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Cellphone Makers Realize: It's the Software, Stupid
Posted: March 30th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Danny Dumas
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Cellphone makers will be touting their latest wares at this week's CTIA Wireless show in Las Vegas. Topping the feature lists: Enhanced operating systems and software.
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Study Leads to Doctors' About-Face on Cholesterol Drug
Posted: March 30th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Associated Press
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Doctors are stunned by the results of a study on Vytorin that show the cholesterol drug fails to improve heart disease even though it effectively reduces three key risk factors. Leading cardiologists are urging a return to older, tried-and-true treatments for cholesterol.
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March 31, 1932: Ford's Flathead V-8 Cheap, Durable ... and Fun
Posted: March 30th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Tony Long
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The introduction of this easily mass-produced engine, like Ford's earlier Model T, transforms the automotive industry.
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New DNA Scanning Tech Enables Rapid Disease Findings
Posted: March 30th, 2008, 7:30pm EST by Associated Press
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The completion of the human genome map five years ago set the stage for research on genetic links to disease. Now scientists are working at a rapid pace using new DNA-scanning technology to find genes linked to cancer, arthritis, diabetes and other diseases.
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Tron's Classic Light Cycle Scene 'Sweded'
Posted: March 30th, 2008, 10:30am EST by Underwire
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French filmmaker Freres-Hueon creates an homage to the light cycle sequence in Tron, the '82 sci-fi cult classic that follows the adventures of a computer programmer who gets digitized by a laser.
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Cities Round the Globe Go Dark for Earth Hour
Posted: March 30th, 2008, 10:00am EST by Associated Press
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People everywhere turn off the lights and use candles for at least 60 minutes starting at 8 p.m. Saturday. From the Sydney Opera House to Rome's Colosseum to the Sears Tower's famous antennas in Chicago, floodlit icons of civilization go dark for Earth Hour, a worldwide campaign to highlight the threat of climate change.
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Top 5 Real Biology Concepts in BioShock
Posted: March 29th, 2008, 12:30pm EST by wired science
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BioShock isn't meant to be a science lesson, but it contains some jargon and ideas that would be familiar to any life science student. Our Wired Science blog team got in touch with Ken Levine, the creative director at 2K games, to learn about the real science that he slips into an amazing game.
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Manufacture and Sell Anything -- in Minutes
Posted: March 29th, 2008, 6:00am EST by Ian Mount
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Ponoko is an on-demand service that allows merchants to upload their designs and customers to purchase items based upon those designs. It's already working for one furniture maker.
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Google Goes Black for Earth Hour
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Underwire
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Google's white homepage goes black on Saturday to draw attention to an environmental campaign called Earth Hour.
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Gallery: Mozilla at 10 - A Photo Tour of the Lizard’s Lair
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Michael Calore
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GIs Turn Filmmakers in Bad Voodoo's War
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Danger Room
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Soldiers in the Bad Voodoo platoon stationed in Iraq carry high-def videocameras and shoot the raw footage for a new documentary, Bad Voodoo's War, by director Deborah Scranton. The film airs Tuesday on PBS' Frontline.
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Anti-Quran Film Fitna Pulled From Web Due to 'Threats'
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Underwire
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Video-hosting site LiveLeak pulls the controversial anti-Quran film Fitna, citing a barrage of threats. The 17-minute film by Dutch politician Geert Wilders received more than 3 million views before being taken offline.
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Plug-Ins are Headed for the Heartland
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 7:00pm EST by Autopia
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Plug-in hybrids are coming to the heartland, thanks to bureaucrats in California.
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Hackers Assault Epilepsy Patients via Computer
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 7:00pm EST by Kevin Poulsen
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In what might be the first physical attack over the internet, hackers bombard an epileptic patient forum with images intended to trigger seizures.
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Review: 'Viking' Videogame Is Gruesomely Addictive
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 5:25pm EST by Game|Life
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Who knew getting medieval on a bunch of monsters could be so much fun? Viking: Battle for Asgard isn't the best game ever, but it's easy to get hooked by the action.
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Songbird Challenges iTunes With Major Update
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 5:20pm EST by Listening Post
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The open-source music player built on Mozilla code was already stable. Now it's just better than ever, with new features and bug fixes included in the latest version.
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Maverick IT Entrepreneur Eckart Wintzen Dies
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 5:00pm EST by Epicenter Blog
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Eckart Wintzen, who founded European software consultancy BSO Origin and socially-conscious venture firm Ex'tent, has died.
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LOLcat Guys Squeeze Laughs Out of Graphs
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 5:00pm EST by Underwire
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The I Can Has Cheezburger? crew puts out the call for bar graphs and pie charts that take a whack at pop culture.
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Build Your Own Gaming PC for Under a Grand
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 5:00pm EST by How-To Wiki
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Why spend thousands on a pre-built frag machine when you can assemble your own for much less? Wired.com's How-To Wiki offers advice on building a killer sub-$1,000 PC ready for some front-line action.
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Mozilla's Asa Dotzler on Firefox, Fighting Bloat and the Problem With Democracy
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 4:40pm EST by Compiler
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As Mozilla prepares to celebrate its tenth anniversary on Monday, March 31st, Wired.com spoke with one of the browser maker's longest-term employees. Community development director Asa Dotzler tells us how Firefox was born, how the tough decisions about adding features get made, and what Firefox 3 will bring to the table.
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Top 10 April Fools' Pranks for Nerds
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 4:30pm EST by Jose Fermoso
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Here's the top 10 tech-related tricks to pull on friends and co-workers on April Fools' Day.
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Charity Battles Imaginary Killing Machines
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 4:00pm EST by Danger Room
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Another group has joined the ranks of academics and ethicists who want to save our society from blood-thirsty armed drones that are preparing to gun down our puppies and children. Too bad they don't exist outside of science fiction.
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Gear Blog Rivals Engadget and Gizmodo Turn the Competition Up to 11
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 2:00pm EST by Carlye Adler
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Like a couple of rival hometown newspapers, the competition between Engadget and Gizmodo has developed into a full-blown feud, complete with ridicule, charges of malfeasance and sabotage.
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YouTube's New 'Insight' Underwhelms
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 1:00pm EST by Kevin Maney, Portfolio.com
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A new YouTube tracking tool, called "Insight," is supposed to show you where your video is most popular, as well as who is watching your clip and when. But the info is so broad -- how useful is it, really? From Portfolio.com.
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Can Google Stop the Brain Drain?
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 12:00pm EST by Epicenter
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Countless Googlers have fled the company in search of new challenges (and fortunes).
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China Verging on 3G Phones; Market Quivers in Anticipation
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 10:00am EST by Associated Press
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The country's largest mobile phone company begins trials next week of its next-generation standard. Companies look at the potential market and salivate.
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Comrade Communications: Cubans Can Have Cellphones
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 9:50am EST by Associated Press
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President Raul Castro's government is lifting the ban on private cellphone ownership, a move many hope is the beginning of a general relaxation of laws affecting personal freedoms on the island.
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California Cuts Zero-Emissions Mandate in Favor of Hybrids
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 9:35am EST by Autopia
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The California Air Resources Board doesn't kill the electric car, but it tells the auto industry it can build a whole lot less of them. That break for automakers comes with the requirement that they produce nearly 60,000 plug-in hybrids by 2014.
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These Gizmos Connect to the Net, But You'd Never Know It.
Posted: March 28th, 2008, 6:00am EST by Lucas Graves
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Even the best web-enabled gadgets can't make web-browsing comfortable. But developers of some products have a new approach: Instead of offering full-fledged web access, they tap the net selectively to power particular functions. Welcome to the invisible internet.
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French Recording May Trump Edison's 'Little Lamb'
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 11:45pm EST by Associated Press
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A recently discovered, 10-second clip of a woman singing "Au Clair de la Lune" would, if the 1860 date is accurate, be the oldest-known recording of a human voice, predating Thomas Edison's "Mary had a little lamb" by 17 years.
