STUFF: News, Technology, the cool and the plain weird

[polarbear]

SODASTREAM MIX

Sodastream has had a pretty good lock on the home soda-making kit business over the past few years, so it only makes sense that the company is ready to expand its reach to some more adult beverages. Behold the Sodastream Mix, your new way to carbonate anything.

From a crisp Mojito to a fizzy Gimlet, the ability to bubble up your drinks now comes with the press of a button. A built-in touchscreen lets you choose from a wide array of mixed drink recipes, and it then recommends the exact amount of carbonation needed based on the ingredients. The device itself features a premium finish, sturdy metal base, machine washable parts, and Bluetooth connectivity so you can control all the action from your phone. [Purchase]

I'm curious to see how it actually works

I mean, do you just put everything in the bottle and it mixes/carbonates it for you?

[Habana Mike]

You'll Be Able To Watch Hi-Def, Live Feeds From The ISS Soon

Who needs a bird’s eye view when you could go with an astronaut’s? One company’s partnering with NASA to give us just that.

Vancouver-based UrtheCast installed two cameras aboard the International Space Station via a Soyuz rocket in 2013, in a mission to “democratise the Earth Observation industry”. From your computer, tablet, or smartphone, you can gawk at our blue marble in near-real time online. The cams’ coverage area is 51 to -51 degrees latitude, a belt from Chile to England that packs in 90 per cent of the population, the company says.

Soon, UrtheCast will be streaming in ultra HD, providing 60-second videos at 30 frames a second. It says it’s the sole company that provides colour, 4K video of Earth from space. The service’s basic account is free, allowing users to subscribe to views of certain locations or big world events.

This type of platform could obviously offer benefits, from climate change monitoring to planning disaster relief. But plain ol’, red-blooded, space-lovin’ civilians can enjoy too: Crack open a beer and look for your apartment complex as seen from 320km above. (Check the paranoia though — the 1.1m res video cam and 5.5m res still cam can capture stuff like cars and buildings, but can’t make out faces or licence plate numbers.)

In a press release yesterday, UrtheCast CEO and co-founder Scott Larson said the high definition streaming would begin this summer. Watch this video from February that captured UrtheCast’s initial images from space, including footage of Jamaica, Rome and Dubai.

Hubble has space porn covered, but is geography porn a thing? Geo porn? Dunno, but these views could end up being the coolest maps ever.

"This type of platform could obviously offer benefits, from climate change monitoring to planning disaster relief. But plain ol’, red-blooded, space-lovin’ civilians can enjoy too: Crack open a beer and look for your apartment complex as seen from 320km above. (Check the paranoia though — the 1.1m res video cam and 5.5m res still cam can capture stuff like cars and buildings, but can’t make out faces or licence plate numbers.)"

Well, yeah. The general public can't, but believe me there are agencies with 10x or more the resolution available. NRO?

[MIKA27]

Two Ways You Can Join Nepal's Earthquake Relief Effort From A Computer

There are a few important ways you can contribute to the Nepal earthquake relief effort from anywhere in the world with an internet connection.

Mapping Relief Routes

If you’ve got a keen eye and a bit of patience, consider aiding the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team(HOT) in their effort to trace disaster relief routes. HOT is a web-based organisation that applies principles of open source and open data sharing for humanitarian purposes. In response to yesterday’s earthquake, HOT is still in the early stages of mapping roads into remote mountainous regions, and they need all the help they can get. These roads are going to be critical in days ahead, as ground-based rescue and relief efforts work to navigate the rugged terrain.

The best place to get up-to-date information about HOT’s response is via the HOT 2015 Nepal Earthquake wiki coordination page. Here you can find mapping tasks that are currently in progress, select a region, and start tracing routes yourself.

Supporting Disaster Through PayPal

Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a per capita income of $US62.50 a month, according to the World Bank.

There are a number of different humanitarian aid groups, including World Vision, American Red Cross and UNICEF, that have mobilized to accept disaster donations toward disaster relief.

