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The retro-gaming trend shows no sign of slowing as Sony has announced the PlayStation Classic. Much like the Nintendo Classic systems, the PlayStation Classic will offer a variety of vintage games in a compact device that replicates the look, if not the physical attributes, of the original PlayStation.View full post on YoutubeGoing for $100, the console will have a collection of games that has yet to be fully revealed. In its press release on the device, Sony lists “fan-favorites such as Final Fantasy VII, Jumping Flash, Ridge Racer Type 4, Tekken 3, and Wild Arms” among the 20 included titles....

There are a variety of DeWalt tool sales today, perfect for woodworking and giving your workshop the next edge.The DeWalt Compound Miter Saw is going for $349, down from $479. Perfect for crown molding or cutting baseboards, its 10-inch blade has got a 15-amp motor with a no-load speed of 4,000 RPM. It’s built to bring forth quick, accurate bevel cuts between 0 and 48 degrees.More Tools!The 50 Tools Everyone Should OwnThere’s also a bundle of a DeWALT compound drill driver kit and a circular saw going for $138, which is $60 less than buying the two individually....

Russia’s dreaded nuclear torpedo, designed to nuke entire coastal cities into oblivion and trigger tsunamis, has been sighted in tests at sea. Once thought a hoax, internet researchers have tracked development of the system all the way back to 2008. The weapon was recently named “Poseidon” after the Russian military polled the public for a new name. The weapon, formerly known as “Status-6” and KANYON, was recently renamed Poseidon. Poseidon beat out two other names, Aurora and Skif, in a naming contest held by the Russian Ministry of Defense....

Media Platforms Design TeamGHAZALIYA, Iraq, July 17 — Four hours after door-to-door ID checks began in this Baghdad suburb, I return with the Delta Company to pick up the trainers of the Iraqi army from the 114th Military Transition Team (MiTT). It’s time for a surprise checkpoint inspection. The Iraqi Army safe house and surrounding neighborhood for this checkpoint are scary—no lights, no electricity. The MiTT troops have been trying to get the Iraqi government to provide assets, like a generator to charge their radios and flashlights, but with limited success....

The Consumer Electronics Show is wall-to-wall tablets.The show hasn’t even officially opened yet, and I’ve seen Windows tablets, Android tablets, bizarre tablets that double as a laptop’s screen, 4G tablets, 3G tablets, and tablets that currently have little more than a cryptic code name.Thing is, a large number of them will almost certainly never see a store shelf.But first, let’s back up a second. For companies looking to get into the tablet game, 2010 was the wait-and-see year....

If you’re looking to advertise at the beach but all the planes have been booked, or you’re stranded on a desert island, Ivan Miranda has a new robot for you. His sand drawing robot can print any sort of text on the beach. It’s a strong improvement over a finger in the sand.View full post on YoutubeThe text looks a lot like a dot matrix format from the 60s and 70s, and that’s for a good reason....

MIT and BMW are partnering to develop a 3D printed, inflatable, stretchy material that could change car design in the future. Currently, cars already use air in airbags and some seating. But because inflatable objects require a thin, stretchy material that can be difficult to work with, engineers haven’t attempted anything too complex or ambitious. MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab is working on a new process called “Liquid Printed Pneumatic” that could change that....

After reconstructing every character and set in Nightmare to create a rotated picture for the second eye, a team of computer graphics engineers split each frame into layers that pop out to the audience at different depths. (Video still courtesy of Disney Enterprises, Inc.)PopularMechanics.com, Oct. 31, 2006 – When Disney executives first approached Colum Slevin about revamping its stop-motion animated classic The Nightmare Before Christmas into three dimensions, there was more head-scratching going on at George Lucas’ Industrial Light and Magic offices than by Chewbacca with a hide full of fleas....

A company called TouchBionics creates hyper-realistic skin for prosthetic limbs, complete with nails and hair and texture. Watch the mesmerizing making-of process unfold in this video. It all starts with taking physical measurements of a patient’s hand, which gets inputted into a Sims-like engine for customization, with options for derma-hair, freckles, veins, and a selection of nail shapes.Next, engineers pour a mold over the model hand, waits for it to dry, and then takes off the mold like a baseball glove....

We may never know what, exactly, inspired YouTube user expnand banana to line up a classic bit from The Simpsons and turn it into a track for Guitar Hero. But timing is everything in comedy as it is in music, so maybe the idea’s not so crazy.View full post on YoutubeIts YouTube creator calls the video a “sh*tpost” meant to entangle both Simpsons and Guitar Hero communities, but expnand banana is wrong....

