Mythbusters
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Adam Savage turned Spot the robodog into a creepy rickshaw driver
Boston Dynamics has long touted robotic dog Spot's ability to help out in disaster situations and to take on jobs too hazardous for humans, but what practical applications does it have for the average Joe? Beyond scuttling around your house like a Lovecraftian nightmare, that is. Well, as ex-Mythbusters host Adam Savage has recently unveiled, it's pretty good at pulling a rickshaw.
Adam Savage returns to Discovery Channel with 'Mythbusters Jr.'
The original Mythbusters may have gone off air after its 14th season in 2016, but the science-based show hasn't lost any influence since then. A reboot came to the Science channel last November, with new hosts taking on the DIY-ethos and wow factor of the source show. Now, co-creator and original co-host Adam Savage is setting his sights on a younger generation with a new spin-off titled Mythbusters Jr.
'Mythbusters' reboot comes to Science Channel on November 15th
What do you do when your highly-successful reality show goes out with a bang? If you're Discovery-owned Science Channel, you quickly reboot it and find new hosts to replace the iconic ones. If you're a fan of the original and willing to give the new guys a chance to prove themselves to be as awesome as Adam and Jamie are, then your'e in luck. The new version of Mythbusters, a much-loved show that reveled in DIY gadgetry and science, is set to air its first of 14 episodes on November 15th.
'MythBusters' revival gets its new hosts
The original MythBusters show ended with a bang, but Discovery was quick to plan a reboot and launch a reality show competition (Science Channel's MythBusters: The Search) to find replacements for lead presenters Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman. And at last, the network has its winners: meet Jonathan Lung and Brian Louden, the new MythBusters' hosts. They're not your typical show leads (Lung is a product designer by trade, Louden is a pilot and rescue diver), but then this isn't your typical show. On top of being personable, they had to demonstrate a knack for building machines to test commonly held beliefs.
Netflix's 'White Rabbit Project' looks like 'Mythbusters 2.0'
White Rabbit Project isn't an official continuation of the Mythbusters franchise, but it's pretty darn close. The show stars former Mythbusters members Kari Byron, Tory Belleci and Grant Imahara, and it's set to premiere on Netflix on December 9th. This time around, Byron, Belleci and Imahara aren't just investigating strange scientific phenomena or seemingly impossible movie scenes; they're ranking history's weirdest inventions, heists and happenings, and seeing how science makes them possible.
Netflix orders a series from 'Mythbusters' veterans
Still missing Mythbusters? It's not about to come back any time soon, but you might get the next best thing. Netflix (which has a habit of resurrecting fan favorite shows) has greenlit White Rabbit Project, a series from Mythbusters Build Team veterans Kari Byron, Grant Imahara and Tory Belleci. The premise is right up their alley. They'll investigate strange topics (such as exotic World War II weapons or seemingly impossible jailbreaks) and use science to determine the truth. You won't have to wait long to see how well the concept works, either -- Netflix premieres White Rabbit Project on December 9th, so you won't have to put up with the year-long waits that come with other streaming releases.
What's on your HDTV: 4K Blu-ray, 'Creed,' 'Zelda' and 'Mythbusters'
Somehow, season four of House of Cards arriving this week doesn't feel like that big of a deal. Beyond Netflix's flagship series, we're looking forward to a number of big releases, including the first big slew of Ultra HD Blu-ray discs. Some of the better movies of the 4K and HDR-mastered bunch include multiple Oscar-winner Mad Max: Fury Road and Sicario. Unfortunately, for other Academy Award-caliber flicks like Creed, The Room and The Danish Girl, 1080p will have to do (for now). This is also the final week for Discovery's Mythbusters, which airs its series finale Saturday night. Last but not least, Nintendo is dropping a remastered version of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess in HD on the Wii U Friday. Look after the break to check out each day's highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).