Now, PayPal has stepped forward to streamline the process even further, allowing you to give any amount you choose to one of 11 charitable organisations. PayPal is covering all costs associated with these donations, ensuring that 100 per cent of your contribution will be sent to the organisation of your choosing via the PayPal Giving Fund.

The magnitude 7.8 quake that rocked Nepal late Saturday morning was the largest in over 80 years. As of this morning, there were over 2,000 reported casualties, according to a rolling report by The Guardian. Hundreds more may still remain trapped under piles of rubble.

[MIKA27]

State of Emergency Declared in Maryland

A state of emergency and a one-week curfew have been put in place as police and protesters continue to clash amid smoke and rubber bullets in Baltimore. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake placed a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew on the city that will begin on Tuesday. "It's idiotic to think that by destroying your city you're going to make life better for anybody," she said in a press conference. Earlier in the evening, Governor Larry Hogan announced a state of emergency for Maryland and asked the National Guard to assist in efforts to subdue the riotous crowds that set fire to a CVS and injured at least seven police officers. "Today's looting and acts of violence in Baltimore will not be tolerated," Hogan wrote in a post on Facebook in which he condemned the violence of demonstrators and promised to prosecute them "under the full extent of the law." At least 27 people have been arrested during the riots so far, and police say they will be working to identify more from social media and video footage.

[MIKA27]

PISTON LAMP

We’ve seen all manner of motorcycle derived lamps over the past few years, but I’m reasonably certain that this one by Andrew Ziec is amongst the best we’ve ever had on Silodrome. Andrew is a machinist and fabricator who works in a small shop that specialises in creating prototypes and low volume production runs, in his spare time he works on motorcycles and occasionally creates furniture and homewares.

The lamp you see here was created for a friend who wanted something unique for her father, the two agreed on a motorcycle-inspired lamp concept and Andrew began raiding the parts bin for suitable donor bits and pieces. He decided to use a Yamaha XS650 piston as the head, with two XS650 connecting rods at the arm, a large gear for the base and a motorcycle ignition switch as the on/off mechanism.

The completed lamp is fully adjustable thanks to the ball joints used in the arm, and light is provided by a long-lasting LED bulb. If you’d like to commission him to build you a lamp or something similar you can contact him here via his Facebook Page, alternatively you can click the Purchase link to see his current stock on Etsy. [Purchase]

[MIKA27]

SpaceX Prepares Falcon 9 For Launch -- And Reminds Us How Big Rockets Are

This picture shows SpaceX preparing its Falcon 9 rocket for launch at Cape Canaveral later today. If all goes well — and currently there’s a 60 per cent chance of favourable weather — the launch will take place during a 90-minute window which starts at 6.14pm EDT (8.14am AEST).

The picture’s also a nice reminder of the sense of scale of SpaceX’s rockets. Its size is important, after all: this launch will see the rocket carry Turkmenistan’s Ministry of Communications first satellite into space.

[MIKA27]

UK Cinema Workers Can Earn $1500 For Catching "Cammers" In The Act

If you work at a UK movie theatre, there’s never been a better time to go pirate hunting. Until June 30th, UK cinema employees can receive up to 1000 British pounds, or almost $2000, for catching would-be bootleggers in the act.

Movie theatres often find themselves a front line in the fight against pre-release film piracy. Recently, UK film distributors and the Hollywood-backed Federation Against Copyright Theft program have been stepping up their efforts to stamp out “cammers” by offering cash rewards to cinema employees who report illegal filming to the police. Now, for a limited time, FACT is upping the ante even further, by increasing the maximum cammer-bagging reward to 1000 pounds — which is no small bonus for a low-wage worker.

Punishments for recording and distributing bootlegged movies can be severe, and clearly, FACT has a vested interest in publicizing the ill fate that befalls cammers. But sometimes, in their enthusiasm to bewell paid good samaritans, employees can be a bit quick to cry criminal activity. In December 2014, a UK cinema worker dialled the police after spotting a group of 12 year old girls with iPhones and iPads out at a showing of The Hunger Games. The girls, who were pulled out of the movie, reportedly went home in tears after the police search turned up nothing.

