Explosions
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Watch SpaceX blow up a lot of rockets while trying to land them
During the early days of SpaceX's rocket landing attempts failure was definitely an option, so instead getting depressed, Elon Musk embraced it. Knowing that everyone loves a good (harmless) explosion, he just released a full-on fail highlight reel of the early attempts, set to the Monty Python theme and accompanied by Arnold-like quips. "It's just a scratch," he said, after one booster was deliberately blown to pieces due to an engine sensor failure.
Samsung will explain the Galaxy Note 7 explosions Sunday night
As Reuters had suggested, Samsung is close to holding a press conference where it will "announce the cause of the Galaxy Note 7 incidents and quality enhancement plan." The event is being held on Monday morning (local time) in Seoul, Korea, and will be livestreamed in English on Samsung.com. If you'd like to tune in, set your alarm for 8PM ET on January 22nd. It seems likely that the battery will take the blame, as customers and regulators alike are waiting to find out what Samsung has planned to make sure this never happens again.
Report: Samsung's Note 7 probe points blame at batteries
Samsung has concluded that the Galaxy Note 7's fires and explosions were caused by battery problems, not the phone's hardware or software, Reuters reports. The information comes from "a person familiar with the matter," rather than an official source, but Samsung will reportedly release the full results from its investigation on January 23rd. To assuage nervous buyers, Samsung mobile chief Koh Dong-jin will likely also detail steps it's taking to prevent similar problems with the Galaxy S8 and other future devices.
NYT: Samsung engineers can't replicate Galaxy Note 7 problems
Even though Galaxy Note 7 production has shut down and the phones should be on their way back to Samsung in fireproof boxes, the question of how everything went so wrong has yet to be answered. When it initiated a recall on September 2nd, the company said that "we conducted a thorough investigation and found a battery cell issue." However, today when it announced a permanent end to manufacturing, there was no word on the problem. A report by the New York Times indicates that despite assigning "hundreds" of employees, they have not been able to reproduce the spontaneously smoky, blazing hot phones too many customers have experienced.
Samsung ends production of the Galaxy Note 7 for good
Samsung has "permanently discontinued" production of the Galaxy Note 7, the company told Engadget in a short statement. Sales of the flagship phone were halted yesterday because replacements for the original, recalled model were still catching fire and exploding. Shortly after it started doing exchanges, the updated models were involved in several serious fires, causing the evacuation of a Southwest Airlines flight and a fire that sent a Kentucky owner to hospital with smoke inhalation.
Samsung's Note 7 catches fire, but the damage isn't done
When Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 launched earlier in the fall, we loved it. So did a lot of others, critics and consumers alike. Then the reports of battery-related fires started rolling in. Just weeks later, Samsung was forced to kick off a massive recall of Note 7s, a complicated, crucially important process that should have signaled the end of this disaster. It didn't. Now we're left with reports of replacement units going up in smoke -- one of them started smoldering on a Southwest flight, and another put a Kentucky man in the hospital for smoke inhalation. Then, during the writing of this very sentence, Samsung told all of its carrier and retail partners around the world to stop sales and exchanges of Galaxy Note 7s. It's the move Samsung dreaded, and the move Samsung needed. As dramatic as this seems, though, it's just another step in its fight to piece its reputation back together, bit by agonizing bit.
Samsung reportedly halts Galaxy Note 7 production (update: confirmed)
After more reports of replacement Galaxy Note 7 phones catching fire, Yonhap News reports that Samsung has temporarily suspended production. The Korean paper cited an anonymous source working at one of Samsung's suppliers, and the company has not yet commented. Already, AT&T and T-Mobile have said they will stop Galaxy Note 7 sales and replacements while investigations into the incidents continue.
RedShift is a nailbiter of a game for iOS
RedShift (US$1.99) is a tense game that simulates a situation of trying to stop a power facility from exploding. One gets the feel of some action movies where a clock is counting down to the inevitable, but hopefully preventable detonation. The game features side-scrolling game play with excellent graphics and sound effects. As time moves on, the power plant gets more and more unstable. Your job is to deploy firefighting gear and stop the core of the plant from exploding by flipping override switches. A small map of the facility is displayed in the upper-left part of the screen, and then you are off to the races to explore the plant, dodge the fires that are burning, and get the equipment you need to stop the explosion. I thought the gameplay was logical, and I like the fact there there were no instructions beyond the basic set-up of the scenario. You're thrown into the middle of the emergency, and you just need to get going, finding resources along the way and heading down the inevitable blind alleys. Every time you play the game the layout and events randomize, so you are never playing the same game twice. You can see a trailer for Redshift online via YouTube. RedShift is a great little game that certainly will get your adrenaline pumping. It's a universal app, and requires iOS 6 or later. The app is optimized for the iPhone 5, and I found it worked well on both my iPhone and my second generation iPad.
