You’ve probably watched enough Animal Planet to know that humpback whales communicate using clicks and whistles. But put on a pair of headphones and listen to the video above. Beneath the shrill chatter we’ve all heard before, there’s a much lower-pitched tone, eerily reminiscent of a human heartbeat.

A touch above the limit of human hearing, these deep “pulse trains” were recorded for the first time near the Hawaiian island of Maui, where thousands of whales meet up each winter to mate and give birth. Scientists aren’t yet sure what the low tones mean—but the whales themselves may offer a clue. Pulse trains almost always occur when adult females are in the company of males.

Perhaps, this haunting beat is the sound of whales in love.

[National Geographic]

Ken Burns is known for his Civil War documentary, and it’s been copied countless times. The latest version comes from the Washington Post, who have mashed up Burns’ famous style with the Galactic Civil War from Star Wars.

Give it a watch here:

[Washington Post]

If you thought the US government’s ability to spy on its citizens had languished of late, think again.

Yesterday, Congress and President Obama approved the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA), a measure that lets private companies turn over consumers’ personal data to Homeland Security, as long as that data meets some broad and vague criteria of relevance to cybersecurity investigations. Homeland Security can then pass said data directly the NSA, the Department of Defense, and the FBI.

Tech companies, civil liberties groups and security experts have all decried this bill. How did it become law? Simple. House Speaker Paul Ryan attached CISA as a rider to the omnibus budget bill, a $1.15 trillion federal spending plan. If Congress and the President hadn’t approved the measure, we would be on the brink of another government shutdown right now.

CISA is designed to help technology companies share information with the government about possible cyberattacks. The trouble, as Gizmodo’s Kate Knibbs explains, isn’t the concept, but the execution. Here’s an excerpt from her explainer on CISA that you should probably just read in its entirety:

The language in the bill is so broad that it could undermine existing privacy laws. Even the Department of Homeland Security said CISA could undermine the Stored Communications Act, which protects personal data from undue government prying.

Aside from screwing with existing privacy laws, CISA has no safeguards to prevent companies from sharing irrelevant personal information, just vague wording about the need for a “cyber threat indicator” to give up the digital goods.

The worst part about this—beyond the impending privacy shit show—is that CISA isn’t going to make America more secure. What it will do is create a centralized portal of information on millions of Americans—exactly the sort of thing that a clever hacker might try to exploit.

While it seems Congress caught the country between a rock and a hard place this time, it’s important to keep letting your representatives know that spying on Americans is unacceptable.

[Wired | Ars Technica]

Top image via Shutterstock

When it comes to space opera, most people don’t associate the genre with Africa. Not Paul Louise-Julie. He’s creating a space opera comic called Yohancé inspired by African aesthetics, culture and design.

Paul noted that he’s long been inspired by Star Wars, drawing comics with his brother since childhood. With parents who collected African art and a year spend in Burkina Faso, he became fascinated with the continent’s artwork, and integrated it into his own works.

In recent years, he’s authored a comic called The Pack, a fantasy about Nubian and Egyptian werewolves. When that became a bestseller, he decided that he wanted to jump into space with a new story, Yohancé.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Pack-001-W...

Yohancé, is described as a futuristic “space opera” inspired by ancient African cultures. How do you mesh the influences of the far past with the far future?

Interestingly enough, they mesh very well. Aesthetically, traditional African art is very stylized and streamlined -important factors in futuristic design. However, the World-building on Yohance has been quite unique. I’ve had to create detailed alien civilizations while varying degrees of technological advancement - all while maintaining the design root from real African cultures.

When did you first become a science fiction fan, and why did you stick with the genre?

As you might have guessed, I’ve been a Star Wars fan ever since I was a kid. By adolescence, that expanded to science fiction as a whole. I love Space opera in particular because, when done right, it affects you on all fronts. You get the personal and psychological impact of story coupled with the unparalleled sense of adventure - all under the umbrella of epic mythology. The great thing about science fiction is that it materializes people’s imaginations within the suspension of disbelief. That’s why it will always be an important genre: we like to exist beyond our limitations.