Handsome cash rewards may help bag a few additional bootleggers, but it will also be interesting to see whether the new effort impacts the average citizen’s movie-going experience. Sure, you’re not supposed to use your phone at the movies anyway, but I don’t think anybody’s going to be too happy when the police are called over a little texting.

[MIKA27]

Project Cars. 15 Minutes. 60 Frames Per Second. 1080p. Helmet Cam

I know, video games are not numbers. But sometimes numbers are sexy. Particularly when it comes to Project Cars. Want to watch this game running on the PS4 in Helmet Cam mode, at full resolution, 60 frames per second? I know you do. Just give in.

Veni Vidi Vici, has a whole host of these videos, showcasing the game’s ‘realistic’ helmet cam. The helmet cam sort of works like that Need For Speed 2 Unleashed had back in the day. Some purists see it as the best way to experience racing games, particularly one’s with a commitment to real physics like Project Cars.

But really, for me, this is just an excuse to get all excited about how good the game looks. And I don’t even enjoy racing simulators that much. This is pure graphics porn for me. Pour it into my eyeballs, damn the consequences.

Crank the settings high, slam that baby into full-screen and enjoy.

You can watch way more of this video game pornography here.

[MIKA27]

Adam Sandler Has Finally Found the Limits of 'Satire'

A group of cast and crew members walked off the set of the comedian's latest film, The Ridiculous 6, after objecting to the comedian's treatment of Native Americans.

Does Adam Sandler have an expiration date? Does his particular brand of slapstick—humor that's infused with a wan self-deprecation, that manages to be simultaneously silly and sociopathic, that once found Sandler punching Bob Barker in the face while informing him that "the price is wrong, *****"—hold up? Is Sandler's own price now, finally, wrong?

Recent events would suggest yes. Late last week, in the course of filming Sandler's newest project, the made-for-Netflix Western spoof The Ridiculous 6, a Native-American cultural advisor and several performers and extras walked off the set in protest. (Sample characters: Beaver Breath, No Bra, Sits-on-Face. Sample line: "Say honey: how about after this, we go someplace and I put my peepee in your teepee?")

As Allison Young, a Navajo actress who quit after being asked to do a scene"requiring her to fall down drunk, surrounded by jeering white men who rouse her by dousing her with more alcohol" told the Indian Country Media Network, “We talked to the producers about our concerns. They just told us, ‘If you guys are so sensitive, you should leave.’”

Leave they did. In response to which Netflix gave an explanation that is so predictable as to be a cliche: “The movie has ridiculous in the title for a reason: because it is ridiculous. It is a broad satire of Western movies and the stereotypes they popularized, featuring a diverse cast that is not only part of—but in on—the joke.”

First, of course, members of that "diverse cast" walking off set in protest would seem to suggest that they are not, in fact, in on the joke. Second, though, there's the claim that Ridiculous 6 is a "broad satire of Western movies." Which brings us back to the half-life of Sandler's comedy. Is Ridiculous 6 abiding by, or violating,Poe's Law? Has Sandler earned the right to claim, as Netflix does on his behalf, the moral amnesty of satire?

Sandler's films—the fart-joke-studded comedies, at any rate, that he's best known for—are, of course, ridiculous. But slapstick and satire are extremely different things. With the Ridiculous 6 controversy, the Sandlerian approach to the world—comedy that is smug and self-deprecating at once, comedy that both celebrates underdogs and revels in the cruelties flung at the them, comedy that is accountable to nothing but itself—is attempting to claim the mantle of cultural criticism. Here is a collection of juvenile jokes, the stuff of the tween boys and locker rooms, colliding with a trend that is sometimes derided as "p.c. culture," but that can also be understood more broadly as empathy culture. Here is Sandler's ethic of whimsical sociopathy being forced to reckon with the occasionally inconvenient fact that movies operate society.

