Well, well, well, what do we have here? it’s been a while since I’ve wanted a piece of clothing so bad! Unfortunately, Shopecko.com only ships to the U.S., and the Canadian version of the site doesn’t have the hoodie. Oh the sadness!
Skywalker style. This Star Wars X-Wing Pilot Hoodie by Marc Ecko features a zip-front with a hood that doubles as an X-Wing Pilot helmet. Pilot-style design in front and back with rib knit sleeve cuffs and hem. 80% cotton / 20% polyester fleece. Machine wash. Imported.
Google has finally launched its online music store, though it wasn’t able to get all the music labels on board in time.
Universal (and its new subsidiary EMI) were already known to be part of the project, while Sony was a surprise inclusion at the launch after earlier reports it hadn’t reached a deal. Warner Music — which makes up a little over 10 percent of the market by sales volume — is now the only major holdout.
Warner does have some major artists (both contemporary and “classic”) in its arsenal, so it looks as if Google Music is right on the border between unavailable music being a minor irritation and a factor that deters users from bothering with the service at all. By way of context, Google is advertising 13 million tracks, while iTunes has around 18 million.
Google Music is initially US only, with expansion likely slowed by licensing issues. It’s going for a price range of 69c to $1.29 per track, with no copy protection. Though its available on computers, the goal seems to be to make it “the iTunes of Android”: the service has been built directly into the Android Market so that music can be bought in the same way as apps (in other words, in a simple, impulse-friendly manner.) Customers on T-Mobile will be able to instead choose to have purchases added to their phone bill.
There are a few exclusives, mainly previously unreleased live albums, but the main selling point is, perhaps inevitably, social sharing. Whenever you buy a song, each of your contacts on Google+ will be able to play it once without charge.
There’s also a special deal for independent artists. They pay $25 to have a page on an “Artist Hub” and can then sell music at any price, with Google taking a 30 percent cut.
Early reaction to the service seems to be along the lines that there’s nothing wrong with it, but it lacks any true killer feature to help it stand out against established players, notably Apple.
On October 16th, 2005, Darth Vader did something most wouldn’t have expected of him: he got married! And you know what’s even more awesome? The lucky girl is one of our readers! Check it out! (Note: If you want to skip the traditional Star Wars intro, skip ahead to 0:56)
Many thanks to Geeks are Sexy reader and comicbook artist Holly Golightly and her husband, the one and only Jim Balent (Catwoman, Tarot) for sending in this video. You guys are awesome!
So, you’ve read about how PETA thinks that Nintendo’s new 3DS game, Mario 3D Land, is sending the message that wearing fur is totally OK, right? Well folks, there’s one guy who thinks that PETA didn’t exactly go far enough with their accusation. Check it out:
Poking tiny holes in batteries could both extend their life and speed up charging time according to a newly-published research.
This isn’t a case of taking a skewer to a AA (which GeeksAreSexy does not recommend), but rather it involves the material of the moment, graphene. The technique takes advantage of the fact that the lithium ions are stored between two sheets of graphene (a layer of carbon that is one atom thick) and must slide about between these sheets as part of the recharging process. Layers of carbon then lie between the sheets of graphene for structural support.
Northwestern University researchers led by Professor Harold Kung have made two changes to the design that can improve performance. The first is to replace some of the carbon layers with silicon, which works more efficiently with lithium ions. While silicon used in such a context has previously been problematic because it expands too much, this isn’t so much of an issue thanks to the graphene layer being particularly malleable. The result is that the lithium ions can be packed into the battery in a higher density, increasing battery life up to ten-fold.
The second big change is to build holes of around 20 to 40 nanometers wide into the graphene sheets: the holes are “drilled” via oxidation. These holes appear to act a little like the pits on a solitaire board, making it easier for ions to find the right location and stay there. The result is much more efficient and thus allows faster recharging.
According to the researchers, a commercial model of this technology could be ready in three to five years. It could mean a cellphone battery lasting a week between charges could recharge in 15 minutes.
As things stand it could only keep this performance up for around 150 charges before dropping off: after this it would still perform better than today’s batteries. Of course, if the one-week charging cycle proved possible with top-end smartphones, 150 charges would be plenty for users who regularly upgrade their handsets.
Here are some of the latest and greatest cartoons from our friends over at Twaggies.com. Make sure you follow them on Twitter and Facebook to get your daily Twags!
