Episode 24 – Memory Erasing and Disney’s D23

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Welcome to another episode of Geek Bytes Podcast.

We bring you the week’s Geek and Tech news and then discuss anything we’re interesting in that week.

Don’t forget to subscribe to us on Itunes, Stitcher or any podcatching app, and Leave a good review if you like the podcast.

I’m Ramon Mejia…….I’m Edgar Acosta

In Geek News this week, we’ll talk about Google’s Reorganization, Samsung's phone announcements, a memory erasing Drug, Someone wants to build Minas Tirith, Disney’s D23,  Newly announced TV shows and Movies, Trailers of the Week, and more

In our Discussions section we’ll talk about Our Ant-man review; New TV Pilots – Lucifer, Minority Report, Kevin from Work, Blind Spot

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Now let’s Begin our show with Geek News

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Geek News

Google to Reorganize as Alphabet to Keep Its Lead as an Innovator

This week Google announced a major reorganizing. They created parent company Alphabet — and separated its moneymaking businesses from the research projects.

Co-Founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin will run parent company Alphabet who would oversee child companies including Google, Nest ( the smart-thermostat maker), and Calico (biology research), among other things.

Sundar Pichai, who had been senior vice president in charge of products, will be chief executive of Google, which will encompass Internet products like search, maps, YouTube and applications like Gmail.

By separating Google from its research companies Alphabet hopes to keep it’s edge in innovation. Former research wings of Google are now their own companies with their own budgets and opportunities for advancements.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/11/technology/google-alphabet-restructuring.html

The 6 most important announcements from Samsung's Galaxy Note 5 event

This week at an event called Unpacked, Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Note 5 and the Galaxy S6 Edge+, and some other great announcements.

The 1st announcement-THE NOTE 5 IS ALL METAL AND GLASS

The Note still has a 5.7-inch Quad HD display and a stylus that pops out of the bottom— it's basically the Note as you already know it made a lot nicer with glass and metal instead of plastic. The only downside: no more removable battery or microSD card slot. It'll go on sale August 21st.

 

The 2nd announcement -THE GALAXY S6 EDGE+ MAKES THE EDGE MORE USEFUL

Samsung is trying to make its key feature, the edge, more useful. The edges can now give you quick access to both your top contacts and your most recently used apps, which should make it quicker to navigate around the big phone. On Sale this month August 21st.

 

The 3rd announcement -PAY WITH SAMSUNG PAY AT MOST CREDIT CARD READERS

Samsung Pay uses a combination of NFC and something called MST, which essentially beams out the magnetic code that card readers normally get from a swipe. It's a neat workaround that's supposed to make Samsung Pay compatible with the vast majority of card readers.

The 4th announcement -STREAM TO YOUTUBE STRAIGHT FROM THE CAMERA

Both phones are able to stream live video to YouTube  up to 1080p at 60fps and can be pushed lived immediately.

 

The 5th announcement -THE PHYSICAL KEYBOARD IS BACK, BUT ONLY IF YOU WANT IT

One of Samsung's more interesting announcements was for a small keyboard that attaches to the bottom of the Note 5 and S6 Edge+.

 

The 6th announcement -A NEW GEAR SMARTWATCH the G2 ARRIVES SEPTEMBER 3RD

http://www.theverge.com/2015/8/13/9147905/samsung-galaxy-s6-note-5-gear-news-unpacked-2015

Mother Robot builds and improves own robot children

A new research project led by the University of Cambridge has created a mother robot that can not only build its own children robots, but mimic the process of natural selection to improve their capabilities with each generation.

The process begins with five plastic cubes with motors inside. Each cube features a unique "genome" made up of a combination of between one and five genes. This genome gives each cube its own set of attributes, relating to its shape, construction and motor commands.

The robotic overlord created and then tested ten robot children. It then tested their performance by measuring how far each child was capable of traveling within a certain amount of time. The best performing children advanced to the next generation unchanged, while new genomes were formed for slower ones in the group through mutation and merging genes.