The films of Sandler's "ridiculous" genre do, indeed, violate Poe's law. But that's not because they're offensive. It's because they're insipid. Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore and Grown Ups and Jack and Jill ... these films give no indication that they are self-aware or remotely critical of the subjects they take on. They may deal, if tangentially, with serious topics—race (Blended) and *** marriage (I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry) and, um, the Arab-Israeli conflict (You Don't Mess With the Zohan)—but they lack evidence of the intellectual infrastructure that is a basic requirement of satire.

Compare Sandler's stuff to the work of, say, Louis C.K., whose jokes take on sexism and entitlement and complicated ideas of privilege and the lack of it. Or to the work of Key and Peele or Sarah Silverman or Nick Kroll or Chelsea Peretti or pretty much any other comedian who's ascendant right now. Their films and shows and sets resonate with the culture. The questions society grapples with collectively—matters of race and gender and class—seem to guide them. There's a sense of animating generosity in their work, even when it involves fart jokes.

And then here is Adam Sandler, making a movie whose costumes don't bother to distinguish between the Apache and the Comanche and whose script involves the direction, "Sits-on-Face squats down behind the teepee and pees, while lighting up a peace pipe."

Last year, the Vulture film critic Bilge Ebiri claimed that Sandler "might be the most important comedian of his generation," attributing the importance in large part to "the Sandler persona’s simmering, nuclear self-hate." As an actor, Ebiri noted, Sandler "plays both the shtick and the heart at the same level of non-commitment"—a tendency that "might be annoying to some (okay, many ... fine, most) critics, but it could be the key to Sandler’s appeal. Maybe it’s what makes him more like the average American."

Maybe. The problem is that the indolent sense of self-loathing extends, in Sandler's films, beyond the characters he plays. The loathing here is equal-opportunity. Fat jokes. Asian jokes. Women jokes. Everyone is a target; and the impression this gives is not of Sandler as a kind of omnivorous satirist, but rather of Sandler as someone who is willfully unthinking about his mockery of other people. As the Chicago Tribune's Michael Phillips put it, "People of color, to say nothing of women, who have been marginalized, patronized or humiliated by a stupid joke in an Adam Sandler movie over the last few years constitute the biggest club in modern Hollywood. And until last week, that club was one of the least heralded, if only because its members have been putting up with the demeaning treatment for a century."

They aren't anymore. And that's a good thing for filmmaking, even if it's less of a good thing for the making of Ridiculous 6.

Sandler's comedy is based, above everything else, on entitlement. Even his slapstickiest characters suggest that the sheer fact of wanting—a woman, an inheritance, a trophy—is enough to entitle them to the objects of their desire. They are privileged, like Sandler himself, but they do the worst thing one can do with privilege: They take it for granted. Netflix's defense of its collaboration with Sandler is similar in its blithe self-absorption: The whole project is proposing to avenge a group of people who have long found themselves on the receiving end of Hollywood's mockery by way of jokes about peepees and teepees.

The filmmakers are defining "satire" according to the people telling the jokes—rather than the people who are meant to be doing the laughing.

[MIKA27]

MANSORY CARBONADO BLACK DIAMOND LAMBORGHINI AVENTADOR LP700-4

If you were making a list of all the cars in the world that needed a makeover, the Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 would be way at the bottom. But that’s the vehicle Mansory chose to bless with a host of aesthetic and performance upgrades, and we can’t say we’re not impressed.

The Carbonado Black Diamond limited edition uses the same 6.5 liter V12 engine, but here it’s given two turbochargers which help it produce a staggering 1250 horsepower, almost double the vehicle’s normal 690 hp. That means 0-62 now happens in a breathtaking 2.6 seconds with a top speed of 236 mph. But there’s more than just a new level of neck-whipping speed, as the Carbonado features all-over black carbon fiber, a striking skirt with optimized air intakes for improved ventilation of the front radiator, a front lip spoiler, and exchanged front wing and bonnet on the outside. The interior boasts non-slip aluminum pedals and a newly positioned starter button. No word yet on a price or potential availability.

