It’s almost become not crazy to predict when the world will end because so many crazy people do it all the freaking time. But look, we’re all still here. Nothing has ended. The world is still here. To keep track of all the crazies, information design agency Accurat created a graphic to show just who has been predicting the end of the world.
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Funnyman and former PC John Hodgman has a hilarious solution to survive the upcoming Mayan Apocalypse on December 21, 2012 and it involves more urine and mayonnaise than is healthy. Still, you don’t want blood waves and a dog army to kill you, right? Enjoy. It’s so sensible! [YouTube via Laughing Squid] More »
According to many doomsday theories, the world is set to end on December 21st 2012. It seems so many people are worried about this that the United States government has gone so far as to officially deny the rumors on the USA.gov blog. Before we were pretty sure these theories were rubbish, but now that the government has denied the rumors we’re actually worried. Why would the government bother denying something so ridiculous… unless it was true? More »
Oh gosh, we haven’t been so panicked since our phones were hypothetically possessed by demons. And come to think of it, this is theoretically far, far worse. A research group at Virginia Tech is claiming that, due to the particular way 4G data is transmitted, an LTE base station can be sabotaged using lightweight equipment that costs as little as $650. Such a thing is possible because, unlike 2G and 3G, LTE depends on control instructions that occupy only a tiny fraction of the total signal — and details of those specific frequencies have been openly published.
According to the research group’s director, Jeff Reed, a single malicious operative with a hot briefcase and a bit of know-how could take down “miles of LTE signals.” If the attacker splashed out on an amplifier, they could cut off reception for thousands of people across a whole city or region. Reed stresses that there are no known instances of this happening yet, but also warns that he can see no “mitigation strategies” that can “cover it all.” Let us pray that humanity’s characteristic inability to agree on anything — including a universal LTE standard — will be our salvation.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Science, Mobile
LTE: fast, global, silenced by a $650 radio jammer originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Nov 2012 07:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
The Mayan Apocalypse nutcases will pass out when they learn that two Russian astronomers have discovered a new and gigantic comet coming in our direction—a huge two-mile wide ball of ice and rock that “may [become] one of the brightest in history.” The comet is now passing by Saturn, gaining speed and becoming brighter by the day. More »
You know that when World War Z happens, you better be prepared because there’s no way that you’ll be able to charge your smartphone when the power grid is down. The KANZ Field Power Desk will help all technological zombie fighters to keep working and playing as long as the sun is still in the sky.
The KANZ Field Power Desk is a portable desk that has integrated power packs, which offer six hours of battery. I know that it doesn’t sound like much, but six hours is better than zero. It also has solar panels to recharge these packs, and a wide array of adapters and ports to support a large number of electronic devices. There’s also an optional Satellite Broadband IP Terminal that will allow you leverage satellite connectivity in the wild.
It’s dust-resistant and can be housed in a durable traveling case. All this tech doesn’t come cheap though, as the Field Power Desk will cost you $2,495(USD), with the additional satellite connection costing you an extra $2,850. Just remember that during World War Z, money won’t matter!
[via Cool Hunting]
Dr. David Morrison is the senior scientist at the Astrobiology Institute in the Ames Research Center in California. That’s impressive. But for eight years he’s been the agency’s de facto expert on the (not) forthcoming apocalypse. How the hell did that happen? More »
When robots become sentient, it won’t be long until they rebel. But while many a Hollywood movie may convince you that humans will have their luck cut out trying to battle the ‘bots, there is an easier way: just add water. More »
There were a string of weird occurrences in the last couple of months involving some people going stark crazy because of the things that they managed to do. It’s too gruesome to describe in detail, but here’s one work that sums it all up: cannibalism. This freaked a lot of people out, especially because they all occurred within a few days or weeks with each other.
Some pranksters also chose to capitalize on these real-world happenings by spreading warnings about zombies and the upcoming apocalypse online. Now, you guys should know better: there’s no such thing as zombies or an apocalypse. If you believed the hoax, then you must have been watching (or reading) too much The Walking Dead.
Anyway, if you still feel like you’re in danger, then you might be one of the few who’s willing to unload $24,000 to purchase the Z.E.R.O. Zombie Apocalypse Kit. It’s got everything – and I do mean everything – you’ll ever need to fight off the undead and protect yourself while you’re out in the wild.
The price is insane, but if you consider everything that you’ll be getting, then maybe it’s a price that you can actually stomach. Highlights of the Z.E.R.O. kit include thermal and night vision scopes, guns, knives, tactical vests, multitools, practice targets and even tools for evaluating biological samples. It also comes with the awesome OPMOD tactical mug. The full list of items in the kit are listed here.
(But again, we’re telling you: there is no zombie apocalypse. Just saying.)
[via Dvice]
Just when you’re numbing to robot, zombie and nuclear apocalypse scenarios, some old-fashioned asteroid paranoia pops up to surprise you. The B612 Foundation, which gets funding from, well, anyone, has just announced plans to launch Sentinel, a space telescope which will wander the vacuum cataloging asteroids in our inner solar system. Their goal is to track asteroid orbits and predict large impacts up to 100 years in advance, giving us plenty of time to find a solution (or enjoy our final days). Construction doesn’t start til late fall, with the launch expected in around five years, so it won’t be any use in disproving the 2012 doomsday believers out there. You can find out more about the project and donate to the foundation at the source link, or jump past the break for a video explanation, Aerosmith not included.
Continue reading Crowd-funded group building asteroid-mapping telescope, saving Earth (video)
Crowd-funded group building asteroid-mapping telescope, saving Earth (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Jun 2012 17:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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