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

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'Jurassic Park 4' flies in the face of science by cutting feathered dinosaurs

The Jurassic Park franchise is set to return next summer, but much has changed in our understanding of dinosaurs since Steven Spielberg's raptors first made audiences hold onto their butts back in 1993. It's now accepted that many of them were covered in feathers, for example, with dinosaurs' role in the evolution of birds more clearly defined. It appears, however, that Jurassic Park 4 director Colin Trevorrow is unconcerned by such discoveries.

Trevorrow hasn't gone into further details — if the post is legitimate, the director doesn't seem to be the most prolific of Twitter userswith only 186 tweets, 2,334 followers, and an unverified account. Presumably he is concerned about preserving the legacy and continuity of Jurassic Park; the original movie wasn't a paragon of scientific accuracy itself, with its six-foot-tall doorknob-turning velociraptors and venom-spitting dilophosaurs.Jurassic Park III, on the other hand, featured velociraptors that had something approaching plumage on their heads and necks, though this was more of a token nod to science rather than strict faithfulness to paleontology.

But the simple announcement has sparked some controversy online nonetheless. Science writer Brian Switek took to his Laelaps blog at National Geographic to bemoan the lack of feathers, arguing that the movie will "turn its back on a critical aspect of dinosaur lives."

"Velociraptor was definitely a feathery dinosaur, and Tyrannosaurus probably was, as well. In fact, other dinosaurs more distantly-related to birds - such as Triceratops - at least sometimes sported swaths of bristles, quills, or similar body coverings in addition to the pebbly tubercles of their skin. Dinosaurs were far stranger and flashier than anyone expected... if Velociraptor and Tyrannosaurus are reprising their roles, these dinosaurs should certainly have some kind of plumage. That comes right from fossil evidence and evolutionary logic."

Paleontologist Mark Witton agrees, saying on his blog that Jurassic Park 4 will miss a "terrific chance to affirm modern concepts of dinosaur palaeobiology with a wide audience" if it leaves out feathers entirely, and questions if Trevorrow's tweet was either a marketing stunt or an attempt to test the waters with the fanbase. After all, there's very little information on the movie as of yet; the Safety Not Guaranteed director's involvement was first reported by Deadline under two weeks ago.

Jurassic Park 4 marks a major step up in profile for Trevorrow, and it's understandable that he may want to assuage fans' fears of a radical departure for Jurassic Park. But the nature of the announcement doesn't necessarily bode well for the upcoming movie — as Switek argues, "there is something undeniably unsettling and scary about envisioning a Velociraptor cleaning blood from its colorful plumage after a kill."

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North Korea Photoshops Its Hovercraft Fleet To Make It Look Less Terrible

There’s nothing like a little Photoshop touch-up to make your navy look more toned, suppled and fearsome than it ever really good be. First, Iran used a little editing magic to put its jets “in the air”, and now North Korea is getting in on the fun as well.

A recent glamour shot of the nation’s recent hovercraft exercise shows a couple of its models looking suspiciously similar.

The photo, handed out to the media by the Korean Central News Agency, looks pretty suspect according to a some sleuthing done by The Atlantic. Specifically, a pair of hovercrafts in the background and another pair in the foreground are pretty obvious copies.

Here, see for yourself:

You can really see it if you take a closer look.

But if you’re going to go with photo-editing over building more military vehicles, you might want to put a little more time in. And you definitely don’t want to stop at two.

You can hop over to The Atlantic for an in-depth look at the digital tomfoolery. Better luck next time!

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Fishmonger Finds Live Bomb Inside Squid’s Stomach

A Chinese fishmonger was going about his business when he randomly discovered a bomb… inside the stomach of a squid he was gutting. Apparently, a 1.4kg squid had swallowed an eight-inch bomb on accident. The bomb was live.

Fortunately, the fishmonger managed to escape unscathed. His knifework discovered the bomb, which he speculates got in the squid’s stomach, because the squid had mistook it for “small fish and prawns”. The fishmonger hilariously added:

“Perhaps he thought the bomb was his favourite food and gulped it down. He certainly had a big belly when he was caught.”

What’s fascinating is that no one knows where the eggplant shaped bomb originated from. Local authorities have assumed that it was an explosive dropped off by fighter jets, but the bomb is undated. Even though its age was unknown and that it didn’t look like a “bomb” (in the sense of what you imagine when you think bomb), it was still active and could have been detonated.

The bomb squad is a bomb squid, I guess.

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Watch The Wolverine Trailer Now

Did somebody flick a switch in Hollywood and accidentally release a whole load of trailers, or something? Not that I’m complaining, mind you. That would get in the way of some sweet Wolverine action.

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Watch The New Iron Man 3 Teaser Trailer Now

As the hype ramps up for Iron Man 3, the latest teaser trailer doesn’t focus on Tony Stark, instead looking at a significantly beefed up Pepper Potts role.

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The Sne Stand Cradles Your iPad In Its Graceful Curve

We’ve all spent a lifetime staring at TVs a couple of metres away, so it makes sense that man lacks the requisite strength to hold a tablet for prolonged viewing sessions. Resorting to a stand is nothing to be ashamed of, particularly if it has the graceful curves of the sne.

Each stand is hand-made from Baltic Birch plywood. In the landscape orientation, it holds your iPad at a comfortable 40-degree angle without hindering access to any of its buttons. There are no product shots of it being used in a portrait orientation, but, presumably, it’s not impossible — just not ideal.

Only 2000 of the snes are being produced, which helps explain the $US90 price tag for what is essentially a warped piece of wood.

