DARPA's Giant Red Balloons Officially At Large

Remember that DARPA balloon challenge, where the first team to find eight weather balloons wins $40,000? Well, the balloons are up in the air. If you don't have a team yet, here are some places to report a sighting. [Gizmodo]

It's So Big

A comment on graphics cards and overcompensating: ATI's new Radeon 5970 HD is a staggering 13.3 inches long. [Anandtech] [Gizmodo]

Japanese Video Installation Will Blow You Away (Literally! Ha!)

Well, I'm not really sure what this installation, from Tokujin Yoshioka for Hermes, is selling, but I'll tell you what: I'll totally buy it. It's at the Tokyo Hermes store until January 19th. Video after the jump. [Core77] [Gizmodo]

Remainders - The Good, Bad and Ugly Stories We Didn't Post (and Why)

In today's forgotten corner of Gizmodo that is Remainders, we've got OK Go's new tech-courting music video, ever more info on the Apple-Lala acquisition, a super (Mario) cross-stitch project, and Ellen Degeneres's gadgety Christmas giveaway. Buckle up, you guys. [Gizmodo]

Naturally, Vogue's Twitpic Spread Includes Barely Dressed Girls

You know that the world has changed when a classic fashion magazine like Vogue Italia includes a spread that follows the layout of Twitpic. Well, actually, that's a lie, but I needed some excuse to publish this, ok? [Gizmodo]

The Olympic Flame Gets Six Airplane Seats to Itself

I love symbolic gestures as much as the next guy, but is flying the olympic flame from Greece to Canada in a bunch of miner's lanterns spread across six airplane seats really necessary? [The Big Picture] [Gizmodo]

See the World From Your Couch: Pompeii Ruins Now on Google Street View

The Pompeii ruins are one of the most tourist-visited sites in the world, which is one reason to stay home, sit on your couch with no pants on and enjoy the ruins on Street View. It's pretty gorgeous. [Google] [Gizmodo]

This Week's Gaming Stories, Dating Sim Gone Wrong Edition

This is a Real Girlfriend. She's supposed to be attractive, sexy even. But running on a PC that can't handle the rendering, things go a bit Terminator 2. Other great gaming stories from this week: [Gizmodo]

Your Next Google Search Is Going to Freak You Out

The next time you Google something, if the search results seem a little too good, a little too personal, it's because they are. [Gizmodo]

The Week's Best iPhone Apps

In this week's Steve-approved app roundup: Your music library, converted into baddies! Twitter, visualized in 3D! Byplanes, flown! Xbox Live accounts, accessed! Cars, salvaged! Overprotective parents, abetted! Live video calls, called! And more... [Gizmodo]

The Bone-Chilling Sound of the Planets Won't Let You Sleep Tonight

In space, nobody can hear you sing Dancing Queen when you are in the shower. But if you listen closely, you can hear the planets making noises. Noises so scary that make me want to move to another solar system. [Gizmodo]

Apple Is Now in the Streaming Music Business

The New York Times is reporting that Apple's agreed to buy the music streaming service LaLa, according to "a person with knowledge of the deal." Apple's now in the streaming music business. [Gizmodo]

It Would Be Cool to Live at the Daewon Park Observatory and Be a Superhero

That's the only thing I can think about when I see the Daewon Park Observatory. But where are my superpowers? I want the power of flight! I want the power to kill a yak 200 yards away, with mind bullets! [Gizmodo]

The Week's Best iPhone Apps

Song Summoner: Jason sez: [Gizmodo]

From the Tips Box: Launchy Keywords, Masking Tape Notes, and Bookmark Abbreviations

Readers offer their best tips for using short keywords in Launchy, making low-tech reminder notes, and saving space in the bookmark bar. [Lifehacker]

BBC Life: Venus Flytrap Grows in Time Lapse, Devours In Macro

I'd never felt sympathy for a fly until I just watched this latest, astounding clip from BBC Life in which a Venus Flytrap consumes murders its prey. [Gizmodo]

Intel's High-End Larrabee Graphics Card Won't Be Released Anytime Soon

Intel just told us that its first Larrabee graphics card isn't ever coming out "as standalone discrete product," because they're behind where they'd hoped to be in development, meaning you won't be shoving one inside of your PC anytime soon. [Gizmodo]

Robotic Sea-Glider Achieves First Unmanned Underwater Transatlantic Crossing

Charles Lindbergh may have shown human fortitude by flying across the Atlantic in his "Spirit of St. Louis," but now he has robotic company when it comes to transatlantic records. [Gizmodo]

This Week's Most Popular Posts

This week we explained how HTML5 will change the web as you know it, offered 10 alternatives to the recently-fallen BitTorrent tracker Mininova, and helped you decide whether or not you really need to upgrade your RAM. [Lifehacker]

2009 LA Auto Show Round-Up: Let's Get Small

What made the 2009 LA Auto Show a big deal? Small cars. The onslaught of big SUVs and green marketing seems to have passed. The full wrap-up of the 2009 LA Auto Show is a click away. More »

How 30 Rock's Jack Donaghy Feels About Comcast Swallowing NBC

Alec Baldwin reveals how his GE-jingoist counterpart on 30 Rock, Jack Donaghy, will take the news about Comcast buying a majority stake of NBC. It's sort of how I feel, but about life, and without an office. [Media Decoder] [Gizmodo]

I'm so Passé That I Don't Know 95% of These Social Networking Sites

I met my first serious girlfriend after my first divorce—yes, there are more of both—through a proto-Facebook created at Google. It was 2004, and it's name was Orkut. But social networks go back to 1995. [Gizmodo]

There Is No Carrot Nose Small Enough For The World's Tiniest Snowman

Snowman purists may object, because this smirking seasonal statue, which stands just 0.01mm wide—one fifth of a human hair—is actually built from tin and titanium, not fresh powder. But still! [Gizmodo]

USAF Confirms New Secret Stealth Plane

The existence of a new secret plane photographed this week has been confirmed by the United States Air Force. The secret aircraft now has an official denomination: The RQ-170 Sentinel, a flying wing developed by Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works. [Gizmodo]