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The UK gets its first ocean-cleaning 'Seabin'
It's no secret that the world's oceans are full of floating waste. Things like plastic not only pollute the natural ecosystem, but pose a very real threat to its inhabitants. Back in December 2015, we were first introduced to the concept of the Seabin, a floating natural fiber garbage bin that can suck in pollutants in docks and marinas and leave the water pristine. Its creators needed help making the concept a reality, taking to Indiegogo to raise enough funds to deploy their marine disposal units all over the world. With over $260,000 in their pocket, two Australian surfers, Pete Ceglinski and Andrew Turton, have today embarked on that journey, installing the world's first production Seabin in Portsmouth (UK) harbour.
NBC, YouTube pair up for synchronized streaming at London 2012
If the news that the Olympics is but 141 days away fills you with excitement, then you'll be overjoyed to know that NBC has abandoned Silverlight for YouTube, which is the network's official on-demand partner for the games. All events will be streamed live on Google's backbone (presumably via NBC.com), with replays of web-exclusive events, all the TV broadcasts and "behind the scenes" footage all available at your whim. Good luck finding the 3,000 plus hours necessary to watch it all, unless this is the reason you've been looking for to quit your job over the summer.
British garbage collectors to get 1,500 BlackBerrys
First it was the rozzers, now British bin men are getting BlackBerrys as part of their job equipment pack. Biffa, a private garbage collection firm responsible for cleaning up 25 local authorities around the UK, has agreed a £1.7 million ($2.44 million) deal with Vodafone for the provision of some 1,500 BlackBerry handsets along with dongles and 3G data cards. This somewhat curious capital investment has been made in order to allow drivers to download maps, collect data from customers, liaise with head office, and even take photos where necessary. The RIM phones will also allow Biffa to track its trucks' locations -- an option that's sure to get plenty of use, considering how much Brits love to keep an eye on things.
If you throw away your console, the terrorists have won
In one of those fun, yet uncomfortable, instances where real life and video games interact, Fox News has uncovered a dusty (and old, very old) PlayStation controller during a raid of an Afghanistani farmhouse, which doubled up as a munitions depository. Lying there, in among rockets, grenades, plastic explosives and tank shells, was this humble blue-hued PlayStation appendage, which we're told can be rewired to act as a remote detonator. Should you question just how seriously the US government is taking this growing tide of console-aided terrorism, below you'll find a press release (seriously, a state-issued press release) detailing the detainment of four men in connection with the illegal transportation of digital cameras and PlayStation 2s to a "terrorist entity" in Paraguay. If convicted of the most egregious charge, they face 20 years in prison... for contraband consoles. Face, meet palm.
United Nations identifies e-waste as an urgent and growing problem, wants change
E-waste might be one of the biggest misnomers in the history of nomery -- the image it creates in the mind is of a bunch of email and document files clogging up your local internet pipes. The reality of it is that electronic waste is rapidly populating ever-growing landfill areas in so-called developing countries (they're poor, just call a spade a spade) and the issue has now garnered the attention of the United Nations. The UN Environment Programme has issued a wideranging report warning that e-waste in China and South Africa could double or even quadruple within the next decade, whereas India could experience a five-fold rise. Major hazards exist in the unregulated and informal recycling of circuit boards and techno gadgets, as processes like backyard incineration for the retrieval of gold generate toxic gases while also being wildly inefficient. The whole point of the report is to encourage some global cooperation in setting up modern and safe recycling facilities in the affected countries to ameliorate the problem, though being generally more careful in our consumption and disposal of electronics wouldn't do the environment's chances any harm either.
Video: Dustbot takes out the Eurotrash
Push up those Armani shades and tighten your white trousers, the Dustbot is coming to wash the scum off the streets like a Segway riding Travis Bickle. Give him a call from your mobile and the Dustbot will come to your house and dispose of the rubbish. At least that's the plan for this Italian disposal-bot fitted with GPS navigation, gyroscope, and a bevy of sensors meant to keep it from crushing the innocents. Look, we get that it's a prototype and is meant to traverse the narrow streets of ancient cities, but a trash collecting robot with the capacity of just two kitchen cans seems like a serious limitation. Watch the long slow ride after the break.[Thanks, Craig]
Today's least wanted expansion: Rocketmen: It Came From Uranus
We'd be surprised if any of you reading this enjoyed Rocketmen: Axis of Evil long enough to suffer through all ten levels, but if you did then you might like to know that the game is getting an expansion pack. That's right, more camera issues, bad animation and boring gameplay are heading your way. And you have to pay for it. Rocketmen: It Came From Uranus (yes, very clever) will be available from the American PSN Store on May 15th and will cost you $4.95. In exchange for that you receive three new levels of gameplay (if you can call it that) and five new weapons; three primary and two secondary. You must have Rocketmen: Axis of Evil in order to play It Came From Uranus and can play the new levels with your old character. As you can probably tell, we're not particularly fond of Rocketmen. You can find out why in our review.[via Press Release]
Brando offers up USB-powered Plasma Ball
Yeah, this is just what everyone needed: more pointless electronic rubbish to clutter up your desk. Lacking the charm of other useless USB accessories (USB sushi: it's got cred!), Brando opted to give a regular Plasma Ball the USB connectivity it never wanted. For $16.99, the ability to awe your colleagues and family members with an interactive light show they've seen dozens of times is within your grasp! Hey, at least the base isn't lined with blue LEDs.
No Crash Bandicoot after all
Make that unconfirmed -- sometimes even we here at Wii Fanboy get caught up in the excitement of the rumor mill. Matt Casamassina of IGN reports that the Vivendi rep they spoke with pulled no punches, calling the Wii connection "rubbish." That doesn't mean it isn't possible, however. Vivendi claims to be looking at all consoles for their next box-busting foray, and Wii is, in fact, a console. We're pretty sure it is, at least.Can't say we're terribly surprised that this rumor has been Crash-bashed, though a good game using the Wiimote might inject a little new life into the struggling series.