[MIKA27]

RAY-BAN CLUBMASTER WOOD

Ray-Ban’s iconic Clubmasters have long been one our favorite pairs of sunglasses, and over the years, Ray-Ban has been introducing the shades in a variety of materials and styles for fans. This summer is no different as we get our first look at the Ray-Ban Clubmaster Wood.

The market for wooden sunglasses has certainly been heating up in recent years, as brands like Shwood have come out of nowhere and become serious players doing nothing more than designing wooden sunglasses. The frame is that classic silhouette we all know and love, constructed from your choice of either walnut, maple or cherry. The frames are available with standard or polarized lenses for blocking out the sun, and you can even scoop these up in an optical style, making them your new prescription frames.

[MIKA27]

GOLFBOARD

GolfBoard is the latest, and coolest means of transportation around the golf course. GolfBoard ads a little excitement and radical edge to the classic game of golf, plus it eliminates the sedentary activity of sitting in a cart. The electric GolfBoard is intuitive to operate and easy to ride, it has four-wheel-drive and can cruise at speeds up to 14mph, letting you enjoy the terrain of the course like never before.

[MIKA27]

SPOOL DOCK

Spool Dock is a beautifully crafted iPhone dock, made from premium materials. It is compatible with Apple’s Lightning Connector and works with iPhone 6 and iPhone 5 models plus the iPad mini. It also accommodates devices with or without case, simply take out the support bars and turn them around to increase the space to accommodate a case. The functional dock also manages your cables, keeping your space neat and tidy, simply thread your cable trough the device and snap it to the base, you can then rotate it until your desired length, and reel it in when not in use or when traveling.

[MIKA27]

SHINOLA RUNWELL CONTRAST CHRONO

Detroit watchmakers Shinola, have released another striking timepiece, a larger version(47mm) of their popular Runwell Contrast Chrono. The chronograph watch is powered by the Detroit-built Argonite 5030 high-accuracy quartz movement, and features a scratch-resistant sapphire crystal, stainless steel case with PVD plating, and signature iconic case back plate with laser-etched serial number. Available now in three styles.

[MIKA27]

FIIO X5 LOSSLESS MUSIC PLAYER

The iPod classic might be dead, but the idea lives on in the Fiio X5 Lossless Music Player.

Designed to handle the most detailed digital audio tracks available, it supports DSD, APE, FLAC, ALAC, WMA, and WAV files, and has two microSD card slots for up to 256GB of storage. The 2.4" IPS screen is easy on the eyes when making song selections, the DAC and amps promise dynamic, accurate sound reproduction, and the matte black anodized aluminum unibody construction means it feels as good as it sounds.

[MIKA27]

This Tiny Robot Can Pull Weights 2000 Times Heavier Than Itself

Scientists from Stanford have developed a series of super-small, super-strong robots — including this one, that can haul up to 24kg, despite weighing less than 15g. That’s like you pulling a blue whale.

New Scientist reports that the Stanford lab has been busy building a series of super-strong robots, all of which are based around adhesive feet inspired by geckos. It describes how it works:

The adhesives are covered in minute rubber spikes that grip firmly onto the wall as the robot climbs. When pressure is applied, the spikes bend, increasing their surface area and thus their stickiness. When the robot picks its foot back up, the spikes straighten out again and detach easily.

The results include a 9g robot that cal pull over 900g as it climbs walls and a tiny 20mg bot — put together under a microscope — that can carry 500mg. The researchers reckon robots like these could be scaled up and used in the future to haul heavy loads around factories and building site.

[MIKA27]

Johnny Depp Makes For A Terrifying Dinner Guest In Black Mass Trailer

Johnny Depp has played Dillinger and Donnie Brasco, and this fall he’ll take on another famous gangster, Whitey Bulger. The trailer for Black Mass suggests the action will take place during Bulger’s 1970s heyday, but his tale has a contemporary hook: he was captured just four years ago after 16 on the run.

