Duke

The real villain in PowerPoint sex-rating 'scandal'

It's all over the Internet.

That's the phrase that is increasingly being used to describe when a matter has become one of importance.

This week, the matter of importance concerns a Duke University graduate who decided to create a compendium of her sexual experiences with various men while at Duke.

Who knows why she decided to do it in PowerPoint? Perhaps she thought that one day she might present it to a symposium of intellectuals. It was, indeed, entitled: "An Education Beyond the Classroom: Excelling in the Realm of Horizontal Academics."

Within it, she described her … Read more

preGame 30: Sonic the Hedgehog 4

After 16 years and countless games and appearances, we finally get to play a new side-scrolling Sonic game in Sonic the Hedgehog 4. A direct sequel to Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic 4 propels the franchise into the world of HD gaming but remains loyal to the hard-core fanbase that helped make the franchise so iconic.

Joining us to demo Sonic 4 is Aaron Webber, community manager for the title at Sega. Aaron shares his insight on the game's production, some Sonic trivia, and where the game will go after Episode 1. We'll play through a … Read more

The 404 660: Where is that Yu in the background? (podcast)

Happy belated Labor Day! Today's show title comes courtesy of 404 listener bitMorph3r, who spotted yours truly riding my bike through the background shot in an episode of Michio Kaku's Sci-Fi Science. Check out the video clip here, and thanks again to bitMorph3r's hawk eye for the shot!

On today's episode of The 404 Podcast we say goodbye to Craigslist Adult Services, revisit the Duke Nuken Forever saga, argue over the new iTunes logo, show you how to jailbreak a PS3 with a TI-84 graphing calculator, and get scratch silly over the bedbug infestation sweeping the Google office in New York City.

After much controversy, the Craigslist finally blocked access to its "adult services" section over the weekend. Head over to Craigslist.org and you'll now see an ugly black "CENSORED" bar covering the location of the original link.

Founder Craig Newmark is so far silent on the issue, and it's unclear at this point if the change is temporary or permanent, but Interpervs can still get their paid freak on using other Web services that you can research in Gawker's latest "Post-Craigslist Guide to Buying Sex Online."

Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced a new iTunes logo to go along with iTunes version 10, but not everyone is satisfied with the redesign. One user, Josh Kopac, decided to take it upon himself to e-mail Jobs and express his distaste, saying he "enjoyed the presentation today. But...this new iTunes logo really sucks..." to which Steve replied, "We disagree." Sometimes two words is all it takes to dead-end an argument!

After 14 years of painful waiting, Duke Nukem Forever might finally see the light of day after all. According to Jeff's report, 2K Games recently announced that Gearbox Software is taking the rights to its development, which is supposedly in the final stages. As usual, Jeff is skeptical that the game will come out before the end of the century, especially after all the controversy and drama surrounding its release. Check out this article in Wired for the full story.

All these stories coming your way on today's episode of CNET's The 404 Podcast! Enjoy!

Episode 660 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Duke Nukem Forever to see light of day after all

After well over a decade of "development," 2K Games announced today that Duke Nukem Forever will actually see the light of day. The publisher went on to say that Gearbox Software has taken the reigns on the project, rescuing it from development limbo after the game's original studio 3D Realms went under. Gearbox Software is responsible for titles such as the recently successful Borderlands.

The game will be on display at this weekend's PAX 2010 convention in Seattle, where press and gamers in attendance can have a go at the title 14 years in the making. … Read more

The art of the LP

Sure, to some a record might be just a piece of plastic, but to me an LP is a beautiful object. It feels great in my hands, and looks amazing spinning on a turntable. There are dozens of LP cover art books, but just looking at light dancing on a LP's spiral groove is something I never tire of.

I own thousands of LPs and sometimes use them in my art. Of course the LP's prime attraction is its sound, so even as CD sales continue to decline, the LP looks like it will be around for the … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1233: Synthetic life is oh so blue (podcast)

We have synthetic life! Craig Venter's new bacterium is alive and is blue... because that's what it's programmed to be. Also, Google says Happy 30th Birthday Pacman by putting a playable game into the Google banner. Tech support calls ensue.

All I want for Xmas: The (original) General Lee

OK, I know this next comment is going totally show my age, but when I was a child, I wanted to slip through the window of the General Lee and make the big jump like they did during the opening of that '70s TV show "The Dukes of Hazzard." As we all know, the 01 car was (at least at first) a 1969 Dodge Charger, a well known and revered classic American muscle car. But to paraphrase car restoration expert Travis Bowe: Dodge made cars, not airplanes. The first General Lee used on "Dukes" didn't … Read more

Handheld device detects blindness in infants

Every year, some 16,000 babies in the U.S. experience loss of vision due to retinopathy of prematurity (RoP), with 400 to 600 becoming legally blind, according to the National Eye Institute. When babies are born prematurely, their retinal blood vessels don't always develop fully, and the abnormal vessels are more prone to leaking and contracting. If that causes the retina to detach, babies can lose some or all vision.

A new handheld device, developed in part by biomedical engineers at Duke University Medical Center, uses something called spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD OCT) to create a 3D image of the back of the eye.

Duke Eye Center ophthalmologist Cynthia Toth compares the process to inspecting fish from the side of an aquarium instead of through an ocean's murky surface; the 3D high-resolution map reveals the retina's layers in intricate detail "at almost the cellular level," she says.… Read more

Is smart grid the next green-tech bubble?

WASHINGTON--Here at a conference on the utility of the future, the starring players are Google, IBM, Cisco Systems, Intel, and smart grid start-ups. The reason? Data.

Modernizing the grid isn't just about installing more transmissions lines and smart meters. It's a giant information challenge as well, said attendees of consulting firm Kema's Utility of the Future conference here on Thursday.

The heavyweight IT companies are seeking to capitalize on initiatives around the world to upgrade the power infrastructure. The U.S. Department of Energy is expected to soon announce how billions of dollars in stimulus money for … Read more

Duke combines solar, storage in smart-grid trial

Duke Energy detailed on Tuesday a smart-grid program that pushes power generation and storage to edge of the transmission network.

The company is testing what it calls a "virtual power plant" at a substation in Charlotte, N.C., that it hopes will allow it to use electricity more efficiently.

The substation--where electricity is distributed to a local neighborhood--is equipped with a 50-kilowatt solar array, enough to supply at least five homes when operating. The 213 solar panels either feed electricity directly to the grid or to a 500-kilowatt zinc bromide battery.

About 100 households in the McAlpine Creek … Read more