriguing difference between the U.S and int'l Iron Man 3 posters

The Mandarin is packing a little something extra for the international crowd.

Pentagon bans 60 mm mortar round after deaths

HAWTHORNE, Nev. (AP) — A mortar shell explosion killed at least seven Marines and injured several more during mountain warfare training in Nevada's high desert, prompting the Pentagon to immediately halt the use of the weapons until an investigation can determine their safety, officials said Tuesday.

The explosion occurred Monday night at the Hawthorne Army Depot, a sprawling facility used by troops heading overseas, during an exercise involving the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force from Camp Lejeune, N.C. Several Marines from the unit were injured in the blast, authorities said.

The mortar round exploded in its firing tube during the exercise, Brig. Gen. Jim Lukeman said at a news conference at Camp Lejeune. He said investigators were trying to determine the cause of the malfunction.

How Far Would You Go For a Pet?

Jackie Vestal, 34, a business systems analyst at a Los Angeles real estate agency doted on her 7-year-old miniature pincher Maddox, rarely leaving home without him. So when Maddox went missing on Christmas Eve Vestal made an extraordinary vow to never give up looking for him—and 84 days later, she's still on the hunt.

During the holidays, Vestal and her husband went to visit her in-laws in Oklahoma City and naturally Maddox came along for the ride. From Oklahoma, the family had planned a quick getaway to a resort in Dallas. The only problem? The resort didn't allow dogs so Vestal was faced with the uncomfortable dilemma of leaving Maddox behind with a friend of the family, a fellow dog owner for several nights. "I really didn't want to leave him even for a night and had this weird, awful feeling in the pit of my stomach," says Vestal. "But I didn't want to spoil everyone's good time and the fact that this woman owned a dog was comforting. So we left him with her."

Federal judge rules surveillance provisions unconstitutional

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal judge has ruled unconstitutional national security provisions that permit federal investigators to access customer information from some companies without court approval.

The provisions "suffer from significant constitutional infirmities," and violate the First Amendment and separation of powers, Judge Susan Illston of the District Court for the Northern District of Californiawrote in an order on Thursday.

The judge's decision stems from a "National Security Letter" that the Federal Bureau of Investigationissued to an unnamed telecommunications company, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

Daughter fights for return of dad trapped in China

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, Calif. (AP) — She was just 16, a shy girl whose life revolved around school and homework, when the phone call came that would change her life.

It was Thanksgiving weekend, and Victoria Hu couldn't wait for her father to return from a business trip to China. She missed their family dinners and even their occasional golf games, although she never cared much for the sport. Soccer was her game. Still, like her brother, she enjoyed the time those outings provided with their workaholic father.

NASA: Universe is 100 million years older than initially thought

NASA has announced new findings that indicate that the Universe is 13.82 billion years old, which is 100 million years older than previously estimated. These findings were released today by the Planck space mission science team, which has created the most accurate map ever made of the oldest light in the Universe. This map’s data discloses a wealth of new information not only about the Universe’s age, but also about its contents and origin.

A Dongle Joke That Spiraled Way Out Of Control

You'd better think twice about making "big dongle" jokes in public, you might get fired. You also might want to avoid complaining publicly on Twitter about someone making a "big dongle" joke, you might get fired too. 

At least it appears that’s what happened with PyCon this week when a sexual joke led to some very public firings, a virulent debate about women in technology, another virulent debate about public shaming, and now, a DDOS attack. LINK

U.S. computer hacker gets three-and-a-half years for stealing iPad user data

(Reuters) - A computer hacker was sentenced on Monday to three years and five months in prison for stealing the personal data of about 120,000 Apple Inc iPad users, including big-city mayors, a TV network news anchor and a Hollywood movie mogul.

Andrew Auernheimer, 27, had been convicted in November by a Newark, New Jersey, jury of one count of conspiracy to access AT&T Inc servers without permission, and one count of identity theft.

The sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Susan Wigenton in Newark was at the high end of the 33- to 41-month range that the U.S. Department of Justice had sought.

More People Have Cell Phones Than Toilets

I'm not sure where the UN gets these statistics but, if they are correct, this is just sad.

Of the world’s seven billion people, six billion have mobile phones. However, only 4.5 billion have access to toilets or latrines – meaning that 2.5 billion people, mostly in rural areas, do not have proper sanitation. In addition, 1.1 billion people still defecate in the open.

Worst Company In America: Apple Vs. Microsoft

As the competition for Worst Company In America heats up, you can now vote for Apple or Microsoft as the companies go head to head today.

Let’s end the first week of Worst Company In America play by throwing these two longtime rivals into a locked shipping container until only one of them comes out alive.

Intel’s Pentium Turns 20 Today

Has it really been twenty years since Intel launched the Pentium?

Following Intel's previous series of 8086, 80186, 80286, 80386, and 80486 microprocessors, the company's first P5-based microprocessor was released as the original Intel Pentium on March 22, 1993. Marketing firm Lexicon Branding was hired to coin a name for the new processor. The suffix -ium was chosen as it could connote a fundamental ingredient of a computer, like a chemical element,[4] while the prefix pent- could refer to the fifth generation of x86.[3]

Samsung's Galaxy S4: What the Apple analysts are saying

After the big build-up and over-the-top stage show, there were few surprises

Photo: The Verge

FORTUNE -- Evolutionary, not revolutionary, was the general consensus. As for what Samsung's new phone means for Apple (AAPL), the jury was split.

Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster: Galaxy S4 Evolutionary, iPhone To Essentially Maintain High End Share In CY13. "The Galaxy S4 appears to be largely an incremental update to the S3 including a slightly larger screen (4% larger on diagonal), better camera and processor, and updated software, but largely the same body style and casing. We believe some of the software features are unique, including the tilt to scroll, video pausing based on facial recognition, and hand gesture based interactions, but view these software improvements as minor compared with what Siri was to the iPhone 4S or even Google Now to Android... Despite the launch and fanfare around the Galaxy S4, we continue to believe that Apple will maintain a low 40% market share in the high-end smartphone market in CY13."

Physicists confirm they have indeed found elusive "God particle"

After nearly half a century of searching, scientists have just announced that they believe they've found a Higgs boson particle.

Physicists from the European Organization for Nuclear Research, popularly known as CERN, announced this week that a particle they discovered last summer using the Large Hadron Collider (pictured above) is indeed the fabled "God particle" first theorized in 1964 by physicists, including the particle's namesake, Peter Higgs.

That time 28 Days Later's Danny Boyle almost made an Alien sequel

The Alien franchise fell on hard times with the last few sequels, but one of those 1990s installments almost had a big dose of the zombie classic 28 Days Later.

Danny Boyle, who would go on to direct the stellar 28 Days Later in 2002, was originally approached to direct 1997’s Alien: Resurrection. Boyle became a buzzy name after his 1996 flick Trainspotting, and was up for the ultimately mediocre sequel starring Sigourney Weaver and Winona Rider.

It's official: Here's who's starring in (+ directing) Resident Evil 6

It’s one of the few successful franchises to make the jump from videogame to movies, so don’t expect Resident Evil to go away anytime soon.

Resident Evil 6 is officially happening, and the studio seems to have wrangled longtime star Milla Jovovich (Alice) and longtime director Paul W.S. Anderson back for one more go-round.

Video uses Nokia 3D Maps for stunning global flyover

Today, online tools like Google Maps and Street View allow us to intimately explore distant cities and landscapes in ways never before possible. Now, one user took the Nokia 3D Maps service and cobbled together a stunning video that better illustrates exactly what we currently have at our fingertips.

China TV consumer show criticizes Apple and Volkswagen

(Reuters) - Technology giant Apple Inc and car maker Volkswagen AG were singled out by state-run China Central Television (CCTV) in its annual corporate malpractice expose.

On its "3.15" investigative special aired late on Friday, CCTV said that Chinese customers were not given the same post-sales service from Apple as it gave to users in other markets.

Early screening notes reveal just how much execs hated "Blade Runner"

Well, this couldn't have been very encouraging to Ridley Scott.

These days pretty much everyone regards Blade Runner as a classic, one of the greatest science fiction films ever made, but at its 1982 release it was famously divisive. Some praised it as a visionary masterpiece, while others dubbed it "Blade Crawler" for its slow pacing. There were a lot of Blade Runner haters around in '82, and it turns out some of them were major players in one of the film's production companies.

NVIDIA Face Works Demo

This video showcases NVIDIA's Face Works technology running on the GeForce GTX TITAN. 

China’s Testing Woes Remind That Developing Carrier Planes Is Hard

The ongoing trials of China’s first aircraft carrier and her ship-based jet fighters represent a major leap ahead in capability for the People’s Liberation Army Navy. But the hype surrounding Lioaning’s debut test cruise last summer and the inaugural landing of her J-15 fighters in late November masks an important truth, one the world’s other carrier powers have long known.

Developing a flattop and its planes is hard, requiring years of trial and error and no small amount of risk. And while China’s ascent as a naval power might seem unstoppable, the saga of China’s first seagoing fighter pilots proves otherwise. A lot of things can, have and will go wrong, casting into doubt whether Beijing will possess a truly useful carrier capability any time soon.

Post Pics Of Your Rig 2013

Do you know what's missing from the Post Pics Of Your Rig 2013 thread? Pictures of YOUR rig! Even though I started this thread a little late (three months to be exact), I think we can easily beat the 2012 PPoYR thread that ended the year with over 2,300 posts and 2 million views.  So what are you waiting for? Post pictures of your system!

 

 

Border Patrol Seeks Hazmat Teams for Drugs Smuggled in Toxic Waste

Marijuana bundles hidden in hollowed-out stacks of industrial lime in Del Rio, Texas on March 3, 2012. Photo: Customs and Border Protection

Working a Border Patrol checkpoint can be an exhausting job. There’s the Southwestern heat, long hours, and drug smugglers. Adding to the stress is the job of fetching drug bundles by the dozen out of toxic waste containers.

Pentagon Swears It Isn’t Abandoning BlackBerries for iOS Devices

Calm yourselves, defense bureaucrats. The Pentagon isn’t about to swap out your BlackBerries for the latest iPhones and iPads.

That, however, was the promise of anonymous “well-placed sources” in an eye-opening Electronista story Wednesday. Those sources said the Pentagon was on the verge of phasing out “nearly all” of the hundreds of thousands of BlackBerries issued to its employees, and replacing them with some 650,000 iPhones, iPads and iPod touches.

This battery pack turns your iPhone into a satellite phone

So let's say you've got your isolated island lair, complete with underground doomsday bunker and all the gadgetry you can pack into a hollowed out volcano. Now the question is: which smartphone do you choose? A new accessory for the iPhone just might make that choice a bit easier.

Thanks for reading - Kevin Hall

After six amazing years serving this site as a writer, reporter and editor, I'm moving on. With my last proper post, I'd like to tell you about the opportunity DVICE provided me that meant the most. Namely, I got to watch a space shuttle launch.

Russia searches hundreds of rights groups, NGOs

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian prosecutors are conducting wide-ranging checks of hundreds of nongovernmental organizations, as part of what rights activists say are President Vladimir Putin's efforts to stifle dissent and shield the nation from perceived Western influence.