Built by Boston Dynamics, the BigDog robot is a four legged robotic mule which can carry up to 340 pounds on its back over almost any terrain. As you’ll see in the following video, this DARPA-funded device can withstand a good kick on the side and walk over ice while keeping its balance. Before hitting the play button, you might want to lower your speaker’s volume a bit; the robot’s engine could be qualified as… noisy, if not to say downright annoying.
You’re an internet addict. Yes, you.
By Ilya Kochanov
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
According to some doctors with big weird eyebrows and some kind of doctorate, excessive internet usage might soon be classified as an actual mental disease.
Never mind the fact that people, such as myself, earn money by going online. Or that corporations, banks, and schools rely heavily on the internet for virtually every aspect of their business. Withdrawal is listed as one of the characteristics of an addiction and it just so happens that you might start freaking out if you’re waiting for an email from a potential employer, and urgently need to get to a computer.
John MacDonald, an addiction therapist in Toronto says that a person is classified as an “internet addict” when being away from their computer is “emotionally upsetting”. I don’t know about you but if I couldn’t go online to check urgent email, check my bank account, and stay in touch with friends, I’d be very pissed.
I am just going to go ahead and say that frankly, this is incredibly stupid. Forget the irony of the fact that these doctors will most likely post their findings online, and forget that most of our sensitive affairs are handled via the interwebz. I will say this though: content of questionable appropriateness is quite addictive.
Hit the link for the full story.
Gamer’s Tools Review: Logitech G15 Keyboard and G9 Mouse
Peripherals are a gamer’s best friend. They’re the tools of his trade. You might even say that they are like a Jedi’s light saber, or King Arthur’s Excalibur. Maybe even a pizza delivery guy’s car.
Without these tools, we wouldn’t be able to control the machines which we invest thousands of dollars in. If you’ve got a few grand under your desk, spending a little more on some badass peripherals is perfectly justifiable.
Today, I’m going to take a look at the best gaming keyboard and mouse currently on the market; the G15 keyboard, and G9 mouse. Logitech was kind enough to send me these two slick products so that I can put them through their paces, and show you guys what I really loved.
NET-2000 allows you to catch criminals just like Spiderman! (Video)
The NET-2000 shooting net rod is a device that uses compressed air to fire a 52 square foot net at fleeing crooks from up to 49 feet away. If you’re a Spiderman fan and have always wished to become a super hero, this is the chance you’ve been waiting for to impersonate our web-launching friend.
The NET-2000 is available at Chinagrabber for only $419, but before buying one, check with your local police department to see if carrying this kind of device around is legal!
New Apple ad claims that iPhone is the ultimate remote blogging tool
According to Apple’s newest iPhone ad, the iPhone “makes remote blogging easier and faster”. Do you agree?
Edit: Long time reader Ed answered our question via a post on his blog. I invite you all to check it out and leave a comment if you agree with him or not.
Expensive Wii is still just a Wii
We here at GeeksAreSexy aren’t really into bedazzled electronics like those Lindsay Lohan types. In fact, we pretty much despise anything pink, sparkly, or alive. This Wii is pretty cool though.
It was originally awarded to winners of Nintendo’s Super Smash Brothers Brawl tournament and was created by Crystal Icing. It will run you about $4,000 but might never be available for sale due to the unique nature of its design. Surely if you really do want one of these, a quick email and some credit card information later, your friends will be laughing at you.
Or you can man up, buy a Wii and an airbrush, then get to work. Of course you can always just play games on it and stuff.
The Brawl to End Them All… [via Kotaku]
Tags: bedazzle, super smash brothers, swarovski, wii
Armari’s eXtreme Concept Prototype might almost run Crysis
Every now and again some obscure computer manufacturer releases a feat of hardware engineering so awesome, that it can only be purchased for about the same price as a down payment on your new house.
The XCP is packed with twin quad-core CPU’s running at 3.2GHz and is capable of utilizing up to four graphics cards. No details yet regarding the hard drive space or RAM situation, however, a cool $20,000 tag says it will probably be sufficient for your needs. It’s all stuffed into a case designed solely for the purpose of cooling the components with liquid nitrogen and just happens to look like something out of Galactica.
It doesn’t seem as if the price is justified though considering you can probably build the same thing sans nitrogen for a few thousand if not less. Nitrogen cooling isn’t exactly new to the world of computing as overclockers and PC enthusiasts have been doing it for years. Granted, their systems are probably far more dangerous. It’s pretty cool if you think about it though, considering the short list of people who can proudly say that they own a computer cooled by an unstable chemical substance. Water-cooling eat your heart out.
Hit the link for a few more pictures and a nice description of the story behind this monster.
Armari’s super computer-in-a-box seeks to reinvigorate industry
Make perfect prints of Wikipedia articles with Lexisum
By Mark O’Neill
Wikipedia has always been my number one reference source (where else can you find out everything you need to know about Eric Cartman?) but it is an absolute bitch when it comes to printing off articles. First you have to find a way to remove all the images (up to now I have been using the Firefox extension Aardvark which works reasonably well) plus you have all the links messing the text up. Not exactly the nicest way to print off articles and pass them off as your own work at college (OK, THAT was a joke before anyone starts ganging up on me in the comments!).
This is where Lexisum enters the picture. By entering your search term on the site, the relevant Wikipedia page can be brought up and you can specify your print style. You can preview what it will look like and if you like what you see, you can then hit the print button. It will then spit out a nicely printed version of the page – minus images and minus links.
To give you an idea of what it is like, here is the Lexisum version of the first paragraph of the Nicholas II Wikipedia page :
The Incredible Hulk is coming back to the big screen
By Mark O’Neill
“Don’t make me angry….you won’t like me when I’m angry”
Those words sum up my childhood in a flash. When I wasn’t watching Knight Rider, I was watching David Banner go all green in the Incredible Hulk, smashing things up and making reporter Jack McGee wet himself. So when Ang Lee brought the Hulk to the big screen in 2003, I was immensely disappointed at how bad it was.
But good news is in store for Hulk fans. A re-make is coming out this year starring Edward Norton as David Banner and Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, Banner’s girlfriend and scientific colleague.
As you will see in the following trailer, it looks MUCH better than the pile of trash starring Eric Bana.
Britain develops a security camera that can see through clothes
By Mark O’Neill
Notch another one up to the Brits. In true “Total Recall” style, a security camera has been developed which can “detect weapons, drugs, liquids, and explosives hidden under people’s clothing from up to 80 feet away”.
“ThruVision, in collaboration with the European Space Agency, created the T5000 camera which uses passive imaging technology to identify objects through their emission of natural electromagnetic rays. Apparently, people and objects emit low levels of electromagnetic radiation that can pass through walls and clothing, and the T5000 camera can distinguish the different types of T-ray waves without exposing a person to harmful radiation associated with X-ray screening. ”
But kinky voyeurs shouldn’t go rushing to the airport to apply for security jobs. If and when these machines ever go online, they are designed to NOT show anatomical parts of the body. Damn. The US military is also apparently testing the technology.