Few things are more frustrating than having to find a gift for that person who has everything. But finally a gift has hit the market that nobody has, nobody needs but everyone wants — a working lightsaber!
Wicked Lasers has released an affordable device — known as the Artic — that would frighten even Darth Vader.
The limited edition gadget — that sells for less than $200 – emits a 445nm cool blue, ultra high power 1W beam, which appears up to 4000 percent brighter than the Sonar’s 405nm violet beam, the developers state on their website.
But make no mistake, this is no toy. The Artic touts “the most burning capabilities of any portable laser in existence. That’s why it’s also the most dangerous laser ever created.”
The device, which also comes with a list of requirements a potential purchaser must meet prior to completing the transaction, comes with the following warning that should be taken seriously:
Warning: Extremely dangerous is an understatement to 1W of laser power. At close range, this Class 4 beam will cause immediate and irreversable retinal damage. Use with extreme caution and use only when wearing proper safety goggles with an O.D. of 3+ is required and 4.4+ for longer exposures. Customers will be required to completely read and agree to our Class 4 Laser Hazard Acknowledgment Form.
Tech Talk reminds you that this device should be treated with respect and extreme caution and not treated as a toy. Purchaser discretion is advised.
While many people worked Friday afternoon, space history was made.
The Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, known simply as SpaceX, launched a privately-developed 180-foot, 735,000-pound Falcon 9 rocket from the Cape Canaveral Air Force station in Eastern Florida.
The rocket may one day carry cargo and astronauts to space.
The nine first-stage engines ignited at 2:45 p.m., and after burning for three minutes, the first stage dropped off into the Atlantic Ocean while the second-stage engine burned for about six minutes to propel a capsule 155-miles into orbit, the New York Times reported.
Check out the take-off:
NASA praised SpaceX’s efforts.
“Congratulations to SpaceX on today’s launch of its Falcon 9 launch vehicle,” NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said in a statement. “SpaceX’s accomplishment is an important milestone in the commercial transportation effort and puts the company a step closer to providing cargo services to the International Space Station.”
The launch comes after some delays.
The successful mission will likely help President Barack Obama push his proposal to turn over the launching of astronauts into space to private industry. The debate over the future of NASA’s human space program will likely continue through the summer as the White House works with Congress toward a compromise.
Elon Musk, SpaceX’s founder, told reporters that exciting, innovative times are ahead.
“This is the dawn of a new era in space exploration,” the Associated Press quoted Musk as saying. “I think a very exciting era and one which I think will lead to the democratization of space, making space accessible to everyone eventually … Yeah, I think this is really a historic moment.”
SpaceX plans to launch a second Falcon 9 in the coming months, according to the Times. The launch will be an effort to show the space agency its abilities to transport cargo and supplies to the International Space Station.
SpaceX will attempt to use use the Falcon 9 to compete against United Launch Alliance — a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed-Martin, according to Wired. The company was awarded $3.5 billion in contracts by the American space agency to deliver cargo to the International Space Station through 2016, the technology publication reported. Other companies are also vying to secure a government contract to transport people and supplies to the ISS and elsewhere in space.
Flights carrying cargo to the ISS are scheduled to begin in 2011, the Times reported. SpaceX has has indicated that it could build a version capable of transporting people within three years of getting a contract.
“This launch of the Falcon 9 gives us even more confidence that a resupply vehicle will be available after the space shuttle fleet is retired,” Bolden said.
Informational graphics are often more effective than words — and sometimes reveals some interesting secrets.
A just-published Mashable graphic effectively highlights Facebook’s primary demographics consist, and illustrates how the social network may be a greater melting pot in the United States than the country itself.
Of the estimated 309,003,000 folks currently in the United States, 116,010,760 souls are currently on Facebook, the graphic reports.
While Facebook tends to follow the racial breakdown of America somewhat, the social network is more diverse than the United States – particularly in terms of the greater representation of Asians and Latinos.