This technique proved a success. So much so, that the robots in the final generation moved with an average speed of more than twice that of the fastest robots in the first generation. The mother was able to boost their performance by improving the design and inventing new shapes and gait patterns, including some designs that humans would not have been able to conjure up.

http://www.gizmag.com/evolution-machine-mother-robot/38903/

A New Drug Erases Memories to Treat Addiction

Methamphetamine is one of the nastiest drug addictions to overcome, in part because memories of the high are so powerful. Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in Florida have developed a drug that’s able to erase memories created during Methamphetamine use.

The mechanism behind the memory-erasing drug draws on earlier research unraveling how memories form. Turns out, the process our brains use to build a memory during meth use is pretty abnormal. The researchers figured out how to exploit this difference to create a drug that only targets psychostimulant-induced memories. 

http://gizmodo.com/a-new-drug-erases-memories-to-treat-addiction-1723504735

Crowdfunding for real life Minas Tirith from Lord of the Rings

 

Jonathan Wilson and his British team have launched an IndieGoGo campaign to build a full size functioning version of Minas Tirith, the capital city of Gondor from The Lord ofthe Rings. The major problem is that they've estimated that the cost to actually build it is approximately $2.9 billion. If successfully funded, the hope is to begin building at the end of 2016 and complete the project by 2023. 

http://geektyrant.com/news/full-size-version-of-the-lord-of-the-rings-minas-tirith-being-crowdfunded-on-indiegogo

Fallout Shelter now available for Android

While you wait for the Nov. 10th release of Fallout 4 you can now play the massively popular mobile game Fallout Shelter on both your iPhone and Android device. The game lets you build and manage your very own fallout shelter. It’s free to play with option things to buy in game. The android version has gotten some great updates.

http://www.geekbytespodcast.com/news/2015/8/13/fallout-shelter-available-for-android-now

Disney / Pixar announcements from D23

Disney’s convention the D23 Expo is happening this weekend and Disney/Pixar started off the event Friday with some great announcements

Zootopia

Director Byron Howard ( of Tangled) and Rich Moore ( of Wreck-It Ralph), and producer Clark Spencer ( of Wreck-It Ralph) took the stage to talk about Zootopia. The story is essentially a buddy comedy which pits two unlikely heroes together: an overly optimistic rabbit named Judy Hopps (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin), who moves to the big city with dreams of becoming a police officer (only to get relegated to meter maid), and a slimy con man of a fox named Nick Wolfe (voiced by Jason Bateman), who believes in grifting his way to the middle. Together, they must work to solve a missing mammals case and locate a lost otter within 48 hours or else Judy will be kicked off the force once and for all.

Toy Story 4 announced

At the D23 expo Pixar announced a new Toy Story movie that will hit theaters sometime in 2017. The movie will revolve around a love story with Woody and Bo Peep.

Disney Announces Gigantic - A Jack & The Beanstalk Inspired Animated Film

            Set in Spain during the Age of Exploration, Disney’s “Gigantic” follows adventure-seeker Jack as he discovers a world of giants hidden within the clouds. He hatches a grand plan with Inma, a 60-foot-tall, 11-year-old girl, and agrees to help her find her way home. But he doesn’t account for her super-sized personality

Is slated to land in theaters in 2018.

Moana

Disney Pixar also announced a new animated movie called Moana (Moh-Ahn-Ah)

Moana takes places 2,000 years ago in the South Pacific. Moana is a strong-willed 16-year-old princess (we wouldn’t have it any other way) who wants to learn why her people stopped exploring

Maui is covered in magical tattoos that tell the tales of all his adventures. Moana must team up with Maui to battle underwater monsters, travel to the ancient, oceanic underworld, and battle against a land spirit made of magma and volcanic rock.

Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson has already contributed his voice for the movie

Moana sails into theaters November 23, 2016.

The Good Dinosaur

Arlo is a timid young Apatosaurus (A-Pat-Oh-Sore-Us), who is very close with his father. However, in classic Disney fashion, disaster strikes as Arlo’s father is killed and Arlo himself is swept away in a raging river current. Bereft of his best friend and role model and miles away from his family, Arlo begins to despair…until he encounters Spot. Who is Spot, you ask? A feral child of sorts in caveman-style animal skins who walks around on all fours like a dog. In fact, Spot is meant to be a twist on the classic “boy and his dog” trope — except this time Spot is the dog and Arlo is the boy. Together, they make the long journey back to the Clawtooth Mountains where Arlo’s family lives. In theaters Nov. 25, 2015

Finding Dori

Finding Dory will focus on Dory’s quest to reunite with her parents, who are located somewhere near Monterey, California. Famously forgetful, Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) remembers her homeland after getting sucked into an undertow, a traumatic experience which evidently awoke something within her.

