Wired: Gadget Lab —

Robot Porn Film Is Industrialpunkish Kama Sutra (NSFW) [NSFW Robosex]
Gizmodo —

Disney Star Guitarist: Guitar Hero, But With Real Guitars [Ces 2009]
Gizmodo —

The Netbook Hackintosh Video Apple Is Suing Wired For [Breaking]
Gizmodo — ... Gadget Lab writer and Giz friend Brian X. Chen reveals via Twitter ...

Video: How to Make a 3D Stereo Camera
Wired: Gadget Lab — We're pretty used to amazing special effects -- even the phone in your pocket can likely produce some pretty fancy 3D graphics. But despite this, there is a rather surprising feeling of childlike wonder whenever we view real 3D images. For many of us, the first experience was with the Viewmaster, a plastic toy which contained a disk of tiny photographic slides. These would present two slightly different views of the same scene, taken a few inches apart, approximately the distance between our eyes. Because these images are presented separately to each eye, a 3D effect is produced. And that's exactly what is happening in this Wired video, featuring ...

Alex Trebek Explains Jeopardy!'s Tech: "I Look Better in High-Def" [This. Is. Jeopardy.]
Gizmodo — ... Jeopardy! is far and away the best game show of all time, but I can't imagine why anyone would've gone on back in the old days when questions were only worth $10. And as flashy as the show looks these days, does ANYBODY need or even want to watch it in 3D? What would that even entail? But this is a great interview, and it's nice ...

MIT's Sixth Sense device could trump Apple's multitouch
Crave: The gadget blog — In the MIT report, wearers of its Sixth Sense device can turn any surface or object into an interactive display that recognizes hand gestures.(Credit: TED/Flickr) Step aside, Apple and Microsoft. If MIT's little Sixth Sense gadget sees the commercial light of day, we can toss our multitouch devices out the window. Who needs a Surface or an ...

Video Review: Smart Pen Records Your Writing, Voice
Wired: Gadget Lab — The Livescribe Pulse pen amazes everyone I've shown it to: Writing on special paper, it records every stroke you make on the page. It can also record the audio you hear, synchronizing the audio track with everything you write. You can upload everything to your computer via USB, so you can view and search through your notebooks online. Or, without the computer, you can play back recorded audio simply by tapping on the page -- the pen plays back whatever audio it recorded at the moment you were writing or drawing on that part of the page. As a journalist, I love the idea of this pen. And for the most part, I like it in practice, too. I can take it ...

VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: Hands On With the Twitter Wingman
Wired: Gadget Lab — Twitter has exploded in popularity like a monkey navigated rocket ship, but the question on everyone's mind is: how will the fledgling startup make money? A lot of theories have been bandies about: software solutions, premium accounts, advertising. Turns out all these hypothesis are wrong. Twitter is getting into hardware. About a week prior to CTIA Twitter execs invited Steven Leckart and I to get a hands on with their newest product: a piece of hardware they've dubbed the Wingman. it's essentially a device that's dedicated to one thing: twittering. lbeit with some ...

VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: Hands On With the Twitter Wingman
Wired: Gadget Lab — Twitter has exploded in popularity like a monkey navigated rocket ship, but the question on everyone's mind is: how will the fledgling startup make money? A lot of theories have been bandies about: software solutions, premium accounts, advertising. Turns out all these hypothesis are wrong. Twitter is getting into hardware. About a week prior to CTIA Twitter execs invited Steven Leckart and I to get a hands on with their newest product: a piece of hardware they've dubbed the Wingman. it's essentially a device that's dedicated to one thing: twittering. lbeit with some ...

Guthman Instrument Competition showcase the excellent & experimental
MAKE Magazine — ... prize, but after viewing some of the competition, it's plain to see the judges had their work cut out for them. Eric Singer's GuitarBot, uses automated moving frets and plectrums to form a very capable and programmable electric string machine - Jan Perschy's SGSX-H 750 uses the gears of an engine much like Hammond organ's tone wheels, generating sound via a pickup for each gear - Hye Ki Min's ...

Nine Inch Nails Shows Every Other Band How to Make an Awesome iPhone App [IPhone Apps]
Gizmodo — ... It sounds a lot like the future of music in a box, if you ask me. The reason he was able to build this, and you don't see something like it coming from the mainstream industry, he says, is that "anyone who's an executive at a record label does not understand what the internet is, how it works, how people use it, how fans and consumers interact - no idea." ...

