heat-sinks
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MechWarrior Online dev diary gives handy piloting tips
If you think you're ready to hop into the cockpit of a giant robot in MechWarrior Online and go out there all guns a-blazing, think again. You first need to learn how to pilot such a machine, which the developers say is quite unlike your traditional MMO avatar or vehicle. For one thing, you need to consider that parts of the 'Mech work independently of each other. You can be going in one direction, have your torso twisted to face another, and have your arms moving in yet another. Plus, there is the issue of heat generation -- and shutdown -- to consider. So take a moment to brush up on these basics with a developer video on the subject after the jump. Your life may just depend on it.
More efficient heat sinks could sport nanowire whiskers
Sintering is a common process for creating copper heat sinks that involves packing powdered metals into a particular shape and baking it in a vacuum. A funny thing happens though, if you leave out the vacuum part of the equation: you don't get a solid shape, but a porous pile of particles with hollow, nanowire whiskers sticking out of it. The serendipitous discovery could lead to a new way to make heat sinks for everything from CPUs to boilers at power plants. Now researchers at MIT are trying the process with practically every material they can get their hands on. Of particular interest is zirconium, which could be used with fuel rods in nuclear reactors to improve efficiency. The idea of whisker-covered heat sinks may sound strange, but the potential for improving thermal management across a range of applications is huge. Just don't try and pet it -- these things tend to get a little toasty.
SolidLogic GS-L10 Mini-ITX wraps itself in blanket of heat sinks for comfort, fanless existence
Okay, so it's not exactly a looker, but Logic Supply's SolidLogic GS-L10 Mini-ITX is probably meant to be kept out of view anyway, and given its fanless operation, won't give away its whereabouts. Culled from a Serener case and MSI MS-9818 motherboard, the heatsink-laden unit supports three different Intel Montevina processors ranging from the 2.16GHz Celeron M CM585 to the 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo T9400, up to 4GB memory, options for either HDD or SSD storage, and your choice of Windows XP, Vista, or Ubuntu. Connection-wise, we're looking at two ethernet and four USB 2.0 ports, as well as VGA, DVI, and HDMI for video. Prices start at around $861 if you opt out of a pre-packaged HDD, but if you're wanting the full kit and caboodle here, expect to shell out closer $1,900. [Via Windows for Devices]