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Which Browser Is Best Equipped for the Web of the Future?
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Compiler
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When HTML 5 is adopted as the next revision of the web's standard language, which browser will lead the pack? Right now, Opera is best equipped to ride the web's bleeding edge, but Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari are running a tough race, too.
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Sex Drive: IPhones, Twitter Let Sex Workers Spread Their Gospel
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Regina Lynn
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Gadgets and web apps give escorts and their evangelists new tools for spinning the news.
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March 28, 1910: It Floats, It Flies, It's a Seaplane
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Randy Alfred
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An intrepid French inventor takes to the air ... from the water. He beats out many competitors and lives a long life.
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Amaze Your Friends With These Can't-Miss Bar Tricks
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 6:45pm EST by How-To Wiki
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Your days of paying for your own drinks are over. Master these simple tricks, then use them to take advantage of the gullible, intoxicated masses at your local bar.
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Civil Libertarians See a Hopeful Dawn in 2009 ... or Not
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 6:30pm EST by Ryan Singel
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After years of secret wiretaps and Bush administration cloak-and-dagger, some civil libertarians and openness advocates dream of sweeping change in 2009. But history and bureaucratic momentum suggest there's no milk and honey ahead.
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Anti-Emo Riots Break Out Across Mexico
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 6:00pm EST by Underwire
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Hundreds of punk rockers and metalheads have taken to the streets of several Mexican cities to attack emo kids in a wave of violence that is drawing police and government intervention.
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Google's Paid Clicks Continue to Slide
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 5:50pm EST by Epicenter
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Bad news for Google shareholders: Paid clicks, or clicks on sponsored ads, over the Google network are stalling, according to a ComScore report.
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Opinions Fly at California Air Resources Board Meeting
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 5:00pm EST by Autopia
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The California Air Resources Board debates whether to cut increase the number of zero emissions vehicles manufacturers must produce — or scrap their program entirely.
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Gallery: Nanotech Porn -- Convention Floor Becomes Gadget Central
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 4:35pm EST by Aaron Rowe
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Materials scientists go window-shopping for the latest devices. Look at the stuff they're looking at to look at stuff at the minutest scale.
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New Hampshire Joins Montana in Real ID Victory
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 4:30pm EST by Threat Level
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New Hampshire ID holders will not face rejection at airports and federal buildings come May 11, after the Department of Homeland security issues the state an extension to pending Real ID requirements.
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Creationism Takes a Hit: Complexity Not Bad For Evolution
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 4:15pm EST by Wired Science
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Creationists say that as creatures get more complicated, evolution gets harder. Now, new research by evolutionary biologists appears to refute that assertion.
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Card-Counting Geeks Take Vegas for a Ride in '21'
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 4:00pm EST by Hugh Hart
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An MIT engineering student and his buddies used their brains to squeeze millions out of Nevada casinos in the '90s. Now a new movie tells their story, Hollywood-style.
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Google's Stock Falls as Its Click-Through Rate Flatlines
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 3:05pm EST by Associated Press
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A change in methodology skews the company's click-through rate downward, raising concerns on Wall Street.
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Saving the Earth? Good for You — Just Be Sure to Watch the Bottom Line.
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 3:00pm EST by Gabriel Sherman
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Toyota relies on sales of gas-guzzling pickups to be the cash cow offseting development costs of the hybrid Prius. Oother companies hoping to reap the benefits of going green face the same Catch-22: Rolling out earth-friendly products attracts environmentally conscious customers, but corporate profits still come largely from doing business the old, dirty way.
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High-Tech Soldier Suit, Crawling Back From the Dead
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 3:00pm EST by Danger Room
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The Army's soldier suit of the future, once left for dead, appears to be crawling back to life.
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Music Outlaws, There's a New Sheriff in Town
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 2:15pm EST by Sam Gustin, Portfolio.com
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Jim Griffin leads Warner Music’s fight to tame the web’s lawless music frontier. From Portfolio.com.
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Review: Sega Superstars Tennis is Not Quite Super
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 1:50pm EST by Game Life
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Nostalgia sells. That simple tenet is the reason why the Super Smash Bros. series is so successful. In trying to tap the same vein of remembered childhood glee, Sega has created Sega Superstars Tennis.
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Comcast's BitTorrent Accord Doesn't Satisfy Critics
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 1:40pm EST by Threat Level
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Comcast said Thursday it was upgrading its infrastructure and would treat all internet traffic the same. But digital rights groups are still urging the FCC to investigate the ISPs interference with BitTorrent traffic.
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Adobe Makes Photoshop Express Available Free Online
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 10:30am EST by Compiler
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Adobe releases a stripped-down, web-based version of its Photoshop imaging editing software. The public beta release of Photoshop Express will be available for users to test for free on Thursday, the company says.
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Comcast Reverses Policy, Will Treat Net Traffic Equally
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 10:05am EST by Associated Press
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Under investigation for interfering with file-sharing by its subscribers, the company now says it will stop meddling and treat all traffic equally.
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Adobe Makes Photoshop 'Lite' Available for Free
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 9:55am EST by Associated Press
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Hoping to boost its name recognition with a new generation, Adobe is offering a slimmed-down version of its popular photo-editing software for free online.
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Changes Ahead for Popular BBC Sci-Fi Show, Dr. Who
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 9:45am EST by Underwire
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The longest running science fiction show in television history returns for another season and remains as popular as ever, but the future is uncertain. In Underwire.
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The Mysterious Case of Ohio's Voting Machines
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 9:35am EST by Threat Level
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It's an election year, so Ohio must be screwing around with its electronic voting machines again. In Threat Level.
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Futurist Ray Kurzweil Pulls Out All the Stops (and Pills) to Live to Witness the Singularity
Posted: March 27th, 2008, 3:00am EST by Gary Wolf
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Inventor Ray Kurzweil wants to travel from our era to the future over a border he calls the "singularity." Artificial intelligence will render biological humans obsolete, he says, but will not make human consciousness irrelevant. Kurzweil argues the singularity won't destroy us -- it will immortalize us.
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Reznor vs. Radiohead: Innovation Smackdown
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Eliot Van Buskirk
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From giving away songs to funding fan-made videos, Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails leader Trent Reznor get busy rewriting the rules of the music industry. But whose strategies are the most revolutionary?
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Origami Spacecraft to Fall to Earth Like a Cherry Blossom
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Associated Press
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What sounded like a harebrained idea a decade ago may be approaching reality: The Japanese space agency is testing an origami spacecraft -- literally made from folded paper -- to see if it can change the way vehicles reenter Earth's atmosphere.
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March 27, 1933: Just One Word ... Plastics
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Randy Alfred
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An oxygen leak helps Britain stave off the Nazis and puts plastic on our tables. It's the story of polyethylene.
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EFF and U.C. Berkeley Defend Accused Coupon Hacker
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 6:30pm EST by Threat Level
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The Electronic Frontier Foundation and a UC Berkeley legal clinic are teaming up to assist a California man accused of devising methods for hacking e-coupons distributed online. The digital rights groups claim he did not violate the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
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Delta's New Sexy Safety Starlet
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 3:40pm EST by Autopia
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Delta Airlines uses sex appeal to encourage passengers to watch their new safety video. Introducing Katherine Lee, a.k.a. “Deltalina.”
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Comcast, Sprint, Google May Fund WiMax
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 3:30pm EST by Associated Press
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The three majors, representing the cable, telecom and internet industries, are weighing a multi-billion-dollar plan to create a national wireless network that would link computers, TVs and cellphones.
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Analyst: Apple Places Order for 10 Million 3-G iPhones
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 3:15pm EST by Epicenter
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Citing various sources in Asia, Gartner analyst Ken Dulaney says Apple has placed a big order for 10 million 3-G iPhones. That's in addition to the 10 million v.1 iPhones Apple has ordered, Dulaney says.
