Thats no moon... it's a grill-station

I never really thought about where incredibly useful items such as Yoda Pez dispensers or shampoo bottles with Darth Vader's head as a cap come from. Who designs such fantastical creations? Well, I've found one of these masters of all things Star Wars. Jayson Geyer is a product designer who was approached by Pepsi to come up with some ideas for Star Wars movie tie ins in preparation for Episode I. He has posted a large gallery of rejected drawings. Prepared to have your minds blown by some of these amazing products.

I picked some of the best ones to feature here:

One night in Paris, this one is SFW

This breathtaking photo of Paris at night just needs to be shared...

Rock Band!

Drums, guitar, bass, vocals - what, oh what should I try first?

Yup, as you can see in the picture, I bought Rock Band, and am now in the process of living out the drummer fantasies that I've had since I was 5. A full review will follow shortly.

Wireless USB: Finally something in something useful

Engadget is reporting that Dell is now offering a wireless USB card option with its latest M1330 laptop. This is a great idea. A wireless 4 port USB hub is bundled along with the internal wireless USB card, allowing one to hook up a printer, camera dock, ipod, etc. while at one's desk at home without having to physically connect the peripherals to the laptop itself. Hopefully this idea will catch on and other companies (especially Apple!) will have this as an option in the future.

Call of Duty 4: Too Realistic?

Former Marine Eric W. Hall, missing since last Sunday is believed to be actively evading the search effort to find him. According to some, he has been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, which was exasperated by his playing of Call of Duty:

Relatives believe he is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. They say that before he disappeared, Hall was using his hand like a gun to shoot at imaginary people.

Birge said that before Hall went missing he also played the video game "Call of Duty." The family said the game may have triggered some unpleasant war memories. Hall's best friend was killed in the same battle in which Hall's leg was injured.

The U.S. armed forces uses computer games in order to train some of their soldiers and under controlled conditions, games can be used to actually treat post-traumatic stress disorders. It seems that further research needs to be undertaken on the effects of realistic video games on those actively suffering from PTSD or those who have gone without mental counseling since returning from war.

More geekery...

In keeping with the geek theme of today I present:
12 Reasons Why a Geek Will Steal Your Girlfriend in 2008...

Geeks become mainstream, part II

In my last post of the same name, I highlighted several shows ABOUT geeks. This is only the tip of the iceberg, because the past few years have seen a dramatic rise in shows FOR geeks.

An increasing number of shows on prime time television deal with subjects and themes which appeal directly to a core geek demographic. These aren't crappy b-rate shows on cable, but major critically acclaimed productions, with huge budgets and audiences.

Lost, Heroes, Battlestar Galactica, the Sarah Connor Chronicles, Bionic Woman (just to name a few) all with varying degrees of science fiction, fantasy, and fanboy service are all shows on broadcast television, far from the geekish realms of deep cable (with Battlestar contemplating a move to NBC proper).

Recently, an article in Wired examined this trend through the lens of the X-Files. It profiles many of the X-Files alumni who are now involved in this geek television renaissance.

I see this as further proof of the geek invasion and imminent takeover of pop culture.