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Scientists study jumping spiders to create agile robots
However creepy jumping spiders might be, they're undoubtedly biomechanical marvels: they can jump up to six times their body length from a complete stop. Wouldn't that be handy for robots, which don't always have the luxury of a running start? University of Manchester researchers think so. They're using a combination of CT scans and high-speed cameras to analyze the movement of a jumping spider (affectionately named Kim) and see how it could translate to robotics. The team both captured Kim's jumps in slow motion and produced a 3D model to understand the arachnid's body and leg structure at an "unprecedented" level of detail.
Lockheed Martin previews a future of tiny space telescopes
Current space telescopes are... big. You can't really avoid it given the need for giant lenses and bulky sensors. Lockheed Martin wants to fix that -- the aerospace firm has just released the first images from SPIDER (Segmented Planar Imaging Detector for Electro-Optical Reconnaissance), an optical instrument that promises pictures as sharp as what you'd get from a space telescope in a sensor that's just an inch thick. Instead of using a handful of monolithic lenses, it relies on a legion of small lenses whose data is divided and recombined using a photonic circuit. The initial results aren't spectacular, but they hold a lot of promise.
Intel CEO controls a swarm of robot spiders with gestures
Forget the Apple Watch. Forget the Pebble Time. What you really need is a wristband that gives you the power to control an army of scary-looking drones. At IDF in Shenzhen, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich put on a simple Curie-powered wristband with motion detection, which then let him commandeer four robot spiders. With some simple gestures, Krzanich was able to make them stand up, change the LED colors on the drones, make them do "fist" pumps and eventually go back to idling. Sounds cute, right? Maybe not so much when you actually see this in action -- we have a video right after the break.
Self-destructing site shows how long it takes Google to find you
Wondering how long it would take for Google's search engine to find your website if you didn't promote it? About 22 days, according to Matthew Rothenberg. He recently launched Unindexed, a purposefully short-lived web community that was set to self-destruct as soon as Google's indexing technology made it searchable. While Rothenberg didn't go out of his way to maintain the secret, participants knew that every view, post and shared link would bring the site closer to disaster -- it only took 346 views and 31 contributions before everything came crashing down. Thankfully, you can recreate this experiment yourself. Rothenberg has posted the source code, so his commentary on the sad state of web anonymity should last for much longer than a few weeks. [Image credit: Shutterstock]
Spiders are the key to ultra-sensitive wearable devices
Spiders might creep you out, but don't dismiss them too quickly -- they may well be the ticket to a new wave of wearable sensors. South Korean researchers have built a device that picks up miniscule vibrations by using the principle behind a spider's lyriform organs, which shake (and send nervous signals) in response to the rubbing motions of a nearby mate. The artificial system recreates the lyriform's slits using layers of platinum and soft polymer with electricity passing through. Even very small changes in the size of those slits will alter the electrical resistance, which makes it easy to measure faint vibrations.
Did you miss in Pandaria?: Lost treasure of Old Man Thistle
As we reach the end of the Mists era, it's a great time to finish up some of the achievements and questlines we may have missed. Like the Pinch King, this questline is hidden. No marker indicates it. But you are given clues. Once Fish Fellreed gets to know you better, she will tell you the story of Old Man Thistle, a farmer who found a secret cave full of treasure. It collapsed behind him after his mushan Bobo smashed through a wall, but he drew a map to its location. Unfortunately, the location of the map, like the cave, has been forgotten. In order to start the questline, you need to be exalted with the Tillers faction and Best Friends with all of the Halfhill Market characters. You'll know you're done when the Friends on the Farm achievement pops up. There's no quest for this, but you should head to Cattail Lake and hunt the Enormous Cattail Grouper. Be careful, though -- he's big enough to swallow you whole. (These groupers are also the target of the Gift for Haohan daily.) If you meet the requirements, the grouper will drop an Old Map and launch you on a brief but lucrative adventure.
Mazda is updating car software to fix problems with real, living bugs
Just like Toyota, Mazda's also recalling cars due to a nasty bug -- the difference is, Mazda's problem involves real, live multi-legged creatures. Apparently, the company's recalling roughly 42,000 Mazda 6 sedans in the US, because of a certain yellow sac spider with a penchant for the smell of gasoline. If this spider makes the engine its home, the webs it'll inevitably weave could block fuel flow and increase internal pressure. This, in turn, could lead to cracks and fuel leaks that increase the risk of fire, though the automaker claims it has yet to receive complaints about spontaneously combusting sedans.
Edward Snowden used automated web search tools to collect NSA data
It's tempting to imagine that Edward Snowden obtained NSA data through a daring Mission Impossible-style raid, but it now appears that he didn't have to put in much effort. Intelligence officials speaking to the New York Times say that Snowden used a standard web crawler, a tool that typically indexes websites for search engines, to automatically collect the info he wanted. He only needed the right logins to bypass what internal defenses were in place. Since the NSA wasn't walling off content to prevent theft by insiders, the crawler could collect seemingly anything -- and Snowden's Hawaii bureau didn't have activity monitors that would have caught his bot in the act. Whether or not you believe the NSA's intelligence gathering policies justified a leak, it's clear that the agency was partly to blame for its own misfortune.
