OH MIT NO: I don't know how I missed this when it made its splash back in January; maybe I was, oh, you know, spending too much time on Planet Sanity. But MIT Media Lab has unveiled its newest gee-whiz product: the Autom, a robot that tells you you're too fat.

That's right. It's a robot. That tells you you're fat

^{Image from our "Stan VanDerBeek: The Culture Intercom" slideshow.}

Turns out, you don't have to look very hard to find the geeky bits of any given issue of the Phoenix. Here are a few choice morsels for your lazy-Sunday perusal.

[tech] Peace, love and QR codes: South by Southwest Interactive plots a course to a better world

^{THE SONY NGP Is this a Magic Eye image? If I cross my eyes and back away, will I see a pussy?}

I realize this controversy happened a week and a half ago, but it still makes me want to punch a wall until my hand falls off, so here we go.

Mr. Jaffe, you may recall saying the following statement about the new Sony NGP:

^{Concept art for Boston Dynamics' LS3}

In an uncertain technological future, it's nice to know we can depend on one thing: that the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will always be into some seriously heavy shit. Responsible for such sinister-sounding past endeavors as the Sea Shadow and the MQ-1 Predator, DARPA permanently resides on the cutting edge.

^{What happens if Hognet becomes self-aware this Tuesday}

In the spirit of the season, PETA have momentarily put aside their paint-slinging and nudity-exploiting, opting to set their sights on a new cause: freeing Punxsutawney Phil from a life of enslavement and untold horrors by replacing him with -- wait for it -- an animatronic rodent replica

^{Parrot's AR.Drone in action}

The exhibitors at CES can pack up and go home, because it's clear what this year's gadget is: the remote-controlled AR.Drone helicopter from Parrot.

The normal two-rotor remote-control helicopters currently on the market will break your heart (and your windows) because they're just impossible to steer. But with its self-stabilizing four-rotor design, the AR.Drone can hover motionless in the air, ready to strike. It has two built-in cameras that transmit live color video, so it can spy on really unobservant people. You control it over wifi with an iPhone or iPod Touch.