What first set you down on the road to create Yohancé? What particularly inspired you?

I’ve actually always wanted to do a Space Opera. Even while working on The Pack, I knew that it’s the only thing I’d consider doing afterwards. It wasn’t until I saw the infamously racist reaction to John Boyega’s casting in The Force Awakens that it hit me. I realized we needed this now. That said, this goes beyond diversity. I have no interest in making a “Black Star Wars”. If this was to be done, the concept had to be unique. Simply having black characters does not make it so. In the end, I applied the same philosophy that I did on The Pack: draw inspiration from Ancient Africa and work at it until you have something original.

When one typically thinks of ‘Space opera’ they think of western-derived works such as Star Wars or Star Trek. What will Yohancé bring to the genre that is currently missing?

Yohancé will not only cross the barrier of ethnic diversity but will hopefully bring something fresh to the genre in both story and design. One of the unique things about Space Opera versus other types of Sc-Fi is the fact that spaceships and laser battles are merely a backdrop for geopolitical, mythological, and romantic themes. Ironically that’s what makes Star Wars so legendary because it’s not just a War amongst the Stars. That human element transcends generations and cultures. The thing with Yohancé is that will now come from Africa. The character arcs and mythology are inspired by African epics such as Sundiata Keita and Shaka Zulu that coincide with major Geo-Political events in African History. By building the characters first then letting the theatre of Intergalactic Conflict frame and influence their decisions, you get a very intricate story.

What authors or artists should we look to when it comes to expanding our horizons when it comes to African science fiction and fantasy?

I’ll be honest, there are only a few in my opinion that take the time to create something unique. Grey Williamson, who’s been in the business much longer than I have, recently launched his first self-published series, Val-Mar Prince of the Damned. I think the first book is stylistically perfect coupling amazing art with an intriguing story. Frankly both him and Ashley Woods from the Niobe Series are the two main Black artists to be looking at right now. Then of course there’s the legendary Brian Stelfreeze over at Marvel who is going to rock the Comic industry with the new Black Panther series in 2016. As far as writers, I have yet to read any stories that captivate me but I’m hopeful.

You can follow along with Jean and Yohancé over on Facebook. Yohancé is expected to be released in March, 2016.

The science of rainbows: it’s something we’re all taught in grade school. Airborne water droplets act like little prisms, bending and splitting light. Mix enough water and sunshine, and you get a brilliant bow of color.

The reality is quite a bit more complicated.

Some rainbows have a second, inverted bow, caused by the reflection of light off the primary. Occasionally, we’ll see a darker band of sky between the two arcs. Sometimes, we even witness bright fringes—so called “supernumerary bows”—on the top and bottom of the rainbow.

And when the sun draws low in the sky, rainbows start to lose colors. As light travels a longer distance through the atmosphere to reach our eyes, the shorter wavelengths get scattered away. Eventually, we’re left with nothing but a lovely red smear.

A brilliant double rainbow after a rainstorm. Image via Peggy/Flickr

For decades, rainbows have been classified in textbooks based on the average size of their water droplets. But water droplet size alone can’t explain the diversity of rainbows we see in nature.

By sorting hundreds of pictures of rainbows based on the visibility of the six colors and the presence of accessory bands, a team of atmospheric scientists has now come up with 12 different classes—including a rainbow that lacks green, a red-and-blue rainbow, a yellow and orange/red rainbow, and a monochromatic red. They presented their findings at the American Geophysical Union meeting this week.

So, if you’re ever lucky enough to spot a strange, partially-colored rainbow, there’s now a classification scheme that’ll tell you exactly what’s going on. Diffuse red rainbows, for instance, only occur near sunrise or sunset, when the sky is filled with tiny water droplets.

As with many other natural phenomena, the truth about rainbows is turning out to be far more beautiful than we imagined.

