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Star Wars is all about duality and balance. Jedi versus Sith. Self-control versus rage. Light versus dark. It’s been revealed that Star Wars: Rogue One will add what will surely another wrinkle to that ever-shifting quest for balance in the form of a new droid: Evil R2-D2 (basically).View full post on YoutubeThat’s right, C2-B5 is an Imperial astromech droid. C2 will be the first of its kind to appear in the Star Wars universe, Wookiepedia shows no other listing of droids in its class....

Media Platforms Design TeamTraditional incandescent work lights are heavy, hot, and tethered to an outlet with an extension cord, which can make them a tripping hazard. The new LED work light from Milwaukee Tool could be a delight for to contractors and homeowners alike because it solves all three of those problems.The Milwaukee LED Stand Light is built for portability and durability. The stand opens with a push of a button and the light telescopes to a height of 4 to 7 feet....

In 2000, NASA launched a satellite to study the Earth’s magnetic field from space. TheImager for Magnetopause-to-Aurora Global Exploration (IMAGE) satellite spent the next five years uncovering the details of Earth’s magnetic field and the auroras it causes, but in 2005 NASA unexpectedly lost contact.At the time, NASA tried reestablishing contact with IMAGE, but after numerous attempts, the agency declared the satellite lost. It remained lost until early this year, when an amateur astronomer picked up the satellite’s signal while hunting for a recently-launched military satellite....

Apple is under fire for removing an app that the Chinese government says tracks police movement and aids the pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong.App developers—who have chosen to remain anonymous for safety reasons—say their app, HKmap.live, has improved safety in Hong Kong.The app is still available on Google Play.After swift criticism from the Chinese state, Apple has removed a controversial app from its store, saying it endangers Hong Kong police and residents....

In 2012, Nobel Prize-winning scientist Frank Wilczek proposed the existence of a new type of crystal. While most crystals have a structure that repeats in two or three dimensions, Wilczek imagined a crystal that repeated in four: the three dimensions of space as well as one dimension of time. He called these hypothetical crystals ‘time crystals,’ and just last year scientists finally figured out how to create them in a lab....

Stephen Hawking was a brilliant physicist, but a lot of his theories were strange and difficult to prove. Perhaps his most famous of these involves what comes out of black holes. In 1974, Hawking theorized that black holes emit some kind of radiation, called Hawking radiation, and now, nearly fifty years later, a group of researchers have managed to provide experimental evidence for this theoretical radiation.We all know black holes theoretically suck in everything, even light, but it’s not technically true that nothing can ever escape them....

It’s not glamorous. The principles are simple. It’s time-tested and can work virtually anywhere. It could save the United States millions of barrels of oil every year, and it doesn’t involve a large investment for each household–from $3000 to $6000 is typical. The technology can cut the average family’s energy costs to heat water by 20 to 40 percent (as much as 90 percent in some Southwestern regions).So why has solar hot-water heating been slow to take hold during the 30 or so years since it first piqued the public’s interest?...

SpaceX thinks the U.S. Army could use its Starship rockets to transport troops, supplies across the planet in minutes.The company also has high hopes for its Starlink satellite internet program as a military communications hub.While the Army might find space-based internet useful, starship rockets for cargo are probably a bridge too far—for now.SpaceX, a company specializing in providing access to space through its line of rocket ships, is offering its Starship rocket to the U....

Tonight in Boca Chica, Texas, Elon Musk and SpaceX are going to reveal the next-generation Starship, the spacecraft the company hopes will one day make us an interplanetary species. At 8 p.m. local time (9 p.m. ET)., Musk will take the stage and give an update on the chromed-out spacecraft.View full post on YoutubeTonight’s livestream will likely be an update on the design of Starship, at least that’s according to Musk’s own tweet last week....

The U.S. Army is accepting bids from firearm manufacturers to replace the outdated Beretta M9 pistol, first issued in 1985. The military contract could be worth up to $580 million, but winning the deal requires gun makers to satisfy a list of precise requirements from the Pentagon. The M9 is bulky, making it difficult for people with smaller hands to use effectively. Many soldiers have also complained that the Beretta doesn’t have enough stopping power be reliable against enemy troops....

