MSL Curiosity Rover Animation [Video]

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) is a rover that will assess whether Mars ever was, or is still today, an environment able to support microbial life. In other words, its mission is to determine the planet’s “habitability.” Scheduled to launch in November or December of this year, the Curiosity rover should land on Mars in August 2012. (Just before the apocalypse, yay!)

MSL Curiosity may look like the illegitimate lovechild of Johnny 5 and Wall-E, but the rover’s lab is a tour de force of extraplanetary exploratory science. Armed with sample-return technologies which enable rock, soil, and atmospheric samples back to Earth for lab analysis and a host of in-situ tools for onsite analysis, Curiosity will give us the most complete record of Mars’ geology, climate and radiation levels–information we’ll need to plan manned trips to the Red Planet.

This animation, released by NASA Friday, show’s the journey of MSL and Curiosity through launch, landing, and doing science on Mars, guys. Mars.

Sorry, I’m kind of excited about it, even though the video could be a little shorter/faster/more like Total Recall.

[NASA]



Coffee: The Greatest Addiction Ever [Video]

So, apart from me, who else here thinks coffee is the greatest addiction of all time? :)

My personal favorite coffee spot (in the region of Montreal): Caffè Art Java. What’s yours?

[Via Neatorama]

The Pen Nib Dress: High Tech Robotic Fashion [Video]

Tech 

A dress covered in an armor of robotic pen nibs? I’m not gonna lie. I’d try it on, anyway. The Animated Pen Nib Dress is a project by Steven Tai and John Nussey–the 60s mod babydoll dress is plated with a field of 795 gold-colored pen nibs, mounted on tiny motors, which are animated to created “a hypnotic shimmer of movement which changes over time, varying the tempo, pattern and the overall mood of the piece.” I rather like it, I think, and would wear it on a date with Bender or perhaps a reformed Dalek. If anyone gets too grabby, you can set your pen nibs to stun.

Check out more pics of the dress in the Flickr photostream.

[via]

The Rocketeer 20th Anniversary Fan Film

This amazing fan film was created by John Banana of the Digital Banana Studio to pay homage to the 20th anniversary of The Rocketeer, which was released by Disney on June 21st 2001 1991.

[Vimeo]

Making a car for blind drivers [Video]

Using robotics, laser rangefinders, GPS and smart feedback tools, Dennis Hong is building a car for drivers who are blind. It’s not a “self-driving” car, he’s careful to note, but a car in which a non-sighted driver can determine speed, proximity and route — and drive independently.

[TED]