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But no matter, North Korea is pretty full of itself and, as Rick O'Shay noticed, their website coding is no different: it's really, really strong. See for yourself on the Official webpage of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (yes, it's a .com):

Though, in fairness, who are we to question such STRONG web design? Dear Leader is, after all, an internet expert.

Antenna-aid bandages your iPhone 4 reception issue, hopes for role in next Eminem video originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We understand there is a community of developers interested in going beyond Android application development and experimenting with Android system development and re-flashing phones. For these developers, we highly recommend obtaining either a Google ADP1 developer phone or a Nexus One, both of which are intended for these purposes. At this time, Motorola Android-based handsets are intended for use by consumers and Android application developers, and we have currently chosen not to go into the business of providing fully unlocked developer phones.

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The show itself has two different versions (and locations) depending on where in the world you’re watching. The original American version is filmed on a ranch outside of Los Angeles, California in a community called Canyon Country.

The British version of the show, known as “Total Wipeout”, is filmed on a set located in Argentina. Regardless of where you look, both sets are remarkably similar when viewed from above and interestingly, they’re both within 5 km of each other in latitude, but in opposite directions from the equator!

Since the resolution of the American set is higher (and your slightly biased author is from the states), lets take a look at the set in California. Numerous blue, empty pools can be seen forming a circular pattern that follows the same flow as the show. The set in Argentina is composed to two nearly identical sections running in opposite directions.

The first set of pools is where the contestants compete in the “Wipeout Qualifier” round. The blue pools are all obviously filled with water when the show is taping, but the brown ones to the left and middle are filled with thick mud!

The next empty pool contains a set of planks that rotate in opposite directions during the second round of the show. Contestants must get from the platform on the northern side to the opposite side without getting knocked into the water by the rotating beams. They rarely make it over successfully!

By comparison, the rotating planks on the “Total Wipeout” set look much less ferocious than their American cousins.

Round three of the show usually takes place on the south side of the set in either the spinning platform to the left, or the baseball influenced obstacle course on the right. Watch out for those spinning baseball bats!

The show ends with the “Wipeout Zone”, and the obstacles look very similar in both versions. The large “launching” platform is clearly visible on both sets in the southeastern corner. The pool base is not blue like the other ones because this scene is filmed a nigh.

Other sites on the set include what appear to be cast and contestant trailers, and to the northern side you can see the prop and maintenance buildings.

Regardless of which version you watch, Wipeout (or Total Wipeout) is a hilarious show and I highly recommend giving it a try.

Thanks to Tim and Neill for the links!

Locations: Argentina, California / Categories: Movie Locations, Stadiums and Sport

View in Google Earth

If you've got any plans to ever visit any beaches on the east coast, best get them in this summer before it's too late. That's the conclusion you can draw if this simulation by researchers of how the BP Gulf spill will look 360 days after April 20th comes to pass.

The simulation, which is only one possible scenario, was created by a team of researchers at the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, the Department of Oceanography, and the International Pacific Research Center Hawaii. They caution that it is not a detailed forecast and does not take into account effects like coagulation, tarballs, dispersion and microbial degradation.
Here's what they said of their science:

For the simulations, 5 million buoyant particles were released continuously from April 20 to September 17, 2010, at the location of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. The release occurred in ocean flow data from simulations conducted with the high-resolution Ocean General Circulation Model for the Earth Simulator (OFES). The paths of the particles were calculated over 360 days from the beginning of the spill. The simulations were conducted with surface ocean circulation data of 5 typical years rather than the actual flow fields...

The animations show the calculated surface particle concentrations for grid boxes about 10-km-by-10-km in size into April 2011. For an estimated flow of oil from the Deepwater Horizon well of 50,000 barrels per day over a 150 day period, a concentration of e.g. 10 particles per a grid box corresponds roughly to an oil volume of 2 m3 per ~100 km2 area. The animations show the initial spreading of oil into the Gulf of Mexico followed by its entry from the Loop Current into the narrow Florida Current and then the Gulf Stream. Transported by the Gulf Stream, the erratic paths of the particles in the Atlantic are due to strong current instabilities associated with ocean eddies and recirculations. This leads to a high degree of particle dispersal and dilution in the open Atlantic away from the coast.

These computer simulations suggest that the coastlines near the Carolinas, Georgia and Northern Florida could see the effects of the oil spill as early as October 2010.Quick, someone drop some Philip Glass on the soundtrack.

iPhone 4's antenna problem looks worse than it is, but it's still bad originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Jun 2010 14:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you're following the iPhone 4, you've probably heard about its issues with left-handed calling. Since the antenna is built into the edge of the phone, it's a seemingly tough problem to tackle. But as one Photoshopper shows, the solution is actually pretty simple.

Submitted by: majortom via Submission Page