Kelly Schwarze
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Kelly Schwarze

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digital culture

Dreaming in Kepler: Artist Renderings From the Planet-Hunting Spacecraft

Hard at work searching for habitable planets in the far space beyond our solar system for the last four years, the Kepler spacecraft was officially disabled this week by NASA.
Dreaming in Kepler: Artist Renderings From the Planet-Hunting Spacecraft

Hard at work searching for habitable planets in the far space beyond our solar system for the last four years, the Kepler spacecraft was officially disabled this week by NASA. After months of testing and attempts to restore the telescope to working condition due to the devastating loss of a needed third wheel, NASA scientists are now looking to future projects to continue what was Kepler's work to find Earth-like planets that could support life.

During its mission, Kepler discovered 135 planets and over 3,500 possible planet candidates in the Milky Way. While scientists aren't yet certain any of those planets are as life-friendly as Earth, Kepler leaves behind plenty of data for its team at NASA to use to look for clues. While Kepler can't capture HD images of expanses of space, artists worked together using provided data to create renderings of what these star systems could look like to a human eye. Here, as a farewell to Kepler, some of the beautiful galaxy illustrations we hope to one day see confirmed.

digital culture

Ryan Gosling Internet Invasion, the Hyperloop, and a Visit to the TARDIS

Land travel at almost 800 mph, Ryan Gosling taking over Chrome browsers, and a trip to the TARDIS — this could be the best week of the Summer.

Land travel at almost 800 mph, Ryan Gosling taking over Chrome browsers, and a trip to the TARDIS — this could be the best week of the Summer.

  • Touring the TARDIS — After discovering a Google Maps Easter egg that takes users on a journey through the Doctor's time-traveling space machine, we found every other way you can visit the famous blue police box.
  • A Ryan Gosling invasion — The Internet's favorite ladies' man Ryan Gosling is ready to dominate your online experience. This Chrome extension turns every photo on your browser into that of the Gos-man. You need it.
  • Travel of the future — Billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk announced his concept for alternative land travel: the Hyperloop. We break down the details behind this transportation method that Musk calls faster and more convenient than the planned California bullet train.
  • Standout Perseid Photographs — The stargazer's favorite time of the season took place earlier this week when the Perseid meteor shower shone in the sky. Sharp-eyed shutterbugs took photos that still leave us in wonder, days later.
  • What is Apple without Steve Jobs? — Oracle founder Larry Ellison made headlines this week, saying that Apple was lost without its visionary CEO. Look at what other tech leaders have said about Steve Jobs's impact on technology and design.
Link Time

Ninja Turtle Classes? Cowabunga!

Gain super Ninja Turtle moves at a rec center near you — Geekosystem We Heart It's recipe for Internet success — ReadWrite Dads at One Direction concerts, the next viral sensation — The Daily Beast The Syrian Electronic Army attack affects millions — FWD The most notorious joke thieves on the Internet — Cracked The tiny iPhone uses way more power than this giant household appliance — Newser Why are soccer balls made of hexagons anyway?
Tech Style

Pug Hugs For Your iPhone

Since your phone is on you day and night, whatever's on that case better be pretty adorable to see you through the good days and the bad.

Since your phone is on you day and night, whatever's on that case better be pretty adorable to see you through the good days and the bad. May we suggest to fulfill this role the fearless, noble pug.

Yes, the squat, snorty, pup that's a little unattractive — in the most delightful way — makes the perfect companion for your smartphone. Here, options for your iPhone 3G-5, iPod Touch, and Samsung Galaxy S IV, all featuring the warrior pug.

Link Time

GTA: Here, There, Everywhere

Grand Theft Auto Online to be released with GTA V — Geekosystem Classic pop culture moments actors made up on the fly — Cracked Can Facebook survive if it makes us all miserable?
digital culture

Not Pony Tails or Cotton Tails — DuckTales the Video Game Returns

Is that danger right behind you?

Is that danger right behind you? A stranger out to find you? Probably, because this is DuckTales Remastered ($15), the 2013 reimagining of the 1989 single-player Nintendo game based on the animated show DuckTales (woo-oo).

WayForward, the developer behind the original 8-bit version (and published by Capcom) gave Scrooge McDuck and nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie a sleek makeover for their trek around the world to find the five Legendary Treasures in African Mines, the Amazon, the Himalayas, Transylvania, and the Moon.

For late '80s cartoon purists, the game employs the same voice actors as the series itself: that's 93-year-old Alan Young back in the role of Scrooge. Have the grumpiest duck around fight villains with his pogo stick/cane and even take a dip in a room of gold coins.

DuckTales Remastered is out now on Nintendo, PlayStation, and PC; Sept. 11 on Xbox. And just in case you need a refresher on why DuckTales was such an important part of your animated past, sing along to the theme song after the break.