Joining returning cast members Ellen DeGeneres and Albert Brooks (as Marlon) are joined by Hayden Rolence as Nemo; Ed O’Neill as a curmudgeonly octopus named Hank; Ty Burrell as Bailey, a beluga whale who believes his naturally large skull is the product of a head injury; and Kaitlin Olson as a sweet-natured but confused whale shark named Destiny, who doesn’t seem to understand that she’s a shark, not a whale.

Coco

Disney announced a new animated project called Coco. Coco centers on a 12-year-old boy named Miguel, who is adept at playing the guitar. While they didn’t say a lot about this project they did show a small clip that featured dancing skeletons and a rockin’ mariachi band that seemed straight out of Book of Life or Guacamelee.

http://nerdist.com/d23-pixar-and-walt-disney-animation-panel-recap/

The CW’s Friday the 13th TV series will reboot Jason

Deadline has word that a Friday the 13th series is moving forward at The CW, with Steven Long Mitchell and Craig W. Van Sickle (The Pretender) set to write the series.

The series reimagines the iconic villain Jason Voorhees with, "a stronger feel of grounded reality." The series is described as a sophisticated horror-thriller that centers on a detective who has been searching for his missing brother. His brother's disappearance is believed to tie into the re-emergence of Jason Voorhees, who was long thought to be dead but is know wreaking havoc once again in Crystal Lake.

http://movieweb.com/friday-13th-tv-series-jason-reboot-cw/

WINONA RYDER: BEETLEJUICE SEQUEL HAPPENING

This week on Late Night with Seth Meyers Winona Ryder confirmed rumors of a Beetlejuice sequel.

Ryder said that talk of a sequel seemed very “hush-hush” until Burton, while doing press for his movie Big Eyes, said that the Beetlejuice sequel was happening. Both Keaton and Burton have said in the past that they hoped to make another Beetlejuice movie.

http://nerdist.com/winona-ryder-beetlejuice-sequel-happening/

Fox Reportedly Moving Forward With Fantastic Four 2 Despite Box Office

 There was nothing fantastic about this past weekend for 20th Century Fox and their latest superhero film, Josh Trank's Fantastic Four. Despite this poor performance the studio seems to still want to make a sequel.

"Everything I've heard would indicate that the studio will move forward with a Fantastic Four sequel," Drew McWeeny of HitFixreports. "It may not make that original 2017 date, but they're definitely planning to make it."

http://comicbook.com/2015/08/11/fox-reportedly-moving-forward-with-fantastic-four-2-despite-box-/

Sesame Street heading to HBO

HBO and Sesame Street announced a surprise deal that will put America’s most famous children’s TV program on the same network as Game of Thrones for the next 5 seasons. PBS, the non-profit channel that has aired Sesame Street since it debuted in 1969, will still be allowed to air the program nine months after its initial run.

Sesame Street may begin airing on HBO as early as this fall

http://gizmodo.com/sesame-street-will-air-on-hbo-for-the-next-five-seasons-1723870950

Fresh Prince of Bel Air reboot

According to TV Line Will Smith has confirmed that he is producing a revival of his 90s sitcom star vehicle The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,

The reboot is reportedly in production at Smith’s Overbook Entertainment, and is looking to put a modern spin on the original’s fish-out-of-water premise.

Smith will serve as executive producer of the series, but will not star.

http://comicbook.com/2015/08/13/will-smith-producing-a-fresh-prince-of-bel-air-reboot/

Attack on Titan Gets U.S. Release Date

FUNimation Entertainment has announced that Attack on Titan Part 1 will be released on September 30th and Part 2 will hit theaters less than a month later on October 20th! 

http://geektyrant.com/news/attack-on-titan-films-get-us-release-dates

Trailers of the Week

Every Week we bring you best trailers released this week. We begin with

The Hateful Eight

Quinten Tarantino’s take on the Western puts eight unique characters on a journey through the west.