'Mythbusters' plans to 'go out with a bang' in 2016
Mythbusters will go off the air at the end of its 14th season in 2016, Entertainment Weekly reports. Mythbusters is Discovery's quirky, science-centric show starring special-effects and physics superstars Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman. Each episode tackles a few weird science myths and laws, such as curving a bullet, whether a bullet dropped hits the ground at the same time as a bullet fired, the phrase "you can't polish a turd," if a stick of dynamite can clean the inside of a cement truck, and all manner of other (usually explosive) legends. They even filmed a few episodes in 360-degree VR. Hyneman and Savage were able to plan a special goodbye episode, which Savage describes as follows: "Our finale will go out with a bang, as everyone would expect." [Image credit: DCL]
ICYMI: User-generated Golf ads, motocross bionics and machine gun traps
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-704892{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-704892, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-704892{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-704892").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Today on In Case You Missed It, Volkswagen releases a new commercial for its Golf R that changes depending on what sound effects the viewer makes. We also take a look at a bionic knee from "Monster" Mike Schultz designed for Moto-crossing lower-leg amputees. The Mythbusters find out if Walter White's machine gun trap could actually work (hint: omfg, does it ever) and a Parakeet learns to speak droid because Star Wars just won't go away. If you come across any interesting videos, we'd love to see them. Just tweet us with the #ICYMI hashtag @engadget or @mskerryd. And if you just want to heap praise on your handsome guest host, feel free to hit him up @mr_trout.
Discovery is filming virtual reality 'Mythbusters' and other shows
The Mythbusters team is already shooting in virtual reality for the next season, Discovery told AdWeek. We're not exactly sure what that means at the moment -- they could be filming Jamie and Adam in VR format using stereoscopic cameras, but the company might also be talking about downloadable tie-in content. Either way, we're sure we're not the only ones excited at the prospect of going "inside the show," seeing explosions and mythbusting in an immersive virtual environment. It's not just Mythbusters that's getting the VR treatment, though: the company's online arm has launched a whole new division called Discovery Virtual. It's now working on several other VR programs in addition to Mythbusters, but you'd likely have to have access to an Oculus Rift or another similar headset to be able to enjoy any of them.
Mythbusters meet their Doom on January 31
After more than a decade of debunking myths in reality, the Mythbusters are taking aim at the virtual world, specifically id Software's seminal first-person shooter Doom. The January 31 episode of the hit Discovery Channel series will feature Jamie and Adam examining the game alongside id Software creative director Tim Willits. While it's not feasible to properly test the game's premise by dropping the hosts into a Martian portal to hell, the show still plans to determine whether or not a person could simultaneously tote all the weapons, ammo, armor and gas-powered lawn care implements seen in the game. Additionally, with Willits' assistance and the significant special effects experience of the Mythbusters team, the show will feature a real-world replica of a level from the hit shooter. You can find more details on Mythbusters at the series' website, and you can find this upcoming Doom-themed episode by tuning into the Discovery Channel on January 31 at 9PM (8PM for those in the Central Time Zone). [Image: Bethesda]
'MythBusters' tackles 'Doom' and the lore of first-person shooters
Have you ever wondered if a regular human could carry the health packs, guns, chainsaw and all the other stuff from Doom? Well, it looks like we're about to find out. The disproving duo of Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman tackle scenarios from that title this weekend (January 31st at 9 PM ET) on a special video games episode of MythBusters. With the help of id Software creative director Tim Willits, the team recreated a level of Doom to see what's what when it comes to human strength in first-person shooters. If you're familiar with the show, you know that a couple of myths are typically addressed in a single episode, so perhaps we'll get a Call of Duty or Gears of War segment, too. For now, a trailer for Saturday's installment resides after the break.
