G.Skill Ripjaws X F3 2133C9Q-32GXH Review
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NVIDIA Developing Desktop CPU
As we know, earlier in the month NVIDIA invited hundreds of editors and affiliates to San Francisco to unveil the company's latest card, the GTX 680. Still under NDA at the time, we didn't learn about the meeting until last week, but it seems the GTX 680 wasn't the only thing unveiled. Information has leaked that NVIDIA is currently developing a desktop CPU, which will act similar to the upcoming mobile CPU, Tegra 4. Currently being called Tegra-D (presumably for desktop and not decongestant), this will mark NVIDIA's first foray into the desktop CPU market. Seeing as the company's main graphics card competitor, AMD, also has a stake in the CPU market, this seems only logical. However, it'll be interesting to see how Intel reacts to the news.
Exact specifications of the Tegra-D have not been released, but sources have said it'll act similarly to the mobile Tegra chips in that it will be a quad-core CPU with a fifth companion core. The fifth core will be used to handle background processes while the rest of the cores handle the boatload of the work. NVIDIA says its drivers will have the instructions for the fifth core and the company plans on pushing out frequent updates like it does for its graphics drivers. As of now, there are no plans to allow end users the ability to control what the fifth core is used for and it seems like it will be locked. NVIDIA did state that the fifth core is completely independent from the other four cores, so that overclocking the main cores will not be negatively affected.
Aside from developing a desktop CPU, it's probably safe to assume NVIDIA will be re-entering the motherboard chipset market. For those that have been building computers for awhile, you probably remember that NVIDIA chipsets were quite popular, so it was a shame when the company stopped producing them a few years ago.
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Google Maps Goes 8-bit
If you happen to take a look at Google Maps today, and presumably tomorrow, you will be greeted by 8-bit graphics that look like they belong on the NES. There is even an instructional video describing how to get Google Maps on an actual NES. Google Maps has found its way onto several types of systems, and Google decided that it wanted to get into the ancient console market as well. The full map of the Earth is very well done, and my hometown is just as sparse in 8-bit as 3D.
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Obsidian to Help with Wasteland 2 if Kickstarter Page Reaches $2.1 Million
It was just yesterday that Brian Fargo was talking about getting the Black Isle Studios team back together depending on the success of Wasteland 2. Much of the team at Black Isle Studios went on to form Obsidian Entertainment, which co-founder Chris Avellone said he would love to work with Brian Fargo once again. Well, today inXile Entertainment and Obsidian have reached an agreement where Obsidian will help on Wasteland 2 if the Kickstarter page reaches $2.1 million. Chris Avellone and others at Obsidian will help expand the depth and literary content of Wasteland 2 even further, provided more funding comes in. Right now, Wasteland 2 is a little shy of $1.8 million, and with 17 days to go, reaching that $2.1 million goal does not seem that far off. InXile will still be handling the programming work, but if Obsidian is on board then assets can be added to the game quicker. The faster that content is included means the more can be added to the game, so why not help out to bring Obsidian into the project?
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Microsoft Registers Xbox FL Domain
The other day came the rumor of a stripped-down Xbox 360 appearing next year, which would pack an ARM processor and be geared more towards the XBLA and Kinect crowd. Well, today some interesting information has appeared courtesy of some domain names. Microsoft has registered the Xbox FL domain name (XboxFL.com and XboxFL.net), but currently both just redirect to an Xbox FL search through Microsoft's Bing. As usual, Microsoft has not commented on the domain registrations, but this could potentially be the name for the ARM-powered console. If it does exist, rumors peg it as costing around $100 to compete against Apple TV. Whether or not this Xbox FL is real or just Microsoft covering its bases will have to wait to be seen.
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Intentionally Collapsible Structure Made
When most people design a structure, like a building, they do what they can so it will not collapse on itself. Most people however do not go to MIT where researchers have made a single-piece structure that is designed to collapse. Called the buckliball for its similar appearance to buckyballs, the hollow spherical structure will collapse down to 46% of its original size.
This is achieved with carefully designed dimples and the ligaments between them. When the air is pulled out of the soft rubber structure, the thin ligaments will buckle while the thick ligaments rotate either clockwise or counter-clockwise. All of this happens in unison, so the shape uniformly collapses into itself.
What is the point of a shape designed to collapse? By better understanding what happens as a structure collapses, it should be possible to control what is happening, to minimize damages. Also this technique could be used in the design of robotic skins, by allowing the skin to change shape with the robot, or even apply additional force to a movement.
