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Robotic toys are fun to have, but they don’t really have the same flexibility and multiplayer functionality that video games currently offer. That may all change with the Roboni-i, the world’s first-ever programmable gaming robot. With these tiny two-wheeled powerhouses, you and your friends can design a potentially endless range of games and activities. The Roboni-i touts 360-degree movement, 16 infrared sensors in all, and 4 processors that make it a truly intelligent robotic toy. You can program your own Roboni-i to avoid obstacles, do tricks, and play games. And if you and your friends have one each, you can either play with the pre-designed games or create entirely new ones. The Roboni-i is designed by Zigbee, and you can try and get your hands on your very own Roboni-i through their website. And now that the technology for programmable robotic toys such as Roboni-i and Parrot’s Remote Controlled Helicopter is in place, it may mean more toy choices by the time this year’s holidays roll around.

Base jumping, one of the world's most dangerous sports, is very cool. The Burj Khalifa AKA the Burj Dubai, the world's tallest building, is also very cool. The two together? Well that's just God damn crazy. See that little speck falling off that building? That's either Nasir Al Niyadi or Omar Al Hegelan, two extremely extreme extreme sports dudes, flying all 2,716 feet down the side of the recently-opened Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building. Head over to The Guardian for video of the amazing feat. The video includes helmet-cam footage of the world record-setting, half-mile drop. One of the jumpers moments before taking the plunge: "You're still looking at us like we're crazy." Uh, yeah. [The Guardian via @designobserver via Fast Company] Send an email to Kyle VanHemert, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@tremehnavk > moc.odomzig@tremehnavk

Can the most useless gadget company in the history of shopping justify their new incarnation? Send an email to Joel Johnson, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@leoj > moc.odomzig@leoj

Some editorial teams might wilt at the lack of seating in the Venetian's press room; your faithful editors instead hunker under the closest faux-gilt Italian furniture. Meeting executives may be awkward, as we ask they bring their own chair. Send an email to Joel Johnson, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@leoj > moc.odomzig@leoj

iPhone app developers never cease to amaze me, re-inventing not only the software, but also the hardware itself, like the iPhone air blower app. Or Pocket Heat, which can turn your iPhone into a real heater. But how? Easy: The app puts your iPhone at 100% of its power processing capacity in all its systems, which makes the components to overheat. There's another application like this, called iHandWarmer, but Pocket Heater wins on design principle. Obviously, both apps will kill your battery pretty quickly. Obviously, these wouldn't have worked in Göteborg, where is was -4 degrees. [iTunes Apple Store via Krapps] Send an email to Jesus Diaz, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@susej > moc.odomzig@susej

With the Lenovo laptop/netbook CES leak still fresh in our minds, let us consider Toshiba and Gateway this afternoon, and the netbooks we now know they'll be bringing to the show as well: The netbooks in question here are all based on Intel's N450 "Pine Trail" chip, reports CNET, and were first spotted at Canadian retailer Future Shop. Both are similar in configuration, but not price, with Gateway weighing in at about $285, and the Toshiba at $438. Both models will come standard with 1.66GHz Atom processors, 160GB or 250GB hard disk drives (Gateway and Toshiba, respectively), 10.1-inch screens, 1GB of memory, and Intel's GMA 3150 Express graphics chip. [CNET] Send an email to Jack Loftus, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@sutfolj > moc.odomzig@sutfolj

Either one guy has spent hundreds of hours meticulously handcrafting his own War Machine armor, or some boom mic operator has busted off the Paramount set and he's terrorizing the club scene with style. While the suit is still a work in progress, it's currently constructed out of high impact urethane covered in a brushed metal finish (plus, over 600 rivets have been implemented so far). And you'll be pleased to know, the thing shoots bottle rockets...if we're not misreading a joke. " id="img1014066607"> " id="img1014066621"> " id="img1014066635"> " id="img1014066649"> " id="img1014066663"> " id="img1014066677"> " id="img1014066691"> " id="img1014066705"> " id="img1014066719"> " id="img1014066733"> " id="img1014066747"> " id="img1014066761"> " id="img1014066775"> I know what you're thinking: finally, we know how Iron Mangot that beer gut. [SuperHeroHype via technabob] Send an email to Mark Wilson, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@kram > moc.odomzig@kram

"We discovered a vertical hole on the moon," says JAXA's Junichi Haruyama. A mysterious tube so large and deep that it can shelter a future moon base. Until the creatures inside kill everyone, which is what happens in these cases. Before, they didn't know what the hole's origin was. Now they have a theory: According to a study published in Geophysical Research Letters, the vertical cave—"213 feet (65 meters) across and some 262 to 289 feet deep (80-88 meters)"—may be a collapsed lava tube, which could provide a perfect shelter for a future moon base: Lava tubes, underground cave-like channels through which lava once flowed, are commonly found on Earth. Because lava tubes are sheltered from the harsh environment on the moon's surface, such tubes could one day be useful for lunar bases. Their theory is that the flowing lava left the tunnel a long time ago, with a lava roof that later collapsed. I'm reading their report and only two things come to my mind. One, the awesome lunar base in Stanley Kubrick's 2001. Two, a sci-fi horror movie flick directed by Roger Corman, in which the moon base is invaded by slimy aliens, pissed off because the humans built their base on top of the entrance of their hidden colony. Based on real events, of course. OK, maybe I have three things in mind, because now I can see Sybil Danning there too, as the queen in "Amazon Women on the Moon." No hole connection there, though. Or maybe there is. I don't know. Whatever. Leave me alone. I'm drunk. [Space] Send an email to Jesus Diaz, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@susej > moc.odomzig@susej

The 2000s are gone. They didn't bring the future, those Aughts. Doesn't matter. 2010 is rolling. Watch out for those flying cars when you go to pick the laundry in your jetpack. [Nedroid Comics via The Daily What via m0ddie] Send an email to Jesus Diaz, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@susej > moc.odomzig@susej

Wired has a fairly epic look into a material that could make nuclear power both clean and safe called thorium—named after the Norse god of thunder. Of course, scientists recognized its promise back in the 1950s. Whereas uranium is extremely rare, requires purification and creates waste that will be with us for hundreds of thousands of years, thorium is extremely common, burns more efficiently in reactors and leaves less, less radioactive waste (that can't be turned into a nuke). In fact, if it weren't for the Soviet Union building uranium reactors in the 60s (and us responding in typical Cold War fashion), we'd probably be using thorium today. But as Wired explains, thorium may be poised for a comeback. [Wired and Image] Send an email to Mark Wilson, the author of this post, at < moc.odomzig@kram > moc.odomzig@kram