[National Geographic]

[Science News]

Follow the author @themadstone

Top: Rainbow at sunset, via Steve Jurvetson / Flickr

The announcement trailer for Storks has hit the web, and it’s a goofy one. The animated film stars Kelsey Grammer, Andy Samberg, Keegan-Michael Key, and Jordan Peele.

The movie takes on the image of a stork delivering a baby - apparently, Storks used to do that, and now, they deliver packages. When Junior, one of the company’s top delivery storks accidentally creates a baby, he has to find a way to deliver it before his boss finds out.

I’m sure there’ll be more than a little innuendo for the parents who are dragged to see this, but it looks like it’ll be an entertaining film. The best part? We get to see Key and Peele reunited. That’ll make it worth seeing.

Storks will be released into theaters on September 23, 2016.

Noted geek celebrity Stephen Colbert took to the late show last night, and pointed out a Wall Street Journal article about how Star Wars is relatively unknown in China.

To help them (and the non-Star Wars fans out there) figure out what the hype is about, he’s got a great description of what Star Wars is about in simple terms.

[Mashable]

If you were a gamer in the early ‘80s, you’ve no doubt played ColecoVision—the short-lived console that brought arcade games to your living room. Well, get ready for a nostalgia hurricane, because Coleco is back on the scene with a new home console—and it’ll play actual game cartridges.

The hero of this comeback story is called Coleco Chameleon. This 21st-century console will play 20th-century 8-bit, 16-bit, and 32-bit titles. There will also be brand new games with similar graphics available, too, so Coleco is smartly cashing in on the popularity of retro-style 2D titles that have been hits on all platforms from smartphones to Steam.

“It’s ironic that a new ‘retro’ video-game system would actually revolutionize and revitalize the Coleco brand,” said Coleco partner Chris Cardillo, in a press release. The project’s a collaboration between Coleco and a company called Retro Video Game Systems.

No price comes with this announcement, but it’ll hit shelves next year, and it’ll be shown at Toy Fair New York 2016 in February.

[Retro Video Game Systems]

Image via Coleco

Toyland: We love toys. Join us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

Time to ‘fess up. How many times have you seen the film?

I’ve only seen it once so far: a repeat visit is in store this week!

In factories, many simple, repetitive tasks have already been taken over by machines. But as we bring industrial robots into unpredictable, interactive environments, we’re going to need better ways to communicate with them.

That’s why engineer and designer Madeline Gannon developed Quipt, a gesture-based control software that helps industrial robots interact more fluidly with their human handlers. Wearable markers on a persons’ hands or neck are paired with a motion capture system, allowing the robot to see and respond to simple signals. One could imagine construction workers using this technology to tell robots where to drill or weld, and when to stop, with a flick of the wrist.

Learn more about Quipt in the video below, and on Gannon’s instructable here. Watching a half ton machine respond to a human like a tame animal, I can’t help but feel that we’re already living in the future.

[Vimeo]

From Rosetta’s ongoing love affair with a comet and the discovery of a pentaquark, to controversial breakthroughs like gene-editing of human embryos and a possible new species of homo sapiens, these were the science stories everyone was talking about in 2015.

Rosetta and Its Potato-Shaped Comet

The European Space Agency’s Rosetta mission to explore Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was the science-y gift that kept on giving in 2015, particularly its slew of eye-popping images to delight space porn enthusiasts everywhere. It started in January with seven articles in Science describing the first findings from an analysis of the data: most notably, images of ripples and dunes on the comet’s surface. This was surprising because there is no atmosphere (and thus no wind) on the comet, plus it has very little gravity.

As the year progressed, we got stunning new photos from a low-altitude flyby, our first glimpse of the comet’s dark side, and new data from the Philae lander after it woke up from a months-long hibernation. There were plenty of surprises: for instance, the comet has a small weather system driven by an intense day-night cycle, complex organic molecules, and primordial oxygen leaking from what passes for the space rock’s tenuous atmosphere. And astronomers are still puzzled by the changing land features of one particular site on the comet. We can’t wait to see what Rosetta and its plucky potato-shaped comet have in store for us in 2016.