Mythbusters takes on Gorilla Glass in Corning-Supported infomercials
MythBusters Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman explore the technology of glass with a focus on Corning's revolutionary Gorilla Glass technology. In a multi-part video series, "The Glass Age", published on YouTube, the pair discuss the use of glass through out history and examine the compressive strength technology pioneered by Gorilla Glass. The videos were published by Corning, so they are favorable to the company's glass technology. This bias, however, does not taint the history lesson or the technology overview presented in the videos. [Via The Loop and Stu Mark]
Barely Related: Mythbusters break up, Spider-Woman cover
Home again, home again – and then off to PAX Prime next week. Welcome to Barely Related, a conversational Friday column that presents the non-gaming news stories that we, the Joystiq staff, have been talking about over the past week. And no, we're not stopping our focus on industry and gaming news. Think of this as your casual weekly recap of interesting (and mostly geeky) news, presented just in time to fill your brain with things to discuss at all of those weekend shindigs. Grab a fresh drink, lean back in your armchair, and get ready to talk nerdy with us.
Engadget Daily: Google's 3D-mapping tablet, Cuphead's hand-drawn world and more!
Today, we take an in-depth look at Google's 3D-mapping tablet, virtually tour Adam Savage's man cave, explore the hand-drawn world of Cuphead and learn about a potential new purpose for plain copper wire. Read on for Engadget's news highlights from the last 24 hours.
Tour Mythbuster Adam Savage's collection of collections with Street View
When Adam Savage isn't busy blowing stuff up while filming Mythbusters, he's often found tinkering about in his San Francisco workshop. It's in this "cave" that Savage films his popular YouTube series for Tested, but it's also home to an incredible number of gadgets and sci-fi memorabilia that his Mythbuster cash has funded over the years. Fortunately, this treasure-filled studio is now open for virtual tours, courtesy of Google's indoor Street View cameras, letting you go behind-the-scenes and see for yourself where all the magic happens. If you prefer something more personal, Savage has also conducted a video tour of his man-cave, which we've included below.
Mythbuster Adam Savage explains how to bring cartoons to the real world with an iPhone
Last month, you might remember seeing the work of storyboard artist Marty Cooper (aka Hombre McSteez). If you didn't (then go watch it right now), he's the man behind "Aug(De)mented Reality," a three minute collection of entertaining stop-motion cartoons that have been brought into the real world. He does so using only transparent plastic cells, a sharpie, Wite Out, then capturing it all on his iPhone 5s. If it left you wondering what iPhone app Cooper uses (StopMotion Recorder) or how he manages to match each frame with the scene, then you're in luck, as he's taken the time to show none other than Mythbusters legend Adam Savage the tricks of the trade. In the video below, Cooper unleashes one of his creations inside the workshop, giving you a taste of how to bring your own imaginary monsters to life without any special effects.
Call of Duty: Ghostbusters tests ricochet kills, antisocial dogs, more
With every new Call of Duty release, the internet spawns dozens of myths about things found in the game that may or may not actually exist. Helpfully, the Call of Duty: Ghostbusters are here to help. The clip you see above owes a heavy debt to the Discovery Channel's Mythbusters. The premise here is the same: Present demonstrators with a seemingly implausible in-game situation, test said situation, then report on the findings. As a result of this rigorous testing - which, granted, could have been faked for unknown reasons - we now know a number of new things. For instance, guard dogs will attack one another if there are no heavily-armed people nearby to maul. Even better, though, is a sequence at the 2:00 mark, where our demonstrators test the idea that a sniper could kill a person by bouncing a shot off of one of the game's riot shields. Conceptually, that's as awesome as it is silly, but as the video demonstrates, it totally works. This clip is the first episode of Call of Duty: Ghostbusters, so expect more such efforts until the community grows tired of having their fanciful notions crushed by cold, hard facts.
Grand Theft Auto 5 'Mythbusters' blow the police away
Can I stab a shark in Grand Theft Auto 5? How do I survive a free-fall with no parachute? Can I hide from the cops in some bushes? What's the most hilarious way to take out a police chopper? Look no further for the answers to these and more in this "Mythbusters" episode.
Halo 4 gameplay myths confirmed and busted
The tactical advantages to stacking a mech on top of a Banshee are too great to ignore in this latest episode of Defend the House's video game Mythbusters series. In the first Halo 4 installment, we learn a number of valuable things about 343's Halo debut ... but who cares? You can stack a mech on a tank.[Thanks, Caleb.]