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Disney Epic Mickey 2 Confirmed for PC and Mac
Warren Spector, one of the famed video game designers, has not had much to do with the PC since the days of Deus Ex and Thief, but that will soon change. Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two has been confirmed as launching on the PC and Mac, which means Warren Spector is finally back on the PC. Spector created the first Epic Mickey, but that version was only for consoles. Now, PC and Mac gamers can get in on the sequel, which so far has few specific details other than what has already been revealed for the console versions. In Epic Mickey 2, Mickey will meet up with Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (a predecessor to Mickey the Mouse) and the two will journey through a bizzaro Disney theme park called the Wasteland. Epic Mickey 2 expands on the magical paintbrush from the first game by adding in musical numbers and co-op play, but it is unknown just how the control scheme will be adapted to the computer. The game is being billed by Disney as the "first videogame musical," with some characters breaking out into song to advance the plot.
Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two is slated to release later this year.
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The Man with a Heart Made of Turbines
About a year ago a dying man underwent heart transplant surgery, but instead of getting the heart of a donor, he received a pair of turbines. These turbines kept his blood flowing for five weeks before he died of an underlying disease. At the time of the surgery he likely had less than a day to live and the doctors report the artificial heart was still functioning normally at the time of death.
While artificial hearts have been made before, these use pumps, so they more exactly replicate the operation of the human heart. This turbine design is decidedly different though, especially when considering it results in a person having no pulse. Because the turbine’s continuously move the blood through the body, instead of regularly pushing it like the heart, there is no pulse associated with the push.
This design does have some advantages to other artificial hearts. The most important is its durability, as the lack of flexible membranes and twisting mechanisms means there are fewer weak points in the structure. However, it is not ready for general use but work is being done to develop the testing protocols needed to use it again.
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Sega to Cancel Games, Layoff Employees - Sonic, Total War, Aliens, and Football Manager are Safe
The news just keeps going from bad to worse for some publishers. THQ has already been hit hard, and now it looks to be Sega's turn. Sega is reporting it will restructure its US and European businesses after an expected loss of $86 million. Sega still expects to have a profit of around $243.5 million, but even that is a 50% loss from its earlier estimates. As a result of the restructuring, Sega will cancel some games already in development and layoff some employees. The QA department at Sega of America has been completely shut down and the QA at Sega Europe will handle duties for both regions. Other departments will also receive some layoffs, but hopefully none will be hit as hard as the QA one.
As for the games, the franchises considered safe are: Total War, Sonic, Football Manager, and Aliens. Those franchises are the strongest IPs for Sega and it expects to have solid earnings from them. The good news is we should finally be receiving the oft-delayed Aliens: Colonial Marines, so at least we have that. Franchises outside these four will no longer be published by Sega, which leaves a fair number of titles in limbo. Hopefully some other studios can take over publishing reins in the mean time.
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Improved Microbial Fuel Cell Developed
Researchers have been looking to microbes for ways to create fuels for our cars and even power plants, but now some researchers are looking into making electricity directly from microbes. A Microbial Fuel Cells (MFC) uses microbes that breakdown sewage and other waste products to release electrons. This naturally happens as the microbes work, but in an MFC the electrons are captured and run through a circuit, before they combine with a positive ion, similar to any fuel cell.
At the American Chemical Society’s 243rd National Meeting & Exposition researchers discussed their improved MFC which works on five times more sewage, produces six times the electricity, and costs half as much as its predecessor. Those are definitely major improvements, but 13% efficiency is still a little low and $150 per gallon of waste water is somewhat expensive. However, the researchers hope to reach $20 per gallon, which will make this economically competitive with current wastewater treatment systems.
The potential for this technology is truly amazing as it could bring cheap clean water to a number of places that need it. Remember, the MFC produces electricity while it cleans the wastewater. In fact, the MFC discussed can remove 97% off the organic matter from wastewater, which is short of the 99.99% clean required for drinkable water, but still valuable. These could be incredibly powerful at wastewater treatment plants which not only could use the cleaning capabilities but also the power. Some estimates put the power requirements of a single treatment plant at 10,000 homes so making a self-powering plant would be very useful.
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Leviathan Ship Crosses Oceans Carrying 18 Ships
The MV Blue Marlin isn't your typical sea-faring cargo ship - it is a massive semi-submersible heavy lift ship with enough muscle to carry 18 ships on its back in a 58-day journey from China all the way to the Netherlands. At a length spanning 738 feet, it has 38 cabins for a crew of 60, a gym, a sauna and a swimming pool to take the edge off those long, uneventful trips. This floating behemoth can transport hulking masses over vast oceans seemingly without breaking a sweat - be it a missile destroyer, a radar station, or an oil rig. Head on to this link to see just how these people managed to pile up 18 ships on to the MV Blue Marlin's colossal cargo hold.
