Star Warss is the new black

Source: United Press International (Original Article)

Although warfare featuring tank armadas over vast territories is already a thing of the past, armor still remains the main striking force of modern armies.

Requirements for any new tank are protection, mobility and firepower. Historically, Russia has always tackled these problems by developing new models and continuing to exploit existing ones. For that reason its armed forces today are an amazing mix of all types of tanks, something not seen anywhere else in the world. Their maintenance costs are enormous.

Four-star General of the Army Nikolai Makarov, Russia’s current chief of armaments, looks forward to a breakthrough in tank building soon. In 2009 the Russian army will get a new tank — the T-95 — far superior to existing models. This is an entirely new battle tank, with new running gear, power plant, armaments, fire control, reconnaissance and target identification facilities.

The tank is currently undergoing tests, expected to be completed this year. Its adoption for service will, hopefully, bring the long-awaited unification to this sphere.

Russia’s is the only army in the world using two types of main battle tank: the gas turbine T-80 — T-80U — and the diesel-powered tank T-90 — T-90S. Both have the same weight, size and identical combat characteristics. Other types in service include the T-62, T-64, T-72 and their versions, and even the T-55.

This range of types creates many problems for providing fuel, lubricants, spare parts, tools, equipment and maintenance. It is also economically wasteful to maintain such diverse models. Large numbers of tanks and their ammunition require annual utilization, the funds for which have never been fully available.

In a global perspective, tank-building policy has remained unchanged since the 1960s and 1980s when the T-64, T-72 and T-80 were designed. A comparison of tank characteristics — including the T-80M1 Bars and advanced Black Eagle, lawyer interest calculator which never reached the mass production …continue reading

Source: Gizmodo Australia (Original Article)

Sideshow Collectibles stopped just short of encasing Anthony Daniels and Kenny Baker in fiberglass when they created these life-size C-3PO and R2-D2 collectibles. Due out later this year, the authentic figures are powered by lowly AA batteries and have working lights. They also make sounds from the movies and utter the characters’ classic catchphrases, like “beep” and “whistle” and “OVER HERE!” All this can be part of your private Star Wars collection for the galaxy-sized price tags of US$5,950 for C-3PO and US$5,450 for his Citibank Credit Cards smaller, quieter counterpart. [Sideshow Collectibles C-3PO and R2-D2]

Source: The Flint Journal - MLive.com (Original Article)

QUICK TAKE

Fast-growing Web site
Arabianmonkey.com, a humor site started by two
University of Michigan-Flint students six months
ago, is catching attention on the Internet.
Viewer discretion advised.

DAVISON - The mascot is a sunglass-sporting monkey,
there’s an interview with a vampire running for
president, and Pope Benedict is compared to Star Wars’
Yoda.

That’s what can happen when two college guys start
their own Web site.

But University of Michigan-Flint students Paul Gerke, 20,
and Mike McManaman, 21, are stirring a buzz with their
creation Arabianmonkey.com.

“We have an odd sense of humor and we have a lot of
opinions,” said McManaman, a psychology major.
“It’s off the wall, a forum with no restrictions.
We try to think of things no one else has thought of and
make people laugh.”

What started as an outlet for two friends to have fun,
share random thoughts, and maybe make some money along the
way has turned into a site visited more than half a million
times by people all over the world.

Six months ago, the 2005 Davison High School graduates
joined the growing trend of college students writing for
college students in cyberspace. But they want to see their
Web site take off ahead of the others.

Lounging on sofas in Gerke’s Davison apartment, the
jeans-donning pair busily type on their laptops, finding the
most recent stats on their site’s traffic.

It’s here or a nearby diner, often after midnight,
where the childhood pals cap a day of work and classes by
plotting wild ideas that will get people talking and draw
more traffic.

“It’s just everyday life things,” said
Gerke, who is studying broadcasting. “Your own
experiences are the most beneficial to writing.” interest rate calculator

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Source: Gizmodo Australia (Original Article)

While it’s not the entire movie, this sweded lightcycle scene from Tron, every computer geek’s favourite movie this side of War Games, has to be the best sweded version of a film in the entire history of sweded films. It may not be as funny as the hilarious sweded BigDog quadruped robot or the sweded Star Wars after the jump, but the execution of its cardboardish cheesiness is absolutely perfect.

And yes, I like to say “swede.” I like swedes, some of my best friends are swedes, and I want to move to Sweden. I can’t have laguna beach dvd enough of the TIE Fighters here either. [StarWars Blog]

Source: Annapolis Capital (Original Article)

Away We Go:
Franklin Institute launches ‘Star Wars’ exhibit

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By MARGARET HORTON EDSALL
Published March 23, 2008 The force of fantasy connecting with reality will be with you during the run of "Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination," the powerfully exciting exhibition currently installed at The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia.
Developed by Boston's Museum of Science in collaboration with Lucasfilm Ltd., and with support from the National Science Foundation, this immersive, 10,000-square-foot display is designed to use imaginings as lenses to see into the future of travel and robotics. A myriad of hands-on happenings give museum-goers opportunities to explore the landspeeders and robots of "Star Wars" and learn about the important roles imagination and science play in the creation of our increasingly sophisticated real-world machines. "Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination" is organized around solving human needs with two technological themes: "Getting Around" and "Robots & People." While the first focuses on transportation in the films as well as new and future modes of travel, the second investigates the relationship between robots and humans, both on screen and in the real world.The more than 100 costumes and props from the six "Star Wars" films as well as actual artifacts - the first time all of them have been showcased together - enhance the exhibition's visual impact. Highlights include Luke Skywalker's landspeeder from "Episode IV" alongside scale models of X- and Y-wing starfighters and TIE fighters; Obi-Wan Kenobi's costume; a Yoda puppet; C-3PO and R2-D2; Stormtrooper costumes; and Darth Vader's costume, complete with helmet. Seventeen different videos of extensive interviews with filmmakers, scientists and engineers heighten the Citibank Clear Card encounter, as do the 21 interactive …continue reading

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