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Watch The Wolverine Trailer Now

Did somebody flick a switch in Hollywood and accidentally release a whole load of trailers, or something? Not that I’m complaining, mind you. That would get in the way of some sweet Wolverine action.

Watch The New Iron Man 3 Teaser Trailer Now

As the hype ramps up for Iron Man 3, the latest teaser trailer doesn’t focus on Tony Stark, instead looking at a significantly beefed up Pepper Potts role.

Just....so....AWESOME.

Looks like my cigar budget this year is going to be impacted by my movie-theatre budget!!!!

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Man Caught Smuggling Almost 14% Of An Entire Species

Last week at the Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, authorities arrested a Thai man after discovering 54 Ploughshare Tortoises in a suitcase he retrieved from a luggage carousel.

That’s a lot of tortoises, particularly when you consider that the Ploughshare is one of the rarest species on the planet, numbering just 400 around the world.

The man was also found to be in possession of 21 Radiated Tortoises which are on the critically endangered species list as well, so authorities are pretty much convinced he was part of a larger smuggling ring hellbent on monopolizing rare turtles. And you thought you were badass stealing that one passenger’s newspaper when he went to the bathroom.

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Razer Edge Review: So Heavy, So Expensive, So Awesome

A gaming laptop in a tablet. It’s a thought experiment that raises a whole host of questions: Is that even possible? Can it possibly be good? Would anyone even want it if it were? How much does it cost? The Razer Edge’s answers translate roughly to “Yes!”, “Sort of”, “Maybe?” and “Erm, you better sit down.”

What Is It

A Windows 8 tablet computer with gaming PC guts. That means a discrete graphics card and insides that ramp all the way up to a Core i7, 256GB SSD and 8GB of RAM. It also has an optional mobile console case that turns the Edge into a 10.1-inch “handheld” gaming console.

Design

The Edge itself is a thick black 10.1-inch tablet constructed with aluminium and plastic. It’s more comfortable to hold than you’d expect, given its girth compared to mainstream tablets, thanks to its matte finish and a curved indent around the back rim. But it’s still damn heavy. The gamepad case alone weighs about 900g (with the tablet, you hit roughly 1.8kg combined) and is made of anodised black aluminium. Two large bars with the Xbox controls frame the tablet in landscape mode.

Using It

The first thing you’ll notice when you open up the Edge is that it comes with no keyboard or mouse or controlling device. In fact, the keyboard/laptop accessory doesn’t even come out until later this year. That should tell you something: The keyboard mode is important, and it will be there, but it’s not how Razer sees you using the Edge. The gamepad case is the star here; everything else feels like well-oiled afterthoughts.

That’s a shame, actually, because the best use for the Edge should be as the most capable Swiss Army Knife of a computer on the planet. The single-minded, single-purposed, all-out gaming machine is actually the hybrid best suited for a lot of professional users. It’s a Surface Pro.

But the Edge isn’t the Surface, in basically every way but the most basic. Yes, it’s a slate that doubles as a Windows 8 PC. That’s more or less where the comparison ends. The Surface tries to be everything, to be equally awesome as a tablet and a laptop. The Edge is simply a highly specialised piece of mobile gaming overkill, with some other modes thrown in.

Gamepad Case

Your first impression: Oh god it’s heavy and huge. And then: But… man this is so damn cool. Then it gets heavy again, and you rest it on your knee or find something to lean on.

The gamepad controller works with the XInput tech, meaning any PC game optimised to work with an Xbox controller will work seamlessly with the Edge’s gamepad case. And they do! But as an Xbox controller, it’s not the best. The sticks feel a little loose, especially for how hard you’ll likely be gripping the heavy encased tablet, and the start and select keys are under your palms, so you’ve got to shift around to press them.

Also, an enormous 1.8kg+ tablet behaves a little differently than an Xbox controller or a handheld device or even the Wii U’s controller. Mainly because it’s heavy. When holding it in front of your face, the gravity of the device pulling it to a comfortable state of rest in your hands generally makes the angle of the screen hard to see. It gives you the sense that the most comfortable way to hold it is at forehead level, six inches from your face. You simply won’t want to be using this without a knee or stomach or tabletop to rest the tablet or your elbows on, which, in a lot of ways, defeats the purpose of a tablet.

Battery life isn’t great, but you knew it wouldn’t be. We got between two and three hours at full brightness running current games like BioShock Infinite, Skyrim and Dishonored, sometimes dipping even lower. That’s not tooooo dreadful, all things considered — and there’s a $70 extended battery we didn’t get a chance to test — but it’s disappointing for a device that claims to be mobile.

But look at what you’re holding in your hands. A real, coherent, portable way to play games as they were meant to be played (no, using your trackpad to play Diablo on a 5kg laptop on an aeroplane does not count). Ten years ago, this was just a mad-scientist pipe dream from Sony. There have been more practical handheld gaming solutions, like the PSP and PSP Vita’s PSN Store, but none with as much overkill for current games as the Edge. It plays BioShock Infinite on Ultra on its native screen; Skyrim runs flawlessly; The Witcher 2 stuttered a bit, but even it ran more or less fine with some slowdown on High configuration, and it was perfectly acceptable on Medium.

That said, the guts can’t keep up once you bump up resolutions past what the Edge’s tablet screen pumps out.

For example, BioShock Infinite played passably on Ultra settings on the native screen (under 60fps, but holding steady above 30), but took a nosedive down to 10 or so running on a 1080p TV. Dropping settings down to High brought it back up to speed, which is more or less fine. This limitation, even more than cost, is probably why the screen’s resolution is relatively low.

