geeks

I always thought an original-style "Star Trek" captain's chair would be my personal holy grail of memorabilia. Unfortunately, a really great replica costs $1,000.

Now there's an option that will only cost me $25 and a bit of lung power. The "Star Trek" Inflatable Captain's Chair from ThinkGeek arrived along with a slew of April Fools' products like the "Star Wars" Admiral Akbar Singing Bass and Electronic Hungry Hungry Hippos for iPad.

The inflatable chair, however, is very real. Before you get too excited, though, let's look at the fine print.

The chair is only rated to hold up to 120 pounds. That makes it suitable for child Star Fleet recruits, slim adults, or Captain James T. Bark, your 6-pound chihuahua. William Shatner and the majority of Trekkies are out of luck.… Read more

Zhu Kefeng could be the biggest Transformers fan you'll ever see.

Inspired by the robots in the popular Transformers franchise, the 49-year-old Chinese artist led a team that built more than 600 giant sculptures using recycled automobile parts.

These sculptures, created over a period of 10 years, now reside at a theme park in Jiaxing City in China's Zhejiang province. Also known as Mr. Iron Robot theme park, it has since become a tourist attraction that's popular with kids. … Read more

It's always fun to have a first timer on the show with us, and today we welcome Chenda Ngak, CBSNews.com technology and lifestyle blogger. She's a big videogamer and proud geek, so she's the perfect guest to help us talk about the recent backlash against "fake" geek girls.

Speaking of girls, we don't have them on the show very often so it's great to finally get a female perspective on the Reply Girls phenomenon.

If you haven't heard about them before, Reply Girls are a group of a dozen women dressed in low cut tops that post video replies to trending YouTube videos, exploiting their sexuality to earn money via YouTube's revenue-sharing program. While certainly a symbiotic relationship between Reply Girl and the weirdos clicking on them, we'll discuss the real victims in the scam and how YouTube is putting an end to it.… Read more

Who hasn't called their dad a geek or nerd at some point, right? The thing is, while those monikers might have been an insult or cause for embarrassment back in the day, today, they're a badge of honor for many tech-savvy dads out there.

According to a survey sponsored by Cisco Home Networking Business (who knew Cisco was in the business of geek dads?), these self-proclaimed nerds are eager to pass on their high-tech knowledge to their sons and daughters. And get this: instead of retreating to their rooms and slamming their doors in that special way only angst-ridden teens can, the kids are into it, giving both parties an opportunity to spend more time together.

The survey, called "Confessions of a Geek Dad" and conducted by Answers Research, asked 590 "tech-savvy" men between the ages of 25 to 54, with children ages 17 and under, about their technology habits as it relates to their interaction with kids and other family members. … Read more

If we ever had to battle the evil forces of the Galactic Empire, we'd definitely want you on our side, Crave readers.

A few days ago we put out a call for our most dedicated "Star Wars" fan, and as usual, you did not disappoint. We received submissions from "Star Wars" devotees the world over, showing off everything from impressive homemade costumes to intricate tattoos and life-size replicas of favorite characters.

As a fan myself, I had so much fun seeing all the enthusiasm for the "Star Wars" films (it was also a wake-up call that I need to step up my game), but there was one individual who definitely stood out from the rest. As the saying goes, "The Force is strong with this one."

You'll have to click through the photo gallery below to find out who the victor is, but the lucky winner will receive an autographed copy of "The Star Wars Craft Book" from Bonnie Burton herself. Congrats to the winner, and thanks to everyone who sent in submissions! … Read more

Over the past several weeks, we've had a blast creating our own little Star Wars universe with some fun crafts from Bonnie Burton's "The Star Wars Craft Book." From Admiral Sackbars to Chewbacca tissue boxes, we couldn't think of a more delightful way to show our love for the series.

However, we also know there's an entire galaxy of you out there who are just as or even more devoted to the Star Wars franchise and show your appreciation in other ways, and we want to hear from you.

To cap off our DIY Weekend series of intergalactic crafts, we're on the hunt for the most dedicated Star Wars fan. You may not be into art projects, but you might have an epic toy collection or a Star Wars-themed room in your house. Whatever it may be, we want to see it. … Read more

By now, you're probably a little bored of playing Angry Birds, but here's a new way to make it fun and challenging again.

Simon Ford over at Mbed has an awesome hack that lets you hurl your favorite fighting birds using a real slingshot. Inspired by a demo on how easy it is to build your own USB devices, the idea behind this DIY project is to turn the slingshot into a mouse.

The slingshot was actually handmade by Chris Jarratt using a branch he found in Epping Forest, London. Ford then hollowed out parts of the branch, … Read more

Every year, between the months of February and August, there's a feeling of emptiness that falls over me, and I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. American football fans know this to be the period of time when there is no college or NFL games, and when we turn into sad lots, feeling cold and alone on weekends and Monday nights.

So imagine my delight when I stumbled across this story about robots playing American football--two of my favorite things combined into one. Score, right? Well, sort of. Unfortunately, the game barely resembles American football, and the robots suck at it. … Read more

UCLA film school undergrad Michael Barryte of the Belated Media YouTube channel suggests a hypothetical story alteration to "Star Wars: Episode 1" that seems much more engaging than the original.

"Initially I wanted to do something on Episode I because of the rerelease, but I didn't want to bash the movie, because everyone's done that," Barryte told Crave in an e-mail. "So I started doing a video highlighting all the things that were good about the film, and that evolved into me just going through and taking those key points and 'rewriting' the whole thing."

I don't think the prequel is a total dud, but even I have some difficulty keeping track of the many plot holes and twists and turns in the story. Then there's the matter of the outspoken Jar Jar Binks, which is not exactly the most popular character in the Star Wars universe. … Read more