UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) is a boot level program that will replace the BIOS on computers made from this date forward. UEFI defines the software interface between the operating system and platform firmware. It resides in non-volatile memory on the motherboard (or on the hard drive or a network drive) and initializes the computer…
4 cores, 8 cores, 12 cores, more? Phooey! Intel now shipping 60-core Xeon Phi processors
Intel announced today that the first model of the new Xeon Phi (aka Knights Corner) family of processors is now shipping. A response to high-end GPUs from companies such as nVidia and a stepping stone towards Intel’s goal of reaching 1 exaflop by 2018, the first Knights Corner chip, the Xeon Phi 5110P, has 60…
New ultra-small carbon-fiber electrode material allows for better connections in the human brain
When it comes to implanting material in the brain, smaller is better as small contaminants are essentially “ignored” by the body’s immune system. As such, researchers have developed a new “stealthy neural interface” made from a single carbon fiber thread only 7 micrometers wide and coated with chemicals to make it resistant to proteins in…
Real or Photoshopped? “Human Barbie” is suspected of using plastic surgery to attain her “Barbie” look
21-year-old Ukrainian model, musician, and astroplanner Valeria Lukyonova calls herself “the most famous Russian woman on the Russian-speaking internet” because she looks just like a Barbie Doll. Many suspect her photos are heavily photoshopped. Others think she obtained her over-exaggerated proportions via plastic surgery. Now Fashion Magazine claims to have obtained proof through an unnamed…
The new Titan supercomputer is badass but will China’s Tianhe-2 blow past it in 2015? [UPDATE]
China’s Tianhe-2 supercomputer is expected to arrive in 2015. At 50 petaflops it would be three times faster than the new Cray XK7 Titan supercomputer but let’s face it, vaporware doesn’t count in the supercomputer race and China has only held the title once (in 2010 when its Tianhe-1 briefly held the title of the…
Seventh Star Wars movie, Episode 7 – Status Watch – Latest News [UPDATE]
Disney bought Lucasfilm today (for $4.05B) and right out of the gate they announced the Star Wars saga will continue with Star Wars Episode 7 targeted for release in 2015 and more feature films expected to continue as the Star Wars saga grows. George Lucas will serve as creative consultant. Not sure how this one…
Oldest D&D d20 in existence? Twenty-face die from Egypt dates to 304 B.C.
Seems as if Egyptians were casting icosahedra dice long before D&D came into existence. This die is a twenty-face die dating between 304 and 30 B.C. It is held in the The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The piece was formerly in the collection of Reverend Chauncey Murch (died 1907) who obtained the d20 between 1883…
Get the Biolite Camp Stove that Hurricane Sandy survivors used – heats, cooks, and generates electricity
This little device really took off in New York when Hurricane Sandy survivors discovered it provided heat, boiled water, and allowed them to jack in to its USB port to charge their smartphone devices. The Biolite CampStove sells for $129 and runs off of any renewable biomass such as twigs, wood scraps, even pinecones -…
Ready for apocalypse? Get the Biolite that Hurricane Sandy survivors used – heats, cooks, and generates electricity
This little device really took off in New York when Hurricane Sandy survivors discovered it provided heat, boiled water, and allowed them to jack in to its USB port to charge their smartphone devices. The Biolite CampStove sells for $129 and runs off of any renewable biomass such as twigs, wood scraps, even pinecones -…