Among the places where Facebook is most popular:
District of Columbia
New England
The Midwest
The West Coast
Far fewer people use the service in the South, with the exception of Georgia.
Not surprisingly, there tends to be a greater presence of 18- to-34-year-olds on Facebook than in America – and seemingly almost no seniors.
But enough from me, I’ll let the graphic do the rest of the talking. If you would like to see it at its full size, please click it.
If you’re like me, you likely have some chocolate lying around your home or office — and chances are you get criticized for eating so much sugar.
Well, now you can honesty tell your naysayers that you’ve got the nuggets of heaven, as I sometimes call them, on hand (at least partially) for the benefit of mankind and the pursuit of truth.
Your chocolate, Wired.com reports, can be used to measure the speed of light. Really.
In just a handful of easy simple steps, you can morph your chocolate into the perfect ice cream topping — and a really cool science experiment.
So what are you waiting for? Check it out. You know you want to.
Facebook released a fascinating snapshot of its users Monday afternoon.
In its most recent company blog post, Lars Backstrom offered a perspective of the world as perceived through the words of the social network’s users in status messages over the past year.
Among the top status trends in 2009 on Facebook in order, according to the blog:
Facebook Applications
Specific words: Farmville, Farm Town, Social Living
FML (or F*** My Life)
Specific words: FML
Swine Flu
Specific words: Flu, Swine Flu, H1N1
Celebrity Deaths
Specific words: Michael Jackson, Patrick Swayze, Billy Mays
Family
Specific words: Family, Mom, Dad, Son, Daughter, Kids
Movies
Specific words: New Moon, Transformers, Star Trek, The Hangover, Paranormal Activity, Harry Potter
Sports
Specific words: Steelers, Yankees
Health Care
Specific words: Health Care, No one should have to…
FB
Specific words: FB, FB Friends, News Feed
Twitter
Specific words: Twitter, RT
Years
Specific words: 2008, 2009, 2010
Lady Gaga
Specific words: Gaga, Poker Face
Yard
Specific words: Yard
Religion
Specific words: Easter, Lord, God
I
Specific words: I, is
The data provides some insight into the social network’s users. Among the most striking aspects to me:
How prominent applications have become in users’ experiences on Facebook. I could attest to how many notifications I receive daily sparked by applications; some days, I am sorry to admit I have nearly as many from applications as I do friends.
How honest, or perhaps frank, users are about their lives.
NOTE: According to the blog posting, this term was used the least over the summer and the most on Mondays and Tuesdays. On a note, it was posted that it was used more commonly on Tuesdays. This to me, seems to be an indicative of young people continuing to utilize the social network to communicate among peers. I wouldn’t expect folks using the network for professional means to use the term “FML,” which is generally used to discuss a negative element of one’s day or existence.
It makes sense that people discussed the swine flu, as it was one of the most prominently reported stories of the year. It also makes sense as the target demographic is young people. However, according to the post, the use of the word was used the least on Sundays. There is no indication as to the reason.
The only surprising thing about celebrities making the list is how relatively low it is. I would have guessed it would have been higher than swine flu. According the post, Patrick Swayze’s death was almost as discussed as Michael Jackson’s. I would think this is the data’s first indication of an older audience.
According to the data, “New Moon” was the most discussed movie. Personally, I thought it wasn’t very good. I am also surprised that movie chatter didn’t fare higher on this list.
Facebook users discussed the Yankees and Steelers more than any other teams, according to the data presented on the blog. It makes sense as the Pittsburgh team won the Super Bowl and the Yankees won yet another World Series championship.
Health Care: An interesting trend. While this issue has consistently been in the news since President Barack Obama’s inauguration in January, it surprised me it made this list. I would think the social network’s older demographic would have propelled it into such a trending topic. According to the data, millions of people posted “No one should die because they cannot afford health care, and no one should go broke because they get sick. If you agree, please post this as your status for the rest of the day.” Apparently viral marketing works. Beyond that, health care mentions are up 10 times since a year ago, according to the data.
