Nov 25th, 2008 · Southern California-based Faded Paper Figures wears its inspirations on its sleeve. On its MySpace page, bands such as The Postal Service and Stars are listed as major influences a fact that's easy to hear on the electro-pop trio's debut, Dynamo. It features intriguing lyrics, the occasional duet, and plenty of drum machines and programmed keyboards.
Nov 25th, 2008 · Police say a man in Leavenworth, Kans., wanted to steal an entire ATM. It weighed 3,000 pounds, so he drove it away in a skid-loader. To try to crack open the machine he dropped it over a 50-foot embankment. That is when the skid loader also fell. Police arrested the injured man at the bottom.
Nov 24th, 2008 · Brooklyn-based electro-pop trio Chairlift may not seem familiar to you at first, but no doubt you've heard its ridiculously catchy single, "Bruises," on a colorful iPod Nano commercial. It's the perfect song for the ad: between its boy/girl duet, keyboard swells, drum machine beats and sweetly innocent lyrics, it's pretty colorful and bright itself. It's also one of the highlights of Chairlift's debut album, Does You Inspire You.
Nov 17th, 2008 · The University of Virginia has opened a new high-tech laundry room for its students. Students can look online to see if washers and dryers are available. The machines can even send text messages to the students' phones when the laundry is ready. The only problem ... they can't teach students how to wash their clothes.
Nov 7th, 2008 · Eighty-four teams of students from 21 countries are gathering at MIT to compete in the International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition. The teams have been working since the summer to construct biological machine systems — and operate them within living cells.
Nov 4th, 2008 · Some problems with voting machines and other issues have come up today as voters turn out for the presidential election.
Nov 4th, 2008 · Booomboxxx, the latest from Portland, Oregon-based Boy Eats Drum Machine, might take a while to sink in. At first listen, the seemingly random mash of glitchy drum samples comes off as disjointed and overwhelming. But after several spins, you can tell Jon Ragel, the solo force behind Boy Eats Drum Machine, is more calculated in his digital orchestrations.
Oct 26th, 2008 · The Obama machine is new kind of hybrid of top-down leadership and bottom-up energy. While many of its activities are initiated from above, it is also benefiting from a huge outpouring of voter-to-voter self-organizing. By putting the power in supporters' keyboards, the political machinery of 2008 has differed dramatically from that of previous election years. Guest Host Alison Stewart talks with Micah Sifrey, of TechPresident.com and Chuck DeFeo, of Townhall.com about how both parties have used technology to reach out to voters and change campaigning in the future.