Robugtix's 3D-printed T8 spiderbot will terrify your friends for $1,350 (video)
Whether they run, jump or swim, there are plenty of robots around to be fearful of. None have quite exacerbated our arachnophobia as much as Robugtix's T8 octopod, however. The 3D-printed spiderbot not only looks the part, but employs 26 servo motors to drive its unnervingly life-like movement. Bigfoot's baked-in "Inverse Kinematics Engine" deals with all of the background computations, so you don't have to be a coding genius to work it. Instead, users send "short and simple commands" to the bot via wireless XBee or any other method you can hook up to its Rx / Tx pins. Expected to ship at the end of September, the T8 is available now for a special pre-order price of $1,350, and you can add $85 to that if you want one of Robugtix's analog-stick controllers for real-time direction. If that sounds a bit pricey, there's another option in the much cuter $250 iitsii hexapod, which is predicted to ship late August. Check out the shudder-inducing video of the T8 below, then follow it up with the iitsii demo to help you forget.
Spider mech infests MechWarrior Online ahead of Double XP weekend
It may not have eight legs or carry hundreds of thousands of its young around on a moist, throbbing abdomen, but MechWarrior Online's new Spider mech is the game's "most maneuverable and agile of all Light Mechs," according to the press release tucked away after the break. The game's new mechanical jam is already available in its store and can also be seen in the gallery below.Since jumping around is universally the most fun thing you can do in a giant robot, we're expecting to see a lot of the Spider during MechWarrior Online's first ever Double XP weekend event, which starts at 1 p.m. Eastern on Friday, January 18 and ends at 1 p.m. Eastern on Monday, January 21. The event's double XP bonuses stack with other XP buffs, so those with Premium accounts will get even more of a boost than they already do.%Gallery-176465%
MechWarrior Online creeps you out with the new Spider mech
OK, so MechWarrior Online's new Spider mech may not look particularly creepy in screenshots, but when you see it in action, you may have a flare up of the old arachnophobia. The Spider is "one of the most maneuverable and agile of the Light Mechs" complete with eight jumpjets and an unmatched turning radius. In addition to the new mech, Piranha Games and Infinite Game Publishing have announced the game's first double XP event running from Friday, January 18 at 10 a.m. PST until Monday, January 21 at 10 a.m. PST. Previous XP bonuses are stackable with this event, so gather together those Founder benefits and premium game time boosts to get the most out of the weekend. Also be sure to check out our MechWarrior Online gallery below, complete with five new screenshots of the Spider mech and two of the upcoming Commando Hero Mech known as Death's Knell, available on January 22.%Gallery-154551% [Source: Piranha Games press release]
eatART's Mondo Spider cruises around CES 2013 (video)
It's sort of like Burning Man meets CES, meets a giant rideable robotic spider. eatART's eight-legged, 1,600 metal arachnid made the trip from Vancouver in order to cruise around the grounds of the Las Vegas Convention Center -- and thankfully we had a great view from our CES trailer. The big bug has been kicking around since 2006, but this is its first trip to the Consumer Electronic Show. We'd tell you more, but it's probably best to just watch the thing in action after the break. Kevin Wong contributed to this report. Follow all the latest CES 2013 news at our event hub.
Tokyoflash Kisai Spider watch goes from concept to wrist-flaunting product (video)
Tokyoflash threw a transparent LED timepiece with a web-like display against the proverbial concept wall earlier this year, and danged if the Kisai Spider didn't stick. The new watch lets you inspect your wrist while attempting to decipher the time or date, which are read from the outside-in through a highly geometrical display of digits -- the above image showing 09:58, for instance. You'll be able to score the dapper device in black and silver brushed stainless steel with a black, blue, green or red display for $159 until this Friday, after which time it'll run an extra twenty bills. For the oh-so-vital instructions on how to to read it, along with ordering info, check the source or video after the break.
This Mars: War Logs trailer shoots lightning
This trailer for Mars: War Logs shows the struggles of Roy Temperance on the fourth planet from the sun, conveniently set to a cool song called "Feel the Sunshine." The Spiders-developed game is coming to PC, XBLA and PSN in Spring 2013.
Infinity Blade 2 updated, Spider goes free for iPad, and a Super Strategy Sale
It's Friday, and if you're looking for something good on iOS to play this weekend, boy howdy, you are in luck. First up, Infinity Blade 2 has been updated recently, adding in a few new expansion packs to play with. And, perhaps more importantly, the game's been updated to work with the iPhone 5's wider screen, as well as to run beautifully on the iPad mini. Odds are that you already own this one, but if not, it's available for $2.99 on the App Store. Second, perhaps in celebration of the new iPad, the critically acclaimed Spider: Secret of Bryce Manor HD has gone completely free. This is a really great game that's a little older, but especially if you play it in full HD on the iPad, offers up a lot of really great exploration and casual puzzle gameplay. The non-HD, iPhone version is also free for a limited time, so grab both while you can. Finally, as if that wasn't enough already, there's also a "Super Strategy Sale" being put together for a few top turn-based strategy games. Rebuild, Call of Cthulu: The Wasted Land, Hunters: Episode One and Episode Two, and Tactical Soldier: Undead Rising are all on sale, most of them available for just 99 cents. There's no shortage of great games to play this weekend, so pick up that new iPad mini and start swiping and tapping.
