Month: January 2013

Culture Entertainment

Visionary Images: The Lost Fractals of Benoît Mandelbrot

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As reported on Wired. BY BRANDON KEIM Many people know Benoît Mandelbrot from the computer screensavers of a pre-LCD era. Others have a deeper understanding of his mathematics, the repeating geometries that earned him the sobriquetFather of Fractals. Less appreciated, though, is the process underlying his work: Mandelbrot relied as much for guidance on visual imagery as whiteboard formulae. Primitive computer printouts were his maps to uncharted mathematical terrain, their dot-matrix patterns a “here be dragons”…

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Article Entertainment

Most Dangerous Object in the Office: Skike VX Twin Roller Skis

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As reported on Wired. BY KARISSA BELL Photo: Matthew Reamer     Finally, skiing minus all that cold wet snow. With inflatable tires, elaborately adjustable bindings that allow your heels to lift, and optional ski-style poles, Skikes are designed to replicate cross-country skiing. But unlike conventional Nordic skis, they work indoors. So now we can pretend the cubicle aisles are snow trails. OK, the janitors keep griping about the shredded paper we sprinkle around to enhance the…

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Story

Navy Preps to Build a Robot Ship That Blows Up Mines

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As reported on Wired. BY SPENCER ACKERMAN A Navy diver in Mideast waters inspects an anti-mine system, October 2012. This is exactly the sort of thing the Navy wants a robot to do instead. Photo: Flickr/U.S. Navy   The Navy’s next wave of robots will take on one of the most dangerous missions on the open water: destroying mines. Anti-mine warfare is a critical mission for the Navy, as nations like Iran can mess with the…

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Entertainment

The Animated GIF: Still Looping After All These Years

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As reported on Wired. BY CLIVE THOMPSON The photographs of Eadweard Muybridge were meant to capture motion. Decades later, GIFs enabled his photos to be put in motion. Dwight dancing on The Office is great. Dwight dancing in an unstoppable GIF loop is positively epic. A kitten in Japan who injured her jaw (she’s fine), OMG Cat catapulted to internet stardom when Justin Bieber parodied her expression as part of an April Fools’ Day prank. Originally pulled from a Conan…

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Google Microsoft Mobile

Microsoft ‘disappointed’ by Google’s Exchange ActiveSync decision, pledges support for IMAP

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As reported on The Verge. By Tom Warren Microsoft has officially responded to Google’s planned Gmail ActiveSync removal in a statement issued to The Verge today. The company says it has been left “surprised and disappointed” by Google’s decision that will affect the syncing of personal Gmail contacts and calendar for new WIndows Phone devices. Microsoft briefly responded to Google’s decision late last year, but today’s statement appears to indicate that the company has no plans to support Gmail contacts and calendar…

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Mobile OS

The Ubuntu Phone OS Doesn’t Stand A Chance

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As reported on TechCrunch. by ALEX WILLIAMS I’m an open-source fan and want more than anything for Linux to spread to the far reaches of every desk and kitchen table where enterprise grunts linger. But there is no chance that Ubuntu will make it in those places. Even if the new Ubuntu Phone OS that Canonical launched today looks pretty, it still is late and oddly tied to the desktop. I would not even call it a mobile strategy. It’s…

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Application

The Best Health And Fitness Apps And Gadgets For Your New Year’s Needs

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As reported on TechCrunch. by RIP EMPSON The holidays wreak havoc on our bodies, with their mandatory over-indulgence in food as well as family and reminiscences. As we reflect on the year past — its victories and losses — we also begin looking ahead to the next, and in big ways or small, making plans to keep our momentum going. For many, this involves taking health more seriously, whether it’s losing a few pounds, training for…

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Entertainment TV

Al Jazeera Has Bought Its Way Into Viewers’ Homes With A Deal For Al Gore’s Current TV (CONFIRMED)

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As reported on TechCrunch. by RYAN LAWLER Over the past few years, Al Jazeera has gained prominence and new audiences in the U.S. and around the world. Thanks to its coverage of the Arab Spring, Al Jazeera became a powerful new outlet for news from the Middle East and other parts of the world. Even so, it had yet to reach cable audiences due to a reluctance on the part of big cable distributors to carry…

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Article

The Income Rich Take One For The Team. Thanks!

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As reported on Engadget. by MICHAEL ARRINGTON I love talking about taxes. Our President and both houses of Congress have finally all agreed on a deal on this whole fiscal cliff mess. I’ve been holding my breath on this because I thought for sure that I’d be paying a lot more in taxes this year. But I dodged the bullet. All venture capitalists did, actually. Nothing the government agreed to in the last few days actually affects the asset wealthy in…

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Polaroid plans experimental Fotobar stores that will let you print your photos

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As reported on Engadget. By Donald Melanson Polaroid hasn’t been shy to try various tactics as it attempts to compete in the age of digital photography, but it always seems to come back to the idea it’s best known for. It’s latest effort is a bit more of a roundabout way to get some tangible photos in your hands, though: a series of “experimental” Photobar stores where you can go and have your digital photos professionally printed. The first…

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