Media Platforms Design TeamI was surprised to hear youre such a car guy.Dax Shepard: I live for cars. I have since I was a kid. In fact, the nursery school where I went, they were concerned that I had some disability because I would stare out the window for 8 hours. They told my mom that there was something wrong me, and she looked out the window and she was like, No, hes watching the earthmovers....

Media Platforms Design Team(All Photos by Wami Delthorn/Flickr)Panduro City is the city of the future. Provided you’re an inch tall and made of plastic, you might even be able to move there. Designers Andrew Hamilton and Tim Goddard built this sprawling metro with Legos and automated it using Lego Mindstorms. Rich in detail, Panduro City is the tiny realization of Hamilton and Goddard’s vision of space colonization. On their Flickr page, they describe it as the hub of activity where the first human cargo lands in an extrasolar settlement....

Uber has suspended its self-driving car program in Tempe, Arizona pending investigation after a three-car crash yesterday knocked an autonomous vehicle on its side. The photos from yesterday’s crash showed the Uber SUV knocked on its side and a badly dented car in the background. There were no passengers in the Uber at the time of the crash, but two “safety” operators were seated in the front. No one was injured in the crash, and Uber says their vehicle was not responsible for the accident....

Jon Paterson(Photo by Jon Paterson)Leave it to the forward-thinking Kiwis to go skidding down hills on Huffy tricycles. Back in 2009 New Zealanders started slapping PVC sleeves onto the rear tires of the childhood classic, killing the grip and letting the back end slide, or drift, around corners. And thus was born trike drifting. Dirt bikers and daredevils in the hillier parts of the U.S. took up the sport after seeing videos on YouTube, and now the American Drift Trike Association holds events across the States....

One hundred years ago today, on September 15th 1916, German soldiers looked out over the tops of their trenches and got a tremendous shock. Giant metal-covered vehicles, as large as a barn, were slowly advancing towards their position, moving forward in a caterpillar-like motion and spitting cannon and machine gun fire as they came. It was like nothing they’d ever seen before. This was the battle of Flers-Courcelette, and the age of the tank had arrived....

Media Platforms Design TeamSEVILLE, Spain—In a region famous for its bullfighting rings resides Circuito Monteblanco, a newly built racetrack just 30 miles west of the Andalusian capital. Fittingly, this FIA-approved (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile) facility was the site of the international media launch for the Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera—the latest raging bull from Sant’Agata. Lamborghinis, like all sports cars, have gained some serious weight since they debuted in 1963. When the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 arrived in 2009, it was praised for being lighter and more powerful than its predecessor....

For people who hate trips to the dentist (so, pretty much everyone), some good news: New research in Science Translational Medicine shows that lasers can help to regrow parts of broken teeth. One day, perhaps, lasers could make fillings, crowns, and other painful reasons to visit your dentist things of the past.Earlier research suggested lasers could help regenerate heart, skin, lung, and nerve tissues. The reason is that low levels of laser light can apparently trigger chemical reactions that promote wound healing, reduce inflammation, and treat pain, among other effects....

Media Platforms Design TeamVic Kulihin[1] Antarctica ExposedLast spring the British Antarctic Survey put together the most detailed map of what Antarctica looks like beneath all its ice and snow. The map, which comes from seismic, bathymetric, and satellite data, reveals that a trough beneath Byrd Glacier is 1300 feet deeper than anyone had thought—at 1.8 miles deep, it’s the lowest point on any continent.[2] Meteorite MeccaMeteorites suffer less damage when they impact snow and are easier to find against the white backdrop, making the continent the top spot for space-rock hunters....

I grew up riding ATVs. First I had a Kawasaki Mojave, a 250-cc sport quad, which was followed by a Honda 250X. There was also a brief fling with a Yamaha Blaster that the dealer loaned me while the Kawasaki was getting a new oil pump. I learned an important lesson from that one: If I ever became an ATV dealer, I should never loan a screaming two-stroke ATV to a 15-year-old....

Any fan of apples knows how quickly they change colors when cut, turning brown over time. But new genetically modified apples, produced by Okanagan Specialty Fruits with the brand name Arctic Apples, will be sold in the United States for the first time next month. Okanagan has altered the apples to turn brown at a slower rate.Almost all plants contain the enzyme that turns apples brown—polyphenol oxidase, better known as PPO....