Tech Style

August's Space-Age Must Haves

August marks the one-year anniversary of the Curiosity rover landing on Mars via space crane and supersonic parachute after a dramatic seven minutes of terror where the rover went from 13,000 miles per hour to safely landing on the Martian surface in one piece.
August's Space-Age Must Haves

August marks the one-year anniversary of the Curiosity rover landing on Mars via space crane and supersonic parachute after a dramatic seven minutes of terror where the rover went from 13,000 miles per hour to safely landing on the Martian surface in one piece. In honor of this scientific achievement and our insatiable quest for STEM learning, this month's must haves are all about the mysterious universe above us — space!

While browsing through space finds, catch up on the Mars Curiosity team's most fascinating answers from their recent Reddit AMA.

Link Time

Here's the Jetpack You've Been Waiting For

Jetpacks are officially a thing — Geekosystem Epic sci-fi movies you can watch in under 5 minutes — Cracked Google didn't just remove your Gmail privacy — ReadWrite How to drive a tech stock up with social media — Newser A look into the world of Grand Theft Auto V — FWD Watch Guillermo del Toro geek out over a Japanese Gundam — /Film Are those earbuds killing your ears?
digital culture

Stargazing: the Best Shots of the Perseid Meteor Show

All eyes were on the skies this weekend as the Perseid meteor shower dashed through Earth's atmosphere.

All eyes were on the skies this weekend as the Perseid meteor shower dashed through Earth's atmosphere. The meteors are debris from the Swift-Tuttle comet, which orbits the sun every 133 years. The planet passes through the remains of the comet every August, giving us what is known as the Perseids.

The predawn hours of Monday and Tuesday were the best time to view the shower, but if poor weather — or sleep! — kept you from seeing what can be up to 100 "shooting stars" per hour, we found keen-eyed photographers' best views of the celestial wonder.

Tech News

Hyperloop by the Numbers: Decoding Elon Musk's Vision For the Future

Inspired by the disappointing reality of California's $68 billion high-speed rail plans, Elon Musk, founder of PayPal, SpaceX, and Tesla Motors, revealed Monday his plans for the future of intercity high-speed travel: the Hyperloop.

Inspired by the disappointing reality of California's $68 billion high-speed rail plans, Elon Musk, founder of PayPal, SpaceX, and Tesla Motors, revealed Monday his plans for the future of intercity high-speed travel: the Hyperloop.

Hyperloop passengers capsule concept sketch

In a 56-page study uploaded to the Tesla Motors website, Musk details his plans for the Hyperloop: low-pressure steel tubes that transport people in pod capsules, which are supported on cushions of air that use pressurized air and aerodynamic lift. To put it in the most basic terms, Musk compares the system, in theory, to the pneumatic tubes used by banks in drive-throughs before the days of ATMs. The hypothesized Hyperloop works on very different low-friction technology, which Musk even believes could work using Tesla's state-of-the-art Model S battery pack.

Rendering of the Hyperloop

The Hyperloop proposed this week would follow the basic path of Interstate 5 between San Francisco and LA, generally more inland. Though Musk said he wasn't available to take on this project due to the responsibilities toward SpaceX and Tesla, it appears the interest in high-speed alternative to air — at billions less than the current California-government-approved bullet train — may tempt the entrepreneur to work on a Hyperloop prototype: "I've come around on my thinking here, that maybe I should do the beginning bit," he said.

Below, we break down the SpaceX founder's plan for an efficient, convenient transportation system that can move passengers hundreds of miles in less than an hour.

Hyperloop capsule with passengers on board

35: Number of minutes it would take Hyperloop to travel from Los Angeles to San Francisco

900: Maximum distance in miles between two cities for them to benefit from a Hyperloop system. For any greater distance, Musk says, air travel is preferable.

760: Miles per hour at which capsules travel

28: Passengers aboard each sealed capsule

840: Passengers shuttled between LA and SF per hour

2: Number of minutes it would take to wait for the next capsule at a Hyperloop station

30: Number of seconds it would take to wait to board a new capsule during peak transit hours

275,000: Cost, in dollars, for each capsule

6: Cost in billions of dollars that Musk estimates for the production of the Hyperloop. Less than what his other companies — Tesla, SpaceX, and SolarCity — have spent, combined.

20: Estimated cost in dollars of a one-way passenger ticket on the Hyperloop

23: Distance in miles between each capsule

7-10: Years it would take to make a working prototype

100: Amount of operating pressure in pascals to reduce drag and make transit equivalent to flying at 150,000 feet

1,000: The number of engineers from SpaceX and Tesla that worked on the Hyperloop concept throughout the last year. Only in the last few weeks did any of those engineers work on the project on a full-time basis.

—Additional reporting by Nicole Nguyen

Source: Tesla Motors
digital culture

Before the Finale, Where to Watch Breaking Bad Online

Time to head back to Albuquerque, NM, as Breaking Bad's final season kicked off this week.

Time to head back to Albuquerque, NM, as Breaking Bad's final season kicked off this week. When you can't quite remember what troubles Walt caused throughout the series (or just up for a binge TV session), it's time for a marathon viewing of cable's most unlikely drug kingpin.

Netflix subscribers can stream all five seasons, but for downloads to keep on your device, we've broken down where you can get your fix below.



