Sapphire HD 7950 FleX Dual-X Edition 3GB Review
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Robot Walks Like a Man
I can still remember a talk I attended about eight years ago that covered, in part, how inefficient the human gait is. Despite this, researchers still work to try to emulate it and some, as reported by the Institute of Physics, have made the most accurate robotic legs yet.
Okay, so if how people walk is inefficient, why would robots be built to mimic it? To learn more about how humans learn to walk. We cannot experiment on infants to see what parts are needed to learn to walk, but we can on a robot. The central pattern generator (CPG) is a fundamental part of the human walking system, and the researchers successfully reproduced it, in its simplest form, in the robot. With just two 'neurons' firing one after the other, the hips were ordered to move, and sensors within the legs move them to keep the robot moving. The resulting movement is similar to what we see in infants who have not developed as complex a CPG yet.
The research into the network within the robot may help us understand the neural network in our own bodies. This knowledge potentially could help those with spinal cord injuries by explaining how they can learn to walk again.
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Microsoft Executive Says Wii U is 'Effectively' an Xbox 360
The upcoming Nintendo Wii U certainly has the potential to be a good system, but we still lack concrete information to push that one way or the other. If you happen to listen to Microsoft, the Wii U is nothing special in terms of performance. Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Studios, says the Nintendo Wii U is "effectively" an Xbox 360 when you look at the graphics performance. The Wii U Pro Controller "makes a lot of sense" with the Nintendo console because it is so similar to the 360, which could make the console a haven for Xbox 360 ports. The Pro Controller pretty much does mimic the 360's controller, so it would make sense for ports to appear. Plenty of the Wii U games that will come out are in fact ports, but there are some new IPs like ZombiU. Spencer did have kind words to say about ZombiU and liked how Ubisoft is utilizing the second screen of the Wii U's GamePad. He just does not feel the console itself is anything special. I think we will just have to see for ourselves whenever the Wii U comes out.
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Check Your System for DNSChanger
Internet superpowers Google and Facebook have been leading the charge to warn users about the DNSChanger malware that could prevent users from accessing the Internet starting Monday. That is when law enforcement authorities will shut down a server that was used by a group of Eastern European cyber criminals that used it for a "crooked advertising operation." Through the outreach from these companies, the number of users infected by the malware has dropped "from more than 500,000 to less than 70,000 in the United States." Be sure to check your system using a free or pay utility that targets malware before Monday to ensure that you don't find yourself disconnected from the Internet.
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HD Remake of NiGHTS Into Dreams... Confirmed
The Sega Saturn was a console with many great titles released for it. There are plenty of titles that illicit fond memories, but one of the most unique experiences was the one offered by NiGHTS into dreams...; a fan-favorite platformer due to its innovative design and 3D gameplay. NiGHTS released 16 years ago today on the Sega Saturn, and to comemorate the occasion, Sega has announced NiGHTS into dreams... will receive an HD remake. NiGHTS will release this Fall on PC, PlayStation Network, and Xbox Live Arcade, and includes all the original levels in HD resolution. Trophies/achievements and leaderboards are being added in to see how you stack up against your friends. There is also an optional Saturn Mode that will let you experience the classic graphics for those feeling nostalgic.
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From Fusion to Microchips Modern electronics are made using a photolithographic system that etches circuitry into silicon using ultraviolet light. For now this method works quite well, but the 193 nm light is just too big to keep up with Moore's Law. Extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) light sources with a 13.5 nm wavelength will have to be developed for electronics to continue shrinking, but making this light is very difficult as it requires working with plasmas. Luckily some plasma researchers at the University of Washington have decided to take what they know from their fusion research to develop impressive EUV light sources. Current systems to produce EVU emitting plasmas are only able to do so for about 20-50 nanoseconds, but the UW researchers were able to sustain a plasma for 20-50 microseconds, roughly 1000 times longer. To achieve this, the researchers used a design similar to theirs for fusion reactors that use a current to control the plasma, instead of giant magnets. In order to market this new technique, the researchers have spun a company, Zplasma, off from the university. Hopefully it and other EUV systems will be able to expand into the industry before modern fabrication techniques hit their wall. Read More ...
Corsair Announces New Solid State Drives Corsair has announced an addition to its vast lineup of solid state drives, the Force Series GS SSDs. The drives are controlled by the popular SandForce SF-2200 SSD controller, and feature the SATA 6Gb/s connector in a 2.5" form factor. The addition of toggle NAND flash will boost random write speeds and help give these drives the "fastest overall performance" in the Corsair lineup. The drives will be available in capacities of 180GB, 240GB, 360GB, and 480GB and will range in price from $189.99 to $489.99. Read More ...
Molecular Magnetic Switching for Potential Data Storage Traditionally data is stored using magnetic materials, like those in a hard disk drive. While these systems have been reliable for some time, they are starting to hit the limit of their abilities. To store more information on a platter in an HDD, the bits have to be made smaller, but smaller bits are more susceptible to changes in those around them. To get around this, researchers are looking to step back from magnetism and start using electricity as well, and those at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology with partners at Strasbourg and Japan, have successfully used electricity to flip the magnetic state of a single molecule. At the center of an organic molecule is a single iron atom. Using an electric pulse the researchers altered the conductive and magnetic state of the metal-organic molecule without disturbing those around it. Considering the current size of a bit is roughly three million atoms, getting it down to a single molecule like this is very impressive. Of course, this is currently just something in a laboratory, as the researchers had to use an electron microscope to produce the pulse to flip the bit. However, this research shows the potential for spin crossover molecules, like this, which combine properties of memristors and spintronics in a way that can be used for data storage. Read More ...
Super Slim PlayStation 3 on the Way? Sony likes to release updated versions of its gaming systems that are a little smaller and more efficient. We already have the PlayStation 3 Slim, but now it looks like an even smaller version could be on the way. A recent filing with the FCC mentions a 4000 series PS3, which is an update over the current 3000 series (PS3 Slim). No exact dimensions were listed in the filing, but a rumor is going around this will be a super slim PS3 that will somehow be even smaller than the current one. The rumor says Sony will announce the super slim PS3 at Gamescom next month, which could have some credence considering that is where Sony announced the PS3 Slim in 2009. At E3 last month, Sony's Shuhei Yoshida did not confirm or deny an even smaller PS3 could happen, so take from that what you will. Read More ...
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