Another bit of Star Trek technology is on the brink of coming true.

NASA can send robots to Mars, no problem. But if it’s ever going to put humans on the Red Planet, it has to figure out how to feed them over the course of a years-long mission.

So the space agency has funded research for what could be the ultimate nerd solution: a 3-D printer that creates entrees or desserts at the touch of a button.

Yes, it’s another case of life imitating “Star Trek” (remember the food replicator?). In this case, though, the creators hope there is an application beyond deep-space pizza parties. The technology could also be used to feed hungry populations here on Earth.

Texas-based Systems and Materials Research Corp. has been selected for a $125,000 grant from NASA to develop a 3-D printer that will create “nutritious and flavorful” food suitable for astronauts, according to the company’s proposal. Using a “digital recipe,” the printers will combine powders to produce food that has the structure and texture of, well, actual food. Including smell.

[...]

One of the first goals for SMRC’s printer is the humble pizza. It was chosen because it contains a variety of nutrients and flavors, said David Irvin, director of research at SMRC. More importantly, a pizza is made up of layers, a key principle used in 3-D printing technology.

And you don’t have to figure out how to wedge the empty box into the trash can.

Some readers who use AVG anti-virus software have been telling me that it is reporting Bark Bark Woof Woof as a threat and sending up warning flares.

Our crack team of cybersecurity analysts have been alerted and they are all over it.  Initial reports indicate that AVG has been having some issues with a feature called Windows Live Writer, which comes from Microsoft’s IM chat program.  It is supposed to allow you to interact with Word Press — the blog’s platform — and suddenly it seems to have developed an allergy to it.  Since I don’t use Windows Live Writer, it is being disabled.  That should clear up the problem.

If you are experiencing a security alert with BBWW, please let me know, and please help by providing information such as which anti-virus software you are using, your choice of browser, and what operating system you use.

If you want to verify that BBWW is as clean as a whistle, go to this AVG site and see what it says about the site.

Thanks.

For my nieces and nephews.

Cute, but I’m sticking with Firefox.

The people of Alderaan can breathe a little easier today.

The White House says building a Death Star would be an out-of-this-galaxy waste of money — not only because it’s against government policy to blow up planets, but also because the United States already has access to a space station as well as a laser-wielding space robot.

Today’s official statement on the Death Star issue, titled “This Isn’t the Petition Response You’re Looking For,” was written by Paul Shawcross, chief of the science and space branch at the White House Office of Management and Budget. It comes in response to a “We the People” petition that called on the federal government to start building a “Star Wars”-style Death Star battle station by 2016.

“By focusing our defense resources into a space-superiority platform and weapon system such as a Death Star, the government can spur job creation in the fields of construction, engineering, space exploration, and more, and strengthen our national defense,” the petition read.

Among the reasons cited by the White House was [spoiler alert]:

• Why would we spend countless taxpayer dollars on a Death Star with a fundamental flaw that can be exploited by a one-man starship?

But the Force will be with us, always.

I don’t recommend this, but I just found out that if you run a 4GB jump drive through the washing machine, it will still work.

A teenager known as Cosmo the God hacked the Westboro Baptist Church’s Twitter account.

Cosmo gained access to the @DearShirley Twitter account via an e-mail account, and from there was able to leverage control of the Twitter feed itself, according to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. As of this writing, the account remains up and operating, and seemingly beyond the control of its owner.

Westboro Baptist Church is notorious for picketing funerals of American soldiers killed in action in Iraq and Afghanistan. Last week the organization apparently announced its intention to protest at the funerals of the children killed at Sandy Hook, with spokewoman [sic] Shirley Lynn Phelps-Roper tweeting the following: “Westboro will picket Sandy Hook Elementary School to sing praise to God for the glory of his work in executing his judgment.”

The sentiment was echoed on Westboro Baptist Church’s website, which included the line “God sent the shooter to Newton, CT.”

The announcement triggered astonished outrage from observers, and the hacker group Anonymous declared open season on the group, publishing contact information for many of its members, including Phelps-Roper. Phelps-Roper’s Twitter account @DearShirley was then taken over early Monday morning.

Heh.

HT to CLW.