About that: The screen isn’t great. No way around it. It’s a 1366×768 panel that’s fine, more or less, but the colour is washed out and too yellow in its default configuration. At the same time, it’s huge for a handheld with real Xbox controls. It’s like the extreme version of how the 3DS XL’s larger, less pixel-dense screen feels like a better experience than the 3DS’s. Held like you would a typical handheld console, the 10.1-inch screen takes up about as much of your field of vision as a 46-inch TV from three metres.

Connected to TV

Well, it’s the highest class console you’ll ever own. It’s also probably the most exorbitantly expensive. “Steam box” functionality means what you’d expect. You’ll be able to play all the same games that you can use with the gamepad case, because of the XInput standard for Xbox controller use. That means, more or less, that you’ve got a gigantic, mega-expensive version of the PS3/PS Vita pairing Sony does. Which is actually pretty cool.

To use the Edge as a console, you’ll need the $100 Console Dock, which charges the tablet, has an HDMI-out port and adds three USB ports for controllers. The pairing is basically a second display in Windows 8, and you can choose to either mirror the tablet’s screen on the TV or only engage the TV. The design of the dock, however, is a little off for its purpose. Its job is to turn your Edge into a highbrow Xbox, basically. But its four USB ports are in the back, making them hard to get to when plugging in controllers. And being a tablet standing up on a dock makes it hard to place in any media centre — even harder than the pain in the arse original Wii. I just set it on the floor in front of the TV stand. But that’s not really a permanent solution.

It all works really well, but like the rest of the non-gamepad case modes, it’s something that you can do with other, more cost-effective products. There’s nothing stopping you from plugging any gaming-worthy computer into your TV, or using your current laptop as a gaming tower. The benefit here — and it’s a real one — is that it’s all one device. That is nice, but with Steam cloud syncing, and cloud syncing in general, you don’t feel the benefit as much with a dedicated gaming device as you would have a few years back.

Tablet Mode

The Edge doesn’t really shine as a standalone tablet. When it’s isolated, its deficiencies float to the surface. The so-so 1366×768 screen is fine, but an embarrassment next to the Surface Pro, iPad or Nexus. Yes, the graphics it renders are going to be much, much better, but the fact is most demanding games for PCs aren’t optimised for touch, so trying to use it is a failure.

Even optimised games like Civilization V aren’t categorical successes. Unlike the Surface Pro, the Razer Edge doesn’t have a fold-over cover to insulate your hand from the heat of the device. And the matte plastic back panel gets hot. Of course it does. It’s a gaming machine. But it’s the first that you’re, you know, holding in your hands.

Still other games that do have touch-enabled versions, like The Walking Dead on iOS, don’t have them enabled on their Steam counterparts. That can leave you feeling like you’ve got a strangely underpowered version of the game on your tablet, which could literally devour a family of iPads whole.

Traditional Laptop/Computer

Well, the laptop case isn’t out yet, so cross that one out for now. From experience using a day-to-day 11.6-inch laptop, and also having spent a few weeks using the Surface Pro and its 10.6-inch screen as an everyday computer, 10.1 inches is not enough real estate for a comfortable laptop experience.

But with a second display, a mouse/trackpad and a full sized keyboard? Wonderful! Using the console dock, which doubles as an external monitor dock, you’ve got a secondary display for Metro, and a beefy configuration to tackle pro jobs. The Razer did underperform inexplicably in testing with our standard Premiere Pro render test (about equal to the integrated graphics of the retina display MacBook Pro 13, and nearly twice as slow as the quad-core retina display 15-inch MacBook Pro), but, in general, it was a delight to use as a desktop computer during everyday use. You know, provided you’ve already got the mouse and keyboard ready for it.

Like

The Edge is the ultimate gaming PC-console hybrid. I played BioShock Infinite on the train to work yesterday morning. I had checked my email on the desktop stand, plugged its stand into the TV and snuck in an early morning level, then popped the tablet off, stuck it and its case in my bag, and played, standing up, on the ride downtown. That’s a next-level way to use a device.

No Like

The list is considerable: Battery life is as bad as you fear it will be (about three hours of gaming on max brightness), and the screen leaves a lot to be desired. The tablet itself feels solid, but doesn’t touch the Surface Pro, let alone the iPad and Nexus 10, in comfort and screen quality. The weight with the gamepad case isn’t exactly a deal breaker, but it’s way, way heavier than anything you’re used to holding in your hands, and often deeply uncomfortable depending on which position you’re trying to hold it in.

But like the Blade, this really comes down to price and practicality. Starting at $US1000 and running up over $US1500, plus accessories, the Edge is a major investment. Like, nice-ultrabook-and-a-PS4-combined major. Consider: A maxed-out Edge Pro ($US1450) with a gamepad case ($US250) and a console dock ($US100) is $US1800, and that’s without an optional keyboard case and an extended battery. The cheapest model with those accessories is still $US1350. Crazy pants.

There’s also no confirmation on when we’ll see this in Australia. Razer’s Aussie reps say it’s definitely coming, but there are no hard dates available just yet.

Test Notes

• The speakers are LOUD. Like, bothering my roommate a few doors down with the doors closed loud. The gamepad case actually makes them even louder, by reflecting the sound back at your head, but you’ll never really have to turn it up past about 75 per cent.
  
• The touch sensitivity showed a few hiccups. Actions were generally fine, but accessing charms, and other gestures activated from the sides or top of the display were much more unreliable than on other high end Windows 8 laptops.
  
• Switching from your TV to just the native display in the middle of a game requires that you switch to the new resolution before you remove the tablet from the dock, unless you want to be stuck with a 1080p image displayed on a 1366×768 display, often without a way to access the control to switch back.
  