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Up Your Geek Quotient, Learn to Play Contract Bridge
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 1:30pm EST by How-To Wiki
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Once solely the domain of old ladies, bridge is the hot hobby among big-brained geeks. Major league baseball coaches have private leagues. Google employees team up for after-hours games. Radiohead plays it on their tour bus. Bill Gates crushes all contenders. Want to give it a shot? Here's how to get started.
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Motorola Split: Death of a Great American Company?
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 1:00pm EST by Kevin Maney, Portfolio.com
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Maybe the handset division will prosper as a standalone company. Maybe the other divisions will revive, too. Or maybe this is the beginning of the end for Motorola. From Portfolio.com.
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You'd Look Sweet Upon the Seat of a Spaceship Built for Two
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 12:00pm EST by Eliza Strickland
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Commercial space company Xcor is unveiling a model of a two-seater space plane that will take tourists to the edge of space starting in 2010.
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FriendFeed Offers Developers the Key to Build Custom Social Apps
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 12:00pm EST by Compiler
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FriendFeed paves the way for a new wave of custom social applications for websites, desktops and the iPhone with the release of a new application programming interface.
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Help Us Pick the Most Effective Self-Promoters of All Time
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 11:00am EST by Megan McCarthy
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Who says self-promotion is a bad thing? Help us celebrate the art of touting oneself -- vote on Wired.com's picks for the greatest self-promoters of all time. Or, heck, nominate yourself.
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Using Sound to Get Fish to Catch Themselves
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 10:35am EST by Associated Press
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Scientists are training fish to swim into a net when they hear a tone they associate with food. Fish farmers could benefit if, like cattle, the fish were let loose to "graze" in the ocean, returning when they hear that special sound.
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A Geek Actor and His Passion for Videogames
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 10:20am EST by Game|Life
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Wil Wheaton, best known for his portrayal of Ensign Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation, tells us why videogames will co-exist with, but never supplant, the movies. In Game|Life.
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Another Company Joins the Tourism Space Race
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 10:00am EST by Associated Press
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A California aerospace firm designs a two-seat rocket ship roughly the size of a small private plane and says it will be ready to take tourists to the edge of space by 2010.
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A Quarter-Billion Later, Navy Scuttles Weapons System
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 9:45am EST by Danger Room
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The U.S. Navy decides that a Raytheon-designed, GPS-guided projectile meant to provide offshore support for infantry was more trouble than it was worth.
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Struggling Motorola to Split Into Two Companies
Posted: March 26th, 2008, 9:30am EST by Associated Press
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Trying to breathe life into its sagging handset operations and under pressure from billionaire investor Carl Icahn to get off the dime, Motorola says it will separate the cellphone business and form two publicly traded companies.
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Choosing the Sci-Fi Books We'll Pass Down to Our Kids
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 11:50pm EST by GeekDads
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The GeekDads remember Arthur C. Clarke, and talk about their favorite fantasy and science fiction books they plan to pass on to their kids. Plus: testing peeps, building Cylons ... and you really don't want to know where that coffee came from.
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Colbert, Kamen Solve the World's Water Problems
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 11:30pm EST by Wired Science
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The inventor of the Segway demonstrates his water purifier on the Colbert Report and it works -- even filtered through some corn chips thoughtfully provided by the host.
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Will California Kill the Electric Car -- Again?
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 11:15pm EST by Autopia
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State regulators say California's zero emissions vehicle mandate must be relaxed because the technology isn't there yet. It isn't? Tell that to Tesla Motors. From Autopia.
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A Thin Silver Lining to Antarctic Ice Collapse
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 11:10pm EST by Wired Science
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The collapse of a huge piece of western Antarctic ice is a dire warning of global warming, but there is a little good news: It won't cause a rise in the ocean level by melting, and it won't cause glaciers to fall into the sea.
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The Ups and Downs of ZAP's Stock Price
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Erik Malinowski
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Follow the drastic peaks and valleys of a troubled automaker's stock price in this special multimedia feature.
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MySpace and Friends Need to Make Money. And Fast.
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Kevin Kelleher
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Advertising on online social networks is still very much a work in progress, with some sites faring better than others at monetizing an explosive trend.
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Hype Machine: Searching for ZAP's Fleet of No-Show Green Cars
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Randall Sullivan
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What seems at first to be a promising new environmentally friendly car company turns out to be more of a lemon-producer.
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Don't Get Zapped by All ZAP's Hype
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Autopia
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ZAP Motors says it will build a 644-horsepower electric crossover EV and a three-wheeled electric sports car by 2010. Uh-huh. Sure it will. We're still waiting for the fuel cell vehicle it announced in 2003 and the flex-fuel car it promised in 2005.
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Rock Steady: Four Image-Stabilized Binoculars
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Mathew Honan
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In our roundup, we shake down four of the best image-stabilized binoculars on the market.
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March 26, 1845: A Sticky Application for an Old Problem
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Randy Alfred
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It was a long road from doctors' medicated plasters to the simple Band-Aid, but some ideas have sticking power.
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Lore Sjöberg's Alt Text: Perils of Joining the iPod Nation
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Lore Sjöberg
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Party Shuffle and Smart Playlists can really trip a fellow up when he's coming late to the iPod party. Commentary by Lore Sjöberg.
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Industry Giants Face Off Amid Interference Claims
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Bryan Gardiner
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Starved for more wireless bandwidth, a cadre of tech giants including Google, Microsoft, Motorola, Dell and HP are lobbying the FCC to deregulate more of the radio spectrum.
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How to Set Up Dynamic DNS
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 7:00pm EST by How-To Wiki
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Most consumer-level broadband providers make it difficult to share music or run a web server out of your home. To tackle the fun stuff, you'll need a better way to be seen on the internet, and the best way to do that is with dynamic DNS.
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Tech: It Does Everything but Count Accurately
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 4:05pm EST by Associated Press
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The first attempt at using new technology for the national census is creating so many problems for head-counters that officials are talking about a "statistical Katrina" and giving serious thought to returning to the reliability of pencil and paper.
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Converted MacBook Tablet Is a Designer's BFF
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 3:45pm EST by Gadget Lab
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Axiotron has developed a MacBook tablet that should send shivers down Apple's spine. Despite a few key lackings, the Modbook is better, a little faster and stronger than its foldable progenitor.
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Hands-On With Nintendo's New WiiWare Games
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 3:15pm EST by Chris Kohler
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Original Dr. Mario and Final Fantasy titles go on sale in Japan as the company tests the waters with its games-on-demand service.
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Spies Come in From the Cold With Own Vid-Share Site
Posted: March 25th, 2008, 2:35pm EST by Danger Room
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The nation's spooks and soldiers get a video sharing site to call their own, a kind of secret version of YouTube. In Danger Room.
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Submit Your Best Star Wars Tribute Photo
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Wired.com
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Wired.com asks for photo submissions of your favorite tribute to all things , from costumes to animated re-creations.
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Striking Back: Geeks Up in Arms Over Changes to Star Wars Fan Flick
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by James Lee
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Part of the back-story of Fanboys involves a fan with cancer. But a new version of the film has no mention of that shadow — the impetus for the cross-country journey is just an impatience to see the film and a chance for the friends to bond. Why the changes?
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Open Source Software Made Developers Cool. Now It Can Make Them Rich
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Daniel Roth
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A number of open source companies have recently attracted investments and merger interest. In fact, more and more open source creators are striking it rich. There are some success stories out there, in spite of dire financial news. Here's the first of nine trends we see driving business in 2008.
