Why Kylo Ren Wears High Waisted Pants in The Last Jedi

His pants come up to exactly the point where he is shot in episode 7 (which is high for modern pants and does make him look like a dope).

A freeze frame for reference. He punched at the wound several times during his first lightsaber fight with Rey.

It has been established that Chewbacca’s bowcaster does tremendous amounts of damage (it knocks Stormtroopers head over heels). It’s very possible that Kylo had to have part of his torso replaced with prosthetics in-between episode 7 and 8.

Or maybe these are just space pants. I guess we won’t know until episode 9 comes out!

[Source: pandawaffle on Imgur]

Cryptocurrencies Causing GPU Price Hikes

Cryptocurrency mining is driving graphic card prices so high that both manufacturers and retailers are looking at ways to make sure gamers can still get them.

Polygon’s Samit Sarkar notes that originally the problem was only affecting top-end cards, for example the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 now going for almost double its listed retail price. However those are still selling out, leaving less powerful models also getting more expensive.

It’s caused by cryptocurrency mining which, in simplified terms, involves computers racing to verify and record transactions in the currency, with the “winner” being rewarded with further units of the currency. That creates a financial incentive to build powerful computers specifically for such mining, with high-end graphics cards a key tool. That incentive has only grown as the real-world values of some cryptocurrencies has rocketed (albeit with some spectacular volatility.)

Nvidia has publicly stated that “gamers come first” and is said to have contacted retailers to urge them to find ways to make sure people can buy and use graphic cards for their intended purpose.

Meanwhile retailer MicroCenter has increased prices for online buyers who are just getting a graphics card. However, it says in-store shoppers can get a discount (with manager approval) if they are buying the card alongside other components that suggest they are building a maching for gaming rather than mining.

Unconfirmed reports say the discounts can even be available when buying a GPU on its own, simply by telling staff it will be used for gaming. That seems to be a case-by-case basis rather than a blanket policy though.



This “Fully-Operational” Steampunk Dalek Will Exterminate your Bank Account

From Australian artist Vince Austin:

I created this Steam punk Dalek over a period of six months it is fully operational and can be driven. It has voice modulation from which an internal ‘pilot’ can communicate with the outside. It is driven via cameras connected to internal display screens. It runs on a 24 V system and can travel between five and 6 km/h.
This work is truly unique. I’d love to make the mk11…… better, faster, slicker…..

Looks amazing, right? But can you afford it?

[Fully-operational Steampunk Dalek]

Transformers Band “The Cybertronic Spree” Hack Time in “True Survivor” Kung Fury Parody

Just received this from the awesome folks from “The Cybertronic Spree,” and you guy absolutely have to check it out.

The Cybertronic Spree, a rock band of robots from Cybertron, bring you an exciting new music video that takes no prisoners and pulls no punches. ‘True Survivor,’ a heavy-rock cover of the David Hasselhoff hit single and video, pays homage to one of the greatest cult classics of all time, Kung Fury.

[The Cybertronic Spree]

Government Considers Nationalized 5G Network

White House officials are said to be considering having the US government build a 5G network within three years to make it harder for China to intercept US communications. Reports suggest the idea is still in preliminary discussion so wouldn’t be approved any time soon.

The claims come from Axios.com, which says it has a leaked memo and PowerPoint presentation produced by “a senior National Security Council official.” (That’s no guarantee that the ideas are being taken seriously of course.)

Both documents address the point that 5G will require new networks to be built and discuss several options including:

  • leaving it to existing cellphone carriers to build competing networks;
  • having the US government build a network and lease access (though this would only use some frequencies, with others left for the market); or
  • encouraging/forcing the carriers to work together on a single network.

According to the documents, the first option simply isn’t viable as it wouldn’t offer enough central control to make it possible to protect networks against attacks from other countries.

The second option is likened by the documents to government building a new road network. However, it certainly wouldn’t match the political positioning of the existing White House administration to say the least. Meanwhile the Federal Communications Commission has already poured scorn on the idea.

That might leave the third option as the most viable if officials do decide the security issue does justify such intervention in the market. The immediate problem – leaving aside the politics of if it should happen – is the timescale. Axios says there’ll be a debate of six to eight months before officials make any decision, but several carriers are already working on networks and plan to launch services long before the three year timetable discussed in the documents.