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DARPA wants to build vehicles that disappear after delivering supplies
What if the vehicle delivering the goods to a remote village or group of soldiers could just vanish after it made the drop? Sounds crazy, right? Well, DARPA is hoping to do just that. The research unit it looking to develop solutions that can carry supplies to their intended destinations and then disappear. Named for the story of a man who's wings of feathers and wax melted when he flew too close to the sun, DARPA's new ICARUS program that'll examine the possibilities is an extension of its VAPR project. Of course, we expect DARPA is aiming for a more positive outcome. VAPR, which stands for Vanishing Programmable Resources, has developed self-destructing electronic components since it began two years ago. Aside from the obvious military uses, DARPA says a vehicle that vanishes in to thin air could also offer an unmanned solution for taking critical supplies to hard to reach areas in the aftermath of events like a natural disaster. Once the load is delivered, personnel wouldn't have to worry about getting the vehicle back out of the area. [Image credit: SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty Images]
Arkedo co-founder announces 'Poof' for Windows, Mac and Linux
Aurelien Regard, co-founder of now-defunct Pix'n Love Rush developer Arkedo Studios, announced the upcoming release of Poöf vs. The Cursed Kitty, an arcade-style action game developed in collaboration with Neko Entertainment. Regard and programmer Dimitri Péan started work on Poöf prior to Arkedo's disbanding earlier this year. Describing it as a mixture of Super Crate Box, Orcs Must Die, and the arcade Mario Bros, Regard notes that the game has its share of strategic elements, though its core gameplay is defined by fast-paced action. Regard explained that he will see no money from Poöf's release, but felt that it was so close to completion that it would be "a shame" to see it go unreleased. Neko Entertainment is set to publish Poöf for Windows, Mac and Linux platforms. A release date has not been announced.
Drives that go 'poof' in the night
While revving up a new MacBook Pro and pondering how to get a persistent bootloader, I inadvertently did something dumb: I disconnected a Firewire drive from my laptop while it was at the EFI boot screen. As sometimes is the case, dumbness led to knowledge -- I had never seen the drive 'poof' effect on the startup chooser screen, and I have to say I was pleased at the little 'slide' as the remaining drives shifted over to take up the space. Nice fit and finish there.