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It's a Wrap! Ernie Cline Has Written the Ultimate Star Wars Fan Movie
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by James Lee
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A film about Star Wars fans, made by Star Wars fans, Fanboy's plot centers on a group of wannabe Jedis who travel cross-country and break into Skywalker Ranch. It's billed as a comedic road flick, but you'll need an encyclopedic knowledge of George Lucas' movie franchise to get the jokes.
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March 25, 1954: RCA TVs Get the Color for Money
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Randy Alfred
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Color-TV sets go into production, with dreadful quality at a dreadful price.
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Video: Nintendo's Nightmarish CD-i Goof
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 5:15pm EST by Game|Life
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Crappy games like Hotel Mario and Zelda's Adventure still suck, a decade later.
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The Cigarette of the Future: All the Cancer, None of the Nicotine
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 5:00pm EST by Wired Science
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Tobacco companies have spent millions tweaking the tobacco plant trying to make a less harmful butt, but a former FDA official argues the best cigarette for the public's health would take all the high out of smoking.
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Engineers Test Highly Accurate Face Recognition
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 5:00pm EST by Bryan Gardiner
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UC Berkeley engineers are testing a new approach to face recognition that, they say, provides 90-95 percent accuracy even when part of the face is obscured.
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Australian Company Calls WiMax a Disaster
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 4:30pm EST by Epicenter
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Garth Freeman, the CEO of Australian company Buzz Broadband, described his company's experience with WiMax as a "disaster," and ultimately a "miserable failure."
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Doubts Spread About Google's 1Q Earnings
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 4:20pm EST by Epicenter
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With just a week left of the first quarter, Wall Street analysts appear nervous about Google's earnings.
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Justice Dept. Clears Sirius-XM Satellite Radio Merger
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 4:05pm EST by Associated Press
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Saying that a Sirius acquisition of its chief rival won't pose a threat to competition, the Justice Department signs off on the $5 billion buyout.
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MindMentor, a Robot Psychologist, Does Psychotherapy on the Cheap
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 3:45pm EST by Adrienne So
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MindMentor, an automated software "psychologist" based on the 1960s-era program Eliza, offers online counseling sessions for $8 per hour.
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Greenpeace Says Sony TZ Is Greenest Laptop
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 2:00pm EST by Gadget Lab Blog
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According to a study released by Greenpeace, Sony's TZ series of notebooks are the most environmentally friendly laptops.
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BMW 118d Wins 'World Green Car Award,' Then Goes Home
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 2:00pm EST by Autopia
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BMW's sweet 118d produces 141 horsepower, gets 59 mpg and spews only a little more carbon dioxide than a Honda Civic Hybrid. But you can't have one.
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Top 5 Reasons It Sucks to Be an Engineering Student
Posted: March 24th, 2008, 10:00am EST by Wired Science
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Engineering students share their gripes: bad textbooks, boring professors and few hands-on projects.
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Top 10 Wired Reader Self-Portraits, Decided by You
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Wired.com Photo Department
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We challenged our readers to give us their best self-portraits and vote on which ones they liked best. Here are the results.
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Games Without Frontiers: Frag With a Friend for Ultimate Fun
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Clive Thompson
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What gives some smart videogames a killer edge? They're built to encourage the kind of social meatspace play that boosts their entertainment value. Commentary by Clive Thompson.
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Editor's Picks for the Wired.com Self-Portrait Contest
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Wired.com Photo Department
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These diamonds in the rough got lost in the shuffle of our self-portrait contest, so we're bringing them back from the dead for your enjoyment.
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Behind the Scenes of Fanboys
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 11:00pm EST by James Lee
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'Star Wars' Turns 25; Is It Worth $120 Billion?
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Danger Room
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It's the 25th anniversary of President Ronald Reagan's stunning announcement of a techno-plan to knock enemy missiles out of the sky. Many doubted its feasibility then, and many still doubt whether what got produced really works.
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Show Us Your Best Night Photo
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Wired.com Photo Department
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This week's reader photo challenge: submit your best night photograph, and vote on one another's submissions.
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March 24, 1976: Ford Orders Swine-Flu Shots for All
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Tony Long
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A soldier's death from a new strain of influenza evokes memories of the murderous 1918 plague and triggers a national inoculation program.
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Scientists Find Giant Marine Species in Antarctic
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 10:00am EST by Associated Press
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Scientists on a 2,000-mile journey through the Ross Sea in New Zealand's Antarctic waters are surprised by the giant size of some species, including jellyfish with 12-foot tentacles and 2-foot-wide starfish.
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Astronauts Have Day of Rest After Last Spacewalk
Posted: March 23rd, 2008, 9:30am EST by Associated Press
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After completing their fifth and final spacewalk on Saturday, Endeavour's crew takes some well-deserved time off on Sunday before starting the journey home. Astronauts Michael Foreman and Robert Behnken attached a 50-foot inspection pole to the international space station and completed other chores during their six-hour spacewalk on Saturday.
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Intriguing Indie Game Explores Death in Ten Minutes
Posted: March 22nd, 2008, 1:45pm EST by Game/Life
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The Graveyard, a free indie game for PC and Mac, only takes about ten minutes to play, but its story of an old woman in a graveyard might get a big emotional response from you.
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Endeavour Astronauts Prepare for Mission's Final Spacewalk
Posted: March 22nd, 2008, 12:30pm EST by Associated Press
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After a final inspection of Endeavour's thermal shield, astronauts aboard the linked shuttle-station complex begin to prepare for a spacewalk to store the laser-tipped boom they use to search for damage.
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Air Force Launches Plan to Use Coal for Fuel
Posted: March 22nd, 2008, 12:00pm EST by Associated Press
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The Air Force has come up with an ambitious plan to wean itself from foreign oil by turning to a new and unlikely source: coal. But analysts say the costs of coal-to-liquids plants could be astronomical, and experts on Capitol Hill say the conversion plants could produce twice the amount of greenhouse gases as oil.
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Montana Governor: Homeland Security 'Blinks' on Real ID
Posted: March 21st, 2008, 11:30pm EST by Threat Level
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Montana governor Brian Schweitzer declares victory Friday after the Department of Homeland Security sends his state an extension to the Real ID act, despite his insistence Montana will never comply with a mandate he describes as a "boondoggle."
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Tinfoil Hats, Anal Probes Land at Alien Abduction Fest
Posted: March 21st, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Ron Scheffler
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Sci-fi fans get crafty and creative at a Toronto event celebrating UFO culture.
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Celestial Jukebox Arrives, But Is It Any Good?
Posted: March 21st, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Eliot Van Buskirk
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Wired.com tests the British version of Omnifone's MusicStation Max service, which offers all-you-can-eat access to major-label music.
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Four Online Telescopes Serve the Stars to Interstellar Paparazzi
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Patrick di Justo
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Four high-tech telescopes allow you access them online and play paparazzi with your favorite stars of the night skies.
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A One-Man Film Studio Delivers Hi-Def Footage to Indie Auteurs Everywhere
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Ben Paynter
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Cinematographer Richard Welnowski is a one-man mobile film studio, delivering affordable hi-def footage to indie auteurs across the country.
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March 18, 1662: The Bus Starts Here ... in Paris
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Randy Alfred
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A French savant famed for many successes comes up with an idea centuries ahead of its time.
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Intel Prepares a Quad-Core Notebook Chip
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 6:30pm EST by Bryan Gardiner
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It will be expensive, power-hungry and overkill for most applications -- but a quad-core processor for notebooks is coming from Intel this fall.
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'Pervasive' Recession Won't Repeat Dot-Com Bust, Experts Say
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 6:00pm EST by Betsy Schiffman
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Economists see few parallels between the one kicked off by the bursting of the dot-com bubble in 2000 and the one brewing today.
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Why Doesn't Cable News Cover Science?
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 5:30pm EST by Wired Science
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A new study finds that cable television news programs dedicate a mere six minutes per five hours of programming.
