Scientists Demo Living, Remote-Control Flying Cyborg Beetles

Berkeley University scientists demoed a remote-control Rhinoceros beetle at a conference this week, repeatedly flying the cyborgian creature into observers’ faces while screaming "WE ARE GODS! WE HUNGER FOR BLOOD SACRIFICE!

The first part of that, the true part, represents a huge step in the mechanical control of living things. It’s far from the first foray into insect mind control, but by far the most precise—this specimen, commanded by six radio-actuated electrodes on the beetle’s muscles and brain, could be piloted around the room like a tiny RC plane.

See the full article at Gizmodo.

Starbucks 1Q profit down 69 pct, shuts more stores

Starbucks Corp. said nearly 7,000 employees may lose their jobs due to a new round of store closures and cost cuts as it reported Wednesday that its profit dropped 69 percent in its fiscal first quarter.

The company plans to close 300 underperforming stores around the world by the end of the fiscal year in addition to the 600 it already planned to close in the U.S. The company has already closed 384 of those stores.

The additional closures could result in the loss of 6,000 in-store jobs. Starbucks also plans to lay off about 700 non-store employees.

See the full article at Yahoo News.

Zerg rush week: UC Berkeley opens StarCraft class

We’ve seen colleges, in an effort to coolify their stuffy catalog, offer classes that use video games to explain academic concepts, applying a chocolate coating of gaming fun to help the pill of education to go down easier. What we like about a new StarCraft class being offered at UC Berkeley is that it’s just that: A class to help you be better at StarCraft and enjoy playing it more. Really.

From the course description: “What may look like complex topics are just ways we want you to think more deeply about the game to derive a greater satisfaction from playing. Furthermore, this understanding should have applications in real life, to further synthesize new information from limited inferences.”

Read the full article at Joystiq.

Putin to Dell CEO: 'We don't need help. We are not invalids.'

Michael Dell thought he was extending the olive branch to Russian prime minister Vladamir Putin when he offered IT help. Putin didn’t take too kindly to the offer, to say the least.

It all went down at the official opening ceremony of the World Economic Forum in Davos Putin gave a 40-minute speech and then opened the floor up to questions. Michael Dell bit first, giving props to Russia for its scientific and technical prowess before asking “How can we help” to expand IT in Russia.” Oops.

Putin’s withering reply to Dell: “We don’t need help. We are not invalids. We don’t have limited mental capacity.” The slapdown took many of the people in the audience by surprise.

Read the full article at CNN Money (via Gizmodo)

Report: Click Fraud At Record High

17.1% of all clickthroughs on web advertising are the result of click fraud – the act of clicking on a web ad to artificially increase its click-through rate – according to the latest report from Click Forensics, a company that specializes in monitoring and preventing internet crime. The level of clickfraud is the highest the company has seen since it started monitoring for it in 2006, dashing our hopes that it might hold steady in 2008. The company recorded a rate of 16.3% in Q1 2008.

Also alarming is the fact that over 30% of click fraud is now coming from automated bots – a 14% increase from last quarter and the highest rate Click Forensics has seen since it started collecting data.

Read the full article at TechCrunch

Band Website Displays Copyright Claim from its Own Label

The above screenshot, taken earlier today, shows a video posted to Death Cab for Cutie’s Official Website. The message is a copyright claim from the band’s own label, Warner Music Group. Yes, you read that correctly.

The explanation is likely simple: the band, or its staff, embedded an unauthorized YouTube version of the music video which was later removed from YouTube…

Read the full article at Mashable

Google powers new NYC information hub

Google Maps and Google Earth are the centerpiece of NYCGo, a new information and reference project launched by the New York City government to provide resources to both visitors and locals. Wednesday’s launch announced the debut of NYCGo.com, a Google Maps-fueled local search and reference site, as well as the unveiling of the renovated New York City Information Center a few blocks north of the tourist-heavy Times Square district.

NYCGo.com contains not just Google map and search data, but also travel deals from Travelocity and local content from what-to-do powerhouse Time Out New York, nightlife culture magazine Paper, the New York Observer, and eco-living guide Greenopia.

The information center, located on Seventh Avenue between 52nd and 53rd streets, is equally Googly. The city’s technocratic mayor, Michael Bloomberg, even contributed a guest post to the official Google blog to announce it: “The Information Center features interactive map tables, powered by the Google Maps API for Flash, that let you navigate venues and attractions as well as create personalized itineraries, which can be printed, emailed or sent to mobile devices,” the blog post explained. “Additionally, there’s a gigantic video wall that utilizes Google Earth to display a 3D model of New York City on which you can map out personalized itineraries.”

Read the full article at Webware

How to hack those programmable road signs

Ever wanted to put your own message on one of those portable road signs along the highway? Well now you can with just a little tampering and a whole lot of illegal!

Read the full article at Gookologie

Door in the floor leads to amazing spiral wine dungeon

Rich wine nerds have a wine cellar. Very, very rich wine nerds install a door in their kitchen floor leading to a spiral staircase surrounded by wine, which is the coolest wine cellar ever.

In addition to being certifiably badass, a spiral wine cellar uses the ground to keep bottles at an ideal temperature without needing any fancy electronics. It saves space and, sure, why not, let’s call it cost effective.

See the full article at Gizmodo.

Chocri gets your mouth watering with customizable chocolate bars

If you can think of anything more mouthwatering than creating your own chocolate bar, I urge you to challenge me. German website, Chocri, lets you create the chocolate bar of your dreams, for selfless gift giving or your own personal consumption.

It was no easy feat to learn exactly what Chocri has to offer, with a website solely available in German; but the things we do to endorse our vices. First, you get to choose the best part; the base, your options being milk, dark or white chocolate. Next, if you want to add some nutritional value to your indulgence, you can choose from 12 varieties of dried fruit. Then comes the nuts, with 17 choices to select from, followed by something that looks like spices for the daring who are willing to compromise a delicious tasting chocolate bar with the addition of fennel, coriander and more. Still a child at heart, the extras option really got me excited, which includes smarties, gummie bears, caramel balls and something that appears to be lit birthday candles. And the cherry on top of it all, so to speak, is the decorations selection to give your creation that special edge.

Read the full article at InventorSpot