Should You Buy This

Of course not! The price is an albatross before most folks look any further. Yes, unifying all your devices is absolutely the future, and the Edge tackles that in a lot of remarkably elegant ways. But it’s still far from perfect, and this is a steep premium to pay for less than perfection.

That said, if you’ve got cash to burn, there is a very good argument for the Edge as a deeply capable literally-all-in-one. You can use it as basically any type of device you want, in a way that nothing else out there really does. It’s just a question of how much that flexibility worth to you.

Razer Edge Pro (specs as reviewed)

Display: 10.1-inch 1366×768 IPS

Processor: Core i7 1.9GHz Dual Core

Memory: 8GB RAM

Storage: 256GB SSD

Dimensions: 278.5mm x 178.85mm x 19.5mm

Weight: 950g

Weight (with gamepad case): 1.8kg+

Price: $US1450

Availability: Australian release planned, but dates are yet to be confirmed.

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Crazy Villains Caught Trying To Cut Through The Internet’s Undersea Cables

While the internet at large was freaking out about an apocalyptic attack that wasn’t really happening yesterday, something nefarious was going down at the bottom of the sea. Egyptian authorites found a trio of divers down there attempting to sever a crucial submarine communications cable.

Yesterday, Egypt’s Coast Guard stumbled upon a suspicious fishing boat off the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria. There’s no word on what tipped them off, but upon investigation, they caught the team of divers up to no good and apparently mid-cut. The cable in question is owned by Egypt Telecom, the country’s monopoly landline provider, making it sort of an important link in the vast network of undersea internet connections.

These guys were slicing away right here by node #5:

The Official Military Spokesman of the Armed Forces of Egypt put it this way in a statement on Facebook (translated):

[The] Navy today successfully foiled 3 divers, while they cut submarine cable for connection to the Internet, the company’s Telecom Egypt, near the coast of Shatby in Alexandria … [The] Navy chased Bnas fishing which was launched from three divers, and arrested all crew members and handed them over to the border guards to take the necessary legal action against them.

And whatever they were up to, it was a good first step to serious internet destruction. If you were out to really cripple the beast like some cartoon mastermind, cutting the cables would be your go-to first step, second only to destroying more guarded land-based nodes. The internet’s web of undersea cables is a verifiable weakness, considering they’re both hard to effectively guard and necessarily act as chokepoints.

So far, there’s no explanation for what the divers’ nefarious plan was, but it’s possible they also had something to do with previously unexplained disruptions to undersea cables serving Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia over the past several days. And coordinated cable cutting — if that was the plan — could seriously cripple the internet for quite a while.

Worry all you want about DDoS attacks, but there are physical targets for internet attacks as well. You just have to be sort of a James Bond-style villian to get to them.

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New DNA-Based Transistor Brings Us One Step Closer To True Human Computers

The increasingly ambiguous divide between man and machine just got blurred that much more with Stanford’s recent announcement: scientists have successfully created the first truly biological transistor made entirely out of genetic material.

Considering that transistors are essentially the foundation of modern electronics, it certainly seems fitting that genetically engineered versions of our very own building blocks, DNA and RNA, make up the newly dubbed “transcriptor”. By embedding a microscopic portion of a DNA molecule inside a living cell, researchers were able to control the flow of RNA, which translates DNA’s instructions to the cell. Just like a transistor regulates electrical currents, the researcher-controlled transcriptor can essentially direct an en entire living cell.

On a practical level, this means theoretically being able to command cancerous cells to stop multiplying, monitor general health, and create drugs in response to the presence of certain enzymes. Of course, the transistor is only part of the equation, and it may still be some time before we see a complete human computer walking around. Still, the potential doors this development just opened truly are incredible to imagine.

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North Korea Puts Its Rockets On Standby For Fire After US Show Of Force

According to Reuters, North Korea has readied its rockets to attack US military bases in South Korea and the Pacific Ocean after the US made a show of force earlier today by flying stealth bombers over South Korea. Kim Jong Un had apparently signed off an order for North Korea’s rockets to be “on standby for fire”.

The official KCNA news agency said:

“He finally signed the plan on technical preparations of strategic rockets of the KPA (Korean People’s Army), ordering them to be on standby for fire so that they may strike any time the U.S. mainland, its military bases in the operational theatres in the Pacific, including Hawaii and Guam, and those in South Korea.”

Of course, this being North Korea, you never know what’s what. Though North Korea does have missiles that could hit South Korea, their longer range missiles remain untested. As for the US and flying bombers to Korea, it was a pretty rare move by our military. The B-2 bombers flew over 10,000km from Missouri to South Korea to drop inert bombs. The Pentagon said it was the first time the B-2 bombers made the round trip.

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Watch This Kid Use Nail Clippers To Pick A Lock And Steal His Sister’s Toys

Here is the most adorable theft ever.

A small child figured out how to use nail clippers to pick the lock on his eight-year-old sister’s door so that he could steal a stuffed animal at night. His parents set up a baby camera to see the incredible “crime” go down.

It’s truly wonderful. Joann Moser, the mother of this genius kid, said that her daughter had been complaining to them that her brother would always come in at night when she was sleeping and take stuff out of her room. Moser told her eight-year-old to just lock the door to deterher little brother from taking her toys. Makes sense, right?