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Video: Capcom Upgrades Arcade Classics
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 4:40pm EST by Game|Life
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The videogame company brings titles like 1942 and Street Fighter II into the high-def era.
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New Trial Ordered for Ex-Qwest CEO Nacchio
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 4:00pm EST by Associated Press
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Joe Nacchio, convicted last year of insider trading, receives a new trial because the judge wrongly excluded testimony important to his defense.
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Investor Eric Janszen Says Clean Tech Is Collapsing Economy's Only Hope
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 4:00pm EST by Alexis Madrigal
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Angel investor and iTulip.com founder Eric Janszen explains how the U.S. economy needs to restructure itself away from finance, insurance and real estate, and towards a new "green" technology infrastructure.
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LimeWire Launches DRM-Free Online Music Store
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 3:00pm EST by Listening Post
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Downloader, can you spare a dime? Or maybe three? Popular P2P service LimeWire peddles legal MP3s for as low as 27 cents apiece.
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Bear Stearns: Will the Rescue Work?
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 2:50pm EST by Jeffrey Cane, Portfolio.com
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Whether the Fed's unprecedented backing of the Bear Stearns fire sale will steady a skittish market in the long run is hard to predict. Early signs point to things going either way.
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Potty Mouths: Nine of the Nastiest Trash-Talking Toys
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 2:15pm EST by Gadget Lab
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When manufacturers make talking toys, they skimp on audio quality -- which means it sometimes sounds like little Elmo is saying something very, very naughty.
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A New Type of Game Turns Web Surfing Into All-Out Information Warfare
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 11:00am EST by Mary Jane Irwin
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If playing World of Warcraft is too much for your schedule, try racking up experience points and slaying enemies during your daily browsing. PMOGs (passively multiplayer online games) are designed by blogfather Justin Hall for busy gamers. Wired asks Hall to describe a PMOG experience.
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YouTube May Feed Your Ego, but Not Your Pocketbook
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 10:35am EST by Associated Press
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Despite the popularity of video sharing sites like YouTube, advertisers are not exactly flocking for a presence there. The reason? Fear of having an ad appear alongside tasteless or questionable content.
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Radiohead Pulls a Reznor, Solicits Fan Animations
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 9:00am EST by Listening Post
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The band launches a DIY video contest just days after Nine Inch Nails' similar promotion starts, and you don't necessarily need animation skills to compete.
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'Nerdcore Rising' Charts Geek Rap's Ascent
Posted: March 17th, 2008, 9:00am EST by Underwire
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The new documentary by Negin Farsad follows MC Frontalot and his fellow nerdcore pioneers as they mash coder lingo with hip-hop beats, winning loyal fans in the process.
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American Consumers Not as Enlightened as You Think
Posted: March 16th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Autopia
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Consumers say they're worried about global warming and dependence on foreign oil, but when it comes time to buy a car, they're twice as likely to choose the iPod interface and in-dash navigation over green tech.
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Study: Internet Has Affected Journalism in Unexpected Ways
Posted: March 16th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Associated Press
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A study on the news industry released Sunday finds that journalism has changed profoundly as a result of the internet, but not necessarily in ways that were predicted even a few years ago.
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March 17, 1885: Merrick's Physician Hazards a Diagnosis
Posted: March 16th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Tony Long
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The "elephant man" became the world's most celebrated physical freak, but an ironclad explanation as to what caused Joseph Merrick's gross deformities remains elusive to this day.
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Kyoto Prize Winner Dreams of a Carbon Future
Posted: March 16th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Marty Graham
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Scientist Hiroo Inokuchi wins the equivalent of $500,000 for his groundbreaking work in organic chemistry, which led to carbon as a substitute for silicon in electronics.
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Experts Advise More Testing for Drugs in Water Supply
Posted: March 16th, 2008, 7:45pm EST by Associated Press
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Senate hearings have been scheduled in response to an Associated Press investigation that documented the presence of pharmaceuticals in major portions of the nation's drinking water supplies. In the meantime, experts say, we need more testing.
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Blogger Hilton's Power in Music Industry Is Evident at SXSW
Posted: March 16th, 2008, 12:30pm EST by Associated Press
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At last year's South by Southwest, gossip blogger Perez Hilton was just a spectator. This year, Hilton is a key player in the music industry as he plays host at one of SXSW's more coveted parties.
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World's Glaciers Are Shrinking at Record Rates
Posted: March 16th, 2008, 12:15pm EST by Associated Press
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The U.N. Environment Program warns that the world's glaciers are shrinking at record rates and many could disappear within decades. Scientists studying the health of glaciers around the world found that ice loss reached record levels in 2006.
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Astronauts Attach 11-Foot Arms to Space Station's Robot
Posted: March 16th, 2008, 12:00pm EST by Associated Press
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Two spacewalking astronauts attach 11-foot arms to Dextre, the international space station's huge new robot, preparing the giant machine for its handyman job on the orbital outpost.
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China Blocks Access to YouTube After Tibet Coverage
Posted: March 15th, 2008, 11:30pm EST by Associated Press
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Internet access to YouTube is blocked in China on Sunday after dozens of videos about protests in Tibet appeared on the popular video website. The blocking adds to the communist government's efforts to control what the public sees and hears about protests that erupted Friday in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, against Chinese rule.
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Court Backs Craigslist in Discrimination Brouhaha
Posted: March 15th, 2008, 9:30pm EST by Threat Level
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A federal appeals court dismisses a discrimination suit against craigslist, ruling the online classified ad site is immune from accusations that it violates the federal Fair Housing Act of 1968.
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Astronauts Take a Walk Outside Space Station
Posted: March 15th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Associated Press
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Endeavour astronauts venture outside the international space station on Saturday to put Dextre, the giant robot, together.
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Inside the Playboy Party With Moby and Justice
Posted: March 15th, 2008, 1:30pm EST by Underwire
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At Playboy's Rock the Rabbit party at South by Southwest, Moby, French electronica duo Justice, Brooklyn rockers MGMT and the United Kingdom’s The Heavy are brought in to entertain the revelers. Angela Watercutter reports on the musical vibe at the Playboy party.
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Endeavour Astronauts Get Ready to Take a Spacewalk
Posted: March 15th, 2008, 1:00pm EST by Associated Press
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Power is now flowing to Dextre, the international space station's giant new robot. Astronauts aboard the linked space shuttle-station complex are preparing for a spacewalk to assemble the robot.
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Guerrilla Filmmaking Group Fights Anti-Obama Virus
Posted: March 15th, 2008, 12:30pm EST by Threat Level
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Left-leaning Brave New Films launches a viral video campaign that seeks to diminish Fox News' influence on the rest of the political news media. A four-minute video airs footage from Fox News reports that compares Senator Barack Obama to Chairman Mao, and radio commentary that compares him to Hitler.
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Will Revived RIAA Racketeering Suit Survive?
Posted: March 15th, 2008, 12:15pm EST by Threat Level
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A lawsuit against the RIAA is filed in Oregon U.S. District Court on behalf of a woman wrongly accused of pilfering music via the Kazaa file-sharing network. The case, revived a month after a federal judge dismissed it, seeks to represent thousands of people the woman's attorneys claim have been wrongly targeted by the record labels' lobbying organization.
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Yahoo, Microsoft Execs Discuss Takeover Bid
Posted: March 14th, 2008, 11:45pm EST by Associated Press
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Microsoft and Yahoo executives met on Monday to discuss the software maker's unsolicited takeover bid, a breakthrough that could be the first step toward a friendly deal between the two rivals.
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Sex Drive: Unzip American Sexuality and What Do You Find? Tech
Posted: March 14th, 2008, 6:50pm EST by Regina Lynn
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A new book about sex in America finds that technology infuses all aspects of the act. Commentary by Regina Lynn.