Somali Pirates Make Hijacking Videos [Listening Test]
Gizmodo — ... In contrast to their recent skirmish with the U.S. Navy, it appears from the video that a hijacking can be a semi-chill affair. Hostages are seen walking around unrestrained and the Somalis are even using the opportunity to kick out the jams. [Danger Room ...

Somali Pirates Make Hijacking Home Videos [Pirates]
Gizmodo — ... In contrast to their recent skirmish with the U.S. Navy, it appears from the video that a hijacking can be a semi-chill affair. Hostages are seen walking around unrestrained and the Somalis are even using the opportunity to kick out the jams. [Danger Room ...

Somali Pirates Make Hijacking Home Music Videos [Listening Test]
Gizmodo — ... In contrast to their recent skirmish with the U.S. Navy, it appears from the video that a hijacking can be a semi-chill affair. Hostages are seen walking around unrestrained and the Somalis are even using the opportunity to kick out the jams. [Danger Room ...

Somali Pirates Make Hijacking Music Videos [Listening Test]
Gizmodo — ... In contrast to their recent skirmish with the U.S. Navy, it appears from the video that a hijacking can be a semi-chill affair. Hostages are seen walking around unrestrained and the Somalis are even using the opportunity to kick out the jams. [Danger Room ...

J.J. Abrams to Bring Possibly the Coolest Issue of Wired Yet
GeekSugar — This next issue of Wired Magazine (which I read faithfully), brings together some of my favorite things inside its pages: puzzles, magic, and J.J. Abrams. Not only is J.J. Abrams responsible for some of the most geek-worthy shows on TV like Lost, Fringe, and Alias, but he produced soon-to-be Spring blockbuster Star ...

Push a Coin Through a Table [Tricks]
Lifehacker — [image] What's that you say? Magic tricks are for kids? They're also for people looking to win free beer and fame, so watch the following video carefully and you'll be collecting a free pint or two. If passing a mere coin through the table seems too elementary for your Copperfield-like skills, make sure to check out our previously posted tricks ...

Video: Virgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo in Action [Space]
Gizmodo — We all know the Virgin Galactic WhiteKnightTwo can actually fly. Now, Wired has an exclusive video of the plane in action, further squashing any skepticism of the plane. This video is from an April 20 test flight over the Mojave desert. According to Wired, the plane suffered a tail strike and some rudder control issues, but other than that, it was smooth sailing. Unsurprisingly, the pilots didn't really push the plane as far as spacefaring ...

Video: iRobot "Ember", a swarming battlefield robot
Boing Boing Gadgets — Like a tiny version of the Packbot, the Ember is a prototype battlefield robot that iRobot hopes will someday be nigh-on disposable. [via Danger Room ...

Profile of the lock-hacker who bumped the "unbumpable" Medeco lock
Boing Boing — Wired's Charles Graeber has an astounding piece up about master lockpicker Marc Weber Tobias, who challenged Medeco's claim that its locks are "bump-proof" (that is, that they can't be simply broken by filing down a key, inserting it, and tapping it, sending a shock down the metal that makes the pins jump). Medeco launched an aggressive campaing to market its products to people who were worried about bump keys, but Tobias shows that their locks aren't substantially harder to ...

Video: How Much Does A Remote-Controlled R2-D2 Cost? [Hint: $10,000]
Boing Boing Gadgets — At Maker Faire over the weekend, I tagged along with the video team at Wired.com. One of my favorite finds: the Bay Area R2 Builders' booth. These are the droids you're looking for...

Ultimate Lock Picker Cracks Medeco High Security Deadbolts In Minutes [Crime]
Gizmodo — The folks at Wired have taken a peek into the life of one Marc Weber Tobias—a man that obsessively pits himself against the toughest physical security systems that modern technology can muster. Unfortunately for manufacturers, Tobias hasn't found a lock that he can pick, crack, or bump. As you can see in the video, Tobias and another security expert by the name of Tobias Bluzmanis were able to take out several high-security Medeco3 locks without so ...

BBQ Tip: Try An Infrared BBQ & Talking Thermometer
Boing Boing Gadgets — To celebrate 4th of July, I dropped by Wired to play with the Solaire Anywhere Portable Grill and Oregon Scientific's Wireless Talking BBQ Thermometer. Note: Sorry for the pre-roll ad.