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Mold Mimics Canadian Highway System
Thanks to my great interest in science, I monitor numerous science news feeds that get me the latest developments from across the planet. Some of these relate to computers and other technologies of interest to the Overclockers Club community. Other items are just interesting, even though there is no direct link to overclocking or computers. This item is decidedly in the second category and is for every Canadian OCC member, and anyone else interested in highway design or molds.
Researchers have known for some time that Nature has a tendency to do things in the most optimized way. While humans have supercomputers that can perform thousand-year computations in weeks, Nature has had thousands and even millions of years to perform its own experiments several billion times. This reasoning has lead researchers at Queen’s University in Canada to prove that Nature can make complex computations, and recently the researchers have shown mold growing a network similar to the Canadian highway system.
Starting with a dish shaped like the country, the researchers placed food (rolled oats) at the locations of major urban areas. The physarum polycephalum mold was then allowed to grow into a network to connect these food sources, enabling it to continue growing. As you can see in the video of the mold growing, the pattern of the mold network closely resembles the highway network.
To create any efficient highway network requires the ability to perform complex computations, so the researchers believe this is proof of Nature’s computation capability. (That or Canadian highway engineers think like mold.) It is definitely proof that all researchers should consider what solutions Nature has to the modern problems humans face. After all, I am sure that slime experiment cost far less than any computer system used to plan out highways.
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Warhammer 40,000 MMO Focusing on Single Player, Over 100 Employees Laid Off as Result
The problems afflicting THQ are not the best, as the studio is focusing on its core franchises to help it rebound. Layoffs have hit the company and games have been delayed, including Metro: Last Light, so hopefully things get back on the uptick soon. At the time, THQ said the Warhammer 40,000 MMO is still on the way but was looking for investors to help fund it. Today, the news is not that great. The Warhammer 40,000 MMO is no longer an MMO as it is being refocused as a single player game with online multiplayer. That's right, Dark Millenium Online is now just Dark Millenium, but Relic Entertainment and Vigil Game Studios have lost over 100 employees as a result. Vigil lost 79 employees while Relic lost 39, which serves as a harsh reminder of the times we live in. The layoffs and switch of focus for Dark Millenium could also mean no additional funding was provided, which necessitated the move.
The times are tough for any company, especially when the previous year was not that profitable. THQ is trying to consolidate its strategy to survive, but at the cost of employees at flagship studios, the risk may be too great to overcome.
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Journey is Fastest-Selling PSN Game Ever
The PlayStation Store is home to a large selection of pretty much every type of game you can imagine. Journey recently launched on the PSN, and thatgamecompany has announced it is the fastest-selling game ever on the PSN. Journey, like thatgamecompany's Flow and Flower before it, is not so much a game as it is an experience. Brilliant visuals help to pull you into the adventure as your character walks across the desert towards a mountain. You can play with another person, but there is no communication other than chirping. You do not even see the name of your compatriot until the game ends, which is a decidedly different approach to multiplayer. Exact sales numbers for Journey are not available, but thatgamecompany seems quite happy with the results. The soundtrack will arrive on the PSN and iTunes on April 10th, plus a "limited" number of CDs will also be available.
However, thatgamecompany's president and co-founder Kellee Santiago has reportedly left the company, as have other "key" staffers. The studio is hiring for an online game capable of supporting thousands of users at once, so we will just have to see what effect the departure(s) have on development.
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Corsair Claims Two Manufacturer of the Year Awards
Corsair has announced that it is the recipient of two Manufacturer of the Year 2011 awards from PC Games Hardware in Germany. The awards were obtained in the categories of PC memory and compact CPU coolers. This marks the sixth year in a row that Corsair has taken home the awards voted on by the readers. The full results will be available online and in the 05/2012 issue of the magazine, hopefully you can read German. Corsair CEO Andy Paul was happy to hear about the awards and went on to say, "We’ve worked hard to ensure our Hydro Series CPU coolers match up to the performance expectations of enthusiasts, so we’re thrilled to receive the award for best compact CPU coolers. And to win Manufacturer of the Year for memory for the sixth year running shows that we can continue to successfully expand into new product categories while retaining our dominant position as the World’s leading builder of performance PC memory.”
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