Polar Bear
Latest
Google adds the 'Polar Bear capital of the world' to Street View
One of the more immediate effects of climate change is that the icy habitats of the Polar Bear are very rapidly evaporating. In an attempt to connect people more directly to the issue, Google and Polar Bears International have teamed up to bring the evidence straight to Street View. Attaching a Trekker Backpack to the charity's specially adapted vehicle, the pair have mapped the frozen tundra of Churchill, Manitoba, otherwise known as the "Polar Bear capital of the word." In addition to the harsh landscape, the team have captured a few of the most famous four-legged residents, so if you fancy getting up close and personal with nature, head down to the source link and get looking.
Polar bears destroy robot spy cams, show no remorse (video)
Iceberg Cam, Snowball Cam, Blizzard Cam and Drift Cam were the arctic photographer's best friends -- high-tech spy robot cameras designed to resist cold and traverse sub-zero terrain. Then they got crushed to death by giant polar bears while attempting to make friends. Seriously, that's the basic gist of Polar Bear: Spy on the Ice, a new BBC documentary which began airing last week, and which just so happens to be narrated by David Tennant. Hope he's got a screwdriver handy, if you know what we mean. Watch the bears play a spirited match of robot football after the break, then see all the lovely mechanical carnage in a third video at our source link.
Crapgadget CES, round 1: polar bear TV
ATSC tuner, 720p resolution, remote control, switchable cuddle / mauling modes. But where's the giraffe? P.S.- This isn't even Hannspree's craziest TV -- that honor goes to the 42-inch fire truck monitor, which we still want.
Still time to get your pet bear and achievement
There's still time to get your non-combat baby polar bear pet and your achievement celebrating the 4th anniversary of the World of Warcraft. All you have to do is log into the game and open up your mail. Many folks thought that the achievement would only trigger if you logged on yesterday, however that doesn't appear to be the case. People are calling the polar bear pet the "cutest thing in-game." The reaction of "Awwww!!!" can be heard throughout guild chats everywhere. And for those special/cool/nerdy enough, you can even have a polar bear non-combat pet next to a polar bear hunter pet next to a BlizzCon polar bear mount next to a regular polar bear mount.If you get to have that much polar bear love in one screenshot, you get the achievement "Threat Down: Polar Bears" and are awarded the title "Colbert." The t is silent, of course.Okay... maybe we're kidding about the title, but it's still cool to be able to do that.
Foxtel to carry BlizzCon PPV in Australia
In Australia, and bummed you can't make it up to the states for BlizzCon? You too can experience it virtually -- while DirecTV has a deal to carry it on pay-per-view in the US, Foxtel has apparently landed the same agreement in Oz. For $14.95 a day (no word of getting it for free by signing up, which is the deal DirecTV is offering), you can experience all the festivities straight through your television. They're even offering that BlizzCon mount if you buy both days. One problem, though: it's all being shown live, apparently, so in order to see it all, you'd have to get up at 4am. But a little lost sleep is a small price to pay for experience all that is BlizzCon, right?Of course, you could just stick to WoW Insider and we'll show you everything you need to see at the show for free. We don't have a mount to give you (yet), and we won't ask you to wake up at four in the morning, but we will have pretty in-depth coverage from right there on the scene. Or, y'know, you could do both. It's up to you, Aussies.
Forum post of the day: For fun and profit
What does a spiffy rare mount cost? You can get a Spectral Tiger for about $900 (once sold for $2,000) on eBay. You could pay 20,000 gold for an Amani Warbear. BlizzCon 2008 World of Warcraft in-game polar bear mount with mounted, flag-waving murloc? $40 bucks. All you have to do is sign up for the DirecTV package and that fabulous bear is all yours. If I were a mount collector, I might persuade my friends to sign up for the package in my name. Kothor of Skywall is ordering the video package even though he's planning on attending Blizzcon. He suggested that Blizzard should make all of the rare mounts available for purchase. This suggestion was welcomed by several who have spent countless hours grinding for their prized ponies.
Breakfast Topic: What glyphs would you like to see for your class?
We don't know a ton about the specifics of Inscription and the Glyphs it supplies since the Wrath beta doesn't have very many of them yet, but we at least know what they are. If you don't know what they are, glyphs are almost like enchantments, but for your spells instead of your armor and weapons. Their effects are usually a little more substantial, even if they don't change combat very much. You're allowed up to six glyphs, split amongst the varying strengths of glyphs in a configuration that may or may not be the same come retail.We got a litlte preview of glyphs via some Druid glyphs that were posted on MMO Champion a few days ago, and they do some pretty neat things. Things like "your Swipe ability now hits 1 additional target" and "changes the appearance of your bear and dire bear forms to that of a polar bear" are both pretty big effects! That's only really the beginning of them, too.Pulling a little inspiration from our friend Matticus, why don't we take a minute and make a few guesses at what types of glyphs our classes will get? Heck, even if it's unlikely we'll get it, what type of glyph would you like to get? Personally, I'm holding out for "Glyph of It's About Time - Increases the range on Mind Flay to 30 yards" for my Shadow Priest. A guy can hope, eh?
The DS Life: Adrift in the Antarctic
Sitting on top of a wandering iceberg, the young girl should be more concerned with her predicament. But she's with a friend, and her toes and her ears, the two parts of her she loathes to feel cold, are kept toasty by her Persian red boots and matching hood, so she sees no reason to worry.She digs a PlayStation Portable out her bulky purse, bored with the slowly moving South Pole scenery. As she tilts the colorful, jelly-like creatures on the handheld's screen, she cozies against her companion's warm, fleece back. Under them, the floating platform cracks with quiet pops and groans, like ships at sea. The girl hears a splash to her left, a smiling seal barking for their attention.
New textures for Lore-master pets
The Book 11 content update for Lord of the Rings Online has been dubbed, among other things, the month of the Lore-master. Among the new spells, new pet (go Lynx!) and other goodies is a little surprise for our nature loving friends: new textures for their animal servants.Using new amulets crafted by Jeweller's, Lore-masters can now summon their animal companions in darker and lighter colors. Confirmed so far on Roheryn, the Preview server: Black Lynx: must be wearing Amulet of Supreme Black Lynx, Neck, BoE, +15 Agility, +29 Might, +15 Fate, Min Lvl 48. Crafted from 4 Misty Mountain Ingots and 2 Polished Beryls. Snow Lynx: similar to Black Lynx amulet Frost Raven: must be wearing Amulet of the Greater Frost Raven, BoE Neck, +7 Will, +4 Vitality, Min Level 23.