But the parents and sister clearly underestimated the talents of the little boy. A toddler version of Danny Ocean, he managed to figure out how to unlock doors by using a nail clipper (I don’t even think I could figure that out). In the video, you’ll see him go through the process of picking the lock, hiding the evidence, going into his sister’s room for the toy and then closing both doors as if nothing happened. Joann Moser told the Huffington Post:

Our 8-year-old daughter came to us one night and told us our 2-year-old was taking stuff at night out of her room. We told her to … just lock the door. A couple nights later she told us he had opened the lock on his door. We were VERY sceptical so we set up the camera in the hall to see what would happen. Sure enough within a few seconds of closing his door and locking hers he was at the door opening the lock. The rest is on the video. We could not stop laughing afterward and we let him sleep with the pillow pet that night.

So awesome. Video of the year in my books.

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What Cthulhu Saw: Scientists Mount Camera To Big Squid To Watch It Flash

Sure, slapping a GoPro to one’s self before performing an act of extreme… extremeness is definitely cool. But I’d like to raise the ante: how about we strap a camera to a huge squid instead so we can see what cephalopodan acts it gets up to beneath the waves?

William Gilly, of Standford University’s marine laboratory, is already a step ahead of you. His team placed the National Geographic Society’s “Crittercam” to a Humboldt squid, an aquatic denizen that can weigh up to 50kg and grow to a length of 1.5m. How do you go about fitting a Humboldt with it’s very own camera? Gilly explains:

Then you need a way to attach it [the camera] to the squid and the way we’ve used is to sort of put the camera on a bathing suit — a tube of stretchable nylon… it’s actually a child’s bathing suit, cut so it’s a tube and then slipped over the fins so it can’t come off again.

Well, I hope the other squids don’t make fun of its choice of apparel.

About half-way through the video, you’ll notice the squids start to flash from black-to-white. This isn’t a problem with the recording — what you’re seeing is what scientist believe is a form of communication where the squid’s skin cells, called “chromatophores”, quickly alternate from red to white. What’s amazing is that the cells do this synchronously, creating an visual amazing effect.

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A Delicious Craft Beer Deserves A Glorious Handmade Growler

If you want to drink fresh, limited-release microbrews, then a growler is indispensable. You see, the truly great stuff doesn’t come in bottles: you need to go somewhere that has it on tap get them to sell you a hearty pour.

Handmade in Portland, Oregon, this ceramic growler is a heavy-duty container you can use to take home something special.

And, yeah, it is heavy, but because it’s ceramic, it will keep your beer colder than your ordinary glass growler.

The growler is available in both one-litre and two-litre versions from Kauffman Mercantile for $US67 and $US77 respectively. Get the bigger one, amirite?

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Where Did Kim Jong-Un Get His Apple Computer?

A trade embargo between the U.S. and North Korea doesn't stop Kim from being a Mac guy. Did he get it from China?

WASHINGTON — One of the North Korean photos going viral on Friday — apart from the one showing plans to attack the U.S. with missiles — shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un with a shiny iMac desktop computer.

But Apple complies with U.S. trade embargoes on countries including North Korea, meaning its computers aren't meant to end up there. How did Kim get his iMac?

For ordinary North Koreans, up-to-date phones and computers are difficult, if not impossible, to get. North Korean companies have produced their own knockoff iPad competitors and cell phones, but the sale of Apple products is actually prohibited.

According to Apple's website:

The U.S. holds complete embargoes against Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria

The exportation, reexportation, sale or supply, directly or indirectly, from the United States, or by a U.S. person wherever located, of any Apple goods, software, technology (including technical data), or services to any of these countries is strictly prohibited without prior authorization by the U.S. Government. This prohibition also applies to any Apple owned subsidiary or any subsidiary employee worldwide.

An Apple spokesperson didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Nor did a press contact at the Department of Commerce, which regulates trade embargoes.

This isn't the first time Kim's been seen with what might be an Apple product. Kim was photographed in February with a smartphone that looked like either an HTC model or an iPhone 3 — or even a Samsung, the South Korean company.

Personal computers are available in North Korea — in 2011, state TV reported that there were three new models being manufactured there — and there is a North Korean operating system, similar to Linux, called "Red Star." But most of the hardware North Korea has touted has been shown to be Chinese.

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This Portrait Of Old Star Wars Characters Should Be The Poster For Star Wars Episode VII

Since it’s pretty much an open secret that the old cast members of the original Star Wars trilogy are coming back for the next movie, this portrait of them at their current age should absolutely be the next movie poster for Episode VII.

Hand painted by artist Adam Schickling, the portrait captures our favourite heroes with all their beautiful wrinkles.

It’s perfect! It’s an ode to the original movie posters while still being accurate to the years that have passed.Adam Schickling said:

“I created this Star Wars poster depicting the characters from the Original trilogy as they would appear in the new movie. Since there is no cast yet for the new movie I thought it would be cool to create a poster with some of my favourite characters from the Star Wars Universe. This illustration is 30 X 40 in. and was drawn and painted by hand.”

Now if the new movie doesn’t come with this poster, I’m going to be mad. Maybe Adam will come out with some prints for his excellent piece though.

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Ice Cube Innovation Is Just A Bearpigipede Away

If you’ve never spilled an ice cube tray full of water or accidentally dumped a dozen cubes on the floor, I hope you have the medal you deserve. For the rest of us, a clever, covered ice cube tray like this could be a cool solution.

Designed by black+blum, the awkwardly-named “brrrr” tray takes an extremely hands off approach to ice cubes. The tray fills vertically, with a small run-off spout to prevent going over. Then, once you plug the cap and throw it in the freezer horizontally, the water flows out into the hollow legs. And when all is said and done, you just grab your mutant 10-legged polar bear-ipede and smack him on the counter to loosen the cubes that’ll fall out of his mouth.

A graphic explains it best.