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The New Evernote Is Backup for Your Brain
Posted: March 14th, 2008, 6:30pm EST by Compiler
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Truly useful software app Evernote, now available for Windows, Mac OS X and as a web service, lets you store digital clippings of your life in an instantly searchable, easily categorized database.
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March 13, 1842: Henry Shrapnel Dies, But His Name Lives On
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Tony Long
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The British officer's anti-personnel shell revolutionizes the use of artillery in warfare.
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Former Microsoft Genius Masters the Culinary Art of Sous-Vide
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Mark McClusky
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Über-technologist Nathan Myhrvold encounters sous-vide in France, but finds little practical information on the technique (using vacuum-sealed plastic bags to cook foods in water). Here are tips from his cookbook, with a nod to a Mathmatica program he uses to help determine cooking times.
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Japanese Schoolgirl Watch: A Sweet-Sounding Software App Climbs the Charts
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Asami Novak
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Miku Hatsune, one of Japan's hottest pop sensations, is at the top of the charts -- the software charts. The cute soprano voice is a vocal-synthesizer app sampled from anime voice-actress Saki Fujita. The program lets music nerds create vocal tracks by entering lyrics (in Japanese or English) and musical notes. Listen to some Miku covers.
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Oil Hits $110 a Barrel, and Gas Prices Jump Accordingly
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 4:30pm EST by Associated Press
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A weak dollar drives the price of crude oil to new heights, and expect to see gas at $3.75 (and higher) per gallon very soon.
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Clinton Debunks Claims She De-Spitzerized Her Campaign Site
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 4:30pm EST by Threat Level
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New York Democrat Hillary Clinton campaign's Fact Hub website squashes accusations against the senator both in print and online.
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Did Limbaugh's Crossover Voters Break Ohio Law?
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 4:00pm EST by Threat Level
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Spurred by the radio show host, Republican voters have bragged online that they voted as Democrats in the Ohio March 4th primary in order to help Hillary Clinton, who they think is the weaker candidate. It turns out they may have violated Ohio's law against election falsification.
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Hydrogen Cars Are Here, So Where's the Hydrogen?
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 2:55pm EST by Autopia
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Automakers have nailed the technology but with only 36 stations in the United States capable of delivering hydrogen fuel, driving one of these babies remains problematical.
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Israelis Sue Government for Laser Cannons
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 2:30pm EST by Danger Room
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Residents of a southern Israeli town want real-life laser cannons, to protect them against Palestinian rocket attacks. And they're suing the national government, for failing to provide the ray gun defenses.
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'Population Bomb' Author Paul Ehrlich Tackles Cultural Evolution
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 2:30pm EST by Brandon Keim
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Paul Ehrlich, the author of the 1968 book The Population Bomb, argues that cultural evolution needs to be studied as rigorously as genetic evolution.
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New Tools From YouTube Turn Any Website Into a Video Sharing Hub
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 2:15pm EST by Compiler
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The video sharing site YouTube is letting website developers use its video platform to create independent, branded sites for sharing clips. YouTube handles the video encoding and server traffic, while the developer controls everything else.
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'Swatter' Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Hostage Hoaxes
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 2:00pm EST by Threat Level
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Guadalupe Santana Martinez, 31, used Caller ID spoofing to send armed cops to homes of a dozen people who'd angered him on telephone party lines.
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Video: Korg Turns Your DS Into a Music Machine
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 1:30pm EST by Game | Life
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Watch a video of Korg DS-10, a new piece of Nintendo DS software from the famed synthesizer makers, that turns your portable gaming system into a six-track music creation system.
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Sony Home Theater PC Swaps Substance For Style
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 1:15pm EST by Terrence Russell
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The Sony VGX-TP25E home theater PC is gorgeous, expensive and overblown. The obvious splurges in some aspects only highlighted other shortcomings.
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Spark-Spewing iPod Prompts Japanese Investigation
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 1:00pm EST by Epicenter
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Japan's trade and economy ministry is investigating a possible defect in older versions of Apple's iPod Nano (model number MA099J/A) after one particularly nasty incident where the device reportedly shot out sparks while recharging.
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GeekDads Say Goodbye to Gary
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 10:45am EST by GeekDads
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The GeekDads bid a fond farewell to Gary Gygax, then discuss Darwin, snowflakes and what money will look like when we are living in space.
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N.Y. Times Co. Loves Its 'Gray Lady', but Looks to the Web
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 9:55am EST by Associated Press
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While the newspaper remains the media company's sole inviolable asset, expanding the online operation is the "absolute priority," says the CEO.
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Modern Defibrillators Efficient, but Vulnerable to Hacking
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 9:45am EST by Associated Press
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New technology that transmits information from the defibrillator to the physician also leaves the device exposed to hackers, a study shows.
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Possible Battery Defect in iPod Nano Draws Scrutiny
Posted: March 12th, 2008, 9:30am EST by Associated Press
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Japan's trade and economic ministry is investigating a reported defect in the Nano after one of the players emitted sparks while recharging.
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Behind the Scenes at a Rock 'n' Roll Poster Studio
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 11:00pm EST by Jenna Wortham
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Firehouse Kustom Rockart's concert posters are produced using a psychedelic mix of high-tech and old-school screen printing. Catch their work at the Flatstock 16 poster show during South by Southwest in Austin, Texas.
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Music Industry Proposes a Piracy Surcharge on ISPs
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Frank Rose
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The music industry is seriously proposing that ISPs levy a copyright surcharge to compensate artists for tunes traded online. The idea isn't new, but it is finally gaining traction. Consultant Jim Griffin, the plan's chief cheerleader, will discuss the idea at SXSW on Friday.
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March 12, 1923: Talkies Talk ... on Their Own
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Randy Alfred
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Reporters get to see the first successfully synchronized sound-on-film moving pictures.
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Lenovo's Got a MacBook Air Without the Compromise
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Gadget Lab
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Browse this week's Wired.com gadget reviews for a powerful Blu-ray player/receiver combo, an ugly cellphone that takes a beating, a promising audio streamer and more of the latest tech.
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How to Survive an Avalanche
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by How-To Wiki
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Don't look now, but there's a giant wall of snow descending upon you at 80 mph. Learn how to survive a life-threatening avalanche by following these tips.
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David Brin Rebuts Schneier In Defense of a Transparent Society
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by David Brin
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Wired.com columnist and security expert Bruce Schneier argues that a world without secrets would only give more power to the powerful. Award-winning science fiction author David Brin defends his thesis that a "transparent society" is the best way to even the odds.
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Alt Text: What Real-Life Dungeon Exploration Might Look Like, Graduate Students in Tow
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by Lore Sjöberg
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Dungeon Masters know few survive the harrowing deathtraps in Dungeons & Dragons' Tomb of Horrors. So what might real-life dungeon exploration look like? Commentary by Lore Sjöberg.
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GoDaddy Silences Police-Watchdog Site RateMyCop.com
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 7:45pm EST by Threat level
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Hosting company GoDaddy simply pulls the plug on a new website that let users rate and comment on any of 140,000 uniformed police officers listed by name. Criticism-leery cops did not like it.
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Were Fossil 'Hobbits' Just Little Humans?
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 6:40pm EST by Brandon Keim
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New fossil findings suggest the "hobbits" found in the South Pacific in 2003 may have been diminutive humans and not a separate species after all.
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The Year the Audience Keynoted
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 6:15pm EST by Underwire
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Chat-room-hatched audience takeovers are the highlight of South by Southwest Interactive's five-day internet-industry conference.
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Finish Up That Sheetrocking Fast With the Blue Line Automatic Taper
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 6:00pm EST by Bob Parks
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Sheetrock much? Wired shows you how to streamline the process with the Blue Line Automatic Taper
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Game Reviews: Smash Bros., God of War
Posted: March 11th, 2008, 5:45pm EST by Game|Life
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Our reviews of Super Smash Bros. Brawl for Wii and God of War Chains of Olympus for PSP. Which is the better game?
