Technology has come a long way in the last few decades. Just about every computer (or smartphone) we use now is vastly more powerful than the primitive electronics that helped put astronauts on the surface of the moon. Gadgets are getting so cheap that toys are becoming impressively advanced. Here are just a few examples.

• Imagine a remote-controlled robot spider that shoots projectiles and wears explosive plastic armor. Help name this toy here. [url]
• Kids used to play with everyday objects and use their "imagination" to interact with simple toys. Now there are "augmented reality platforms" -- so kids don't need to use their imaginations anymore. [url]
• The Kackel Dackel is a crappy German toy. What kid wouldn't want to clean up the plastic pooh that came out of a toy dog? [url]
• Satoshi Furukawa took 2 hours out of his busy day on the International Space Station (ISS) to build a Lego replica of the ISS. They just completely ignored the second rule of making scale models. Do not nest. [url]
• To find some more bizarre/cool stuff, check out some things that other StumbleUpon users have found. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can also recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Unmanned missions to explore other planets and asteroids in our solar system look like a really cost-effective way to collect scientific data. But manned missions are so much more inspirational. Here are just a few space projects that are trying to keep manned spaceflight alive.

• Six fake astronauts from the Mars500 spaceship have emerged from a simulated mission to Mars that lasted about a year and a half. Probably not as entertaining to watch as Big Brother or MTV's Real World, but the mission was a useful experiment. [url]
• The Energia Corporation is considering ways to sell tourist trips around the moon using Soyuz spaceships. The tickets would sell for around $150 million, and the trip would take about 9 days. [url]
• The International Space Station boosted itself to a slightly higher orbit by turning on some thrusters for about 2 minutes. A few of the astronauts took advantage of the planned acceleration to show everyone how the maneuver affects the ISS occupants. [url]
• To discover more links on space exploration, check out what's floating around in StumbleUpon universe. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can also recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

The failure rate of space programs makes space travel a bit of a risky venture. Sitting on enough explosive materials to escape the Earth's gravity isn't the safest-sounding job, but there are still plenty of willing volunteers to try it. Here are just a few stories on some recent space missions.

• The Russian Phobos-Grunt spacecraft isn't going to make it to Mars -- and some waterbears that were along for the ride won't make it back. Over the last year, about 10% of space missions that launched have failed (seven out of about 74). [url]
• Iran's space program tried to send a monkey to space, but the monkey didn't survive the trip. Iran's space program will probably get a bit more attention when it succeeds... [url]
• Fortunately, the International Space Station will be occupied by astronauts as planned, following a successful launch of a Soyuz re-supply mission. The ISS will resume a full 6-person crew in mid-December. [url]
• To discover more links on space exploration, check out what's floating around in StumbleUpon universe. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can also recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

The historic end of the space shuttle program is coming up. The shuttles have been part of an inspiring space program that aimed to win an international "space race" against all comers. Now, though, the space race is turning into a commercial enterprise -- so the demand for ostentatious space vehicles isn't as high as it used to be. The upside is that there may actually be more opportunities for "regular people" (ok, millionaires mostly) to get a chance to go into space. Here are a few links about Discovery and its future plans.

• Discovery's final mission was extended a bit, giving it a total time of 365 days in space. During that non-continuous year in space, Discovery traveled about 148 million miles -- more than the distance between the Earth and the Sun (but done in a relatively tight circle). [url]
• The final resting place for Discovery will be announced on April 12th -- the 30th anniversary of the first shuttle flight. There are over 20 museums that have applied to get one of the last three shuttles after they've been decommissioned. [url]
• The manager of the space station national laboratory makes an analogy that the end of the shuttle program for ISS means that they'll be using "pickup trucks" instead of an 18-wheeler to send equipment to the ISS. Ford or Chevy? [url]
• A pretty big pickup truck, aka an unmanned Delta 4-Heavy rocket, launched from California in January, setting a record for the largest rocket to blast off from the West Coast. It took off from a launch pad that was originally designed for the space shuttles, but no shuttles ever launched from California. [url]
• To discover more links on space exploration, check out what's floating around in StumbleUpon universe. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can also recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

NASA's space shuttle program is winding down, but it seems like there's some growing interest in going to space. SpaceShipOne won the $10 million Ansari X Prize in 2004, and even though it only touches the edge of space, it's still a pretty remarkable achievement. But it's about 6 years later, and trips to space aren't exactly tickets you can buy on Orbitz (or Priceline or Expedia, etc). Here are a few interesting links on space travel and traveling in the future (not *to* the future).

• According to WikiLeaks, Turkey apparently tried to get a Turkish astronaut on the space shuttle -- in exchange for buying some Boeing planes. Is having a national astronaut really that prestigious? International politics shouldn't be like winning Civ and getting to Alpha Centauri.... [url]
• Orbital Sciences Corp has proposed a space plane to replace NASA's shuttle for ferrying people and stuff to the ISS. Space plane versus capsule designs... I'd bet the capsules will win, but there's no denying the coolness factor of a winged spaceship. [url]
• In 2013, Russia is going to start selling space tourism tickets again. A 10-day trip to space for over $35M... "We could buy our own ship for that! But who's gonna fly it kid... you?" [url]
• NASA is also looking at some regular plane designs to make flying more efficient in 2025. Space is probably over-rated, anyway. [url]