Sure, it wouldn’t be easy to refill one of these before it’s totally empty, or even see how many cubes are left inside, but it’s an interesting new twist on a pretty stale piece of kitchen tech. It’s only a concept for now, but hopefully development won’t get frozen before it can hit shelves. [Yanko Design]

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This Teensy Keychain Knife Could Save Your Life One Day

There are plenty of knives out there you could feasibly carry around with you all the time — Gerber has a whole suite of them. The latest to join the crew is an especially tiny little guy, but it could save your life.

The the Gerber Daily Carry Hook Knife is a itty-bitty, reliable, discrete little sucker that fits right into a sheath you can keep on your keychain. When extracted, it can cut you out of some restrictive clothes or a seatbelt in an emergency. Admittedly, that’s not all that likely to happen, so in the meantime it can handle things like envelopes, freezer bags or wire ties.

On top of being handy, it’s pretty, compact, and cheap at just $US11. So if you’re looking for a knife that doesn’t scream “I AM CARRYING A KNIFE”, look no further.Gerber

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A Beautiful Meteorite That’s Not Trying To Destroy The Planet

Not all meteor strikes have to be scary, exploding harbingers of an apocalypse to come. More often, in fact, they’re just pretty. This one just screaming on through the Northern Lights even moreso than most.

Shot by Photographer Shannon Bileski of Signature Exposures, the picture was a lucky one. Shannon had been taking 8-second exposures of the green glow in the sky over Patricia Beach in Canada when the meteor just happened to fly into view. And while it may have been serendipitous, that doesn’t make it any less impressive.

You can catch a slightly bigger version of the picture over on Shannon’s Flickr page. And keep those cameras pointed skyward; maybe you can catch something too.

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How 3D Printing Gave This Man His Life (And Face) Back

While doctors have experimented with 3D-printed prosthetics in the past, none have been quite as prominent or incredibly detailed as Eric Moger’s newest addition. He has a prosthetic, 3D-printed face.

Four years ago, Eric underwent surgery to remove a tennis-ball-sized tumour in the left side of his face — along with almost the entire face itself. Left with what was essentially a gaping hole where one should not be, he’s had to eat and drink through tubes directly into his stomach ever since. You’ll see why if you click the picture here, although be forewarned: this is not for the faint of heart.

But in what is believed to be one of the first procedures of its kind, doctors used CT and facials scans of the remainder of his skull to recreate what it should look like in the form of a digital blueprint. The same digital blueprints one might use in 3D printing, for instance. Then using nylon plastic, the doctors were able to print off a perfectly fitted, incredibly lifelike facial prosthetic. Even the actual screws holding the piece in place were products of this revolutionary technology.

While this is a phenomenal advancement for Eric, who can eat and drink normally again, the far-reaching implications are perhaps even more exciting. Perfectly fitted prosthetics could be produced quickly, and, more importantly, cheaply. Plus, Dr Andrew Dawood, the implant specialist who helped create both the 3D-printed jaw and Eric’s face prosthetic, hopes to develop techniques that would allow printing in silicone. And with 3D printing still in its relative infancy, this is just scratching the surface. [Sydney Morning Herald]

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What Kind Of Speaker Setup Do You Have On Your Computer?

Having good audio on your computer can make all the difference in the world. However, the form that audio takes really depends on your preferences and what types of tasks you perform most often.

If you game or watch movies, you may prefer a set of surround speakers. If you’re mostly into music, a good pair of stereo speakers (plus maybe a subwoofer) or nice set of studio headphones may do the trick. And if you don’t really use your computer’s sound much aside from needing to hear the occasional system beep or ping, the speakers that came with your computer may suit you just fine.

Five Best Desktop Computer Speakers

Everyone rocks headphones on the go, but there’s nothing like listening to music out loud. For those times, you need quality computer speakers. Whether it’s pure audio quality, size and shape, or bang for buck, choosing the best speakers is a tricky affair. Here are five sets that won’t disappoint.

M-Audio AV-40

M-Audio is pretty well known for providing superior sound quality in budget-friendly audio products, and the AV-40 two-speaker set is no exception. A bookshelf-style dual speaker model, the AV-40s feature RCA and TRS inputs on the rear for connections to your computer, game console, TV, mixer or even an amplifier. There’s also a headphone and AUX-in jack on the front for other devices. The speakers themselves don’t have a built-in amp, but they connect beautifully to existing models. The AV-40s are geared towards people who love bass in their music, especially DJs and electronic or hip-hop enthusiasts, but you don’t have to stick with those genres to appreciate this budget-friendly audio powerhouse.

Bose Companion 2 Series II

It’s not common for Bose to be on the budget end of a roundup, but this case is special. The Companion 2 Series II are aimed more at desktop users listening to music for entertainment, rather than audio professionals or people who plan to use their speakers to connect to multiple inputs. The set is a space-saving pair of desktop speakers that pump out some serious volume. Volume controls and a headphone jack on the front are easily accessible when you need them, and dual inputs on the rear let you connect your computer and another audio device at the same time.

Logitech Z2300/Logitech Z623

The Logitech Z2300 is a killer 2.1 stereo speaker set, but they’re no longer available, having been succeeded by the Logitech Z623. The Z623s are also a great 2.1 stereo set, but the online consensus is that the Z623, while capable, may be a step down. The Z2300s are praised for their clean design, space-saving desktop speakers and control pod. Speaking of the subwoofer, the Z2300 subwoofer is one of the most powerful in a desktop set. The set also came with an adaptor so you could quickly connect game consoles and other devices to the AUX-in jack.

The Z623 that followed the Z2300s did away with the control pod in favour of on-speaker controls, but still sports an array of RCA and stereo connectors on the back that make it perfect for desktop computing or a space-saving home entertainment system.