[Note: Pluto was also very big news in 2015—so much so that we’re giving everyone’s favorite dwarf planet a list all its own. Look for it this week.]

Illustration of a pentaquark particle. Credit: CERN.

The LHC Discovers a Pentaquark

The new improved Large Hadron Collider wasted no time getting down to business this year: its LHCb experiment promptly discovered a new class of subatomic particles dubbed “pentaquarks.” To make protons and neutrons, you bind three kinds of quarks together, but it is theoretically possible to make particles with as many as five quarks. The LHCb team found the signature of just such a beast, made up of two up quarks, one down quark, one charm quark, and one anticharm quark.

The first evidence for a possible pentaquark appeared in 2002 at the Spring-8 synchrotron in Harima, Japan, and initial re-analysis of the data strengthened the case. But by 2005, physicists had concluded it wasn’t a real signal, and for the last decade, the pentaquark has frequently been cited as an example of how easy it is to see something in the data that isn’t really there. Now we know the pentaquark actually exists, although the LHCb pentaquark is different from the one supposedly seen in 2002 (it’s three times heavier and contains different kinds of quarks). Still, it sets the scene for exciting new developments to come. As MIT’s Frank Wilczek, one of the architects of the theory that describes the forces holding quarks together, told Nature: “It’s like a phoenix rising from the ashes.”

Skeletal fossils of the hand of homo naledi. Credit: John Hawks/Wikimedia Commons

Possible New Species of Homo Sapiens

The excitement was palpable when researchers from University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg uncovered 15 partial skeletons deep in a South African cave system of what they believe to be an entirely new human-like species. Dubbed Homo naledi, the remains indicated that this creature had an ape-like pelvis and shoulders, with feet resembling that of homo sapiens 200,000 years ago, and a much smaller skull than modern humans. The team also uploaded digital copies to a site called Morphosource, so anyone could download them and print their own skull fragments with a 3D printer.

But the find proved controversial from the start, with other paleoanthropologists contending that it wasn’t really a new species, although they didn’t agree on which existing species it most closely resembles—and team member John Hawks posted a spirited rebuttal to the critiques on his blog, including access to his data. There have also been accusations that team leader Lee Berger rushed through the excavation and publication (apparently the paper was riddled with errors) to better accommodate a film crew for National Geographic. Whether or not those criticisms hold up, there’s no denying this was big news in 2015. And as Gizmodo’s own Kiona Smith-Strickland pointed out, “That’s the nuts and bolts of how scientific arguments are supposed to work.”

Credit: Wellcome Images.

Gene-Editing of Human Embryos

Following weeks of speculation, news broke earlier this year that Chinese geneticists had used the revolutionary new CRISPR gene-editing method to genetically modify the DNA of human embryos. Controversy immediately erupted, largely because of ethical questions surrounding their use of germline modification—unlike somatic gene therapies, germline modifications can be passed down to subsequent generations. The experiment wasn’t exactly a smashing success: they applied CRISPR to 86 embryos; 71 survived the process, and of those, 54 were genetically tested. Of those, only 28 spliced successfully, and only a fraction of those contained the replacement genetic material. There were also so many unintended mutations that the researchers opted to stop the experiment.

Frankly, the paper itself proved problematic: it was rejected by both Nature and Science, on ethical grounds, and ultimately published by Protein and Cell. But its broader impact was undeniable, motivating some of the world’s leading geneticists and bioethicists to convene an International Summit on Gene Editing several weeks ago. The subsequent report laid out some surprisingly forward-thinking guidelines: it gave U.S. scientists a green light on doing such experiments on human genes, provided those experiments don’t result in pregnancy. But the committee also cautioned against the prospect of “designer babies,” since the technology is still grossly premature.