It didn’t surprise me that people discussed Facebook or Twitter on Facebook. Social networkers tend to be opinionated. As for Twitter, many people tie their Twitter accounts with their Facebook equivalent.
Frankly, I was shocked to see Lady Gaga in the top mix. I knew she was huge, but had no idea she was this big. This is clearly a mark of the younger demographic.
Yard took me and Facebook by complete surprise. According to the data, it appears that the newer, older demographic have been updating their friends on the yard work they have been doing.
The mention of religion, according to the data, was up 30 percent over last year. I would think this is yet another indication of newer, older users who tend to be more in line with God and religion. It has been my experience that fewer of my teenage and high school friends mention the church or synagogue as often as my older friends do.
According to Facebook, there were almost 100 million words a day posted in status updates at the beginning of the year. That is up by a factor of four in the past year. No one could dispute that Facebook has become an integral part of our society. And as such, Facebook offers a unique perspective of what the pulse of our nation, and indeed world, truly is. While it is far (read: far, far, far, far, far) from perfect, it is one of the best we have. And as more people sign on to Facebook from more diverse demographics, the more accurate that pulse will become.
The prospect of a 6-year-old floating away to his potential doom captivated cable and Internet news consumers for hours on Thursday. However, when it was determined the boy was hiding in a box in his home rather than a UFO-shaped balloon, questions began to emerge.
Throughout the live coverage of the event, numerous experts speculated about numerous things, such as the direction the balloon might be headed, what altitude it could potentially reach and how long a child could survive in such a craft.
However, one thing I did not hear a peep about was the shape of the balloon.
There is a fascinating article on Wired.com about how experts might have easily deduced from the onset of the story that the balloon was likely not carrying a child.
Check out the complete article, complete with videos, images and calculations, here.
To see screen grabs from around their launch dates, please click here.
EDITOR’S NOTE: I apologize my absense over the last month. This blog is essentially being relaunched as a lighter entity with an increased number of interesting and off-beat updates. I hope you enjoy it.
One of the principle problems with technology is the amount of information available. With an endless stream of stories and data flowing across the Web, information is easily buried.
As a result, folks have come to categorize their information – through very niche RSS feeds, news sources and blogs — and only pay attention to what they know already interests them.
However, this could lead to the downfall of America.
As newspapers collapse across the country and fewer people read the ones that remain, information slips through the cracks.
One of the best things about newspapers is the sheer magnitude of information contained within a relatively low number of pages. Stories that one could have easily missed are easily found when reading the newspaper.
A parallel example is how many people get their fix of entertainment today.
Instead of listening to the radio, as past generations have, an increasing number of folks are listening to niche stations on satellite or Internet radio or to mp3 players where they only hear music that they want. So much for discovering new tunes.
The same is true concerning television on the Web. Folks miss commercials advertising other programs. So much for expanding our horizons.
By tuning into the same beats, shows and news feeds, an alarmingly high percentage of our society is avoiding anything that makes them think — let alone challenge preconceived notions, beliefs or concepts.
While the influx of information available to all of us is a wonderful thing, it is more important than ever to develop a well-balanced perspective on the world around us — something newspapers do — or our democracy could collapse. Remember, a strong press is necessary to have a strong democracy. Citizens need to understand what is happening around them in government to make wise choices and select the best people to represent their particular interests.
RT @HuffingtonPost TV news anchor recovering after dog bite on face during live segment http://t.co/JkwaUAmF#17 hours ago
Definitely subway. RT @taymonte At 2pm on a Friday in NY, is it faster to take a cab or a train from downtown to get to Grand Central? #help#17 hours ago
RT @Poynter: Now that's leadership: @arusbridger cuts his own pay 10% for The Guardian's benefit, http://t.co/3tfw1E15#18 hours ago
Waze to allow users to report traffic conditions with a wave of a hand - http://t.co/5m1uW4kd#2012/02/09
One of the principle problems with technology is the amount of information available. With an endless stream of stories and data flowing across the Web, information is easily buried.