Blow up all the things in the new Marvel Heroes trailer
Have you ever found yourself playing a game and thought that while it's fun, it would be much better if you could just destroy everything around you with controlled explosions? If so, you may be Michael Bay, but regardless of your secret identity, you can enjoy the latest Marvel Heroes trailer, in which that is exactly what happens. This trailer is not about fine details of gameplay; it's about superhuman beings wreaking destruction all over the place. While the trailer clocks in at only about a minute, it certainly finds many things to make explode, including cars, streets, and in one particularly baffling instance, a portable toilet. (The Thing has powers that we weren't aware of, such as turning a toilet into an explosive device.) But don't take our distinctly non-poetic word for it; jump on past the break to watch the trailer and revel in the destruction yourself. Complete with classic and appropriate music.
EVE Evolved: Baiting players is hilarious fun!
I originally planned to put together updated ship setups for EVE Online's newly revamped Caldari, Minmatar, and Amarr Tech 1 cruisers this week, but I've honestly been having far too much fun baiting people in highsec with last week's Vexor setup. I'm having such hilarious fun doing it that I just had to dedicate this week's column to the dirty art of the bait-and-gank! There's absolutely nothing more amusing in EVE than baiting a ship twice the size of yours into attacking you for an "easy kill" and then turning it into a very expensive smoking wreck. The basic idea of baiting is simple: Get yourself flagged as a suspect by committing a minor crime like theft, fly around waiting for someone to attack you, and then tear him to bits. Before Retribution, you were flagged as a valid target only to the individual people you stole from, but once they attacked, you were safe to engage. Now you're flagged to the whole of EVE, making it easier to get a bite but also a whole lot riskier to engage in a crowded area. It's hard to pick and choose your fights when the whole universe is gunning for you, but when you get a good bite, there are some insanely fun fights to be had. In this week's EVE Evolved, I give some top tips on how to safely bait players in high-security space, where to find the best targets, and what ships are most effective.
'The Making of Call of Duty: Black Ops 2' hits DirecTV tomorrow night
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 won't be blowing up living rooms until Tuesday, but an explosive methadone comes to DirecTV tomorrow night in the form of The Making of Call of Duty: Black Ops 2.Premiering at 7 p.m. Eastern on the satellite carrier's Audience Network (channel 239), the documentary features interviews with the development team, voice actors, outside consultants and professional gamers that all contributed in some way to the CoDBlOps 2's production. Reruns are scheduled for Monday night at 10 p.m. Eastern and Tuesday evening at 8 p.m. Eastern, but by then we're sure you'll already have reached the highest pinnacle of multiplayer progression.
US soldiers to wear blast sensors in Afghanistan, collect shock data
Starting next month, around one thousand frontline personnel in Afghanistan will begin testing the Soldier Body Unit, a sensor kit for recording the effects of explosions on the human body. While that's not the most pleasant of subjects, the blast sensors have been rushed out to collect as much data as possible before soldiers head home in 2014. The US Army's Rapid Equipping Force and the Georgia Tech Research Institute, which developed the sensors, hope to gather info on concussions and traumatic brain injuries to improve aftercare. This will also be used at source to stop super-soldiers heading back out after a concussion and increasing the probability of an even worse injury. Further sensors will be carried on military vehicles, to help measure the effects of IED blasts on passengers. Adding two pounds in extra equipment probably won't make the Soldier Body Unit too popular, but it's thought the kit could weigh in at half a pound once it's been refined.
Mists of Pandaria Beta: The best quest ever
Any beta is full of things that aren't going to be implemented on live, and it's all there to discover if you simply take the time to explore. Possibly the craziest thing I've ever seen is the quest above, simply titled Criteria Effects Test Quest. Located on a remote island off the coast of the Krasarang Wilds, this quest asks players to click and interact with a variety of objects. The quest rewards are low level, and there is no gold involved. The point? Well, there isn't one, really -- it's simply there to test the new interactive icons and make sure that players will be able to interact with everything. This isn't part of the storyline of Pandaria or anything like that. It's not an official quest that will be included in the final release. It's just a testing area. However, it's one of those insanely weird, fun, unpredictable moments that you find when you simply roam around on the beta. If you're on the beta servers and you've finished everything there is to do, take some time to explore and see the sights. You never know -- you could find a hidden gem that won't be seen after the beta's over. Oh, and in case you were wondering ...
EVE dev diary crunches the numbers on New Eden violence
Despite the fact that EVE Online has one of the most advanced virtual economies in the world (not to mention pretty graphics, interesting lore, and a great soundtrack), CCP's sandbox game is primarily about one thing and one thing only: blowing up spaceships. Sure you can become a captain of industry, a respected (feared?) trader, or a profit-seeking miner, but at the end of the day, many EVE fans care little for the gameplay that exists outside of spaceship on spaceship violence. CCP's latest dev blog reflects this obsession, and CCP Diagoras presents a load of statistics culled from the end of 2007 to the present. Among the interesting (if esoteric) factoids: Something blows up in New Eden once every six seconds. Head to the game's official website for more numbers.