Starring Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and more. In Select Theaters on Christmas Day & Everywhere On January 8th, 2016.

http://www.geekbytespodcast.com/news/2015/8/12/watch-quentin-tarantinos-hateful-eight-trailer

Sleeping with Other People- Red Band

Twelve years after a one-night stand, a man (Jason Sudeikis) and a woman (Alison Brie) run into each other and try to maintain a platonic relationship despite their mutual attraction.

Sleeping with Other People releases September 11, 2015

http://www.geekbytespodcast.com/news/2015/8/13/watch-the-redband-trailer-for-sleeping-with-other-people

Trumbo

Bryan Cranston (from Breaking Bad) stars in this drama set in Hollywood during the 1940s-50s communist trials.

http://www.geekbytespodcast.com/news/2015/8/14/watch-the-trailer-for-trumbo-starring-bryan-cranston

Jem and the Holograms

As a small-town girl catapults from underground video sensation to global superstar, she and her three sisters begin a one-in-a-million journey of discovering that some talents are too special to keep hidden. In Universal Pictures' Jem and the Holograms, four aspiring musicians will take the world by storm when they see that the key to creating your own destiny lies in finding your own voice.

"Jem and the Holograms" has a October 23, 2015

http://www.geekbytespodcast.com/news/2015/8/12/watch-the-trailer-for-jem-and-the-holograms

Doctor Who season 9 trailer

 Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman return in the 9th season of Doctor who on Sept. 19th

The trailer features lots of time travel action, alien fighting, and a glimpse at the return of the character Missy.

http://nerdist.com/new-doctor-who-trailer/

The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar

 the D23 Expo in Anaheim, attendees will be treated to a special preview of The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar, the television film airing in November on The Disney Channel. The movie will serve as the precursor to the animated Lion Guard television series, which is set to premiere in 2016 on Disney Junior.

Simba’s son Kion (voiced by Max Charles) leading a group of animals called The Lion Guard. Traditionally, this group has been comprised of the bravest, fastest and strongest animals of the Pride Lands, but Kion “breaks with tradition” and recruits his friends. This means that the new Lion Guard is comprised of a motley crew that includes Bunga (Joshua Rush), a blustery honey badger; Ono (Atticus Shaffer), a smarty-pants egret; Fuli (Diamond White), a confident cheetah and Beshte (Dusan Brown), a friendly hippo.

https://youtu.be/X19M8Ugshlw

For a review of the topics we covered and any of the links in show notes for this episode visit our site geekbytespodcast.com

If you have any comments or news suggestions for us, please e-mail us at feedback@geekbytespodcast.com

Onto our Discussion section

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Discussion- Our Review of

Ant-man- Forced out of his own company by former protégé Darren Cross, Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) recruits the talents of Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), a master thief just released from prison. Lang becomes Ant-Man, trained by Pym and armed with a suit that allows him to shrink in size, possess superhuman strength and control an army of ants. The miniature hero must use his new skills to prevent Cross, also known as Yellowjacket, from perfecting the same technology and using it as a weapon for evil.

 

Lucifer- Lucifer, "who is bored and unhappy as the Lord of Hell and resigns his throne and abandons his kingdom for the beauty of Los Angeles, where he gets his kicks helping the LAPD punish criminals. The CW.

Minority Report- Ten years after the end of Precrime in Washington D.C., one of the three Pre-Cogs struggles to lead a normal life, but remains haunted by visions of the future. FOX.

Kevin from Work- Workplace comedy about a young man who announces his love to a co-worker just before accepting another job, only to find out that his offer has been rescinded and he's stuck with his crush. ABC.

Blind Spot- A Jane Doe is found in Times Square with no memory and mysterious tattoos on her body that seem to predict sinister crimes. NBC.4

That will be it for us this week.

Thanks for listening folks. Now Go Geek out about something.

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Music Credits

"Happy Bee", "Movement Proposition", "Theme for Harold (var.3) ", "Take the Lead"

Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/