One Step Closer to a Universal Flu Shot

Flu shots change with the seasons, because there are so many different strains; the shots must be tailored to whichever strains are dominant in any given year, based on the shapeshifting decoy proteins that line the virus’s surface. By putting those decoy proteins in our vaccines, we prime our immune systems against the flu. But now we’re one step closer to a universal flu shot—a single jab that could inoculate us for life—after two research groups announced new prototype vaccines that target a different, more stable “stalk protein” in the virus. The trick is to get our immune system to “recognize” those stalk proteins from year to year. The new vaccines had mixed results against the H1N1 flu virus when tested on mice, monkeys and ferrets (the closest model to human response to the flu virus): there was an immune response but not always strong enough to prevent infection. But it’s a promising step forward, nonetheless.

The iChip, used to discover the first new antibiotic in 30 years. Credit: Slava Epstein.

First New Antibiotic in 30 Years

Antibiotic resistance is on the rise among bacteria like MRSA. So the announcement that scientists had found the first new class of antibiotics in 30 years was a particularly welcome development. Teixobactin targets the lipid molecules that bacteria use to build new cell walls, and has proven effective against several pathogens, including highly drug-resistant strains of staph. It’s still in preclinical development, so don’t expect your doctor to be writing prescriptions any time soon. But it was the technology used to find teixobactin that generated the most excitement: a handy gadget called the iChip that lets microbiologists grow bacteria in dirt—a huge advantage because most soil microbes can’t be grown in the lab otherwise. The iChip has the potential to test thousands, perhaps millions, of bacteria looking for candidates with good antibiotic properties. Teixobactin could be just the beginning.

Krister Shalm adjusts the photon source in his Bell test experimental set-up. Credit: Burrus/NIST

Spooky Action at a Distance Is Real

Dubbed “spooky action at a distance” by Albert Einstein, entanglement is a quantum phenomenon whereby two subatomic particles can be so closely connected that one can seem to influence the other even across long distances. Three independent experiments this year have definitively shown that the phenomenon is real.

Physicists have been conducting variations of the so-called Bell test for decades with greater and greater precision, but could never quite claim to have produced definitive proof of spooky action, because there were still critical loopholes in the experimental design. Until quite recently, they simply didn’t have sufficiently advanced technology to close those loopholes.

Earlier this year, physicists at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands sent two entangled electrons to separate corners of the campus and found that spooky action was real. Krister Shalm and his colleagues at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Colorado closed those loopholes with greater precision than ever before, hammering the final nail in local realism’s coffin. A second team of physicists at the University Vienna conducted yet another version of the Bell test using one of NIST’s single photon detectors. They reported similar results, submitting their own paper to the journal Physical Review Letters at the same time as Shalm and his co-authors. Taken together with the Delft results, these loophole-free Bell tests should settle the question once and for all.

Mind-Melds With Rats and Monkeys

Star Trek fans are well familiar with Spock’s proficiency with the Vulcan mind-meld. But neuroscientists say something similar really does happen when brains are electrically linked to share impulses across a network. Two studies published this year in the journal Scientific Reports described work connecting rat and monkey brains, respectively, via electrodes, enabling them to coordinate their thoughts to carry out simple tasks, such as pattern recognition and moving a robotic limb. After all, it stands to reason that if more neurons from a single brain can do a job better, linking together two or more brains would be even more efficient than one.

Duke University researchers led by neuroscientist Miguel Nicolelis implanted two sets of electrodes in the brains of four rats and gave them a pattern recognition test to “solve.” Through trial and error, they found that the rats figured out to synchronize their brain signals. They acted in concert as a simple computer. The Duke team had similar results when they rigged up monkeys with brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). The three brain-linked monkeys were able to coordinate their efforts to manipulate a robotic arm. It’s still not Spock-worthy mind-melding, but it’s an exciting advance on the neuroscience front nonetheless.

Top image: New shape model of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Credit: ESA.

Now that The Force Awakens has awoken in theaters, various details are emerging about some of the directions NOT taken in the latest Star Wars film. Among them? One character that was supposed to perish after a short amount of screen time.

Potential spoilers ahead.