The Road to Mordor: Party planning committee, assemble!
Considering that Fellowship of the Ring begins with a huge party -- thrown in honor of Bilbo Baggins' eleventy-first birthday -- I think it's appropriate that Lord of the Rings Online is conducive to parties. I'm not just talking about dev-designed festivals, although those are great; I'm referring to parties that the community whips up from time to time. Part of the appeal of LotRO to me is that it isn't just all about killing and leveling; it's also about exploring and living in this virtual Middle-earth. Life for the Free Peoples means celebrating even in the midst of oppressive evil, and it's in keeping with the spirit of the enterprise to throw a shindig now and then. Turbine's given us quite a few tools and resources to use when assembling a party, and I thought that today we'd take an unusual detour from the Road to Mordor and go through the steps of throwing a memorable and enjoyable soirée. Ready to cut loose? Footloose? Good! Let's tear up the dance floor!
SWTOR trailer revels in the signs of war
"Peace between Republic and Empire is crumbling. Every world, signs of war." Thus begins a two-minute journey through Star Wars: The Old Republic's setting, as the narrator takes us to a half-dozen worlds where conflict is brewing, people are being stabbed in the back, Bantha raiders are waving sticks above their heads, and players' mouths are salivating. This new trailer, Signs of War, is being shown this weekend at the New York Comic Con. While it might not be packed with new information, it's certainly a pulse-pounding buildup to this December's launch. From Jedi to Agents, every class gets its little moment to shine in it, packaged between explosions and large-scale conflict. You can watch the full trailer after the jump!
End of Nations video features factions and explosions
Trion Worlds is known primarily for its wildly successful RIFT MMORPG, but that will soon change thanks to an upcoming MMORTS called End of Nations. The title, developed by real-time strategy specialist Petroglyph (and published by Trion) is a two-faction romp through a future earth that has been decimated by war and is teetering on the brink of societal collapse. Today, Trion and Petroglyph have released a three-minute trailer for the game that touches on the lore behind the opposing player factions. The clip also features more explosions than your average Michael Bay film, but we'll get to that in a minute. The Liberation Front and the Shadow Revolution factions are mortal enemies who share a common goal: the destruction of the tyrannical Order of Nations. Said destruction involves a lot of things blowing up, and despite the fact that the video features a few talking heads pontificating on factional lore, the focus is on gameplay-related mayhem. Helicopters, tanks, and even closing title screens are liable to burst into flaming fireballs at any moment, and fans of gratuitous military violence will no doubt want to click past the cut to check out the full trailer.
No Comment: iPad vs 300 Black Cats
iPad wrap manufacturers SlickWraps celebrated American Independence day in the most traditional manner. Blowing things up in order to sell their product. Cool pyrotechnics meeting capitalism, all in the pursuit of fun. Their video, which follows, shows the iPad (although not so much the Apple logo) walking away almost unscratched from a bag of splodey Black Cats. And to that, we say, "No Comment" -- although we do say "Again! Again! More boom!" Thanks to all the TUAW tipsters who passed this one on to us.
GPS stations trace nuclear explosions, summon end to underground mushroom clouds?
A team of researchers recently revealed findings that could turn GPS stations into tools for detecting illegal nuclear explosions. According to a report, being presented to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) this week, the group found that nearby GPS stations showed a change in ionospheric electron density, following a 2009 nuclear test performed by North Korea. That discovery led to the realization that the same technology we use to track everything from dogs to children can more accurately detect nuclear explosions -- even when they take place underground. By measuring the time it takes for a resulting shockwave to reach and affect surrounding stations, researchers can accurately determine the origin of the blast. The team is currently seeking funding to further its explosive (sorry, we had to) research.
Breakfast Topic: Do Cataclysm's explosive quests light your fire?
This Breakfast Topic has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW Insider's pages. I'm a fire mage, and the explosion-riddled Mythbusters show is on my DVR, so it shouldn't be any surprise that the two quests that top my nonexistent Favorite Cataclysm Quest chart are explosive and fiery. I have no idea if this is some subconscious RP coming to the surface or if I just like big booms. I'll ponder more on that later. In Uldum, there's a quest where you turn into a fabulous, fiery gnome-killer ball. Having been a gnome, I actually feel no pangs of remorse for rolling over 1,000 of them and trying to eke out a few more before the vehicle ejects me. My second favorite fiery quest is in the goblin starting zone. You put on a pair of rocket boots and fly over goblin zombies, roasting them into oblivion. Hey, they're evil, okay? It's all right to giggle maniacally as you fly over 50 of them ... or more ... for hours. What are some other fiery and explosive quests you've come across? Do you enjoy the mass slaughter of evil pixels, or do you or your character feel remorse? Do your favorite quests tend to complement your character's motif?