Mars: War Logs coming to XBLA, PSN and PC in 2013
Of Orcs and Men co-developer Spiders is sending your ass to the red planet. In the vague future of 2013, the developer will release Mars: War Logs – a cyberpunk action-RPG for Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and PC.Despite our wild imagination, the Silk Engine powered-Mars: War Logs isn't a futuristic reboot of that one Ren & Stimpy commercial parody, nor is it a Twin Peaks character simulator in space. "Mars: War Logs offers a wide variety of quests, dynamic tactical combat, and extensive character specialization through different skill trees and a complete craft system," a press release from publisher Focus Home Interactive revealed.Mars: War Logs takes players to the red planet "over a century after the catastrophe that threw the planet and its colonists into chaos." In the game, companies are warring over the limited supply of water found on the arid planet's landscape.As protagonist Roy Temperance, players can customize their combat style by selecting from "dozens of skills and perks," fighting in real-time against the creatures on Mars. Our suspicion is that the final boss will take the highly-evolved form of NASA's Curiosity rover.More details on the game, including an outline of features, can be found in the press release after the break.
The Perfect Ten: Stock fantasy enemies from lamest to coolest
One theory of MMOs is that they represent several parallel universes, each with similarities and differences. This may explain why so many of them claim to be boldly original and yet carry the same monster DNA that exists everywhere else. Today we're going to carefully unpack our ancient collector's edition of stock fantasy enemies. Blow off the dust and smell that nostaglia, mhmm. Sure, they've seen better days, but they're still good, right? Still solid. Still capable of entertaining us, even if we've slaughtered their kin a thousand times over. Let me show you my collection of 10 stock fantasy enemies that we encounter all the time in MMOs. Just for fun, I'm going to order them from lamest to coolest. I would be number 11, by the way.
Leaderboard: Spider vs. pig
If you search the loftiest heights of fantasy, the dank dungeons of horror, the far-out locales of sci-fi, or the war-torn post-apocalyptic highways, chances are you'll stumble upon two creatures that are near-universal in MMOs. Whether you be swinging a sword or firing off compressed photonic bursts, chances are sooner or later you'll face off against a giant spider. And, later on, a giant pig. Pigs and spiders, spiders and pigs: MMO devs do love both equally. They're convenient fodder for heroes to use as training on their way up to slaying dragons, as nobody likes spiders and everyone likes ham and bacon. And while they almost never stand a chance against the never-ending player onslaught, what would happen if spider fought pig in-game? Who would emerge triumphant and who would slink back to its trough/web in shame? Take some time to weigh the pros and cons of each contestant, and let us know which you think would win in a one-on-one scuffle! (And for those of you out there itching to make a spider-pig reference in the comments, I'm preempting you. Booyah.)
This RIFT 1.5 update trailer is approved for all audiences
RIFT's 1.5 update is barreling down the road at us, and woe to the unprepared who will not leap but be squashed beneath its weight. Also, we think that a giant monkey is throwing it whilst guarding a captured princess. In any event, RIFT's fifth major content update looks to be a game-changer in several ways, adding alternative advancement (planar attunement), master-level dungeons, and veteran rewards to the faithful. To celebrate this week's release of Ashes of History, Trion Worlds has put together an impressive trailer full of angels, demons, and the words "Trion Worlds presents" for our viewing pleasure. One interesting detail to note is the apparent addition of a giant spider mount, which will undoubtedly play favorably in the arachnophobic market. You can view the two-minute trailer after the jump! [Thanks to Ren54 for the tip!]
KT's Spider Concept phone is also a laptop, a tablet and a game console (video)
You probably thought Motorola had a lock on this whole docks for your phone thing, but Korean company KT quietly launched an assault on the Atrix manufacturer at IFA. Rather than a single (and underwhelming) "Webtop," KT's Spider Concept has three different accessories that expand the capabilities of the 4.5-inch gingerbread device. The laptop dock adds a QWERTY keyboard, an extended battery and a revamped UI while relying on the phone itself as the touchpad. If keyboards aren't your thing, there's the Spider PAD tablet shell which blows the interface up to 10.1-inches while adding a few slate-friendly tweaks. Last is the gaming dock, a simple cradle with a D-pad and buttons that connects to the Spider via Bluetooth. The phone itself is no slouch, packing 1GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, and a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm processor. Oh, and that 4.5-inch screen? A stunning 1280 x 800 resolution. It's kind of hard to believe all that is jammed into a package just 9.34mm (0.37-inches) thin. The phone is expected to launch in Korea in either November or December, though price and international availability are still up in the air. Check out the pair of videos after the break.