Who’s the character? Poe Dameron, according to an interview with Oscar Isaac in GQ Magazine.

Isaac says he had been summoned to Paris for what he suspected might be a role in The Force Awakens. Sure enough, earlier that day, he had met with Abrams, screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan, and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, and Abrams had pitched him the character of Poe Dameron, a badass fighter pilot battling against the remnants of the Empire.

“He’s amazing!” said Abrams.

“Sounds good!” thought Isaac, whose first experience in a movie theater had been seeing The Empire Strikes Back.

“He opens the whole movie!” said Abrams.

“Sounds great!” thought Isaac.

“And then,” Abrams went on. “He dies.”

“Oh,” thought Isaac.

This makes a bit of sense, when you look back on the finished product. Dameron is presumed dead after his escape from capture, and is abandoned on the desert planet when Rey and Finn escape. It’s only later that he reappears without explanation.

Isaac wasn’t thrilled about what would amount to a lengthy cameo appearance, but he eventually agreed to take on the role. By that time, though, his reaction convinced J.J. Abrams to keep the character around for the rest of the film.

“I went back home [to New York], and I thought about it,” he says. “Then I wrote him and said, ‘Okay. I’ll do it!’ I figured it would be a cameo: I’ll come in, do my thing, and maybe it’s actually better not to have to sign myself up for three movies.” By that time, though, things had changed and Abrams soon wrote back: “Never mind. I’ve figured it out. You’re in the whole movie now.”

“I was like, ‘Holy shit! Alright, cool,’ ” Isaac says.

In the end, Dameron lives to fight another day. The origins of the character does explain why he had a much smaller role in the film than first anticipated.

Undoubtably, there’ll be a new book, short story or comic that will outline just how he escaped from Jakku. I, for one, am happy he survived: he was an interesting, fun character, and I look forward to seeing him in future installments.

[GQ Magazine]

On this day in 1960, the first mission of the Mercury Program successfully launched into space. It’s mission? Test the hardware that would later be used to bring the first Americans into space.

There was a lot riding on this launch: it’s predecessor, Mercury Redstone 1, failed, rising only four inches before the engines shut down. It didn’t explode, but the escape rocket jettisoned.

Weeks later, a second mission was prepared: Mercury Redstone 1A, which would test the same things: it would test out the spacecraft and rocket for a sub-orbital mission, and it would test out some of the flight controls, and the operations involved with launching, tracking and recovering a spacecraft.

This time, the launch was successful.

The spacecraft achieved a maximum altitude of 210 km and a maximum velocity of just under 8,000 km/hour. The spacecraft travelled downrange of the launch facility 375 km in a flight that lasted 15 minutes and 45 seconds. Fifteen minutes after landing in the Atlantic Ocean, the recovery helicopter picked up the spacecraft.

Following the success of Mercury Redstone 1A, the next step was to test it out with a live occupant, Ham, and it would launch just over a month later on January 31st, 1961.

[NASA]

In the last season of Game of Thrones, there was some pretty horrific moments depicting rape, which has added on a level of scrutiny to the HBO show and its depiction of sexual assault. Now, it looks like showrunners are reacting to the criticism for the upcoming season.

(Warning for those who need it: discussion of rape scenes in storytelling)

In ‘Breaker of Chains’, we watched as Jaime Lannister raped his sister, and just a couple of episodes later, later, Sansa Stark was raped by her husband. The backlash against the show has been intense, and according to Forbes, there are changes on the way.

http://io9.gizmodo.com/how-to-fix-wha...

Jeremy Podeswa recently spoke with the press in Australia, and noted that the outcry have sparked some changes in the upcoming season.

The show’s creators Dan Weiss and David Benioff “were responsive to the discussion and there were a couple of things that changed as a result,” Podeswa said on Friday at a breakfast briefing at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney hosted by Screen Producers Australia CEO Matthew Deaner. “It is important that (the producers) not self-censor. The show depicts a brutal world where horrible things happen. They did not want to be too overly influenced by that (criticism) but they did absorb and take it in and it did influence them in a way.”

