Keep your information secure on this seriously hard core portable USB drive from Crypteks ($130-$160). Features a precision-crafted aluminum mechanical lock that offers 14,348,907 possible combinations you can customize to keep your data safe and hidden in 256-bit AES hardware encryption. A perfect stocking stuffer for the secretive and security-obsessed. via Uncrate

Crypteks website

A 3D printer is being used to create “bone-like” material which researchers claim can be used to repair injuries.

The engineers say the substance can be added to damaged natural bone where it acts as a scaffold for new cells to grow.

It ultimately dissolves with “no apparent ill-effects”, the team adds.

The researchers say doctors should be able to use the process to custom-order replacement bone tissue in a few years time. via Read More → "Engineers pioneer use of 3D printer to create new bones"

In 1978, Glen A. Larson launched his ambitious space saga Battlestar Galactica. It was a grand story of a clash of civilizations and battle for survival. But its ratings could not justify its enormous production expense, and the show folded. A brief return in 1980 offered hope, but that came to nothing. For a generation, Battlestar Galacticafans lobbied for a revival and their efforts finally came to fruition in a re-imagined version& … Read More → "11 facts you might not know about Battlestar Galactica"

The idea of using a robot for neurosurgery seems like a (pardon the pun) no-brainer. At European Robotics Week, currently being held in Brussels, the EU-funded Robocast demonstrated that it’s closer than ever to making robotic neurosurgery a reality.

No matter how steady a surgeon’s hands are, they’re still about 10 times shakier than Robocast’s machine, which was designed by a group of scientists from Israel, the U.K., Germany and Italy. That makes it perfect for delicate “keyhole surgery,” or surgery done through a tiny … Read More → "The next step in robotic neurosurgery"

Psychology professor Richard Wiseman sure knows how to entertain guests. Here are ten easy tricks that he uses to wow people at parties. He seems to like fire quite a bit, so keep an extinguisher nearby if he visits your house. via Neatorama

… Read More → "Top 10 quirky science tricks to use at parties"

The Skeptical Science web site works to debunk the critics of global warming, and works hard to do so. A new handbook put out by the site, The Debunking Handbook, is a veritable how-to guide to the practice of shooting down any misinformation, whether a global science issue, or your company’s belief that “password123” is a valid password.

In other words, you can glean some really helpful lessons from The Debunking … Read More → "The Debunking Handbook explains the art of shooting down misinformation"

From the pillowtie.com website: “Because most functions that require a tie deserve to be slept through.” 

Sure to come in handy when the meeting goes on too long, this handsome tie hides an inflatable chamber — just blow it up for an instant pillow. Perfect for busy executives, sales managers and anyone who wears a tie to work. 

Read More → "Behold, the Pillow Tie"

At age 91, Ray Bradbury is making peace with the future he helped predict.

The science fiction/fantasy author and longtime enemy of the e-book has finally allowed his dystopian classic “Fahrenheit 451” to be published in digital format. Simon & Schuster released the electronic edition Tuesday at a list price of $9.99. via Washington Post

Continue reading</ … Read More → "The future is now: Ray Bradbury’s ‘Fahrenheit 451’ finally an e-book"

Chewing gum boosts mental focus, but the effect dies after about 20 minutes. Frontal Cortex blogger Jonah Lehrer explores the neuroscience behind this strange relationship.

Why do people chew gum? If an anthropologist from Mars ever visited a typical supermarket, they’d be confounded by those shelves near the checkout aisle that display dozens of flavored gum options. Chewing without eating seems like such a ridiculous habit, the oral equivalent of running on a treadmill. And yet, people have been chewing gum for thousands of years, ever since the Ancient Greeks began popping wads … Read More → "The cognitive benefits of chewing gum"

Theoretical physicist Michio Kaku describes some of the inventions he thinks will appear in the coming century — including Internet-ready contact lenses, space elevators and driverless cars — in his book Physics of the Future.

Imagine being able to access the Internet through the contact lenses on your eyeballs. Blink, and you’d be online. Meet someone, and you’d have the ability to immediately search their identity. And if your friend happens to be speaking a different language, an instantaneous translation could appear directly in front of you.

That might sound farfetched, but … Read More → "‘Physics Of The Future’: How We’ll Live In 2100?"