hector
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Poly Effects starts shipping Hector: The modular synth for your modular synth
The modular synth you can put inside your modular synth is now shipping.
Hector is a virtual modular synth you can put in your real modular synth
Hector is essentially a Poly Effects Digit and Beebo modular guitar pedal, but in a 30 HP Eurorack module.
Watch the first steps of a robot inspired by stick bugs
They grow up so fast, don't they? It was just a few years ago that HECTOR the stick bug robot was little more than a twinkle in Bielefeld University's eye, and it's already taking its first steps. Okay, so this isn't quite a tear-jerking moment, but it's still an important achievement in robotics. As you'll see in the video below, all of HECTOR's six insect-like legs move independently while reacting to unexpected changes in terrain. They shift to maintain balance on slippery ground, and raise themselves above small obstacles the moment they sense resistance.
Encrypted Text: The evolution of rogue PvP
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Encrypted Text for assassination, combat and subtlety rogues. Chase Christian will be your guide to the world of shadows every Wednesday. Feel free to email me with any questions or article suggestions you'd like to see covered here. During the lull between WoW expansions, I've been trying out a few action real-time strategy games like League of Legends and Dota 2. One of the things I've been learning about A-RTS games is that there are several different roles that the characters can fill. While WoW typically revolves around the tank/healer/DPS trinity, these PvP-only games have much more diversity. For example, there's the nuker role, which focuses on quick bursts of damage, and the disabler role, which focuses on controlling enemies to set up a kill. If you look between the lines, some of these roles are present in WoW PvP as well. Rogues have been relied upon to provide the stuns and snares to control targets, as well as to provide the burst needed to eliminate our enemies. We've worn a lot of hats over the past few years, and we've found ways to excel in each niche.
HECTOR insect-inspired hexapod walking robot is a smooth operator (video)
We've seen some rather nightmare-inducing robots inspired by insects, but, once again, the folks at Germany's Bielefeld University have managed to turn something inherently creepy into a rather lighthearted affair. HECTOR, or hexapod cognitive autonomously operating robot, was designed to help its creators understand how exactly real animals manage to move so gracefully. Physically speaking, HECTOR sports six legs, with 18 joints in total, that protrude from an exoskeleton made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic. Its legs are given a rather life-like range of motion provided by a special set of "elastic joint drives" and a series of "biologically inspired" algorithms, and its exoskeleton can carry a load weighing 30 kilograms -- the robot itself weighs a mere 12 kilograms. What's more, HECTOR's built to learn from its experiences. Okay, so a three foot robotic insect that can carry nearly three times its weight does sound kind of creepy in retrospect, but HECTOR really does have some smooth moves. You can see at least one of its legs in action after the break.
Breaking: chicken came before the (chicken) egg
Don't ask us why British researchers are spending their time trying to solve the age-old "who came first" conundrum, but apparently solve it they have done. Lab dwellers from the universities of Sheffield and Warwick share the distinction of identifying the particular effects of a particular protein -- ovocleidin-17, found only in chickens' ovaries -- on the development of the egg's shell. It would seem that without OC-17 converting calcium carbonate into calcite crystals, one couldn't have an eggshell, meaning that the chicken and its special protein powers had to have developed first. How the world's going to react to having one of its favorite clichés wrestled away has yet to be determined. Update: Seems like we didn't make it clear enough that these findings relate specifically to chicken eggs. We're well aware that dragons dinosaurs have plenty of prior art on chickens when it comes to laying shelled embryo chambers.
WoW Moviewatch: Wings for Hector
Yesterday, I issued the call for artistic PvP videos. TotalBiscuit then reminded me that I had yet to feature one of his favorite machinimas, Wings for Hector. Dating back over two years, Wings certainly isn't the most current movie out there, but it was highly favored in its time.Hector and Eulogie, the creators of Wings for Hector, mixed Rogue PvP with cut-scenes and a rockin' soundtrack to bring the audience heart-pumping action. Coming in at just under 12 minutes, this video isn't for the faint of heart, or those prone to seizures. The aspect ratio jumps around quite a bit, but so do the flashing images. Viewers be warned that there are mild subliminal elements, but hopefully that won't stop you from enjoying this trip down memory lane ...[Via Warcraftmovies.com & TotalBiscuit of WoW Radio!]If you have any suggestions for WoW Moviewatch, you can mail them to us at machinima AT wowinsider DOT com.Previously on Moviewatch ...
Britain's new fastest supercomputer makes its ominous debut
It's always tough to keep track of the fastest supercomputers around at any given moment, but according to Reuters, the rather imposing block of machines pictured above is now at the top of the heap in Britain, and at least near the top in all of Europe. Dubbed HECToR (for High-End Computing Terascale Resource), the Cray-built rig packs the equivalent power of 12,000 desktop PCs, or enough to perform some 63 million calculations per second, which'll apparently be used to study everything from climate change to new medicines -- or, as the researchers responsible for the computer put it, "push forward the boundaries of knowledge." In related news, Engadget's Folding@home team is still accepting new members -- nudge nudge, British friends.[Thanks, Matt]
