Monday, April 30, 2012

Commercial space shuttle prototypes fly through wind tunnel testing

Commercial space shuttle prototypes fly through wind tunnel testing

A pair of companies developing their own commercial space shuttles are presumably trying to flatten their hair after some rigorous wind tunnel testing. First up, Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos (the guy behind Amazon), a company that's remained pretty quiet on its efforts to shuttle astronauts to the International Space Station. Its Space Vehicle setup will plump for a biconic shape (seen above), with a flattened side and a split flap. According to Blue Origin's president, Rob Meyerson, the shape allows greater volume than traditional designs, but forgo the "weight penalty" of winged craft. Compared to earlier capsules, the Space Vehicle's shape, with its fuselage flap to generate lift, should also give it better control on re-entry to earth.

Juggling for wind tunnel time, Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser has also been blasted with smoke to test its own air resistance credentials. Its module would lauch from the top of the rocket, and glide (as much as anything that costs this much can) back to earth like NASA's own space shuttles. The Dream Chaser is planning its first flight for this fall. You can check out its more traditional take on the future of space travel after the break -- and decide which of the two you'll want sending your children to the mines.

[Picture credit: Blue Origin, SNC]

Continue reading Commercial space shuttle prototypes fly through wind tunnel testing

Commercial space shuttle prototypes fly through wind tunnel testing originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Apr 2012 09:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rinse And Repeat (talking-points-memo)

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LG Optimus 2X my way: Richard Devine

 

Lg Optimus 2X

Following on the series, it's time to give you guys an insight into how I use my Android phone. Generally, I have two phones on the go, and up until recently one of those was a Samsung Galaxy Nexus. I've now waved goodbye to the Nexus and welcomed into my life a shiny new (and white, most importantly) HTC One X. It would be a pretty short read featuring the One X, so we'll focus on my other daily driver -- my long serving LG Optimus 2X. The 2X is still the phone that runs my "normal" phone number, it's the one that people actually call and text me on -- yeah, people do still do that apparently. So I never leave the house without it. 

After the break, i'll take you through it. 

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Sunday, April 29, 2012

Ask Engadget: best 'money is no object' laptop?

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We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget inquiry is coming to us from Chris, who simply has too much money to blow on a super-laptop. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

"I sold my business and I want to replace my laptop [HP Pavilion G6] with a completely unreasonably expensive top of the line machine. I want it to do everything I do (gaming, coding, web design) all at the same time. Apart from the fact I need two hard drive bays, I'm completely open-minded, so what should I be buying? Thank you!"

Quell your gnashing teeth, members of the 99 percent, he's done well for himself and now he needs our help. We were able to trick out an Alienware M18x to full capacity for $6,700 -- with an over-clocked 4GHz Intel Core i7 CPU, 32GB of RAM, two 2GB NVIDIA GTX 675M GPUs in SLI mode and 1.2TB of SSD RAID storage. That's the benchmark, folks: who out there can find something more powerful?

Ask Engadget: best 'money is no object' laptop? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 Apr 2012 23:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Review: Actors make ?Two Jews Walk into a War' (Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

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Saturday, April 28, 2012

Star Castle finally finds a home on the Atari 2600, gets a redesigned cartridge

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Halo may have made its way to the Atari 2600, but wouldn't porting a retro game to this '70s-era console be more appropriate? MAKE Magazine has the skinny on former Atari dev Scott Williamson's port of the Cinematronics shooter Star Castle. Though Atari execs decided the title was too complicated to bring over in the '80s, Williamson took it upon himself to make that transition possible. The result of some serious coding is 8K of ROM and 128 bytes of RAM's worth of good ol' space war. But he didn't stop there -- he redesigned the cartridge with a transparent casing and LEDs that flash during gameplay. Click through to the source link for the full step-by-step.

Star Castle finally finds a home on the Atari 2600, gets a redesigned cartridge originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Apr 2012 03:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Wanted Out To Prove Boy Bands 'Make Good Music'

'If you like us despite it or because of it, then we're happy,' Jay McGuiness tells MTV News of boy-band label.
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Sway Calloway


The Wanted
Photo: MTV News

It's not always easy being in a boy band. There are a lot of preconceptions for the five guys who choose to sing catchy pop tunes and dance in formation for a living.

