Gadgetopia

Anti-rocket laser cannon gets funding: Forget spy satellites — my new favorite way to spice up a conversation is to just blurt out “anti-rocket laser cannon!!” at random intervals.

“Israel and the U.S. are to spend at least $57 million for development of a laser cannon that can shoot down short-range missiles, an Israeli legislator and security officials said Tuesday.”

I swear, the world is turning into a G.I. Joe cartoon — and not the old G.I. Joe series with the foot-tall action figures. I’m talking about the little four-inch guys from the early 80s with the stupid code names who all shot laser rifles in the TV show because we were too young and impressionable to handle real bullets. They had stuff like anti-rocket laser cannons.

Anyway, the second story on this page is just as cool:

“Also Tuesday, the Maariv daily reported that a U.S.-Israeli company has developed a gun that can fire at right angles. According to the report, the pistol, produced by the Florida-based Corner Shot Holdings, is being tested by the Israeli military and has already been bought by a number of special forces around the world.”

There’s a picture, and it’s just nuts. Think of an M-16 with a hinge in the middle and a video camera on the front so you can see what you’re shooting at without having to stick your head around the corner.