After last season, there will certainly be some changes that will be needed, especially after some viewers began to swear off the show after what happened. It’s good to see that the show’s creators are willing to adjust a bit and to take in what fans of the show had to say.

That said, they didn’t outline just what would be changed in the upcoming sixth season, and we won’t know for months. Hopefully, it’ll be meaningful, rather than just lip service.

Game of Thrones Season 6 will air in April 2016 on HBO.

[Forbes]

You might say Ken Libbrecht is into snowflakes. In fact, he’s made a career of studying them in his lab at Caltech. He’s even got a high-tech snowflake machine, which he uses to grow dazzling designer flakes of all shapes and sizes.

No two snowflakes are precisely alike, and Libbrecht is trying to figure out why. In order to do so, he watches the frosty crystals condense from water vapor onto a sapphire substrate, all the while taking high-res images with a digital camera rigged up to a microscope. Over the years, Libbrecht has amassed a brilliant photographic collection, not to mention the distinct honor of being the world’s first designer snowflake artist.

Here are a few highlights.

Images courtesy of Ken Libbrecht. You can check out more of his work on his website, SnowCrystals.com.

The Disney Infinity Star Wars: The Force Awakens adventure loosely follows the events of the new movie from start to finish, though one particular dramatic development is glossed over. Spoilers are going to happen here, kids.

Seriously, if you’ve not seen Star Wars: The Force Awakens yet and plan on doing so, do not read on. I’ll try not to spoil anything overtly in the text—though I make no promises—but I can guarantee you the comments section will be filled with discussions about things you don’t want to know about yet.

Courtesy Spoiler Break

So while the recently launched Disney Infinity 3.0 companion piece to The Force Awakens starts players off in familiar territory, it diverges at mostly the proper points. Finn and Rey make it off of Jakku with that famous guy, stop by the other planet to talk with someone who is definitely not the same character from the movie, and then the plan to take the battle to the First Order’s Really, Really Death Star No We’re Serious This Time commences.

At the beginning of the assault we’ve got an assortment of characters aboard an iconic ship, at least one of which wasn’t there in the movie. Also worth noting, the pronunciation of the planet Takodana makes me incredibly hungry—taco donna.

Once players hit the ground on the Starkiller they’ve got to lower the shields so the Resistance Assault (just doesn’t have the same ring) can begin. Then they’ve got to plant some explosives so the Resistance fighters can get to whatever passes for an exhaust port in the planet-based weapon.

Of course it wouldn’t be The Force Awakens without a showdown with Darth Teen Angst. Disney Infinity gives us three of them, each involving explosive barrels, because explosive barrels. After the third gripping barrel battle is finished, the following cutscene plays.

Notice anyone missing there? That’s right, where did Poe Dameron go?

Just kidding. Poe, who was never on the Millennium Falcon to begin with in the movie, likely made his way to his cool X-Wing that must make all of his fellow pilots jealous. “Why can’t we have black and orange ships?” “Because the audience doesn’t need to keep track of you in a firefight.” “Awww.”

That’s strange, wasn’t there another pilot for this ship? We didn’t hear from him at all while wandering about on the First Order planet. Maybe he’s with Poe in his X-Wing? That must be it. Chewbacca looks far too happy for it to be anything else.

My guess is that older Harrison Ford is just too damn sexy for a game aimed at kids, so they left him out of the ending to limit their exposure. I’m sure he’ll be back up to his charming scoundrels ways once the folks at Disney Infinity get around to making a set for episode eight.

Contact the author of this post, who is pretty bummed about what really happened, at fahey@kotaku.com or find him on Twitter@bunnyspatial.

Vacuums, hot tubs, and stainless steel straws lead a solid set of deals today. Bookmark Kinja Deals and follow us on Twitter to never miss a deal. Commerce Content is independent of Editorial and Advertising, and if you buy something through our posts, we may get a small share of the sale. Click here to learn more.

