Geek culture

We've seen an official Lego Sydney Opera House set before as part of the toy company's Architecture range, but let's be honest: an awful lot of detail got lost in the model's tiny size.

Lego's about to do something about that, though. On September 1, Lego fanatics will be able to get their hands on an insanely detailed 2,989-piece model of the iconic building designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon in the 1950s. And, at 11 inches by 25 inches by 15 inches, it's going to be huge.

The model is offering a few neat perks for Lego brick collectors: rare dark-tan Lego bricks, tiles, and sloped bricks, as well as the company's first-ever 48x48 stud baseplate in blue -- and the curved white pieces that form the Opera House's sails. … Read more

I don't generally consider gaming to be a relaxing activity. If I'm taking out zombies in Resident Evil, I'm on the edge of my seat. But it doesn't have to be that way. The PIP biosensor on Kickstarter wants gaming to be the road to relaxation.

There are two parts to this system. The first is the bionsensor that you hold between your thumb and forefinger. It communicates via Bluetooth to your Android or iOS device. A suite of game apps is available that works with the bionsensor.

Relax & Race, for example, lets you control … Read more

I don't get it. I'm gone an entire week and there's not one show. I get back, Justin's gone, but I still have to do one. What's up with that? Luckily it's a non-issue. Today we've got CNET HDTV editor Ty Pendlebury on the program to help me wrap up the chaos that was E3 2013 and filter out some of the new-found disgust I have for videogame fanboys. You know, the worst kind of fanboy.

- Check out Jeff's slideshow showing the most exciting games of E3.

- Play catch-up by looking back at the rest of CNET's E3 2013 coverage.

- Follow Ty on Twitter.

- ESPN drops 3D, four years after the rest of world has already given up on it. … Read more

We've been hearing about the possibility of 3D-printed, full-size houses for some time. We may even get our first one sometime this year, thanks to the efforts of a couple of different architectural firms. Now you can get an idea of what it would take to create your own home from 3D-printed blocks.

Real estate blog Movoto has created a "3D Print your House" calculator to give you the daunting numbers involved with using a 3D printer to make your abode. The numbers are based on the time and cost of materials of using a MakerBot Replicator 2 to print out plastic bricks.… Read more

The 2014 Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid goes on sale for $99,000 later this year. Or you could save $98,100 and go even greener with a human-powered Porsche Go-Kart. Not satisfied with just tackling the adult sports car market, the automaker is trying to corner the kids' market too.

The go-kart comes in a spiffy combination of black and orange. It's missing some of the luxuries normally associated with Porsche vehicles, like a windshield, headlights, and an engine. It can only hold up to 110 pounds, meaning you need to be a very small adult or one of the kids the kart is actually aimed at to take it for a spin.… Read more

Watchmaker Vianney Halter has produced some pretty stylish timepieces, but his latest is a bit of a departure, both in style and concept. The sci-fi fan has built a domed tourbillon watch called Deep Space, modeled after the "Star Trek" space station Deep Space 9.

The tourbillon -- a watchmaking component designed to counter the effect of gravity on a watch's movement to keep more accurate time -- sits bang in the center of the dial, proudly on display, while the blue hour and minute hands (the shorter hand is for hours) curve around it like the spires of Deep Space 9. … Read more

The CNET test cats don't lead very secret lives, mostly because they are indoors and easily located at any time (usually snoozing on a lap near the computer).

Other felines, however, are footloose and fancy-free. They step outside in the morning and don't show up again until supper time. Where do they go? What do they do? Researchers in England set about trying to answer those questions.

BBC Two's Horizon program and the Royal Veterinary College followed 50 cats in a Surrey village with GPS and micro-cameras. Cats were tracked over six different 24-hour periods to see where they went. A selection of 10 of the furry subjects can be viewed online, along with video clips of their activities.… Read more

The gaming world is all aflutter with the impending debut of the latest and greatest gaming consoles from Microsoft and Sony. It's been fun debating their strengths and weaknesses and design aesthetics, but this could potentially be the last go-round for the dedicated living room gaming console.

CNET Senior Editor Dan Ackerman talks about why he thinks the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 may be the last of their kind. One major factor is the move away from gaming on discs and the shift of entertainment consumption over to streaming services like Netflix.… Read more

For airplane enthusiasts, there's nothing quite like a first flight.

And for fans of Airbus' A350 XWB, this meant that Friday morning provided one of the best treats of all.

With thousands on hand near the Airbus headquarters in Blagnac, France (just outside Toulouse), its next-generation A350 XWB took off on its first flight this morning.

The A350 XWB is Airbus' response to three planes from archrival Boeing: the troubled but still popular 787 Dreamliner, as well as the 777 and 777-X. The new Airbus was designed to be one of the most fuel-efficient planes ever, thanks largely to … Read more