Miraculous Tunnel To Link London And New York

Hardly anyone knows that a secret tunnel runs deep beneath the Atlantic Ocean. In May 2008, more than a century after it was begun, the tunnel will finally be completed. Immediately afterwards, an extraordinary optical device called a Telectroscope will be installed at both ends which will miraculously allow people to see right through the Earth from London to New York and vice versa.

That’s what it says on the website of the Telectroscope’s website. According to the Tiscali page, which is sponsored by a plethora of London and New York’s public trusts (More London, Downtown Brooklyn Partnership).

More info plus link after the jump>

XYZ Desk - For The Tony Stark In You

Sorry for not posting in ages! As thanks for hanging on in there whilst my time is occupied with the new site, I’m kicking off the ‘Tony Stark’ series, in which I’ll be checking out and finding the coolest and slickest gadgets and big boys toys, as well as other miscellaneous stuff.

If you don’t know just who Tony Stark is, he’s a fictional character from the film Iron Man. As a side note, if you haven’t seen Iron Man yet, see it. It’s an outstanding film.

Anyway, the XYZ desk looks to be a pretty sweet piece of kit, and apparently has all of the aesthetic credentials as a Mac, bringing Apple-istic sleek design and clean lines to the party. The other upside of this slick idea is that it’s as upgradeable as a PC.

Coldplay Returns With Free Music, Misses The Mark

Semi-tech related here. I’m a little late with this, but Coldplay are offering up a free sample track from their new album “Viva La Vida or Death And All His Friends”.

If I’m honest, I was hoping that they would respond to the side of the mixed criticism of their previous album “X&Y” that said they should never have drifted from the quintessentially ‘coldplay’ sound, by making the mistake of adding synth sound effects, and moving away from the more authentic of acoustic based music, and lyrics that took the classics - love and life - in an entirely new way.

It’s not that X&Y, or the new track “Violet Hill”, was bad music. By any other band, I would have thought that they were a good sound. But unfortunately, Coldplay have departed from the sound that endeared them to people around the world.

With Violet Hill, Coldplay appear to be trying to prove something to the world, as seen in the interview after the jump. I’m beginning to think that the genius that gave the world Parachutes and A Rush Of Blood To The Head is fading, replaced by a more generic sound.

Violet Hill is a good track, but not through yellow-tinted glasses. Is Coldplay’s clock ticking away?

Get the track ‘Violet Hill’ here.

Virtual Children: The Future? [Probably Not]

Remember when I said I couldn’t make this stuff up? Here’s an example. The other day I got an email prompt from Facebook - social network cum app sharing site.

I logged in, and as usual my long-dormant account had accumulated various requests. Friend requests, comment requests, request requests, but this one was new to me. I had a Godfather request. What?

Well, we’ve had various forms of online life before. Remember Second Life?

Anyway, it was an invite to create a baby with a friend I had on Facebook. It struck me as slightly odd, as well as strange, but you can actually create, care for, and buy stuff for your virtual offspring. Creepy thing number 1.

So, I thought; I’ll bite, and I followed the instructions to create Alex, a 0 year old virtual baby who, and I quote:

“I like fun! I live in a big old house on a sunny street in Chessapeak, with a white picket fence and my cat, Mittens. I love going to school and playing violin, and dad says I’m going to Yale or Stam-stan-stamford I drive my dad mad with all my questions, too :-)”

Randy Pausch, A Great Man

Every once in a while, someone comes along that really makes a difference; Randy Pausch is one of them.

A lecturer at Carnegie Mellon University, Randy has gained fame from his 2 lectures “The Last Lecture: Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams“, and “Time Management“. He’s also dying of pancreatic cancer.

I feel quite a fraud writing this, because I’ve only really been made aware of Randy’s story and his work in the past few weeks.

That said, as soon as I saw Childhood Dreams, I immediately told the world, found Time Management, I read his website, and I check his news and updates page daily, to see how he’s doing.

If you do anything today, look at his lectures. It’s easy to see why he is so incredibly popular, watching him talk is an experience in itself. He has an incredibly infectious lust for life, and he is so enthusiastic about everything he does.

Online TV - Why It’s Good, And How To Get It Free

Thanks to the Internet, media is everywhere. I mean literally, almost everywhere in the world. What Nappster started, everyone is still continuing.

Until a few years ago, if you wanted to get hold of a song of a movie, you had two viable options. Buy, rent, or steal. In recent years, companies like media distributors and studios have cottoned onto the fact that the Internet can be used to safely and legally sell their content.

But that hasn’t slowed the Internet down in it’s progress at all.

Right now, if you want something to watch, you have a plethora of options. Sites like YouTube and Dailymotion have brought us quick and simple ways to share our home-made content, giving rise to video blogs, video podcasts, as well as virals, and semi-professional free movies.

If you want something more professional, like a movie, you can rent it off of iTunes, and watch it on various (Apple-only) media devices.

But one area of the Internet which - I think - shows the most promise is the hallowed IPTV.