For Tender Feet, Shoes Simulate Barefoot Running Safely
Medgadget — ... naturally on the outside edge. Now a new product has been designed for those that would prefer to run barefoot, but fear injury from things like broken glass on the ground. The FiveFingers from Vibram (Concord, MA) is a stripped down version of a shoe, incorporating a narrow sole featuring individual toe pockets, and minimal top fabric to hold the foot in place. Here's a Wired review of the Vibram FiveFingers: ...

Somali Pirate talks about how to negotiate ransom, when to kill captives.
Boing Boing — WIRED contributing editor Scott Carney interviewed a Somali pirate for his story in Wired about pirate economics, and Wired.com is running an excerpt of that interview. What was your job before you start this one or what forced you to become a pirate? Every government in the world is off our coasts. What is left for us? Nine years ago everyone in this town was stable and earn[ed] enough income from fishing. Now there is nothing. ...

Behind the Scenes of District 9 [Clips]
Gizmodo — ... Director Neill Blomkamp shares his thoughts on his casual presentation of special effects while WETA Workshop ...

Kodak Zi8: "much to love, little to gripe about"
Boing Boing Gadgets — ... drives from other ports on your computer... We shot side-by-side with Kodak's earlier iteration, the Zi6, in a variety of environments (indoors, the beach). In stark sunlight, natural low-light and indoors, the image quality of the Zi8 was consistently superior. Colors are richer and contrast is deep. The lens angle is also a tad wider. The sensor adjusts from dark to light much quicker and image stabilization is noticeably better. ...

Best Science visualization videos of 2009
MAKE Magazine — Lovely videos @ Wired Science... Some of the most impressive images in science are produced when researchers take numerical data and represent it visually through modeling and computer graphics. The Department of Energy honored 10 of this year’s best scientific visualizations with its annual SciDAC Vis Night awards, at the Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing conference (SciDAC) in June. Researchers submitted visualizations to the contest, ...

My Three Favorite Science Visualization Videos of 2009—So Far [Video Cache]
Gizmodo — Wired Science has picked the best science visualization videos of 2009. And from there, I've picked my three favorite ones. Note to self: Don't go to Los Angeles or anywhere near the San Andreas fault. Here's a simulation of the Big One, a 7.8 earthquake on Southern California. It starts south of Palm Springs and ends obliterating Los Angeles, Ventura, and Santa Barbara. 12 terabytes of simulation data was used in this. ...

How to Replicate Wired's Pimped-Out Kegerator [Beer]
Gizmodo — ... http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/09/beerrobot/ ...

How to Replicate Wired's Kegerator [Beer]
Gizmodo — ... http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/09/beerrobot/ ...

Fold a World-Record-Setting Paper Airplane [Fun]
Lifehacker — [image] A few years back we pointed you toward the world's "best" paper airplane , and while we couldn't entirely back up the "best" claim, this Sky King paper airplane is a legitimate world-record holder. This video shows us how to make it ourselves. Wired's video demonstrates the build from start to finish, but if you'd prefer a more barebones schematic, head over to the Wired page for a nice step-by-step in images. It doesn't look all that impressive when Wired put the plane into flight, but it looks more like a matter of an unbalanced build than a flaw with the design. If you give it a try, let's hear if you fared better in the comments.

Convert a Fridge to a Kegerator [Alcohol]
Lifehacker — Want deliciously chilled beer from your very own home kegerator? Don't spend $500+ buying a commercial model. Build your own with CO2 and a small fridge. A kegerator, whether commercial or DIY, is a simple device. You need a chamber to keep things cold, some hoses to push CO2 into the keg and beer out of the keg to the tap, and that's about it. Over Wired they decided to have some good ol' DIY office fun by converting a free fridge they scored on Craiglist into a kegerator. They used a few hand and power tools, a kit from BeverageFactory that ran them $192, and of course the free fridge. You can find more economical kits on the BeverageFactory ...

Smoke and Laser to help create a new kind of microphone
Newlaunches.com — Currently microphones use a series of vibrating membranes and magnets, capacitors, or other electrical components to detect the nuances of sound. David Schwartz is the inventor of a new kind of microphone that uses smoke and lasers to detect sound. His prototype uses a laser, smoke-filled air, and a super-sensitive photocell to pick up the sonic vibrations in the air and translate them into audio signals. This microphone although far from its desired level of sensitivity is just a small step says the inventor. Take a look at the video to judge for your self. Via [ Cnet ...