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March 7, 1897: First Morning of the Corn Flake
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Tony Long
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The corn flake makes its debut, not as a commercial breakfast cereal but as a dietary supplement. It doesn't stay that way for long.
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It's a Safe Bet VW Will Build the Golf Diesel Hybrid, But We May Not Get It
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Autopia
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Volkswagen will almost certainly build the Golf TDI Hybrid it brought to Geneva. It'll cost about as much as a Toyota Prius. But the odds are only 50-50 that it will come to America.
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ETech Yearbook 2008: Meet the Faces of Innovation
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 7:30pm EST by Dave Bullock
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Check out the human side of emerging technology as we make tech celebs mug for the camera at O’Reilly’s Emerging Technology Conference in San Diego.
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Lawsuit Could Force RIAA To Reveal Secrets
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 7:00pm EST by Listening Post
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RIAA lawsuit victim Tanya Andersen’s countersuit against the RIAA has potentially disastrous consequences for the war on file sharing.
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The 10 Most Wired Cars of the Geneva Motor Show
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 5:00pm EST by Chuck Squatriglia
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Concept cars take a decidedly green turn at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show, the first of the year in Europe.
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Carl Zimmer's Dissection: How to Date the Grand Canyon -- Go With the Flow
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 4:30pm EST by Carl Zimmer
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Geologists have been struggling to assign an age to the Grand Canyon, but now they find it's in the water. Commentary by Carl Zimmer.
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Ziff-Davis Files for Bankruptcy
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 3:30pm EST
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After struggling with burdensome debt for the last several years, formerly high-flying tech trade publisher Ziff-Davis finally filed for bankruptcy.
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Drugs, Body Modifications May Create Second Enlightenment
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 3:20pm EST by Epicenter Blog
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Speaking at O'Reilly's Emerging Technology conference in San Diego, writer Quinn Norton described future societal changes that may come about as the result of mind-enhancing drugs and other body modifications -- just as the introduction of coffee helped stimulate the Enlightenment in 17th-century England.
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SXSW, aka 'Spring Break for the Internet,' Returns to Austin
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 3:00pm EST by Megan McCarthy
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South by Southwest will give tech industry scenemakers a chance to attend panel discussions, network, and, of course, party until the wee hours.
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CeBIT Exhibitors Busted for Suspected Patent Violations
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 2:55pm EST by Associated Press
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Police and customs officials swoop down on the German technology fair, seizing dozens of cellphones, navigational devices and other gadgets whose owners may be violating patent rights.
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The Internet Is Changing the Scientific Method
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 2:15pm EST by Wired Science
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A scientist is arguing that the time for Science 2.0, in which collaboration is as important as observation, has come.
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Live Blog: Steve Jobs Announces iPhone SDK Roadmap
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 1:00pm EST by Mark McClusky
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Gadget Lab live-blogs Steve Jobs' announcement of how and when Apple will roll out the software development kit for the iPhone.
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Lessig Calls on Geeks to Code the Money Out of Politics
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 11:30am EST by Epicenter
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In a presentation at O'Reilly's Emerging Technology Conference, Stanford law professor Larry Lessig calls on geeks to figure out ways of getting the corruption out of politics.
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Manmade Flooding of Grand Canyon Nourishes Ecosystem
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 11:20am EST
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For the third time in 14 years the Interior Department sends millions of gallons of water cascading through the Grand Canyon, attempting to mimic the natural flooding that once occurred and helped feed the canyon's ecosystem.
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Cheap Chips Prompt Intel to Broaden Market Reach
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 10:45am EST by Associated Press
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Although the core business is sound, CEO tells investors, he admits that falling chip prices are hurting overall profits. And vows to be aggressive in turning things around.
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Microsoft Promises That IE8 Will Play Nice
Posted: March 6th, 2008, 10:35am EST by Associated Press
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As its latest iteration of the Internet Explorer browser enters beta, Microsoft assures the world that this version will adhere to the same standards as everyone else.
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What's Inside: This Exterior Latex Paint Coats Walls, Fights Diarrhea
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Patrick Di Justo
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Find out some of the most common ingredients that go into paint, from water used as a base to minerals mixed in for their pigment.
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March 6, 1937: Birth of a Soviet Hero, First Woman Into Space
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Tony Long
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Ideologically pure and physically tough, Valentina Tereshkova is the perfect candidate for the Soviet Union's goal of being first to put a woman into orbit.
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Bruce Schneier's Security Matters: The Myth of the 'Transparent Society'
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Bruce Schneier
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Can you neutralize the harm caused by excessive government surveillance just by watching the watchers? No, actually.
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A New Automaker Is in Hot Pursuit -- of the Perfect Police Car
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Matthew Phenix
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Atlanta-based Carbon Motors develops a car meant specifically for police use, and has a prototype coming down the pike.
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'I in the Sky' Broadcasts Your Face Above Times Square
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Glenn Gamboa
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Step into Raul Vincent Enriquez's sci-fi-styled photo booth for a 30-second session, and your 50-foot animated face will light up midtown Manhattan.
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Apple Set to Reveal Road to Third-Party iPhone Apps
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 8:30pm EST by Bryan Gardiner
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Apple is set to release details about the widely-anticipated software development kit, or SDK, for the iPhone on Thursday.
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How to Speed Up Your Mac
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 8:00pm EST by How-To Wiki
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When your hard drive fills up and your apps get sluggish, don't panic or curse Steve Jobs. Bring your slow Mac back to life by following our guide on Wired's How-To Wiki.
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Brain Scanner Can Tell What You're Looking At
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 6:40pm EST by Brandon Keim
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A new brain-imaging technique can predict, with great accuracy, what pictures subjects are looking at.
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Redesign the Wired.com Logo, Dungeons & Dragons-Style
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 6:20pm EST by Underwire
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To pay tribute to Gary Gygax, the recently deceased father of D&D, we broke out the graph paper and whipped our logo into a dungeon. Get out your +1 magic pencils and cast a Spell of Conjuring -- or create your own Wired.com dungeon.
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DIY Robotics: The Rise of Open Source Hardware
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 6:00pm EST by Ryan Singel
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A new wave of open source hardware is coming, and was on display at O'Reilly's Emerging Technology Conference in San Diego this week.
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Why Wii Shovelware Is a Good Thing
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 4:00pm EST by Game|Life
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Garbage games might seem like nothing but a sap on the old wallet. In reality, the glut of lame, cheap-o titles will pay off for gamers.
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Whistleblower: Feds Have a High-Speed Backdoor Into Wireless Carrier
Posted: March 5th, 2008, 4:00pm EST by Threat Level
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An unnamed U.S. carrier maintains a DS-3 line to a mysterious facility in Quantico, Virginia, according to a computer security expert who worked for the company as a contractor in 2003. Customer voice calls, data packets and billing records are all allegedly exposed.
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Supercharge Your Wireless Router With Open Firmware
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by How-To
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Replace the firmware running on your home network's router and become a power user overnight. Boost your signal, block file transfers, restrict yours kids' internet access or just make lots of pretty traffic graphs. In Wired.com's How-To Wiki.
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March 5, 1872: Westinghouse Gives Railroads a Brake
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Randy Alfred
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Prolific inventor George Westinghouse Jr. designs a safe and reliable automatic brake to stop trains right in their tracks.
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Alt Text: Powerbocks Steal Dork Prize From Segways
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Lore Sjöberg
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Let your freaky geek flag fly by strapping springy things to your feet and bouncing, head held significantly higher than usual, around the neighborhood. All the kids are doing it. Commentary by Lore Sjöberg.
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PhotoShelter Protects Your Pics From Would-Be Flickr Thieves
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 4:20pm EST by Compiler
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New import and export tools from photo storage site PhotoShelter give photographers more control over how their images are sold or shared on the web. The release also makes it easier for photographers to use PhotoShelter and rival site Flickr simultaneously.