He was 81 when he was finally nabbed in Santa Monica, far from his South Boston stomping grounds (he’s now serving time for multiple convictions, including his part in 11 murders). He had more than just his presence on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted List to worry about, since he’d been outed as an informant just a few years after he fled racketeering charges.

The FBI had a breakthrough in the case after it shifted its attentions from the notorious fugitive to his longtime partner, Catherine Greig, and launched a PSA in states where it was thought the couple might be hiding. The strategy worked, and a tipster came through. According to an FBI press release that went out shortly after the 2011 arrest:

The PSA focused on the 60-year-old Greig’s physical appearance, habits, and personality traits and was directed specifically at women who might come in contact with her at places such as the beauty parlor or doctor’s office. After the PSA began to air, hundreds of tips flowed into the FBI, and one of them led to the arrest Wednesday night in a residence near Los Angeles.

“We were trying to reach a different audience to produce new leads in the case,” said Richard Teahan, a special agent in our Boston office who leads a task force that has searched for Bulger around the world. “We believed that locating Greig would lead us to Bulger. And that’s exactly what happened.”

In the above trailer for Black Mass, Depp’s Bulger turns the revelation of a “secret family recipe” for steak into a pants-wettingly scary dinner conversation.

[Duxnutz]

I'm curious to see how it actually works

I mean, do you just put everything in the bottle and it mixes/carbonates it for you?

I think there's a plaque fitted to the sodastream that says "not for use with Bundaberg Rum".

[MIKA27]

I think there's a plaque fitted to the sodastream that says "not for use with Bundaberg Rum".

[polarbear]

I think there's a plaque fitted to the sodastream that says "not for use with Bundaberg Rum".

That's ok

I wouldn't trust it to mix such a masterpiece anyway

[MIKA27]

How IKEA Could Change Jet Cockpit Design

Spending the day at IKEA is a fun treat in the best of times, a relationship-destroying nightmare in the worst. For one Airbus designer though, following the yellow arrows around the bins of votive candles and wall hooks was a breakthrough moment.

The cockpit of any aeroplane is the result of millions of hours of research and development. It takes years, sometimes decades, to study and analyse the best way to design them. Even then, ideas about the most ergonomic setup — both physically and mentally — are always evolving. And since simulators are very, very expensive, mocking up new designs can be a huge chore.

An Airbius A380 aircraft in 2010.

Airbus recently posted an interesting story about the way its designers dealt with the problem. A systems designer named Raphael Andre, who works at Airbus’ facilities in France, was shopping for cheap flatpack furniture when he realised it would be a good way to mock-up cockpits. “After a trip to look at some furniture (at IKEA), it occurred to me that a simple-to-construct, wooden version of a cockpit would do the job very well,” he says in an Airbus’ release.

So he started mocking up prototype cockpits made out of cardboard and wood, which needed zero hardware or tools to put together. Just pull the pieces out, slide them together, and viola — a mockup of a cockpit in minutes, rather than months.

According to Airbus, the system has migrated into different industries. Continental — which makes a lot of the dashboard interiors for major automakers — is now using to to test its own designs. Meanwhile,Australia Business Traveller says the system was used to design the cockpit of the A380.

It’s no wonder that plane makers are investing in cockpit design research. A debate has raged for years about how cockpit design — and its increasing digitization — affects pilot performance.

For example, the 2012 crash of Air France Flight 447 was partially blamed on the design of the Airbus A330-200 cockpit. The junior pilot at the controls panicked, and through a series of maneuvers, manipulated the plane into a state where it was likely to stall.

Because of the design of the side stick he was using to shift the plane’s position, his superiors didn’t realise what was happening until it was too late. Both The Telegraph and Co.Design have pointed out that the design — which was intended to simplify and streamline flying — actually contributed to the crash.

This is just one issue in a larger discussion about how planes should be designed in the post-digital era, when humans at the controls are increasingly optional. A recent New York Times article about autonomous planes looked at what human pilots still have to offer. As the Air Line Pilots Association put it:

A pilot on board an aircraft can see, feel, smell or hear many indications of an impending problem and begin to formulate a course of action before even sophisticated sensors and indicators provide positive indications of trouble.