Klipsch Promedia 2.1

The Klipsch Promedia 2.1 set features two desktop speakers and a subwoofer. It has been widely praised for its affordability and superior sound quality. It fits perfectly in that mid-range between simple desktop computer speakers and great audio quality you would expect from stereo gear. The desktop speakers are small but powerful, and the subwoofer fits comfortably under a desk where it offers amazing bass response and deep lows. Best of all, your money isn’t spent on a system that only connects to a PC — you can connect this speaker set to your TV, game console or another audio source.

Audioengine 5+

The Audioengine 5+ speaker series is well known and loved by audiophiles, music lovers and music producers. They’re pricey, but a number of reviews point out that they offer the kind of high-quality sound you would normally expect from a speaker set twice or three times the price. If you have the cash to burn, you won’t be disappointed by them. Don’t let their simple looks deceive you — they pack a lot of power, enough that you won’t need a separate subwoofer or additional speakers in the setup. Since they’re powered on their own, you won’t even need an external amp for them. The 5+ system sports USB for your mobile device and dual inputs for music players, computers and other devices.

Five Best Headphones

When it comes to headphones, “best” is definitely a subjective term. There are many considerations: price, comfort, audio quality, noise cancellation, frequency response, bang for buck, the list goes on. Even so, when we asked you which headphones you thought stood out from the crowd in all of those areas, you had some clear choices. Let’s take a look at five of the best.

Grado SR80i

Ah, the Grado SR80i. These are some of the most crisp, comfortable, and beautifully sounding headphones on the market, from a company that knows the difference between making products that sound good and products that look like they sound good. The open-air design stays cool on your ears, and while the earcups are supra-aural and may get a little uncomfortable after long periods of wear, the earpads are soft and breathe well. Many of you praised Grado for its semi-vintage aesthetic and sharp design which doesn’t sacrifice audio quality as a result. If you’re on a budget, the SR80i’s more affordable cousin, the SR60i, also offers truly compelling audio quality at a very reasonable price.

Sony MDR-V6/7506

When I used to DJ, I rocked a pair of MDR-7506s (choosing them over the more DJ-oriented V600s), a modified version of the MDR-V6 family, and they were amazing headphones in low-noise and loud environments. DJ performance won’t matter to you if you’re at home listening to your own tunes, but the MDR-V6 series from Sony and its variants all deliver fantastically. A closed-ear, circumaural design minimises outside noise and offers incredible comfort during long periods of wear, if you can get past the plastic earpad covers. The headphones fold up for portability, and the audio quality varies a little from model to model, but all of them offer incredible sound as very affordable price points. They also have the benefit of being built like tanks.

Audio Technica ATH-M50

The Audio Technica ATH-M50s were a hot topic. Audio Technica’s flagship headphones may not be the cheapest, but they do offer incredible audio quality for your money, a closed-back circumaural design that rests comfortably on your head for long periods, a collapsible design for portability and storage, and a sleek, modern design that isn’t imposing but isn’t ugly either. In other words, killer audio in a set of cans that don’t scream “steal me!” They’re not the cheapest, but many have said that the extra cash you’d spend on them would be more than worth it when it came to audio quality, especially if you listen to music with deep bass and rich treble.

Bose QuietComfort 15

The only pair in our roundup with active noise cancellation offer solid audio quality while also letting you focus on the music by eliminating outside noise. The closed back design keeps your music from leaking into your surroundings, but depending on the size of your ears, these could be considered circumaural or supra-aural (Bose says they’re circumaural.) Either way, the earcups rest comfortably on your ears, even for long periods of wear, and the QuietComforts are popular with travellers and office workers alike. The QC15s come in a carrying case with removable cables for your music player and even your smartphone, and of course, when not in use you can keep them unplugged and use them just for noise cancellation.

Koss PortaPro

Koss’s headphones tend to be all over the map when it comes to quality, but the Porta Pros set a new bar for on-ear headphones that are not just comfortable and portable, but actually sound surprisingly good. Their collapsible, flexible design makes them incredibly portable and durable, and the adjustable strap gives you control over exactly how well they fit your head. The cloth earpads breathe well during long periods of use, and while the open design won’t exactly keep your neighbour from hearing what you’re listening to, you’ll enjoy it, thanks to their remarkably strong audio quality for a pair in this price range. You can even adjust the fit of the earcups from “firm” to “light” to make sure they sit just right against your ears. If you travel a lot, or just don’t like the idea of spending a lot of money on headphones but would like good audio quality anyway, these are for you. Besides, they come with a lifetime warranty.

Honourable mentions this week go out to Sennheiser HD 280s which just missed the top five. Also worth mentioning are the AKG K240s, which many have praised for their circumaural design (with beautiful gold trim,) semi-open back (although that does lead to a little sound leakage), self-adjusting headband that always ensures a perfect, snug fit, and of course, their audio quality.

Five Best Headsets With Attached Microphones

Whether you work at home and do a lot of video conferencing, or you love multiplayer games and want to hear your teammates as well as the background music and the ambient sounds, you need a good headset that can provide great audio and deliver your voice clearly to the people on the other end of the line. Thankfully, there are plenty of great options that don’t sacrifice one for the other.

Astro A30/A40

Astro makes some great headsets, and has been a popular choice among gamers in recent years. The $199 retail A30 and $300 retail A40 sound systems sound great, both come with removable or retractable microphones, and sport an external mixamp that sits between your headset and your sound source to amplify your audio, whether you’re listening to music, playing video games, or sitting in a video conference or internet call, you’re guaranteed solid sound and voice. Depending on whether you use the cables or the mixamp, you can connect an Astro headset to your computer either via USB or 3.5mm jacks, and the microphone can be attached or detached as necessary. Bonus: the magnetic tags on the ears are customisable to suit your style.