Given that boy bands have come in and out of fashion once every decade for the last few years, it should come as no surprise that we are knee-deep in a brand-new boy-band bonanza. This one is being led by this generation's 'NSYNC and Backstreet Boys: One Direction and the Wanted.

When MTV News sat down with the Wanted to premiere their "Chasing the Sun" video, they chatted a bit about being labeled a "boy band."

"Eventually, we were, like, over it," Jay McGuiness explained. "If you like us despite it or because of it, then we're happy."

Well, something is working for the guys. Their lead U.S. single, "Glad You Came," has topped the charts, and they are once again getting people dancing with "Chasing the Sun," from their just-released debut U.S. EP. It's a good time to be in a boy band, thanks to all the love out there for them. And it's an even better time to be in the Wanted.

It seems that their success might have a lot to do with the way they've approached their boy-band career thus far. "We went out there and we're like, 'You know what? I think we can change people's perspectives of the '90s boy bands,' " Tom Parker explained. "And that was our aim: just to make good music."

Voting in round two of MTV's Battle of the Boy Bands runs until noon ET on Monday, April 30. Winners are determined by fan votes, so if your favorite band made the cut, make sure you keep voting. Tune in to AMTV and MTV Hits for their boy-band video takeovers each day and make sure to spread the word on Twitter using the hashtag #BBB and like us on Facebook for updates!


Vote for your favorite band, discuss and share on Facebook and Twitter in the MTV Battle of the Boy Bands interactive bracket!

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Krugman calls out Ben Bernanke?"he's been assimilated by the Borg" (Americablog)

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'Django Unchained' First Look: Leonardo DiCaprio Heads South

Quentin Tarantino's Western also stars Christoph Waltz.
By Kevin P. Sullivan


Leonardo DiCaprio in "Django Unchained"
Photo: Columbia Pictures/EW

For years, Quentin Tarantino has toyed with the Western, peppering homages to directors like Sergio Leone into "Kill Bill" and "Inglourious Basterds," but now the director is finally taking on the genre with "Django Unchained," albeit in his own twisted way.

Most of Tarantino's secrets have stayed on the set, but Thursday (April 26) Entertainment Weekly debuted the first official look at just how far west Tarantino is going in "Django Unchained."

What separates the film from your usual Western is that it's actually what Tarantino calls a "southern," taking place primarily in the pre-Civil War South. The first photos show off the unique style of the film and reveal what Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio and Christoph Waltz will look like when "Django Unchained" opens in theaters on December 25.

The photo of Foxx and Waltz could be straight out of a traditional Western. Foxx, as title character Django, carries his saddle over his shoulder and wears a prototypical cowboy hat. His companion, Dr. King Schultz, played by Waltz, is a German dentist-turned-bounty-hunter, and his more sophisticated getup reflects that.

It isn't until we see DiCaprio's evil plantation owner, Calvin Candie, that we find the connection to the Deep South. In the photo, DiCaprio is dressed up like a fine Southern gentleman, but he poses menacingly with a hammer in his hand.

EW spoke with Foxx about working on the sure-to-be controversial film, which addresses slavery like never before.

"There's a beautiful way [Tarantino] found for the characters to talk to each other. It's mind-blowing. You've never heard it this way," Fox told the magazine. "You've seen movies deal with slavery — or Westerns that never dealt with slavery — do it the safe way. This way is like ... wow."

Check out everything we've got on "Django Unchained."

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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The MacPad Will Come - but Software Convergence Will Come First

Despite all the fantastic numbers delivered by Apple when it revealed its latest fiscal quarterly profits this week -- such as an eye-popping 94 percent net profit year-to-year increase -- one question and one rambling answer from Apple CEO Tim Cook made me sit up in my chair. The question: Will Apple create a converged iPad/MacBook with a built-in keyboard?


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London Olympics Will Have World's Largest McDonald's Fast-Food Restaurant [Olympics]

The London 2012 Olympics, athletic event to top all athletic events, will be honored with the installment of the largest McDonald's fast-food restaurant on Earth. Seems a little ironic, no? [Eater via FoodBeast - Images via McDonald's / Flickr]
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