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Popularity of iPod Causing a Spike in Crime, Study Says
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 4:15pm EST by Associated Press
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The ease of fencing a stolen iPod, not to mention the ease of stealing one from an oblivious victim lost in music, makes Apple's little music player a popular target for strong-arm robbers, researchers say.
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'Puppy Torture' Video Sparks Outrage, Military Investigation
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 3:30pm EST by Underwire
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Fake or not, a video that appears to show a Marine pitching a puppy off a cliff causes controversy. While the military probes the matter, members of the blogosphere unload on the brutal clip.
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A Beginner's Guide to Muslim Bioethics
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 3:15pm EST by Wired Science
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Scholars say that Islamic law is surprisingly receptive to new biotechnologies like stem cell research, cloning, and gene therapy.
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Hamas Replaces Rocks With Rockets
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 3:00pm EST by Danger Room
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Hamas leaders borrow Hezbollah tactics, stocking up on rockets to use against Israel in a "ballistic intifada."
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Did The Clinton Campaign Doctor Its TV Ad To Make Obama 'Blacker'?
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 3:00pm EST by Threat Level
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A Daily Kos diarist charges that Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign fiddled with debate footage for an attack ad, making Sen. Barack Obama look darker.
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Silicon Valley entrepreneur Shai Agassi has convinced ...
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 3:00pm EST by Autopia
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Silicon Valley entrepreneur Shai Agassi has convinced Israel to adopt electric vehicles in a big way. Now he's got his sights set on Japan. Will it work?
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Microsoft Backs Down: Internet Explorer 8 Will Embrace Web Standards
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 2:40pm EST by Compiler
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Relenting to pressure from web programmers, Microsoft will ship its forthcoming Internet Explorer 8 browser with default support for the latest web standards.
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Dear Diary: 'Wii Fit' Says I'm Fat
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 2:30pm EST by Game|Life
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Game|Life correspondent Chris Kohler gives Nintendo's exer-game a run for its money. With video.
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Gary Gygax, 'Father of D&D,' Dies at 69
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 2:15pm EST by Underwire
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The co-creator of legendary role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons succumbs after years of health problems.
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New ARG's Special Sauce? McDonald's
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 2:00pm EST by Eliza Strickland
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An Olympic-size multimedia mystery unfolds online, and the fast food giant's fingerprints are all over it.
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A Good Read Is Always Great, Especially When It's Free
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 1:45pm EST by GeekDads
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If you aren't familiar with the work of award-winning author Jeff VanderMeer, here's your chance to see what the fuss is about. GeekDads is happy to be able to offer Wired.com readers a .pdf copy of VanderMeer's upcoming book, The Situation, courtesy of PS Publishing.
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Robotic Orbiter Captures Image of Martian Avalanche
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 10:50am EST by Associated Press
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The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, making a routine survey of seasonal changes near the north pole, captures large chunks of ice breaking off the face of a 2,300-foot cliff.
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Future of Solar Energy May Go Through New Mexico
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 10:35am EST by Associated Press
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The decision by an international manufacturer of solar energy equipment to place its North American production hub in Albuquerque raises hopes that the state will become a leader in the renewable energy industry.
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The Nukes of October: Richard Nixon's Secret Plan to Bring Peace to Vietnam
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 12:00am EST by Jeremi Suri
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Newly released secret documents reveal Giant Lance, a Nixon-Kissinger plan to win the Vietnam War by bluffing the Soviet Union with nuclear bombers aimed for Moscow.
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Dear Hollywood Studios: Let My Video Go
Posted: March 4th, 2008, 12:00am EST by Frank Rose
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Frank Rose tells the Hollywood studios: If you follow the lead of the music industry and hold digital downloads hostage, the pirates win.
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March 4, 1890: Bridge Tech Takes a Great Leap Forth
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 9:00pm EST by Randy Alfred
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An 1890 Scottish cantilever bridge made of modern steel is hailed as a triumph of Victorian engineering, and stands today as one of the world's greatest spans.
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Hands On: GPC Mini Gives Mac Mini Run for Its Money
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 7:00pm EST
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Everex's gPC Mini is cheaper than the Mac Mini and almost as small, but the lack of OS X or Windows makes it a hard sell.
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Wikipedia Founder Hit With Allegations of Excessive Spending
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 6:45pm EST by Epicenter
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Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales has been hit with allegations that he misused his expense account at the Wikimedia foundation.
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Lightning GT: The World's First Green Supercar?
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 6:40pm EST by Autopia
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The sexy all-electric Lightning GT is a hot, green supercar. It's clean, quick and pricey.
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Informal Conference Borrows TED's Big Ideas, Not Its Pretense
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 6:00pm EST by Quinn Norton
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An informal, loosely organized alternative to the Technology, Entertainment and Design conference in Monterey, California was low-key -- but just as devoted to big, world-changing ideas.
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How To: Optimize A Fresh Ubuntu Installation
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 6:00pm EST by How-To Wiki
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Making the leap to Linux? Trick out your freshly installed desktop OS with the free software programs listed in our guide. In a few steps, you'll have a machine worth leaving Windows or Mac OS X behind for.
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Babies See Pure Color, but Adults Peer Through Prism of Language
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 6:00pm EST by Wired Science
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As humans grow older, their instinctive perception of color gives way to one mediated by the constructs of language.
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Scientists Unearth Fossils of One-Ounce Primate in Mississippi
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 5:30pm EST by Wired Science
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Paleontologists have unearthed the fossilized remains of a one-ounce primate in Mississippi, providing new information on what North America was like 55 million years ago.
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Steve Wozniak 'Disappointed' With the iPhone
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 4:00pm EST by Epicenter
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Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has changed his tune on the iPhone. After raving that it's a revolutionary device, he now says he's disappointed.
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Hydrogen Sulfide May Kill Us, Bring Us Back to Life, Paleontologist Peter Ward Says
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 3:30pm EST by Kim Zetter
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According to paleontologist Peter Ward, a massive species die-off during the Permian was caused by rising concentrations of hydrogen sulfide -- a gas that could threaten humanity, too, if global warming causes ocean currents to stop flowing.
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Inside Obama's Surging Net-Roots Campaign
Posted: March 3rd, 2008, 3:00pm EST by Sarah Lai Stirland
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Barack Obama's online campaign tools enable his supporters to get up and running quickly in the battleground states of Ohio and Texas.
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Sex-Changing Chemicals Make Male Starlings Sing Sweet Songs
Posted: March 1st, 2008, 9:00pm EST by wired science
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A study by researchers at Cardiff University, published this week in Public Library of Science ONE, finds that pollutants that turn male fish into females have an unexpected effect on starlings: They cause the guys to sing sweet songs that females find irresistible.
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Bush Nominates Three to Empty Privacy Board
Posted: March 1st, 2008, 8:45pm EST by Threat Level
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A newly independent Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board may soon actually have members again after sitting empty for nearly a full month. President Bush nominates three people, including a chairman, to fill some of the Board's five seats.
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Study: Robot and Dog Comfort Elderly Equally Well
Posted: March 1st, 2008, 1:00pm EST by Associated Press
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A study carried out by Saint Louis University finds that a dog named Sparky and a robotic dog, AIBO, are about equally effective at relieving the loneliness of nursing home residents and fostering attachments.
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Tellme Founder: Sale to Microsoft Has Worked Out Well
Posted: March 1st, 2008, 12:30am EST by Associated Press
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Mike McCue, founder of Tellme Networks, doesn't regret his $800 million sale to Microsoft. It wasn't what he envisioned when he built the company, but after being assured that Tellme would be able to retain its Silicon Valley office, identity and quirky culture, McCue agreed to stay on as general manager. He now says being a subsidiary of the world's largest software maker can work out well.