Logitech G and H Series (G35/G930/H600/etc)

Logitech has always made great headsets, the G35 gaming headset ($199.95 retail) and the G930 wireless gaming headset ($279.95 retail) are highly regarded for their superior comfort, on-ear audio controls, rich sound and crisp voice quality. Both models connect via USB, but many have also mentioned some of Logitech’s other, more affordable options as drawing a line between audio quality and budget pricing, like the wireless H600. Whether you prefer wired or wireless, USB or 3.5mm, circumaural (around the ears) or supra-aural (resting on the ears), Logitech has a headset model for you, and probably at a price point you can live with.

Sennheiser PC and HD Series

Sennheiser has been known for superior sound quality in its products for years, and in many ways is still considered a high-end audio company, but the PC 350 and its successor the PC 360 swept the gaming community with its fantastic sound, huge, full circumaural earcups that are comfortable to wear for long periods, and its integrated retractable microphone that delivers crisp, clear voice to anyone on the other end of your videoconference, internet call, or multiplayer game. Most have called out the PC 360 (around $320 retail) and its older sibling the PC 350 (around $250 retail), and rightfully so, but budget buyers shouldn’t overlook the less expensive (around $150) PC 330, which gives up some of the audio quality for a less expensive but still powerhouse package. Overall, Sennheiser’s headsets may be some of the pricier ones, but they’ll last you for years.

Steelseries Siberia v2/7H

The Steelseries Siberia v2 that not only did it make the top five, it did so without being split among multiple model numbers, variations or types. This $140 RRP wonder features a retractable, pull-out microphone, 3.5mm audio jacks, in-line volume control, closed circumaural earcups, noise-reducing foam, just about everything you need to make the seamless transition from gaming headset to headphone powerhouse. They’re also available in a half-dozen colours, so you can pick the one that matches your style perfectly. Have a bit more money? Drop the cash for the slightly more expensive (but equally liked by many of you) Steelseries 7H (around $150 retail), which has the same retractable microphone, collapsible design, interchangeable ear cushions and sleek black design.

Plantronics Gamecom/DSP/CM Series

Plantronics is well known for headsets, both for consumers and for business purposes. The Plantstonics Gamecom series of headsets are affordable, with the 367 retailing for around $45, and the 780 retailing for about $90. They’re lightweight, offer top-notch voice quality and crisp audio, and depending on the model you want, can sport 3.5mm audio or USB. Plantronics’ PC and gaming line are great, but the DSP and CM series also offer great voice quality and comfort. Plantronics has made its name on its headset business, and while most people know them primarily for voice quality, their higher-end models are comfortable and sound great, too — especially for the price point.

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How Far Can North Korea’s Missiles Actually Reach?

Though we know in theoretical terms that North Korea has missiles that could hit Los Angeles, where else could North Korea’s missiles actually hit? With all the hubbub about North Korea and its redeployment of missiles on North Korea’s eastern coast, the Washington Post created a map showing the range of North Korea’s various missiles.

No one is sure what missiles North Korea has redeployed, it could be the Musudan missiles (that’s what South Korea says) or the KN-08 (that’s what Japan is saying) but thanks to the gigantic Pacific Ocean, most of the United States looks to be safe from harm from both those missiles. Nearby Japan and South Korea and China, on the other hand, could be assed.

The best thing on the world’s side (sort of) is that neither missile is especially accurate. It could hit the ocean for all we know. Plus, though North Korea may have the bravado of long range missiles, they might not have the brains to actually launch one.

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This Pretty, Portable Fireplace Looks Fit To Burn Rocket Fuel

Sure, it’s easy to whip yourself up a old-school backyard fire-pit with a ring of rocks and whole lot of ugly. But wouldn’t you rather have a portable, modular fireplace that looks ready to blast off to the stars? Who wouldn’t?

Faro is a stark, simple-but-beautiful test-kitchen for you pyromaniacal tendencies. Designed by Rui Pereira and Ryosuke Fukusada — of wooden lightbulb fame — Faro can be configured with an ethanol burner for indoor use, but can support good ol’ wood if you’re in the backyard.

Ideally, the Faro will spark technology-free communication. Fukusada puts it this way: “The proliferation of PCs and smartphones has created wider chasms around the individual. Places for people to come together and communicate are becoming more and more rare.” And theoretically, the Faro should fix that? Maybe.

The fireplace is making it’s premier at this year’s Milan Design Week, and hopefully it’ll make its way to market soonish; who doesn’t want a little rocket in their backyard? Inhabitat

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What Could Be Cooler Than A Luxury Watch Made From Dead AK-47s?

Smart watches fart watches. Why would you want to have your email on your wrist when you could have an impossibly badass — and doubtless expensive — analogue sucker made of reclaimed AK-47 steel wrapped around your arm.

Though it’s certainly a kickass watch, with a gold rifle-sight inspired frame set inside sapphire crystal, the Inversion Principle Tourbillon is so much more than a timepiece. Like its cousin AK-47 cufflinks, the watch raises money for the righteous destruction of errant rifles in Africa and uses their corpses in its own polished, luxurious form.

Unsurprisingly, the Fonderie 47 Inversion Principle Tourbillon is a limited-run piece. Only 20 are set to be made, 10 in 18K rose gold, 10 in 18K white. As for straps, you’ve got a choice of brown or black alligator leather. Price? A cool $US350,000. You’d be better off melting your own pile of AKs. But good luck making it look half as awesome. [Fonderie 47]