Media Platforms Design TeamMost novice do-it-yourselfers feel perfectly comfortable using an electric drill or jigsaw, but nearly all of them are hesitant to pick up a portable circular saw. And that’s not surprising when you consider that drills and jigsaws are relatively safe, quiet and easy to control. A portable circular saw, on the other hand, is a powerful, noisy, sawdust-spewing brute that can inflict serious injury if it’s used improperly....

Media Platforms Design Team1. Sound artists used real-life animal sounds for Pandora’s beasts. Skywalker Sound was responsible for crafting not only the ambient noise of Pandora, but also its many strange creatures. “A lot of the mandates that we got from Jim were specific sounds for specific creatures,” says Juan Peralta, who heads up postproduction sound at Skywalker and worked closely with Avatar’s sound designer, Christopher Boyce. “He wanted three vocalizations for the viper wolf, a six-legged, dog-like creature: one for stalking their prey, another when they’re chasing the prey—so that they can call to other viper wolves for help—and a third during attack....

Media Platforms Design TeamOn Sale Date: NowPrice: $39,850 - $47,350 Competitors: Mercedes Benz E-Class, Infiniti M series, Lexus GS, BMW 5-Series, Chrysler 300, Cadillac CTSPowertrains: 3.8-liter V6, 333 hp, 291 lb-ft; 4.6-liter V8 385 hp, 333 lb-ft; 5.0-liter V8, 429 hp, 376 lb-ft; 8-speed automatic with manual mode, RWD EPA Fuel Economy (city/hwy): 16-19/25-29 What’s New: The Genesis R-Spec sport sedan—the cream of the 2012 Genesis crop—gets Hyundai’s most-powerful engine ever, a gasoline direct-injection (GDI) 5....

Genetics & DNAThames & Kosmos; ages 10+Media Platforms Design TeamPrice /// $34.95Experiment /// Extract DNA from a tomato. Then identify a “culprit” by comparing crime-scene evidence with the genetic fingerprints of different suspects. Lesson /// DNA is the hereditary material of living organisms, carrying genetic information to the next generation. Scientists’ understanding of DNA is important in criminal forensics. Our experience /// Solving a criminal case demonstrated an important real-world application of DNA....

The U.S.’s latest amphibious ship is getting a laser weapon just in time to show off at the 2018 Rim of the Pacific wargames. The USS Portland, which will function as the flagship for the multinational military exercises, is set to receive the latest version of the Navy’s Laser Weapon System. The new weapon will likely make an impression on visiting sailors—especially those from China—that also participate in the exercises.The USS Portland, a San Antonio-class landing platform, dock ship is set to enter service with the U....

The last year has been a banner year for the discovery of shipwrecks. From the discovery of World War II aircraft carriers sunk in action to submarines lost at sea, underwater wrecks are being located faster than ever. It’s all thanks to new technologies allowing explorers to image the underwater environment, even at depths of more than a mile, as well as autonomous search vehicles operating above and below the surface of the ocean....

Media Platforms Design TeamOne of the hottest topics in the defense and diplomatic worlds is the Obama administration’s “rebalancing” of U.S. interests toward Asia. The new focus is a slate of military and geopolitical strategies meant as a hedge against China, and to a lesser extent its client, North Korea. But what does it mean for the armed forces when the White House focuses its gaze on a new part of the world, and a new foe?...

The state of California is trying to go electric. Governor Jerry Brown has announced that he wants to get 5 million electric zero-emission cars on the state’s roads by 2030, and signed an executive order committing the state to that plan.In Brown’s 16th and his last State of the State speech as governor (he has been governor during the 1970s, 1980s, and 2010s), he outlined an ambitious target that makes previous goals seem like child’s play....

Media Platforms Design TeamI get mail. I’ve said, on the record, many times, that it’s a bad idea to coast downhill or up to a stop sign in neutral. It’s unsafe. You need to be able to use the accelerator to avoid an unexpected road hazard; cars don’t handle well in neutral during sharp cornering maneuvers when the engine isn’t connected to the drivetrain.So why on earth would you put the transmission in neutral—whether on manual or automatic—when coasting?...

The shooting death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teen, by a white police officer in Ferguson, Mo., on August 9 has once again scratched at the difficult topic of race relations in the United States. But the subsequent confrontations between demonstrators and camo-clad cops toting assault rifles and backed up by an imposing armored vehicle has brought attention to another issue: the gradual militarization of civilian law enforcement agencies. “The number of SWAT teams in America has exploded,” says Tim Lynch, who heads the Cato Institute’s Project on Law Enforcement....