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The Blue Yeti Microphone is the best around, and just $80 today. Time to start that podcast. [Blue Microphones Yeti USB Microphone, $80]

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You can pick up all five seasons of The Walking Dead at discounts today, including the Season 5 Limited Edition Set. [Walking Dead Gold Box]

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We’ve posted deals on these smartphone lens kits enough that you probably already own a set, but if you need an easy stocking stuffer idea, this checks all the boxes: It only costs $10, it has nearly universal appeal, and relatively few people already own something like it. [Mpow 3 in 1 Fisheye, $10 with code RF6YDGK5]

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This seemingly-basic remote might not look like much at first blush, but it can actually control eight of your favorite home theater devices, and even turn your smartphone into a universal remote as well.

You’re probably used to seeing Logitech Harmony remotes with screens built-in, but it turns out that you already carry a much better screen in your pocket. So in addition to controlling your TV, cable box, game console, stereo, and more from the remote itself, the Logitech Harmony Smart Control can now do the same from your iPhone or Android from anywhere in the house. That’s especially handy when your favorite show is about to start and you can’t find the remote anywhere. Today’s $70 deal is the best we’ve ever seen, but I’d expect it to sell out quickly. [Logitech Harmony Smart Control with Smartphone App and Simple Remote, $70]

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This was $5 cheaper on Black Friday, but if you find yourself in need of a lot of extra file storage, it’s tough to beat 5TB for $115. [Seagate Backup Plus 5TB Desktop External Hard Drive, $115]

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More Deals

SanDisk Ultra 64GB USB 3.0 OTG Flash Drive With micro USB connector ($20)

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Knife Sharpener, Edge Pro 2 Stage Sharpening System ($10)

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HomeBeck LED Beanie ($17) | Use code 8LSHHUUH

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String Lights, 2 Set of Micro 30 LEDs Super Bright Warm White Color Wire Rope Lights Battery Operated ($9)

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Disgaea 5: Alliance of Vengeance ($37)

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Commerce Content is independent of Editorial and Advertising, and if you buy something through our posts, we may get a small share of the sale. Click here to learn more. We want your feedback.Send deal submissions to Deals@Gawker and all other inquiries to Shane@Gawker

Now that The Force Awakens is now out in theaters, we’re learning even more about the little details of the film, including a couple of surprise cameos. Spoilers ahead.

According to Entertainment Weekly, there’s some surprising voice cameos that appeared: Frank Oz, Alec Guinness and Ewan McGregor all appeared:

As Rey touches [Luke’s Lightsaber], she is hit with an impressionistic wave of images and sounds that depict a cloaked Luke Skywalker in mourning, reaching out for support (or to comfort) R2-D2 beside a fire. She sees bodies scattered in a rainstorm at the feet of Kylo Ren and the masked and menacing Knights of Ren. She sees herself as a young girl, being left in the coarse hands of junk dealer Unkar Plutt on the desert world of Jakku.

During that scenes, you can hear a rush of voices, including Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda.

According to Abrams:

“You do hear a little bit of Yoda. You hear Luke yelling out, ‘Nooo!’ from that moment in Empire. And you hear Obi-Wan at the end say, ‘Rey … these are your first steps,’” Abrams says. “Here’s the cool part. We asked Ewan McGregor to come in and do the line. And he was awesome and we were very grateful. He was incredibly sweet and handsome, and all that stuff. Then he rode off on his motorcycle. Literally the coolest voice over actor ever.”

[Entertainment Weekly]

Weather Forecaster Sian Welby for Channel 5 had some fun on her broadcast last Tuesday, dropping 12 Star Wars puns in just 40 seconds. This takes some serious skill, and it’s completely awesome.

[Some ECards]

This is really cool: the New York Times has put together a really astounding interactive feature that lets you explore Saturn and its moons through NASA’s probes.

You can click and drag the surfaces of a bunch of the moons, including Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Titan, and Iapetus, which shows off their features.

[NY Times]