Popular Science (february 2005)

COMPUTERS INVADE THE LIVING ROOM! HOW TO BUY A MEDIA CENTER PC WHAT’S NEW HOT ➤ 35 PRODUCTS p.17 RR HYPERSONIC JET RR MISSILE RR ELECTRIC CAR RR ROLLER COASTER RR TECTONIC PLATE RR LEVITATING TRAIN MORE WE ♥ INKJETS THE AMAZING UNTOLD STORY OF THE PRINTER THAT’S REMAKING THE WORLD +29 PAGING DR. FRANKENSTEIN THE RACE TO CREATE NEW LIFE IN THE LAB RECORD SETTERS US $3.99 CAN $4.99 FEBRUARY 2005 POPSCI.COM T VOLUME 266 #2 CONTENTS FEBRUARY 2005 “He’s willing to stick his neck out. Once in a while it gets chopped off, but he just picks it back up and screws it on again.” FOUNDED IN 1872 LIFE BUILT TO ORDER p. 64 tech 17 | What’s New Volvo’s eco-friendly concept car. High-tech hydraulics. Slimmed-down cathode-ray-tube TVs. Biometric sensors that secure your gadgets. 79 | How 2.0 GEEK GUIDE Put your digital pics online. DIY Build a home-theater PC. GRAY MATTER Make spoons that dissolve. TECH LESSON Draw with GPS devices. news and views 31 | Headlines ENERGY Solar power captured in a dish. SPACE Sailing into space with microwaves. MEDICINE Do stem cells fuel tumors? PREDICTION Personal germ detectors. 64 42 | Soapbox O N T H E C O V E R : L E T T E R I N G B Y C H R I S T O P H N I E M A N N ; I N S E T: D AV I D D E W H U R S T. T H I S PA G E , C L O C K W I S E F R O M T O P : D AV I D B A R RY; C H A R L E S M A S T E R S ; C O U RT E S Y S I X F L A G S G R E AT A D V E N T U R E ; D AV I D D E W H U R S T; L A M B E RT / G E T T Y I M A G E S PLUGGED IN Buy a smartphone, and stop getting bilked. By Cory Doctorow SCIENCE FRICTION James Cameron’s recipe for selling science. By Greg