For the past 40 years, cockpit design has moving towards automation — where algorithms and artificial intelligence can take some of the complexity and human errors out of flight. But increasingly, pilots and plane designers are questioning whether taking information away from humans is the best solution. Wouldn’t a better solution be to design a cockpit that looked closely at how humans function under extreme physical and mental stress, while being buffeted with information, rather than simply subtracting more and more of that information without close study?

That’s why planemakers are so interested in mitigating the digital overload of the modern-day cockpit — and why testing their ideas with real humans is so vital. At Airbus, at least, some of that research will be faster and simpler to carry out thanks to simplified setups like Andre’s.

[MIKA27]

Watch DARPA's Scary Self-Guided Bullets Swerve To Hit Moving Objects

Military researchers at DARPA have been developing ammunition which can change its path in mid-air to ensure it always hits its target. Now, it can even correct itself mid-flight to hit a moving target.

The Department’s Extreme Accuracy Tasked Ordnance (EXACTO) is a .50 calibre bullet that manoeuvres itself as it travels through the air. It’s far from clear how it works — “the system combines a manoeuvrable bullet and a real-time guidance system to track and deliver the projectile to the target,” says DARPA — but it’s now effective enough to swerve and dive to hit a moving target.

In a video released by DARPA, a trained sniper uses the system to reliably hit a target that starts moving once the shot is taken.

But, unnervingly, it also manages to hit the spot when an untrained user of the sniper rifle takes a shot. The Department claims that it will “improve sniper effectiveness and enhance troop safety by allowing greater shooter standoff range and reduction in target engagement timelines.” We just hope it stays firmly in the battlefield, given how effective it is in the hands of the untrained.

[MIKA27]

Bold Profile Photo Of The F-35 Makes It Look Like A Future Space Fighter

The F-35 Lightning II is a comically expensive fighter jet with a host of problems but one thing you can’t deny: it can sure look badass. Like badass in the being able to see a glimpse of the future today badass. Like badass as in this flying killer machine totally looks like it’s from a sci-fi movie badass.

[MIKA27]

Researchers Can Create Scents That Smell Like Departed Loved Ones

We all have a smell — one that those closest to us grow to love (or at least tolerate). Now, a team of researchers is able to recreate the natural aroma of loved ones once they have passed away, allowing them to live on. In our noses.

The Guardian reports that Katia Apalategui’s mother struggled to get over the death of her husband, and kept the pillowcase he used close to her to remember how he smelled. That sparked an idea for Apalategui, who has now been working with Havre university to recreate the smell of humans from scraps of their old belongings. They have now developed a technique to extract the key aroma from a person’s clothing, replicating it with at least 100 aromatic compounds to create a bottle of scent in four days. The service will soon launch as a business too, according to Apalategui:

“We are going through funeral homes to offer families a small box containing a vial of the departed’s odour that we would have extracted from a piece of material provided by them… It’s made-to-measure and will sell for around 560 euros ($US600).”

She hopes that it’s not just a way to remember the deceased, though, suggesting it could be given to mothers, lovers and others who miss the smell of loved ones when they’re away. Would you buy a bottle?

[MIKA27]

The Attack On Titan Movie Is Totally Coming To Australian Cinemas

Attack on Titan is the closest thing we have to a new ‘big’ anime — like a new Naruto or Bleach or Dragon Ball. As such its manga turned anime is about get the live-action cinematic treatment. Surprise: the movie doesn’t look terrible, and it’s set to get a cinematic release in Australia.

The super vague release date, at this point, is 2015 but distributor Madman has promised more details will be available soon.

The truth is that Attack on Titan doesn’t even have a firm release date in Japan. At the moment it’s ‘Summer 2015′, which means ‘Winter 2015’in our hemisphere. Attack on Titan is extremely popular in the West, however, so I would hope for a relatively quick turnaround.

For now, might as well check out the brand new trailer for the movie. I’m actually intrigued. Looks way, way better than I expected.