Season One
See Walter White change from fumbling high school chemistry teacher to leader of a drug empire. Download the seven episodes from iTunes in standard definition ($2 each episode, $12 full season) and high definition ($3 each episode, $15 full season).

Breaking Bad is also available on Amazon in standard definition ($2 each, $12 full season) or HD ($3 each, $18 full season).

Season Two
Meet series favorite Saul and Jane in the 13 episodes of the second season. Watch Walt and Jesse battle for turf while Skyler deals with her own work drama on iTunes in standard definition ($2 each episode, $22 full season) and high definition ($3 each episode, $25 full season).

Catch season two on Amazon Instant Video in standard definition ($2 each episode, $22 full season with six extra featurettes) and high definition ($3 each episode, $25 full season).

Season Three
Heisenberg takes over at the midway point in the series. Watch his turns on iTunes in standard definition ($2 each episode, $22 full season) and high definition ($3 each episode, $30 full season).

Watch the season's infamous "Fly" episode on Amazon Instant Video in standard definition ($2 each episode, $22 full season with two extra clips) and high definition ($3 each episode, $30 full season).

Get the most recent seasons after the break.

digital culture

Cool Capture: Fishing For a Sunset

A gorgeous view of fishing on the shore at sunset is exactly what's needed to start the week.

A gorgeous view of fishing on the shore at sunset is exactly what's needed to start the week. Thanks to Instagram user ijessjustphotos for submitting this picture with the #CoolCapture hashtag.

Have you been testing out your photography skills and snapped a shot you want to share? Submit your pics to our Cool Capture group or to Instagram with the #CoolCapture hashtag, and your pic might be featured on the POPSUGAR Tech homepage. And don't forget to follow @popsugartech on Instagram!

digital culture

Where to Catch Up With Percy Jackson Online

Caught in the YA throes of Percy Jackson all over again now that the second book's film adaptation, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, has hit theaters?

Caught in the YA throes of Percy Jackson all over again now that the second book's film adaptation, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, has hit theaters? Read (or reread!) the books that tweens — ahem, and adults — can't put down. Below, how to get your digital fix of Poseidon's son before catching up with the new film. And if you weren't already planning to see the movie this weekend, remember that geek favorite Nathan Fillion appears in this sequel!

The Ebooks

The Lightning Thief — Start off with the first of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by reading the book on your device of choice: iOS ($7), Google Play ($7), Kindle ($5), and Nook ($5).

The Sea of Monsters — Be prepared for the theatrical take on the second book in the series with downloads available on iOS ($7), Google Play ($7), Kindle ($5), and Nook ($4).

The First Film

Watch Sea of Monsters on iOS ($15 buy, $4 rent), Google Play ($3 rent), and Amazon ($10 buy, $3 rent),

digital culture

Galaxy Battles and Anime Who: The Geek Week Videos You Must Watch

The Internetz was all about geeks this week as YouTube held its first ever Geek Week, a celebration of all things pop culture geekery.

The Internetz was all about geeks this week as YouTube held its first ever Geek Week, a celebration of all things pop culture geekery. Between superheroes, super fans, and super costume DIYs, there's a lot of geek to take in. We've made things easier with the below guide to the five Geek Week videos you can't miss. Happy watching!

Finally the forces of the geek world meet to determine who should win the hearts of fans across the galaxy once and for all: Star Trek or Star Wars.


Breaking Bad covers some pretty heavy topics. But Breaking Bad as a middle school musical? Why, it's downright adorable.


Nick Frost and Simon Pegg blow your mind filling you in on superheroes you never knew existed!


Don't be afraid to let your geek flag fly! Sachie of Geek & Sundry explains why we should get in on the art of cosplay.


The adventures of Doctor Who are already pretty wonderful, but just imagine how the fun of an anime version.

Link Time

Facebook Edges Closer to Twitter Territory

Trending topics are now a Facebook thing too — Geekosystem Carefully planned utopias that went horribly insane — Cracked What it looks like when your phone tracks every move — FWD The magical city where roads power electric cars — Newser How Android took over the tablet world — ReadWrite Not all phobias are Maury Povich-worthy — Mental Floss
Geek tips

Live in Digital Harmony: Sync Google Cal to iOS

Your software life is Google (Gmail, Calendar, Drive), but your hardware life is all Apple.

Your software life is Google (Gmail, Calendar, Drive), but your hardware life is all Apple. Merge the two by syncing your Google Calendar — home of your social life — to the native iOS calendar found on iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch.

Adding Google dates to your iDevice calendar is as simple as going to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars and selecting Add Account. Choose Gmail and enter the name you'd like others to see when viewing the calendar, your Google Account email address, your Google Account password, a description name of the calendar, and then press Next. On the next page verify the Calendars option is switched to On.

Once the above personal information is added, open the iOS Calendar app and see automatic syncing with your Google Account calendar — like multi-platform magic! Add multiple Gcalendars to iOS by visiting Google's Sync Settings page from the mobile device of choice.